We Are His Workmanship

Happy 12 years legacy.

Got the family on stage here.

Yes.

Say hi.

And uh what a joy it has been.

12 years, you know, uh, as we reflect on legacy and 12 years, uh Katie and I always reflect on the people.

I mean, of course, you know, that have uh over the last decade, and all the people who have come through Legacy and what the Lord continues to do.

And uh you never know, you know, you take a step of faith and you look back and wonder what might happen, and then all of a sudden, like, wow, look what the Lord's done.

We we are in awe of uh the way people serve and help each other and give and take care of each other in this town, and so we're so blessed to be a part of it.

And this is our little crew here.

Katie and I will celebrate 15 years of marriage.

This uh just yes.

Uh in in in two weeks, babe.

In two weeks, 15 years of marriage.

And uh, this is our Eden.

Uh she's eight years old, and this is our She yes, this is Shep.

Shepard Banks, we call him Shep.

He's five years old, and this our little Wes, he's three years old, and so this is our little crew.

Thank you guys.

Eden, you want to tell tell everybody what your favorite thing about Legacy is?

Um, we learn about stuff and we love it so much.

That's good, that's good.

This is not rehearse.

Katie's like, do not rehearse.

Let's just see what they do.

Sheppy, what's your favorite thing about Legacy?

What do you think, dude?

Um, I think it's about um the bounce house.

The bounce house.

The bounce house.

That's true, buddy.

Wes, Wes, what's your favorite thing about Legacy Church, buddy?

Uh do you like do you like learning about Jesus?

Yeah.

Do you like the snacks?

Yeah.

What's your favorite snack?

Uh ice cream.

Ice cream.

And we got the ice cream, but CBT ice cream.

Babe, what's your favorite thing?

No, I'm just kidding.

Um, but uh what a joy it is again to be able to uh serve here at Legacy and love and serve you guys.

It really is it is a fabulous effort on our part.

Um we uh, you know, we I can't do it on my own.

My wife, my kids uh this is my first ministry, number one.

And when they amen.

And um and and and when this is firing well, you know, the church fires even better, you know, and then we can minister.

And so uh, you know, it started off very small.

It was just 20 people sitting, 25 people sitting right here.

And uh so it's it's really amazing to step back and see what God has done and what He will continue to do.

But uh, we love you um as a family, and uh we're so grateful.

This really is a community family church, and that's what we hope that it will continue to be here in LA.

Okay.

Uh love you, family, love you, Katie.

Thank you, babe, and thank you, my little kids, for love and legacy so well.

Let's give them a hand, uh say it up, you go ahead.

You guys want to say happy birthday, Legacy?

Okay, thank you guys.

Okay, all not rehearsed.

We just figured we would just let it, you know, let it fly and see what happens.

Um, but yeah, you know, as I uh as I reflect on this, the blessing of um my wife and my kids and all that the Lord is doing.

People ask me all the time, what are you up to?

What are you doing?

And it's like this season of life is basically I do church, I do uh I hang out with my wife and my kids, and that's it.

And that's what we do.

If we get a surf in, you know, that's great and repeat, but I've been talking to the guys about it quite a bit.

I can feel it already.

It's like the next 10 years will just flash, you know, it's it's that it's that zone where just nonstop uh, you know, school and sports and kids and trying to do marriage and family and church.

And so we're in the zone and I'm loving it.

I don't know what else I would do.

Honestly, I don't want to do anything else.

And so uh I'm glad that what to see what the Lord has done and what he will continue to do.

But really, legacy, this is uh more than a celebration of me and my wife and my kids.

It is it is a celebration of you, it's a celebration of the church.

And legacy cannot survive and cannot work and has never worked without all of these people giving of themselves uh in this city.

It's very difficult to do church in Los Angeles, it doesn't just happen.

Uh, you it it l uh Los Angeles makes it very difficult to do church and uh very difficult to come to church and very difficult to stay in this town long term.

And so, in order for this thing to continue to build and for relationships to build and intertwine and care for each other, it takes a lot, it takes grit.

Um, you know, if someone's been in LA for a little while, that they there's some grit there.

They've they've had to persevere through something in order to remain and keep pushing.

And so uh we celebrate you and uh we do it, we just throw a big party, happy birthday legacy, and uh so we got tons of food out there and uh and a lot of fun for the kids, and uh that's the point, is we just want to throw a big party, and uh, and more than anything, uh we want to say thank you to the Lord because this is it, it he's the one who started it, and he was the one who will finish it.

It's been his all along, it's been his for a thousand years, it'll remain his for thousands of years to come.

We are stewards of this this treasure, these pearls of great price that we get to handle for a little bit the gospel, his word, the church, and uh completely offer it back to him.

And so the sermon is bent that direction towards honoring him and celebrating him and all that he has done and completed in legacy.

Um, and so we celebrate him.

Can we clap for the Lord and say thank you?

Amen.

We love you, Lord.

And we are, it is, it is uh, it's it is his work, his workmanship.

This title of the sermon today, if you're taking notes, uh, we are his workmanship.

Ephesians chapter 2.

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

We will cover verses 1 to 10 in the text.

Heard of a story, maybe you heard of this one.

Couple was celebrating their golden wedding anniversary on the beaches of Hawaii.

Their lasting marriage had been the talk of the town for years, and people would say, What a peaceful and loving couple.

A local newspaper reporter asked them the secret.

What's the secret uh to your long and happy marriage?

Well, the husband replied, Well, it dates back to our honeymoon.

You see, we visited the Grand Canyon and took a trip down to the bottom of the Grand Canyon on horseback, and we hadn't gone too far when my wife's horse stumbled and almost fell, she almost fell off.

And my wife looked down at that horse and quietly said, That's one.

We went a little further and her horse stumbled a second time.

My wife quietly said to that horse, That's two.

We hadn't gone half a mile when the horse stumbled a third time.

My wife quietly pulled out a revolver out of her purse and said, That's three, and she shot the horse dead.

I shouted at her, What is wrong with you?

Why would you do something out of that poor animal?

Are you crazy?

She looked at me quietly and said, That's one.

And after that moment, we have lived happily ever after.

For the record, that is not the secret to our marriage.

Uh no, it's not.

But you know, it's fun to look back on life and ask, how in the world did we get here?

Uh when you're in the middle of it, you're just doing life, you're making real decisions, uh, you're trying to do the best that you can.

Uh, you set goals, you pick directions, uh, you pick places that you want to be, and then 20 years goes by and you look back and you say, Wow, uh, did I map this out?

How did I get here?

Uh I had plans, but God had different plans, and his plans were better.

And that's what these days feel like for me.

You know, years ago, I never would have imagined we would know this many people in LA and that we'd be so intertwined.

And uh, you could have never told me at 20 years old this is what will end up happening.

I could have never dreamed in a million years.

And um, even when it was happening, I remember when we were looking for a place to have church here in LA.

Katie and I drove down here for eight months trying to find a building.

Every building said no.

Many of you have heard the story before.

Every single place said no, you can't have a church here.

There's only one place that said yes, it's this place right here.

And uh it all happened so fast.

We put our house up for sale and it sold in eight days.

We figured we could take the cash and live off of it for a year and fund the church, and we'd be just fine.

And then all of a sudden everything just takes off.

The train just goes, and all of a sudden we're moved out here and we're living here.

We got no little kids.

Uh, it's just Katie and I trying to figure out the LA seems so big, you know, and the streets so long, and the signs, and all the people, and all the things.

And um, you know, it's it's uh it's wild looking back on 12 years and seeing uh what the Lord has done.

Through 2020 and back, legacy 2.0, we shrunk to 40 people.

Did you know that?

Our smallest Sunday ever, 40 people, yeah.

Pretty crazy.

And and now uh the church is rebuilt uh greater than it was prior.

And um, and so we stand back and we just say, wow, look what the Lord has done.

Uh we were just looking that the the the reviews on Google and Yelp are like going off right now.

Thank you very much.

We we've crossed we have 108 reviews, like 98% of them are absolutely like through the roof.

Like it it really, this is a warm community uh family church.

And you know, I came from a mega church, and so I know the contrast.

15,000 people, and then stepping into LA and building this community.

I I can feel that more than ever, that people are looking for a place where they can feel warmth and they can feel a little bit of authenticity and truth and feel some family community.

They want people to know their name, they want to know some people's names.

We don't need to know a hundred, we just want to know five.

You know, it's very simple.

We want to be prayed for and encouraged.

And um, as much as I tried to build out all the bells and whistles of legacy, we're just not a fancy church.

It's just uh it is what it is, it's what you see.

And uh and and I and I what I've grown to love is I think that's kind of the way that LA wants it a bit.

Like they they they they touch and go.

Everybody wants to know that they have someone that will pray for them, encourage them, and cheer them on in this town.

They can find a place to come worship and meet with God.

But then also it's not a place that they're gonna dwell at like seven days a week, you know, which is uh most churches throughout America, you know.

So it it it's it's built its own personality and its own genre, to which I'm very pleased and very thankful to the Lord for.

But um I'm just in awe, you know.

Um old men told me when we first started this just preach the word, love the people, preach the word, love the people, preach the word, love the people, and that's it.

Um we're not you we're probably not gonna have any more bells and whistles.

What you see is what you get, and uh it's remains simple, and we we love it that way.

And we got air conditioning, that's pretty good.

And uh and we got CVT ice cream truck out there, you know.

Um that is the best ice cream uh in Los Angeles, no doubt, and it's here.

So this is good.

Um, but praise God he has placed us here.

There was no strategy.

Uh how'd you get on Laurel Canyon Ventura Boulevard?

I don't know.

Um God just, this is the only place.

There was a security guard named Lorenzo that walked in here, said, Hey, you think we can rent this place and do a church?

She's like, Yeah.

I'm like, really?

And uh walked over to the administrative bill.

Yeah, you can do it when you want to start.

What, what?

And um and here we are, right in the middle of a silver triangle.

It's unbelievable.

And so um we're very thankful to the Lord, yes.

Uh the Puritan Thomas Brooks once said, a man is better to say there is no God than to say that God is not faithful.

The Lord is faithful.

And I think that this is this is something we have to reflect on over in the story of your life, in the journey of your life.

Um, even if you're questioning today, you have to understand, listen to the saints of old.

God is faithful.

Um, really, you know, through every high, through every low, he has been faithful.

And that's what I reflect on here at our church.

Uh the title of the sermon today, we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works.

Um, it was him from the beginning.

If he didn't move on this 16, 17-year-old kid and move him to want to teach the Bible and love people.

Um, I would have never been forced or pushed into the steps of learning the Bible and stepping into ministry, and I would have never been forced into by my wife encouraging me to take the step of faith.

Come on, let's go.

Let's go to LA.

What are you doing?

Let's go.

What are you waiting for?

Abraham left his land not knowing where he was going by faith.

He left.

She gave me that verse, leave your land.

And uh we left the land and we sold the house and we moved.

But it was all God's doing, prompting my wife's heart, prompting our hearts to step out and then continue to push, and then prompting your heart to take a step of faith and to love God and love his word.

And um, you know, if you found legacy and you stayed, you it's for a very specific reason.

Um we either uh we either keep people very long term or we scare them away.

Um we're we're a very niche genre uh here in Los Angeles.

We are the only church uh left in Studio City teaching the Bible.

There is not one other church here.

By the grace of God, we're here.

Um I hope there will be 10 more churches, for sure.

Um, but um, but we are here and and we're not struggling.

Um we're thriving, and um we're not in need.

You're very generous.

Um we're not we we we have amazing volunteers, we have amazing help.

Like the church just continues to compound and grow.

And again, this is God's work and God's doing.

And so we're gonna reflect on this in Ephesians chapter 2, um, and we're gonna read verses 1 through 10.

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

Can we stand for the reading of God's word?

We always stand for the reading of God's word here at Legacy to honor him and to remember him.

Remember, it's his word.

And God tells us that he honors his word above his own name.

And what he has said, he means, and what he has said he keeps.

And so we we just stand for a moment just to remember whose word it is, who it belongs.

And I'm the delivery boy for the day.

I am the mail carrier here to tell you and try to tell you what God has said.

And so we stand to read it and to remember once again today.

Ephesians chapter 2, take a look at verse 1.

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

We'll read to verse 10.

The apostle Paul writes, And you were dead in your trespasses and sin, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience, among whom we all also formerly conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, doing the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and we were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.

But God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he has loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, he made us alive together in Christ.

By grace you have been saved and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places and in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come he might show the surpassing riches of his grace and kindness towards us in Christ Jesus.

For by grace you have been saved through faith.

This is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, so that no one may boast, for we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus, for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

Let's pray.

Father, we thank you for the work that you have done in us, and no one will boast of themselves in heaven.

We will boast if we would boast in anything, boast in this, God, you say that you that you know that they know and understand me, says the Lord.

Jeremiah chapter 9, Lord, and we boast in you that we know and understand you, that we are with you.

Jeremiah 9 · chapter mention

And we thank you for the work that you've started in us and the work that you will complete.

Uh Lord, this is your church.

It has been your church from the beginning, it will be your church in the end.

And we worship you, we bless you, and we say thank you for giving us this church.

And we ask God that we would continue to be your workmanship into the future, that for decades to come we would bring you great glory.

Speak to us through your word, remind us of who we are, where we came from, where we are going, and what you are doing in us, that we would boast in you.

We ask it now in Jesus' name.

Amen.

You can be seated.

Uh, this morning I want to really zero in on one verse, verse 10.

Uh, but before we get there, we need a little context.

Um, verse 10 is the mountaintop.

Verses 1 through 9 are kind of the climb to get there.

The Apostle Paul is laying out what a new life in Christ looks like, where we started, and where God is taking us.

Everyone is on a journey.

And here's the good news: that God knows the path.

He knows your journey.

Uh, from beginning to end, he is the author and finisher of your faith.

He is the author.

He's writing the thing word by word.

He's written it word by word.

Proverbs 16, 9 says, The heart of a man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.

In verses 1 through 3, Paul doesn't sugarcoat it.

He tells us who we are or who we were.

Dead in our sin, not sick, not struggling.

Uh, he uses the word dead.

Pretty wild word there, huh?

Dead spiritually, walking in the ways of the world, zombies.

Uh, zombies, dead, uh, walking dead, um, alive but completely dead, alive in the world, spiritually dead.

It's a crazy picture.

Um, running away from God, um, doing our own thing on the highway to hell, literally.

And then comes two of the greatest words in the whole Bible that we see over and over, and here it is in verse 4.

But God.

There they are, a bunch of zombies walking around hurting and hating and killing each other, destroying the earth.

But God.

Uh being rich in mercy because of the great love with which he loved us.

Even when we were dead in our trespasses, he made us alive.

Now, can you raise yourself from the dead?

No, I don't know how.

We need somebody else to resurrect us.

He made us alive, together with Christ.

By grace you have been saved, verse 6, and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.

Unbelievable.

We go from dead to seated with Christ in the heavenly places.

That's a that's an upgrade, that's a promotion, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace and kindness towards us in Christ Jesus.

So so he's doing all of this.

Why?

So that he can show us the immeasurable, immeasurable riches of his grace.

He's doing it so he can bless you more into eternity.

It's like I know you've done great wrong, and I know you were dead, but I'm gonna make you alive, and what do you want to do?

It's it's your day.

I want to go to my favorite restaurant in town, pick it, we're spending 500 bucks on the check.

You order to the moon, taste every just one bite of everything, whatever you want.

Wow, that's kind of a bit much, don't you think?

You've seated me next to Christ at the table.

That's a nice meal.

No, no, no.

I've seated you at the table in order to show you something even greater, the immeasurable riches of his grace.

Now we're going to Disneyland.

And we're going to enjoy everything you could ever imagine for a week straight.

Why would you do that?

I was dead in my trespasses.

I'm doing that to show you who I am.

I'm just doing that to show you.

For when you see who I am, it causes everything in you to glow.

It causes everything in you to love.

It blows your mind, it blows your heart.

Causes you to be in awe.

It's like seeing the greatest sunset at times a thousand, times a million.

You guys see that one the other night?

Oh my gosh.

And God commanding us to glorify him, he is inviting us to enjoy him forever.

It's an unbelievable idea.

Why has he created us?

He created us to watch the greatest show for all of eternity.

Do you know who that is?

It's him.

He's made us to be attracted to his show forever.

And we lock eyes with him and his grace and his immeasurable riches.

It blows our mind for all of eternity.

The earth is a glimpse of it, a glimpse of his glory.

And when you get to see that for all of eternity, you'll get chills forever.

Your mind will be blown over and over forever and ever and ever.

And what an adventure that will be.

God loved us so much that even though we're dead in our sin, because of his rich mercy, he raised us to life in Jesus and his resurrection.

And that is resurrection for us.

We were dead and now we are alive.

And he raises us to abundant life here on earth and to eternal life in heaven.

And in the ages to come, he will pour out his immeasurable riches of his grace and his kindness towards us.

It doesn't get any better.

He pulls us out of the darkness of this world and tries to give us life in that abundantly in real time.

And you watch us struggle with this.

He's literally trying to bless you, and you're like, ah, I got to run back to the mud.

And it's like, no, I'm trying to bless you.

I got to get back in the mud.

You know, it's like, get out of the mud.

Look at God.

Can you believe this?

We were dead doing nothing for God, and he showed up, saved us, and he redeemed us.

He blesses us.

And listen, here's the kicker.

Verse 8 for by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing.

It is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one can boast.

No one can boast that they did anything.

God did everything.

And think about it.

We were dead.

Did you raise yourself to life?

Did you do anything?

Did you resurrect yourself?

Of course not.

A dead man can't do anything.

We have nothing to boast in.

This is not your own doing.

It is a gift.

What if somebody tried to give you a gift and you're like, I deserve that?

You're like, dude, I just bought you a brand new car.

Are you kidding me?

It's a gift.

Don't you see the bow on the car?

Aren't you excited about the new car smell?

Get in.

No, I deserve this.

Wow.

It literally says in the text, it is a gift.

You know what that word in the Greek means?

A gift.

It's been given to you apart from anything that you have done.

It's been given to you.

It's unbelievable.

God packaged off the most beautiful gift ever and he gave it to the earth.

Forgiveness in his son.

In his mercy, love, and grace, he chose to redeem us.

And Paul makes this very same point in Romans chapter 4, verse 2.

Romans 4:2

For if Abraham, he says, was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God.

Nope.

For what does the scripture say?

Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him as righteousness.

Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift, but as his due.

And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted to him as righteousness.

Friends, it's simple.

God simply gave you a gift because he wanted to.

And it challenges you to reflect on who he actually is.

Why would you give such a great gift?

Those are the greatest gifts, you know what I mean?

When you know someone is giving something to you that they should never do, and you're literally like, what do you want from me?

And you discover they really are just giving it to you because they love you.

And that's hard to deal with because we're in such a performance-based society.

We always think somebody wants to get something from us, but man, when you discover, like, wow, that guy just, that girl, they just really just blessed me.

You're that kind of person.

Wow, thank you.

That's God.

That's the root, the core of who he is.

He didn't have to create us, he didn't have to do this whole thing.

He did it to bless us.

To bring himself ultimate glory is to bless us at maximum capacity.

It's unbelievable.

Let's put it all together.

We were dead, running from God and his mercy, love, and grace.

He raised us to life and saved us.

He gave us a gift that no one can boast they earned.

Why?

Why would he do that?

Here it is, verse 10.

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

For we are his, verse 10.

Point number one, if you're taking notes, we are his workmanship.

We belong to God.

Would you say it with me?

We are his.

We are his.

One more time.

We are his.

We are his workmanship.

Something he has made, God's work.

The Greek word here is the word poema.

It is simply means a thing that is made.

And it is where we get our English word poem.

Poema.

English word poem.

You are God's poem.

Here's what's beautiful.

This word only shows up twice in the entire New Testament.

Once here, describing you.

We are his poema, his workmanship.

And the other time it shows up is in Romans chapter 1, verse 20, describing the universe which he made.

Romans 1:20

We are his workmanship, poema, and he made the universe, poema.

His beauty.

Verse Romans chapter 1, verse 20, for the invisible things from of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made.

Romans 1:20

His workmanship, his poema, the poema, even his eternal power and Godhead, so that they are not without, or so that they are without excuse.

He's talking about those who don't believe in God, and he's saying they are without excuse.

His invisible attributes are clearly seen throughout the universe.

All you gotta do is look up.

All you gotta do is zoom in on any plant, on any animal.

Unbelievable, what has been created and made.

Think about that.

The same God who hung the stars and carved out the canyons and set the oceans in their place with his own hands for his glory and his purpose has created you for his glory and his purpose.

The earth and everything in it is his workmanship, and we, his people, are his workmanship.

When we talk about someone's workmanship, we are talking about their craft.

Whether it's excellent or poor, you walk into a kitchen and say the workmanship on these cabinets is remarkable.

Who made these?

You're not really praising the wood, you're praising the craftsman, right?

So how can we be God's workmanship, God's craft, God's masterpiece?

You gotta look at this next phrase that sits there, created in Christ Jesus for good works.

Point number two, if you're taking notes, we have been created in Christ, in the Lord Jesus for good works.

This is the craftsmanship.

We've been crafted with the same excellence as the universe itself for good works in Christ Jesus to declare the glory of God.

John Corson gives a great picture of this.

He writes in verse 10, we see God's work through us, the Greek word translated workmanship, poema, from which we get our word poem, thus we are God's poetry.

And he writes, on my way to uh a shop in Oregon a number of years ago, I stopped by the side of the road at a little craft area where wood carvings of bears and eagles and Indians were for sale.

I thought they were pretty good until I learned that they were crafted without hand tools or chisels of any sort, but with only chainsaws.

Then I thought they were incredible, he says.

The same is true of you and me.

You might think that you're not very impressive, but look in the mirror and consider what God had to work with.

There is no shortage of those who say, uh, you Christians aren't all that great.

I see all kinds of insistencies and hypocrisies and problems with you.

John writes, when I hear that, I don't defend myself, nor do I defend you.

I simply say you're right.

But you wouldn't believe how bad we used to be.

If you only knew how bad we used to be, you would realize that compared to our former state, we're poetry.

Love that.

God saved us, redeemed us, and raised us to life in Christ, so he could work in us through us to produce good works for his glory.

Now hear me on this.

We are not saved by good works.

We are saved for good works.

Verse 8 and 9 tell us how we're saved by grace.

And verse 10 tells us why we were saved to walk in good works.

Titus 2.13, waiting for our blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself up for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

Matthew 5.16, let your light so shine before men and women that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

God saved us so that we would walk in good works for his glory.

We weren't just rescued, we were saved and ultimately recruited into his family for his glory.

We are on mission here in this town.

To invite other people to come and worship God.

It's that simple.

On your journey, in your neighborhood, in your workplace with your family and friends, wherever you're, you're on the journey.

Please take your craft, whatever you do, and do it amazing.

Be the best.

Do it for God's glory.

And as you do that, while you're on the journey, just invite people to come worship God.

You're made to worship God.

Come and come and worship.

Invite them to be forgiven of their sin.

Invite them to find the God who made them.

And watch how God wants to take them and resurrect them to life.

We say, love God, love people, and get on enjoying the earth.

Get on enjoying life.

Enjoy the life that God has given you.

And on the journey, just invite those around you to come and worship.

You're gonna have lots of opportunity over the years.

People are having difficult times, people are struggling, they're going through all kinds of things.

Or they just hit the jackpot.

And they got that promotion, they got that gig, and they got that the business is firing, and the things happen.

They made more money than they could ever imagine.

And they're at the top of the pinnacle and they're just sitting there, like, wow, I just ask them, you know what the purpose is of all of that?

Is it just to gather more tokens?

See who wins?

You're made to worship God with all that's been given to you.

And you feel empty until you figure that out.

Verse 10 says, We are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand.

Wild statement.

This is point number three, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Did you know that?

That God planned beforehand to save you, redeem you, and use you for good works right here in the city of Los Angeles, right here in Studio City.

God knew when and how he would save you, and he knows when and how he will use you, and he knows when and how he will perfect you, and he knows when and how he will humble you, and he knows when and how he will save people through you.

God knows when, and God knows how, and God has you exactly where he wants you.

Did you know that?

Some of you are like, I cut I don't like where I'm at right now.

He has you where he wants you, and if he wanted you somewhere else, you would be there.

So it must be for a purpose, must be for a reason.

We have to live a little while for us to be able to reflect back on life and look at more difficult situations and try and connect the dots and say, Oh, I see what you were doing there.

You were leading me to that.

It's really wild.

You sit down and try to journal the details of your life and how you met that person and how that connection happened, how this thing happened.

I mean, unbelievable.

You start going all the way back to the moment you're born, you know, and the time and the and the delay, and even parents as they're having kids and reflecting on like it was supposed to be this due date, and it was pushed a week later or a week earlier, whatever it may be.

There are all these things in the timeline.

You think about it, it's like how much that changes the trajectory of life.

It's like, you know, it's like it born at that time a week early, and then that makes you hit that stoplight at that time and turn right because the person there, and then you had to go to the restroom and you went in.

The coffee shop was there, so you got a coffee, you talk to the person at the counter, person at the counter, you end up marrying and having a family.

It's unbelievable to watch the details of how things stack and how you got there, and then try to navigate as to why and what happened.

He has you exactly where he wants you.

Some of you are sitting here today wondering, why am I in this season?

Why am I in this city?

Why this job, this struggle, this waiting?

Friend, you are not an accident, you're not the afterthought, you are handcrafted work of God.

And he prepared good works for you before you ever looked for your first breath.

He has prepared them beforehand that you should walk in them.

And the good works are sitting right in front of you.

He has a great map in front of you.

V.

Raymond Edmund said, delay never thwarts God's purposes, it only polishes his instruments.

C.S.

Lewis said, God is not hurried along in the time stream of this universe any more than an author is hurried along in the imaginary time of his own novel.

God is not hurried.

We are, huh?

We're always in a hurry.

Like no one's never not busy these days, and no one's never not in a hurry.

I hate that I say this so much.

It bothers me.

It is true.

But you know what God thinks?

Jeremiah 1, verse 5, he says this about the timeline.

Jeremiah 1:5

Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you.

And before you were born, I consecrated you.

I appointed you a prophet to the nations, Jeremiah.

If God has appointed Jeremiah to the nations as a prophet before he was even born, he knew him and he knew the plan for his life.

How much more has he done it for his people?

Ephesians chapter 1, verse 4 Even as he chose us in him before the foundations of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.

Ephesians 1:4

Jeremiah 29, 11, God says, For I know the plans I have for you, people, declares the Lord, plans for welfare, not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

And we do know that generally God has an ultimate plan to bring himself glory and to make us more like Christ and to cause all things to work together for good to those who love him and are called according to his purpose.

And we are called according to his purpose, and he is working it out for good.

It may not feel good in the process, but I would encourage you to cherish these seasons, especially if you're in a difficult season and your heart is sensitive towards the Lord.

This is good.

Because sometimes when we get on the mountaintop highs, like we don't we don't feel anything anymore.

Everything's going so great.

I don't need God right now, actually.

I'm just firing on all cylinders.

But it is amazing when the rug gets pulled out of our lives.

We are on our knees, huh?

Crying out, God is nearer than ever.

We are face to face with them, begging him to show up.

And then he redeems everything, he makes all things good again.

And then we're like, where is God?

Haven't talked to him in a couple months.

Legacy, this church is a living testimony of God's plan and work.

Legacy, we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

God knew about legacy long before I did.

Do you know that?

Yeah.

It's his work.

It was his poema, his workmanship.

And he's done it and he's going to continue to do it.

Point number four, that we should walk in them.

And we will continue to walk in them.

And who's going to stop us?

You know, this city's wild.

We've had a lot of attacks on this church already.

Did you know that?

It's kind of fun now.

It's like at first you're so nervous the church is going to fall apart.

You're like, ah, it's fragile.

It's like we're going to lose everything and people are going to leave and all this stuff.

And I've just watched the church go through so many battles and so many things.

I'm like, I'm more secure in him than ever before.

Just like, you can try.

You can break my hands, you can't break his hands.

And he will accomplish his purpose.

So if you want to go toe to toe with the Lord, like you're in big trouble.

The enemy would love to destroy this church, but God will not let him.

We have an amazing family of people here, and God will carry out his plan.

He will get his glory through this church in Studio City.

He will get his glory.

Think about what the Lord has done.

He saved me, redeemed me, brought Katie and I here, brought the team and this family here.

He gave us a place to meet and worship.

He provided the money we needed to pay the rent.

He made a way to see people saved and baptized.

People are being loved and served in this city.

Disciples are being made.

And church is here.

It's actually happening.

And this is just the beginning.

And God is doing that work, and He's continuing to do that work.

1 Corinthians 2 9, no eye has seen, no ear has heard, no eye has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him.

1 Corinthians 2.9.

Many are the plans in a man's heart, but the purpose of the Lord will prevail.

Proverbs 19, 21.

And who can stop the Lord Almighty?

I mean, I really do sit on this.

I thought COVID and all the crazy and watching the industry shut down and people leave Los Angeles.

And the same is happening now.

Oh no, paramount's leave it.

You know, all the things, you know, it's like all the things.

And uh is the Lord like pacing in heaven?

Oh no.

What's happening down there?

I don't know if they're gonna make it.

He's not worried at all, is he?

He knows his plans, he knows what's going to happen.

And so it's it's you just need to be able to watch his plans for a little while.

Like kind of like watch his navigation system and see how many wrong turns he makes.

And you when you watch, you're like, he kind of got the navigation system kind of dialed like better than I do.

Like, maybe I should stand back and just trust and let go and just see what God does.

That's hard for humans to do.

We want to control everything.

I love to I I want to set a plan and a trajectory, and we will meet it.

I like that.

I can measure it.

Um but I I measured, I measured certain things for this church.

Trust me.

By year five, by year ten.

And when the Lord says no, that's a hard one.

He's like, I got other things though.

But then when you see the other things are beautiful, you're like, okay, I trust you above myself.

Father knows best.

Again, who can stop the Lord Almighty?

I mean, nobody in LA, that's for sure.

And today I want to thank the Lord Jesus for.

His faithfulness to us.

If he hadn't saved us, guess what?

We wouldn't be here.

No church, no good works, no 12 years.

We have nothing to boast in but the Lord.

Amen.

C.S.

Lewis said something about the faithfulness of God that I love.

Never, never pin your whole faith on a human being.

Not if he is the best and wisest in the whole world.

There are lots of nice things you can do with sand, but never build your house on the sand.

You build it on the rock.

And we're seeing that right now with all these hurricanes.

Great little illustration picture.

Never build your house on the sand.

We got pylons, don't do it.

You build it on the rock.

The Lord Jesus is the rock.

He said, On this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

People always want to bring me bad news.

You know, like, oh no, this is happening.

What are you gonna do?

This is happening.

Oh no, the church, they're gonna do this, ah, the world this, and they're making these decisions, and the world leaders, and ah, we're gonna.

I mean, we literally got kicked out of our location and we're meeting over on the we were out, we were out for eight months sitting on the grass with 40 people.

And I was just like, dude, this is it, the whole thing's over, the game's over.

And now I'm looking at this.

So I you know what I mean?

Like, you can't, if you I I I yeah, okay, pastor had off side, side talk.

I firmly believe that if you just seek the Lord in prayer, you go after his word, you preach that.

You love people, you serve people, you keep ministering the gospel.

You don't, you don't need all the bells and whistles, you don't need all the things.

Like the Lord will just continue to pour out his blessing.

He will, his spirit will continue to show up where his word is open open and where people are seeking him.

And that's it at the end of the day.

Um, when it when it gets away from that, that's it.

The church loses its lampstand, the fire is taken away.

And so we want us to do it at 101 things uh to make the church better.

And um it's wild when you first start out, you know, you're debating over like um should you have coffee or not, and it's gonna be folgers and it's gonna be drip coffee, right?

And fast forward, you know, 10 years you're talking, you know, you're you're talking espresso machines and what type of beans, and you know, we're like mapping out all of the, which is great.

What I'm saying is that's what happens.

It all starts off warm and seeking the Lord and amazing.

And if you let man step in too much, he will over-organize the thing and he will make it so unbelievably not warm and and this this monster thing, and it gets out of control, and then you're like, what in the world is going on?

And so we keep it simple for that very reason.

Philippians chapter 1, verse 6, I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Christ Jesus.

Philippians 1:6

The Lord continues to work in you, even in spite of you.

He started it and he will finish it.

It's not up to you.

Uh, you take steps of faith one day at a time, and he will complete the journey.

Uh, that's what I figured out.

That's the only thing I know.

I don't know where I'm going, I don't know what I'm doing, I don't know where the journey is going.

I just know I'm gonna keep walking with him one day at a time, keep preaching the word, keep loving the people, and then he will take us down whatever path and journey he sees fit.

Uh you try, you try to map the whole thing.

This is gonna be this way, and it uh it never works out your way.

It always works out God's way.

Uh Psalm 138, verse 8, the Lord will fulfill his purpose for me.

Psalms 138:8

Oh Lord, your loving devotion endures forever.

Do not abandon the works of your hands.

2 Timothy 2 13, even if we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny himself.

He is the constant, we are not.

Uh I have to confess something to you.

There have been many moments of faithlessness over these twelve years.

Many moments of doubt and me wondering if it's going to work out.

Uh, moments of fear, moments where I wondered if we're ever going to make it, and by the grace of God, he has remained faithful anyways.

And because that's who he is.

He stayed with me, and he carried us, and he keeps bringing his plan to fruition, and no one can stop him.

And I try to keep reminding myself of that.

Um, because that what's what seems to be true.

This isn't my work, it's his.

He will complete his plan, he will save, he will restore, he will redeem, he will remain faithful.

He cannot deny his own character.

And he has told us, church, I will never leave you nor forsake you.

Not only will he remain faithful when he's there, then he doubles down and he says, I will now never leave you nor forsake you.

What a good father in a fatherless generation.

So many not heard that from their dads.

I will never leave you nor forsake you.

God says it very clearly to his church, he will carry us to the very end.

God is always going to be there.

Even if you try to run from them, you know, he's gonna run you down.

You can't get away.

You're stuck with the Father.

And he's fast.

I thought I was fast.

He will be there working out his plan in your life no matter what.

Even in the dark days, he's still working.

And he today he says to you and me, I love you no matter what.

I will be faithful to complete my work, even on the days you doubt, I will be with you.

That's all that Moses needed to hear from the Lord at the burning bush.

I will be with you.

And friend, that's all that you need to hear today.

Maybe you're here today and you've never received this gift of God.

Uh you're still living in verses one through three, dead in sin, doing your own thing, running from God.

I want you to know, but God is for you.

You can't earn it, you don't have to.

It's a gift God wants to give to you, and he wants to bring forgiveness of your sin and make you new and bring you into relationship with him and resurrect your life and bring you into good works for the rest of your life.

I'm gonna pray for you as we close.

You can commit your life to the Lord.

You can give your life to him if you want to.

Make him Lord and Savior over your life.

Not gonna follow my ways anymore.

If any man would come after me, let him deny himself.

I gotta deny me, yeah.

I gotta say no to me, huh?

Yes.

If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself, Jesus said.

Take up his cross and follow me.

It's the best thing you'll ever do.

Follow your ways, you'll ruin your whole life.

You follow his ways, you're gonna have a blessed life, no doubt.

Legacy, I love you.

Thank you for being faithful all these years.

Thanks for serving, helping, and giving and sacrificing to make disciples in this city.

You know, LA is not easy, but you have stayed, and thank you for continuing on with Katie and I.

And thank you for loving us so well.

We have incredible leadership, we have incredible staff, we have incredible volunteers.

You have no clue uh the amount of lifting that takes place every single week to make this thing happen.

Um, and I'm very grateful, and I'm just blown away.

So here's the 12 years to every good work God has prepared beforehand.

Let us walk in them.

Let us walk, continue to walk in them, and bring Him glory in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Let's pray.

Father, we bless you and we thank you, and we honor you.

Yeah, it's not my doing.

Nope.

100% your doing.

And we are in awe that you we are in awe when you do things outside of ourselves, to which we can't even scratch our heads and figure out how it happened.

We just want to say thank you.

And we ask, God, as we take our little broken pieces out of our pocket and try to strategize and figure things out for our lives, that you would take these little broken pieces and you would use them for your glory anyways.

Thank you, Lord, for going with us.

I pray for those here today who maybe don't feel completely connected to you.

God, that you would forgive their sin, that you'd set them free, that you give them life in that abundantly, that they would call upon the name of Jesus to save them from their sins, save them from the wrong direction, trajectory of their life, running away from you, God.

And they would start running to you with all of their lives.

They would make you Lord and master over their lives.

They would bow the knee, make you king.

That you would be the God of their lives.

We would not be the God of our own lives any longer, that we would submit to you and walk with you, and God, that you would bless our path.

Uh, we turn our lives over to you again.

We commit our lives to you.

We commit this church to you again.

We we dedicate it to you again, and we ask that you would give us another year for your glory.

We ask it in Jesus' name.

Amen.