Matthew 25:31-26:16 | Kingdom Now: The Heart Always Leaves Evidence

Thank you for your generosity.

We say all the time that you don't give to us.

You give through us.

Jameson YC is a perfect example of that.

So thank you for your generosity in enabling us to continue

to spread God's kingdom, not just locally, but around the world as well as we do.

So thank you also for your generosity and helping make the little entryway

renovation happen. And the new chair.

Some of you have been very generous towards that end.

Thank you. If you haven't

participated with us in that, you're missing out on a huge blessing.

Getting to be part of the ones who make this stuff happen.

So jump on with us.

There's there's not just by giving resources,

but a lot of a lot of people put a lot of time and energy into this.

And God has given some people skill to do stuff

with their hands that I don't possess.

And some of those guys have worked very hard at this renovation

project specifically, you know, Rob, he's sitting right over there

a ton of time and energy.

And Tom also, and Thomas

and Mauricio and Jeff McClure with the lights and all kinds of stuff.

Matt Willis, business, Valley Powerhouse

Electric have just been so good to us.

Jim kind of right and heard on the whole thing and Heather's decorations.

If you love the decorations, it's Heather.

If not, it's the youth pastors fault.

I think we'll just leave it at that.

But anyway, there have just been a lot of people had a lot of hands in doing this.

So I just want to express my great gratitude

and thanks to this church.

I also want to invite you on Tuesday, Tuesday

evening to our all church prayer meeting as well.

So you're welcome to come to that.

It would be a benefit to you and a benefit to our community

as we implore God to do what only he can do.

Jamison mentioned all those statistics about

students and young ones who are just struggling right now,

and programing is good,

but the only true cure and help is Christ.

So I invite you to pray with us over all that on Tuesday morning as a church,

we're going to wrap up Matthew 25

today and introduce Matthew 26.

If you've been with us through this series, we've talked about

how from Matthew 21 through Matthew 25,

like all of this, there's a there's so much in those chapters.

All takes place on the Tuesday prior to Crucifixion Friday.

So Tuesday was a huge day for Jesus.

Overturns the tables in the temple.

He he presses into the the

the religious authorities, the curse of the fig tree and the prophecy

of what that means and all the questions by the religious leaders.

And he bests all of them like this.

It's all this stuff in these chapters.

All happens on Tuesday. It's huge.

And it

culminates in, in Matthew 25, the end of Matthew 25 today.

And then Matthew

26 kind of kicks off on Wednesday, and Jesus takes a break on Wednesday.

And that's when that's when all the plans start to be formulated

for his crucifixion.

And as we've looked through this, one of the things I hope that

we've we've realized is that Jesus is orchestrated all of this.

It's not as if one day he, you know, he's fed up with the

with the people selling the doves and the sheep in the temple.

And he just has enough. Enough's enough.

And just, you know, overthrows the temple and makes everybody upset.

He's orchestrated all of this so that the crucifixion

will happen on this specific Friday that's coming.

He didn't lose his cool and blow it.

He knew that he had to be crucified.

He knew that the Romans were the only ones who could carry out crucifixion.

And he knew it had to be on this specific Friday because of prophecies

in the book of Daniel and all this stuff.

And so he's working this week to set things in motion

so that after Tuesday, the flywheel spinning

and he knows what, he knows what's going to happen on Friday.

But it's all at his orchestration. This is not my accident.

It's not my chance. He's not a victim.

He's completely in charge.

And in the last part of Matthew 25

is going to be the final words that he's going to to teach

before he just shut it down and let's and let's the

let's it lets it go knowing what's coming.

And so I developed a big idea for us to give us an understanding

as we walk through the end of 25 and open up

chapter 26 and chapter 26, we're going to see three people

or groups of people, the religious leaders Mary and Judas.

And so to understand what's happening

in their lives and and why they respond the way they do.

And wrap up 25 here's the big idea.

Devotion to Jesus begins in the heart,

but never stays hidden there because the heart always leaves evidence.

We're going to see that in Matthew 25 and Matthew 26.

Devotion to Jesus always begins inside in the heart,

but it never remains there,

the heart always.

These evidence what the heart, whether it's good or evil,

these evidence of of it good or evil.

And we're going to see that

the fact is that everyone's heart towards Jesus becomes visible.

Everyone's heart towards Jesus becomes visible.

It doesn't remain hidden for good or for ill.

And so I want to read I want to read this last portion

of Matthew 25, little section by section, kind of unpack it.

If you've been around church for any length of time,

you've probably heard this, this teaching before,

what Jesus is going to say it.

It'll sound somewhat familiar to you,

but I think in the American evangelical church, we've misunderstood

Jesus's intent

when he spoke it, and we've kind of morphed it into something

that kind of fits our narrative and our agenda.

But it's different than what Jesus originally intended.

Now they'll be application to how it's commonly understood.

And I'm going to talk about all that.

But but let the words hit your ears

and then just stay with me as I unpack.

I think Jesus is intent when he spoke these words.

Matthew 25

A starting of verse 31,

When the Son of Man comes in his glory,

and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.

Now Jesus says, listen, it's going to culminate with the Son of God

coming back, the Son of Man coming back with all these angels are going to attend.

And at this point, I think the disciples were like,

well, yeah, this is exactly what I signed up for.

Like, bring it, let's go up and to the right all the time.

This is fantastic.

So that's kind of where he's thinking and Jesus

is going to address that attitude is beginning Matthew 26.

But right now they're like, okay, all right, I'm tracking with you.

Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate

people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.

And again, in their minds, they're tracking with Jesus 100%

because this was common to their experience shepherds, sheep and goats.

And in the Jewish mindset,

they thought in terms of clean and unclean.

Well, like what God approved of, what God disapproved of, clean and unclean.

And both sheep and goats were clean animals.

They're both clean.

Like it wasn't that that that one is is is clean and one's dirty

like they're both clean animals.

And as a shepherd had both sheep and goats.

Oftentimes the herd was comprised of both.

They all mingled together during the day.

You really couldn't tell them apart, necessarily, but at night

the shepherd would separate them, because the sheep can be out in the cold

and be fine.

But the goats had to kind of be under closure to be okay.

And so this is all common to their experience.

They understand the shepherd, the sheep and the goats, the interest

and the separation that has to happen at some point.

And so there. Yeah.

No problem.

We got you, we got you.

And so then Jesus says,

verse 33, and

he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left.

Then the king will say

to those on his right, come, you who are blessed by my father, inherit

the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

For I was hungry, and you gave me food, I was thirsty,

you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me.

I was naked and you clothed me.

I was sick and you visited me.

I was in prison and came to me.

Then the righteous will answer him, saying, Lord, when, when, when did we see

you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?

And when did we see you a stranger, and welcome you, or naked and clothe you?

And when did we see you sick or in prison to visit you?

And the King will answer them, truly I say to you, as

you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.

How many of you heard this?

This teaching before is this is not new, okay.

How many have never heard this before?

Any few of you?

Okay, so the way this is usually understood

in the American church context

is that Christians are responsible to watch after and take care of

and minister to the marginalized, the hurting, the outcast.

That's how it's usually understood.

I want you to understand something that in this teaching,

when Jesus separates the two, he's not talking about salvation.

This is not a judgment of salvation.

It's not like if if someone is good to the marginalized

and the outcast and the hurting and the poor, that they get salvation.

That's not how salvation works.

We understand from Scripture over

say because of God's grace through faith alone,

that that, that, that,

that is the position of salvation, not by what we do.

One of the things Jesus is saying here is, this is the revelation of the heart

that already exists.

So the heart of someone who has

it has has asked Jesus to be the ruler of their life,

responds in this way do you follow?

And the heart of someone who has rejected Jesus responds in this way,

so this is not imparting salvation or damnation.

This is the revelation of the heart that already exists.

It's important for us to understand that

in this, this teaching,

here's here's how to view this.

A disciples heart will be aligned with the heart of his master.

And so this is the revelation of a heart's alignment.

It's not the proclamation of salvation or damnation.

This is the revelation of the heart's alignment of the heart

that already exists.

And there are some hearts who are so aligned with the master

that they will respond in this way to what

Jesus says the least of these, my brothers.

Now here's where.

Here's where I think what Jesus really intended when he spoke this.

And a little different how the church is understood.

Understood it when Jesus uses those words, when you've done this

to the least of these, my brothers, my brethren, in Jesus's context, as he's

speaking this, he's speaking specifically to God's people, the Jews.

It matters

how we treat the people of God.

Now, if you notice.

Verse 32, before him will be gathered the nations.

So this is not an individual pronouncement on individuals.

This is not what's called in the Bible, the great White Throne judgment,

the culmination of all things.

This is

eschatology speaking.

That's a church word for in times study, when Jesus comes back and

all the things have already been decided about salvation

and not rejecting Jesus and accepted, that's already been decided.

And so Jesus in some way gathers the nations.

And so, okay, now let me pronounce this what you have already decided.

This is the judgment of the nations, how the nations have responded

to God's people in this world,

to the nation of Israel.

It matters.

So this is not an individual pronouncement of me and you that happened separately.

This is okay world. How have you treated my people

and the pronouncement of

sheep and goats is the revelation of the people's hearts

that already exist as a people group towards God's people group?

Do you follow?

Yes. It matters.

It matters how we treat

the people of God and the now.

If you want to take it out of that specific context, because that's

how Jesus meant it when he taught it and his here's what.

Understand that now, if you want to take it out of that

and make it for our world again,

what you've done to the seas, my brothers, you've done to me.

And so now he's talking about a family relationship.

And so if you want to take it out of the nation of Israel context

and just put it in our context,

the least of these, my family, who's the family of God,

Christ followers.

He's not talking about what you've done to everybody else

and every, you know who doesn't know me and like, be nice.

It's not what he's saying, he said.

It matters not just how you respond to my people,

but to my family.

How we respond to each other isn't the pronouncement of salvation.

It's the revelation of a heart that's in line with the master's heart.

Do you follow?

If I'm unclear, I want to be clear.

And so he's talking about this, this family relationship.

It matters.

And he's going to press.

He's going to press into this.

In verse 41.

Then he will say to those on his left, depart from me, you cursed,

into eternal fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.

For I was hungry, and you gave me no food, I was thirsty, you gave me no drink.

I was a stranger.

You did not welcome me, I was naked, you did not clothe me

sick and in prison, and you did not visit me.

And they will answer him, saying, Lord, when?

When did we see you hungry or thirsty, or a stranger

in naked or sick, or in prison, and did not minister to you,

and then he will answer them, I truly, I tell you, when you did

not do it to the least of these, you did not do it to me.

And these will

go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous end of eternal life

again, not a pronouncement of salvation, just a revelation of the heart

that already exists.

It amazes me that the ones on his right, the sheep.

Like, when did we do that to you?

What are you talking about?

And I love it that they didn't realize that they were being so good to Jesus,

because that was just who their what their hearts had become.

So in line with the master's are this is who they were,

like serving the Lord by accident.

Do you know what I'm saying?

Like it's just beautiful that that's who they that's their character.

That's their heart.

They have a new heart.

And likewise those who are like, what are you talking about?

When do we when did we deny you?

They even realize that their denial and disservice

of God's people with the denial, the service of God himself,

their hearts were just crooked.

They didn't realize it.

What we have to understand

is that a closed heart creates a closed hand.

Those on the left have a closed heart towards God,

and so they had a closed hand towards him and his people.

Those on the right had an open heart towards God, so he had an open hand

towards.

We understand this in every other here's here's what I know.

When my heart is closed.

Let's talk about our resources and our finances.

When my heart is closed, I get real stingy with my money.

You understand?

When my heart is open,

I have an open hand with God's resources.

Do you follow?

When my heart is closed? I got a real.

I got a closed hand with my time.

When my heart is open I got an open hand with.

And we see it here in this teaching.

When your heart is closed

to God and His people, it's.

Your hands are going to be closed as well.

One of the things that Jesus is saying here

is, listen, disciples of mine are going to have my heartbeat

and it is towards mercy and grace.

And those who don't have my heart are going to be closed off.

And by closing themselves off to me,

they're being closed off to my people.

One of the things that we have to understand,

and this will set up all of the beginnings of, of chapter 26.

One of the things we have to understand is that inward crookedness opens

the door for outward wrongdoing.

When there's something crooked inside, that's

what opens the door to outward

wrongdoing.

And so much of religion is focused on the outward doing

without the addressing of the inward condition.

Don't do this. Don't do that. Don't do this, don't that.

Make sure you do this. Make sure you do that.

So much of religion is based on behavioral modification.

And we just can't keep it up.

Because what drives what we do is what exists in here.

And so when in when I'm crooked inward,

that's the open door for outward wrong.

And I know this makes sense to you.

And Jesus is the only one who can

heal the crookedness inside.

He's the only one.

You and I both know that as hard as we try,

we can't change our own heart.

And some of us say it like this.

That's just who I am.

I've always been this way.

Well, yeah, because there's a cricket inside

that you can't fix.

That's why Jesus talks about a new heart

and made new.

And so when the Bible talks

about sin, there's a lot of different words it uses.

But there, there there's some primary ones.

And one one word is just sin in general, just missing the mark.

But there's two other words that we have really want us to understand

because it has profound impact on us individually.

One is iniquity and one is transgression or trespass.

Same basic word iniquity is inward crookedness,

transgression and trespasses, outward action.

And most of us are focused on the outward action.

I don't want to. I don't want to screw up.

I'll make sure I'm doing what's right, that's all.

Focus on transgression and trespass.

And when we start there

and never get to the iniquity that's in our heart will never

get away from the trespass.

Do you follow?

When when Jesus,

in the great sermon that he preached, beginning

in Matthew five, he was talking about this very thing, this iniquity and trespass.

He said, you've heard it said, don't commit murder.

That's transgression and trespass.

I say, don't hate someone in your heart.

That's iniquity. Why?

Because iniquity leads to trespass.

He said, I say, or I say, he says.

The law says, you've heard it say, don't commit adultery.

That's transgression and trespass.

I say, if you lust after someone and harbor that in your heart,

you've already committed sin talking about iniquity.

And so many people are so focused on the transgression and trespass

that they neglected dressing and asking God to address their own iniquity.

We got to get this.

Lord created me a clean heart. Why?

Because that's where iniquity lives.

And until that's made new, I'm

always going to live in the world of transgression and trespass.

And that's why some of you have never been able to get past your own

trespass and transgression, because you've never addressed and allow

God to the iniquity in your heart.

And this is exactly what David prayed in, in, in, in Psalm.

Well, let me, let me read first the Psalm 66.

Look at this.

If I had cherished what

the broken crookedness in me,

you would not have listened. Why?

Because even though everything on the outside, like I got my outside

cleaned up, there's still this crooked

sin in here that isn't addressed yet.

And this

is what David refers to in Psalm 32, which is one of his responses

after being confronted about Bathsheba and, and, and and Uriah,

he said, I acknowledge my sin to you generally,

and I did not cover my what how broken

I am, how crooked I am on the inside.

I'm not going to cover that up anymore.

And I said, I'll confess. What?

My transgression. Why?

Because that's a result of my iniquity.

And I'll confess that to you.

And you forgive. Forgive me.

See, when David looked down at Bathsheba and saw this beautiful woman,

he continued to desire her and iniquity in his heart.

The broken, the crookedness in his heart led him to the transgression.

Do you follow?

I'm learning to pray this.

Oh, God, please

forgive the iniquity in my heart

that I might not sin against you.

Give me a clean heart and a renewed spirit within me,

that I won't transgress your law.

But until this is addressed, this will never.

This will always be broken.

Do you follow

some of you today?

Some of you today.

You're on the verge right now of being completely set free

because you've tried so long to address the transgression

and trespass of your life, and you've not realized yet

to confess your iniquity.

And allow the father to change

a crooked heart into a right heart.

And so then Matthew 26 opens.

We're going to see three people or groups of people,

their religious leaders, and Mary and Judas.

And we're going to see in their lives the outworking of the iniquity.

What we see in their lives

wasn't just because because, you know, they chose to do something good or bad.

Well, we're seeing their lives is the

the iniquity in their heart have been growing.

And for the religious leaders under Jews, the iniquity was never addressed.

And they just kept getting worse and worse and worse

until it exploded with this betrayal of the Son of God and His crucifixion.

But likewise, conversely, we're going to see Mary, this incredible

love that she had for this beautiful Savior,

and that that's what kind of renewed her heart.

And out of that, this beautiful act flowed from her

hands.

Verse one.

When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples,

you know that after two days the Passover is coming in.

The Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.

And at this point the brakes are like, wait a minute,

you just got to talking about how this year

the Son of Man is coming back with all his angels and on the throne.

He's going to rule.

Like that's what we signed up for

and just said, okay, now don't get ahead of yourself. Now,

don't start walking around

like, go to the big chest because this is leading to my crucifixion.

And now they're like, wait, what?

Like go back.

And so he tells him,

it's amazing to me that right after he gets to talking about,

he introduces again, reminds him again of his crucifixion.

That's what this whole thing is building towards.

Without the crucifixion, there's no forgiveness without the crucifixion.

Is the is the entryway to the grace of God.

Verse three.

Then the chief priests and the elders of the people

gathered in the palace of the high priests.

And it was Caiaphas,

and plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him.

But they said, not during the feast, man, there's too many people here going

to be an uproar and riot.

This didn't just happen.

This was the result of the iniquity

that had been their heart for years towards Jesus.

And what stays in the heart or what starts to understand the heart.

This iniquity will overflow into transgression,

so much so that they want to kill him.

You know, they meet with Caiaphas, the high priest.

This whole thing was crooked from the beginning.

They had such iniquity in their hearts throughout the whole system.

Caiaphas wasn't the wasn't the legitimate high priest.

Annas was.

But he was deposed and kicked out in Rome.

And the authorities

that be kind of put Caiaphas there as the high priest of the Jews.

And it was all against Scripture, all of Jesus's crucifixion,

arrest and trial and crucifixion was all against the Word of God.

It was all against their own law.

They're breaking their own law over and over and over, as was Caiaphas.

He should have never been in this position in the first place,

but he was a puppet of Rome, set there so that Rome could have over the Jews.

And this exactly.

I mean, they played right into this hand.

Caiaphas, this guy, he was kind of the puppet ruler

as this high priest from 80, 18 to 36 and in 1830.

In 1836, realizing that he had had a hand in the crucifixion, the Son of God,

he killed himself in a suicide.

Because what in here was was so crooked,

never addressing the iniquity in his heart.

And they said, look, we need to arrest and we need to kill this guy

because there was so much iniquity, it just came spewing out of them.

And they said, we don't want to do this

during the Passover because there's like, Jerusalem is like

filled with millions of people and it's going to all go bad.

They're going to riot. They're crazy right now.

And that's exactly when they ended up wrestling and crucify him. Why?

Because Jesus knew it had to happen then.

All this is orchestrated by Christ himself.

And as I was reading this this week, I thought, Lord, thank you for Romans 828.

All things work together for the good of those

who love you and called according to your purpose.

Like it looks so bad going into this.

And Jesus like, look, just relax man.

I'm working all this together.

I'm sovereign.

My providence is profound.

Just relax.

And what we see in these chief priests,

these religious leaders, the iniquity lead to transgress.

Verse six.

Now when Jesus was at Bethany, the house of Simon the leper, a woman came

up to the alabaster flask, a very expensive ointment,

and she poured it on his head as he reclined at table.

Now the Bible says he's at Simon the leper.

Now, if this guy had leprosy, he couldn't be around people.

So this is obviously Simon, one of the guys that Jesus healed of leprosy.

Simon the Leper was like his nickname.

Can you imagine having a nickname of something you used to say?

Like. Like

Kurt, the Covid,

you know, like it's like, I guess it's good because he's been healed.

But how would you like to be always known as you know.

You know that guy.

So Simon the Leper,

they probably said with a smile, like, you're not leprosy anymore.

But you did at one time.

Nobody liked you.

Have anything to do with my message at all?

It's just a fun little.

Very expensive perfume.

This is Mary of Mary, Martha and Lazarus,

who loved us to Jesus feet and just be there with him.

When the Bible says very expensive perfume, it's probably about 300 denari,

which is a day's away.

So this is almost a year's salary worth.

This is a big deal.

Jewish women would carry oftentimes a little, a little, a little

like flask of perfume around their little bit.

This is an alabaster hour long neck.

They have to break the neck to pour out the the ointment a year's salary.

And when the disciples saw, they were indignant, saying, why this waste?

This could have been sold for a large sum of money given to the poor.

It says a year's wage.

How much we can get for this stuff?

You could have done that and and helped all the poor people around.

But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, why do you trouble this woman?

And she has done a beautiful thing to me for you.

I'll always have the poor with you,

but you will not always have me in pouring this on my body.

She has done it to prepare me for burial.

Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world,

what she has done will also be told a memory of her.

He's like, listen, I get it.

There's a bunch of poor people around and it's important to take care of him.

I just got done talking about that in Matthew 25.

You can,

you can, you can measure them any time you want.

But as far as me and this presence right now, you're not always going to have me.

What she's done is beautiful.

And when it says the disciples were in, it wasn't the disciples, it was Judas.

And we know that from the book of

Gospel of John, I think chapter 12, Judas was indignant. Why?

Because we know from the Bible that Jesus was the he was the secretary.

He was the financial guy. He carried the he carried the money back.

And the Bible says he used to help himself from the money bag to kind of,

you know, I mean, he's a thief. He's crooked.

This iniquity in his heart was never healed by.

And so, yeah, he wanted that soul so he would have a whole bunch

of money he could draw from.

Iniquity.

Though he had walked with Jesus and served

Jesus and looked great from the outside there was a

crookedness on the inside iniquity.

And married

conversely, so much love it just came pouring out of her.

She was the one who said, there is nothing too good for my Lord.

He's so beautiful.

He's so good.

There's nothing too good for him.

Oh, to have disciples like that,

there's nothing too good for him.

It was extravagant,

a remarkable motive to Jesus and Jesus alone.

Remarkable offering. Extraordinary.

She wasn't a fan of Jesus.

She was a fanatic.

And you know, the world doesn't mind people being fans of Jesus.

Yeah, he's a good guy. Yeah. No, I love you, Jesus.

God bless you, too, you know?

But the world doesn't want to see fanatics

because fanatics don't care.

There's nothing too good for my Lord.

Mock me, make fun of me, disapprove of me.

Don't care.

Because I'm not just a fan.

I'm a fanatic. She was a fanatic.

And the love she had.

And here she God

had done such a work in here, it just came spilling out of her hands.

It's beautiful.

Said mock.

Mock me, if you will.

No concern of me.

See, what I know is that devotion becomes visible

when obedience becomes costly.

That's when you can see devotion.

And we see it in Mary.

And then this third one, Judas,

then one of the 12, his name was carry.

It went to the chief priest and said,

what will you give me if I deliver him over to you?

And they paid him 30 pieces of silver, and from that moment

he saw an opportunity to betray him.

It's so interesting, Mary thinks.

What can I give?

Judas thinks, what can I get?

Iniquity.

Devotion.

To the

iniquity in Judas heart didn't just stay there.

It eventually was fleshed out in his hands.

And for 30 pieces of silver,

that's not insignificant.

In Exodus 21,

the payment for a lost slave is 30 pieces of silver.

And so they take in the value of the Son of God and devalued him

to less than

human,

just a slave.

And there's so much tie over to the Old Testament to what's going on here.

This is so profound for the Jews, because they knew the prophet Zechariah.

And in Zechariah, I think 12 or so,

Zechariah is mocked

and the leaders mock him, say, you're only worth 30 pieces of silver.

And the Word of God came to Zacharias, said, take that 30 pieces of silver,

and cast it at the potter's feet in the temple.

When Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver,

he realizes he has just betrayed the Son of God.

And he takes the 30 pieces of silver and throws it in the temple.

And it's used to buy the potter's

field, like Jesus orchestrated this whole thing. And.

Friends, I want us to understand

that iniquity in our heart will always lead to trespass.

You can work your entire life

to try to clean it up,

and you will feel time and time, and I will to time and time and time again,

until God does a work in here to heal the iniquity of our heart.

That's what he came to do.

You and I have no power

to heal the iniquity of our, of our, of our hearts.

None.

It's only through Christ.

And when this is healed, then we're able to live a life of devotion

and faithfulness.

And the entryway

into that type of healing

is repentance.

Repentance turns a conviction of my

what I know into a change of direction.

Your decision won't change your direction.

Repentance will.

And if

my belief never changes the direction of my life, it's proof

that repentance in my heart has never occurred.

And some of us here have tried

so hard to be so good and to change the direction of our life.

But we've never we've never, said God, I admit the iniquity

that's in my heart change my heart

so that I don't sin against you.

Manning me in church your whole life

and look perfectly good on the outside

and still have a crooked, poisoned heart.

And till you repent and ask God to change it,

not change your behavior,

but heal you of your iniquity.

And repentance is

the here's repentance is the doorway to God's grace.

It's by repenting.

Father, forgive the iniquity of my heart.

Give me a new heart. Then God says, yes, I will.

And here's the fullness of my grace, my undeserved

and unmerited favor and blessing.

But as long as you hide that iniquity in your heart, I don't even hear you.

How beautiful it

is to live in repentance

and the door of God's grace, opening up fully

and saying, now

you've been made new, amazing.

And so, dear friends, repent.

Not just of the behavior,

but of the iniquity.

I want you to pray with me.

Father.

Thank you that you,

your love for us, has been from everlasting.

And thank you that not even the iniquity of our own

heart would walk us out of your love, or make you not love us.

You love us even in spite of our iniquity.

It's amazing to me, you.

You love us when the iniquity of our heart has led us to grave transgression.

It's amazing to me, your love.

Thank you.

But, father, I pray that in this moment

you would lead us to repentance, not just of the behavior,

but of our inward iniquity.

God. Some of us look really good on the outside,

but there's still so much unconfessed

and unrepentant iniquity on the inside.

God, would you be merciful to us and forgive us?

Friends, I invite you.

Come before God right now in repentance.

Say God, I admit I'm a sinner.

Not only have I trespassed,

not only have I transgressed, but there is iniquity in my heart.

There's a brokenness.

There's a crookedness inside my heart.

Jesus, I believe you died

not just so my trespass can be forgiven, but so

my iniquity can be healed.

And I know that you are raised to life,

so save me now.

I commit to turn from my sin,

from the transgression of my hands and the iniquity that's in my heart.

I turn from it now.

And I dedicate

my life and my allegiance to you.

Empower me to love you with my whole heart,

my soul, my mind, and my strength,

without delay any more,

without any more hesitation.

Fill me with your spirit

and the power of your spirit to live a holy life,

to turn away from both transgression and iniquity,

and to choose holiness and righteousness.

Tell him, say, father, as I repent,

give me the fullness of your grace.

Give me all that your grace will allow.

From this point forward

I give my full self to you.

In your name I pray. Amen.

Church, I love you.

Well done.

Going through this Tuesday of Jesus's life, it's it's been immense.

This sets up the institution of what we call communion

that we'll look at next week.

I'm going to spend the entire time just on this one thing of communion.

It is profound.

It's Old Testament, the confirmation of the New Testament,

this whole new thing we call the New Covenant.

It is amazing how it was part of this meal.

Jesus makes some profound statements in this that that we just kind of tend

to gloss over. Oftentimes we don't stand it.

I'm on packed the whole thing next week.

It's just beautiful.

So read Matthew 26 and let's prepare our hearts for that.

As we wrap up today,

some of you

went through that prayer of confession and repentance.

Good that God hears that he honors that.

But sometimes we need to make that prayer with somebody else,

to pray it with somebody else, to have someone pray it and confirm it with us.

And so as you do every, there'll be people on the front, in the back,

grab one of us and just let us pray with you.

Celebrate that and confirm that

and let's be made. Do.

Let's see.