All Is Forgiven – Part 4 (Romans 5:1-5)

Let’s stand and open our bibles to romans chapter five and this will be our last installment, I keep saying that.
Uh But this will be our last installment on this series of this portion of scripture?
These first five verses of Romans five and we’re looking at a message that’s titled all is forgiven.
And what happens after you’re forgiven after you become a Christian? What happens after that?
That would be absolutely wrong for you to think that when you become a christian that you just go back to living your normal old life, that’s not becoming a christian when you experience the forgiveness of God, there’s a transformation that takes place in your life and making that first step to the foot of the cross is where God gets a hold of you and then you begin to live the life that the Lord created you to live romans chapter five verses one through five, I will read the odd numbered verses if you’ll do the even numbered verses.
Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord, jesus christ.
Yeah and not only that, but we also glory in tribulations knowing that tribulation produces perseverance.
Now hope does not disappoint because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us father.

We pray that you would be our teacher today.
We ask it in jesus name and all God’s people said amen, you may be seated church right before service.
JIA asked me uh is there any special thing I need to know about today before service.
And I said only this, that I’m praying that God the Holy Spirit is poured out upon this church and that we have a revival.
When I say revival, I don’t mean, you know, scheduling a revival.
Hey, we’re gonna have a revival next Tuesday, You can’t do that. That’s not how the Holy Spirit works.
But what happens is when God’s people decide to seek God’s face, revival breaks out and uh, I don’t know if you guys remember or know uh, general jerry Boykin, I was talking to him last night regarding the fact that in the second great awakening that took place in the United States, uh, it happened at an old men’s college and there were two students that had heard the word of God by the way, at that period of time, it’s hard to believe that things almost seemed worse than than they are today.
But America had slumped into a very antichrist era and too young men began to pray and seek the Lord and they began to tell others about jesus christ and out of that college they got two donkeys and they went out writing and preaching in what became known as brush arbor meetings.
They stopped from town to town and preached the gospel and it began to spread like a fire and God’s people woke up and many people listen, when God’s people wake up, then the unsaved become saved, The nonbelievers Russian wondering what’s going on?

And so maybe you have, maybe I have somebody in our lives, our family that they do not know the Lord, what’s the greatest way of reaching them for the Lord is our own lives catching fire.
And when we get on fire for jesus, we wind up by the holy Spirit becoming very spiritually attractive to people who are searching for truth and I submit this tool.
I believe that at this hour where the pressure is on that, the temptation to feel the crushing, I want to encourage you, that is exactly what the bible was said would happen just before christ would return that we would enter a time known as perilous times and it would be a time of pressure.
Don’t you feel the pressure? The pressure of loss of freedom or or evil or darkness?
And I understand that and and listen, there’s a sense where uh we want to escape.
Just know this in this world, there’s no escape, God doesn’t want us to escape.
Actually God has an escape planned, It’s Luke 21 36 and he says, when you see all these things beginning to happen on the earth, look up, look up he says, because pray to him, the Lord that you might escape all these things that are coming upon the earth.
And so we are people here today that want to get very excited about jesus and what we’ve been learning are these key things that when all is forgiven in our lives, that transformative power of being forgiven results in us issuing forgiveness.
The second thing we learned last time is that when we’re forgiven, we not only issue forgiveness toward others, but we are resilient now in this world that hates the believer.
It’s a it’s a spiritual thing.
There are people who hate you simply because you’re a christian cheer up, cheer up if the world hates you, jesus said, woe to the person who the world speaks well of them.
You don’t want the world to speak well of you.
But Jesus said, you’re blessed if you are persecuted as were the prophets before you.
Now remember this and I say this every time to be persecuted doesn’t mean hey, you know, come and smack me so I can qualify to be No, it’s just you live in your Godly life for Jesus always privately, sometimes publicly when called upon by God.
And as you take a stand, people will criticize, people will attack.
And then that led us to the third and final argument and we’ve been dissecting verse five and that is that there’s a reaction to being forgiven.
There’s a reaction and it’s beautiful. Well look at this more and we’ll end it today here.
But uh paul, even before his commissioning, you guys into the ministry by by none other than jesus, christ himself, paul had encountered, jesus on that road to Damascus that you read about in the seventh chapter of the Book of Acts.
But immediately when his conversion took place, remember that he was in route.
By the way he had letters from Jerusalem to go hunt down christians in Damascus.
This is our beloved paul. We forget that he was the ISIS guy.
He was like Isis of his day, he was hunting down christians and he was the one overseeing the arrest and the torture or the killing of christians.

Do you remember when Stephen was stoned to death?
Those who were throwing the rocks, laid their garments down at the foot of the overseer of the stoning a guy by the name of Saul of Tarsus, who you know is paul the apostle, but he met jesus en route to Damascus.
And the bible tells us by the way, this is amazing to me, it’s it’s just amazing to me, the scriptures tell us that when paul encountered jesus that he went into the deserts of Arabia for some three years and the bible tells us that the Lord ministered to him and during that period of time God was showing him things that he must suffer for the sake and for the name of jesus, and when he returned from the wilderness he went to Damascus and met up with believers there and then he went down into Jerusalem where he met with the first apostle and that was Peter And uh from that moment on obviously it was a tremendous call upon his life.
I want to show you a little bit now. You gotta remember this 2000 years ago. Check out this map.
Can you imagine covering this ground exactly down to the bottom right hand screen. You see Jerusalem.
So you see where paul his ministry begins and for example, you see his ministry, his ministry, uh journeys in four different colors.
And so you see the first one and there the years are given the scripture references are there it’s a good picture to take on your phone.
If you have that, you could see that this was his ministry uh journeys and he began noticed with each one there’s an expansion of reach and he went around preaching the gospel and the bible tells us that this was his mode of ministry.
He would show up in a city or a town, he would go straight to the synagogues.
The smart first of all, he was a pharisee, he was a hebrew.
He knew Judaism, he knew everything about the old testament. So he had immediate access to the synagogues.
He would go into the synagogues and then he would speak regarding jesus christ and he would answer who jesus is from the old testament, there was no new testament yet there they are living it out as it’s being recorded.
So you look at these various journeys and then ultimately, you see his final journey where paul goes to Rome, it’s the purple and you see it ending to the top left hand part of your screen, that it’s there, That paul loses his head for the preaching of the gospel of jesus christ.
But imagine with me that this man, paul, having such a tremendous passion to cover that ground. Think about it.
What’s the fastest way you could cover that? I guess at times a ship could go faster than a camel.
I don’t think a donkey would be all that quick, certainly by foot would be the slowest.
But you look at that region of the world That he covered that 2000 years ago.
Most of us have never covered that region or that distance all along the way throughout his career and everywhere he went and preached.
Listen, the culture was changed.
Read history, the rights of women were exalted, families were created or recreated to be intact.
Men were taught to be fathers and husbands.
The word of God went out and people were transformed. It’s remarkable. It’s absolutely awesome.
And so church, as we look at this, I’m gonna ask you to turn to verse five or look at verse five all is forgiven.
The first thing that we see here in verse five is that we know that we’ve been recreated.
This is where we ended last week. We had to stop right here.
That when all is forgiven, there’s a there’s this overwhelming reality for the true believer that your life has been or is experiencing this re creation that God goes to work in your life.
The bible gets exciting to you didn’t have any of you ever read the bible before you were a believer.
Did it not make it made no sense to remember that when you picked up the bible, you go, what are you kidding?
People read this. This is the best selling book every year. The bible, I don’t get it.
It’s remarkable because it’s a spiritual fact that this book is truly obviously for us here in America written in english, you’re looking at it.
And if you’re not a christian, if you’re just religious, are you curious? It makes no sense.
This book has got to be unlocked to you by the Holy Spirit.
He opens your eyes to the understanding of this book.
So it’s a great puzzle as it were.
But when God touches your heart and open your mind, you pick up the bible and one of the great hallmarks of a true christian.
Born again. Brand new believers will see soon in the study is that you desire the word of God.
It starts to speak to you. It’s crystal clear to you.
And then there’s those beautiful moments church where you read something in the bible and it’s not clear.
So you write it down. I encourage people the new believers.
We always tell them read your bible and if you come across something you don’t understand.
Do not call us. No, seriously, don’t call us, write it down on a piece of paper, ask God to show you what it means.
Keep reading. And as you often read through the scripture, you get the answer.
How many times somebody will call pastor chuck, I need to speak you and by the time I can return their phone call, they say never mind.
I got the answer reading the bible truly. Why? Because our gods alive, this book is alive.
And when God transforms somebody, he does it in such a way that you come alive and spiritual matters happen.
Why is that the case? You’re being recreated?
The Bible tells us here in Verse five. Now hope does not disappoint.
This is where we left off the hope of God is the steadfast assurance and fact that what God says he’s gonna do and the word disappoint you will never be put to shame.
The word means you will not be put to shame. It means that you will not be humiliated.
If you choose to follow christ today, you will never never wind up in life being abandoned, ridiculed, mocked or left abandoned.
He said, wait a minute. I thought you just said a moment ago that if I become a christian, I’ll be persecuted.
Yes, that’s true. But that’s temporary.
This verse is implying that in life because we have the gospel and the gospel has transformed us and we talked about that resilience that when people hurled curse words at us or they don’t understand us remember church, understand this christian, the world is not gonna understand you.
If they can’t understand the bible, how are they gonna understand you?
So you’re going to be temporary, We will be temporarily rejected.
But at the end, at the end, christian, you’ll stand before God and you will not be put to shame man, that’s when it’s gonna matter, Everything is gonna matter in that moment, you know, wow!
Well, how does this happen this? How can I Pastor guarantee that? I’m never disappointed. It’s very simple.
And again, last week we touched on it, john chapter three verse three, jesus said, answering Nicodemus most assuredly I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God born again, you must be born again.
Last week I had somebody come up when I quoted that verse, somebody came up to me last week after first service and said, I’ve never I’ve been in church all my life and I’ve never heard that I have to be born again.
And I go, then, then listen, let’s go now let’s do this.
Think of it, Jesus said it himself, you must be born from above.
Born of the spirit. In john three verse seven, jesus said to Nicodemus do not marvel that I said to you, you must be born again.
Peter, he echoes this in first Peter 123, he says having been born again, Oh listen up family.
Having been born again? It means that once you’re born again, you are born again once and forever.
So watch this church because I’ll keep my finger here.
And peter because we won’t, we won’t leave this verse just yet.
You must today check all the bases in your mind and in your heart having been born again.
Ask yourself have I been born again?
Because if you say, well, I I believe that jesus lived. That’s not being born again.
Listen, are you listening? I believe you could say I believe that he died on the cross for the sins of the world.
That’s not being born again. You could say, I believe jesus rose from the dead.
That’s not being born again?
You can believe the question is, has your belief taken you to faith in christ?
The bible says the devils believe and tremble. You don’t tremble. They trembled.
Has your belief taken you to faith? Say? How do I know the difference?
Because believe, look, I believe in George Washington. I’ve read his mail.
I’ve read I’ve read I’ve read books about George Washington. He’s a hero of mine. I love him.
But here’s the thing. I am not trusting in George Washington. For my american U. S. Citizenship.
Are you with me? Listen, you can say believe in jesus, but are you trusting him for your heavenly citizenship?
Are you trusting in the fact that when he died on the cross, he died for you personally?
And when he rose again from the grave, he rose again from the grave for you personally.
Which leads us to that all encompassing banner that flies over it all and you know where I’m going.
I can hear some of you repent and believe in the Lord jesus christ and you shall be saved.
It means change your mind. It means to go from the place of believing to faith in him.
So why do I say this? Why do I belabor this?
Because listen, it is vitally important that you sense the move of the holy spirit working in you to recreate himself in you because he will speak to you and say you need to hear this truth.
You need to respond to this truth. You must be born again.
So peter went on to say and watch not of corruptible seed.
It’s interesting words uh spore a we’ll talk about this in the moment.
You cannot actually uh in english we would use the word sperm seed having been born again.
Listen, not of corruptible origins, not of man made religion but incorruptible in plain incorruptible seed through the word of God which lives and abides forever.
Think about that when we think about seeds, we think about germination.
We we think about growth, of course we should. The seeds are amazing things.
Now California is funny technically for the rest of the world or America in many ways it’s springtime for them Right?
A friend of mine lives up in northern Idaho and they got snow the other day and I’m thinking what is, what is wrong with people?
But uh springtime, what does that mean?
Well one thing is for sure that when springtime comes uh leaves open up, things sprout out of the ground and uh seeds are amazing, I don’t know about you.
I try to mitigate both things. Number one, I want to have an instant yard when it’s springtime or whatever.
I just go down to lows and and by plants and put them in and it’s like instant gratification.
But I also sow seeds at the exact same time And right now they’re about 4″ tall and I’m watching, I’m watching and waiting.
Did you know the plant that I bought in the seed?
I planted the information that is in both of those are exactly the same that they’re coded to do what they do.
The bible says that you and I in this world we without christ have corruptible seed, that’s why you and I know how to sin naturally.
That’s the core reason. No, I’m not making fun of this.
The reason why we don’t have to teach people how to lie is because we all have the same seed in us that that sprouts naturally.
What we do not have naturally in this is an incorruptible seed and the incorruptible seed is the holy spirit planted in you at the moment of conversion and that is the foundation of being born again, this is fundamental.
Were recreated first, john three verse nine.
Whoever has been born of God does not sin, the word means does not practice sin for his seed notice Capital H christ his seed remains in him and he cannot sin.
I love that. I’ll talk on a second. He cannot sin because he has been born of God.
He said, wait a minute is the sin or not?
Sin doesn’t first john say that if we don’t, if we say we don’t sin, we call God a liar.
Yes, that’s true. Then what’s it saying? It means that the born again believer stinks at sinning.
The true follower of christ who has experienced forgiveness, has a reaction to being forgiven.
So, for example, if you get a shot, you know, doctors will tell you now, you could experience something, you could you could get a fever, you could get whatever.
Right? So for example, the covid vaccine, anybody know what the covid vaccine is?
You know, listen, that’s somebody giving you covid with the needle. You got that, right? Why would they do that?
Well, it’s supposed to like, haven’t we all been vaccinated against polio?
For example, why do we get the polio shot? Anybody know we get the polio shot.
So we don’t get polio. What are some of the other things? Measles diphtheria tetanus. Listen, chickenpox.
Hello, are you, are you with me?
Okay, When you get those vaccines, you get a little bit of it so that you build up an immune against it so that in life you don’t get it.
When you get the vaccine, you got it and you’ll test positive and when you get boosted you test positive, of course you test positive.
You haven’t. The problem is if you get a vaccine you shouldn’t get it.
You shouldn’t get the sickness. That’s the normal world. Seriously. You know, vaccines work that way.
But listen, there’s no vaccine against sin except the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit moves inside.
But here’s the thing you say. Yeah, but I still I still have a bad thought.
I still have a bad temper. I still have a bad this or that.
The difference is because the Holy Spirit is inside of you.
The seed of God’s incorruptible word is now housed in you.
So that when you sin, this is great about being a christian. When you see a christian who’s back slipping.
I mean it’s hilarious. I mean, not really. But it’s like, hey, how you doing? I’m doing great.
Not really. Are you a believer because you look miserable.
Listen, when a person can say that they know God, but they sent up a storm.
They live in sin. They just every day they’re living in sin. But they say they know God.
They don’t know God. They don’t know God.
But when somebody says, yeah, I know the Lord and they’re living in sin, they’re miserable.
Their mug is dragging on the ground, they try to put on joy. It never works.
Hey praise the Lord, it never works. And we’re happy about that.
Maybe you’re here today and you’re miserable.
God bless you, you’re a christian and you’re not walking with jesus.
And he’s saying, see I told you Why because he’s started to work in you and he’s not gonna stop by the way until he’s done.
But it’s way easier to surrender and let him go. Let him do his work Galatians.
Chapter three verse 29 says if you are Christ, what a great statement and if you are christ, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise God has put this in you.
You want to memorize the promises of God, you want to draw closer to jesus and only you can answer that question within you.
That’s what I want. That’s what I want from my life. I want more of jesus.
And you know, it’s an amazing thing because the more we get of him, the more we want to him.
It’s a strange thing. It’s weird because jesus said if you drink the water, I’ll give you, you’ll never be thirsty again and if you eat the bread I give you because he says I’m the bread of life, you’ll never be hungry again, but I have to tell you something, let’s be honest, you’ve got to really know what that means to enjoy it and to understand it, number one, when you drink of the water, jesus gives, you will never wander off and become a mormon or a Jehovah witness or a buddhist or a hindu.
You wanna know why? I’m not disparaging anybody. I’m not attacking anybody.
I’m just telling you this when you have, what’s the word, ingested the best, You’re satisfied and you don’t go look anywhere else.
But at the same time you’re completely satisfied. You can’t get enough of them.
It’s a beautiful contradiction. You’ve got jesus and you’re good to go.
But boy, I want more of them. I think that’s I think that’s heaven.
Heaven’s gonna be like that just more like waves more more and more of jesus throughout all eternity.
But you ingest christ and he says the bread that I give and if you eat of this bread, you’ll never be hungry again.
Notice that once you understand the answers are in the bible, you’ll never go looking for answers somewhere else. Hello!
Note to self Wikipedia is not the answer. The internet is not the answer.
Listen, can I say this? I feel led of the Lord to say such a thing and here it.
Here it comes. There are people I’m concerned about that. They say things like this to me. Hi Pastor Jack.
Um hey do you listen to so and so down in somewhere and this and then do you ever listen to that prophet, the guy that’s from this place.
And and how about this guy? And do you ever listen to? And I know I just go like this.
No, no. Have you read this book by this guy?
He said that he saw that him and jesus met up and they were walking around Calcutta and and have you know you see this right here, this do this, don’t get around much.
I’m very discerning about what I read and who I listen to.
Sure a lot of people’s minds have become almost like garbage disposals.
And if you’re out there sampling all kinds of stuff, you’re gonna be led astray.
I’m not saying that you’re supposed to listen to me God forbid, but you should have your bible open and a pen and take notes to find out what this guy appears saying that it jives with the bible that it’s in line with the bible.
And jesus said, if you eat of the bread and drink of the water, you’ll never be thirsty, you’ll never be hungry.
And that’s why we spend so much time in the bible.
In fact, Isaiah 55 verses eight and nine says for my thoughts are not your thoughts, thank God right?
Nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord for as the heavens are higher than the earth.
So are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts?
Amen, I’m grateful man that brings me comfort.
God’s thoughts are these. He says, I’m I love you and I’m with you.
He tells moses, he’s told all of us. He tells Joshua.
He tells all I’m with you all the way through. Go out there, go out there to battle tomorrow.
Israel get ready. I’m gonna go with you. He’s with us.
We didn’t make it up.
He said it right now.
You know, remember when your kids right now one of, I won’t name them, but one of my grandkids, it’s there in that stage of life.
We’ve all been there where the hallway, The hallway, even though the hallways like 25 ft long, it’s the whole that they go like this to turn on the light because you know there’s a giant monster at the other end of the hallway or if the light somehow won’t go on.
Have you noticed how they’ll run and get into the bedroom and turn on the light?
You say no, don’t do that kind of stuff. Do you ever whistle in the dark?
You know that’s where that came from? Why you have this sense of I’m alone. I’m vulnerable.
This is a spooky moment. And so uh when in trouble whistle like when you whistle, it creates an incredible force field around you.
My mom, little side, little I digress right here.
My mom uh was born and raised in Hawaii.
And the culture in our home was very, very um Hawaiian culture.
And so my mom was, you could eat off the floors of our house. My mom was just spotless.
It was interesting because she never wore shoes, but the spotless house, I mean spotless.
And when she would make the house, especially our beds, it should make our beds.
And she would say like, you know it’s summer, go out and play, we were not allowed back in the house until dinner time.
And what was what my mom would say is get out of here, go outside and play or the many moons are gonna get you now, does anybody know what I’m talking about?
The men who need the many humans are demons in Hawaiian, so get out, get out of your bedroom, go outside or the men who are gonna get you.
And so I always thought that men who has lived underneath my bed.
And then at night my mom would say it’s time to go to bed and I would say there’s no way I’m gonna go to bed.
So I remember from the hallway jumping into my bed, but I remember seen or finding my grandmother’s bible and I held onto that bible thinking whatever evil there might be cannot come near me because I’m holding the bible and that’s cute, but that doesn’t work that way.
You could tie a bible around your neck on a chain.
It won’t do you any good, it’s gotta be inside of you.
It’s the only way it works, it’s got to be in you, on the inside of you and it’s quite remarkable.
Second argument under this, the reaction of being forgiven is that you and I know that we’ve been galvanized, It says there in verse five, it goes on, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts.
The love of God has been poured out into our hearts. The bible says, poured out.
This is a remarkable verse, remarkable word, I should say church.
The word poured out to every jewish mind thinks of temple, thinks of worship in Jerusalem, poured out an offering a sacrifice poured out.
The word means to be poured forth with effort to throw out of a bucket.
For example, think about a bucket of water and you throw it out of the bucket or poured out to gush out in the extreme.
As a man would throw a bucket of water on a fire. You get that picture in your head.
The bible tells us that the Holy Spirit has been poured out on us in the spirit realm.
That’s a fact. It’s a reality. You may or may not feel anything.
It’s irrelevant according to the bible, the true believer has received the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
It’s based upon God’s love and were doused as it were in the possession or the ownership of the Holy Spirit.
In john chapter seven verse 37 it starts there.
The bible says on the last day the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying he’s in Jerusalem.
If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink, imagine He who believes in me as the scriptures has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.
Jesus is shouting this on the last day of the Great Feast.
I’ll explain that in a second verse 39, but this, he spoke concerning the spirit, the Holy Spirit whom those believing in him would receive.
So what’s the big deal? Here is the big deal.
A week long of celebrations have taken place at the temple and for the last day the priest had taken water from the pool and poured it out as a display of living water reference to the Holy Spirit.
And it was an act that they did during the celebration of that high holy week every year.
And the priest did it. And jesus deliberately waited for the priest to do it. The last and final time.
seven days have gone by seven times the priest pours out water and jesus shows up, Can you imagine, I wonder if if the area is still wet and jesus might point, I’m the living water, people might have set up and went, oh my gosh, it makes sense who he is and what he has taught and what he’s been saying.
And then the Bible says of itself in verse 39, that this is a reference to the Holy Spirit.
It’s incredible. It’s awesome. The Bible says in hebrews 13 verse five.
Let your conduct be without covetousness. Be content with such things as you have boy. That’s a good verse.
I think we’re gonna be learning this verse in America. I don’t mean this to be funny.
I think, I think it’s already started among us.
You’re a lot more thankful for the things that you have in life than you were three years ago.
Aren’t you? Turn on the water lights, all that stuff? So simple. But boy, are we grateful? Huh?
For he himself said, I will never leave you nor forsake you.
So we may boldly say, the Lord is my helper. I will not fear what can man do to me?
What a great statement. Church look, that’s either true or false right here. Right now.
We decide according to God, it’s absolutely true. But will I receive that according to God?
Or will I somehow humanize this?
Well, when we hear things like, well the Lord is my helper, I will not fear what can man do to me well, or but or you don’t know whenever there’s an addition to what God’s simple statements are, it never goes well.
And john chapter four, this is precious.
And john four, this is something I hope in an eternity will get to turn on the video projector or Cameron, watch this.
DVR john four verse 10, jesus is in the area of samaria, which is interesting jews are not supposed to go to the area of samaria.
Little background. He’s coming down from Jerusalem, I mean from the galilee to Jerusalem, he’s southbound and he’s supposed to be on a certain roadway.
There’s a roadway on the other side of the Jordan river going north and south and there’s a roadway on the west side of the Jordan river going north and south.
Jesus doesn’t take the normal route.
He goes off roading with his disciples and they’ve, they’ve got to be wondering what’s going on.
He had an appointment, He doesn’t tell us about it, but he has an appointment, jesus, by the way, it’s consistent with his nature.
The bible says that Jesus will leave The 99 sheep to go find the one that’s lost.
Are you one that’s lost today or are you a christian that’s wandered away, Jesus is saying, I’m coming after you, I’m coming to get you because it’s scary out there and you belong with me.
You get over here. And so he’s going down this interesting route because he has an appointment and he’s not told anybody about it and it’s with a woman who’s quite promiscuous, she’s had many husbands and in fact the man she’s living with now they’re not married, jesus knows this, Watch what happens as a conversation begins by the way, the disciples.
Now they went to the store to get food, that’s what the bible says.
They went into the town to get some food?
Jesus stays at the well, that’s where he had his appointment was at Jacob’s Well in Samaria, so he’s waiting and this woman shows up in the middle of the day, women do not go get water in the middle of the day, it was not allowed morning, night, not in the day.
and Jesus answered insider verse 10, if you knew the gift of God and who it was, who says to you give me a drink, You would have asked him and he would have given you living water.
You know what’s interesting about this church, Jesus is speaking in the third person.
You guys get that this is the Holy Spirit speaking through, jesus to this woman at the well, see Jesus is, he’s just there, she shows up, she’s carrying a pot and jesus says to her, I’d like to have a drink of water please.
He’s asking her for water and they get into a dialogue, it’s as though the Holy Spirit is speaking excuse me, Miss I asked you for water.
The truth is you should be asking me For water.
And then she kind of well I’ll read it to you, she kind of still doesn’t know who this is verse 11 and the woman said to him sir, you have nothing to draw with, draw water with or draw with the well is deep.
Where then can you get that living water? Isn’t that funny?
She knows there’s not living water in that well. Is she flirting, is she being funny?
You don’t have anything to You have nothing to go water with, sir.
So how would you expect to get this living water? Watch this?
Are you greater than our father Jacob who gave us the well and drank from it himself as well as his sons and his livestock.
And jesus answered and said to her, whoever drinks of this water will thirst again.
But whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst.
But the water that I shall give him will become in him.
Here it comes a fountain, a gushing, a pouring out of water springing up into everlasting life.
He introduces her to the fact that really frankly saying, hey, listen girl, you’ve been living your life trying to find meaning and purpose.
You’ve gone from one man to the next and you’re out, you’re getting water.
I get it, you’re you’re physically thirsty. I understand that. But that’s not the real issue.
The real issue is you need a transformation in your life and what I give you is the only thing that can satisfy you and notice this.
It’s so simple. It is the indwelling of the holy Spirit of every believer that will come out of you.
The possession of the spirit of God and the life of the true believer, not only resides in you, but it’s his influence that comes out of you.
This is why I say often if you’re doing Christianity and you’re sweating and trying to do it, you’re doing it wrong.
Christianity is the ownership of God.
The holy spirit in your life who lives his life out of you.
You and I are supposed to back off and let him go.
What we’re to do is read the bible. He takes it and goes with it.
You don’t have to go now. What did I just read here? Okay, okay, let me try this.
You don’t have to do that. He does it.
And her life, if you read that chapter later, john ford, her life’s dramatically changed First Corinthians 10 verse Forces, Israel all drank the same spiritual drink.
This is amazing. This is wild.
Listen Israel all drank the same spiritual drink for they drank of that spiritual rock that followed them and that rock was christ this is a reference to the book of exodus.
Chapter 17. Do you guys remember the story, Israel’s thirsty there in the desert. People start complaining, moses.
Water chop chop. We’re thirsty and moses says God, you heard the people they’re thirsty and God says I’m on it, I’m doing something here, They were complaining, they were griping about it and God tells moses, I want you to speak to the rug, technically that’s not true, is it two times this happened The for exactly the first time God told moses moses take your staff, your shepherd’s staff and I want you to hit the rock once.
Just hit it, Boom moses hit the rock and the water gushed out.
And by the way, read exodus carefully, it says that the water gushed out of that rock and other rocks.
Can you imagine think about it? I don’t mean this literally, but who knows?
Maybe can you imagine there’s water flowing everywhere. In fact, it says it’s flowing everywhere.
Can you imagine picking up a rock? Have you ever tried this later?
Get a rock, Get a rock and lick it. I’m serious.
Get a rock and lick it and see what kind of, see what happens to your time.
The moisture is like uh can you imagine picking up a rock and it’s just bubbling up water?
The bible says that the rock split and water came out in all of Israel was watered all the Children of Israel in the wilderness.
And then the second time, God says, now moses.
The first time you hit the rock, you only smite the rock one time, the next time you want water you speak to the rock.
Sound familiar, Jesus was smitten at the cross. He was struck at the cross from that time on.
You don’t strike him again. He rose again from the dead. You don’t offer him up a second time.
A third time, 1/5 time you speak to the rock, the rock of ages.
The song goes cleft for me and you speak to jesus.
And so the bible tells us that that very rock that was in the wilderness with with Israel being ministered to was christ himself.
In other words, it was a miracle that christ did john chapter 17 verse one and 16 says that Jesus spoke these words.
He lifted up his eyes to heaven.
This is the high priestly prayer of jesus and said father, the hour has come.
I do not pray listen to this, I do not pray that you should take them.
That is the believers, the disciples out of the world but that you should keep them from the evil one.
What a remarkable statement according to God’s bible.
The moment you and I come to christ, he wants to use us to go out and affect the world around us, starting with our families, those that are proximity, those that are closest And then affect the world around us.
But it’s pretty amazing that the Bible makes it very clear that Jesus is telling us that we’re gonna be kept by the power of God and we are going to be protected from the Evil one.
This is gonna sound kooky, but if you want to have an exciting dynamic christian life and see God move, you got to go up to the front of the line.
Just let me tell you what the front of the line is. That’s the front of the battle zone.
You see, why would anybody do that? Because that’s where all the action is.
Why would I want to do that?
Because that’s where you’re the safest, Get that in your head.
I’m just gonna play it safe as a christian and hide back here. Oh no, no, no.
You’ll be the first one picked off, Get out, front, stop, being careful, We take risk in all kinds of ways, but then we get all timid regarding our Christianity, not to be.
And first john chapter five verse 18, the bible says, we know that whoever is born of God does not sin, but he who has been born of God keeps himself And the wicked one does not touch him.
What does this mean? Keep himself hanging onto jesus, getting to the front of the line, go to the battlefield, watch what happens.
And then finally the end of verse five, the reaction to being forgiven is that you and I know that we’ve been ordained to whatever God would have us to do by the Holy Spirit, he says, who was given to us?
This is an amazing truth. The holy Spirit is given to every true believer right now, test yourself.
Do I know what it’s like to live my life with the Holy Spirit, The great Dwight l moody, The greatest evangelist, probably in american history Said Moses spent 40 years in Pharaoh’s palace thinking that he was somebody Then moses lived 40 more years in the wilderness finding out that without God, he was a nobody.
And finally he spent another 40 years discovering how a nobody with God can be a somebody.
That’s a great line. That’s a great statement here. We’d want to take this away.
If you today are trusting Jesus christ as your Lord and savior, you can do that with absolute assurance based upon the hope of God because God keeps his word and you can be bold in this way, john chapter 10 verse 19.
Therefore brethren having boldness to enter the holiest by the blood of jesus, This is heaven.
This is not on earth. Thank God.
Buy a new and living way which he consecrated for us through the veil, that is his flesh.
And having a high priest over the house of God, that’s jesus.
Let us draw near with a true heart and full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.
He’s talking about the elements of the believer.
When we are now followers of christ church family, there’s nothing in this world that should rattle us.
Do we see what’s going on in the world around us? Of course we do. Do we care?
Yes, absolutely. But those things should not overcome us.
In fact, God wants to speak to us about how we might make a big difference in whatever that thing might be family, marriage business.
You personally with God. Did you know that christian?
You have boldness enter his presence by the blood of jesus. Is that how you live your life?
Imagine walking Lord Lord you said based on hebrews. God loves this kind of stuff.
By the way you guys, when you use the bible, I’m going from memory. So watch out.
It’s john 15 verse seven where the bible says if my word abides in you, you may ask what you will.
And so my father will answer you and hearing is my father glorified use the bible. Know the bible.
If you don’t know the bible, you don’t know how to pray.
So when you have the bible, God loves when you take his word and you say Lord, you said this, you said I can come boldly and my week yes and my timid, yes, but Lord I’m coming because you said I could come boldly based on the blood of jesus and God goes, ah shucks, come on in.
He loves that.
And Isaiah 1 18 God says, come, let us reason together says the Lord, the word in the hebrew to reason is to argue, come on, argue with me isn’t that great.
It’s like God goes, come on, come on, let’s do this.
And in a way he wants to lose to his word. Jacob knew this.
Well, Jacob was a stinker.
But let me tell you, Jacob knew had to contend with God.
He would hang on to God’s word And in fact, he said God, I’m not letting you go.
Remember that’s a Theofanis. He’s wrestling with a manifestation pre incarnate christ, Jacob’s wrestling.
And as the day began to dawn, Jacob said, I’m not letting you go until you bless my life.
I think God looks across 21st century America, maybe 21st century us and says, man, I wish I had a little bit of a jacobin.
You, I’m looking for somebody to grab my word and come up to me and say, Lord, you said that you’re not willing that any should perish.
So, God, I am pleading with you now to save my husband, To save my daughter, To save my son to save my wife.
God, please, I’m asking you and to go before the throne and let him hear you.
Where you say, Lord, I am not gonna stop this until you bless me.
Okay, we’re done. But we’re gonna we’re gonna fly. You ready.
This has all been easy up until now romans 8 14.
I’m gonna fly Now write them down romans 8 14.
For as many as are led by the spirit of God. These are the sons of God.
For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear.
Hello boy, do we need that? How many kids are suffering?
Because they’ve been quarantined in fear.
But you received the spirit of adoption by whom we cry out Abba father.
The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are Children of God.
Listen, there’s no vagueness, very, very direct Galatians four verse six.
And because you are sons, God has set forth the spirit of his son into your hearts crying out Abba father.
Or if you’re italian papa for real, I love that papa, God wants us to call if your hebrew aba, therefore you are no longer a slave but a son and if a son then an heir of God through christ Second timothy chapter one verse 12.
For this reason, I also suffer these things.
Nevertheless, I’m not ashamed for I know whom I have believed and I am persuaded that he is able to keep what I have committed to him until that day, christian be bold Philippians 1 20.
According to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed. But with all boldness as always.
So now also Christ will be made magnified in my body whether by life or by death verse 21.
For to me to live as Christ and to die is gain. Second Corinthians 1 21.
You guys Okay Second Corinthians 1 21.
Now he who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God who also has sealed us and given us the Holy Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee you want some assurance.
That’s that’s assurance Galatians 5 22. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, God’s love.
Joy, peace, long suffering kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control against such things.
There is no law and those who are christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and it’s desires.
What does that mean? Lord? I’ve got this desire, I’ve got this thought coming.
I’ve got this passion in jesus name. Take it away. Lord, take it from me.
God fight That scripture goes on to say verse 25.
If we live in the spirit, let us also walk in the spirit Ephesians 4 30.
You guys okay, are you writing them down? Look, I do the work.
I expect you to write her down. Ephesians 4 30 says do not grieve.
The Holy Spirit of God by whom you are sealed for the day of redemption.
Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, evil speaking.
Be put away from you with all malice and be kind to one another.
Even when you’re leaving the parking lot tenderhearted, forgiving one another. Even as God in christ forgave you.
Is that awesome? And then the bible tells us that the Spirit of God was given to us and here we have to end given to us.
I’ll end with this as a believer Today.
You must ask yourself In those 1st 5 verses of Romans five are these things recognizable in my life.
Number two are some of those things recognizable in my life.
If today you are looking at those verses and you’re saying, I don’t even understand what you’re talking about, then, my dear friend, you need jesus christ to come into your life to forgive you of your sins.
Watch when the sins are forgiven, when all is forgiven, there’s clarity.
You breathe. You ever seen people step out of a stuffy room or a place that’s yucky and they step out into the air and they right, the same type of thing happens when you give your life to jesus.
Let’s stand together as we and this in prayer.
Don’t say anything.
But if you are a follower of jesus, you know it since you know it, live it, how do I do that?
Let go, let him take you and your life in the process will continually be transformed.
If today you’re waking up to the idea I would like to have that in my life, then you pray this prayer with me right now, let’s bow our heads, Father, we thank you first of all for this moment and for your truth, but Lord is right now, someone might be saying yes to this, Yes, I want this, yes, I want this jesus in my life, I want this truth in my life, I want this boldness.
I want this clarity. Lord lift the confusion from my world, my friend.
If that’s you? If that’s your desire right now, will you tell jesus in your own words that you thank him now for dying on the cross for your sins, He literally had you on his mind 2000 years ago.
You see, that’s what God can do when God goes to the cross, he knows you.
And today you would say thank you Lord for dying for me and you believe according to the scriptures that jesus rose again from the dead, of course, the bible tells us that the grave could not hold him down, he was God your resurrection and that today you’re saying, jesus, take my life, just take possession of me, caused me to scoot over and welcome you to the wheel to drive my life and Lord, I’m gonna follow you from this moment on, fill me with your holy spirit, write my name in your book of life, transform me from this moment forward.
Thank you.