Jeff Miller

February 1, 2026

Get Unified, Unified and Purified

Don't Excuse Sin

Jeff Miller

February 1, 2026

Get Unified, Unified and Purified

Introduction:

4 Things to Say To Yourself When You're Tempted: (1 Corinthians 6:12-20)

I can't EXCUSE sin. (1 Cor 6:12-14)
I am ONE with Christ. (1 Cor 6:15-17)
God says to RUN from sexual sin. (1 Cor 6:18)
My body BELONGS to God. (1 Cor 6:19-20)

Sermon Notes (PDF): BLANK
Hint: Highlight blanks above for answers!

00:43-00:45
What kind of a church is this?
00:46-00:48
We are a church that sits on four pillars.
00:50-00:53
We proclaim the authority of God's Word without apology.
00:55-00:58
We lift high the name of Jesus in worship.
00:59-01:01
We believe firmly in the power of prayer.
01:02-01:05
And we share the good news of Jesus with boldness.
01:09-01:19
Speaking of that first pillar, we're going through a series here Corinthians, and we go where the text takes us.
01:21-01:23
And today we're going to talk about sexual immorality.
01:26-01:28
I'm going to be direct but not explicit.
01:28-01:33
The question comes up, "Should my child listen to this?" But parental discretion advised.
01:33-01:36
Again, direct but not explicit.
01:37-01:44
I would encourage you parents, whether you're sitting here or whether you're streaming somebody's going to be talking to your kids about this.
01:44-01:54
You should be, but they're going to be hearing a lot of different opinions regarding matters of marriage and sexuality.
01:54-01:56
I think it might do them good to hear God's opinion of it.
01:58-02:10
So I'm just going to ask you would please pray for me to be faithful to communicate God's word clearly, and I will pray for you to have your heart open to receive what He wants to tell us today.
02:17-02:30
Father in heaven, let this not just be another sermon sat through, but let Your Word transform our hearts and minds.
02:30-02:36
Father, give us the faith to believe and act upon what You have already pronounced to be true.
02:39-02:41
Let this be the day of repentance.
02:42-02:52
Let this be a day of joy and celebration and truly embracing Your gifts.
02:53-02:55
Your Word says every good and perfect gift comes from above.
02:56-02:57
Father, we believe that.
03:01-03:04
And I thank You, Father, ahead of time for the work that You're going to do.
03:05-03:12
We pray in Jesus' name and all of God's people said, "Amen." Amen.
03:12-03:33
1 Corinthians chapter 6, we're in a series through 1 Corinthians called "Unified and Purified." Unified, that's the first four chapters, unified, where Paul says, "Church, collectively, get it together." Right?
03:34-03:53
In this next section that we're in, the church purified, Paul says, "Each of you, be who Jesus saved you to be." And today we are going to be talking about sexual immorality.
03:54-04:14
And those of you who have been going through this series with us might be saying at this point, "Oh, Pastor Jeff, maybe the cold is affecting your brain, but didn't we talk about that guy two weeks ago?" Oh, you think there was just one person in that church struggling with it.
04:16-04:18
Did you hurt your head when you fell off the turnip truck?
04:19-04:19
No.
04:20-04:32
There wasn't just one person at that church dealing with it, and I guarantee you there's There's not just one person in this church dealing with it.
04:32-04:34
Look down to verse 18.
04:34-04:36
This is the sermon.
04:38-05:10
Verse 18, Paul says, "Flee from sexual immorality." "Flee from sexual immorality." See, in Corinth, they were famous for their temple to Aphrodite, And their priestesses were actually prostitutes, and they would by those means help men worship according to their religion.
05:12-05:14
That was their context.
05:16-05:20
But the principles in this passage aren't limited to that.
05:20-05:22
And you have to get that.
05:23-05:37
You know, we don't want guys sitting here going, "Well, I'm doing pretty good because I've never been with a prostitute." Flea, sexual immorality, that word sexual immorality covers it all.
05:38-05:54
Whether it's an affair, or pornography, or one of these apps that allow you to meet up with people, it's anything outside of God's design for marriage and sexuality.
05:55-05:59
And look, there is nothing new under the sun.
06:00-06:06
The problem that this church had is the same problem that the church has today.
06:06-06:07
We touched on this a couple of weeks ago.
06:08-06:08
Here's the problem.
06:09-06:13
It's not viewing sex as sacred.
06:14-06:14
That's the problem.
06:17-06:24
We've turned this gift from God into some gross form of self-gratification.
06:27-06:30
So what is the purpose of sex?
06:31-06:32
What is it?
06:33-06:38
Well, what is the purpose of everything that God created?
06:41-06:44
The purpose of everything that God created is to glorify Him.
06:46-06:48
So what is the purpose of marital intimacy?
06:50-06:51
You're like, "Really?
06:51-06:53
To glorify God?" Yeah.
06:54-06:54
Yeah.
06:55-07:01
Need I remind you that the whole idea of marital intimacy was God's idea.
07:01-07:08
The whole idea that this was to be a pleasure shared between a married couple, that was God's plan.
07:10-07:12
He designed that, right?
07:12-07:15
Genesis tells us male and female, He created them.
07:16-07:19
The two shall become one flesh, Genesis 2.24.
07:20-07:30
That's the purpose of intimacy, but what's the objective of sex?
07:30-07:33
What's the objective of sexual relations?
07:34-07:45
Well, some would say, "Well, the objective is procreation, that's it." That's not the primary objective.
07:47-07:55
And for some, they would say, "It's pleasure." There's that, but that's not the primary objective of sex.
07:56-07:59
The primary objective is intimacy.
08:03-08:05
And you need to learn this statement from God's Word.
08:08-08:10
Intimacy is for those in the covenant.
08:13-08:15
Intimacy is for those in the covenant.
08:18-08:26
See under the new covenant, God desires the closest relationship possible that He can have with His people.
08:26-08:27
So what does He do?
08:28-08:31
He lives inside the heart of a believer.
08:34-08:40
And the Bible tells us that marriage and sex is a picture of the gospel.
08:41-08:45
The man representing Jesus, the woman representing the church.
08:45-08:47
Ephesians 5, you can read that later.
08:48-08:49
Same point though.
08:51-08:54
God's relationship with man, man's relationship with his wife.
08:55-08:58
Intimacy is for the covenant.
09:01-09:05
And sex is the physical manifestation.
09:05-09:08
It's the illustration of such intimacy.
09:13-09:19
Because in the covenant of marriage, the man representing Jesus is initiating a love relationship.
09:20-09:28
And the woman representing the church is receiving an intimacy that the two exclusively enjoy.
09:29-09:39
And the fact right now that people would hear something like that and start to snicker and start to giggle shows you the problem.
09:41-09:43
That the whole idea of sex has been perverted.
09:45-09:47
Like obviously, right?
09:48-09:49
Like how did that happen?
09:52-09:56
Well the Bible tells us when Adam and Eve sinned, they immediately noticed what?
09:58-09:59
They noticed that they were naked.
10:00-10:01
Isn't that strange?
10:02-10:06
Because up until that point, they only ever saw each other naked.
10:07-10:15
Now all of a sudden that sin is in the world, now they cast a whole new light on this.
10:18-10:22
But all of the sudden they had to cover themselves up.
10:28-10:33
There is a shame associated with sexuality because of sin.
10:37-10:46
God's wedding gift to men and women has been misused and abused and perverted.
10:48-10:58
And like the Corinthians, the world's profane, disgusting view of sex has been brought into the church.
11:02-11:10
And like them, there are many people here that are indulging in some form of sexual sin.
11:15-11:18
So what's it going to take to get you to break free?
11:18-11:18
What is it?
11:21-11:23
I've been doing this a long time.
11:23-11:24
I know how sermons work.
11:24-11:27
This is the part of the sermon where you get the stats, right?
11:28-11:36
You get the statistics on pornography and usage in the church and out the church.
11:37-11:39
That doesn't make a difference to people.
11:41-11:49
Or this is the part of the sermon where I can tell you the effect that pornography will have on your marriage and your relationships.
11:49-12:05
And I can get, you know, line graphs up there or quotes from brilliant scientists talking about the effect that it has on your marriage and the effect that it has on your brain, and that's not going to move anybody.
12:07-12:11
We could talk about the risk of sexually transmitted diseases.
12:15-12:24
I don't really think any of those things are very effective to get people on track with God's design for marital intimacy.
12:25-12:27
What we need is the power of the Holy Spirit.
12:28-12:31
What we need is the wisdom that comes from the Word of God.
12:33-12:37
So on your outline, that's what we're going after today.
12:38-12:50
That when you find yourself in a place of temptation, through this passage you're going to see, there's four things that you need to say to yourself when temptation shows up.
12:52-12:52
Alright?
12:52-12:55
Number one, break this down, I can't excuse sin.
12:56-12:59
I just can't excuse sin.
13:04-13:12
You see, the Corinthians, in their culture, they had some popular sayings that they used to excuse sin.
13:12-13:14
Look at your Bible, here's two of them.
13:14-13:26
Verse 12, "All things are lawful for me." Verse 13, "Food is meant for the stomach, and the stomach for food." Stop there.
13:26-13:32
Those were two of the sayings of the culture, two of the, you know, secular proverbs, so to speak.
13:33-13:39
But when they wanted to excuse and justify their sexual sin, they would say one of those statements.
13:39-13:44
And what we have here in 1 Corinthians 6 is Paul systematically breaking them down.
13:44-13:51
He's like, "Your reasoning is really messed up here." So let's look at it.
13:51-13:58
First of all, verse 12, he says, "All things are lawful for me." Stop there.
14:00-14:01
Is that true?
14:05-14:20
Look, if you are a born-again believer in Christ, if you are truly regenerate, if you are truly saved, you have freedom in Christ.
14:21-14:25
Yes, nothing can separate you from the love of God.
14:25-14:30
No sin that you commit will disqualify you from being a child of God.
14:30-14:31
That is true.
14:31-14:32
All right?
14:34-14:35
But let's look at what Paul says.
14:35-14:48
He says, "All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful." Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should.
14:48-14:49
This is Paul's first argument.
14:51-14:54
Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should.
14:57-15:01
Can I have gummy bears and cream soda for breakfast?
15:04-15:07
Aaron, can I have gummy bears and cream soda for breakfast?
15:09-15:11
Yes, I can.
15:12-15:15
And you were all witness that she nodded her head yes.
15:16-15:19
Look, God's not going to condemn me for that.
15:22-15:23
Is it very helpful though?
15:24-15:26
What about, can I play the lottery?
15:27-15:29
Can I play the...oh, Aaron says no on that one.
15:31-15:35
For purposes of illustration, can I play the lottery?
15:37-15:38
Sure I can.
15:40-15:44
God's not going to send me to hell if I buy a scratchy ticket, right?
15:45-15:49
If I buy a scratchy lottery, Pastor Taylor, God's not going to send me to hell for that.
15:53-15:54
But does that make it a good idea?
15:57-15:58
It's not helpful, is it?
15:59-16:00
It's not wise.
16:00-16:03
The lottery is just a tax on people who are bad at math.
16:06-16:11
Okay, now how about sleeping with someone you're not married to?
16:12-16:17
If you're a true Christian, that is not going to send you to hell.
16:21-16:29
Saying that it is not helpful is one of the biggest understatements of all time.
16:32-16:33
I think that's Paul's point.
16:35-16:35
It's not helpful.
16:37-16:39
Sleeping with someone you're not married to is not helpful.
16:40-16:44
It can result in an unwanted pregnancy.
16:47-16:50
If she's married, you're going to deal with an angry husband when he finds out.
16:52-16:56
You're going to deal with shame in your workplace, in your church, in your community.
16:59-17:03
Your testimony, if you're a Christian, certainly not going to help that.
17:04-17:10
Oh, and if she's married, now you've destroyed two families, yours and hers.
17:11-17:15
And if you're not married, you've done damage to future spouses, yours and hers.
17:18-17:19
There's consequences.
17:20-17:21
So that's where Paul starts.
17:21-17:25
He's like, "All things are lawful for me." He's like, "Bag that excuse.
17:26-17:30
Not all things are helpful." Let's look at the next one.
17:31-18:12
Back in verse 12, he says, "All things are lawful for me, but I will not be enslaved anything. Some translations, "I will not be dominated by anything." He goes, "Why would I mess around with something that could enslave me? Why would I do that?" It's just, it's foolishness, right? And sexual sin is addictive, right? Talk to the guy who struggled with looking at things on his computer that he shouldn't be looking at.
18:13-18:14
It's addictive.
18:15-18:21
Talk to the girl who's in that wrong relationship that she just keeps going back to.
18:21-18:22
It's addictive.
18:25-18:31
I mean, with any sin, one and done is bad enough.
18:32-18:43
But when you have a sin that just keeps drawing you back in, Paul says, "You really want to mess around with something that's going to consume your life?
18:44-18:53
I'm not going to be dominated by anything." He's like, "You can bag that excuse too." But there's another one.
18:53-18:54
Look at verse 13.
18:55-18:59
He says, "Food is meant for the stomach, and the stomach for food.
19:01-19:15
And God, this is Paul's commentary on that saying, he goes, "And God will destroy both one and the other." The body's not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.
19:19-19:21
See that was the other excuse for sexual sin.
19:21-19:24
Food is meant for the stomach, and the stomach's for food.
19:24-19:25
You see that argument?
19:26-19:37
The argument is this, look, the act of physical intimacy, it's just biological, right?
19:37-19:39
It's just a biological thing.
19:39-19:43
I mean, you guys are a little too uptight about that.
19:43-19:46
It's just a biological function.
19:47-19:49
I mean, let me break it down for you.
19:49-20:00
and my tummy is hungry, and I see food, I'm like, well, I see a connection here.
20:00-20:02
You two were sort of made for each other.
20:03-20:04
Let's get this together, right?
20:05-20:07
It's obvious what needs to happen here.
20:08-20:10
The food needs to go in my tummy.
20:15-20:18
He applied that same logic to sex.
20:20-20:28
It's like, "Look, I have body parts and there is a woman, so it's obvious what needs to happen here.
20:28-20:36
These two were made for each other." You see, Paul shoots that one down, foolish thinking.
20:36-20:40
He goes, "Yeah, food and stomach, that's an appropriate match.
20:41-20:46
body doesn't match with sexual sin.
20:48-20:52
What body matches with is the Lord.
20:53-20:58
So your little analogy is fundamentally faulty.
21:00-21:04
And Paul says further, "More food for the stomach." That's a temporary thing.
21:08-21:10
That's just a temporary thing.
21:10-21:12
But your body is the Lord's.
21:14-21:15
That's an eternal thing.
21:16-21:26
In other words, Paul says your analogy breaks down because while digestion, yes, is a biological function, sex is not just a biological function.
21:26-21:28
It's not just a physical act.
21:28-21:28
It's not.
21:31-21:34
By the way, your body is not going to be destroyed.
21:35-21:36
It's going to be glorified.
21:36-21:52
14, Paul says, "And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by His power." Paul is saying, "Your body has a glorious destiny.
21:54-22:01
Don't use it for lust." Paul is like, "Bag that excuse.
22:01-22:03
It's just a biological function.
22:04-22:06
You are not a dog, okay?
22:08-22:15
This act of intimacy is more than just some biological function like eating or drinking.
22:19-22:23
That saying, "All things are lawful for me," boy, that one didn't go away, did it?
22:24-23:18
I think we all know people that are like the ultra-grace people that are like, "Hey, because Christ died for me, I can do whatever I want. I have freedom in Christ to do whatever I want." That mindset overtook the Corinthians, and so many Christians today have such a skewed view of God's Word. Look, liberty is not license. All right? Liberty is not license. And I want to say this with as much love and compassion as I can muster here, but you are either unregenerate or you're a toddler Christian if you think freedom in Christ is a green light for anything and everything that you want to do." Those were their sayings.
23:20-23:25
Boy, we could spend a lot of time talking about some of the sayings that we threw around in our day, right?
23:26-23:30
We have other popular sayings that we use to excuse sin.
23:31-23:32
I've heard them all.
23:34-23:40
Here's a big one, you've heard this one, when people want to excuse their sexual sin, they're like, "Everyone does it." You heard that one?
23:40-23:41
Everyone does it.
23:41-23:45
Oh, okay, that's the measure of what's appropriate, right?
23:45-23:47
As long as everybody's doing it, then it must be okay.
23:50-23:52
You can bag that excuse.
23:54-23:55
Here's one that I hate.
23:56-24:08
I've heard so many times people say, "Well, you wouldn't buy a car without test driving it, huh?" A problem with that analogy, we're talking about a human being, not a car.
24:08-24:17
If I go to a lot and test drive a car and decide not to buy it, that car isn't going to carry emotional damage with it for the rest of its life.
24:21-24:22
You use cars.
24:23-24:24
You don't use people.
24:25-24:27
Beg that excuse.
24:28-24:37
You hear people say, "Well, you know, come on, a man has needs." Yeah, yeah, a man does have needs.
24:37-24:38
A man needs Christ.
24:39-24:41
Let's focus on that need.
24:41-24:43
That's the most important need.
24:43-24:44
Let's go after that one.
24:45-24:46
Or how about this one?
24:48-24:49
"Oh, you don't understand.
24:49-25:01
We love each other." Okay, well if you love her that much, then you should enter into a covenant with her and honor the Lord with it.
25:02-25:10
But if you don't love her enough to enter the covenant with her in marriage, then you shouldn't be physical with her.
25:12-25:13
Beg that excuse.
25:15-25:18
Paul says, "Your body's not meant for sexual sin.
25:18-25:20
It's not meant for self-gratification.
25:20-25:21
It's meant for the Lord.
25:21-25:22
It has a glorious destiny.
25:22-25:31
And here's the bottom line, church, you are never going to repent if you're always looking for an excuse to sin.
25:36-25:43
So next time you are tempted, you need to stop and say, "I can't excuse sin.
25:44-25:45
I can't excuse this.
25:47-25:51
There's nothing I can say before God that would make this sin okay.
25:53-25:54
I can't excuse sin.
25:56-25:56
All right?
25:56-26:05
Number two, when you're tempted, you need to learn to stop and say this, "I am one with Christ.
26:07-26:09
I am one with Christ." Look at verses 15 through 17.
26:11-26:18
Paul goes on, he says, "Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ?
26:22-26:28
Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute?
26:28-26:29
Never!
26:32-26:39
Or do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her?
26:41-26:45
Or, as it is written, the two will become one flesh.
26:48-26:54
But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with Him.
26:55-26:57
I am one with Christ.
26:57-27:05
You see, Paul was talking to the Corinthians who were worshipping with the temple prostitutes.
27:06-27:16
Like you're taking a body, your body, the personal property of Jesus, and using it to gratify yourself in a relationship with a godless woman.
27:19-27:25
And this is equivalent to dragging Christ Himself into prostitution.
27:26-27:29
That is an absolutely horrible thought, but that's what He says.
27:31-27:32
Think about that.
27:33-27:38
Think about how repulsive and appalling this is.
27:38-27:39
Think about it.
27:42-27:46
I mean, would you call Pastor Taylor up and say, "Hey, a bunch of us are going down to the strip club.
27:46-27:48
You want to go with us?" Would you do that?
27:52-27:54
Not in a million years would I do that.
27:58-28:05
Or would you call up Pastor Rich and say, "Hey, we're going to go downtown and see if we can pick up some women.
28:05-28:10
You want to come with us?" You would never do that.
28:14-28:18
But see, the reality, according to God's Word, is far worse.
28:20-28:29
Because the Bible says we are one with Christ, and engaging in sexual immorality is joining Christ Himself in the act.
28:33-28:36
Be like asking Jesus to go pick up prostitutes with you.
28:40-28:41
Absolutely foul.
28:43-28:50
But you know, it's the same principle, men, when you're looking at things on your computer that you shouldn't be looking at.
28:51-28:52
It's the same principle.
28:52-29:15
It would be like calling Jesus up and saying, "Hey, why don't you come over and surf the net with me. Let's look at some stuff together. Would you do that? It's the same principle when you're sneaking around with a co-worker. "Hey Jesus, we're going to call my wife and say we're working late, but we're really going to meet up with so-and-so." Would you do that?
29:17-29:21
Or when you use an app to meet up with people for a physical relationship.
29:24-29:28
Look, if you're a Christian, the very thought of that's repulsive.
29:28-29:30
There's nothing funny about that at all.
29:32-29:36
So the next time you're tempted, you need to stop and say, "What am I doing?
29:36-29:39
I am one Spirit with Christ.
29:39-29:44
Why in the world would I drag the Lord into engaging in this garbage?
29:48-29:56
I'm one with Christ." Number three, four things to say to yourself when you're tempted.
29:56-30:00
Number three, God says to run from sexual sin.
30:02-30:11
Here it is, verse 18, "Flee from sexual immorality." Flee.
30:12-30:13
Get away.
30:18-30:19
This is how you win.
30:25-30:26
I grew up in the '80s.
30:28-30:38
And I, you know I never, I don't like bragging.
30:40-30:44
But I'm going to, for a couple of minutes if you'll indulge me.
30:47-30:52
But I grew up in the '80s, and one of my favorite things about the '80s was Mike Tyson.
30:54-31:00
Now some of you might remember, or might know of Mike Tyson, rather, seeing him in movies, or cartoons, or whatever.
31:01-31:02
That's not the Mike Tyson that I knew growing up.
31:03-31:05
Growing up, I could not wait.
31:06-31:23
HBO would show his fights, he'd come out with the ripped towel over his head, he had the coin laced in his boot, and he would just come out, and it would be like, "Ding, blaka blaka!" Like, "Ouch!" Look it up on the YouTubes if you don't believe me.
31:23-31:28
It was, he was an absolute monster.
31:32-31:39
You know, always the highlight, you know, to watch the usually 90-second fight or whatever.
31:41-31:44
But okay, I don't, but listen, like I said, I don't want to brag.
31:47-31:52
But I have never lost a fight to Mike Tyson.
31:56-31:58
And I know what some of you are thinking.
31:59-32:10
Some of you are thinking, "Yeah, Pastor Jeff, well, Mike Tyson probably didn't fight ten-year-olds." And I would say, "Look, my record speaks for itself.
32:12-32:19
I have never lost to Mike Tyson. Not one time. Do you know why I've never lost to Mike Tyson?
32:20-32:26
Because I wasn't stupid enough to show up to fight him. That's the principle here.
32:29-32:37
Look, it's the same thing with sexual sin. If you stay and try to fight, you will lose.
32:39-33:04
That's why you don't fight it. The Bible says you run from it. You run from it. And I got to tell you guys, that's why many of you are losing the battle with pornography today. You've isolated yourself again. You're on your computer or your phone again, and you lost again because you showed up.
33:08-33:22
That's why some of you continue to go too far physically with that person that you're not married to, because you ended up alone with her again, and you gave in to desire with her again.
33:22-33:26
You showed up again, and you lost again.
33:30-33:34
You will give in every time you show up.
33:35-33:37
That's why God says to run.
33:38-33:38
Run!
33:42-33:42
Why?
33:42-33:44
What's the urgency here?
33:44-33:45
Look at the rest of verse 18.
33:47-33:49
This is about as serious as it gets.
33:49-33:59
He says, "Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.
34:00-34:01
Please hear me.
34:01-34:09
Sexual sin is not the worst sin, but it is unique in its consequences.
34:10-34:15
The Bible says when you sin sexually, you are actually sinning against your own body.
34:18-34:23
Other sins don't affect you the same way that sexual sin does.
34:27-34:28
Other sins affect outwardly.
34:29-34:33
There's something different about sexual sin, it affects you inwardly.
34:39-34:40
Why is that?
34:40-34:41
Listen closely, please.
34:42-34:55
No other physical act that you commit in your body carries the spiritual weight that sexual intimacy does.
34:55-35:02
So no other sin is going to bring the impact that sexual sin brings.
35:07-35:10
It consumes, it destroys like no other sin.
35:13-35:21
You know, over the years I've seen a lot of preachers who have disqualified themselves for ministry because of sin.
35:22-35:24
Do you know what the most common reason is?
35:27-35:28
You could probably guess, huh?
35:31-35:32
I do a lot of counseling.
35:33-35:38
Do you know what's the most common area we find where people need help?
35:43-35:44
You probably guess.
35:46-35:53
We've lost ministry, we've hurt our families, we're doing damage control all because we didn't flee.
35:54-35:59
We showed up, we thought we could handle it this time, and we lost again.
36:02-36:04
Nobody's surprised but you.
36:06-36:20
So the next time you're tempted, stop, stop, and say, "This is so serious that God says I should run from it." All right?
36:21-36:25
And finally, number four, four things to say when you're tempted.
36:25-36:28
Number four, "My body belongs to God.
36:31-36:35
My body belongs to God." Look at verse 19.
36:37-36:51
He says, "Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God?" Humans have a unique capacity.
36:54-37:00
are the only thing in creation that have the ability to be indwelt by God Himself.
37:01-37:03
No other creature can say that.
37:05-37:10
God lives inside you if you're a follower of Christ, if you're a believer.
37:11-37:13
You know, you are the temple of God.
37:13-37:31
In the Old Testament, the temple of God was a building, and when Jesus walked the earth, The temple, the tabernacle of God was in one man, Jesus Christ, but now under the new covenant, God's temple is in the heart of every believer of Christ.
37:35-37:35
You're the temple.
37:38-37:38
What would you think?
37:40-37:54
What would you think of someone who, during sermon time today, they were looking at explicit of the opposite sex on their phone during the sermon, what would you think about that?
37:55-37:57
Wouldn't you just sort of be appalled?
38:00-38:04
Like, I can't believe during the preaching of the Bible somebody was looking at that.
38:04-38:05
Wouldn't that be appalling?
38:06-38:17
Or what would you think if there was someone in this church that was having an affair, and they decided that this room was a perfect private place?
38:17-38:22
Some night through the week when nobody's here, they sneak in here and have an affair right in this room.
38:22-38:23
What would you think about that?
38:24-38:28
Wouldn't you be like, "What is the matter with you?
38:28-38:39
You did that in church?" I don't want to burst any bubbles, but this room, this room is really nothing special.
38:40-38:41
This is an office building.
38:47-38:49
That was a rumpus room before we moved in here.
38:51-38:53
And who knows what they'll do with it when we're gone.
38:54-38:56
This room is nothing special at all.
38:59-39:02
You are the temple of God.
39:02-39:04
You are holy property.
39:04-39:15
God says, "You are where I live." So every time you commit sexual sin, no matter where you do it, you're doing it in God's living room.
39:19-39:35
He goes on, look at verse 19, he says, "You are not your own, for you were bought with a price to glorify God in your body." You have a holy obligation to Jesus.
39:35-39:36
You are not your own.
39:37-39:40
Listen, you have no right to yourself.
39:44-39:53
You have no right to yourself, because you were bought with a price.
39:55-39:56
What did it cost to buy you?
39:58-40:00
It cost the blood of Jesus Christ.
40:08-40:10
You know, everybody is so concerned about their rights.
40:12-40:14
"I have rights!
40:15-40:16
I'm going to stand up for my rights!
40:17-40:24
I know my rights!" You know, as Christians, we have no rights.
40:25-40:26
Did you know that?
40:30-40:34
As a Christian, all I can say is, I'm not my own.
40:36-40:37
I don't even belong to myself.
40:40-40:44
This body belongs to Jesus.
40:45-40:47
This body was heading to hell.
40:48-40:56
This body was going to be separated from God forever, and Jesus Christ bought this back with His own death.
40:57-40:59
So this belongs to Jesus.
40:59-41:00
He paid for it.
41:04-41:13
So, you know the saying that was so popular, and there's still remnants of it, people walking around going, "My body, my choice." That's not biblical.
41:15-41:34
You want to make it biblical, you say it this way, "Christ's body, Christ's choice." So, he says, "So, glorify God in your body." We are a wholly motivated church.
41:34-41:36
We are wholly motivated.
41:36-41:38
Our highest priority is to glorify God.
41:40-41:51
Physical intimacy in the covenant of marriage, the purpose for which God designed intimacy, When that act occurs, that glorifies God.
41:52-42:00
And refusing to allow your passions to control you, when you flee from sexual immorality, you glorify God.
42:03-42:07
So next time you're tempted, you need to stop and say, "No, no, no.
42:09-42:19
This belongs to God." You know, the church is called the Bride of Christ.
42:22-42:35
Jesus desires intimacy with His bride, so He entered a covenant with His bride, and He keeps His covenant because He is faithful to His bride.
42:35-42:39
And that is exactly what we are called to emulate as children of God.
42:40-42:49
I keep my covenant to my bride because that's what my Lord does." Her worship team would make their way back up front.
42:53-42:58
Look, when you leave here today, at some point you're going to be tempted.
43:00-43:09
You're going to be tempted to think of something you shouldn't, to look at something you shouldn't, to do something that you shouldn't.
43:09-43:34
going to be tempted. Some of you, it might be tomorrow or Wednesday. Some of you, it might be on your way to the car from church. I want to encourage you, if that's a struggle for you, keep this outline and make it a steady habit in your devotions to read and review These principles from God's Word.
43:36-43:45
If you're unmarried and you keep finding yourself tempted, sit down and read these together with your boyfriend or girlfriend.
43:48-43:53
How about you make these four statements the lock screen on your phone?
43:55-43:59
I can't excuse sin because there is no excuse.
44:00-44:03
Number two, I am one with Christ.
44:06-44:09
God says to run from sexual sin.
44:11-44:14
And my body belongs to God.
44:16-44:16
Let's pray.
44:20-44:32
Our Father in heaven, I pray, Father, again by the power of your Holy Spirit, by the wisdom of your Word that today would be the day of repentance.
44:34-44:46
That some people for too long have just made excuses or shrugged their shoulders or have just given up any thought that this is a sin that can be avoided.
44:47-45:07
I pray today, Father, that we reexamine the purpose of it and that we would be a people You are truly wholly motivated to enjoy this gift in the way which you told us to enjoy.
45:09-45:22
Thank you, Father, for this glorious picture that you've given us of Christ faithful to His bride.
45:25-45:26
Give us the faith to imitate that.
45:26-45:28
We pray in Jesus' name, amen.

Small Group Discussion
Read 1 Corinthians 6:12-20

What was your big take-away from this passage / message?
Explain the expressions the Corinthians used to justify sexual sin (1 Cor 6:12-13)?
What expressions do people use today? How do you refute those?
How exactly is sexual sin different from other sins (1 Cor 6:18)?
How would you respond to a Christian that justifies their sin by saying, “I have freedom in
Christ to live how I want!”? (See 1 Cor 6:19-20)

Breakout

Pray for one another.

Jeff Miller

January 25, 2026

Get Unified, Unified and Purified

Deal with Disputes

Jeff Miller

January 25, 2026

Get Unified, Unified and Purified

Introduction:

In a church dispute? Remember your Relationship… (1 Corinthians 6:1-11)

To OTHER BELIEVERS: we RECONCILE. (1 Cor 6:1-5)

1 Corinthians 5:12 – For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge?
To THE WORLD: we REPRESENT. (1 Cor 6:6-8)
To SIN: we RENOUNCE. (1 Cor 6:9-10)

Genesis 2:16–17 – And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

Titus 2:11–12 – For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age,
To JESUS CHRIST: we are RENEWED. (1 Cor 6:11)

Sermon Notes (PDF): BLANK
Hint: Highlight blanks above for answers!

00:43-00:47
Well, good morning, wherever you are today.
00:47-00:47
Welcome.
00:48-00:49
My name is Justin.
00:49-00:51
I'm one of the elders here at Harvest.
00:52-01:03
And as we get started, I would just like to ask that you would pray for me to faithfully and clearly communicate God's word, and I will pray for you to have hearts to receive it.
01:05-01:05
Amen.
01:06-01:14
Well, today we're going to be talking about dealing with disputes, disagreements, beef, as the kids say.
01:15-01:17
Do the kids still say beef, Pastor Jeff?
01:17-01:19
Okay, confirmed.
01:20-01:28
I too was young once, but as a college student, one thing my roommates and I never had beef over was where to order pizza.
01:29-01:32
Listen, four guys in an apartment, that's a big decision.
01:33-01:34
But we found our place.
01:35-01:42
Piazza's Pizza, home to the largest pizza that I've ever seen, the Big Piazza.
01:43-01:46
It was the best price-to-food ratio in the city.
01:48-01:51
The box was so big, it didn't even fit through the door.
01:51-01:54
You had to tilt it just to get it inside.
01:56-01:58
It would feed all of us for a whole weekend.
01:59-02:05
And actually, one of those weekends, a few of my friends from home came up to visit.
02:05-02:10
And so, of course, we wanted to treat them to a big piazza.
02:11-02:12
But there was a dispute.
02:14-02:33
My roommates and I tried to explain to them how enormous this pizza was, but my friends kept insisting, "Look, we need to order two." And we're like, "Guys, you haven't seen this pizza." And they're like, "Guys, you don't know how hungry we are.
02:33-02:35
We need at least two.
02:36-02:37
Okay?
02:38-02:42
So eventually, we gave up, and we ordered two big piazzas.
02:44-02:50
And, you know, after dinner, I couldn't believe it, but we actually finished half of one.
02:52-03:06
And that's when the real dispute started, because we tried to tell them we just needed one, but the problem is, according to them, we didn't eat our share, because they insisted we needed to.
03:07-03:14
So then wild claims started flying around both sides about how many slices each side ate.
03:15-03:21
And this morning, I'd actually like to present you with some evidence so you can draw your own conclusions.
03:22-03:26
Exhibit A, this is the big piazza.
03:27-03:30
And even that, I tell you, the photo doesn't do it justice.
03:31-03:43
But I added some analysis to this photo because one member of the opposition has repeatedly stated that he alone consumed 25 slices.
03:45-03:47
Exhibit B, this is his claim.
03:49-03:51
And I'm telling you, I was there that night.
03:51-03:57
If he ate that much pizza in one sitting, we were going to spend the night in Rochester General Hospital.
03:58-03:58
Okay?
03:59-03:59
Church.
04:00-04:00
It was crazy.
04:01-04:09
Now, we are close to the 20th anniversary of that meal, and the battle is still raging on.
04:10-04:22
As far as I'm aware, this is the longest-running dispute I've ever been a part of, debating it, step-by-step, recounting what happened, and of course, laughter.
04:24-04:29
Because this dispute, though still being disputed, It didn't threaten our friendships.
04:30-04:42
It's a silly dispute, but I share it with you because the way that we handle disputes, that often depends on our relationship to the other side, true or false.
04:44-04:53
When we are in a dispute, our relationship to the person or our relationship to the situation, that determines our response.
04:54-05:00
Best friends can accuse each other of pizza malpractice for decades and be totally fine.
05:02-05:05
But for real disputes, think about it.
05:06-05:08
Which ones are the hardest to resolve?
05:09-05:15
The ones within a family, or with a close friend, or someone you looked up to.
05:17-05:23
It's far more difficult to deal with offense from someone that you know deeply than from someone that you don't know at all.
05:24-05:30
An argument that escalates, a disagreement grows into something much more.
05:31-05:32
Most of us have been there.
05:33-05:37
And that can even happen here, within the church family.
05:38-05:41
How do we deal with those disputes?
05:43-05:48
Well, if you have your Bibles, you can open them to 1 Corinthians 6, where we're going to dig into that.
05:50-05:54
We deal with disputes because we're going after a church unified and purified.
05:55-05:55
Amen?
05:56-06:02
And last week, Pastor Jeff taught how to get purified when there's sin in the church.
06:02-06:10
When someone claims Christ, yet is living in unrepentant sin, and they refuse help, they want their sin to be accepted.
06:11-06:13
What do you do with that person?
06:15-06:25
The Bible says, "Let him who has done this be removed from among you." And you might think, harsh, that doesn't sound like a thing a church should do.
06:26-06:31
Well, if you missed it, read 1 Corinthians 5 and listen to the sermon online.
06:32-06:35
You'll find out that's what the church must do.
06:36-06:50
Now this week, we read Paul under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, discussing disputes within the church and just like arguments about pizza, we have to remember the relationships involved.
06:51-06:58
So on your outline today, in a church dispute, remember your relationship.
06:59-07:03
Number one, to other believers, we reconcile.
07:05-07:07
So 1 Corinthians 6, are you there?
07:09-07:10
Let's read the first verse.
07:12-07:28
It says, "When one of you has a grievance against another, does he dare go to law before the unrighteous instead of the saints?" So Paul is calling out the Corinthians for dragging their disputes out into the court system.
07:29-07:43
He says, "Church, why are you going before unrighteous, corrupt courts for this?" But please understand in this passage, Paul is talking about civil cases, not criminal cases.
07:44-07:49
This is not about someone breaking the law and being charged with a crime, OK?
07:50-07:57
This is about a private dispute between two parties, and they just can't figure it out.
07:58-08:01
So they end up taking each other to court over something trivial.
08:03-08:06
Now, we see trivial lawsuits today, don't we?
08:08-08:13
Have you ever seen those courtroom shows where they give you the rundown up front?
08:14-08:18
He's here suing for a $67 cell phone bill.
08:20-08:25
You hired a lawyer and got on a plane to Los Angeles over $67.
08:27-08:29
You're going to take someone to court over that.
08:30-08:31
Same idea.
08:32-08:35
You'll see the trivial part as we pick up in verse two.
08:37-08:40
It says, "Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world?
08:41-08:47
And if the world is to be judged by you, are you incompetent to try trivial cases?
08:48-08:50
Do you not know that we are to judge angels?
08:51-08:54
How much more then matters pertaining to this life?
08:54-09:00
So if you have such cases, why do you lay them before those who have no standing in the church?
09:01-09:02
I say this to your shame.
09:03-09:09
Can it be that there is no one among you wise enough to settle a dispute between the brothers?
09:10-09:11
We'll pause there for a moment.
09:13-09:17
Paul is saying we should be able to resolve these disputes internally.
09:19-09:21
He's saying we are called to judge.
09:22-09:32
If that sounds familiar, we saw it in 1 Corinthians 5, where verse 12 says, "For what have I to do with judging outsiders?
09:33-10:09
"Is it not those inside the church are to judge. Not judging motives, because we can't see the heart, but we are required to judge actions. We judge the fruit. Now, what does Paul mean with this "saints," meaning believers? What does he mean with this "judging the world and angels" business? Well, he's referring to the concept of the children of God reigning with Jesus Christ in his victory. True. But we're not even going to get into all that, because Paul is using it for irony.
10:09-10:20
Like, "Oh, you who will judge the world, you who will judge angels, why are you taking all your disputes to small-claims court?" That's what they were doing.
10:21-10:23
And actually, it was even worse than that.
10:25-10:31
Because history tells us that in Paul's day, civil courts were completely corrupt.
10:32-10:37
You couldn't even bring a case against someone who had a higher social standing than you.
10:38-10:49
And when a case did make it to the courts, judges and juries would expect a kickback for a verdict in your favor, either a payment or something to help them with their standing.
10:50-11:01
So the church in Corinth was not only suing each other, they were using the legal system to abuse or shake down fellow Christians of lower status.
11:02-11:03
It's childish.
11:04-11:12
And parents know, you train young children to resolve their disputes themselves, but it takes a lot of training.
11:13-11:16
Use your words, talk it out.
11:17-11:19
How would you feel if she said that to you?
11:21-11:25
But until they mature, what's most often the outcome?
11:26-11:28
Running to mom or dad to make a ruling.
11:29-11:39
And sure, parents do need to step in sometimes, But more often than not, it's a dispute that could have been resolved with a conversation and some humility.
11:40-11:41
But they're kids.
11:42-11:45
They don't have the required patience or wisdom just yet.
11:47-11:55
Paul is saying the church should be mature enough to use wisdom to resolve things internally instead of using lawsuits.
11:56-12:02
But even if we avoid the courthouse, we can still struggle with disputes as a church.
12:04-12:12
If a church member offends you, intentionally or unintentionally, you don't sue them, but how do you react?
12:13-12:14
Do you let it go?
12:15-12:20
Or if it's just too much to let it go, do you talk to them about it?
12:21-12:22
Or do you just avoid them?
12:24-12:36
Or how many churches have gone through gigantic disputes over decisions like the carpet color or chairs versus pews or the volume level during worship.
12:37-12:41
Is stuff like that worth disunity with your brothers and sisters?
12:44-12:53
Now, 1 Corinthians 6 doesn't outline practical steps that we should follow instead, but we know them from other places in scripture.
12:54-13:05
Matthew 18, for example, tells us to go first the person directly, and if they don't listen, bring some others, and if they still don't listen, bring it before the church.
13:06-13:11
That's the general path things should run, and some situations point us to other scripture too.
13:13-13:17
But the charge in these verses is to judge wisely.
13:18-13:27
But these Matthew 18 conversations or conversations going to someone for counsel, they cannot be about gossip.
13:28-13:30
That's just as destructive as a lawsuit.
13:32-13:37
These conversations must be done with one goal in mind, reconciliation.
13:38-13:44
As believers, we ask for forgiveness and forgive each other in order to be reconciled.
13:45-13:46
That's who we are.
13:47-13:48
That's what God's family does.
13:50-13:56
By His grace, some of us grew up in God-fearing homes that demonstrated that's how a family works.
13:58-14:13
But many of us either grew up in, or we've seen, family situations where that's not the case, where there is no repentance, no forgiveness, no reconciliation.
14:15-14:35
might think, "Yeah, I've seen bitterness and I've seen grudges in a family, but reconciliation, forgiving one another? I've never seen a family like that." And that's why, as a church, we must show the world that in Christ, we are different.
14:36-14:40
We have to show them what God's family is like.
14:41-15:04
which is why, number two on your outline, in a church dispute, remember your relationship, number two, to the world we represent. So as believers, what does our relationship to the world have to do with our disputes? Well, rewind to the end of verse five.
15:06-15:26
It says, "Can it be that there is no one among you wise enough to settle a dispute between the brothers? But brother goes to law against brother, and that before unbelievers?" Before unbelievers. That's similar to what we saw back in verse 1, before the unrighteous.
15:28-15:32
We talked about the Corinthians lacking godly wisdom, but there's another problem.
15:33-15:38
taking all these disputes out into the world, what does that do to our witness?
15:41-16:02
If the city of Corinth always saw the church in scandal or suing each other, what did that communicate to them about the gospel message? We have to remember that part of our relationship to the world is that Jesus called us to represent him to the world, re-present Jesus to the world.
16:03-16:14
Now, listen, I'm not saying we should be concerned about image in the sense that we are "marketing" church and reality is another thing.
16:15-16:15
No.
16:16-16:19
Our concern is authentically following Jesus.
16:20-16:28
We want people to see what it looks like to be transformed by Christ and living in a Christ-centered community.
16:29-16:31
It's not about projecting some image.
16:32-16:33
It's about our identity.
16:34-16:38
Our witness is being like Jesus and telling people about him.
16:39-16:46
So infighting, legal battles, manipulation, that's what everybody else does.
16:47-16:49
God's people are called to be different.
16:50-16:54
If we act like the world, we've already lost.
16:55-17:08
like it says in verse 7. It says, "To have lawsuits at all with one another is already a defeat for you. Why not rather suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded?
17:08-17:30
But you yourselves wrong and defraud, even your own brothers." Now again, let me emphasize that we are not talking about criminal cases. But Paul is saying it it would be better to just lose your money in the dispute than sue your church brother over these petty issues.
17:32-17:38
Or again, maybe you're not actually going to court, but you still might need to suffer wrong.
17:39-17:39
What do I mean?
17:41-17:47
Have you ever been in a dispute where maybe you're 10 percent wrong and the other person is 90 percent wrong?
17:48-17:54
Sometimes we still want to justify ourselves and bang the table about how less wrong we were.
17:56-17:57
What about humbling yourself?
17:58-18:02
What about taking the hit and saying, "You know, you're right.
18:03-18:04
"I was wrong.
18:04-18:15
"Will you please forgive me?" Our natural reaction is, "Why should I humble myself when they're wrong too?" Because of who we represent.
18:17-18:23
Jesus is our example of humility, and we are that example to those around us.
18:24-18:31
So to claim Christ and act like Paul describes here is a failure in our job as representatives.
18:34-18:39
And you know, I talked a little bit about pizza earlier, but you know what else I like?
18:40-18:41
Frozen bananas.
18:43-18:48
Well, I should be specific, chocolate-covered frozen bananas, delicious.
18:50-18:57
One time, I went into an ice cream shop where I had gotten one before, but I didn't see any in the case in the front.
18:58-19:18
So I thought, "Oh, they might have some in the back in the freezer." So I asked the woman working, "Do you have any frozen bananas?" And my friends who were there still quote her answer to me because she said, "Does it look like we have any frozen bananas?" Okay.
19:19-19:23
I said, "Thank you." And I walked out without any dessert.
19:24-19:30
Now, do you think the owner of the ice cream shop felt like she represented the store well that day?
19:32-19:32
No.
19:33-19:40
Just like employees represent their workplace, as a body of believers, we represent Christ.
19:41-19:46
If you claim Christ, you are his representative, period.
19:47-20:07
In a world where everyone's flying off the handle at every disagreement, screaming or storming out of every issue, imagine the witness of a church that works through things together in love, using the highest authority of our life, God's word, to untangle the issue.
20:08-20:14
No, it's not always easy, but the world will look and say, "What's going on over there?
20:14-20:28
"I wanna be a part of that." But we have to step back and review for a moment, because I don't want anyone to walk away with the wrong idea.
20:29-20:39
So far, we've talked about resolving disputes in-house, not dragging disagreements to the court, and how we are presenting ourselves to the world.
20:40-21:08
Those concepts could be sinfully twisted into an excuse to cover up sin. Now, we don't need to review all the sickening things that have been covered up by churches all over the world. Sinful men have tried to hide their sin, tried to hide abuse by saying things like, "Let's keep this in house." No, they are wrong.
21:10-21:15
This passage is not about covering things up or ignoring sin.
21:16-21:20
Abuse, in court or otherwise, is sin.
21:21-21:23
Covering up sin is sin.
21:24-21:29
A forced reconciliation is a false reconciliation.
21:31-21:36
Ignoring sin for the sake of the church's witness is a false witness.
21:37-21:44
If someone's sinful act is a criminal act, then the correct response is to hand them over to the authorities.
21:45-21:47
And that's God's idea, not mine.
21:47-21:48
See Romans 13.
21:50-21:51
I just want to be crystal clear.
21:53-21:58
Paul, just like in chapter 5, is calling for the opposite of a cover-up.
21:58-22:04
He's calling us to recognize and remove flagrant, unrepentant sin.
22:06-22:09
And that distinction is important because we all sin.
22:10-22:19
It's not like, "Oh, I was coveting my friend's car yesterday, and last week, last week, I had a lustful thought.
22:20-22:34
Guess I have to leave Harvest Bible Chapel." No, of course all of us struggle with sin, but we commit that as a family, we're here to walk with each other in becoming purified by our Lord.
22:35-23:03
We need each other's support and encouragement as each one of us turns away from our sin daily to become more like Jesus Christ. In fact, in him, we must renounce any relationship that we have to sin. Point number three on your outline today. In a church dispute, remember your relationship, Number three, to sin.
23:04-23:05
We renounce.
23:07-23:09
Let's pick up in verse nine.
23:11-23:16
It says, "Or do you not know that the unrighteous "will not inherit the kingdom of God?
23:16-23:18
"Do not be deceived.
23:18-25:16
"Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, "nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, "nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God." Now, reading this after the previous section can seem jarring. Paul is talking about disputes, the courts, and then he drops into this list of sins for which someone will not enter heaven. Now, understand that Paul is talking about a lifestyle of unrepentant, continual sin. Committing one of these sins, or any sin in isolation, does not automatically banish a person from heaven if that person repents of their sin and believes in the work of Jesus for their forgiveness. But what is the connection here to verses one to eight? Well, two things. First, verse one asked if believers dare take their case before the unrighteous. And then here it says, "Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God?" Paul is saying, Church, you should resolve your disputes instead of bringing them before people who are living in reckless sin for them to decide. You're like, "Don't worry, I keep beef out of the legal system." Okay, well, do you bring your church disputes before unbelieving friends or family? Do you complain about the church or people in the church at work or on social media, that is bringing your case before the unrighteous for them to judge.
25:18-25:24
Now, as for the second connection, recall the underhanded dealings of these civil courts.
25:25-26:23
People in the church were using their influence and status to manipulate other Christians via lawsuits to take advantage of their own brothers for their gain. That sin belongs in this list too. See, this isn't a random list of sinfulness. This list is about not being content and reaching out of bounds to get more. And really, that goes all the way back to the first sin, doesn't it? Back in Genesis, God told Adam, "And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, 'You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.'" But Adam and Eve ultimately were not content with that.
26:25-26:28
And so they reached outside the bounds that God created.
26:30-26:33
That's the same root as every sin in this list.
26:34-26:41
God says that sexual intimacy is between one man and one woman within the covenant of marriage.
26:41-27:03
But people say, "I'm not content with that." be it adultery, homosexuality, or any form of sexual immorality, instead of receiving God's gift as He intended, they reach outside God's design to take something else or idolatry.
27:04-27:39
God says we should worship Him and only Him, but people say, "I'm not content with that." They worship money, success, celebrity. They reach outside of what they know in their heart to worship anything but God. What about drunkards or revilers, people who abuse alcohol or verbally abuse others? God set a boundary around drunkenness and a boundary on our speech, but they say, "I'm not content with that.
27:41-27:51
I will drink how I want and I'll say what I want." Or thieves, the greedy, swindlers, whatever they have, they say, "I'm not content with that.
27:52-28:08
I want more, and I'm willing to reach out and take it, even if it means stealing from my own family." And that's where the Corinthian church was, reaching out of bounds to take from their brothers and sisters.
28:10-28:13
Paul says their sin is the same as these.
28:14-28:23
And if you live a life of unrepentant, habitual sin, a life reaching out of bounds, you will not inherit the kingdom of God.
28:27-28:33
So, church, we have to ask ourselves, What should our relationship be to sin?
28:35-28:59
Titus 2.11 says, "For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age." We must renounce sin.
29:00-30:25
That's our relationship. Not embracing it, not excusing it, but rejecting it, turning away, running away. How do we do that? Well, praise the Lord, we are about to read some of the most incredible words in scripture on that topic. Our last point today. You must remember your relationship, number four, to Jesus Christ. We are renewed. 1st Corinthians chapter 6 verse 11, it says, "And such were some of you, but you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the the Spirit of our God. And such were some of you." Some translations say, "And this is what some of you used to be." Paul is saying, "You used to do these things, but God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to take the punishment for your sin upon himself. He bore that sin in his death on the cross, and then conquering death, rose And this verse applies to anyone who will repent and believe in him as their savior.
30:27-30:32
Now, you might think that stuff that you used to do is too much to overcome.
30:33-30:36
You're afraid Jesus knows who you were.
30:37-30:43
Well, Jesus knows your whole story and he still invites you into a relationship with him.
30:44-30:49
He wants to release you from your sin and bring you true contentment.
30:50-30:52
So repent and believe.
30:53-30:57
As it says here, if you believe, you were washed clean.
30:58-31:03
Sin from your past, present, and future has been washed away in the name of Jesus.
31:05-31:10
You were sanctified, meaning you were set apart as holy, and you are being made holy.
31:11-31:14
God is shaping you into what he already calls you.
31:16-31:20
and you were justified, meaning the charges of sin against you have been dropped.
31:20-31:21
You're innocent.
31:22-31:26
That lifestyle of unrepentant sin, that's who you used to be.
31:27-31:28
You are made new.
31:30-31:38
In a dispute, you must remember your relationship with Jesus Christ because that relationship determines all other relationships.
31:40-31:48
But some might think, if I have that relationship with Christ, And if I'm made new, why do I still sin?
31:49-31:53
Why do we still have disputes and disagreements and fights?
31:56-31:57
I read one scholar put it this way.
31:59-32:04
Imagine, I know this is gonna be hard to believe, that you were caught in a snowstorm.
32:06-32:06
Shouldn't be too hard.
32:08-32:14
You're covered in snow, totally freezing, and you feel like you might not make it.
32:15-32:22
But somehow, you crawl and you make it back to your house, and you get inside.
32:23-32:25
The room is warm.
32:26-32:27
Maybe a fireplace is going.
32:28-32:29
You're saved!
32:31-32:39
But even though you're safe, standing in the warmth, it's going to take some time for the ice in your pockets to thaw out.
32:41-32:42
You see the picture.
32:43-32:49
You are secure in Christ, but not all of your sin has melted away yet.
32:50-32:53
That won't be totally complete until we reach heaven.
32:54-33:06
Until then, through our relationship with Christ, we are safe indoors being justified, and we're thawing out being sanctified at the same time.
33:08-33:15
So as we close, I hope you see how and why the church must deal with disputes in a godly way.
33:17-33:20
We should be able to handle that stuff through Jesus.
33:21-33:29
Next time you're in a dispute, step back and remember, this is my brother or sister in Christ.
33:29-33:32
My goal is to be reconciled with them.
33:33-33:36
Remember that we are representing Christ to the world.
33:37-33:42
The way that we interact should reflect our Lord, showing the world that Jesus works.
33:44-33:49
Remember that we've renounced sin, and we lovingly help each other do that.
33:50-33:52
We don't manipulate others.
33:52-33:55
We don't reach out of bounds, grabbing for more.
33:56-33:57
That's not who we are.
33:58-33:59
Because who are we?
34:01-35:00
that in Jesus we are a people renewed. We don't serve sin or our selfish desires anymore. Together, unified and purified, we serve our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Let's pray together. Lord God, I thank you for your word. God, I thank you for the church, and I pray God that when we face disputes, we would face with godly wisdom and character, love and patience, God, that we may be reconciled, that we may be a light into the world around us. We pray and ask for your mercy, God, upon us now and we ask for you to guide us in these matters. Let us be a church unified and purified for your glory, Lord God. In Jesus' name, Amen.
35:00-35:00
Amen.

Small Group Discussion
Read 1 Corinthians 6:1-11

What was your big take-away from this passage / message?
How should disputes within the church family be resolved? How does that process differ for disputes with unbelievers?
How and why must the church faithfully guard its witness to the world?
Paul says those listed in 1 Cor. 6:9-10 will not inherit the kingdom of God. What does he mean by that?
If we are made new in Jesus Christ, why do we still struggle with sin? How can we come alongside each other as believers in that struggle?

Breakout

Pray for one another.

Jeff Miller

January 18, 2026

Get Unified, Unified and Purified

Deal with Sinners

Jeff Miller

January 18, 2026

Get Unified, Unified and Purified

Introduction:

Get Purified: When There's Sin in the Church... (1 Corinthians 5:1-13)

RECOGNIZE sin. (1 Cor 5:1-2)

Ephesians 5:3 - But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints.
REMOVE the sinner. (1 Cor 5:3-5)

Proverbs 22:10 - Drive out a scoffer, and strife will go out, and quarreling and abuse will cease.

Titus 3:10 - As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him...

What do we hope to accomplish by throwing him out?
1. In His heart: We hope He's ASHAMED.
  
  2 Thessalonians 3:14 - If anyone does not obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person, and have nothing to do with him, that he may be ashamed.
2. In His head: We hope He LEARNS.
  
  1 Timothy 1:20 - Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.
3. In His body: We hope He SUFFERS.
4. In His Spirit: We hope He REPENTS.
REMEMBER the purpose. (1 Cor 5:6-8)
RESTRICT discipline to believers. (1 Cor 5:9-13)

Sermon Notes (PDF): BLANK
Hint: Highlight blanks above for answers!

00:45-00:46
Open up those Bibles.
00:47-00:49
The book of 1 Corinthians 5.
00:51-00:54
1 Corinthians 5.
00:59-00:59
Imagine a scenario with me.
01:00-01:10
You go to the doctor because you have a suspicious looking spot on your skin, and the doctor gives you the news you don't want to hear.
01:11-02:00
have skin cancer. So for the good of the body, for the health of the body, what needs to happen with that spot? You have to remove it, right? Right? You have to remove it. Or if you go to a doctor and they find out that you have cancer in your kidney, for the health of the body, what do you have to do? You have to remove it, right? If it's on your skin, for the health of the body you remove it. If it's on your kidney, for the health of the body you remove it. And what if there's cancer in the church? All of a sudden the Brakes got pumped a little bit, didn't they?
02:03-02:04
Same principle.
02:06-02:13
For the health of the body, it has to be removed.
02:16-02:18
We're getting back into 1 Corinthians.
02:18-02:23
Remember the first four chapters, one message really.
02:23-02:24
It was get unified.
02:27-02:32
Paul pointed out the Corinthians had a lot of problems with pride and boasting and factions.
02:33-02:34
Get unified.
02:34-02:35
Knock it off.
02:36-02:37
Alright, next subject.
02:38-02:40
Takes us to our next section here.
02:41-02:42
Get purified.
02:44-02:48
There was another problem in the church.
02:49-02:56
There was someone who claimed to be a Christian but was living in flagrant, unrepentant sin.
03:00-03:01
What do you do with that guy?
03:03-03:04
Let's just pause for a moment.
03:04-03:06
I'm going to ask you to please pray for me.
03:08-03:14
To be faithful to communicate what God's Word says, I will pray for you to have a heart open to receive it.
03:15-03:16
Let's pray.
03:19-03:20
Father, be glorified.
03:23-03:25
Be glorified as we spend this time in Your Word.
03:25-03:38
glorified in the hearts of every one of us, that we would be very quick to disregard our opinions and have a heart to embrace Your truth.
03:43-03:45
We thank You ahead of time, Father, for what You're going to do.
03:46-03:50
Whatever that looks like to us, I guess doesn't really matter.
03:53-04:21
what you do, Father. We pray in Jesus' name. And all of God's people said, "Amen." So what do you do? What do you do when there's someone in the church who claims to be a believer, but they're living in obvious, flagrant, unrepentant sin? What do you do with that person? We're going to get right into it on your outline. Get purified. When there's sin in the church, What do you do?
04:23-04:27
First of all, number one, write this down, recognize sin.
04:28-04:29
How about we start there?
04:31-04:32
Look at verse 1 in chapter 5.
04:35-04:46
Paul says, "It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you." Stop right there for a second.
04:49-04:50
What is sexual immorality?
04:52-04:53
What is that?
04:57-04:58
I know what the words mean.
05:00-05:07
I don't need a definition, but in our day, can somebody give me an example of what is sexual immorality?
05:10-05:13
Because it seems like we live in a day that anything goes.
05:15-05:19
So how can we say anything is immoral if everything is okay?
05:23-05:24
What even is that?
05:28-05:29
Well, he goes on.
05:30-05:31
Look at the rest of verse 1.
05:34-05:42
He says, "It's reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that is is not tolerated even among pagans.
05:45-05:58
For a man has his father's wife." Okay, now, I'm not going to bore you with the homework, but according to the Greek text, here's what's going on.
05:59-06:05
There was a man who married, had a kid, and his wife dies.
06:06-06:16
and he remarries, probably a much younger woman, and his son has the hots for his stepmother.
06:18-06:20
And they start a relationship.
06:21-06:31
And the man ends up divorcing the wife, the stepmom, because the Bible doesn't say they committed adultery, it says they committed fornication.
06:31-06:42
So the man divorced his second wife, but his son continued an ongoing sexual relationship with his stepmother.
06:47-06:49
Pretty shocking sin, isn't it?
06:51-06:54
But not as shocking as the church's reaction.
06:57-07:07
Paul's like, "What are you doing? What are you doing?" Even pagans would look at this and be like, "You're sick, bro! What are you doing?
07:07-07:17
You're sleeping with your stepmother?" Paul's like, "Pagans are gagging at this thought.
07:18-07:21
Church, what are you doing?
07:21-07:29
You're just allowing this to happen?" You know, the church today is just like Corinth.
07:31-07:34
We church, we live right in the middle of Sodom.
07:36-07:53
And sin in general, and sexual sin specifically, we have - I don't need to sell anybody on this - we have very quickly moved from tolerating it, which is bad enough to applauding sexual sin.
07:57-07:58
What do you think about that, Paul?
07:59-08:00
Look at verse 2.
08:01-08:03
He says, "And you are arrogant.
08:03-08:06
Ought you not rather to mourn?
08:07-08:15
Let him who has done this be removed from among you." Paul's like, "What are you doing?
08:15-08:17
This should grieve you as a church.
08:17-08:21
Having one of your members be in sexual sin.
08:21-08:24
You should be sad about this.
08:25-08:27
He goes, "You're so arrogant.
08:27-08:31
You're so full of yourselves." That's what he was talking about in chapters 1-4.
08:35-08:38
Constantly spraining their arms, patting themselves on the back.
08:43-08:46
See, so sick.
08:46-09:05
In Corinth, we saw this in the first four chapters, they made a big deal out of who the best preacher was, and then they make a very little deal out of flagrant, unrepentant sexual sin.
09:09-09:10
Not much has changed there.
09:10-09:12
The church is great at that, aren't we?
09:12-09:13
We're great at that.
09:14-09:16
We will make a big deal out of nonsense.
09:16-09:21
Oh no, we'll fight about little points of doctrine that will never get figured out.
09:21-09:22
We'll fight about that.
09:22-09:30
But one of our members can be living a destructive, sinful lifestyle and we're like, "Oh, what can you do?" And we'll ignore that.
09:34-09:44
Just like Corinth, Paul tells them and us how to deal with the sinner.
09:44-09:58
But I think first we've got to make sure that we recognize what sin is, because I think in the landscape of the church today we've forgotten that such a thing even exists.
10:02-10:03
Do we recognize sin?
10:06-10:19
See, in Corinth, we're going to talk more about this here in a couple weeks, but the Greeks saw sex as a merely biological function.
10:20-10:21
That's all it was.
10:22-10:23
Sex was just a biological function.
10:24-10:25
It's like this.
10:26-10:28
You're hungry, you eat, right?
10:28-10:29
That's just natural.
10:30-10:32
and you're thirsty, you drink.
10:33-10:34
That's just natural.
10:34-10:44
And you have those urges, you just do it because it's just natural to do that.
10:47-10:51
You know what the problem was in Corinth and in our church today?
10:51-10:52
Same problem.
10:53-11:01
We have lost the idea that marriage and sexuality are sacred things.
11:02-11:03
We've lost that.
11:03-11:05
We have completely lost that concept.
11:08-11:17
There is no idea around this is a holy and sacred and precious thing that needs to be protected.
11:18-11:20
We become a bunch of dogs.
11:24-11:26
You study God's Word.
11:26-11:30
Do you know how sacred marriage and sexuality is?
11:30-11:31
I mean, this is God's picture.
11:32-11:35
God says, "I have this." And this is all the way from creation.
11:35-11:36
God says, "I have this design.
11:37-11:47
I'm gonna take a man and a woman, and these two are going to enter a lifelong covenant with each other." They're gonna make this lifelong commitment, this covenant.
11:48-11:54
They're gonna have a relationship with each other that's unlike the relationship they have with anybody else on the earth.
11:55-11:58
and two will become one.
11:59-12:06
And the physical manifestation of two becoming one is the act of intimacy.
12:08-12:16
They're going to know each other in a way that no one else knows either of them.
12:16-12:18
They know each other that way.
12:18-12:20
This is a sacred thing.
12:20-12:25
We find out in the New Testament It's a picture of the gospel.
12:28-12:34
God enters a covenant with His people and has an intimate relationship with His people.
12:34-12:35
It's a picture.
12:36-12:37
And it's sacred.
12:39-12:47
The church, when we abandon God's design, we disregard the sacredness.
12:49-12:50
And we've abandoned all purity.
12:52-12:58
And it is the church's job, yes, it is still the church's job to promote and pursue purity.
13:00-13:05
To the extent - quick callback - Pastor Taylor just read Ephesians 5.
13:05-13:07
Again, verse 3.
13:08-13:24
"But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you as is proper among saints." We, church, have to deal with people that are in sin.
13:27-13:34
But that requires recognizing when people are in unrepentant sin.
13:35-13:36
Can we recognize that?
13:39-13:41
What do you do?
13:41-13:42
What do you do with the guy?
13:43-13:44
Well, look at verse 2 again.
13:44-13:45
Last part.
13:46-13:53
"Let him who has done this removed from among you." You see that?
13:54-14:01
The Bible says when someone who claims to be a believer is living in unrepentant sin, remove him.
14:01-14:02
Get him out of the church.
14:03-14:08
You're like, "Is that really what it says, or is that just kind of like your interpretation?" No, that's what it says.
14:09-14:13
Actually, you're going to see this six times in the passage.
14:14-14:18
In verse 2, verse 5, verse 7, verse 9, and twice in verse 11.
14:22-14:25
In this case, you remove them.
14:26-14:33
Paul says you grab them by the scruff of the neck and the seat of the pants, and you find a stained glass window and you throw him out.
14:36-14:37
Remove him.
14:38-14:42
We're going to ask you to step down from your position of leadership.
14:45-14:48
Not, you can still come here but I need you to sit in the back.
14:52-15:00
Not, alright, alright listen, you can come to church here but I'm going to ask that you not say anything, just keep your mouth shut.
15:02-15:03
No.
15:04-15:04
Out.
15:05-15:06
You're not welcome here.
15:11-15:12
You've got to recognize sin.
15:12-15:13
And that leads us to number two.
15:14-15:19
Paul touches on it, and I'm sure maybe the Corinthians were as shocked as some of you are now.
15:20-15:21
So he elaborates.
15:21-15:22
Number two, write this down.
15:22-15:23
Remove the sinner.
15:24-15:24
What do we do?
15:24-15:25
We've got to recognize sin.
15:27-15:29
God give us vision for that.
15:29-15:31
And when we do, we've got to remove the sinner.
15:32-15:32
Look at verse 3.
15:34-15:52
Paul elaborates, "For though absent in body, I am present in spirit, and as if present, I have already pronounced judgment on the one who did such a thing." Paul's like, "Guys, I'm not even there, and I know what needs to happen.
15:52-16:33
How are you not seeing this?" Verse 4, he says, "When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus, and my spirit is present with the power of our Lord Jesus, you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord." He says, verse 4, "This is according to the authority of Jesus in His name, and this must be done in the power of Jesus." What do we do with him, Paul?
16:33-16:44
He says, "Deliver this man to Satan." He says, "Throw him out into the world." Like, "Oh, you want to live like the world?
16:45-16:45
Is that it?
16:46-16:47
You want to live like the world?
16:47-16:49
Okay, go live like the world.
16:50-16:51
You're not doing that in here.
16:52-16:56
Because in here, we don't pattern our behavior after the world.
16:56-17:00
So if you are, then you can go into the world and do that.
17:04-17:05
Get 'em out.
17:07-17:07
Get 'em out.
17:08-17:14
And somebody's like, yeah, but you know, a guy like that, he needs church.
17:15-17:17
That's true, but the church doesn't need him.
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The Bible is clear on this.
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The Bible is so clear on this.
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Proverbs 22, look what Proverbs 22 says, verse 10, "Drive out a scoffer and strife will go out, and quarreling and abuse will cease." Again, Titus 3:10, "As for a person who stirs up division," again, this isn't just about sexual sin, we're going to see that here in 1 Corinthians 5, it's other unrepentant sin But as for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him.
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Like, look, we've talked about this, and we've talked about this, and you're still causing problems.
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I'm ignoring you. We're all ignoring you.
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We're having nothing to do with you. Go.
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Like, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
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You're like, time out. Why?
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Like, what good is it to throw the guy out of church?
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Like, don't we love people here? Absolutely we do.
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Well then, if we really love people, why, when somebody is stuck in sin, what good would it be to have them go out of church?
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Well, there's four things.
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Write this down on your outline.
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What do we hope to accomplish by throwing him out?
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Look, this is an act of love.
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You have to understand that.
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The most loving thing we can do is show them the door.
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What do you hope to accomplish?
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Well, there's four things you have to accomplish.
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And you're going to see here, you're going to hit him everywhere.
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Four things you hope to accomplish.
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First of all, letter A, in his heart, We hope he's ashamed.
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That's one of the things you hope to accomplish.
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We hope he's ashamed.
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2 Thessalonians 3:14.
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Paul says, "If anyone does not obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person." Here it is again.
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"And have nothing to do with him." Why would we do that, Paul?
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Look, that he may be ashamed.
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You're trying to shame someone?
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We are, actually.
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Shame for that person to be out in the world, maybe with friends and family, like, "Hey, don't you go to that church?" Like, "Ah, yeah, they kind of threw me out." "You got thrown out of church?
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That's embarrassing." "Yeah, that's real embarrassing.
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My conduct is so bad, the church doesn't want me there." What are we driving at?
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We want the person to stop and be like, what am I doing?
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Right?
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We hope he's ashamed.
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Letter B, so that's getting to the heart.
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Now we're going to the head, letter B in his head.
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We hope he learns.
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We hope he learns.
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See what Paul told Timothy, 1 Timothy 1.20, "Hymenius and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan," same terminology here in 1 Corinthians 5, right?
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whom I have handed over to Satan, that they may learn not to blaspheme." You see that?
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And it says, "We hope he learns." Like, talking to him didn't register.
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So go.
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Go think about your choices.
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Again, same principle.
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We want the person out of the church going, "What am I doing?
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What am I doing that these people who love and care for me, consider my behavior so bad that I have to be kicked out in the hall like an unruly fourth grader.
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What am I doing?
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So we're hitting him in the heart.
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We're hitting him in the head.
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In his body. We hope he suffers.
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We hope he suffers.
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Back in 1 Corinthians 5, says, "Deliver him to Satan." Whoa, why? He says, "For the destruction of the flesh." You know, Satan can touch your body, but he can't touch your soul. He can touch your body, but he can't touch your soul. And sin always, eventually, leads to suffering every time.
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You continue an unrepentant, flagrant, disobedient sin, eventually you are going to suffer.
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Disease.
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Depression.
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Addiction.
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Throw him out. Why?
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You've got to let him reap the consequences of his sin.
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You want to live like that? Go live like that.
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Let me know how that works out for you.
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Spoiler alert, it's going to wreck him eventually.
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We want the person to get out there living in his sin, if that's what he chooses to do, to get to the point where he's suffering in one of these ways, and he's like, "What am I doing?
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I wasn't suffering like this while I was actively seeking the Lord.
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What am I doing?" You're like, "Wow.
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Seriously, Pastor Jeff, you're saying you're hoping when they're thrown out, you're hoping they're ashamed, they learn a lesson and they suffer.
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Is that what you're hoping for?" "A hundred percent." "Why?" Well, look back at 1 Corinthians 5.
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Look at verse 5 again.
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He says, "Deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh." Here's the end goal.
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"So that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord." So that's letter D.
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In his spirit, we hope he repents.
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Listen, this is the hard reality.
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This is the tough love.
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But when somebody is in flagrance and refuses to repent, and they are shown the door, not trying to punish them. Like, "I hate you, I hope you suffer." No, no, no. It's, "I love you, and I hope that this suffering brings you back." You know who the poster boy is for this? It's the prodigal son. Luke 15, Jesus told the story. Now, maybe you're familiar with the story, but this, "Dad, give me my share of the inheritance." And the kid takes and he goes and he spends it all, and he's broke, and now he's feeding the pigs, and he's so hungry, he wishes he could eat the garbage that he's feeding the pigs.
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Now, remember the story.
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He had to get to the place where he was so broken that he says, "What am I doing?" So let me ask you, what would have happened?
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I know it's a made-up story, but let's get in it.
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What would have happened if dad would have run in to rescue him?
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What would have happened?
24:50-24:52
Kids like him out of money and dad picks him up.
24:52-24:55
"All right, son, come on home." Would the kid have learned anything?
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Would he?
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No!
24:59-25:01
He wouldn't have learned a thing and he'd do it again.
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So dad, hard as it was, had to let him suffer the consequences of his own stupid choices.
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And that's what Paul is saying here.
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When someone continues to thumb their nose at God, despite your appeals, despite your tears, despite your pleading with them, despite your praying with them, and they still persist in sin, Paul's like, "The most loving thing you can do is show them the door." Because that's always the objection, anytime you talk about something like this. "It is so unloving, it is so unloving to kick somebody out of church." No, it is not. Unloving is allowing someone to dishonor the Lord. Unloving is allowing someone to think that sin has no consequences. Unloving is keeping someone from the joy of repenting and walking with the Lord. And he's never going to repent from his sin if the church just accepts it.
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So what good is it to throw him out? Well, the hope is eventually it benefits him by leading to repentance. But you know, that's only one of the benefits. Actually that's kind of secondary, believe it or not. Number three, write this down. When there's sin in the church and you've got to remove the sinner, number three, remember the purpose. Yes, it's about ultimately restoring Him, but there's a bigger purpose in mind than even restoring the sinner. I want you to see this in your Bibles. Look at verses 6-8. Paul says, "Your boasting is not good.
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Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Cleanse out the with the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened.
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For Christ, our Passover Lamb, has been sacrificed.
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Let us therefore celebrate the festival not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the leavened bread of sincerity and truth." gives an illustration here, and it's an illustration from Passover, Exodus chapter 12. And it's an illustration also about bread. When you made bread, there would be a giant lump of unleavened dough, and you would have to take old leaven from a previous loaf, and you would have to put it in the new dough so that that leaven would permeate the whole loaf.
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Okay, now dial in here because this is such a beautiful and genius and multi-layered illustration.
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It's so profound.
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But see leaven in this illustration, it's a picture of sin.
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Verse 8, he says it's malice and evil.
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Paul here is saying the reason that you remove the sinner from church is the same reason you wouldn't put leaven in an unleavened loaf, because when you allow it in, it affects everything.
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You see that?
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It's about permeation.
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That's what Paul is saying here.
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Remember the purpose.
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Throw him out.
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Why?
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Remember the purpose?
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If he's here, if he's in the church, his sin, like the leaven in the lump, his sin is going to ultimately affect everyone.
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You're like, "Well, what's the deal with Passover?
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What's the illustration there?" Again, it's just crazy brilliant.
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But in the Passover, remember the last plague, death of the firstborn, Israel was to put the blood of a spotless lamb on their doorposts.
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And when they did that, that was the defining moment.
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That was its separation time.
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We are out of Egypt now.
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Separating from Egypt.
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We are called not to separate from Egypt.
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We are called to separate from the world and the ways of the world.
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That's why Paul says in verse 7 that the death of Christ is our moment of separation.
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Just for the Jews, blood on the door meant separation from Egypt.
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For us, the blood of Jesus means separation from the ways of the world.
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Do you see that?
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And with the Passover, and the leaven and the bread, here's how it all comes together.
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When they left Egypt, They were to take no leaven with them.
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Why?
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It was a picture of you're leaving that behind.
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You're not taking Egypt with you.
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You're separating now.
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So here's what Paul's saying.
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Church, Christ died to make you holy.
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Separate yourselves from the world, the ways of the world.
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Don't allow leaven - Why?
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Because the purity of the church is at stake.
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That's why.
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Because like leaven, sin spreads.
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Sin's infectious.
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So, verse 7, here it is again, "Cleanse out the old leaven." What's he saying?
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Get the unrepentant sinner out because He's going to affect everyone.
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Because as people, you are more tempted to excuse and ignore your own sin if you're in a community where we excuse and ignore sin.
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You are more tempted to excuse and ignore your own sin if you're in a community that excuses and ignores other people's sin.
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Don't believe me?
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If you teach in Harvest Academy, what happens if you have one kid in the class?
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One kid just had too much espresso that morning or something.
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Put a little too much saccharine on the old Count Chocula.
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And he comes in, and he is kicking people, and he is jumping up and down on the table, and he is screaming, and you don't address it at all.
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What eventually happens?
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None of you worked with kids?
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Oh, come on.
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It eventually happens.
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Oh, you have worked with kids, right?
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All of a sudden, little Joey's jumping on the table.
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What's little Billy doing?
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Apparently this is what we're doing, right?
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Little Joey's screaming.
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Now all of a sudden, little Betsy's like, it looks like we're screaming.
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And if you don't address it, what are you going to have in about two minutes?
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You're going to have an entire room full of kids all acting like little Joey.
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And little Joey's number needs to be up on that little screen right there.
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It says, "Come get little Joey." Why? He needs to be removed.
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Why?
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Not because we hate little Joey.
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But because little Joey's affecting whole class, you see?
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You know that same principle is true for adults, isn't it?
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If we tolerate or condone, God help us, applaud sin, what we do, church, is we create a culture where people are comfortable to sin.
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And it's not long before rainbow flags are hanging on the church.
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We're called to be different, aren't we?
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Aren't we called to be different than the ways of the world?
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Aren't we called to pursue the ways of God?
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Aren't we called to represent the kingdom of Jesus Christ here on earth?
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And you're like, "Oh, so what are you saying, Pastor Jeff?
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You have to be perfect to come here?" "Oh, no, no, no, not at all.
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No, we're not saying that at all." That leads us to Paul's last point here.
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Write this one down.
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Number four, restrict discipline to believers.
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Restrict discipline to believers.
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Look at verse 9.
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He says, "I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people." You're like, "What letter?" Well, there was another letter.
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He wrote them a letter before 1 Corinthians.
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And we don't have that letter.
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Do you think if God wanted us to have it, we would have it?
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For sure.
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For some reason, God didn't want us to have it.
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But we have some clues, right, about what was going on there.
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Part of that letter was He told the Corinthians you need to avoid immoral people.
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And now He's saying, "Look, that's what I told you before.
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It's true, but I need to clarify some things here, right?
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Because apparently you're not getting it." Verse 10, "Not at all." Meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers or idolaters.
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Since then, you would need to go out of the world.
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He says, "Look, when we say avoid sinners, He goes, "I'm not talking about avoiding non-Christians." He goes, "That's impossible.
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That is impossible.
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As long as you are living on this earth, you are going to interact with non-Christians." So this whole remove, separate yourself, he says, "I'm not talking about non-Christians at all.
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Yes, we should be loving and reaching out and sharing the gospel and inviting the church to non-Christians, absolutely.
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Paul's like, "I am so not talking about that." What are you talking about, Paul?
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Look at verse 11, here it is.
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But now I'm writing to you, not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother.
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Did you see that?
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if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler, not even to eat with such a one." Paul's making it very clear here.
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He's not saying we just avoid sinners, we avoid non-Christians. No, no, no.
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He says, "I'm talking about people who claim to be born-again believers but are unrepentant, flagrantly, proudly living in sin.
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By the way, not just limited to sexual sin.
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I think you saw that.
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Sometimes that's the only sin the church wants to pick on because they sin differently than us.
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It's not the only sin.
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But you have to see the difference.
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You have a Christian in sin.
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This happens all the time.
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All the time.
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You have the Christian in sin that's like, "Look, I am struggling. I need help.
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What I'm doing is wrong.
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I need help." And you have a different guy that is like, "Look, nobody tells me what to do.
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Who are you to judge me?
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What I'm doing is not wrong.
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Who do you think you are telling me I can't be with this person or do this.
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You don't tell me what to do.
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Nobody tells me what to do.
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You see the difference?
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There's a huge difference in attitude, and there's a huge difference in our response.
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Please hear me.
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If you call yourself a Christian and you come to me or one of our pastors, one of our elders, and you come to us and you say, "Pastor Jeff, I'm stuck in sin.
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Please help me.
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I realize this is wrong, and I want to honor Christ.
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I will do whatever it takes to get you on track in your walk with the Lord.
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I will work with you.
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I will spend as much time as we need.
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I will get whoever needs to be involved to get you on track in seeking the Lord the way you should.
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I will do anything in the world for you.
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You have to know that, and there are some people in this room that know that firsthand.
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On the other hand, someone who calls himself a Christian, but they're in sin, and they're lovingly confronted, "Hey, what you're doing isn't right.
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This is dishonoring the Lord." And they refuse to repent.
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"Who do you think you are?
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You don't tell me what to do." He's out.
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He's out.
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But listen, This is an austere passage for sure.
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And I sure hope to heaven that none of you think that anybody is reveling in the thought of evicting somebody from church.
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This is a horribly sad and painful thing.
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No one is happy when this has to happen.
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And this isn't meant to be harsh.
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You see, it's confronting people in a spirit of love.
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It's a plea to repent.
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Because of the Gospel, because of the Kingdom, because of our testimony, because purity matters.
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That's the point.
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If there's flagrant, obvious sin and there's an absolute refusal to repent, then they're out.
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And we can sit here today, church, and we can look at the text on the page, and we can agree with the concepts, but I'm going to tell you for a fact, It gets real hard when it actually happens to one of us.
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I mean, we can agree to the concept, but when there's a face and a name, then it gets real hard.
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This happened a handful of times over my ministry.
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I could tell you stories.
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I could tell you stories of a man who was sneaking off and having a relationship with one of the girls in the youth group.
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This was at a previous church.
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Confronted.
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Chip on his shoulder.
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"You don't understand." The man's 38. She was like 14.
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Confronted. He's like, "You don't understand.
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She's very mature. We have a special relationship." The law was involved, by the way.
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and he went to where he needed to go.
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But in that conversation with him, I said, "You are not welcome here." He said, "Where am I supposed to go?" And I said, "That's not my problem, but not here." Closing time.
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You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here.
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We had another situation with a man who asked for help in saving his marriage, He seemed real repentant until somebody from church caught him on a date with another woman out at a restaurant holding hands while they were at a table.
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He was confronted with that.
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There's the door.
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And look, I could tell you several more.
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I'm not going to.
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But I can tell you this, every single time in my ministry that's happened, those have been some of the most painful seasons of ministry that I've experienced.
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It's not fun.
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It's not fun to sit down with a brother or a sister and say, "You are dishonoring the Lord in your conduct, and we are begging you to turn this around." The hope when someone is removed, the hope is always that they repent and we will joyfully restore them, and then we all move on.
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It's in the rear view mirror.
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We're done.
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You repented.
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Okay, we're not going to talk about it.
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We're not going to bring it up.
43:17-43:17
We're done.
43:18-43:19
That's the hope.
43:20-43:21
But you know what usually happens in our culture?
43:24-43:26
Somebody's confronted with their sin.
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They get upset.
43:28-43:29
Then what do they do?
43:32-43:33
Off to Orchard Hill.
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I don't need to sit here and listen to this.
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Off to Northway.
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Off to anywhere but here.
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Hope they don't throw me out for sinning.
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I'm like, "I kind of hope they do." Yeah, that's typically what happens.
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People are disciplined and they just, they just, you know, pack up their Bible and they go to another church.
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And you're like, "Well, so discipline didn't do them any good." Well, maybe not, but it did the church good because tolerating sin will destroy the church.
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Look at verse 12.
44:16-44:20
Paul says, "For what have I to do with judging outsiders?
44:21-44:28
Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge?" Paul's like, "Outsiders?
44:29-44:29
Not my business.
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Members, my business." He talks about judging here.
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I'd encourage you to underline that verse in your Bible.
44:39-44:43
Next time somebody says, "Don't judge me." Listen, we talked about this in the Sermon on the Mount.
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We are forbidden to judge motives.
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But look, here, we are commanded to judge actions.
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We are commanded to judge the actions of those in church, those who call themselves believers.
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We are commanded.
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We have a responsibility to the person, we have a responsibility to the church, and we have a responsibility to God.
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You're like, "Well, okay, what about the sin of the outsiders?
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What about them?
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What about their sin?
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What about the sin of the unbelievers?
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Well, verse 13, "God judges those outside.
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Purge the evil person from among you." Yeah, you know, the non-believers in sin, don't worry about them.
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God will take care of them.
45:26-45:36
You love them, you share the gospel with them, you help them know and receive and believe in Jesus Christ, but as far as their sin goes, God will take care of that.
45:37-45:38
That's His job.
45:38-45:48
Your job, last phrase, "Purge the evil person from among you." Maybe your Bible has that in quotes because that's not a new concept.
45:49-45:50
That's an Old Testament quote.
45:50-45:58
You're like, "From where?" From Deuteronomy 13, Deuteronomy 17, Deuteronomy 19, Deuteronomy 21, Deuteronomy 22, Deuteronomy 24.
45:58-46:02
There was a principle for ancient Israel that is for the church.
46:04-46:04
Get them out.
46:07-46:07
and get them out.
46:09-46:11
At this point, you're like, what am I supposed to do?
46:11-46:13
What am I supposed to do with this information, Pastor Jeff?
46:14-46:20
And I can tell you, it is my sincere hope that you never have to do anything with this information.
46:25-46:34
But, if you see a brother or sister in sin, you have a responsibility to encourage them to repent.
46:37-46:39
Matthew 18 gives principles for the process.
46:39-46:44
And I know Matthew 18 is if somebody sins against you directly, I think the principle still stands.
46:44-46:46
Go by yourself. Get the whole story.
46:46-46:47
Sit down with them.
46:48-46:50
It's what I think I'm seeing, actually what I'm seeing.
46:51-46:54
And if they refuse to repent, get some people from your small group.
46:55-46:59
Like, "Hey, it looks like you're making some really bad choices right now.
46:59-47:00
We love you and we care about you.
47:01-47:10
We want you to get on track." If they refuse to listen to that, then you need to come and talk to me and we'll take care of it from there.
47:12-47:13
But church, we are not headhunting.
47:15-47:18
We are not looking for reasons to eject people.
47:18-47:23
We are not making a federal case out of something minor.
47:23-47:24
Okay?
47:25-47:28
I saw Billy smoking a cigar at a wedding.
47:28-47:29
Church discipline!
47:29-47:30
No.
47:33-47:39
"Slow down there, deputy dog." And we are certainly not assuming or judging character.
47:39-47:42
The only thing we can judge is action.
47:43-47:44
This is what I see you doing.
47:45-47:47
And this is where God says that is wrong.
47:48-47:53
We're talking about flagrant, obvious, verified, unrepentant sin.
47:53-48:01
And we won't be a pure church if we refuse to deal with sinners.
48:02-48:03
Let's pray.
48:04-48:09
Father in Heaven, it's a lot easier to preach Psalm 23.
48:12-48:16
But we are committed to preaching the whole counsel of God.
48:16-48:38
And Father, as uncomfortable as this might be and as offensive as this might be, Father, give us the wisdom and give us the understanding that this is actually the most loving thing we can do is to allow someone to be shown the door if they refuse to repent.
48:40-48:41
Father, You know our hearts.
48:42-48:45
In every case, it's our hope that there is repentance and restoration.
48:47-48:50
Father, You care so much about the purity of this church.
48:52-49:04
And I'm asking, Father, that You would give us compassion and love, and at the same time, boldness and obedience to handle things in a way that glorify and honor You.
49:06-49:09
We pray in Jesus' name, Amen.

Small Group Discussion
Read 1 Corinthians 5

What was your big take-away from this passage / message?
Why do you think people have a hard time with a church removing an unrepentant sinner, when the Bible clearly commands it?
What is the motivation behind removing someone from church? What does it do for the church?
Explain 1 Cor 5:5 in your own words.
How would you coach someone on “How exactly do I confront a brother in Christ who is clearly in unrepentant sin?”

Breakout
Pray for one another.

Taylor Brown

January 11, 2026

God Is Seeking Worshipers

We Worship in Song

Taylor Brown

January 11, 2026

God Is Seeking Worshipers

Introduction:

John 4:23–24 - But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.

Why Should I Sing on Sundays? (Colossians 3:16)

Because singing works the WORD INTO MY HEART. (Col 3:16a)
Because singing encourages the HEARTS OF EVERYONE WHO HEARS ME. (Col 3:16b)

Ephesians 5:19 - ...addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart...

Psalm 34:3 - Oh, magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together!

Psalm 107:32 - Let them extol him in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders.

Psalm 100:1 - Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth!
Because singing voices my HEARTFELT THANKFULNESS TO GOD. (Col 3:16c)

Ephesians 5:19 - ...addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart...

Sermon Notes (PDF): BLANK
Hint: Highlight blanks above for answers!

00:41-00:44
Return your Bibles to Colossians chapter 3 verse 16.
00:45-00:48
Colossians chapter 3 verse 16.
00:49-00:56
Have you ever gone to someone else's house and witnessed family traditions that didn't make sense to you?
00:58-01:05
You had a friend in college, I went to visit his family once, and he's a part of a family that kisses each other on the lips whenever they say hello or goodbye.
01:08-01:10
And that's not my experience at all in my family.
01:11-01:14
And to be clear, I'm not judging you, that's how your family does greeting time.
01:15-01:17
You are loved and we're moving on from that, okay?
01:18-01:20
I also had another friend I grew up with.
01:21-01:25
His family drank milk with every single meal they ate.
01:25-01:29
Three meals a day, three glasses of milk a day.
01:30-01:34
And they thought it was really weird that I didn't want to drink milk with my pizza.
01:35-01:39
And I thought it was really weird but they wanted me to drink milk with my pizza.
01:40-01:46
Have you ever visited a different country and been surprised and thrown off by the customs they have?
01:46-01:56
In Netherlands, the person who's throwing a birthday party congratulates every single person in the room, not just the person having the birthday.
01:57-01:59
In Japan, it is not customary to tip.
01:59-02:04
If you try to leave a tip, the server will probably be very offended by that.
02:05-02:15
I've talked to a lot of people who've visited or immigrated to America who are really thrown off that we use how are you not as a genuine question, but as a throwaway hello.
02:17-02:26
I've been to Kenya twice, and the first time I was there I was surprised that as I walked from village to village talking to a certain man, he would hold my hand as we walked.
02:27-02:28
Now guys, will we do that in America?
02:29-02:31
That's never happened to me stateside.
02:31-02:33
But in Kenya, it's a sign of friendship.
02:34-02:38
It's a sign that person is really listening to what you have to say.
02:39-02:44
Many traditions and customs seem to be a bit random and mysterious.
02:45-02:49
When you press people on why they carry out these traditions, they usually don't know why.
02:50-02:51
They don't know the origin or rationale.
02:52-02:53
I don't know, this is what we've always done.
02:53-02:55
We've always had milk with our pizza.
02:55-02:58
We've always eaten Funyuns at Thanksgiving.
03:02-03:05
One tradition that doesn't really make that much sense, but I'm glad you enjoy it, Pastor Jeff.
03:07-03:15
Traditions and customs can become mechanical, can become rote, if you don't know why you're doing them.
03:16-03:20
It can become a mechanical process of going through the motions.
03:21-03:24
And the same can be said for Christians in the church.
03:24-03:36
If you pull many professing believers as they exit a Sunday morning service and ask them to provide the biblical rationale for why they did what they just did, I think you'd receive a lot of blank stares.
03:37-03:39
You would hear a lot of uhs and ums.
03:39-03:41
You'd hear a lot of hemming and hawing.
03:42-03:42
Why is that?
03:44-03:48
Because they are engaging in worship without thought or intention.
03:49-03:52
They are going through the motions.
03:53-04:00
The traditions and customs that God has laid down in his word for the family gatherings of his people may seem strange.
04:01-04:04
Hard to explain and a bit random.
04:05-04:06
I mean, think about it.
04:06-04:12
Why do we gather once a week to listen to a guy like me talk about the Bible for 30 to 45 minutes?
04:13-04:16
Every few months, why do we watch people get dunked in water?
04:18-04:22
At the end of this service, why will we eat a cup of bread and a thimble full of juice?
04:23-04:24
Why do we do that?
04:24-04:28
Why do we spend almost half of the service singing together?
04:29-04:41
And that final question is particularly hard for some Christians to answer because they don't like to sing on Sundays, they don't want to sing on Sundays, and they don't even know why we sing on Sundays.
04:42-04:43
They don't really see the point.
04:44-04:49
And maybe you are a part of the demographic that isn't really down with singing.
04:49-04:51
Maybe this biblical tradition seems odd to you.
04:52-04:53
It seems mysterious.
04:53-04:56
You don't know why you have to do it.
04:57-04:58
So what do you do?
04:59-05:04
As Pastor Jeff and Pastor Rich have said in previous sermons, you barely sing above a whisper.
05:05-05:06
You tune out.
05:08-05:11
You mouth the words until you're told to sit down.
05:12-05:20
Or maybe you arrive intentionally late to skip the singing portions of the service, or you slip out early to skip the final song.
05:21-05:24
You just don't get singing, so you just don't sing.
05:25-05:30
This is the final sermon in a series called God is seeking worshipers.
05:31-05:37
In John chapter four, verses 23 through 24, Jesus makes it clear what kind of worshipers God's on the lookout for.
05:38-05:40
Let's listen to what Jesus has to say.
05:40-05:58
He says, "But the hour is coming, is now here, "when the true worshipers will worship the Father "in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking "such people to worship Him." God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.
05:59-06:04
God is seeking those who will worship him in spirit and in truth.
06:05-06:15
Two weeks ago, Pastor Rich dug into what it looks like to worship God according to the truth of his word, and last week, Pastor Jeff focused on worshiping God in spirit.
06:15-06:18
You're to have passion and not cold detachment.
06:19-06:24
And this morning, we're gonna focus in particular on the importance of congregational singing.
06:26-06:33
Whether you can't wait to sing, or you can't stand to sing, I wanna help you answer one question this morning.
06:33-06:34
Just one question.
06:35-06:37
Why should I sing on Sundays?
06:38-06:41
Why should I sing on Sundays?
06:42-06:49
There are a lot of places to turn to answer this question, but there is no place that is clearer and more concise than Colossians 3:16.
06:49-06:50
Just one verse.
06:51-06:54
Before we continue any further, let's go to the Lord and ask for His help.
06:55-07:00
Please pray for me, that I'll faithfully proclaim God's Word, and I will pray for you, that you will faithfully receive it.
07:03-07:07
Father, we come to you and we thank you for this most important appointment of the week.
07:09-07:16
This isn't a throwaway time that we can take or leave, for it is the time we come together to worship your holy name.
07:17-07:26
to come around your word, to be challenged, to be convicted, to be encouraged, to be lifted up, to be pointed to your son, Jesus Christ.
07:27-07:29
We thank you in advance for what you will do.
07:29-07:38
And we pray more than anything that you would be pleased with what we do today, that you would be worshiped in spirit and in truth.
07:38-07:41
We ask all this in Jesus' name, amen.
07:42-07:50
So Colossians is a New Testament letter written by the apostle Paul, and it is focused on the supremacy of Christ in all things.
07:51-07:54
Christ is better than anything or anyone.
07:54-07:58
Life is from him, life is through him, and life is for him.
07:59-08:06
In chapter three of Colossians, Paul calls the Colossians to live in light of who Christ is and where he is seated.
08:06-08:13
Christ is Lord and he is seated in heaven, so we are called to submit to his heavenly standards.
08:14-08:18
To be able to put on new clothes, you have to take off your old clothes.
08:19-08:23
Well, to put on the new self, you are to put off the old self.
08:24-08:32
You are to put off old, ungodly attitudes and behaviors so you can put on new and godly behaviors.
08:32-08:37
In verse 12, Paul says the Colossians are to put on compassionate hearts.
08:38-08:49
And in verse 15, he says, "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts." And then in verse 16, our passage for today, Paul says they are to have worshipful and thankful hearts.
08:50-08:55
And you and I are called to have these worshipful hearts as well.
08:56-08:57
Why is that?
08:57-08:58
What's the result?
08:59-09:07
Well, worshipful and thankful hearts bless God, it blesses others, and it will bless you as well.
09:08-09:11
Now that we have that background in mind, let's answer our main question.
09:11-09:13
Why should I sing on Sundays?
09:14-09:16
Why should I sing on Sundays?
09:17-09:20
Number one, because singing works the word into my heart.
09:21-09:24
Because singing works the word into my heart.
09:27-09:29
Let's read Colossians chapter three, verse 16.
09:30-09:41
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs of thankfulness in your hearts to God.
09:43-09:44
Let's focus on that beginning chunk.
09:45-09:48
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.
09:49-09:49
What does that mean?
09:50-09:55
It means that your copy of God's word doesn't gather dust on your bedside table.
09:56-09:59
The words on these pages don't just stay on these pages.
09:59-10:02
The word of God finds a place in your heart.
10:02-10:03
It lives within you.
10:04-10:12
Scripture digs down deep into the very core of your being to change how you think, how you feel, how you love, how you act, and how you react.
10:13-10:14
How does this happen?
10:15-10:17
It happens by reading the word.
10:17-10:26
It happens by studying the word, meditating upon the word, unpacking what it means and how it applies to your life.
10:27-10:34
It involves writing notes in the margins, jotting down questions, highlighting verses, becoming a student of God's word.
10:35-10:39
But according to Paul, this also happens through singing.
10:40-10:43
And that may surprise you because you don't see the connection just yet.
10:43-10:46
How does singing work the word into your heart?
10:47-10:51
How does singing cause the word of Christ to dwell in you richly?
10:53-11:01
Because lyrics set to music is the most effective method of memorization and internalization.
11:02-11:03
We all know this to be the case, right?
11:03-11:04
In other areas of life.
11:05-11:07
How did you learn the ABCs?
11:09-11:10
Through song, right?
11:10-11:11
Prove it to me.
11:11-11:13
A, B, C, D.
11:13-11:37
♪ E, F, G ♪ ♪ H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P ♪ ♪ Q, R, S, T, U, V ♪ ♪ W, X, Y, and Z ♪ ♪ L, M, N, O, Y Very good, very good, wow!
11:39-11:42
As a kid, how did you learn the basics of anatomy?
11:44-11:54
Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes, head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes, eyes and ears, and mouth and nose, head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes.
11:55-11:56
What about cleaning up?
11:56-12:04
♪ Clean up, clean up, everybody everywhere ♪ ♪ Clean up, clean up, everybody everywhere ♪ Look at you guys.
12:05-12:08
Those lessons are dwelling in you richly to this day.
12:09-12:10
Do you see the point?
12:12-12:17
Growing up in the church, I learned a lot of important biblical facts through songs.
12:18-12:20
If you know the song I'm gonna sing, please sing it with me.
12:21-12:25
♪ Zacchaeus was a wee little man ♪ And a wee little man was he.
12:26-12:30
He climbed up his axe and called to the bloody country.
12:31-12:44
And as the savior passed out of birth, he looked up in the city and said, Zacchaeus, you come down, for I'm going to your house today.
12:44-12:46
For I'm going to your house today.
12:47-12:50
The B-I-B-L-E, yes, that's the book for me.
12:50-12:52
I stand alone on the word of God.
12:52-13:02
♪ B-I-B-L-E ♪ Isn't it astounding how much biblical truth can be contained in such simple and childlike songs?
13:02-13:08
I sang these songs 30 years ago and they still dwell in my heart richly.
13:08-13:11
They worked the word into my heart.
13:13-13:22
How arrogant we can be as adults by believing that we mature past the need to learn and love the word of God through song.
13:23-13:25
Do you feel that way right now?
13:26-13:32
Do you think that the sermon is the only aspect of the Sunday service that teaches you something?
13:33-13:34
That's just not true.
13:35-13:38
Every single aspect of the service teaches you God's word.
13:39-13:49
At Harvest, we read the word, we preach the word, we pray the word, we see the word in baptism in the Lord's Supper, and we sing the word.
13:49-13:54
All of these elements cause the word of Christ to dwell in you richly.
13:55-13:58
All of these elements work the word into your heart.
13:59-14:04
This is why it's important that we only sing what God's word says.
14:05-14:09
And thankfully, Paul tells us what to sing in this verse.
14:09-14:15
He gives us three types of songs, psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs.
14:16-14:18
Psalms are self-explanatory, right?
14:18-14:23
He's talking about the 150 songs and prayers in the Old Testament book of Psalms.
14:24-14:29
When you sing the Psalms, you're singing God's own word back to him.
14:29-14:31
It's like you're speaking God's language.
14:31-14:35
You're using his own divine vocabulary.
14:36-14:43
And when Paul references hymns in this verse, he's not talking about the hymns as we understand them in 2026.
14:43-14:46
Remember, Paul's writing about 2,000 years ago.
14:46-14:53
He's not commanding us to buy old dusty hymnals off eBay that have the singing sheets and all the parts for men and women.
14:54-14:55
What is he saying?
14:56-14:59
Well, back in his day, hymns were a pagan practice.
15:00-15:06
Hymns were sung to a false god, a famous hero, or a military leader.
15:07-15:10
These hymns were focused on a particular person.
15:12-15:38
Paul is Christianizing and retrofitting fitting this pagan practice for the church. He's saying instead of singing to that lame guy who's not as cool as you think he is, instead of singing to that bloodthirsty general, instead of singing to that false God, praise the Lord God Almighty. Praise Him for who He is. Praise Him for His sovereignty. Praise Him for praise Him for His majesty.
15:40-15:42
Praise God for who He is.
15:44-15:48
And most likely, spiritual songs were songs of personal testimony.
15:49-16:00
If hymns mainly emphasize who God is, spiritual songs focus on what God has done for you, what He is doing for you, and what He will do for you in the future.
16:00-16:05
Praise God that He gave you another day to worship him and to serve him.
16:06-16:15
How many of us woke up today going, "Ugh, today's gonna be terrible, I don't wanna do this." Instead of doing that, praise him that he gave you breath in your lungs.
16:16-16:21
Praise him that he has forgiven all of your sin, past, present, and future.
16:21-16:28
Praise him that he delivered you from the domain of darkness and has transferred you to the kingdom of his beloved son.
16:29-16:37
Praise him that he will never, ever let go of you, no matter what you do, praise God for all the good gifts he has given to you.
16:38-16:41
That is psalms and hymns and spiritual songs.
16:42-16:46
Why does Paul give us this breakdown of songs?
16:48-16:50
In the past, did you ever make someone a mixtape?
16:52-16:53
Did you ever burn someone a CD?
16:54-17:00
Or for you teenagers who have no idea what I'm talking about, have you ever made a playlist and shared it with someone else?
17:02-17:02
Why'd you do that?
17:03-17:07
Because you wanted that person to experience the songs that you love.
17:08-17:14
You wanted that person to get out of the rut of listening to that same kind of song over and over and over again.
17:15-17:16
That's what Paul's doing here.
17:17-17:20
He's giving the Colossians a godly mixtape, a CD.
17:20-17:24
He's sharing a heavenly playlist with them.
17:24-17:29
He wants to keep them from singing the same type of song over and over and over again.
17:31-17:33
It's often said that variety is the spice of life.
17:34-17:36
Variety is also the spice of worship.
17:37-17:41
God wants to be worshiped by the inspired classics of the Psalms.
17:42-17:48
He also wants to be worshiped, as Pastor Jeff just read to us from Psalm 96, with a new song.
17:48-17:57
He wants to be worshiped for who he is, but he also wants to be worshiped for what he does, what he has done, and what he will do.
17:58-18:07
Singing these types of songs will keep us from only emphasizing the truth and missing spirit, or only emphasizing spirit and missing the truth.
18:08-18:17
Sticking to this list of songs will cause you to worship in spirit and in truth, because both are needed to truly worship God.
18:19-18:28
So much damage can be done if the sermons we hear on Sundays get an A+ in theology, but the songs we sing receive a failing grade.
18:30-18:30
Well, why is that?
18:32-18:39
Because you'll remember the words you sing on Sunday far longer than the words you hear from the pastor's mouth.
18:41-18:44
If you don't believe me, have you ever been with a Christian on their deathbed?
18:46-18:50
I gotta tell you, they don't invite their pastors in to re-preach their favorite sermons.
18:51-18:51
What do they do instead?
18:53-18:58
They sing worship songs that are lodged in their brains and stuck in their hearts.
18:59-19:07
As tired and as feeble as these saints feel, they belt out amazing grace in Christ alone, crown him with many crowns.
19:07-19:10
It is well, blessed assurance.
19:11-19:19
Biblically rich songs have the power to instruct your intellect, spark your passions, engage your emotions, and involve your body.
19:20-19:26
When the word of Christ dwells in you richly, it will flow out of your mouth freely.
19:29-19:30
Do you begrudgingly sing?
19:31-19:32
Do you barely sing?
19:34-19:35
Do you refuse to sing?
19:37-19:43
If you've answered any of those questions with a yes, I want you to come to grips with what you're truly sacrificing.
19:45-19:58
You are laying aside the blessing of knowing and loving the word of God on every single level of who you are as a person, physically, emotionally, and spiritually, you are cutting your spiritual growth off at the knees.
19:58-20:01
You're saying, I'm gonna mature this far and no farther.
20:02-20:11
You are cutting yourself off from a major source of the word of Christ dwelling in you richly, of the word being worked into your heart.
20:13-20:14
You are hurting yourself.
20:16-20:20
but the damage doesn't just end with you.
20:21-20:27
If you have a negative view of singing, you will negatively affect others around you.
20:28-20:31
But in Colossians 3, 16, Paul shows us the opposite as well.
20:32-20:37
If you have a positive view of singing, you will positively affect others around you.
20:38-20:40
Let's read verse 16 for a second time.
20:41-20:53
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
20:55-20:56
Why should I sing on Sundays?
20:57-21:00
Second reason, because singing encourages the hearts of everyone who hears me.
21:01-21:05
Because singing encourages the hearts of everyone who hears me.
21:08-21:13
Paul says that we as a church should be teaching and admonishing who?
21:14-21:19
One another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs.
21:20-21:24
He shares an almost identical truth in Ephesians 5.19.
21:24-21:30
He says the believer should be addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs.
21:31-21:38
Pastor Rich and Pastor Jeff have made it clear over the past few weeks that the primary audience of our worship is who?
21:39-21:44
God, first and foremost, our worship is for and before the Lord.
21:45-21:47
Again, he is the primary audience.
21:48-21:52
But according to Paul, there is a secondary audience of our singing.
21:54-21:55
And who is that secondary audience?
21:56-22:04
One another, every single person in this room, that person in front of you, those people behind you, those people next to you.
22:05-22:08
To be clear, you're not worshiping other people as you sing.
22:08-22:15
You are only worshiping God, but you are instructing and teaching others as you sin.
22:16-22:20
The goal isn't to impress, the goal is to instruct.
22:22-22:27
By singing, you are reinforcing the glorious truths of God's word.
22:28-22:36
By singing, you are warning, admonishing others to avoid the consequences of disobeying God's word.
22:36-22:41
you are playing an important role of the working of the word into their hearts.
22:42-22:47
You are playing an important role of the word of Christ dwelling in their hearts, richly.
22:48-22:53
Do you understand that Sunday morning is not your private worship time with God?
22:55-22:58
Yes, it is personal, but it's by no means private.
22:58-23:05
You are commanded to have your private worship time with God throughout the week, as you read the Bible, as you pray, as you fast.
23:06-23:09
Sunday morning is the corporate worship time of God's people.
23:10-23:14
It's not just about you and Jesus, it's about us and Jesus.
23:16-23:21
Why is it so important that we gather together and we sing together?
23:22-23:23
Why do we do that?
23:24-23:26
Well, one pastor puts it this way.
23:27-23:31
The people of God sing together because they have been saved together.
23:34-23:36
And we see this truth in the book of Exodus.
23:37-23:41
In Exodus 12 and 13, the Israelites are let go from slavery in Egypt.
23:43-23:45
They're guided by the very presence of God.
23:46-23:47
But then what happens?
23:47-23:52
Pharaoh changes his mind, and the armies of Egypt go after the Israelites.
23:52-23:54
But God rescues them.
23:54-23:56
He makes the Red Seas part.
23:56-23:57
He takes them through the water.
23:57-24:01
Then those waters drown the Egyptian army.
24:02-24:05
The Israelites are saved together by God.
24:07-24:10
How do they respond to being saved together?
24:11-24:14
According to Exodus 15, they sing together.
24:15-24:20
Their voices become one communal voice to their God and their Savior.
24:22-24:23
And we see this in the Psalms.
24:24-24:27
There is a ton of I, me, my, and mine language in the Psalms.
24:27-24:34
but there are 346 appearances of we, our, us as well.
24:35-24:38
Again, it's not just private, it's corporate.
24:39-24:41
In Psalm 34.3, David gives this command.
24:41-24:45
Oh, magnify the Lord with me.
24:45-24:47
Let us exalt his name together.
24:48-24:57
Psalm 107.32, let them extol him in the congregation of the people and praise him in the assembly of the elders.
24:58-25:08
Paul commands the Colossians and the Ephesians to sing to the Lord together because they have been saved by the blood of Jesus Christ together.
25:09-25:15
You and I are commanded to sing together because we have been saved by the blood of Jesus Christ together.
25:16-25:21
You were not rescued and redeemed from your sin to be your own spiritual island by yourself.
25:21-25:28
You were rescued and redeemed to be a part of the holy people of God, to be adopted into the family of God.
25:29-25:30
You are not an only child.
25:31-25:37
You have a countless number of brothers and sisters across this globe and throughout human history.
25:39-25:40
Let's focus on our church for a minute.
25:41-25:51
If you are a member at Harvest, you have committed yourself to the holiness and maturity of the brothers and sisters you have in this room and in the other service.
25:53-26:02
By becoming a member, you have acknowledged that your faithful attendance, your active participation, contributes to the unity and purity of this church.
26:03-26:10
You have chosen to link arms with these people and marched through this evil world towards heaven together.
26:10-26:15
You have agreed that I'm gonna build up and encourage these people because they are my family.
26:17-26:21
Do you realize that this service isn't just something you can slip in and slip out of?
26:21-26:22
This is your family.
26:23-26:30
This is a family gathering and you are here to encourage others, not just to be encouraged yourself.
26:33-26:34
So how do you encourage others around you?
26:35-26:38
You sing with passionate enthusiasm.
26:40-26:48
You cannot teach and admonish other people around you with their singing if other people around you you cannot hear your singing.
26:49-26:50
You know what this means?
26:51-26:55
This means that you do not have the biblical right to opt out of singing.
26:56-27:01
You do not have God's permission to mumble or mouth the words you see on the screens.
27:01-27:06
You are not given a hall pass from God to come late or to leave early.
27:06-27:11
You are not allowed to be a conscientious objector during the worship set.
27:13-27:15
I know exactly what some of you are thinking right now.
27:15-27:18
you're internally sweating and thinking, Pastor Taylor, you just don't get it.
27:19-27:22
I have a horrible singing voice and I don't want anybody to hear me.
27:25-27:30
Does God expect you to be a trained musician or a world-class vocalist to sing?
27:31-27:37
I sure hope not because you all just heard my voice a few minutes ago and I fall way short of that standard.
27:38-27:42
Does God command you to sing well in scripture?
27:43-27:45
He calls you to sing, period.
27:46-27:53
Psalm 100, verse one, "Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth." Can your mouth make noise?
27:55-27:57
Make noise to your mouth by saying yes.
27:57-27:58
Can your mouth make noise?
28:00-28:01
Can you make that noise sound joyful?
28:02-28:09
Even better than you are the perfect person to sing to the Lord, to encourage other people in this room with your singing.
28:11-28:22
All of you are not expected to stand on stage and lead the worship time, but you are expected to instruct others during the worship time as you sing from where you stand.
28:23-28:25
How many of you watched Elf last month before Christmas?
28:27-28:28
Very few of you.
28:28-28:30
Wow, okay, this may be harder for you than I thought.
28:30-28:34
What is Buddy the Elf's singing advice for Christmas?
28:34-28:39
The best way to spread Christmas cheer is-- - To go out and call the church.
28:40-28:43
I'm gonna steal that quote and use it for corporate worship.
28:44-28:49
The best way to spread Christian cheer is-- - [Congregation] It's enough for all to hear.
28:50-28:55
I read a study recently that laid out two markers of a healthy church.
28:55-28:59
There are obviously way more than just two, but these two were the focus of the study.
28:59-29:01
The first one was children.
29:02-29:03
Children are being born.
29:04-29:05
Children are being discipled.
29:06-29:09
That discipleship is being reinforced in the life of the church.
29:09-29:15
As Pastor Jeff often says, "Children are a sign of life." How are we doing with that first marker here at Harvest?
29:17-29:22
If you're wondering, just count how many kids almost knock you over after the service is over.
29:23-29:24
Here's the second mark.
29:24-29:28
The second mark is men who sing.
29:29-29:30
How are we doing with that one?
29:32-29:34
I gotta tell you, not as well as the first.
29:36-29:38
And I know what some of you men are thinking.
29:39-29:43
Taylor, singing on Sundays just seems a little feminine.
29:44-29:47
It doesn't seem very masculine to me.
29:49-29:50
That's interesting.
29:51-29:57
You didn't seem to have that same objection when you were singing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" at the Pirate Game this past summer.
29:59-30:00
So let me understand this.
30:00-30:07
It's masculine to sing about going to a baseball game, but it's feminine to sing to the Lord God Almighty.
30:09-30:16
You didn't seem to have that same objection when you were singing in the shower this morning, or singing in the car on the way to work last week.
30:16-30:22
You didn't seem to have this objection when you were singing at the top of your lungs when you saw your favorite band in concert.
30:22-30:30
So let me get it straight, all those things are masculine, but singing to Jesus Christ who laid down his own life to save yours, that's feminine.
30:31-30:34
Do you see how ridiculous that objection is when you really think about it?
30:36-30:39
Moses sang, are you more masculine than Moses?
30:40-30:48
When was the last time you were used by God to defeat the mightiest army on the planet and to lead a bunch of complaining people through the wilderness?
30:50-30:53
David sang to the Lord and even danced to him as we saw last week.
30:54-30:56
Are you more masculine than David?
30:57-31:00
You were killed a giant or ruled over God's chosen nation?
31:02-31:03
Jesus sang in the Gospels.
31:05-31:06
Are you more masculine than Jesus?
31:08-31:15
Your entire life cannot compare to one second of the masculinity Jesus displayed during his time on this earth.
31:16-31:20
Men, please stop making excuses for why you can't sing.
31:20-31:22
Sing for the sake of your wife.
31:23-31:24
Sing for the sake of your kids.
31:25-31:26
Sing for the sake of the church.
31:27-31:30
Your silence is deafening and destructive.
31:32-31:40
Harvest, we should be teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom by singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs.
31:40-31:44
We should be instructing and encouraging one another by how we sing.
31:45-31:49
This starts at an individual level and it has corporate ramifications.
31:50-31:55
You have no idea how big of an impact your singing has on the people around you.
31:56-32:00
And you have no idea how much their singing has an impact on you.
32:02-32:14
Imagine that there is a woman in the seat in front of you who is fighting a losing battle with a serious illness, yet every single Sunday she is worshiping the Lord with hands lifted high.
32:15-32:16
Does that teach you something?
32:17-32:23
That teaches you that God is worthy of your praise even when your physical strength is being sapped from your body.
32:25-32:28
Imagine that there's a dad down the aisle from you who just lost his son.
32:29-32:34
Yet he is still worshiping the Lord with tears in his eyes and sorrow in his heart.
32:35-32:36
Doesn't that teach you something?
32:37-32:41
That teaches you that the Lord gives and the Lord takes away.
32:41-32:43
Blessed be the name of the Lord.
32:44-32:53
That group of teenagers in the other section is rejecting the worldly desire to look cool by worshiping God with reckless abandon.
32:54-32:55
Doesn't that teach you something?
32:56-33:02
God teaches you that age doesn't always equal maturity, and they can set you an example to follow.
33:05-33:06
Please sing.
33:07-33:15
Sing to encourage your own heart, but also sing to encourage the hearts of other people around you.
33:17-33:18
Why should I sing on Sundays?
33:19-33:24
Final reason, because singing voices my heartfelt thankfulness to God.
33:25-33:38
"singing voices my heartfelt thankfulness to God." Singing blesses you, singing blesses others, but most importantly, singing blesses God.
33:39-33:41
Let's read verse 16 a third and final time.
33:42-33:59
"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, "teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, "singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs "with thankfulness in your hearts to God." Once again, Paul shares a very similar truth in Ephesians 5.19.
33:59-34:09
He says that you should sing and address other Christians in song while making melody to the Lord with your heart.
34:11-34:14
You realize that your mouth isn't your primary instrument of praise.
34:15-34:16
It's your heart.
34:17-34:19
Your heart is where everything starts.
34:19-34:21
Your heart is where your passions live.
34:21-34:27
your heart is where your emotions reside, what is in your heart will come out of your mouth.
34:27-34:34
Your heart is like a guitar or a keyboard, while your mouth is a speaker.
34:34-34:37
Your mouth amplifies what is inside.
34:37-34:41
Your mouth amplifies what is in your heart.
34:42-34:47
If your heart is full of negativity and complaining, what will come out of your mouth?
34:48-34:49
Negativity and complaining.
34:50-34:57
If your heart is full of love and praise to the Lord, what will be amplified by your mouth?
34:58-35:00
Love and praise to the Lord.
35:01-35:04
You were made to worship God.
35:05-35:08
And God has revealed that he loves to be sung to.
35:11-35:17
And if you refuse to sing to him, you are refusing to give him the love and thanks that he deserves.
35:19-35:20
and at this point you may be waving the white flag.
35:20-35:22
Okay, Taylor, I get it, I get it.
35:22-35:24
You and other pastors can stop selling me.
35:25-35:28
These sermons have convinced me I just sing a little bit louder.
35:30-35:32
Fine, I guess I'll sing.
35:34-35:35
Is that honoring to the Lord?
35:37-35:45
You know, my wife has revealed to me that she loves flowers and she feels loved by me whenever I give her flowers.
35:46-35:52
But imagine I come home after service to frown on my face and shove some flowers in her arms and say, "There you go.
35:52-35:54
"Will you stop bugging me about the stupid flowers?
35:54-35:55
"I did what you wanted.
35:57-35:58
"You're not getting any more until your birthday.
35:59-36:05
"Hope you enjoy it." Would my wife feel very loved by that?
36:07-36:09
I shouldn't buy my wife flowers because I have to.
36:10-36:14
I should buy my wife flowers because I love her and I want to.
36:16-36:20
In the same way, singing to the Lord viewed as something you have to do.
36:21-36:23
It should be viewed as something you want to do.
36:24-36:31
It should be your greatest joy to verbally and physically express the love you feel for him on the inside.
36:33-36:37
And if that's not how you feel, there's a problem going on that you should address.
36:39-36:41
The worship team can make their way forward.
36:43-36:45
God is seeking worshipers.
36:46-36:49
God is seeking those who will worship Him in truth.
36:50-36:53
God is seeking those who will worship Him in spirit.
36:54-36:57
God is seeking those who will worship Him in song.
36:59-37:01
How do you feel about this job description?
37:02-37:05
How do you feel about being a full-time worshiper of God?
37:07-37:09
Some of you in this room are not a worshiper of God.
37:11-37:12
You have not yet trusted in Christ.
37:13-37:15
You are worshiping yourself.
37:15-37:17
You are living for yourself.
37:18-37:20
Let me ask you something, how is that working out for you?
37:22-37:23
I'm guessing not very well.
37:25-37:31
You may think you're happy, you may act happy, but you know something is missing.
37:31-37:33
You know something is wrong.
37:34-37:40
You know there is someone far greater than you who deserves the glory and honor that you're hogging for yourself.
37:42-37:49
This person is God, who reveals himself most clearly through the person and work of his Son.
37:50-37:53
Jesus came to this earth to serve sinners.
37:54-37:56
Choose to serve him for all of eternity.
37:57-38:06
Jesus humbled himself by dying on the cross to pay the penalty for sin, even though he was and still is fully perfect and sinless.
38:07-38:10
Choose to exalt him forever and ever.
38:11-38:18
Jesus will not turn you away if you come to him with genuine faith and repentance.
38:19-38:22
Choose to believe in him, stop believing in yourself.
38:23-38:26
Choose to worship him, stop worshiping yourself.
38:27-38:30
The role of a full-time worshiper is being offered to you.
38:32-38:33
Accept that job offer.
38:35-38:41
Others of you have accepted that job offer in the past, but you haven't been carrying out your responsibilities lately.
38:42-38:45
Maybe you've been making excuses for why you can't sing.
38:46-38:51
Maybe you've been distracted by a million other things you sit in this service and you're not focusing on Jesus Christ.
38:53-38:56
Maybe you're not truly singing with passionate enthusiasm.
38:58-39:01
If you're honest, you would say, I've been lazy in my worship.
39:03-39:06
If that's true, let me give you one final exhortation.
39:07-39:21
If Jesus Christ rose from the dead on a Sunday morning 2,000 years ago, you can get up bright and early every Sunday to worship his holy name with every ounce of energy and passion that you have.
39:22-39:23
It's not too late.
39:23-39:24
You can do it right now.
39:25-39:26
You can do it today.
39:28-39:32
Others of you have been faithful and you've been consistent in your worship.
39:32-39:36
Obviously, it's not perfect, but you have been consistent.
39:36-39:38
If that's you, keep it up.
39:38-39:39
Keep up the good work.
39:40-39:44
Do not waver in the job that God has saved you to carry out.
39:46-39:47
We spent a lot of time talking about singing.
39:48-39:48
Let's actually stand.
39:49-39:50
Let's actually sing.
39:51-39:53
Stand and do what you were made to do.
39:53-39:55
Do what you were saved to do.
39:56-39:57
Do what you should want to do.
39:58-39:59
Let's sing to the Lord.

Small Group Discussion
Read Colossians 3:16

What was your big take-away from this passage / message and the entire series?
What are your biggest barriers to passionately singing on Sunday mornings? How can you begin to overcome these barriers and be a more faithful worshiper?
How does singing help the Word dwell in you richly?
How does singing on Sundays encourage others around you? What does their singing teach you?
What did Taylor mean that your greatest instrument is your heart? How is your mouth like an amplifier?

Breakout
Pray for one another.

Jeff Miller

January 4, 2026

God Is Seeking Worshipers

All In On Spirit

Jeff Miller

January 4, 2026

God Is Seeking Worshipers

Introduction:

John 4:23

Psalm 138:1 - I give you thanks, O LORD, with my whole heart...

Psalm 45:1 - My heart overflows with a pleasing theme…

Deuteronomy 6:5 - You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.

3 Reasons I'm “All In on Spirit” in Worship (2 Samuel 6:12-23)

My worship is FOR THE LORD. (2 Sam 6:21a)
My worship is PERSONAL. (2 Sam 6:21b)

2 Samuel 12:20 – Then David arose from the earth and washed and anointed himself and changed his clothes. And he went into the house of the LORD and worshiped.

Job 1:20 – Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped.
My worship is a CHOICE. (2 Sam 6:22–23)

Psalm 146:2 – I will praise the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.

Sermon Notes (PDF): BLANK
Hint: Highlight blanks above for answers!

00:42-00:48
Open up your Bibles to the book of 2 Samuel 6.
00:50-00:52
While you're turning, let's just pause.
00:52-01:00
I'm going to ask if you would please pray for me to clearly and faithfully communicate God's Word.
01:00-01:09
At the same time, I will pray for you to have a heart open to receive what it is the Lord wants to teach us from His Word today.
01:10-01:12
Just take a moment, please, we'll pray.
01:16-01:23
Father, I believe this is a message that the church needs to hear.
01:24-01:30
God, I believe this is a message this church, this is a message Harvest Bible Chapel needs to hear.
01:30-01:39
So I just ask God that You would please let Your Spirit move in the hearts of Your people.
01:39-01:43
This would be a time of self-examination.
01:46-01:54
And that You would continue Your work in us to make us the people that You've already pronounced us to be.
01:55-01:59
Thank You, Father, ahead of time for everything that You're going to do.
02:01-02:08
Because Your Word tells us that You always accomplish the purposes for which You send Your Word out.
02:09-02:10
We believe that.
02:14-02:16
In Jesus' name, Amen.
02:18-02:20
2 Samuel chapter 6.
02:20-02:20
Are you there?
02:22-02:27
I grew up attending a little Methodist church.
02:28-02:44
And worship in music time was sometimes, most of the time, how should we say, unenthusiastic.
02:46-02:51
But often it would sound like this.
02:53-03:08
If ever I loved thee Lord Jesus 'tis now ♪ And imagine that times like 70 or 80.
03:10-03:21
I remember one Sunday in particular, during the music time, the pastor actually stood up, and he goes, "Stop, stop, stop singing, stop singing.
03:23-03:32
I'm not going to let you ruin another one." I mean, unpack that statement.
03:34-03:47
I just remember the organist was like, like, "What do we do now?" And he's like, "Write into the sermon, like, I'm not going to let you ruin another one." We were shocked.
03:49-04:01
And you know, I didn't really get it then, but I get it now.
04:04-04:07
Like, what are we doing?
04:09-04:16
What are we doing when it's time to worship our almighty savior.
04:19-04:21
We come in 10 or 15 minutes late.
04:23-04:24
What are we doing?
04:26-04:31
What are we doing when it's time to express our love for God?
04:33-04:49
And we're just kind of looking around and kind of half singing the words What are we doing?
04:52-04:59
Can we really be content to call that worship?
05:00-05:01
Can we?
05:01-05:09
Can we be content to come in late and mouth a few words and sit down and be like, "Well, I worship today." Can we call that worship?
05:09-05:10
Really?
05:11-05:13
Let me ask you this.
05:15-05:22
Do you consider yourself to be a worshiper?
05:29-05:29
Do you?
05:32-05:34
Could we rightly call you a worshiper?
05:37-05:41
Or would you say, "Yeah, that's not really my thing.
05:42-05:47
Yeah, the music and worship thing, we're talking specifically about music.
05:47-05:49
Pastor Rich made that clear last week.
05:49-05:58
That's what this series is about." But are you like, "Well, this worship and music, it's not really my thing." Well, that's a problem because it's God's thing.
06:00-06:01
Okay, it's God's thing.
06:02-06:03
Like, well, how do you know?
06:03-06:05
Do you know what the second biggest book of the Bible is?
06:06-06:08
It's right smack in the middle.
06:09-06:10
The Psalms, you know what the Psalms are?
06:11-06:12
Israel's songbook.
06:15-06:17
Right in the center of the word of God.
06:18-06:24
Heaven is described as a place of worship, right?
06:24-06:30
And Jesus Christ himself said, God is seeking someone.
06:30-06:33
God is, God himself is looking for someone.
06:33-06:35
Who is God looking for?
06:36-06:38
Jesus tells us, here's who God's looking for.
06:38-06:54
John chapter four, verse 23, Jesus says to the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well, "But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth.
06:55-07:02
For the Father is seeking such people to worship Him." You see that?
07:02-07:10
Again, this is a conversation Jesus was having with the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well.
07:12-07:17
And this statement, spirit and truth, spirit and truth.
07:18-07:25
Understand for the Jews, the Jews had the Scriptures.
07:25-07:27
They had the information.
07:28-07:29
But you know what they didn't have?
07:29-07:31
They didn't have heart in their worship.
07:32-07:32
I mean, read your Old Testament.
07:33-07:34
Their heart wasn't in it.
07:34-07:38
through the motions, they had the truth, but their heart was not in it.
07:39-07:43
You see, the Jews, they had the truth, but there was no spirit.
07:44-07:46
But the Samaritans, did you know this?
07:46-07:48
The Samaritans were passionate worshipers.
07:49-07:49
They were.
07:49-07:53
They were extravagant, passionate, emotional worshipers.
07:53-07:54
Well, there's a little problem.
07:56-08:03
They didn't believe in the scriptures, except for the Pentateuch, but the rest, they just did not believe.
08:04-08:14
So the Samaritans, like the woman Jesus was speaking to, they had spirit, but no truth.
08:16-08:21
And Jesus says to this woman, "Hey, God wants both.
08:23-08:25
Truth and spirit.
08:26-08:32
He wants both." And in our day, it's obvious, right?
08:32-08:36
We see either unbalanced extreme, don't we?
08:38-08:42
There are many churches that are like the Jews, truth without spirit.
08:43-08:58
You can go to many churches where there is a liturgy where they will recite creeds with no emotion at all behind it.
08:59-09:04
This is true, this is true, this is true, this is true, this is true.
09:07-09:08
Truth without spirit.
09:09-09:14
And you can go to other churches and you can find spirit without truth, right?
09:14-09:18
You can find people doing all kinds of bizarre things in churches.
09:18-09:23
They're babbling and they're barking and they're falling over.
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and it's a lot of spirit, but there's no truth in their worship.
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See, last week, Pastor Rich gave the message all in on truth, right?
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And we learned you don't just worship God any old way you feel like it.
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It has to be according to his truth.
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Today, I'm gonna look at the other side of that.
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all in on truth, yes, but today, all in on spirit.
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And church, listen, we are equally dishonoring God when our hearts are not in worship.
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So write this down at the top of your outline.
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Emotion is expected.
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Just write that down.
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Emotion is expected.
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For example, Psalm 138 verse one, I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart.
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That's emotion.
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Psalm 45 verse one says, my heart overflows with a pleasing theme.
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That's where the emotion comes from, the heart.
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My heart is so full of the goodness and love and gratitude towards God.
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It's just overflowing that spirit.
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And how about probably the most famous verse in the Old Testament to the Jews?
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Deuteronomy 6, 5 says, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might." And do you know what that includes?
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Your emotions.
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That's why we worship in music.
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Music allows us to love God with our emotions.
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And there is no one better to learn from when it comes to worship than the man who wrote so many of the Psalms, King David.
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Last week, Pastor Rich talked about David wanting to bring the Ark to Jerusalem.
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Remember that?
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If you didn't listen to the sermon, you need to get on the website.
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Not now, later, but you need to catch up.
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David wanted to bring the Ark to Jerusalem and they made a previous attempt and they decided to do it.
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They were going to move the Ark like the pagans.
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It was supposed to be carried on poles.
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Hi.
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But they're like, no, we'll put it on a new cart.
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A new cart.
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What do I gotta do to get you in this new cart today?
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We're gonna take the ark in a new cart.
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I remember one of the oxen stumbled and Uzzah reached out his hand to steady the ark and God dropped him dead.
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All right, so David was like, Yeah, let's just part the ark here and back away.
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And it was left at the house of a man named Obed-Edom for three months.
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Now look at 2 Samuel 6, picking up in verse 12.
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And it was told King David, the Lord has blessed the household of Obed -Edom and all that belongs to him because of the ark of God.
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So David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the city of David with rejoicing.
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And when those who bore the ark of the Lord had gone six steps, he sacrificed an ox and a fattened animal.
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And David danced before the Lord with all his might.
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And David was wearing a linen ephod.
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So David and all the house of Israel brought up.
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The ark of the Lord was shouting and with the sound of the horn.
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As the ark of the Lord came into the city of David, Michal, the daughter of Saul, looked out of the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord.
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and she despised him in her heart.
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And they brought in the ark of the Lord and set it in its place inside the tent that David had pitched for it.
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And David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord.
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And when David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of hosts distributed among all the people, the whole multitude of Israel, both men and women, a cake of bread, a portion of meat, a cake of raisins to each one.
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Then all the people departed, each to his house." Do you see in these verses, David worshiping in spirit?
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Did you see that?
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Verse 14 says that David danced before the Lord with all his might.
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Tried to figure out what this actually might've looked like.
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And some Hebrew scholars say this dance could be translated as, I thought this was funny, a violent effort of leaping or springing round in half circles to music.
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Is there someone who would like to come and demonstrate what you think that might've looked like?
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Well, I don't have my dancing shoes on.
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I've so often wondered what that must have looked like.
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I mean, you could imagine it wasn't just some half effort, like, "Oh, we got the Ark up here, yay!" I mean, it was like, it was raw emotion coming out.
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I mean, have you ever been so overjoyed about something that you just can't hold it in?
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Has that ever happened to you?
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Of course it has.
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It's happened to everybody.
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I mean, think about it.
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Do you ever, like, you didn't study that hard, but you still got that good grade you get the test back.
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(mumbling)
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It just comes out.
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You know what I mean?
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Or you get the memo from work, like, "Hey, you're getting that promotion.
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"You're getting a raise," and you're like, "I got the raise, I got it, I got it, yeah!" Like, it just comes out.
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You just can't hold it in.
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You know what I'm talking about.
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Or you go to your kid's soccer game,
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(mumbling)
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their hockey game and they get their first goal.
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You're just like, whoa, you're like, you know what it is?
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It's involuntary, right?
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It's uninhibited and you didn't rehearse it.
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You weren't like, well, if my kid gets a goal today, this is the dance step I'm going to do.
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Like you didn't rehearse it.
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You can't contain it.
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When was the last time you felt that about the Lord?
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Right now somebody's like, "Oh, oh, oh, Pastor Jeff, this sounds like you're getting a little too charismatic for my taste." Really?
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In our culture, Specifically this church, we're pretty secure on the truth part.
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I mean, Harvest Bible Chapel, Bible is our middle name.
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Right?
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We get the truth part here.
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But church, we need the spirit part.
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I mean, a church like ours, we would acknowledge that making it all about emotion is a problem, right?
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You see videos online of churches that do that.
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We kind of laugh at them, right?
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Can we acknowledge an equal danger?
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A danger that we are far more guilty of.
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And that's just being emotionally detached in worship.
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Well, church, there should be times during worship when you think of God's love for you and your heart just overflows with joy.
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God loves me?
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There should be times when you think of Jesus' death on the cross and your eyes well up with tears.
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He went through that for my sin.
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There should be times when you think of God's awesomeness and you just bow your head in reverence.
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Say, "God is so awesome." Maybe there should be times that you dance, right?
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For that to happen, you have to be just as serious about allowing your heart to be in it as you are about making sure that the words that you sing are biblical.
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And by heart in it, I mean all in on Spirit.
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I mean, we saw in the passage, we read David was.
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David was all in on Spirit, right?
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He danced with all his might, verse 14.
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Verse 16 says he was leaping and dancing.
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And you're like, well, what made him do that?
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What made David act like that?
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Well, we get our answer in his exchange with his wife, Macau.
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I can't call her Michael, okay?
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It's Macau.
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Verse 16 says that his wife saw him dancing.
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You see that your Bible says she despised him in her heart.
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I don't think that was because David was a bad dancer.
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Right, I don't think like David was out there doing the Macarena and she's like, oh, oh, I hate him.
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He's doing the Macarena, oh, I hate him.
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I don't think that's it at all.
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Look at verse 20.
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David returned to bless his household.
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But Michal, the daughter of Saul, came out to meet David and said, "How the king of Israel honored himself today, uncovering himself today before the eyes of his female servants as one of the vulgar fellows shamelessly uncovers himself.
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Honey, I'm home.
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And she scolded him.
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You see that?
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She's like, what are you doing?
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You're the king of Israel and you're out there acting like an idiot.
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By the way, David wasn't dressed immodestly in case you're wondering if that was the issue.
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It's not, that's not the issue.
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The issue was David was dressed down like a priest, not dressed up like a king.
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This might make Macau the first person in the history of congregational worship to criticize someone for the way that they're dressed.
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But you know, Macau, she's in churches everywhere.
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I think Macau also attends Harvest Bible Chapel.
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You might be Macau, actually.
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I mean, while worship is happening, Macau is a spectator, not a participant.
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And she's looking down on those who are passionately worshipping.
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Is that you?
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Spectator, not a participant, but looking down on the people who are participating.
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Is that you? Then you're Macau.
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Is that you? Worship is happening and you're kind of standing there and you're like... Look at him over there raising his hands.
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Look at her. Look at her. They're crying while she's singing.
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grow up. Like, I can't believe how loud this guy is behind me. He's singing so loud.
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Oh, you're Macau, okay? That's who you are.
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You're like, well I'm not Macau. Okay, well maybe, maybe, maybe you're not Macau, but maybe you're somebody who instead reigns your worship in because you don't want Macau criticizing you. Maybe you're somebody's like, "Oh, I kind of am excited about Jesus and everything he is and everything he's done, but I don't want to like really show it because what's so-and-so gonna think? I mean what do people see me like with my hands raised? What are they gonna think about me? What if they see me expressing emotion? What are they gonna think about me? Who cares what Macau thinks. Well, David didn't and he tells her why. Giving us on your outline, once you write this down, three reasons I'm all in on spirit in worship.
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This was David's attitude in Harvest Bible Chapel. I am sincerely hoping and praying, this is our attitude as well.
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Three reasons I'm all in on spirit in worship.
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Number one, my worship is for the Lord.
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Look at verse 21.
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Okay, so Michal just scolds David like, "Oh, look at you, your highness, acting like a fool." Look at David's response.
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It says, "And David said to Michal, "It was before the Lord." Stop right there.
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Let's not run past that phrase because that's really it, right?
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David goes, "It was before the Lord." David says, "You didn't like my dancing." Oh, that's okay 'cause it wasn't for you.
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It was for the Lord.
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This is a no-brainer point, right?
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But I also think this is the point that most people forget when it comes time to corporate worship.
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When it comes time to worship the Lord of Music, I think this is the thing that most people forget.
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It is for the Lord.
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You see the words on the screen, the instruments, the worship leaders, my participation in a all of this. Who is this for anyways?
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You see, we're not just singing about God.
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We are here to sing to God.
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And if you struggle with that, you know something that I do?
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I imagine myself in the scene in Revelation chapters four and five.
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I want you to read this later, maybe make a steady diet of reading it, but it's describing the worship that's happening in heaven.
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And there are times during our music worship that I just try to imagine, because someday, someday I'm going to be there and I'm going to stand before the throne and I'm going to worship God in person.
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And I think, you know what?
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That's what this is now.
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I'm not in heaven yet, but I'm still in the presence of God.
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So I should be worshiping now the way I plan to worship then, there.
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Surrounded by God's people, surrounded by God's angels, telling God how awesome he is, thanking God, praising God.
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It's for, this is for the Lord, okay?
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So all in on spirit.
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It's for the Lord.
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So that's David's first rebuttal to his wife.
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He said, "My worship is for the Lord." Number two, write this down, "My worship is personal." Look again at verse 21.
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David says, "It was before the Lord who chose me above your father and above all his house to appoint me as Prince over Israel, the people of the Lord.
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And I will make myself, excuse me, I will make Mary before the Lord.
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My worship is personal, did you see that?
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David's like, Yeah, am I excited?
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Yeah, I'm excited.
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God promoted me, God appointed me, God has blessed me.
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David's like, I'm just celebrating what God has done for me.
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I have personal reasons to worship the Lord, Macau.
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And listen, you are never gonna get there in on spirit, you're never going to get there until you take your worship from general to personal. We have way more reasons to worship the Lord than even King David did.
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Do you realize that?
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Just by where we live in history. We live on the other side of the cross of Jesus Christ. We live on the other side of the empty tomb. We live on the other side of hearing all of these glorious promises that Jesus spoke. David had none of that that we have in the New Testament under the New Covenant. We have way more reason than David to worship. But church, you've You've got to get from general to personal.
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Your heart's never going to be in it until you do.
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What I mean is you need to go from, Jesus died on the cross.
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Yes, he did.
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That's true.
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He died on the cross, but you need to take that to, Jesus died on the cross for me.
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He suffered and died for me.
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General to personal, how about we sing, "Jesus forgives sins." That's true.
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That was what the whole ordeal on the cross was about, the forgiveness of sins.
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You need to move from "Jesus forgives sins" to "Jesus forgave my sin." "He forgave my sin." I'm such a dirtball and I don't deserve anything.
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He forgave my sin.
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We sing these songs about God's love.
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Jesus loves his people and that's a true statement.
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But you know what?
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You go from general to personal.
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If you are one of his people, then it goes not just Jesus loves people to Jesus.
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Jesus loves me.
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We sing about God's provision.
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God is a provider.
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God takes care of His people.
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Yes, that's true.
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Want to get your heart in it?
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You've got to make it personal.
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He's taken care of me.
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God has always taken care of me.
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You're gonna go from general to personal.
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And I'm sure right now there's people sitting here, there's people watching this stream that are like, yeah, I hear that.
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I hear that pastor Jeff, but I'm gonna be honest with you.
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I'm not feeling it right now because I'm going through some stuff, right?
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I hear you, I hear you.
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I know my heart should be in it.
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It's hard for my heart to be in it right now, Jeff, because I'm going through some stuff, all right?
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I'm in a season in my life right now where I've been suffering with, maybe it's a health issue or the health issue of someone close to you or a job issue or whatever it is.
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You're like, I'm just not feeling it.
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I'm going through some stuff, man.
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Listen, going through suffering is not an excuse to stop worshiping.
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Let me give you a couple of examples.
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2 Samuel 12 20 says, "Then David arose from the earth and washed and anointed himself and changed his clothes.
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And he went into the house of the Lord and," say it, "worshipped." Yeah.
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All right.
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Now let's jump to Job 1.20.
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It says, "Then Job arose and tore his robe "and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped." You know what those two passages have in common?
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You're like, "Oh, I know, they both worshiped." Yes, but they have something else in common.
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You know, in both of those passages, Both of these men worshiped after receiving the news that their child died.
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In both cases, these men heard about their child's death and responded by worshiping.
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Hear me, worship is emotion.
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Yes, yes, yes, yes, but it's not just one emotion.
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It's not just happiness.
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In other words, we think worship has to flow from happiness.
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It has to flow from joy.
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It should, but it shouldn't only.
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If you think worship can only come from a position of happiness, that is unbiblical and an immature view of worship.
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Because worship is the joy of the Lord that transcends whatever is happening to me right now.
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So listen, gosh, this could be a whole sermon series, but I gotta say this.
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For those of you maybe who are suffering right now, and it's hard to feel it right now, you're like, what do I do?
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What do I do?
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I come in here and I'm supposed to have my emotion and worship when I'm going through this stuff.
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How do I do that?
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Here's how.
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When you're suffering now, you need to lean on the past and the future.
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I mean, have you ever read the Psalms?
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There are so many Psalms that have this theme.
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I'm suffering now, but I'm praising now.
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Do you ever notice that?
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I'm suffering, but I'm praising.
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And if you study those Psalms, do you see why they're praising?
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It's always the same thing.
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I'm praising because of what you did for me in the past, Lord, and I'm praising you because of your promise of what you will do in the future.
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Look, your present circumstances are always going to change.
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But there are two things that will never change.
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One is God's past goodness to you.
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Even if you're having the worst day of your life right now, you can come in here and when the music hits, you can think of all that God has done for you to protect you and to provide you and to bring you to this place right now.
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Thank you, God, for that.
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I praise you for that.
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And God, you have promised a glorious future for those who believe in Jesus Christ.
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You have promised us that our best days are ahead of us.
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You have promised us all the glory of your presence in eternity in heaven.
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And God, I'm praising you for that.
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I'm praising you that things will not always be as they are now, but they will be infinitely greater in glory.
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So you see, whether it's past, future, either of those, let alone both of those, move me to be all in on spirit and worship.
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Make it personal.
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And finally, number three, my worship is a choice.
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Why am I all in on spirit and worship?
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Because my worship is a choice.
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Look at verse 22.
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David says, "I will make myself yet more contemptible than this, and I will be abased in your eyes.
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"But by the female servants of whom ye have spoken, by them I shall be held in honor." And Michal, the daughter of Saul, had no child to the day of her death.
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There's a phrase David used.
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Oh, I think I counted three times.
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He says it in verse 21.
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"I will make Mary before the Lord." Verse 22, "I will," make myself yet more contemptible, "Again, I will be a base in your eyes." You see that?
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David didn't say, "I might.
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I'm thinking about getting my worship on.
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Probably, likely." No, he says, "I will.
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I will." When it comes to worshiping God with everything that's in me and dancing like that, that's what I'm going to do.
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You're telling me, "Hey, why don't you turn it down?" I'm turning it up.
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The choice is made.
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Right?
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Psalm 146 verse 2, "I will praise the Lord as long as I live.
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I will sing praises to my God while I have my being." Sometimes, especially in the times of not feeling it, the declaration has to be made.
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"I will." When you walk in the doors, you should see this time, congregation coming together, you should see this time as a reset.
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That when you walk in here, my focus, my shift, my whole mindset is moving from the temporal to the eternal.
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I refuse to hold back, I refuse to phone it in.
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I choose to be all in on Spirit and worship.
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You know, when you talk about worship, a lot of times people say, like skeptics, scoffers, say, "Why does God need worship?" Have you ever heard somebody say that?
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Like, "Sounds like a bit of an ego trip, huh?" "God wants us to tell Him how great He is? What kind of a God is that?" "Why does God need our worship?" Have you ever heard somebody say that?
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First of all, God doesn't need anything.
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You realize He's not more God when we worship, and He's not less God when we hold our worship back.
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He doesn't need anything.
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But here's a fair question.
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Why does God delight in worship?
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Why does God delight in worship?
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I read one author put it this way and I can't stop thinking about it ever since I read it.
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Why does God delight in worship?
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It's like a child saying to his mother, you are the best mom ever.
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Mom's in the room.
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Why do you love hearing that from your kids?
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It's not an ego trip.
43:25-43:32
Excuse me, when your child says you're the best mom ever, you're not like, yeah, you know what?
43:34-43:35
Kinda am.
43:37-43:38
Moms don't say that.
43:39-43:40
So why do you like hearing it?
43:47-43:48
Here's why this moves mothers.
43:52-44:02
Because when that child says you are the best mom ever, that mother realizes you are acknowledging how much I love you.
44:07-44:11
That means the world to me, that you would acknowledge how much I love you.
44:11-44:13
And it's the same with God, church.
44:13-44:19
God delights in us acknowledging His love for us.
44:24-44:32
God delights in worship the way a mom delights, and you are the best mom ever.
44:34-44:37
As our worship team makes their way up front, I'm going to ask you to bow your heads for a moment.
44:43-44:48
You know, sometimes we do come in late and music is happening.
44:50-44:55
By the time we try to catch up, we've hit the last note.
44:57-44:58
We missed it.
45:01-45:03
We're not going to miss it today, church.
45:06-45:10
We're gonna pause our hearts right now and we're gonna prepare ourselves.
45:12-45:23
I want you right now, and I'm going to do the same, right now, we bow our heads and say, I am making the choice to worship.
45:27-45:28
Well, maybe I've had a rotten week.
45:31-45:32
God's always been so good to me.
45:33-45:35
He's given me glorious promises.
45:35-45:37
I'm making the choice right now.
45:37-45:42
When I, in just a minute, I'm gonna stand up and I am choosing to be all in on spirit.
45:46-45:51
With your heads bowed, can you say right now, you know what, I have personal reasons to worship.
45:53-46:02
I'm not here today to sing about what God has done for Pastor Jeff or what God has done for Bob Brown.
46:02-46:04
I'm not here to sing about that.
46:05-46:09
I'm here because God has been good to me personally.
46:13-46:26
And I'm going to stand and I'm going to sing and I'm going to give everything I have because this, I'm not singing for Ashley.
46:30-46:31
I'm not singing for Kelly.
46:33-46:34
I'm singing for God.
46:35-46:41
This is for Him, so I am all in on Spirit.
46:43-46:51
Now church, let's stand, and this is your opportunity to tell God what you think about Him.

Small Group Discussion
Read 2 Samuel 6:12-23

What was your big take-away from this passage / message?
On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your heart for worship (10 = on fire, 1 = dead)? What do you have to personally do to rate higher?
What personal reasons do you have, right now, for worshiping God?
How would you respond to someone saying, “I don’t see why God needs us to worship Him.”?

Breakout
Pray for one another to be ALL IN on SPIRIT during worship time.

Don't Excuse Sin

Introduction:

4 Things to Say To Yourself When You're Tempted: (1 Corinthians 6:12-20)

Deal with Disputes

Introduction:

In a church dispute? Remember your Relationship… (1 Corinthians 6:1-11)

Deal with Sinners

Introduction:

Get Purified: When There's Sin in the Church... (1 Corinthians 5:1-13)

What do we hope to accomplish by throwing him out?

We Worship in Song

Introduction:

Why Should I Sing on Sundays? (Colossians 3:16)

All In On Spirit

Introduction:

3 Reasons I'm “All In on Spirit” in Worship (2 Samuel 6:12-23)

Upcoming Small Group Questions CLICK HERE

How much of the Bible have we covered since 2011?

Introduction:

4 Things to Say To Yourself When You're Tempted: (1 Corinthians 6:12-20)

AUDIO TRANSCRIPT

Introduction:

In a church dispute? Remember your Relationship… (1 Corinthians 6:1-11)

AUDIO TRANSCRIPT

Introduction:

Get Purified: When There's Sin in the Church... (1 Corinthians 5:1-13)

What do we hope to accomplish by throwing him out?

AUDIO TRANSCRIPT

Introduction:

Why Should I Sing on Sundays? (Colossians 3:16)

AUDIO TRANSCRIPT

Introduction:

3 Reasons I'm “All In on Spirit” in Worship (2 Samuel 6:12-23)

Audio Transcript