January 19th, 2025

Estimated read time: 1:20

Summary

The January 19th, 2025, service at Central Church of Christ in Cleveland, TN, focused on themes of faith, self-denial, and embracing one's spiritual cross. The sermon discussed the historical and spiritual significance of the crucifixion, calling members to live a life centered around Christ. It was emphasized that to follow Jesus means embracing the symbolism of the cross—a call to self-denial, sacrifice, and dedication. The service also included prayer requests, scripture reading, music, and communal reflection during the Lord's Supper, emphasizing community, reflection, and the joy of giving.

Highlights

Worship begins with warm greetings and a commitment to community. 🌟
Sermon emphasizes the historical significance of the crucifixion. 📜
Members are encouraged to embrace their spiritual crosses daily. ✝️
Joyful songs reflect the community's shared faith and hope. 🎶
Prayers for healing and gratitude highlight the church's support. 🙏
The service concludes with reflections on sacrificial giving. 💸

Key Takeaways

The cross symbolizes self-denial and following Christ daily. ✝️
Embrace self-sacrifice and prioritize spiritual growth. 🙏
Spiritual life requires bearing one's cross with dedication. 🎯
Love for Jesus should surpass all Earthly attachments. 💖
Giving to God's work is a privilege, even in hardships. 🤲

Overview

The Central Church of Christ held a meaningful and reflective service emphasizing the importance of embracing one's spiritual cross in the journey of faith. The congregation was welcomed with warmth and joy, fostering a sense of community and belonging. Songs of worship set the tone for a morning filled with praise and devotion to the Lord.

The sermon delivered a powerful message on the significance of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Members were called to take up their crosses daily, embodying the principles of self-denial and prioritizing their spiritual journey over worldly desires. The theme centered on living a life deeply rooted in faith and being willing to make sacrifices for one's beliefs.

As the service proceeded, heartfelt prayers were offered for those in need, emphasizing the community's commitment to supporting one another. The act of giving was highlighted as a privilege, encouraging generosity even amidst personal challenges. The service ended with the Lord's Supper, a moment for reflection and gratitude for the sacrifice of Jesus.

Chapters

03:00 - 12:00: Welcome and Announcements The chapter titled 'Welcome and Announcements' appears incomplete or lacks sufficient content for a detailed summary.
12:00 - 18:00: Prayer Requests and Thank You Message The chapter opens with a discussion on the importance of prayer in daily life, particularly focusing on how prayer requests can strengthen community bonds and foster a supportive environment. It emphasizes the significance of being grateful and expressing thanks, thereby nurturing positive relationships and enhancing personal well-being.
18:00 - 21:00: Scripture Reading and Opening Prayer The chapter titled 'Scripture Reading and Opening Prayer' is a brief one, indicating a focus on religious or spiritual activities. However, the provided transcript does not contain any content ('e'), leaving the specifics of the chapter's content unclear. Typically, such sections would involve reading from religious texts and offering prayers to open a meeting, service, or gathering, setting a reverent tone.
21:00 - 40:00: Hymns and Worship Songs In the chapter 'Hymns and Worship Songs', the discussion likely revolves around examining various hymns and worship songs, their origins, meanings, and impact on worship settings. It may also touch on the work of specific composers or the evolution of hymns over time, as well as the role these songs play in enhancing spiritual experiences.
40:00 - 73:00: Sermon: The Meaning of the Cross The chapter titled 'Sermon: The Meaning of the Cross' explores the significance and implications of the cross in Christian theology. Although the transcript is incomplete, it likely delves into themes such as sacrifice, redemption, and the love of Christ. The sermon may aim to offer a deeper understanding of how the cross symbolizes not only the suffering and death of Jesus but also His victory and the salvation offered to believers.
73:00 - 77:00: Closing Hymn and Announcements The chapter "Closing Hymn and Announcements" seems to primarily consist of brief concluding remarks or ceremonial aspects, as indicated by the very short transcript that reads simply "good." This suggests the chapter may cover a brief portion of a service or meeting, wrapping up with final songs and any necessary announcements. Due to the limited information provided, further context is required for a more detailed summary.
77:00 - 95:00: Communion and Offering This chapter likely starts with a greeting, as indicated by 'morning good morning Central Church it's'. It might set a tone or introduce themes for a gathering or sermon within a religious or community setting. Further context or detail from the transcript is necessary to provide a complete summary.
95:00 - 103:00: Closing Hymn and Closing Prayer The chapter titled 'Closing Hymn and Closing Prayer' begins with a sense of gratitude and blessing experienced by the speaker. The setting or gathering appears to hold significant spiritual or community importance. Acknowledgment or reflection on the moments shared during an event likely precedes a hymn and prayer, emphasizing a communal and reflective closing to the gathering or service.

January 19th, 2025 Transcription

00:00 - 00:30 for e
00:30 - 01:00 e
01:00 - 01:30 e
01:30 - 02:00 for
02:00 - 02:30 e for
02:30 - 03:00 good
03:00 - 03:30 morning good morning Central Church it's
03:30 - 04:00 such a blessing to be here to walk into
04:00 - 04:30 this building and just the warmth that
04:30 - 05:00 we have not only a temperature but the
05:00 - 05:30 smiling faces and the love that you feel
05:30 - 06:00 it's truly a blessing to uh be a member here and I'm so grateful for that my family and I know many of you are too if you are visiting with us we welcome you and ask that you uh fill out a card on the Pew in front of you the back of it or you can scan the QR code and do it that way uh so that we'd love to have a record of your uh 10 here and if there's
06:00 - 06:30 anything that we can do for you if you'll ask somebody around you I'm sure they'll point you in the right direction and we'd be glad to help you out if we can uh if you've not had the opportunity to get a bulletin as you walk in the doors out on the foer uh please I highly suggest that you grab one of these take it home with you as it has not only dates of activities but also our sick list I'm not going to read it verbatim for you but several activities coming up for our close clothing Drive is March
06:30 - 07:00 the 30th our Classics are having to get together on February the 13th a baby shower coming up on February the 9th our youth group we've got a game night on January the 26th and also don't forget cyc in the middle of February get signed up for that as tickets are limited if we're looking at our prayer request uh we do have good news Cory bis had her surgery on Friday and everything went excellent so that is good news please
07:00 - 07:30 continue to pray for her recovery but that's a great start also adding to our prayer list many of you know Wayne and Debbie Miller uh their daughter Mandy married Jonathan and Jonathan had a ruptured appendix on Friday and he's still in the hospital today so uh we want to keep keep that family in our prayers at this time also Ted Goble Henrietta McConnell Jerry Snider Sherry schw wford Paula
07:30 - 08:00 saterfield Sher Cheryl O'Neal dores Daniels Christen Robins Sarah call and Kenneth Hal please keep all of these in your prayers uh take that home with you so you can have a record of it and we do extend our sympathy to mild Madison and her family on the passing of her na nephew Dennis Disney so please keep her and your family I do have one uh thank you card I want to read thank you very much for the cards meal and prayer for
08:00 - 08:30 my surgery and Recovery they meant a lot to me and my family I am doing very well to the ladies of Nuna pearls I really appreciate the handmade blanket I love it and from this is from Dylan diggers so this time I see no other announcements we turn it over to Brother Lane y'all can stand for scripture in
08:30 - 09:00 prayer today's scripture is Luke 9: 23-25 then he said to them all if anyone desires to come after me let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me for whoever desires to save his life will lose it but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it for what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world and is himself destroyed or lost please bow with me dear Lord thank thank you for bringing us here
09:00 - 09:30 today to worship and praise you uh throughout our lives let your wisdom flow through us and your love run our lives in Jesus name amen he took my burdens all away up to a brighter day he gave me a song a wonderful song a wonderful song I sing
09:30 - 10:00 [Music] sing wonderful to me
10:00 - 10:30 [Music] [Music] [Music] sing [Music]
10:30 - 11:00 Wonder am a wonderful
11:00 - 11:30 [Music] [Music] praise His name he is is
11:30 - 12:00 [Music] may be seated sweet is the [Music] s rede
12:00 - 12:30 I [Music] beene I'm redeemed Glory Glory Christ Christ [Music]
12:30 - 13:00 I I have beene [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music]
13:00 - 13:30 [Music] Glory Glory Christ is Christ is [Music] to redeemed precious
13:30 - 14:00 [Music] Glory [Applause] Glory I I [Music] been love love you Glory Glory Christ is christe
14:00 - 14:30 [Music] [Applause] [Music] we add
14:30 - 15:00 cross all right uh at this time we'll stand dismiss to Children's worship
15:00 - 15:30 there's a Happy Land promise over in the Beyond everybody will be happy over there [Music]
15:30 - 16:00 will be will be Happ over there we will shout and sing his praise everybody will be happy [Music] over and the Christians of all Nations will in the tri everybody will be happy over
16:00 - 16:30 there everybody will be Happ will be happy over there we will sh and sing his praise everybody will be happy over there will the one who saved us andt us by his and brought us that right
16:30 - 17:00 and we will praise His name for as upon his every will be happy over will be happy will be happy over there we will shout and sing his praise everybody will be happy over them [Music]
17:00 - 17:30 well again good morning got two responses very good good morning there look at there see you can do it good to see all of you here this morning thank you so much for being with us thank you for being back I know a lot of you were weren't able to be here last week because of all the snow and ice and
17:30 - 18:00 now we're fishing to go through a lot of some really cold temperatures so that'll be okay because we're in here we're comfortable and we're warm and so I hope you've got your copy of God's word uh ready and open and we're going to we're going to Dive Right In and again if you're visiting with us again we want to say welcome and thank you for choosing Central to worship with us this morning prior to the crucifixion of Jesus there were hundreds hundreds hundreds of years worth of crucifixions
18:00 - 18:30 that had already taken place but this crucifixion was was different right this this crucifixion would be unlike any other crucifixion that had ever taken place the whole process was was bad the whole process was was off there were so many false trials there were so many false accusations there were false testimonies of of Jesus being a
18:30 - 19:00 Blasphemous man Blasphemous words were spoken against the Son of God now what was like all other crucifixions was the events that some of the torture events that led up to the Cross so far as the scourging and the way that they would fog people and the way that they beat Jesus and the way that they tortured Jesus and I can only imagine as when this was
19:00 - 19:30 over and as they inched or as he inched through the streets of jerus Jerusalem typically they would just Carry the Cross Beam over their shoulders their arms would be attached to it and just imagine all of that being pressed that splintered rough wood being pressed against his lacerated open wounded back blood pouring out from him the the face of God that that Moses said I I can't even look at it because if I look at it I'll die I could no longer even be
19:30 - 20:00 recognized as a human face Isaiah 52:14 talks about that prophecy about how he would be unrecognizable so I imagine as he walked through and as he inched through the streets of Jerusalem that that the women the mothers were were hiding their child's faces because they didn't want to see the horror that had just taken place men would taunt him soldiers would probably reach out and Club
20:00 - 20:30 him and I see Angels absolutely shrieking in horror what they had done to the Messiah and every prophecy about his suffering was fulfilled through judgment through oppression he was taken away his sheep were scattered when the enemy struck him one of his own sold him and betrayed him with a kiss he found no rest but as they beat him spit on him mocked him through the night in the morning he gave his back to those who struck him his cheeks
20:30 - 21:00 to those who plucked his beard he stepped forward to Calvary truly as a lamb to the slaughter and as he was stretched out as he was laid down on that cross those Roman guards began to take spikes to take nails to the hands that would touch lepers to heal them he would touch people no one no one else would touch the hands that created the very world we enjoy every single day the
21:00 - 21:30 hands that created the lungs that you are breathing through right now they began to put a nail through his feet the feet that walk this Earth to tell others about the love that God has for every single person the feet that were wiped and and anointed by the tears of those who loved him I'm sure some of you have seen it but you know I've seen the movie The Passion of the Christ um it it almost it was the most and I
21:30 - 22:00 think it still is one of the most horrific tear filled scenes in in all the world to watch the scourging to watch the the metal dig into the skin and to rip the flesh to see Mary his mother watching him in agony I think there's no more tragic scene than that day and I think that and don't misunderstand me I I know that that what they tried to do was just to recreate something but ultimately they could never recreate the horror the pain the
22:00 - 22:30 suffering that that day brought to our Savior but I I think watching that helped me begin to understand the the love that God has for human beings the love that he has for me that despite the the shame despite the humiliation despite the the mockery the cursing that he willingly went through all of this he willingly went to the Cross to
22:30 - 23:00 bring hope to the world he went to bring hope to people like me and you he was the king that the world truly rejected and he was the Savior that they desperately needed there's a lot of horror there's a lot of bad things that surround the crucifixion that surround the cross but before Jesus would even bear his cross he would say to all if any one would come after me if anyone wants to
23:00 - 23:30 be my disciple if they want to follow after me if anyone wants to get to the father let him deny himself take up his what cross daily and follow me whoever would save his life will lose it but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it what does it profit a man if he gains the entire world if he has everything that he ever wanted what is it going to profit him and yet he loses his soul so Jesus asked those who wish to follow
23:30 - 24:00 him into eternity to be willing to pick up their own cross so at the center of discipleship to Jesus at the center of following Jesus there's just one symbol and it's a cross and it's interesting in Jewish history where the that the translations that found themselves through through the rabbis and their Hebrew Bibles it's it's interesting that they understood the concept of Messiah throughout the Old Testament they understood the the concept of a king throughout the Old
24:00 - 24:30 Testament yet through all the prophecies in the Old Testament of his coming what runw writer says you'll notice a tapestry woven by many different strands in other words what you're going to have is you're going to have a complexity of ideas that come together and they all merge with Jesus like it's all about Jesus the entire Old Testament it's all about Jesus how he would be a King how he would be a Shepherd how he would be a liberator a redeemer but it's like in all their translations or their translating and
24:30 - 25:00 all of this leading up to the Messiah they completely left out that one strand that showed that there's an element of suffering and there's an element of Shame when it comes to the Messiah we've read Isaiah 53 you've read Psalm 22 and yet they missed it they completely missed it they thought this doesn't apply to the Messiah this applies to to Israel and these men weren't crazy they were very smart men I think though it's that they knew
25:00 - 25:30 what it meant if it did apply to Jesus I think they knew that if it had to be applied to the Messiah if it talked about the Messiah and it says that he had to suffer he had to be rejected that he would even die that meant that hey his disciples are going to have to do that too his followers would have to do that and so hearing these words as a death sentence not just Upon Jesus but upon themselves that's the last thing in the world that they want to hear I don't want that to be my
25:30 - 26:00 fate I think this is why Peter tries to correct Jesus when Jesus starts talking about the reality of the cross and Jesus says no no no you get behind me Satan you don't know what you're talking about you're worried about you you're worried about the things of man you're not worried about what what I want what what God wants and it's interesting that same Satan that tempted Jesus in the wilderness it's like he shows up again in but this time he shows up in the
26:00 - 26:30 heart of Peter you see at the end of that Wilderness that says when the devil had finished tempting Jesus he left him until the next opportunity came so I wonder is this one of those opportunities where Satan shows up in the heart of Peter and Jesus says to Peter you're not setting your mind on the things of God but on the things of man when it comes to suffering when it comes to shame as a disciple what about us when it comes to
26:30 - 27:00 Jesus's call to follow him through self denial and even a cross where do our minds go do we try to do what we can to avoid suffering to avoid shame to avoid being sort of different than too many people where do our minds go you see for the first century world to to hear about a cross to think about a cross in fact it wasn't even polite to
27:00 - 27:30 talk about crucifixion it wasn't polite to talk about a cross so you really just didn't do it but I'm sure in your own mind right first century you you may have seen a crucifixion or maybe a friend of yours was crucified and maybe you were there at Jesus's crucifixion so when when you're thinking about cross there's just one thing that comes to mind and that's death it's death now I know it's a little bit different on this side of the Cross because you know we have the whole story we have the whole plan we we know where
27:30 - 28:00 it what happened and we know where it's going we know the ultimate end but yet I feel though as as a whole we've grown so distant from the cross so UNF you know so comfortably familiar with the image of the Cross and yet we sort of forget what the cross represented we have them in so many aspects of our lives right a lot of you probably have them on right now earrings or a necklace or a bracelet or or whatever you might have it tattooed on
28:00 - 28:30 you but I'm sure that in your home you've got a cross somewhere you have an image of a cross somewhere you see the Romans had turned the cross into an art form in its quest for world domination they wanted to take over the world and one of the best ways to put fear into people is to start crucifying people let's torture people let's show them what we can do and what we're capable of in fact one right writer says this
28:30 - 29:00 crucifixion was quintessentially a public Affair naked and affixed to a stake a cross or a tree the victim was subjected to Savage ridicule by frequent passerbys while the general populace was given a grim reminder of the fate of those who assert themselves against the authority of the state so you've got the East right and it was a again it's a shame honor culture and again the most
29:00 - 29:30 shameful way that you could die is naked on a cross in front of the world to see beaten bloody barely alive suffering screaming crying it was so shameful in fact you know it was IL legal to crucify a Roman citizen no matter what their crime was the Romans wouldn't do it to their own people that's how bad it was and it was so bad that all four gospel writers Matthew Mark Luke and John none of them go into detail about
29:30 - 30:00 the crucifixion because all they could bring themselves to write down were the words and they crucified him now again I know the cross can be taken and I think it's what the way we take it meaning of compassion a meaning of Love of grace and mercy because of what Jesus did for us on the cross and what he does for the world but I want us to go back and I want us to to see what Jesus meant when he said you know what if you're going to follow me you're going to have to daily every single day you're going to have to pick up a cross
30:00 - 30:30 what did he mean because again it wasn't it wasn't jewelry it wasn't a nice piece of art that's on our homes it wasn't on a a logo right on a Church website like ours is it was a symbol of death it was Jesus's way of saying to his followers if you really want to live you're going to have to die first during World War II a German preacher philosopher Dietrich Bon Hoffer a lot of you have seen maybe the movie that's been out about Bon Hofer or you've read some his books one of his most famous book the cost of
30:30 - 31:00 discipleship great book um and in that famous book there was probably the most memorized line concerning the sacrifice of the one who said deny yourself pick up your cross he says when Christ calls a man he bids him to come and die and Bon Hofer was a man who the Third Reich murdered because of his plot against Hitler he wanted to stop Hitler and so he warned of the church being captured by a Spirit uh another phrase he coined called cheap Grace of
31:00 - 31:30 discipleship it's a Christian Life that's filled with Comfort a Christian Life that's filled with ease a Christian Life that isn't uncomfortable at all and he warned the church about that he warned the church about cheap Grace James the brother of Jesus was the first one to be martyred beheaded in Jerusalem Matthew was killed by a sword in eth e Opia Mark was dragged through by horses
31:30 - 32:00 through the streets of Alexandria Luke was hung in Greece Thomas was speared to death in India Peter was we know was Legend has it was crucified upside down because he didn't fit see fit or see worthy to be crucified right side up the way Christ was John was dipped in boiling oil and left on a rock in the Mediterranean to die that's what it means to follow
32:00 - 32:30 Jesus and I would think if the need ever arises I would hope that we too would accept that same Fate In following Jesus but for most of us in a western context that's not a problem with us let's be real right it's it's not an issue with us so while it may not be a literal death that Jesus is calling us to I think maybe we could see it's a metaphorical death that Jesus has in mind so for some people yes it might be an actual death there are people around
32:30 - 33:00 the world right now dying for the cause of Christ they're being martyred for following Christ but for others it might be what Jesus alluded to when he said that this would be a daily thing to die so perhaps it's a because you you just can't die like a physical death every single day right so maybe what what Jesus is talking about is more the concept again of that self-denial that we talked about last week this is what the discipleship looks like this is what it's like to follow Jesus to the father this is what it
33:00 - 33:30 looks like to to have your mind set on the things of God Jesus says if you want to follow me that okay that's fine but before you do that I want you to walk right over there and I want you to pick out your cross pick you out one pick one that suits you pick one that you that you fit on well pick up your cross pick up your Cross Beam and and and let's go right follow me I know it's heavy but it's something you're going to have to carry every day and while you carry
33:30 - 34:00 it keep these four things in mind and I think there are four things that the cross signifies we're just going to run through really quick the cross represents and brings opposition right because it was reserved for the for the worst criminals people were who were opposed to Rome right it meant shame right you're you're you're nailed to a wooden beam naked for the world to see bloody suffering for ours he just that suffering right it the cross
34:00 - 34:30 in itself again Rome had designed it to bring the most excruciating pain and ultimately it means death there's not a there's not a torture crucifixion in release that's not what it was it was a torture crucifixion and then death now for us it still means that but I believe in getting to the heart of the matter Jesus says when he says take up your cross he means that you know what you've got to treasure me more than anyone else anything else you've got to treasure Jesus and his kingdom more than
34:30 - 35:00 you treasure your own comfort more than your own life and I think there's a lot of scriptures right that teach us about how we should Center our lives around God we should Center our lives around his kingdom in fact we started out this series talking about our life orbiting around God everything is about God one example of that is in Luke chapter 14 if anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters yet even his own life cannot be my disciple now Jesus isn't saying you
35:00 - 35:30 literally have to hate them but he says in comparison I want you to love me more than you love your own family because in the end your family can't save you your mom and your dad your grandparents and your children cannot save you only Jesus can save you and that's why he says I want you to love me more they didn't die for you but I did I died to set you free but in order for that to happen in order for us to be with willing to even pick up a cross we have to do one thing and again this is
35:30 - 36:00 what Jesus has been talking about and it's what we talked about anyone would come after me let him what deny himself so Jesus says you've got to deny yourself right there's two selves in us we talked about this last week so if you weren't here go back on Facebook or YouTube and and and watch the watch the sermon and listen to it because we talked about self-denial so Jesus reminds us that there are two selves the new self has to deny the old self so you
36:00 - 36:30 got of a a denying self and a denied self there's two selves the old self looks at the cross it notices the shame it notices the suffering it sees what Jesus says here the sacrifice and the death and it says you know what not me I'm sorry but not me it's like the kns Templar we talked about right they before every battle they would get baptized they would go down into this pool and they would hold up one thing that would not get baptized
36:30 - 37:00 and that was their hand with their sword it's like Lord you can have all of me but this part because I'm going to use this part to murder people to kill people to take life I'm going to use this for selfishness so you can't have that part of me see that's the old self and we ask the question you know what do we hold back what do we hold back from Jesus like you can have all of me but you can't have my wallet you can't have my career you can't have my family you
37:00 - 37:30 can't have my pride you can't have my self-image you can't have my social media accounts but you can have everything else and Jesus says it's all or nothing and so the new self says you know what I love Jesus more than anything I love him more than any relationship that I have I love him more than what this life can offer me because I understand that life is short that life is brief and then it's it it's over and then I know I'll see you face to
37:30 - 38:00 face and so I know that the life that Jesus offers that goes far beyond this life into eternity and so what Jesus offers is so much better and by faith I believe that the new self says because of my faith in Jesus I believe there is more to gain in following Jesus even if I suffer than there is walking away from him with a thousand Earthly benefits like there is nothing that this world can offer for me that is better than
38:00 - 38:30 Jesus it's self-denial again the cross is a all in or nothing kind of thing because if there's one thing that you do when picking up a cross you don't halfway pick up a cross right you either pick it up or you don't pick it up when you pick it up what you're saying is I'm crucifying the old me I'm daily crucifying my self-sufficiency my plan lands in my
38:30 - 39:00 desire and I know we sometimes we throw that phrase around well that's just my cross to bear you know you got to sit in traffic or you're always late to work or whatever it might be that's just my cross to bear that's just mean you become frustrated you have to deal with impatient people maybe your car breaks down difficult relationship that's just a misunderstood meaning of picking up your cross and if we aren't careful I think we can allegorize any unpleasantness that we go through life as a cross and we sort of
39:00 - 39:30 spiritualize it as our part of discipleship and I'm not suggesting that discipleship is is um is easy or it's unbearable but simply it's about orbiting my life around God it's a life where self is no longer the priority you see when Jesus picked up his cross he wasn't thinking about himself he was thinking of you and that man he was in total submission to the will of the father Jesus even asked for another way right
39:30 - 40:00 in the garden with the father he says let this cup pass from me I don't want he didn't want to go through the pain he didn't want to go through the Suffering The Agony but he knew it was the will of the father he knew it was the plan of God for him to go through all of that and so Jesus said I'll do it you see the Romans knew how to bring someone lower than they had ever been before and for anyone that was condemned to be
40:00 - 40:30 crucified they wanted them to feel so completely conquered so low on this Earth that the last act in their life is that you're going to carry your instrument of death to your place of death like we're putting you in charge of your own future here and so what it was is it was a show of complete and utter submission so therefore a cross a call to Bear one's cross as a part of
40:30 - 41:00 following Jesus is a call to be submitted to Christ as a Condemned criminal was to his death so when Jesus calls you to self-denial when Jesus calls you to pick up your cross what Jesus is calling you to do is to claim that he has authority over your life that's why disowning the self and giving allegiance to him is absolutely necessary when following him it means that at the very core of who we are that we understand that we know that our
41:00 - 41:30 Allegiance belongs to him our hearts belong to him that's why the greatest commandment is to love God with all of your heart with all of your soul with all of your mind with all of your strength and this means that every single day 2 Corinthians 13:5 every single day we we examine ourselves we test ourselves to see whether or not we're in the faith and that we remember that Christ Jesus our lord is living inside of us that we remember who we belong to and so every day we wake up
41:30 - 42:00 before we go to work before we say our prayers before we enjoy another day of retirement maybe that's what you do I don't know we another day of getting up taking kids to school that you pick up your cross and you remember and you remind yourself that my life belongs to Jesus we'll close with a quote from aw toer in every Christian's heart there is a cross and there is a
42:00 - 42:30 throne the Christian is on the throne till he puts himself on the cross if he refuses the cross then he remains on the throne perhaps this is at the bottom of the backsliding and worldliness among gospel Believers today we want to be saved but we insist that Christ do all the dying no cross for us no dethronement no dying we remain King within the little kingdom of man's soul
42:30 - 43:00 and wear our tensil crown with all the pride of a Caesar but we Doom ourselves to shadows and weakness and spiritual barness so which is it for you which is it for us are we on the throne or we on the cross my prayer is that you're daily denying yourself that you're picking up your cross your your instrument of submission to God what is it that you need to lay down though what is it that you need to die to what is it that you need to submit to
43:00 - 43:30 God in order to step forward into an abundant life with Christ and if we can help you in any way this morning if you just need some some encouragement in a public way if you need prayers in a public way if it's in a private way i' I'd love to one of our Shepherds or myself love to meet with you after services and talk and pray and study whatever you want to do but if it's in a public way you can make it known during this ssong we're going to stand and sing for our encouragement or or if you have a desire this morning to be baptized into Christ to have all your
43:30 - 44:00 sins washed away to begin that new life right dying to the old rising to walk a new life with Jesus where every day you you deny self every day you pick up a cross you'll stumble you'll stumble a lot on the way you'll forget to pick your cross up and you'll forget to deny yourself but there's Grace and there's forgiveness so if we can help you with that this morning once you come Us Together We Stand and as we sing [Music]
44:00 - 44:30 [Music] see rest from the [Music]
44:30 - 45:00 my will the [Music] end where is your heart [Music]
45:00 - 45:30 for my Jesus do you
45:30 - 46:00 know and will the end [Music]
46:00 - 46:30 understand [Music] my [Music]
46:30 - 47:00 [Applause] Jesus and will till the end
47:00 - 47:30 may be seated our song before the Lord's supper will be When I Survey the Wondrous Cross we'll do all four verses
47:30 - 48:00 [Music] my rich [Music]
48:00 - 48:30 for I the of Christ [Music]
48:30 - 49:00 all the [Music] [Music]
49:00 - 49:30 sorrow and love [Music] [Music] [Music]
49:30 - 50:00 of [Music] nature to [Music]
50:00 - 50:30 My Soul by my uh Now's the Time in U in our gathering
50:30 - 51:00 where we uh participate in the Lord's Supper um and so you'll need a communion packet if you don't have one please raise your hand and David will bring you one uh chapter 8 of The Gospel of John verse 31 to the Jews who had believed him Jesus said if you hold to my teaching you are really my disciples then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free and they answered him we are
51:00 - 51:30 Abraham's descendants and have never been slaves of anyone how can you say that we should be set free and Jesus replied very truly I tell you everyone who sins is a slave to sin now A Slave has no permanent place in the family but a son belongs to it forever so if the son sets you free you'll be free indeed as Ryan mentioned earlier the Messiah is our Liberator and the son has
51:30 - 52:00 set us free we're not for Jesus terrible death and sacrifice on the cross we would all be slaves to sin Jesus took our sins upon himself so that we could commune with God unblemished and free from our sin Jesus Christ defeated sin and death so that we can have life uh in a place where we sing about the home of the brave and the land of the
52:00 - 52:30 free it's important to realize that real Liberty and eternal Freedom comes from Jesus the son and we take the Lord supper every Sunday to remember that fact to commune with each other and to commune with God remind ourselves of the fact the freedom we get is from Jesus let's pray father we thank you for sending your
52:30 - 53:00 son thank you for sacrificing your son for us to free us from sin we thank you for the privilege of eating a piece of cracker to remember that and to commemorate that in Jesus name amen
53:00 - 53:30 let's pray now for the
53:30 - 54:00 cup Father in heaven we thank you for the blood that was shed on the cross and the blood that washes Us free of our
54:00 - 54:30 sin in Jesus name amen
54:30 - 55:00 so now is an appropriate time to uh talk about and pray for our our offering and the money that we give um there are boxes in the back you can give online um but I going to read a passage from 2 Corinthians
55:00 - 55:30 8 and now brothers and sisters we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches in the midst of a very severe trial their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty wed up in Rich generosity for I testify that they gave as much as they were able and even beyond their ability entirely on the on their own they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in the service in Ser in this service to the Lord's people
55:30 - 56:00 and they exceeded our expectations they gave themselves first of all to the Lord and then by the will of God also to us so here in in Corinthians Paul is bragging on the Macedonian churches to the Corinth church so the letters to the Corinthians he's bragging on the Macedonian churches and so we don't know exactly what was happening in the Macedonian churches but it was some type of hardship some type of persecution but whatever it was it
56:00 - 56:30 resulted in all or most of the church there being in Paul calls it extreme poverty however Paul is bragging on them because they gave money that was far beyond their means in fact Paul is saying here that the Macedonian churches begged for the privilege to give money as if as if Paul knew their hardship and didn't want to take it because they were in such difficult times and so a question to myself and all of us is
56:30 - 57:00 how many of us consider giving to God's work a privilege how many of us would plead for the opportunity to give out of our hardship let's pray Lord we love you we thank you for all of the physical things that you've blessed us with we know that all of those things are yours and that they come from you we ask you to help us
57:00 - 57:30 to give not only generous sleep it joyfully and we thank you for your son who died to set us free in Jesus name amen if you would please stand after this song We'll be dismissed in
57:30 - 58:00 prayer [Music] when my th me to
58:00 - 58:30 say it is well is with My [Music] Soul with my soul my is [Music]
58:30 - 59:00 my [Music] soul glor my but the is to the cross
59:00 - 59:30 [Applause] and praise the Lord praise the Lord my soul with My Soul
59:30 - 60:00 [Music] my my soul the when the shall be the roll as a
60:00 - 60:30 scroll the shall and the Lord [Music] shall my soul It Is
60:30 - 61:00 Well with My Soul my Is Well with My Soul
61:00 - 61:30 please bow with me dearly father thank you for this time of worship Lord um um please be with us um as we go without our week Lord um please allow us to take something from Ryan's Les lesson today Lord and please be with us until we come back to meet with you in Jesus name we pray amen e