The Sermon Jesus has come to save us from our sins by David McGee
Apr 10, 2011
Jesus has come to save us from our sins (31:25)
Referenced Scriptures: Joel 2:12-16; John 4; Romans 12
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The scriptures below are from the WEB Bible.
Joel 2:12-16
12) "Yet even now," says Yahweh, "turn to me with all your heart, And with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning."
13) Tear your heart, and not your garments, And turn to Yahweh, your God; For he is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and abundant in lovingkindness, And relents from sending calamity.
14) Who knows? He may turn and relent, And leave a blessing behind him, Even a meal offering and a drink offering to Yahweh, your God.
15) Blow the trumpet in Zion! Sanctify a fast. Call a solemn assembly.
16) Gather the people. Sanctify the assembly. Assemble the elders. Gather the children, and those who suck the breasts. Let the bridegroom go forth from his room, And the bride out of her chamber.
John 4
1) Therefore when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John
2) (although Jesus himself didn‘t baptize, but his disciples),
3) he left Judea, and departed again into Galilee.
4) He needed to pass through Samaria.
5) So he came to a city of Samaria, called Sychar, near the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son, Joseph.
6) Jacob‘s well was there. Jesus therefore, being tired from his journey, sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour.
7) A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, "Give me a drink."
8) For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.
9) The Samaritan woman therefore said to him, "How is it that you, being a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?" (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.)
10) Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give me a drink,‘ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water."
11) The woman said to him, "Sir, you have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. From where then have you that living water?
12) Are you greater than our father, Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank of it himself, as did his sons, and his cattle?"
13) Jesus answered her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again,
14) but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life."
15) The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water, so that I don‘t get thirsty, neither come all the way here to draw."
16) Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here."
17) The woman answered, "I have no husband." Jesus said to her, "You said well, ‘I have no husband,‘
18) for you have had five husbands; and he whom you now have is not your husband. This you have said truly."
19) The woman said to him, "Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet.
20) Our fathers worshipped in this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship."
21) Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe me, the hour comes, when neither in this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, will you worship the Father.
22) You worship that which you don‘t know. We worship that which we know; for salvation is from the Jews.
23) But the hour comes, and now is, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such to be his worshippers.
24) God is a Spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."
25) The woman said to him, "I know that Messiah comes," (he who is called Christ). "When he has come, he will declare to us all things."
26) Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am he."
27) At this, his disciples came. They marveled that he was speaking with a woman; yet no one said, "What are you looking for?" or, "Why do you speak with her?"
28) So the woman left her water pot, and went away into the city, and said to the people,
29) "Come, see a man who told me everything that I did. Can this be the Christ?"
30) They went out of the city, and were coming to him.
31) In the meanwhile, the disciples urged him, saying, "Rabbi, eat."
32) But he said to them, "I have food to eat that you don‘t know about."
33) The disciples therefore said one to another, "Has anyone brought him something to eat?"
34) Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work.
35) Don‘t you say, ‘There are yet four months until the harvest?‘ Behold, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and look at the fields, that they are white already to harvest.
36) He who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit to eternal life; that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together.
37) For in this the saying is true, ‘One sows, and another reaps.‘
38) I sent you to reap that for which you haven‘t labored. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor."
39) From that city many of the Samaritans believed in him because of the word of the woman, who testified, ‘He told me everything that I did."
40) So when the Samaritans came to him, they begged him to stay with them. He stayed there two days.
41) Many more believed because of his word.
42) They said to the woman, "Now we believe, not because of your speaking; for we have heard for ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world."
43) After the two days he went forth from there and went into Galilee.
44) For Jesus himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country.
45) So when he came into Galilee, the Galilaeans received him, having seen all the things that he did in Jerusalem at the feast, for they also went to the feast.
46) He came therefore again to Cana of Galilee, where he made the water into wine. There was a certain nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum.
47) When he heard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, he went to him, and begged him that he would come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death.
48) Jesus therefore said to him, "Unless you see signs and wonders, you will in no way believe."
49) The nobleman said to him, "Sir, come down before my child dies."
50) Jesus said to him, "Go your way. Your son lives." The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he went his way.
51) As he was now going down, his servants met him and reported, saying "your child lives!"
52) So he inquired of them the hour when he began to get better. They said therefore to him, "Yesterday at the seventh hour, the fever left him."
53) So the father knew that it was at that hour in which Jesus said to him, "Your son lives." He believed, as did his whole house.
54) This is again the second sign that Jesus did, having come out of Judea into Galilee.
Romans 12
1) Therefore I beg you, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service.
2) Don‘t be fashioned according to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
3) For I say, through the grace that was given me, to every man who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think reasonably, as God has apportioned to each person a measure of faith.
4) For even as we have many members in one body, and all the members don‘t have the same function,
5) so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.
6) Having gifts differing according to the grace that was given to us, if prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of our faith;
7) or service, let us give ourselves to service; or he who teaches, to his teaching;
8) or he who exhorts, to his exhorting: he who gives, let him do it with liberality; he who rules, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
9) Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor that which is evil. Cling to that which is good.
10) In love of the brothers be tenderly affectionate one to another; in honor preferring one another;
11) not lagging in diligence; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;
12) rejoicing in hope; enduring in oppression; continuing steadfastly in prayer;
13) contributing to the needs of the saints; given to hospitality.
14) Bless those who persecute you; bless, and don‘t curse.
15) Rejoice with those who rejoice. Weep with those who weep.
16) Be of the same mind one toward another. Don‘t set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Don‘t be wise in your own conceits.
17) Repay no one evil for evil. Respect what is honorable in the sight of all men.
18) If it is possible, as much as it is up to you, be at peace with all men.
19) Don‘t seek revenge yourselves, beloved, but give place to God‘s wrath. For it is written, "Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay, says the Lord."
20) Therefore "If your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him a drink. For in doing so, you will heap coals of fire on his head."
21) Don‘t be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
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Him who are turning a blind jolt chapter two jolts aptitude versus twelve through fifteen, sixteen, started with this last week never really got through it so. But it's it's dealing with our Arlington. The next week when I was on Sunday in court the following week. Your sister are dramatically. Hopefully will have Easter whether by then, but Joel chapter two verses twelve, beginning in verse twelve, but there also is. This is not too late. God 's personal message come back to me and really mean it, fasting and weeping and sorry for your sins, being a prophet Joel is talking and we use this and then the Scripture that is used a lot with the Lenten season, which is the time of coming back to God an idea of recognizing what God has gone through in the preparation for Good Friday. That seems like an oxymoron to say Good Friday, the day that Jesus is crucified and but the prophet Joel was talking about this and come back to me and really mean it, fasting and praying and sorry for your sins change your life, not just your close come back to God, your God, and here's why God is kind and he is merciful. He takes a deep breath and puts up with a lot that that two of this location. God is extravagant in love, always ready to cancel catastrophe furloughs. Maybe he'll do it now. Maybe hotel around and show pity. Maybe when all is said and done though the blessings: robots for your God blow the ram 's horn blows around for the trumpet in Zion, declare a day of repentance, a wholly fast get a call a public meeting, get everyone there I consecrate the congregation saw this this script as for the Linton season is an and sometimes know this this season prior to Easter have we caught the Lenten services, a Lenten season, and it is a time when Christians I have historically prepared their hearts and for that before the resurrection and it's a time in which we are to be in reflection and repentance and prayer. The time to look at what's coming because the movie. What was so moving the it's not as another instance, the passion, now that's how we've ever seen it out. We haven't an NOS, it depicts what happened. What do you know that the suffering of Jesus. You know the book of Isaiah the prophet Isaiah whites about Jesus and his and his being beaten in and what he goes through. Be prior to his crucifixion and we never really did injustice that was never really done justice until this movie because when Jesus died, the prophet Isaiah said that his back was as a plowed field that that the people who were that were beating him with their caddy nine thousand ad, as it were, and had pieces of Boulder or metal in them. And whenever they would wrap around they would yell last someone and wrap around with sticks in their flash and they would pull it out and had to be very precise in how they did this, or else they would be cut an artery or something. At approximately to death right there on the spot so they can want that they wanted him to be tortured and they wanted them to suffer so many kinds of the suffering of Christ and what we see and now Gibson 's movie about how that the body of G this is just the shrines. That's not close to what it would've been worse than that that is if there was not one piece of flesh left in place on his on his body and is in a foursome that was the beating that Jesus went through for our sins, so whenever we are approaching good Friday when we are approaching the crucifixion. This time of Lent is sign up preparation is that we are looking what Jesus did what he went through prior to yell at this this time. Now, and we look at that as our own life and how much God loves us and loves us that he would do this for our sins. He knew no sin became sin for us, so we were thinking of lands, and it began number of weeks ago on Ash Wednesday and proceeds in the forty days prior to Good Friday, with we said this last week with the exclusion of Sunday's. Sundays are not included in this because Sunday is a day of resurrection, the day of celebration. So in the early church thing they were Jewish believers and they always bring the synagogue on Saturdays, but then on the first day of the week. Jesus Rosen, the dead install the Christian Jews met on Sunday morning and that was the beginning of why move from Saturday to Sunday from why we have church on Sundays because Sunday is every Sunday we are in charge in as a celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. And we've been doing it since that first Easter Sunday. Many Christians choose to celebrate a fast through the season of Lent, but the focus I look at it is not in depriving ourselves as much as it is on devoting ourselves devoting ourselves to prayer, devoting ourselves to reading the devoting ourselves to the things in the of God. I passed out. Romans chapter twelve. Again, if you don't have you already haven't given someone who doesn't than one not happen again to pass that out. This is this is other giving it out every week now for for five weeks. This Romans chapter twelve and robust of the twelve what you have in front of you is below the message Bible translation of the Roman step twelve. And I made it into a bullet form noble principle of both the type so that would look at them and be able to look at it as a checklist that we would be making a checklist of the things I know what is it that God wants me to do how is it that he wants me to live my life. What is it that I should be doing you know that you will not. You must make a decision. You must make a choice before you will be able to manage that Schwartz, okay, this is like you cannot if you don't make a choice. You can't manage it sounds. For example, somebody is not that complex, but the idea is if you are and it determines your character carry characters built upon the decisions that we may make the choices that we make like I've chosen to follow Jesus Christ. That's a decision now the management of that decision is allowing God to help you follow the commandments of God the father will of God, and the purpose of God for your life. So we are choosing which is a character decision to follow God. Now what happens is that in this choice. We then are presented with opportunities and blessings and challenges we are presented that there are some things in our life that are challenged your faith. Not done, I gave a all my Slavonia have one in that they're not format there is no curse under your breath, and I see that whenever you read that one before. Now I don't think of it as sense of cursing as in using foul language. I think it in a context of I can't wait to get even within the damages is in your head. You know that you're just thinking, and when your last euro, lots which Hannah Gullett. Sometimes they go on a negative way and you start want to tell somebody off. These are really wanting to let them have it. And you do a really good conversation with them in your head and idea don't curse under your breath in out just as light a gal to pray for them and letting out any ideas as we look at this if you don't make that choice when the temptation, when the situation comes up, you can imagine when and when the temptation with a desire to really murmur, complain, and your breath under your breath comes up here. Very this be swept away with it, and generally somebody nailed what you want it, like I didn't say anything. What have they been doing cursing under her breath and I have a short temper why short tempered because you're always angry. There always upset that I must die on your thinking under your in your thinking about bad things you forget him letting out if you don't make that choice. What's to stop you from managing busy week. What is the character. How do we know what character as we know what character flaws are what people haven't made a decision to do one thing for the temptation comes down on the wrong things. Why, because we swept away with the emotion what you want to the Avenue went on Rosenberg writes on UNICEF during the hospital watch national as she has a load of potatoes that is what you want. Not sure she's what was now on this talk about this for a while there, there's hard and soft decisions are decisions are decisions are intellectual decisions did you know that we make decisions based upon emotion and then we rationalize them in our intellect. Okay hard decision is. Maybe some of you heard this from parental guidance. I brought you into this world like take you out. That's a hard decision at that. I saw decision is, while others of the guys changing money that that we offered you get a funky offering vision. I want these guys that if you are going to ask a young lady out for dinner would be a hard decision whether hard or soft decision a woman got a life of me, or whether this soft decision, which is a no. You know how you doing and was pleasantly with which the dignity bottom left asking the victory ended on an Alaskan opera dinners like McDonald's. But, but the idea is what's the fall, but there here is that in our following of Jesus Christ. There is a hard heart, which is a soft decision is that God loves us. John three sixteen for God so loved the world he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life that is at the heart decision. It's God 's heart reaching out to our heart that the death of Jesus Christ on the cross is a hard decision. He decide he loved us so much that he was willing to die for us even knew no sin became sin for us, so that he took upon himself the sins of the world and died upon the cross. That's a hard decision. Now the hard soft decision of the heart a hard decision a hard decision is in the in the book of Revelation, where where all, all the better passing before God in Jesus as the part for me. I never knew you. That's a hard decision that you can't change that is in our lives. We are making choices when making choices in music if you don't make a choice not to drink or drugs. There they are, whatever. If you don't make that choice when the peer pressure is there any price to be pushed by the emotion of the moment rather than by what you know to be true whether it's dealing whether it's, you know that ripping somebody offer whatever. If you don't make a choice. That's a character choice, the character choice is that what we've done made a decision to follow Jesus Christ. The follow Jesus Christ meantime, accepting his principles for my life. I'm not. I don't bear false witness don't lie. I don't steal. I don't cheat. I don't smoke and don't you and I don't date women who do are the as I have loaded onto and I don't date women who do not get off in West Virginia that doesn't work. But anyhow, John Kennedy but that out yet that is ad hoc. The analyses of this over the CD just edit the last where there was a little joke is not is not true at all. I went to school West Virginia America. Some of my best friends in West Virginia. The idea is that in our decisions. It's part of our character part of her character is it in a we make decisions based on a character in the characters that we are following Jesus Christ were wanting his character to be our follow Paul said follow me as I follow Christ. So we are making a decision to follow Jesus Christ's, and where making a decision in which his principles and his character are in his arms and then when it comes to living dolls. We are managing them in the managing of our decisions is that here we don't want to think were going to do it on our own. You can't live the Christian life without Christ. You can't be a Christian without Christ. Godly life without the presence of God in your life. Emily and the way that we receive the presence of God, and I like this by asking, and is not a head thing. It's a heart that it's a soft decision which I give my life to Jesus Christ and then the hard decision is. I will live by the both of God is given, and I will not allow the wind of the waves. The emotions of the moment to take me away from my relationship when I think of wind weight wind and waves. I think of that picture in Japan, where the tsunami comes in and the great wave comes in and all the houses and everything wash out the fee. What type of structure would be able to withstand that type of tsunami see how deep is our faith and how great are the waves. When Jesus is walking on the water, Pierce says he wants out of the boat. If it's really you, Jesus, let me come to you and he gets out of the boat Watson, the water and then he gets distracted by the wind and waves, and he sings it's very, good and bad difficulties of our life, we find a way to become distracted from our faith, and that distraction cause us to fall. And guess what no one is perfect. And because we fail doesn't mean God is given up on us. He reaches in picks us up, takes us back to the boat speaks of the storm and its call. We wonder my gun is what kind of God is this notice, the other story was thinking up for today is another step in the end John chapter four and is in John chapter four with the woman of Samaria. Now that the setting is. Jesus is talking with a fairness group and doing now is ministry and the Pharisees and Sadducees. There also because anything I want to go to Galilee, so he heads out to Galilee, and he got a girl through the short way through between this viewpoint is in some areas, and I'll the small area of land. This planted right in the middle there, and the Jewish people. The Jewish people. This Americans were individuals who were left behind. Whenever Babylonian Empire. I came in, they transplanted almost everyone out of Jerusalem and out of Israel except for a small group of leftovers of unimportant people, while those on important people intermarried with other other individuals around and they were no longer considered pure Jewish descent descendents, so they were known as Samaritans and those then who were pure Jewish descent who returned from Babylon. We settled the area would have nothing to do with these lesser people, so they were so against the Samaritans, but they wouldn't even step in their land, Jesus tells his disciples. I have to go to Samaria because he doesn't tell them this time& I've got to go there and in this in the in the story ending in this story were Jesus was traveling a console install the woman we often refer to it as the woman well here is a woman who comes at noon time to get water. Again, the customs of the time you never draw water in why is it a hundred degrees is a hundred hundred five degrees and you never come to the well latest news new goal there in the evening when it's cool and that's a social type is everybody there, but this one is coming at noon SS five husbands, and the husband she is with this in the last is living with his and her husband her life. The rack. Why does she come at noon, so she doesn't have to mean on the gabby people just want to put up with all of their their stop. She's an outcast from their on their group and she doesn't really mingle with so she comes in Noonan, who was waiting for her this day, Jesus and the value of one. Jesus goes out of his way and takes his disciples through this forbidden area, and he comes to the well and their diseases ways for the woman to come, and when she arrived. Jesus immediately drink of water in knowledge is like you and you want me, it's imperative that you would drink a water in that time. If you associated with sinners. You associated with them what they what was considered was their badness would rub off on you, but they run somebody shouldering their another goodness is the rub off on you, but in the end that day in that setting. It was that if you went through associated with errors that even they were. You were contaminated by them. Jesus goes there because the total repute and goes against many that type of thinking story goes that as well. And he's there and he 's talking to her about her life and he is reviewing in and in here. I'll read it to now he had to go through Samaria. So it came to the town of Samaria called sidecar near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph Jacobs well was there. And Jesus tired as he was in the journey, sat down by the well and it was about the sixth hour. About noon and when a Samaritan woman came to draw water. Jesus said to her will you give me a drink. The disciples had already gone into town to buy food. The Samaritan woman said you are a Jew anonymous American. How can you ask me for a drink. His Jews don't associate with Samaritans. Jesus answered her, if you knew the gift of God and who it is that without asking you for a drink you have asked him and he would give you living water. Sorry the woman said nothing to draw with the well is the working you get this living water. Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it and sell it. Also, his sons and his flocks and herds to how we understand spiritual truth. Jesus takes natural things that we understand and take them to another level of cases, you must be born again. Converted, born-again liner in nine hundred and Davis says, and I is a a a a was I going it will> my mother 's will. The second time and Jesus is no man be born of the water and the spirit, meaning that you got. It's a spiritual thing. So he uses a birth to accentuate you were born. Once physically you've got to be born again spiritually okay is dealing with this woman. Well, she doesn't know he's coming there. It is not jealous, let's rise of the people off from the dead drop numerical sonnet on nothing. Eventually now he talks to her about her reality that she has never found it. She's coming at noon to get water. Water is a very precious commodity. When we were in the Middle East. You know you are out in the desert area and we stopped at a Bedouin camp. Okay and the kids all can run around and only want money whenever they wanted touching sale of the molecular stuff is a never seen no, someone did not bus, and so this camp as we saw this on an impulse, and a camera in a all smelled like goats they'll smell like and I don't think they never had a bad bill. Use water to wash their dishes. The same as water is so aware you wouldn't dare wasted on Beijing or cleaning utensils. There's not enough of it to go around so you use water to survive. So here comes this woman to the well and there's no public water, except that as well and she have to come down both the people come twice a day, once in the morning. One evening, she discovers a new time and she doesn't want having to do with the rest of people. Jesus talked to her about water using something that she understands to take her someplace that she doesn't. And Jesus said I'm the living water in the water that I give you. You will never thirst again. She says I will give me a whole bunch of that water have tired how many are drawn water well and and and and Jesus says everyone who drinks of this water will be Thursday when Weber drinks of the water ligand will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become a spring of water welling up in the welling up to eternal life, and so here we are really saying ourselves in the we pray and. And when we do all this, what's it about. It's about this is this a spirit of God in our life. The ones that did that guy wants to be involved in our life, and he wants us to drink up his spirit of his of his life that no promises that he gives to us about eternal life and the promises he gives to us about forgiveness. The promises he gives to us about. I will never leave you nor forsake you. Those are the things that spring up inside of us. Those are the things that I can tell you about them, but only God can make the Realty new I can say about how we make decisions in the event that part of our character. When it is the spirit of God that gives them life and purpose and meaning. It is God who brings that life, July, and it's God who makes that realtor wassail that we can say I am a Christian and I'm living by the Christian principle because I believe in Jesus Christ and he helps me, and I'm not cursing under my breath of those people that I don't like another trumpet painted the people from behind the world at will and human circuit me this water so that I won't get thirsty after coming. Keep drawing water. Each article call your husband come back. I have no husband. She replied Jesus said to her. You're right when you say you have no husband. The fact is that you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have such just said is quite true, and then she says, sir, I can see that you are profit and are far fathers worshiped in this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is Jerusalem. Jesus declared. Believe me, woman, the time is coming when you will worship the father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem, there was this big conflict between the Samaritans and what they had established. Is there a place of worship that was worn down by invading armies and Jerusalem or the Temple was, but the point here is the woman said, I know that the Messiah called crisis coming, and when he comes, he will explain everything to us. And Jesus said, I who speak to you and he, she said. I believe in the Messiah I believe that there is a Messiah coming. And Jesus said on him when that happened. See what did Jesus. What did Jesus do with all of her same spontaneity. With all the things he done wrong, what did she do yell at all over the being an outcast to see what Jesus do about that she didn't care one bit. They went through all of that, we outdistanced spread apart walk right through to the woman's heart soft decision, his disciples returned surprised to find in talking with his woman and what did she do verse twenty eight, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town said to the people come see a man who told me everything about my life. That's what I look at frosts come see a man come see Jesus, one who understands us better than we know ourselves. He knew us while we were yet another mother 's womb. He knows the very thoughts of our minds and hearts. He knows all the failures and mistakes and we may. And he just goes walking right through that right to our heart and says there's something I have to give you it's forgiveness and eternal life. Its hope in the midst of darkness is light in the midst of darkness is hope whenever we find that there think that there is no hope. Jesus comes to our life to touch our hearts, the touch our lives and to make a difference. This woman went back to the village, she went back to the village of people that she didn't want to associate with. She went back to tell them come see a man come see a man who's made a difference in my life will be quite a statement. No, there is five and was he living with his around and now he comes in and he was yet a whole different understanding of this man, general whole different understanding of who Jesus was and when you come to do it come to liberate her set her free from our sins are failures for and give her new home. And that the Messiah, Jesus Christ had come there to map well to meet with this person who was about using there is nothing stands between us and God put me the only person who stands between me and God is me and Jesus comes to me from my life says we make a decision. We follow me. We will allow me to forgive you of your sins separate them from you, give you eternal life give you water to drink. That shall never thirst again as it was with this woman. That's what's in front of us always the character decisions are character decisions that we will make it to follow him, and that that that comes down to our doing that to heart decision rationalized by our intellect understood by our intellect that Jesus has come to save me from myself andHim who are turning a blind jolt chapter two jolts aptitude versus twelve through fifteen, sixteen, started with this last week never really got through it so. But it's it's dealing with our Arlington. The next week when I was on Sunday in court the following week. Your sister are dramatically. Hopefully will have Easter whether by then, but Joel chapter two verses twelve, beginning in verse twelve, but there also is. This is not too late. God 's personal message come back to me and really mean it, fasting and weeping and sorry for your sins, being a prophet Joel is talking and we use this and then the Scripture that is used a lot with the Lenten season, which is the time of coming back to God an idea of recognizing what God has gone through in the preparation for Good Friday. That seems like an oxymoron to say Good Friday, the day that Jesus is crucified and but the prophet Joel was talking about this and come back to me and really mean it, fasting and praying and sorry for your sins change your life, not just your close come back to God, your God, and here's why God is kind and he is merciful. He takes a deep breath and puts up with a lot that that two of this location. God is extravagant in love, always ready to cancel catastrophe furloughs. Maybe he'll do it now. Maybe hotel around and show pity. Maybe when all is said and done though the blessings: robots for your God blow the ram 's horn blows around for the trumpet in Zion, declare a day of repentance, a wholly fast get a call a public meeting, get everyone there I consecrate the congregation saw this this script as for the Linton season is an and sometimes know this this season prior to Easter have we caught the Lenten services, a Lenten season, and it is a time when Christians I have historically prepared their hearts and for that before the resurrection and it's a time in which we are to be in reflection and repentance and prayer. The time to look at what's coming because the movie. What was so moving the it's not as another instance, the passion, now that's how we've ever seen it out. We haven't an NOS, it depicts what happened. What do you know that the suffering of Jesus. You know the book of Isaiah the prophet Isaiah whites about Jesus and his and his being beaten in and what he goes through. Be prior to his crucifixion and we never really did injustice that was never really done justice until this movie because when Jesus died, the prophet Isaiah said that his back was as a plowed field that that the people who were that were beating him with their caddy nine thousand ad, as it were, and had pieces of Boulder or metal in them. And whenever they would wrap around they would yell last someone and wrap around with sticks in their flash and they would pull it out and had to be very precise in how they did this, or else they would be cut an artery or something. At approximately to death right there on the spot so they can want that they wanted him to be tortured and they wanted them to suffer so many kinds of the suffering of Christ and what we see and now Gibson 's movie about how that the body of G this is just the shrines. That's not close to what it would've been worse than that that is if there was not one piece of flesh left in place on his on his body and is in a foursome that was the beating that Jesus went through for our sins, so whenever we are approaching good Friday when we are approaching the crucifixion. This time of Lent is sign up preparation is that we are looking what Jesus did what he went through prior to yell at this this time. Now, and we look at that as our own life and how much God loves us and loves us that he would do this for our sins. He knew no sin became sin for us, so we were thinking of lands, and it began number of weeks ago on Ash Wednesday and proceeds in the forty days prior to Good Friday, with we said this last week with the exclusion of Sunday's. Sundays are not included in this because Sunday is a day of resurrection, the day of celebration. So in the early church thing they were Jewish believers and they always bring the synagogue on Saturdays, but then on the first day of the week. Jesus Rosen, the dead install the Christian Jews met on Sunday morning and that was the beginning of why move from Saturday to Sunday from why we have church on Sundays because Sunday is every Sunday we are in charge in as a celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. And we've been doing it since that first Easter Sunday. Many Christians choose to celebrate a fast through the season of Lent, but the focus I look at it is not in depriving ourselves as much as it is on devoting ourselves devoting ourselves to prayer, devoting ourselves to reading the devoting ourselves to the things in the of God. I passed out. Romans chapter twelve. Again, if you don't have you already haven't given someone who doesn't than one not happen again to pass that out. This is this is other giving it out every week now for for five weeks. This Romans chapter twelve and robust of the twelve what you have in front of you is below the message Bible translation of the Roman step twelve. And I made it into a bullet form noble principle of both the type so that would look at them and be able to look at it as a checklist that we would be making a checklist of the things I know what is it that God wants me to do how is it that he wants me to live my life. What is it that I should be doing you know that you will not. You must make a decision. You must make a choice before you will be able to manage that Schwartz, okay, this is like you cannot if you don't make a choice. You can't manage it sounds. For example, somebody is not that complex, but the idea is if you are and it determines your character carry characters built upon the decisions that we may make the choices that we make like I've chosen to follow Jesus Christ. That's a decision now the management of that decision is allowing God to help you follow the commandments of God the father will of God, and the purpose of God for your life. So we are choosing which is a character decision to follow God. Now what happens is that in this choice. We then are presented with opportunities and blessings and challenges we are presented that there are some things in our life that are challenged your faith. Not done, I gave a all my Slavonia have one in that they're not format there is no curse under your breath, and I see that whenever you read that one before. Now I don't think of it as sense of cursing as in using foul language. I think it in a context of I can't wait to get even within the damages is in your head. You know that you're just thinking, and when your last euro, lots which Hannah Gullett. Sometimes they go on a negative way and you start want to tell somebody off. These are really wanting to let them have it. And you do a really good conversation with them in your head and idea don't curse under your breath in out just as light a gal to pray for them and letting out any ideas as we look at this if you don't make that choice when the temptation, when the situation comes up, you can imagine when and when the temptation with a desire to really murmur, complain, and your breath under your breath comes up here. Very this be swept away with it, and generally somebody nailed what you want it, like I didn't say anything. What have they been doing cursing under her breath and I have a short temper why short tempered because you're always angry. There always upset that I must die on your thinking under your in your thinking about bad things you forget him letting out if you don't make that choice. What's to stop you from managing busy week. What is the character. How do we know what character as we know what character flaws are what people haven't made a decision to do one thing for the temptation comes down on the wrong things. Why, because we swept away with the emotion what you want to the Avenue went on Rosenberg writes on UNICEF during the hospital watch national as she has a load of potatoes that is what you want. Not sure she's what was now on this talk about this for a while there, there's hard and soft decisions are decisions are decisions are intellectual decisions did you know that we make decisions based upon emotion and then we rationalize them in our intellect. Okay hard decision is. Maybe some of you heard this from parental guidance. I brought you into this world like take you out. That's a hard decision at that. I saw decision is, while others of the guys changing money that that we offered you get a funky offering vision. I want these guys that if you are going to ask a young lady out for dinner would be a hard decision whether hard or soft decision a woman got a life of me, or whether this soft decision, which is a no. You know how you doing and was pleasantly with which the dignity bottom left asking the victory ended on an Alaskan opera dinners like McDonald's. But, but the idea is what's the fall, but there here is that in our following of Jesus Christ. There is a hard heart, which is a soft decision is that God loves us. John three sixteen for God so loved the world he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life that is at the heart decision. It's God 's heart reaching out to our heart that the death of Jesus Christ on the cross is a hard decision. He decide he loved us so much that he was willing to die for us even knew no sin became sin for us, so that he took upon himself the sins of the world and died upon the cross. That's a hard decision. Now the hard soft decision of the heart a hard decision a hard decision is in the in the book of Revelation, where where all, all the better passing before God in Jesus as the part for me. I never knew you. That's a hard decision that you can't change that is in our lives. We are making choices when making choices in music if you don't make a choice not to drink or drugs. There they are, whatever. If you don't make that choice when the peer pressure is there any price to be pushed by the emotion of the moment rather than by what you know to be true whether it's dealing whether it's, you know that ripping somebody offer whatever. If you don't make a choice. That's a character choice, the character choice is that what we've done made a decision to follow Jesus Christ. The follow Jesus Christ meantime, accepting his principles for my life. I'm not. I don't bear false witness don't lie. I don't steal. I don't cheat. I don't smoke and don't you and I don't date women who do are the as I have loaded onto and I don't date women who do not get off in West Virginia that doesn't work. But anyhow, John Kennedy but that out yet that is ad hoc. The analyses of this over the CD just edit the last where there was a little joke is not is not true at all. I went to school West Virginia America. Some of my best friends in West Virginia. The idea is that in our decisions. It's part of our character part of her character is it in a we make decisions based on a character in the characters that we are following Jesus Christ were wanting his character to be our follow Paul said follow me as I follow Christ. So we are making a decision to follow Jesus Christ's, and where making a decision in which his principles and his character are in his arms and then when it comes to living dolls. We are managing them in the managing of our decisions is that here we don't want to think were going to do it on our own. You can't live the Christian life without Christ. You can't be a Christian without Christ. Godly life without the presence of God in your life. Emily and the way that we receive the presence of God, and I like this by asking, and is not a head thing. It's a heart that it's a soft decision which I give my life to Jesus Christ and then the hard decision is. I will live by the both of God is given, and I will not allow the wind of the waves. The emotions of the moment to take me away from my relationship when I think of wind weight wind and waves. I think of that picture in Japan, where the tsunami comes in and the great wave comes in and all the houses and everything wash out the fee. What type of structure would be able to withstand that type of tsunami see how deep is our faith and how great are the waves. When Jesus is walking on the water, Pierce says he wants out of the boat. If it's really you, Jesus, let me come to you and he gets out of the boat Watson, the water and then he gets distracted by the wind and waves, and he sings it's very, good and bad difficulties of our life, we find a way to become distracted from our faith, and that distraction cause us to fall. And guess what no one is perfect. And because we fail doesn't mean God is given up on us. He reaches in picks us up, takes us back to the boat speaks of the storm and its call. We wonder my gun is what kind of God is this notice, the other story was thinking up for today is another step in the end John chapter four and is in John chapter four with the woman of Samaria. Now that the setting is. Jesus is talking with a fairness group and doing now is ministry and the Pharisees and Sadducees. There also because anything I want to go to Galilee, so he heads out to Galilee, and he got a girl through the short way through between this viewpoint is in some areas, and I'll the small area of land. This planted right in the middle there, and the Jewish people. The Jewish people. This Americans were individuals who were left behind. Whenever Babylonian Empire. I came in, they transplanted almost everyone out of Jerusalem and out of Israel except for a small group of leftovers of unimportant people, while those on important people intermarried with other other individuals around and they were no longer considered pure Jewish descent descendents, so they were known as Samaritans and those then who were pure Jewish descent who returned from Babylon. We settled the area would have nothing to do with these lesser people, so they were so against the Samaritans, but they wouldn't even step in their land, Jesus tells his disciples. I have to go to Samaria because he doesn't tell them this time& I've got to go there and in this in the in the story ending in this story were Jesus was traveling a console install the woman we often refer to it as the woman well here is a woman who comes at noon time to get water. Again, the customs of the time you never draw water in why is it a hundred degrees is a hundred hundred five degrees and you never come to the well latest news new goal there in the evening when it's cool and that's a social type is everybody there, but this one is coming at noon SS five husbands, and the husband she is with this in the last is living with his and her husband her life. The rack. Why does she come at noon, so she doesn't have to mean on the gabby people just want to put up with all of their their stop. She's an outcast from their on their group and she doesn't really mingle with so she comes in Noonan, who was waiting for her this day, Jesus and the value of one. Jesus goes out of his way and takes his disciples through this forbidden area, and he comes to the well and their diseases ways for the woman to come, and when she arrived. Jesus immediately drink of water in knowledge is like you and you want me, it's imperative that you would drink a water in that time. If you associated with sinners. You associated with them what they what was considered was their badness would rub off on you, but they run somebody shouldering their another goodness is the rub off on you, but in the end that day in that setting. It was that if you went through associated with errors that even they were. You were contaminated by them. Jesus goes there because the total repute and goes against many that type of thinking story goes that as well. And he's there and he 's talking to her about her life and he is reviewing in and in here. I'll read it to now he had to go through Samaria. So it came to the town of Samaria called sidecar near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph Jacobs well was there. And Jesus tired as he was in the journey, sat down by the well and it was about the sixth hour. About noon and when a Samaritan woman came to draw water. Jesus said to her will you give me a drink. The disciples had already gone into town to buy food. The Samaritan woman said you are a Jew anonymous American. How can you ask me for a drink. His Jews don't associate with Samaritans. Jesus answered her, if you knew the gift of God and who it is that without asking you for a drink you have asked him and he would give you living water. Sorry the woman said nothing to draw with the well is the working you get this living water. Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it and sell it. Also, his sons and his flocks and herds to how we understand spiritual truth. Jesus takes natural things that we understand and take them to another level of cases, you must be born again. Converted, born-again liner in nine hundred and Davis says, and I is a a a a was I going it will> my mother 's will. The second time and Jesus is no man be born of the water and the spirit, meaning that you got. It's a spiritual thing. So he uses a birth to accentuate you were born. Once physically you've got to be born again spiritually okay is dealing with this woman. Well, she doesn't know he's coming there. It is not jealous, let's rise of the people off from the dead drop numerical sonnet on nothing. Eventually now he talks to her about her reality that she has never found it. She's coming at noon to get water. Water is a very precious commodity. When we were in the Middle East. You know you are out in the desert area and we stopped at a Bedouin camp. Okay and the kids all can run around and only want money whenever they wanted touching sale of the molecular stuff is a never seen no, someone did not bus, and so this camp as we saw this on an impulse, and a camera in a all smelled like goats they'll smell like and I don't think they never had a bad bill. Use water to wash their dishes. The same as water is so aware you wouldn't dare wasted on Beijing or cleaning utensils. There's not enough of it to go around so you use water to survive. So here comes this woman to the well and there's no public water, except that as well and she have to come down both the people come twice a day, once in the morning. One evening, she discovers a new time and she doesn't want having to do with the rest of people. Jesus talked to her about water using something that she understands to take her someplace that she doesn't. And Jesus said I'm the living water in the water that I give you. You will never thirst again. She says I will give me a whole bunch of that water have tired how many are drawn water well and and and and Jesus says everyone who drinks of this water will be Thursday when Weber drinks of the water ligand will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become a spring of water welling up in the welling up to eternal life, and so here we are really saying ourselves in the we pray and. And when we do all this, what's it about. It's about this is this a spirit of God in our life. The ones that did that guy wants to be involved in our life, and he wants us to drink up his spirit of his of his life that no promises that he gives to us about eternal life and the promises he gives to us about forgiveness. The promises he gives to us about. I will never leave you nor forsake you. Those are the things that spring up inside of us. Those are the things that I can tell you about them, but only God can make the Realty new I can say about how we make decisions in the event that part of our character. When it is the spirit of God that gives them life and purpose and meaning. It is God who brings that life, July, and it's God who makes that realtor wassail that we can say I am a Christian and I'm living by the Christian principle because I believe in Jesus Christ and he helps me, and I'm not cursing under my breath of those people that I don't like another trumpet painted the people from behind the world at will and human circuit me this water so that I won't get thirsty after coming. Keep drawing water. Each article call your husband come back. I have no husband. She replied Jesus said to her. You're right when you say you have no husband. The fact is that you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have such just said is quite true, and then she says, sir, I can see that you are profit and are far fathers worshiped in this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is Jerusalem. Jesus declared. Believe me, woman, the time is coming when you will worship the father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem, there was this big conflict between the Samaritans and what they had established. Is there a place of worship that was worn down by invading armies and Jerusalem or the Temple was, but the point here is the woman said, I know that the Messiah called crisis coming, and when he comes, he will explain everything to us. And Jesus said, I who speak to you and he, she said. I believe in the Messiah I believe that there is a Messiah coming. And Jesus said on him when that happened. See what did Jesus. What did Jesus do with all of her same spontaneity. With all the things he done wrong, what did she do yell at all over the being an outcast to see what Jesus do about that she didn't care one bit. They went through all of that, we outdistanced spread apart walk right through to the woman's heart soft decision, his disciples returned surprised to find in talking with his woman and what did she do verse twenty eight, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town said to the people come see a man who told me everything about my life. That's what I look at frosts come see a man come see Jesus, one who understands us better than we know ourselves. He knew us while we were yet another mother 's womb. He knows the very thoughts of our minds and hearts. He knows all the failures and mistakes and we may. And he just goes walking right through that right to our heart and says there's something I have to give you it's forgiveness and eternal life. Its hope in the midst of darkness is light in the midst of darkness is hope whenever we find that there think that there is no hope. Jesus comes to our life to touch our hearts, the touch our lives and to make a difference. This woman went back to the village, she went back to the village of people that she didn't want to associate with. She went back to tell them come see a man come see a man who's made a difference in my life will be quite a statement. No, there is five and was he living with his around and now he comes in and he was yet a whole different understanding of this man, general whole different understanding of who Jesus was and when you come to do it come to liberate her set her free from our sins are failures for and give her new home. And that the Messiah, Jesus Christ had come there to map well to meet with this person who was about using there is nothing stands between us and God put me the only person who stands between me and God is me and Jesus comes to me from my life says we make a decision. We follow me. We will allow me to forgive you of your sins separate them from you, give you eternal life give you water to drink. That shall never thirst again as it was with this woman. That's what's in front of us always the character decisions are character decisions that we will make it to follow him, and that that that comes down to our doing that to heart decision rationalized by our intellect understood by our intellect that Jesus has come to save me from myself and