That was me that time that didn’t have my mic on Raleigh was on it this time good morning y’all good to see you guys here um man let me just say this from the beginning our 11:00 is somehow smaller than our 9:00 service and it has
Been for a few weeks so I’m just going to ask you guys to do me a big favor and just invite your friends and family to come be a part of an outward Focus mission-minded Church we’re going to keep talking about our vision and mission for God’s Church in 2024 uh
We’re in part three of our sermon series we’ve been in Jeremiah chapter 29 we’re going to be in this chapter um for one more week next week actually next week we’re going to be in Chapter 30 but we’re in this series for one more week and this week we’re talking about accept
What you don’t deserve uh so I was just talking to somebody before service about um job changes and that sort of thing and and how uh you know every once in a while you’re you’re called to take on a new position and if you go online if you go
To Tik Tok or Instagram there’s all kinds of hiring advice on how to negotiate your compensation you guys seen those reels um the advice goes something like um know your worth and don’t settle for the first offer right when they send you compensation you’re never supposed to take the first offer
And instead you’re supposed to know your worth and you’re supposed to uh negotiate a fair price based on what you deserve to be paid and I think that’s fine I think that’s good life advice for how to navigate the corporate world uh when we’re talking about salvation when
We’re talking about who you are and who God made you to be when we’re talking about salvation or or your purpose or what you’re called to the advice becomes just the opposite instead it’s don’t settle for what you deserve instead take what’s promised to you because what’s
Promised to you is more than what you deserve that’s what I want you to see we’re about to get into the weeds of one of those very WID lens sermons where we’re just talking about the Bible as a whole and a lot of different concepts
I’m going to try to kind of bridge some of this together for us this morning and so just let me say upfront the point of this message is don’t settle for what you’re worth take what God promises you except what you don’t deserve and so another way to say that is we’re just
Going to talk about letting Grace be Grace this morning so I want to introduce a new word that we don’t talk about a whole lot it’s all over the Bible um and that is the word Remnant so we’ve been in Jeremiah chapter 29 and the message of Jeremiah chapter 29 God’s
People have been disobedient um repeatedly disobedient they’re worshiping other gods they’re worshiping Idols they’re uh they’re committing adultery um that that God uses some very strong language towards his people about their own prostitution of themselves away from God they’re being unfaithful to God and turning towards other things
And so God tells them as you step outside of the provision of God you step outside of the the presence of God you step away from the promises and the blessings of God and so God tells him he goes here’s what’s going to happen you guys are going to suffer and the enemy
Of God the Babylonians are going to come in and they’re going to sack Jerusalem and they’re going to take you captive and you guys are going to be forced to live in Exile because of your Disobedience and so what we’ve been preaching out of Jeremiah chapter 29 is
How God CS people to live as Exiles in today’s world that we are as James put it James chapter 1 verse 1 and2 we are God’s elect Exiles that is we are his chosen Outsiders and So for anybody who is a Christian Living in an ungodly City
In an ungodly culture at an ungodly time in an ungodly world where we look around the world we go things are very messed up things are broken nothing seems to be going the way it should Jeremiah CH 29 is for you because this is God telling people how to flourish as Exiles if
You’re an outsider what are your marching orders for living as God’s Outsider in an ungodly place and so what we’ve seen is in chapter 29 he says to my Exiles what I want you to do is I want you to go to Babylon and you’re going to be you’re going to be drugged
To Babylon in the work camps and you’re going to be forced to do hard labor and all of this because the Babylonians are taking you as captives and slaves and while all the false prophets are preaching this message of false hope and they’re going don’t worry Revival’s
Coming don’t worry God’s going to bail us out God God’s going to remember his people what Jeremiah’s telling them is that’s going to happen just not yet and and so my instructions for you is build with what God has given you and so his instructions for his people we preached
This a couple weeks ago he says I want you to build I want you to plant I want you to grow and then I want you to look at Babylon I want you to serve your city because if you seek the prosperity of your city you too shall prosper and so
He says he says seek the welfare of your city pray for your city as long as you’re in Babylon seek the good of the people around you and let me worry about seeking the good in you and so we preached that and then last week we talked about uh how his Deliverance he
Talks about he’s like hey there’s a time where I’m going to gather my people actually I think we have this here can we jump into Jeremiah chapter 29 I know we’re doing it a little bit out of order uh first part of Jeremiah chapter 29
This is what the Lord says when 70 years are accomplished for Babylon I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place what we saw last week is this promise that God has in verse 11 for I know the plans I have
For you plans to prosper you and not to harm you plans to give you a hope and a future what we saw is this is a promise that they’re going to experience 70 years from now and so last week we preached about a multigenerational faith we talked about what it means to plant
And build and grow now to raise strong Christian families now so that when God is ready to make his move on his City there’s going to be strong healthy faithful people that are part of strong healthy faithful churches because we’re planting and we’re building and growing for a future generation because God has
Plans to prosper us through the hope and the future that is to come one day and so uh all of that is to lead us to the next part and this is where it gets messy this is where we’re going to talk about some stuff that nobody preaches
Because it’s a little bit tough to swallow but we’re going to see it in the text we’re going to be faithful to the text this morning in order to do that I want to just prove something to you in the text so I want you to see that God
Often does it this way very often in scripture God looks at his people and he goes all of you deserve wrath all of you are sinners all of you have earned hell forever you’ve earned my Justice rather than my love but because I’m faithful to the promise that I’ve made some of you
I’m going to carry out my promise through you and I’m going to big things in your life and so God tells Adam and Eve in fact when when he’s cursing the serpent after they’ve eaten of the the fruit uh and he looks at Eve and he says through your Offspring your Offspring is
Going to have his heel bruised but he will crush the head of the serpent and we kind of preach this around Christmas how that is a prophecy about Jesus and so he’s like one day I’m going to save all of this and it’s going to be through
Your Offspring and so when the world gets really ugly and really ungodly and really nasty God looks down at the world and he goes there’s none righteous in all the world and he said but I have favor on Noah and Noah doesn’t deserve it Noah is just the people that he choos
And so he gets Noah and his family and he uses a small group of people to f fill his promise that he made to the people before him you guys following me Genesis 12 is when Abraham goes to uh God goes to Abraham he says if you will
Leave your home and go to a land that I will show you I will be your God you shall be my people I will bless those who bless you I will curse those who curse you and all the generations of the earth will be blessed through your seed
Through your bloodline and and if you guys know this it’s the bloodline of Abraham this is why people Call Him Father Abraham the bloodline of Abraham that begot to Jesus Jesus is Of The Bloodline of Abraham it’s literally through the genealogy of Abraham that the world is blessed through the
Sacrifice of Jesus so what do you do when you have a really rebellious people that deserve wrath and deserve justice and yet you’ve made a promise to Abraham through your seed the world’s going to be blessed what God does repeatedly it’s he goes okay I’m going to give you what
You’re asking for I’m going to give you justice I’m going to give you what you deserve but I’m going to preserve some of you I’m going to take a remnant of people and they’re going to be my people and I’m going to hold them close to me
So that they remain faithful and here’s what we see jump in into what was supposed to be our our first verse if y’all can jump back I think it’s there we go Genesis 45 this is Joseph uh Joseph has been sold by his brothers into slavery and through God’s uh Divine
Will uh Joseph has rid to be this risen to be the second most powerful person next to Pharaoh himself self in Egypt his brother finds out who he is and his brothers are terrified they’re like oh no this guy’s going to murder us because we sold him into slavery and this is
Joseph this is part of Joseph’s response for two years now there’s been a famine in the land and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping but God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a Remnant on Earth and to save your
Lives by a great Deliverance he he sent me ahead to preserve a Remnant a small group of people that God’s going to exercise his will through despite the fact that all of them deserve justice he goes on so then it was not you who sent
Me here but God I want you guys to see that I want you guys to see so often what we think is our planning what we think is our positioning and our strategizing and our maneuvering is really just God going hey I’ve got this I’m in charge you didn’t do this I got
You here it was not you who sent me here his brother’s like hey where sorry we sold you in the slavery he’s like that wasn’t you that was God’s plan all along God’s Will has been on my life he has called me to a purpose that’s bigger
Than that it was not you who sent me here but God he made me father to Pharaoh Lord of his entire household and ruler of all of Egypt that was God’s doing that wasn’t your doing we see later on in scripture our next verse in Ezra chapter 9 so we’re in
Jeremiah chapter 29 God is prophesying through Jeremiah that he’s taking his people in the Babylonian captivity and then after 70 years have passed God is bringing his people back home to Jerusalem Ezra is the prophet who’s prophesying the second return from Babylon to uh to Israel and he says from
The days of our ancestors until now our guilt has been great we’re Sinners we’re messy we keep messing up we keep falling short of the standard that God has set for us our guilt has been great because of our sins we and our Kings and our priests have been subjected to the sword
And captivity we’re going to read some about that today to pillage and humiliation at the hand of foreign Kings as it is today but now for a brief moment the Lord Our God has been gracious in leaving us a Remnant and giving us a firm place in his Sanctuary
He’s he’s leaving a small group of people that he’s going to accomplish his will through and a firm place in the sanctuary and so our God gives light to our eyes and a little relief in our bondage we see later on the prophet Hagi nope Isaiah next let’s do Isaiah this
One’s small don’t know why um in that day the remnant of Israel the survivors of Jacob will no longer rely on him who struck them down but will truly rely on the Lord the Holy One of Israel when God does this he goes man the world’s getting messy and times are getting hard
And a lot of people aren’t going to make a lot of people are going to walk away from God and they’re going to lose faith and they’re going to turn to a life that they’re not called to that was not their purpose but it’s what they choose and
It’s what they want and God says but I’m going to take some of you I’m going to take a Remnant I’m going to take a small group of people and I will restore my people through the small Scrappy group of chosen Exiles that I have called mine
He says in that day the remnant of Israel the survivors of Jacob will no longer rely on him um and then he says in verse 21 a Remnant will return a remnant of Jacob will return to the Mighty God through your people be like though your people be like the Sand by
The Sea isra only a Remnant will return you see that there’s a lot of you you’re all disobedient you all deserve my justice but because I made a promise to Abraham and I’m a faithful God and I always keep my promises I’m going to make sure some of you make it out I’m
Going to make sure some of you remember me I’m going to hold some of you as faithful to me there will be a small Remnant that will return Destruction has been decreed overwhelming and righteous the Lord the Lord Almighty will carry out the destruction decreed upon the
Whole Land one more time in our next verse I told you I would tighten the sermon up my strategy is just to go faster right to get get my 50 minute sermon down to 40 minutes then zeruel son of this person uh and then Joshua who’s also the son of somebody the high
Priest and the whole remnant of the people obeyed the voice of the Lord their God and the message of the Prophet haggi because the Lord their God had sent them so this is again after Babylonian captivity they’re being brought home and they’re being called to rebuild the Temple in the house of God
So verse 13 then Hagi then Hagi the Lord’s messenger gave this message uh of the Lord to the people I Am with You declares the Lord so the Lord stirred up the spirit of zerubabel uh the governor of Judah at the time and the spirit of Joshua the
High priest and the spirit of the whole remnant of the people and they came and began to work on the house of the Lord Almighty their God this is what God is doing he’s going hey it’s going to be a lot of hard work it’s going to be really
Tough on you guys and most people are going to walk away most people don’t have the stomach for this kind of thing but I’m going to pick a Remnant I’m going to call a small group of people that still know what it means to do hard
Work for the glory of God and through them I’m going to make sure I am faithful to keep my promise that one day Jesus will be born and through his bloodline the bloodline of Abraham even though I should have wiped you out 12 times already I’m going to preserve some
Of you so that I can keep my promise uh it’s it’s with that context I want you to see that that God has always used a Remnant to get his people through hard times that we jump back into Jeremiah chapter 29 here’s what I want you to see
Jeremiah is telling them be okay in Babylon build plant grow I I’m I’m doing a thing here trust me with this and so he says um we read this verse earlier he says when 70 years are done I will come to you I will fulfill my good promise to
Bring you back to this place he says for I know the plans I have for you plans to prosper you not to harm you plans to give you hope plans to give you a future then you will call on me and you will come and pray to me and I will listen to
You you will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart I will be found by you declares the Lord and I will bring you back from captivity and I will gather you from all the nations and places where I banished you declares the
Lord and I will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into Exile and so uh I want you to see God is using a Remnant here he’s going most of these people’re they’re not going to come with you they’re not going to make
It but watch what I do with you he says in the next verse you may say the Lord has raised up prophets for us in Babylon but this is what the Lord says about the king who sits on the throne of d David and all the people who remain in
This city your fellow citizens who did not go with you into Exile so so let me set the scene we’re talking about two groups of people the people who listened to the prophet of God they heard God’s instructions and while they don’t want to be taken as captives while they don’t
Want their City to be sacked while they would rather fight and stick it out and go into hiding and try to make it work they they are taken against their will as slaves to be captive in Exile and then there’s all the ones who ignored
God they did not listen to the pleas of God they’re doubling down they’re staying where they are they’re not going where God is telling them to go and this is what he says he says concerning those who did not go with you into Exile this is what the
Lord Almighty says I will send the sword famine and plague against them and I will make them like figs that are so bad they cannot be eaten the Israelites in Jerusalem grew a whole lot of fig trees that was like one of their main fruit
Trees so this would be a weird to say today back then that makes a lot of sense um and so here’s what he says he goes okay so to you who are Exiles build plant grow seek the good of your city and so he’s like you can you can pick
Which Camp you want to be if you’re in Exile you build you plant you grow if you’re not coming if you’re not one of the Exiles if you’re not part of the remnant you get the sword you get famine and you get the plague you get the pick
You want swords famines and plagues or do you want to build strong families and and build houses and plant Gardens and love and pray for your city he says I will pursue them with the sword famine and plague and will make them abor to all the
Kingdoms of the earth a curse and an object of horror of scorn and reproach among all the nations when I drive them out I know we’re covering a lot of text bear with me it’s about to get really cool um and if you don’t understand what
He’s saying like what do you mean you’re going to make them a curse he kind of explains it in verse 22 we’re not going to get there but you can go back and read it it’s kind of cool he says for they have not listened to my words and
Here’s what I want you to see all of those who did not go with them into Exile he goes they’re going to get the sword they’re going to get famine they’re going to get plagues and and when they go why what did we ever do he
Goes he goes what do you mean you you’ve been playing the Harlot you’ve been an adulterer you’ve been running around on God you’ve been running around on your family you’ve been worshiping Idols you’ve been practicing all kinds of ungodly things and worst of all I warned
You about it again and again and again and you did not listen to my words and so you look at these people and you go well they deserve it they’re getting the justice that they asked for they’re getting the Wrath that they brought on themselves because as you step away from
The presence of God to go and do your own thing you find yourself stepping away from the provision of God and the promises of God he says this is happening to them because they did not listen to my words now here’s the part I want you to get this is the part that
Humbles every one of us who are here this morning or all of you that are watching online this happening to them for they have not listened to my words declares the Lord words that I sent to them back up back up words that I sent to them
Again and again and again by my servants the prophets and you Exiles have not listened either you guys catch that they’re getting the sword and famine and plagues because they did not listen to my words and by the way all of you who are coming
With us all of you who are called all of you who are the elect Exiles you didn’t listen either you’re just as guilty all of y’all were disobedient the reason you’re getting to go into Exile and you’re going to build and plant and grow isn’t because you
Earned it isn’t because you were better than them it’s not because you’re special you’re just the remnant you’re just the ones that God is using to accomplish his great and glorious will because a God who is all love but is also all Justice always at the same time
A God who is going I love you enough to be there for you but I’m also true to my word and I keep my promises he goes you deserve wrath you deserve justice but I’ve got a promise to Abraham to keep so I’m going to take some of you and you’re
Just as guilty none of y’all were listening to me none of y’all were obeying me they’re getting the sword because they didn’t listen to me you guys are going into Exile but don’t think you’re better you didn’t listen either and so you got two camps of people you got the people that God’s
Blessing and giving a life to and doing big things with and rebuilding the kingdom of God through these people and you’ve got the people that are disobediently receiving the Wrath that they brought on themselves and both of them are guilty of the same wrath he says you did not listen either declares
The Lord therefore hear the word of the Lord all you Exiles whom I have sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon you know the one thing that they got that the other people didn’t get is they got another chance that’s all it is you didn’t listen either so now hear my
Words all of you Exiles of Babylon now here’s what I want to do I want to jump over into the New Testament and I want to show you what that means for us today if you’re bringing this over the 2500-year bridge and you go what on Earth does this have to do with
Christians and Lafayette Louisiana I want to show you a passage in Romans chapter 11 there’s a little complicated we’re getting into some hard Theology and this is a piece of text that people don’t preach this is not pithy self-help uh lifestyle preaching that you hear a
Lot of this is just this is just being true to the word so you’re going to hear me say some language some words that make Christian is kind of uncomfortable because we start seeing God start stepping into our Free Will and and God having a will for our lives that we
Don’t necessarily have and I know that bothers a lot of people so I want you to see this Paul is writing to the church in Rome he’s he’s been talking about all of the Jews who have rejected the gospel and so he goes man they’re so legalistic
They they they’ve got the law but even in their attempts to follow the law they dishonor God and so God is building his church with the Gentiles rather than the Jews and so he says verse one of 11 I asked then did God reject his people the
Jewish people by no means he goes I’m an Israelite myself a descendant of Abraham from The Tribe of Benjamin he goes God did not reject his people whom he fornew I want to slow this down I want you to to to hear this who did God not
Reject because there’s a whole lot of people getting famine and swords and plagues back in Jeremiah chapter 29 so who did he not reject the ones he forne the the ones he he called there’s another word for forne we don’t like to use because people get weird about it
The word uh it’s it’s a King James word you see a lot it’s the word predestined the ones that God called just the the the the elect the the elect Exiles James chapter 1 verse 1 and two James says he’s writing to his elect Exiles his chosen Outsiders it’s the ones he forew
That he does not reject listen to this don’t you know what scripture says in the passage about Elijah he says how he appealed to God against Israel you find this in First Kings chapter 19 he says Lord they have killed your prophets and torn down your altars I’m the only one
Left and they’re trying to kill me too and and so Elijah is going there’s nobody faithful I’m the only one everybody else has rejected you and God says not everybody I’ve got a Remnant I got a small number of people he says he says now they’re trying to kill me and
God responds this way and what God what was God’s answer to him I’ve reserved for myself 7,000 who have not bowed to the knee of baale and then he says he’s bringing this across the bridge he’s going let me show you what that means for us he says so too at the present
Time there is a Remnant chosen by grace that God is still when life gets really hard and the world gets insane and everybody walks away from the church and everybody’s fleeing Christianity it seems like nobody’s faithful and nobody’s hearing the voice of God and and and people are are living these very
Selfish lives for themselves when when the world goes crazy what does God do he goes I’ve got a Remnant there’s still a small number of you I’m still Gathering my people to me to Those whom I’ve called to Those whom I forew he says so too at the present time there is a
Remnant chosen by Grace chosen by Grace you are chosen if you’re a Christian and if you’re not a Christian but you feel the Holy Spirit tugging on you there’s something deep in here that tells you you were made for more than the life that you’re living that you were made to
Ask the deeper questions you were made to long for the deeper Joy you are made to seek a peace that surpasses understanding you are made for the inexpressible joy that only comes from the Lord if you feel that in you the message to you is I’m still calling my
Remnant I’ve still got my chosen I’m still Gathering my people to me and I’m doing it through Grace can we back up let me let me just read that to you one more time my Remnant is chosen by grace in other words I didn’t pick you you’re not here this morning
Because you’re so faithful you’re here this morning because God’s faithful to keep his promises you’re you’re here this morning because God says this is what I’m doing for myself can I back up to verse four for a second I want you to see this he’s quoting this in the Old
Testament he says I’ve reserved for myself I’ve reserved for myself 7,000 who have not bowed to the need of Bale I reserve this for myself this is for me these are my people I’m gathering my people to accomplish my will to build my kingdom to plant my church this is for
Myself and we miss this all the time that God is working on you not just because he loves you but because he made a promise that the world would bow and worship him and he’s accomplishing that through his church that what God is after on this Earth is the glorification
Of his name I did this last service I want to see if it Works uh anybody here have Psalm 23 memorized for the Lord is my shepherd I shall not want what’s the next line he makes me to lie down in Green Pastures he leads me besides Paths of righteousness what’s the next
Line he restores my y’all missed the line we always do we always miss the line he says he leads me to Paths of righteousness his for his name’s sake for his name’s sake right it’s not just because God loves you and he wants what’s best for you and and he does the
Bible tells us that God wants to give good things to you the Bible tells us to all who are called according to his purpose ask and it shall be done God wants to bless you that is true but that’s not always his motivation God has a bigger motivation me leading you to
Quiet Waters me leading you on Paths of righteousness is for my name’s sake for the glorification of my name because the most common command in scripture is Praise Him praise sing praises to God shout for Joy to the lord it’s always been a calling that God’s
People exist to Magnify Him to bless him that that God himself he is all good and all righteous and that means he really is worthy of your worship he really is worthy of your affection when you make God your treasure and you stop trying to focus on you you realize that you were
Made to live for him that God is calling you to him not just for your good but also o for the magnification and glorification of his name and if you if you start filtering your Bible reading through that lens why is God doing this you’ll see that everywhere in scripture
You read the beginning of Ephesians and and you read how uh Paul is telling the purpose of the church he goes the manifold wisdom is made known through the Church of God and he’s talking about the the mystery that’s been revealed he’s explaining all these things he’s
Telling about what Jesus and after he finishes each statement he goes to the praise of his glory that’s the point to the praise of his glory it’s for him it’s for the magnification of his name that what God is doing says I’ve reserved for myself for me this is what
I’m doing this is my will I’m working in your life because I made a promise to Abraham that I would be your God and you will be my people it doesn’t matter how rebellious you are it doesn’t matter how much you try to walk away I’m going to
Call you back to me and so he says based on his will for himself in verse vers five so too at the present time there is a Remnant chosen by Grace chosen by grace that means God’s going for some of you I’m calling you to me I’m choosing you I’m
Picking you you are elect to to my elect to my to Those whom I fornew use whatever language you want to use to those who I’ve chosen if you’ve got a calling on your life that calling is by Grace you didn’t earn it you didn’t do
Anything to get it this is God in his goodness accomplishing his will this is not your goodness it’s not your power it’s not your strength you did nothing to Merit God calling you to himself you are chosen by grace and that’s such good news another verse in Jeremiah says uh
God speaking through Jeremiah he says he says I will teach them to fear me I will put the fear of me in their heart so that they will not turn away from following me and so this is what God is doing like when you wake up in the
Morning morning and you wake up believing in God full of Faith what God’s reminding you he’s going hey like you didn’t do that your your fickle heart your selfishness your desire to take the focus off of God and make it all about you you’re not a Christian
Because you’re good I’m going to teach you to fear me I’m going to put the fear of you of me in your heart so that you will not turn away from following me you’re a Christian because God’s faithful not because you’re faithful you’re a Christian because God is
Consistent and God keeps his promises not because you’re blameless and you’re holy and you’re good God says I’m going to take the mess that you are and I’m going to call you anyway and to all of us who go God me this calling you have on my life like all the time like
Sometimes I’m up here and I’m preaching and there’s this little part of me in the back of my mind that’s looking around going why me like why are they listening to me right now and some of y’all know my story and so y’all ask the same thing you’re like how on Earth is
Andrew and like God’s doing the same thing in your life like some of you like your parents reading the Bible to your kid you’re like who am I like I went from being a a partying frat guy to somebody who’s like teaching the gospel to my children like God why have you
Blessed me with this family why have you blessed me with this life why have you called me to be a part of something lifegiving when everyone else seems to be living a selfish life and God’s looking at you and goes it has very little to do with how awesome you are
And everything to do with the will that I have of accomplishing my goals through people like you he says you’re chosen not because of your Merit you’re chosen by Grace The Remnant is chosen by grace and then he says this and if by Grace then it cannot be based on Works those
Are opposed from one another it’s not it’s not a little bit of both it’s not well you got to be just good enough that God favors you and He blesses you with more than you actually deserve it’s like no you’re not good you don’t deserve it
It has nothing to do with you if that’s hard for you let me give you a homework assignment this is out of Romans 11 Romans chapter 9 is one of the toughest chapters to read sober minded because this is this is Paul looking at Jacob and Esau and he goes God just straight
Up says this one I love this one I hated not having anything to do with who they are or what they would do everything to do with the will of God God’s just going it’s that way because I decided you’re a part of the church you’re here this
Morning because God just decided when so many other people are numb to the moving of God they no longer feel the Holy Spirit they’re so self-obsessed they can’t even hear the voice of God moving in their life and they’re the kind of people that that have a hard time
Walking into a church building because they got too much stuff going on and yet somehow you who are no better than them you’re no more holy than them you are here and they’re not and it has everything to do with him going hey it’s not your works it’s not because you’re
Good it’s not because you decide to be better than other people and you’re going to be a Christian and they’re not going to be a Christian it’s not based on works if it were Grace would no longer be Grace uh John Piper preached a sermon back in 2003 called let Grace be
Grace I wanted so badly to call the sermon that but I’m like ah he already took the best title U let Grace and he preached it right out of the sex if if it’s based on works if you think that you being saved had anything to do with
You being so faithful and you deciding to take a big step and I’m really going to give my life to Jesus I’m going to surrender to to that and I’m just going to try really hard to be faithful I’m going to read the Bible so much I’m
Going to pray so much I’m going to do so like if you’re that kind of person what he’s telling you over and over again is you can try all you want to I’m not drawing you to me because of your efforts if it’s anything to do with your
Works it’s not Grace it’s Works based faith and the Israelites have been trying it the Jewish people have been trying it for thousands of years to earn their way into Heaven by following the law by being good enough by being holy enough and the moment it becomes about
You the moment it becomes about Works Grace is no longer Grace let Grace be grace surrender to God allow God to have his way with your life because what’s going going to happen is you’re going to discover that when God draws you to him you step into the life you were made to
Live and and there’s a part of you even if you’re not a Believer there’s a part of you that knows that this is true because you see the people that are on autopilot wasting their life and you wonder why they’re always complaining about being angry and depressed and it’s
Like they’re doing everything they can to have riches for themselves to build a life for themselves to have the relationships they want to to invest in themselves to prioritize their health to make a whole of money to have some nice things and some of them are succeeding
At it and they’re getting all the stuff they wanted and it’s never enough and they’re never content they’re never satisfied they always wake up with something missing in here and they go why am I so depressed why am I so unhappy why am I so uh discontent why am
I so unsatisfied with my life and the answer is because you were made for more you weren’t designed to focus on you and find fulfillment in that you were designed to serve something greater than yourself God’s calling you to a life of purpose and service in him and the
Moment you think even for a second it’s about you you’re no longer letting Grace be grace and here’s what happens to them as we move on in the text what then what the people of Israel sought so earnestly they did not obtain the Israelites who kept the law so well
They they knew all the law they knew all the Commandments they tried so hard to be worthy of the Gospel they s they tried so hard to earn their way and into heaven and he’s saying for all of their striving they did not obtain it the
Elect among them did the chosen the ones that God called the remnants the people that God’s like look I know you got a lot going on but I got you here anyway and I know you’re flawed I know you’re messy I know there’s some of you in here
Who go you know I’ve got so much guilt and I’ve got so much shame I’m unworthy to call myself a Christian I’m unworthy to admit that even though God writes in 1 John chapter 5 I write this so that you may know that you have eternal life
There’s some of us who go out I don’t know I’m too messy I’m such a sinner like how can I really know that if I were to die right now I’m good enough to go into heaven and he’s saying look if you’re trying to obtain it that way if
You’re trying to be good enough if you’re trying to be Guiltless Enough by being perfect enough in your life you never obtain it who gets it the ones I’ve called the Bible says nobody comes to the father except for those whom he draws to himself if you’re here this
Morning and you’re a Believer or if you’re here this morning you’re almost a believer because you know the holy spirit’s doing something and you can’t help it and you’re you’re here anyway despite yourself like whatever your situation if that’s you he’s got a word for you he says You’re My Chosen Exiles
You don’t deserve it what you deserve is sword and famine and plague but instead I’m calling you to do what they couldn’t do I’m calling you to build and serve and plant and grow and there’s going to be people who look at you and they go
Who do you think you are who who who do you think you are trying to to Steward the will of God as if you’re something special who do you think you are stepping away from that Old life and trying to be better and trying to rise above your station trying to act like
You’re you’re you’re worth something that you’re not and the answer is I’m no one but God called me I’ve I’ve got none of that figured out and yet here I am God just keeps putting me here and God keeps doing big things in my life the elect among them are the ones who
Obtained that Eternal reward but the others were hardened the others were hardened and here’s the problem he’s going to describe it twofold he he’s quoting the Old Testament he says it this way as it’s written God gave them a spirit of stuper eyes that could not see
And ears that could not hear to this very day so one of the problems there’s a lot of people with a spirit of stuper and we get this a little bit confused because stuper doesn’t mean stupid kind of does kind of doesn’t because the word stuper in the Greek That We’re
Translating to Latin is the Latin word that we get our English word stupid so so it’s it’s the same root word stup is something different I’ll describe it this way um I’ve got two dogs and one of them is this hound dog some of y’all know some
Of them know my dogs they know exactly where I’m going and and this hound dog I I take her backpacking with me she carries her own backpack all her food and water when we go camping and she’s smart as a whip she’s such a good dog
And she wants to please like she she will just look at you sometimes going if I could just understand English I promise I would do anything you would say and then I have this other dog he’s a Sharpie he’s big like he’s retun he’s the wrong kind of big you know like he’s
Just big for no reason other than he’s he likes to eat you know and this dog um he he’s not stupid he’s just he’s he’s in a stuper like like if you tell if you’re like if you’re like brro his name is buo um go for you you’re like BR get
Off the couch he’ll just he’ll look at you and he’ll just stare and sometimes it’s like 30 seconds of him just staring at you and then he’ll slowly get down it takes him a long time to like come back to reality and realize that there’s like people around him and there’s stuff
Going on he just lives in his own not so bright world all the time right the the spirit of stuper the spirit of stuper eyes that can’t see and ears that cannot hear looks like this it’s the people and you see them all the time they’re on autopilot and they’re just going through
Their life and they’re watching the game on the weekend they’re going to their job and they’re trying to raise their family and and they’re and they’re plenty busy they’ve got lots of stuff going on they’re stressed out about who knows what all kinds of things and and
They just keep going and keep going and keep going they never get around to actually waking up to what’s really going on in the world they never ask the big questions they they never ask who am I and why am I here and what am I made
For and what’s my purpose and what am I called for and and this soul in me this little piece in me deep down in here that tells me that I’m more than just flesh and Bone I’m more than just uh just neurological synapses firing my brain giving me some idea of
Consciousness that there’s something in here that’s me and it’s longing for more it’s longing to step into the life I was created for it’s longing to be at home with my Creator is Longing To Praise what I was designed to praise and there’s so many people that are so busy
And so numb and so absentminded just bumbling through their life that they never get around to waking up to who they really are they’re in a spirit of stuper and then there’s these other people he goes on he says and David says he’s quoting another piece from the Old Testament May their
Table become a snare and a trap so the table you can imagine a fully set table with all the food on it and everything like you know when you when you have a feast or you know when everything’s just put together and you you you’re well
Taken care of you’ve got clothes on your back you’ve got food on the table like you’re comfortable right and when you get really comfortable it’s easy to forget about what really matters it’s easy to get kind of kind of complacent right and so he says the table becomes
The Trap the the table becomes the thing that ens snares them where they never get around to discovering who they are because things are just good enough that they’re not striving for how it should be and all of us have this sense in the world all of us look around at the world
And we there’s something broken and if God is not real if God wasn’t there there’s no reason for any of us to think that there’s no reason for any of us to have a concept that it should be better than this but if God’s real and if if
Love really is the standard if his goodness really is the the the pure creation that we’re made to live in then that longing in your heart means something it means all of us are living in a broken world and we’re longing for something more but there’s so many
People that are just content enough that the table becomes the Trap it’s a stumbling block and a retribution for them he says may their eyes be darkened in the next verse so that they cannot see and their backs be bent forever you know those people that want to go to church but
They never get around to it because they’re working you know and look like I I know lots of God-fearing people that you know they they provide for their family they work hard and and they do all but you know the people right that that their career is just important
Enough to them they never have to move on to asking the bigger questions in life and so he says these people their back is forever bent they’re just complacent enough that they’ll keep accepting what they think they’re worth that they keep demanding that God give them what they’ve earned with all of
Their hard work and all of the things that they’ve accomplished and they never get around to accepting what they don’t deserve and that’s that’s the the context that he says man I’ve got a remnant of people I’ve got some of you that God’s just waking up it’s not
Because you’re better than them it’s not because you’re smarter than them or you’re more powerful or you’re you’re more moral than them it’s not because you were introduced to the Bible and they weren’t like like God’s creation is evident his his fingerprints on this Earth are everywhere we we can see the
Evidence that we were built for more but some of us get it because God’s going hey you you’re mine I’m calling you to me you are my chosen holy Remnant and while you don’t deserve it and you could never earn it if you will let me
Together you and I we’re going to build and we’re going to plant and we’re going to grow and you’re going to accomplish way more than you ever could outside of the life that I have called you to God is always used a Remnant chosen not based on our Merit not based on our
Skill set not based because like oh man if I make Andrew a preacher he’s going to he’s going to preach fire sermons he’s going no he’s like watch what happens when I take this messed up kid and I just raise him up to be a gospel preacher and people are going to people
Are going to look at your life who do you think you are I remember back when you used to do stupid stuff like me and you’re just going to be like I don’t know man but I’m here and it’s good and God keeps doing big things in my life
And I don’t have an answer because I don’t think I’ve earned it and I don’t think I deserve it but God just keeps saying no you’re getting it based on my grace so Gra accepting God’s grace being chosen not based on our Merit but being chosen by
His grace that means we don’t have to take what we deserve we don’t have to accept we we don’t have to reap what we sow that what God promises he says man you can have something better you can accept what you don’t deserve you can have the life that you could not earn
With hundreds of years of striving you can step into the purpose that you were designed for if you’ll come to me if you’ll surrender to my calling if you’ll admit that you’re chosen not based on who you think you are you’re chosen not based on what you can achieve you’re
Chosen by my grace oh the things we will do together for the remnant for for some of us for the people that choose it there’s going to be a lot of people that don’t you a lot of people that are just content enough just busy enough that
They’re going to stay hardened I want to finish out Jeremiah chapter 29 because I want to be faithful to preaching the full chapter before we move on next week and we’ll tie it all together he’s been calling out these false prophets and in 24 he picks up and he calls out shemiah
He says tell shemiah the Nite this is what the Lord Almighty the god of Israel says you sent letters he’s about to get real he’s about to get into the drama he is spilling the tea on this dude and so he says um all the teenagers
Just cringed when I said that that’s all right um the ones watching online I don’t see any in here um sure he says uh you sent letters in your own name to all the people in Jerusalem to the priests Zephaniah and all and to the other priests and you said to Zephaniah the
Lord’s appointed you priests and in charge of the house of the Lord and therefore you should put any Maniac who acts like a prophet into the stalks and neck irons and so so shemiah is telling uh the high priest he’s going your job is to arrest the false teachers and so
There’s this guy Jeremiah and we know who’s writing this cuz we’re reading from the book of Jeremiah right um so he says there’s this guy Jeremiah in the next verse he says why have you not reprimanded Jeremiah who poses as a prophet among you he has sent this
Message to us in Babylon it will be a long time therefore build houses and settle down and plant Gardens and eat what they produce and this guy’s like this dude’s a false prophet that can’t be God’s message God’s message is don’t worry about it you guys are great you’re
My chosen people I’m going to bail you out don’t worry about it Revival’s coming keep praying for Revival to come because God’s going to bail all of us out and Jeremiah is over here saying Revival is not coming for a couple more generations and that we should build and
Plant and grow with what God has given us and so what this high priest does Zephaniah just goes to Jeremiah and goes hey this person’s writing letters about you um he goes and reads the letter to Jeremiah the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah and Jeremiah responds
This way send this message to all the Exiles this is what the Lord said says about shemiah because shemiah has prophesied to you even though I did not send him and has persuaded you to trust in lies this is what the Lord says I will surely punish zayah the Nite and
His descendants and he will have no one left among this people nor will he see the good things I will do for my people declares the Lord look at the consequence I’ve got a group of Exiles we’re going to build we’re going to plant we’re going to grow all those that
I’ve called by my grace despite nothing they’ve done a remnant of my people and they’re going to do big things in restoring the kingdom of God to what it was always supposed to be and you’re invited but you don’t have to go but here’s the consequence if you don’t
Go here’s the consequence if you decide you know what I’m just content enough my church is just fine how it is to all of those who just opt out of going where God calls them to go to all the people who God’s going I’m inviting you into
The life you were made for build grow Prosper race strong Christian families watch what I do with my holy Remnant that I’ve chosen by grace and to all the people whose hearts are hardened who go I’m just content enough I don’t want to go with you God goes that’s fine you
Don’t have to go you’re just not going to see the good things I will do for my people that’s the consequence I’m going to do it I’m going to accomplish my will God is always faithful God always keeps his promises if God says he’s going to prosper them he’s going to prosper them
If God says he’s going to build his kingdom through those people he’s going to do it the only difference is you’re not going to be a part of it when when God moves if you choose not to move when God starts building and planting and growing When God says I want you to
Build and serve and work really hard in raising up families so that I can bless the the church Generations from now and you guys are going to have to put in the hard work you guys are going to have to suck it up and do hard things for the
Kingdom of God there’s a lot of people who go yeah I don’t want to do that I don’t know what Christianity looks like when it’s not all about me I don’t know how to live that way when it’s not my Comforts and my complaints and my arguments and my conveniences when
Church stops being focused on me and I’ve got to build a multigenerational church that blesses Generations from now no thank you I’ll go to the big church that makes me comfortable I’ll opt out of that and what God says to his people he goes that’s fine you don’t have to go
You’re just going to miss it you’re not going to be a part of what I’m doing you will not see the good things I will do for my people declares the Lord my message for you this morning guys I’m so eager to see what God’s
Going to do in our lives I I’m so eager to see what God means when he goes man if you’ll just wait out the tough times I know the world’s crazy you Exiles you people that are called to serve God in a time where it seems like nobody wants to
Serve God to all of my chosen Exiles that I’ve called to me on the basis of my grace if you’ll build watch what I’ll do I want to see it I don’t want to be this group of people I don’t want to I don’t want to be the person that misses
Out on the good things that God does with his people I want to see what happens when you guys build strong churches I want to see what happens when you guys serve your city with everything you have just pour love into the city I want to see what happens if we just take
The church out of the four walls and we just decide we’re going to build we’re going to plant we’re going to grow we’re going to seek the prosperity of our city because when they Prosper we Prosper I want to see what happens when churches decide to follow the will of God and
Start serving the people around them again I want to see what happens to you I want to see what happens to your family when you decide my family is going to increase and not decrease we’re going to raise strong Christian families we’re going to raise generations of multigenerational faithful people that
Are going to build and plant and grow I so badly want to see what happens and I’m so scared that so many people are choosing to not see the good things that God is willing to do for his people I want the good things for you but here’s
The thing you got to accept the grace you you got to allow God to call you to him you’ve got to surrender to your old self and you’ve got to go you know what we’re going to let Grace be grace and I’m going to trust God that his calling
On my life is bigger than what I think it is I’m going to trust God that my purpose is rooted and founded in him I’m I’m going to trust God that when I serve him that he’s always been calling me back to himself and he’s always had a
Life for me and that means I’ve got to let some stuff go and in order to accept the grace of God he calls you he goes man you got to give up that life you got to accept me and you got to come with me unless you get left behind for
Christians it starts in the waters of baptism we die to our old self and that symbolic death burial and Resurrection we are raised up in newness of life and then we just serve him and we find when we serve him the inexpressible joy of the Lord we find when we serve him the
Peace that surpasses understanding and and so if you are here this morning and you’re not a Christian or maybe you call yourself a Christian but you’re not really going where God goes you’re not really called to his mission that you’ve become numb to the things around you
You’ve been in a spirit of super what I want to do is I want to call you to I want to pray for you I want to lean on you I want to see if we can’t encourage you and and love on you a little bit because I believe God is calling his
Remnant of people to do big things in tough times and that’s so much to see so much to see the good things that God is doing for his people when we decide to come to him surrender to him and trust that he’s been working on us the
Whole time if God’s been working on you and you’re ready to take that step I just invite you come forward we’re going to stand we’re going to sing and if there’s a way I can pray for you come forward as we stand sing
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