Your Part Is Too Important Not to Play
Bishop Henry Fernandez Preached on 6/15/20261 Corinthians 1:10-17
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54:10
Summary
Bishop Henry Fernandez challenges believers to recognize that their individual contribution is vital to the Kingdom, emphasizing that unity, trust, and outward-focused love are the keys to a healthy, growing church.
Key points
- •The Great Commission is not a suggestion but a clear assignment to go and make disciples rather than waiting for people to enter the church walls.
- •Unity is the church's greatest strength and requires a common purpose, trust, and the denial of personal agendas.
- •A believer's primary role is to be a messenger who lifts up Jesus through testimony and love, allowing the Holy Spirit to do the work of conviction.
- •Effective teamwork requires clarity of vision and the understanding that no significant kingdom purpose is meant to be accomplished alone.
- •Love is the most powerful tool for evangelism; people will often look at a believer's behavior and kindness before they listen to their message.
Scripture
Purpose
Community
Love
Discipleship
Evangelism
Life application
This week, intentionally plant a 'seed' of God's Word by sharing a scripture or a word of encouragement on social media or in person, and look for one practical way to show unconditional love to someone who is hurting.
Reflection questions
- In what areas of your life (marriage, business, or ministry) are you trying to work alone instead of seeking the strength of unity?
- Are you more focused on trying to change people's behavior or on simply 'lifting up Jesus' and letting Him do the work?
- Is your current lifestyle and attitude an attractive advertisement for the Gospel, or does it hinder others from seeing God's love?
- What specific 'vision' or 'common purpose' has God given you for your family or career this year?
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Full transcript
0:00Let's go to the book of 1 Corinthians.
0:031 Corinthians chapter 1.
0:081 Corinthians chapter 1 beginning at
0:11verse 10.
0:14Verse 10, verse 10 to verse
0:1917.
0:24And
0:27it reads,
0:29"I appeal to you, dear brothers and
0:32sisters, by the authority
0:34of the Lord Jesus Christ
0:37to live in harmony with each other.
0:40Let there be no division in the church.
0:47Let there be no division in the church.
0:51Rather be of one mind,
0:54united in thought and purpose.
0:59For some members of Chloe's household
1:02have told me about your quarrels.
1:05My dear brothers and sisters,
1:08now some of you are saying I am
1:10following Paul, others are saying I'm
1:13following Apollos,
1:15or I'm following Peter, or I'm following
1:17only Christ.
1:19Has Christ been divided into factions?
1:23Was I, Paul, crucified for you? Were any
1:27of you baptized
1:29in the name of Paul? Of course not. I
1:32thank God that I did not baptize any of
1:35you except Crispus and Gaius.
1:40For none For now, no one can say they
1:44were baptized in my name. Oh, yes, I
1:48also baptized the household of
1:51Stephanas.
1:53But I don't remember baptizing anyone
1:57else.
1:59For Christ did not send me to baptize,
2:03but to preach the good news.
2:07And not with clever speech
2:11for fear that the cross of Christ
2:16would lose
2:17its power.
2:19Father, we pray that you would continue
2:22to speak to us in this series.
2:25How to be a united church
2:27fulfilling your purpose here on the
2:29earth.
2:31Bless every person who will hear this
2:33word today
2:34in Jesus' name. Amen. Shout amen,
2:37everybody.
2:39God bless you. May be seated in the
2:41presence of the Lord.
2:44So, as we continue the series we're on,
2:50I want to focus on a topic today, your
2:53part is too important
2:56not
2:58Your part is too important not to play.
3:04It's very important here.
3:07If you were with us on Wednesday
3:10evening,
3:12whether you were on campus or you were
3:14streaming live,
3:16you may recall that the message focused
3:19on the topic we play to win. We play to
3:24win. And by the way, give it up for the
3:26New York Knicks, by the way.
3:28>> [cheering]
3:28>> Give it up.
3:30Give it up.
3:32Yes, they they are champions. And And
3:35we'll pray for the Spurs, those of you
3:38from Texas. We'll pray for you.
3:41So, as we continue our series,
3:45Kingdom Team, I want to remind everyone
3:48of us
3:49that the kingdom of God advances when
3:52God's people work together to fulfill
3:55his purpose. Notice when God's people
3:59work together to fulfill his purpose.
4:03So, for the next several months, we're
4:05going to unite our efforts as
4:09evangelists disciples encouragers
4:13and ambassadors of Christ. That's who
4:17we're going to be.
4:19We're going to intentionally go into the
4:22highways and the edges,
4:24the neighborhoods and communities, the
4:27workplaces, the schools, declaring who
4:30God is and giving people a reason to
4:34know him for themselves.
4:38Make no mistake about it, that Jesus
4:40made our assignment very clear in
4:44Matthew 29,
4:46uh excuse me, Matthew 28 verse 19 to 20.
4:50I want them to put it on the screen, and
4:52I want everybody to read it. I want
4:54every Hey, hey, I'm over here. I want
4:56everybody to read it. I want everybody
4:59to read it. We've got the professionals,
5:01they're really taking care of that, and
5:03so forth. Father, we just pray whatever
5:04the situation is, that you'll have your
5:07way, that God you will heal, deliver,
5:10Father, in the mighty name of Jesus. We
5:12pray for healing now in Jesus' name.
5:16Amen. Come on, give the Lord a hand of
5:18praise.
5:20Amen.
5:22Amen.
5:24And so, Jesus made it very clear. So, I
5:26want you to read this passage of
5:27scripture for me. I want everybody to
5:29read it, cuz this is very important
5:31here. This is the Great Commission. Come
5:32on, let's read.
5:43So, the Great Commission says, "Go and
5:47make disciples of all nations."
5:50All.
5:52You don't get to discriminate.
5:56You don't get to choose
5:58who you will share the gospel with.
6:01It says, "Go and make disciples of all
6:04nation, baptizing them in the name of
6:06the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost."
6:08Right? And notice that Jesus did not
6:10tell us, watch this, to stay inside of
6:14the four walls of the church waiting for
6:16people to come.
6:19He didn't tell us to do that. He told us
6:21to what? Go.
6:23Cuz our mission is not merely to occupy
6:26seats in the sanctuary.
6:29That's not our mission. Our mission is
6:32to transform lives through the power of
6:36the gospel. That's the mission of the
6:38church.
6:39To transform lives through the power of
6:42the gospel. And unfortunately,
6:44unfortunately, in the American church,
6:47if you're not careful, you'll go to
6:49church today and you will hear
6:50everything except the gospel.
6:55So, as a church, we must continue or
6:58continually examine ourselves and ask
7:02the question,
7:03you know, as a church,
7:06you know,
7:07uh are we truly about our Father's
7:10business or are we about our own
7:12business?
7:15Think about that.
7:17Is this about our Father's business
7:21or is it
7:22about us?
7:24Jesus said in Luke chapter 2 verse 49,
7:28"Are you listening to me?
7:30I must be about my Father's business."
7:34That's what Jesus said.
7:36Even though he was a [clears throat] son
7:37of God, God in the form of his son came
7:41in human form on the earth. He could
7:44have allowed his fame and his status to
7:47get to him, but he said, "I am about my
7:50father's business, not my own agenda."
7:54And that same mindset should govern
7:56every believer.
7:58Now, last week, I reminded you that the
8:01words of Jesus
8:03that was stated in John chapter 12:32.
8:06Here it is. It says, "And I, if I am
8:10lifted up from the earth, will draw all
8:13people to myself." Are you seeing that?
8:16You see, this verse reveals something
8:18very powerful here. Jesus never assigned
8:21us the responsibility, watch this, of
8:24changing people.
8:27He never said our job as Christians is
8:30to go out there and to change people.
8:33You don't have the power to change
8:34yourself, much less to change people.
8:38You are crazy.
8:41Right? He didn't send us out there to
8:44try to change people and impress people,
8:48right? Jesus never assigned us the
8:50responsibility
8:52of forcing people to surrender to him.
8:56And he never assigned us the
8:58responsibility of convincing people
9:01about him through arguments.
9:05So, for those of you are believers or
9:07Christians, argue with people about your
9:08faith and getting into this back and
9:11forth and hostile kind of attitude,
9:14that's not of God. Our mission is very
9:17simple. It's just to lift him up. That's
9:19all.
9:21What do I mean by when I say to lift up
9:23Jesus? It's to talk about him. It's to
9:26promote him. It's to present him. It's
9:29to testify about him. It's to make him
9:32known. THAT'S ALL. YOU'RE A MESSENGER.
9:35Just say it, and that's it.
9:39You don't have to force people
9:41to become a Christian.
9:43You don't have to force people to go to
9:45church. Invite them, but you don't have
9:47to force them. You don't have to force
9:48people to read their their Bible. You
9:50don't have to force people to believe
9:52what you believe. Just be a messenger.
9:56Cuz life has a funny way of forcing
9:58people on their knees.
10:02Come on now.
10:04You see, if we lift up Jesus, he will
10:08draw people into the kingdom. The Holy
10:11Spirit, watch this, does the convicting,
10:14the Father does the saving. We simply
10:17become willing instruments to be used of
10:20God. Now, many churches have mistakenly
10:24believed that if they improve their
10:26image, create impressive programs, and
10:31and present their systems and perfect
10:35those systems that people will
10:37automatically come to God. But that's
10:40not true. While excellence matters, it's
10:44important. I believe in a well-organized
10:47church. I believe everything must be
10:49done decently and in order. I believe
10:52that you you know, I I love what we're
10:54doing. I love you know, back in my day,
10:56you know, back in the '80s and so forth,
10:59when I was a young man just in ministry
11:02and so forth, we didn't have all of this
11:03stuff here. You know, we didn't have we
11:05didn't need this to have church.
11:10Some of you just you need the lights,
11:11you need the smoke. Man, back in my
11:13days, if you put smoke in the church,
11:15they said, "What? Where's the fire?"
11:19Who's smoking weed up in here?
11:22Back in my days, you couldn't do that.
11:24But now we got a little bit of fancy.
11:26That's okay to do all of those things.
11:28But ladies and gentlemen, none of these
11:31things can save people.
11:35None of these impressive things
11:38can transform people.
11:41So the early church grew because
11:43ordinary believers shared the message of
11:46Jesus Christ. Watch this, with
11:48enthusiasm.
11:50They were [clears throat] happy about
11:51it.
11:53They were happy. And I just want to talk
11:54to some of you dead Christians who've
11:56been dead for a while. It's time to
11:59resurrect the spirit and the life of God
12:01in you, man.
12:04If you want people to come taste and see
12:06that your God is good, YOU GOT TO ACT
12:09BETTER, MAN. You got to smile. Your
12:11attitude got to change. Come on now. You
12:13got to act happy. You got to
12:15act like God is good all the time and
12:18all the time God is good.
12:23Acts chapter 5:42, it says, watch this.
12:26This is about the early church now. You
12:27ready for this? It says here, "And every
12:30day in the temple and from house to
12:34house, they continued to preach and
12:37preach this message, Jesus is the
12:39Messiah."
12:41So the growth of the church has always
12:43been, watch this,
12:45connected
12:47uh
12:47always connected people when it comes to
12:50sharing the gospel. The growth of the
12:52church in the early church had to do
12:54with people who are united, who are
12:57connected, and they shared their faith
13:00with excitement.
13:02And this is why unity
13:04matters.
13:07It's important.
13:09As a church, we need to hear this.
13:12Unity is the key. What's going to make
13:14us strong is not wonderful choirs, not
13:18wonderful musicians, not all the
13:21aesthetics and all the stuff that we do
13:23here. It's unity.
13:27Likewise, in your own personal life.
13:30You see, unity opens up the floodgates
13:33of heaven and the blessings that God
13:35will put upon the church. That's why
13:37Paul pleaded with the church in the text
13:40that I just read earlier. He said, "Be
13:43of one mind."
13:46One mind.
13:48Why? United in thought and purpose.
13:53Because unity Unity is one of God's
13:56greatest gift to his people.
14:00Unity strengthens marriages,
14:03strengthens families, strengthens
14:05businesses, communities, and churches.
14:09Unity strengthens marriages.
14:13And I don't know where you get this idea
14:14from that you can be in a marriage and
14:18you both have two different opinions and
14:20purposes and vision.
14:24Your marriage will not survive if you're
14:27not united.
14:31When both of you have two different
14:33visions,
14:35when both of you are working against
14:37each other, competing
14:39against each other, your marriage is not
14:41going to work.
14:45And that's why Paul was saying in the
14:47church If If If the church is going to
14:50survive and by the way, it's not the
14:51building. The church is not the
14:53building.
14:54It's the people.
14:57It's God's people.
14:59So, for those of you who are married, I
15:01want you to understand this. Work on
15:04unity in your marriage.
15:07Not another big house,
15:09not another car,
15:12not remodeling your house,
15:15not doing all OF THESE THINGS WHILE your
15:17marriage is dying. Come on, man.
15:21Because you can have a house, you can
15:22have cars, you can have a career, but if
15:24the person you're living with is not
15:27united with you, it's a divided house.
15:31PREACH BOY.
15:36>> [applause]
15:41>> YOU CAN SUGARCOAT THIS ALL YOU WANT.
15:45Unity strengthens families.
15:48When your family's divided,
15:51at each other's throat,
15:54when when your family's not
15:56praying for each other and complimenting
15:59each other and working towards each
16:01other,
16:02then then your family's not going to be
16:04strong. It's It's not going to max out
16:08their full potential.
16:10Your business.
16:12When there's no unity in the business,
16:13if you're a business owner, when you're
16:15toxic,
16:18when you're not stable mentally,
16:21when your attitude
16:23is not godly,
16:25and you cause division among your
16:27coworkers,
16:29how do you expect your business to
16:30thrive?
16:32Don't you understand the common purpose
16:34of your business is to make a profit?
16:37Why are you taking a gun and shoot
16:39yourself at the same time?
16:41It's crazy.
16:43So, if you run a business, you want your
16:45employees to be united. Don't allow
16:48other employees to come to you and put
16:51stuff in your ears about other
16:53coworkers, and you just run with it and
16:56think that it's true.
16:59Some people are assigned by the devil to
17:01carry news and to spread lies.
17:07>> [applause]
17:07>> So, you have to be a person of wisdom
17:11to be able seek to seek for the truth
17:14and not be biased. Why you want to keep
17:16everybody united? The same thing in the
17:18community, the same thing with the
17:20church.
17:22To keep a church healthy, it needs
17:24unity. That's why Psalm 133 verse 1
17:27declares, "How good and pleasant it is
17:32when God's people" watch this live.
17:36Didn't say sing, it didn't say worship,
17:39it didn't say dance, it didn't say speak
17:42in tongues or preach or have programs
17:45together. It says it is when they live
17:49together in unity.
17:53It's when a church lives together in
17:56unity. HERE'S THE REASON WHY THIS IS
17:58IMPORTANT. A CHURCH CAN strengthen its
18:02potential and BE TRULY EFFECTIVE WHEN
18:06unity is there.
18:10When unity is there.
18:12But unity only reaches its full
18:14potential when it is centered around one
18:18common purpose.
18:20One vision.
18:23Not two, three, four, five visions.
18:26Because without purpose
18:28there is no reason for agreement. If you
18:30don't have a purpose, what are we
18:32agreeing on?
18:34Without vision, there is no reason for
18:37unity.
18:38If we don't have a vision, a clear path
18:40of where we're going
18:42then how are we going to be united?
18:44Without a mission
18:46there is no reason for teamwork. For
18:48teamwork, what's the mission of this
18:50church? Think about that.
18:52What's the mission of the church of the
18:54Lord Jesus Christ? What's the mission of
18:56your marriage? Why did you get married?
19:01Why did you get married yet living
19:03single?
19:11What's the vision for your marriage?
19:15WHY HAVE KIDS
19:17AND CAN'T raise them together?
19:23Perhaps one reason many people struggle
19:25to become effective team players is
19:28because they do not understand the game
19:32they're playing.
19:35One of the things if you just let me
19:36just divert for a little bit to go into
19:39basketball. I don't know if you watched
19:40the game last night.
19:44One of the reason why the Knicks won
19:45last night, them boys were tight. They
19:48were united. They understood the
19:50assignment. They understood the vision.
19:53They knew game five they had to take it.
19:56We're not going back to New York. I
20:00understand going to do New New York
20:02would be great to do it on our term, but
20:05they realized listen, the the Spurs are
20:08good. So, we're not going to waste time.
20:11The mission is let's play together. And
20:14those boys played together and won the
20:18championship. If you are going to win in
20:21your marriage, if you're going to win in
20:22your family, if you're going to win in
20:24your business, if this church is going
20:26to win, we've got to be one.
20:30>> [cheering]
20:32>> Got to be one.
20:35Got to be one.
20:37We got to know what is at stake. We got
20:40to know what the objective is. We got to
20:43know what role we're supposed to play in
20:45the game. Now, some believers think
20:49Christianity is simply about making it
20:51to heaven.
20:53Oh, I just want to make it to heaven.
20:56Right? But God's kingdom is bigger than
20:58just going to heaven. Why did he send
21:00you here?
21:01You came from him.
21:04You mean to tell me that God lacks
21:06planning
21:08when he sent you to the earth just for
21:10you to come here and hurry up and die
21:12and go to heaven?
21:14No, he sent you here for a reason.
21:16He sent you here to partner with people.
21:19He sent you here to network and become a
21:22part of the team to accomplish one
21:25common goal. Proverbs 11:30 says, "The
21:28fruit of the righteous is the tree of
21:31life." Watch this now, "and he who wins
21:35souls
21:37is wise."
21:39God sent us here, brought us into the
21:42kingdom to be disciples.
21:45And when you win souls, in other words,
21:47when you go out and you spread your
21:50faith, the Bible says you are wise. So,
21:52you were never saved to become a
21:55spectator.
21:57You were never saved to become
22:00uh uh uh
22:01you were saved, I should say, to become
22:02a participant, not a spectator.
22:05And from the beginning, God emphasized
22:07partnership. According to Genesis
22:10chapter 2:18, remember, God says it was
22:12not good for the men to be alone. Wasn't
22:16good for him. So, the principle is very
22:18clear here. God never intended for
22:21people to accomplish his purposes alone.
22:27We're stronger when we're together.
22:31We're stronger. As a church, we're
22:33stronger when we unite.
22:36When we don't fight against each other,
22:37we understand our own
22:39um
22:40role in ministry, whether you are
22:42servant leader, whether you are a
22:44minister, an elder, whether you're the
22:46pastor or not, we all understand it's
22:49it's the one kingdom, it's the one God.
22:52We all just play different roles, right?
22:55But but but but but we must work
22:57together because, you know, we're we're
22:59not just here to sit down for those of
23:02you come week after week. It's more than
23:04just coming oh preach me happy, sing me
23:07happy. It's like okay, you're in the
23:09kingdom not to spectate but to
23:12participate.
23:13And and we we can't we can't the pastor
23:16can't do this by himself. The ministers
23:19can't do this. The person sitting next
23:21to you, we can't do it by ourselves
23:23because it's not good for man to do
23:26anything alone.
23:31Your business will succeed more
23:36when you get help.
23:40Your family will succeed more
23:42when everybody do their part.
23:46It's not good for the woman to be
23:48working on the marriage a lot
23:51trying to save it.
23:54And she's doing it by herself.
23:57It's not good when the man alone is
23:59working
24:00let's save this marriage
24:03and the woman is not helping.
24:06It's not GOOD WHEN YOUR PARENTS
24:09ARE SAYING COME ON. WHAT YOU'RE DOING is
24:11wrong.
24:12You're hurting your mother. You're
24:14hurting your father. YOU'RE HURTING THE
24:16FAMILY'S NAME.
24:18They need you.
24:20They need YOU TO PLAY YOUR PART
24:24IN MAKING
24:26God's purpose for your family to
24:28survive.
24:30Think about that for a moment.
24:32God never intended for people to
24:34accomplish his purposes alone.
24:36Everything significant in the kingdom of
24:39God always happens with teamwork.
24:43I want to show you a picture here for a
24:45moment cuz I really want to show you
24:47when it comes to everything about you
24:52has to be centered around please put it
24:54up has to be centered around this common
24:58purpose.
25:00THE DAY YOU UNDERSTAND THE COMMON
25:02PURPOSE. WHAT IS YOUR PURPOSE?
25:04WHY DID GOD PUT you in the womb of your
25:07mother and placed you on this planet,
25:11connected you with the man you're
25:12dating, connected you with the woman
25:15you're dating, connected you to the
25:17person YOU'RE MARRIED TO? WHY DID HE PUT
25:20you into that family bloodline? WHY DID
25:23HE PUT you in the job that you are at
25:25right now? Why did you did he give you
25:28that that business idea for you to start
25:31that business and now you're running
25:33your own company? Why did you plant YOU
25:37DID HE PLANT YOU AT THE FAITH OF THE
25:39THERE HAS TO BE A REASON.
25:42IT'S BIGGER THAN YOU.
25:46AND WHEN YOU UNDERSTAND THE CORE
25:47PURPOSE, THE COMMON PURPOSE OF YOUR
25:50LIFE, THAT COMMON PURPOSE AND THAT IS TO
25:53FULFILL THE PLAN AND PURPOSE
25:55[clears throat] OF GOD FOR MY LIFE.
25:58THAT EVERYTHING AROUND ME
26:00EVERYTHING around me has to connect to
26:03what does God want for my life. So when
26:05it comes to when it comes to your
26:07marriage,
26:09your marriage IS NEVER ABOUT WHAT you
26:12can get.
26:14YOUR MARRIAGE IS NEVER ABOUT TRYING TO
26:17FIND A MAN WHO CAN SUPPORT YOU. I WANT a
26:20high value man who makes $200,000
26:23and you ain't got nothing yourself.
26:31You missed the mark.
26:33YOU'RE MISSING THE MARK.
26:36YOU'RE MISSING IT. WHAT IS THE PURPOSE?
26:38BECAUSE MARRIAGE, THE Bible says, is
26:41honorable.
26:42IT'S A GOD IDEA.
26:45SO YOUR marriage should be centered
26:48around
26:49pleasing God.
26:52So I'm not going to go into it now with
26:54pride,
26:56being selfish.
26:59I'm not going to go into it with
27:00unforgiveness.
27:05I'm not going to go into my marriage
27:07thinking that I'm going to do some
27:10sneaky stuff, my little private account
27:13here, my little this and that. Y'all
27:15know the sneaky stuff we do.
27:19Because that doesn't fulfill God's
27:20purpose.
27:22When it comes to raising children, you
27:25don't raise them based on your feelings
27:27and based on you know, your culture, you
27:31raise them based on the common purpose,
27:33God's word.
27:35Same thing when it comes to your
27:37business, partnership, your career,
27:39personal development, and even building
27:42God's church. Everything has to be
27:44centered AROUND HIM.
27:47WHAT'S HIS WILL?
27:50Think about that.
27:52What's his will?
27:53So, here's what I want to share with you
27:57uh this morning.
27:59In order for us to reach
28:01our full potential as a church to be
28:03united,
28:05we have to see that number one,
28:08we need to have clarity.
28:11Clarity.
28:12We got to have clarity. Why?
28:15Because you must know where you're
28:16going. In order to fulfill that put put
28:18that back on the screen again the the
28:20the the
28:21the the circle with the Yeah, put that
28:23back. In in order for us
28:26to understand our common purpose,
28:29we have to have clarity.
28:31What is clarity?
28:33Habakkuk chapter 2 says, "Write the
28:36vision. Make it plain." What's your
28:37What's What's your vision?
28:40Where are you going?
28:43Where are you going?
28:49What's your life going to be like the
28:50next 2 years from now?
28:54Think about that.
28:56What's your vision? Write it. Oh, well,
28:58I got it in my head. I'm just going
29:00according to how
29:02you know,
29:03whatever. I'm just going with This is
29:04the big one. I'm going with the flow.
29:10What if the flow ain't right?
29:13What if the flow is not godly? You're
29:16just going to go with the flow?
29:19Every little wind of doctrine blow you,
29:21you just
29:22flow.
29:29I'm just going with the flow.
29:32You need clarity.
29:36The clarity is especially for God's
29:39church.
29:41The vision must be clear.
29:43It's people getting saved. People
29:46getting healed. People getting restored.
29:48People
29:50are discipled.
29:52And people are connected back to God.
29:55That's clarity.
29:58The purpose of the church is not just to
30:00come every week, shout, dance.
30:02It's to
30:04point people to Christ. All of you are
30:06in here today, they're more Listen,
30:08there are more unbelievers outside of
30:11these four walls.
30:13So, we're here
30:15to get filled up,
30:19to be strengthened.
30:20So, as disciples, we go back out there,
30:24and we point people to Christ. Number
30:26two, not only do we need clarity, but
30:29here's the big one, trust.
30:32We need trust.
30:34You got to trust in the foundation
30:37of every successful team. You could we
30:40we could Listen, we got to learn to
30:42trust one another.
30:45We're becoming too suspicious of people.
30:48You don't know me.
30:50And because you don't know me, don't
30:52judge me.
30:58Don't [snorts]
30:59judge me by the gossip of what you've
31:02heard on the street.
31:07You don't know the person sitting next
31:09to you.
31:11So, why are you going to take what
31:12somebody told you
31:14about them
31:16to conclude that's the way they are?
31:19You got to trust in the foundation of
31:21every successful team. Look at what Amos
31:24chapter 3:3 says. I'm almost out of your
31:26way. The Bible says, "Can two walk
31:29together
31:31Come on, say it out.
31:33Can we read that scripture, everybody?
31:35Come on, read.
31:39So, we're not in unity because it's only
31:42about 100 people who read it.
31:44So, that you you flunked the unity test
31:46already.
31:47Okay, let's do it one more time. Read.
31:53That's the word of God. Can two people
31:56walk together
31:59unless they agree?
32:02So, when trust when trust is absent
32:06when it is not there, unity becomes
32:08difficult.
32:10When trust is present, progress becomes
32:12possible. Number three, we need
32:15self-denial.
32:17The kingdom of God requires putting
32:19God's agenda above our own. Jesus said
32:21this in Luke 10 in Luke 9, I should say,
32:2323. If anyone desires to come after me,
32:27let him do what? Deny himself first. Let
32:31him deny himself and take up his cross
32:34daily and follow me. Number four, we got
32:36to see the bigger picture. It's seeing
32:39the bigger picture. Many people sabotage
32:42their future because their actions do
32:45not align with their goals.
32:50You want a healthy church?
32:53We got to check our attitude.
32:57You can't say you want a healthy healthy
32:59church, you want a church where you can
33:00go and the word of God is being fed
33:02there and you're not doing the right
33:04thing
33:06to foster that kind of a church.
33:09You can't say you want a healthy
33:11marriage, but doing everything opposite
33:16to getting a healthy marriage.
33:19You can't say you want a job
33:22and you want God to give you resources
33:24when you're doing everything to get
33:26fired.
33:33Just can't.
33:35And then you're going to blame it on the
33:36devil. The devil is attacking you. No.
33:43So,
33:45let me leave you with this.
33:47Here are three simple ways every
33:50believer can help reach the unchurched.
33:53And then I'll let you go.
33:55Please stick with me. Don't leave me.
33:59Here's what
34:00I want to conclude this sermon on and I
34:03know it's not a message that's the norm
34:06where, you know, I can preach and you
34:09shout and you throw your handkerchief at
34:11me and preach, boy, and I I get it.
34:15You know, I I I am I'm I'm really never
34:18I'm never really a preacher. I'm a
34:19teacher of the word of God. That's just
34:21my style. I I'm sorry. That's just me.
34:24I'm not saying preaching is bad or
34:26whatever. I'm sticking to being me.
34:31Come on now. All right?
34:33But here's what I really want to
34:36challenge every one of you. Three
34:39things. Number one,
34:41plant the seed of God's word wherever
34:43you go.
34:46That's all.
34:48It's not hard.
34:51It's not hard. Just plant the seed of
34:54the word of God.
34:55You got a mouth.
34:57You were the ONE SCREAMING LAST NIGHT AT
34:59THE TELEVISION.
35:01GO KNICKS!
35:02AH,
35:03>> [screaming]
35:03>> GOD, HE MISSED IT. YOU DID THAT WITH
35:05EXCITEMENT. WHY CAN'T YOU DO THAT for
35:08God?
35:17Think about that.
35:19Life goes on. For those of you who are
35:21rooting for the Spurs and and
35:24you were mad, but you're going to go to
35:26work tomorrow.
35:29You're going to go later. You're going
35:30to do You're going to do life.
35:32Everything's going to be fine.
35:34So why
35:36is it when you pray for something and it
35:39doesn't happen,
35:40you're mad at God? You stop going to
35:43church. You stop praying and so forth.
35:46You didn't do that when the Spurs lost.
35:48Your life continues.
35:51Watch your attitude.
35:56Just plant the seed of the word of God.
35:58Jesus taught in parables of the sower
36:01that the seed is the word. Luke 8:11.
36:05So you may not be able to save
36:09anybody.
36:11But you can plant the seed.
36:14You can share the scripture.
36:17You can share your testimony.
36:20And you can encourage someone who's
36:22struggling.
36:23You can remind someone that God has not
36:26forgotten them.
36:28So, never underestimate the power of
36:30planting the seed. You got a cell phone?
36:34You've got a Facebook page.
36:37You got an Instagram page.
36:40TikTok page.
36:42You're always on it.
36:44Look how many hours you spend on your
36:46phone every day.
36:49And you mean to tell me you can't plant
36:51the seed of the word of God?
36:55You can't tell You mean to tell me out
36:56of 24 hours, you might be on the phone
36:59for 10 hours for that day.
37:02And and you mean to tell me for 10
37:04hours, watch this, you can forward
37:08junk to other people.
37:11You see stuff on social media that
37:14sometimes is not Christian-like, yet
37:17still you forward it.
37:21You repo- That's the term, repost.
37:25That repost. Excuse me.
37:28I said forward, you repost.
37:32You like.
37:34You follow.
37:36When was the last time
37:38you posted on your social media? Watch
37:41this, just a scripture.
37:45It's possibly you didn't do it in a long
37:47time. Why?
37:49Cuz you haven't read
37:51the word.
37:53How can you post what you don't know?
38:03So go.
38:04I challenge you this week.
38:07Every day, post a scripture.
38:11Simple things, God loves you.
38:14When you see a friend post something and
38:16and I don't know why people do it.
38:18They're on social media. It's it's crazy
38:20how people put their business out there.
38:25People sit in their car and they just
38:28tell some of their most private,
38:30intimate
38:32business.
38:33I don't know how.
38:36And
38:37just post, "Hey,
38:39praying for you.
38:41God is with you.
38:43Hey, been there, done that.
38:46God did it for me.
38:47He can do it for you."
38:50Cuz you never know who's scrolling,
38:53who's looking. Watch this.
38:55And they're just looking for something
38:56positive.
38:59Can I be honest with you today?
39:01It is hard to find positivity
39:05on social media today.
39:08It's hard.
39:10It's hard.
39:11So, share that.
39:13Secondly, here's what I want you to do.
39:15Show people love.
39:18Show them the love of Jesus.
39:20Before many people listen to our
39:22message, they will watch, watch this,
39:24they'll watch our behavior.
39:27John 13:35 says, "By this, everyone will
39:30know that you are my disciples."
39:33Not how you sing.
39:36Not how well the pastor preaches.
39:38People will know that you are God's
39:40disciples when you walk in love. People
39:43are surrounded by criticism every day,
39:46division, and negativity.
39:48When they encounter you,
39:51let them witness kindness. Let them
39:54witness the grace of God. Let them
39:56witness forgiveness. Forgiveness. I'm
39:59talking genuine forgiveness. Stop being
40:01so critical.
40:05Especially believers, stop being so
40:07critical. It make every time it's always
40:09negativity.
40:12It's always. You see somebody fall, you
40:14see somebody do You don't have to
40:16quickly
40:17See, you reap what you sow.
40:24But for the grace of God
40:27why you're not down on the ground.
40:30And some of you have fallen, you just
40:33act like you haven't.
40:36Come on now.
40:38Number three, and I'm done with this.
40:41Invite people to the house of God.
40:45Invite people.
40:47Cuz many people, watch this, are one
40:50invitation away
40:53from a changed life.
40:57You know what I'm longing for?
41:00Cuz I've been in the church all my life.
41:02I grew up in church. I don't know
41:04nothing else.
41:07And I remember the days, not that the
41:09church back then didn't have problems
41:11like the scripture we read. Paul
41:14was addressing the Corinthians church
41:16because there was division
41:18in the church.
41:20So, it's been from biblical days.
41:23But one of the things I miss as a young
41:25man, when I was a little boy, in my
41:27teens at church,
41:31the house of God was a safe haven.
41:35It was a place of love.
41:39I remember those mothers,
41:41even though they were kind of tough and
41:43difficult,
41:45but I remember how love was
41:47demonstrated.
41:49Come here, boy.
41:51Come here.
41:52Come here, girl. Come here.
41:55Let me pray with you.
41:57The love that they had.
42:01People didn't judge you.
42:03They don't care what you have on.
42:06You can come in here.
42:08It don't matter.
42:10People not quick to judge you
42:13on the base on what they see on the
42:15outside.
42:16They always look at what's in your
42:18heart.
42:20I miss those days
42:23because the church of the Lord Jesus
42:25Christ, I'm talking about churches
42:27generally now.
42:29I've become so divided.
42:32That we miss
42:34the main purpose
42:36of why we exist.
42:40It has become about the preacher now.
42:44We've made celebrities out of preachers.
42:48We've idolized our status in church, our
42:51positions.
42:55We have made it a place where we we
42:58going to have to have our comfortable
42:59chair, our section.
43:03And we will lose our salvation.
43:07If we don't get to be seated where we're
43:09supposed to be.
43:12We we we we we we become so toxic.
43:18That we've missed the mission.
43:22We sit in church and we spectate.
43:26I'm talking about Christians. You what
43:28everything you're looking for everything
43:31that's wrong.
43:33These young people that are here, yes,
43:35they're different. They are completely
43:37different
43:39from my generation.
43:41But we're quick to criticize.
43:45Cuz we have lost the love.
43:50It's gone.
43:52We don't know how to say, "Hey,
43:55you're going to make it, man."
43:57I I don't care. I don't care
44:00how you feel.
44:01You're going to make it.
44:03Because sometimes, watch this, don't
44:06ever forget this.
44:09People are hurting so much internally
44:14that they dress it externally.
44:22And if you are
44:23so spiritual, you miss it.
44:28The greatest Give me your sir, please.
44:33And I'll And I pray for those of you
44:35need prayer this morning.
44:37See, this is where we've gotten it
44:39wrong. We think the greatest
44:40demonstration of God's love
44:43you know, you need to become a
44:45Christian, man, and you need to get your
44:47life together, man, cuz I'm telling you
44:49don't want to die and go to hell, man.
44:51You know, God loves you. Yes, man, he
44:53loves you, man, and so forth, man, and
44:56so forth, man, but yeah, you know, that
44:57don't really match that, but anyway,
45:00but the Lord bless you and
45:02that's that's that's that's not how you
45:06do it. You want me to show you the
45:07greatest demonstration of love? Watch
45:09this. The greatest demonstration of
45:12love, watch this, is not what you say.
45:16Cuz there are many of you are married to
45:18people who told you they love you.
45:24Show me.
45:28Don't tell me you love me. Show me.
45:33Don't buy me another jewelry. Don't buy
45:35me another ring. Don't buy me another
45:37bracelet. Cuz listen, until you show me,
45:41you don't love me.
45:49The greatest way we're going to win the
45:50unchurched
45:52is not what we say.
45:57How you doing, man? Bless you.
46:03>> [music]
46:04>> That's the message.
46:07That's the message.
46:09That's the message.
46:12For God so loved
46:15Bow your heads with me, Father.
46:18Thank you
46:20that you spoke to us today.
46:24You're trying to build a solid church, a
46:26church
46:28that will truly live out
46:30its potential.
46:33And that is to know you.
46:37Not just in what we say, but in how we
46:40act.
46:43That we be Christ-like at home, we be
46:45Christ-like on the job, we be
46:47Christ-like in the marketplace.
46:50So, when we come to your house,
46:53it's not a fake.
46:55It's real.
47:00Because there's so many people who you
47:02want to bring into the kingdom.
47:05And the message you want us
47:07believers to preach
47:09is the message of love.
47:11Somebody is hearing my voice today, God,
47:15who's streaming somebody in this house.
47:18They're not
47:19a Christian, they don't know you.
47:22And the truth is, it's not that they
47:23don't love you.
47:26It's just that they want to be loved
47:29into loving you.
47:32They want to be loved
47:35into loving you.
47:37So today
47:40I believe that woman is in this house,
47:41that man is in this house,
47:46looking for love in the wrong places.
47:51They haven't found it yet.
47:54Because only you,
47:58the author of love
48:02can love them
48:04and teach them how to love. So, I pray
48:07that today they'll just say yes to you.
48:11They'll simply say yes to you. Now, do
48:13me a favor. Every head bow, every eye
48:15close.
48:17I don't want this to be long cuz this is
48:18last thing we're going to do, but
48:22if you sense [music] that God is
48:24speaking to you and
48:27and you know that you lack this love
48:30that I'm preaching about
48:33and you want to meet the maker of this
48:35love
48:36you want God in your life. It's not
48:38going to take long.
48:40I just need you don't Don't even think
48:42about it. Don't even hesitate. Move from
48:44your seat quickly.
48:46And I want you to come right down here.
48:49I want to pray for you and then I'll let
48:50you go. You say, "Pastor, [music] this
48:52word was for me." Don't don't look at
48:53nobody else.
48:55Don't Please, do not look at anybody
48:57else. Keep your head bowed. Don't look
48:59at anybody else. You know this word was
49:01for you. I want you to get down here.
49:04Come on. Push your way. Push your way.
49:06[music]
49:06Get down here. Come on. Push your way.
49:09Push your way. Come on. Come on. Come
49:12on. You know this was for you.
49:14>> [music]
49:14>> You know this was for you.
49:16We going to pray with you. We going to
49:17let you go. Thank you. Thank you. Thank
49:19you.
49:20Thank you.
49:22God wants you to max out your full
49:24potential.
49:26Trust me.
49:27Do not let the devil
49:29rob you of your best self.
49:34Come on.
49:36Your whole entire life can be radically
49:38transformed
49:41when you embrace this love that I'm
49:43preaching about.
49:45God bless you. God bless [music] you.
49:47They're coming.
49:48They're coming.
49:50Come on. Put your hands together now and
49:51thank God for these people.
49:54>> [music]
49:57>> Now listen,
49:59I want to pray with you. I want to pray
50:01with you and I want everybody would you
50:03stand, [music] would you stand, we're
50:04getting ready to go.
50:06We're going to
50:07we're getting ready to go.
50:10Pray.
50:11Thank you ministers for helping us out
50:13here. Thank you.
50:15They're still coming. They're still
50:17coming.
50:18They're still coming.
50:21Man, this took Can somebody just give
50:23God a praise again?
50:25>> [music]
50:27>> Yes.
50:30Amen.
50:33I'm going to pray with you now, but
50:34listen [music] to me.
50:36The best thing you can do for yourself,
50:38trust this guy when I tell you this, the
50:40best thing you can do for yourself
50:43is to ask God like David, create in me
50:48a clean heart.
50:51Forgive people who have hurt you.
50:54I know it's hard,
50:56but you got to let it go.
50:58You got to forgive people
51:01and start learning to love yourself.
51:05And embrace the love that he has given
51:07you. I'm telling you, when you embrace
51:10the love that he has given you, it would
51:13radically change your life. Stop being
51:16bitter.
51:18Stop it.
51:20Stop allowing the devil to pull you into
51:22being toxic.
51:24Listen, there's a song out there in the
51:26world that says, "They're not like us."
51:32They're not like us, so don't act like
51:36them.
51:38You're from God's kingdom,
51:40so you act differently.
51:43Are you hearing me? Lift your hands if
51:45you're standing here. Lift your hands.
51:47Come on. Lift it up. Lift it up.
51:49Father, I pray for these individuals now
51:54as they come to embrace the love that
51:57you have for them today.
51:59You know each and every one of them.
52:02You know the condition that they're in.
52:05You know what they're struggling with.
52:07I pray
52:09together as if the church stands with
52:11me. We pray for them. Stretch your hands
52:13towards them, congregation.
52:15We pray as a family, church family,
52:20over every man standing here, every
52:22woman standing here today.
52:24They've heard the word. Father, I pray
52:27>> [music]
52:27>> that every word spoken today
52:30will linger in their hearts. It will
52:32transform them. They will become the
52:34best versions of themselves. I pray
52:38that, Father, they will now walk in love
52:40because you are love. You live on the
52:42inside of them. Greater is he who is in
52:45them than he that is in the world.
52:47Transform them. I see them in the future
52:51and they look a whole lot better than
52:53they look right now. Thank you for the
52:56transformation in their lives now. And
53:00Father, thank you for these precious
53:02people. Thank you for the people who are
53:03streaming today. Thank you for this
53:05word. And Father, we will confess with
53:08our mouth that Jesus is Lord. Every one
53:11of you now are standing here, repeat
53:13after me, Lord Jesus.
53:15>> Lord Jesus.
53:15>> I confess my sins before you.
53:18>> I confess [music] my sins before
53:19>> I embrace the free gift of salvation.
53:22>> I embrace
53:23the free gift of salvation.
53:24>> I declare that I'm born again.
53:26>> I declare
53:27that I'm born
53:27>> In Jesus' name.
53:29>> In Jesus' name.
53:30>> Amen. Give God a praise, would you?
53:34Now, stay right here. Stay right here.
53:37We're going to dismiss, but ministers, I
53:38just felt led to do this. I don't want
53:41you all to leave cuz I think, like I
53:44demonstrated today, the greatest act of
53:46love is showing it. So, I want all the
53:49ministers and people who felt led, we
53:51going to give you a big hug. We going to
53:54encourage you. All right, we going to
53:55encourage you. Would you do that? Lift
53:57your hands everybody and let's say
53:59together, "Faith in God will move
54:02mountains out of our lives." Come on.
54:05Hug each other. Ministers, come on hug
54:07them. Come on.
54:08Come Come and hug them.