2819 Church - WISDOM AND WONDER | What Defiles A Person? | Matthew 15:10-20 | Philip Anthony Mitchell

Episode Date: January 4, 2025

In Season 4, Episode 2 of “WISDOM & WONDER,” Pastor Philip Anthony Mitchell expounds on Jesus' teachings on defilement as found in Matthew 15:10-20. Welcome to the official Youtube channel for 2819 Church. This channel features powerful and life-impacting messages from Philip Anthony Mitchell and guest communicators. As you listen to these sound biblical messages you can expect to be challenged, stirred, matured and inspired in your faith and walk with God. For more information about us visit 2819Church.org.

You can be seated. Thank you, Lord. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. I just want to say to all of you and all of our digital disciples who are watching live across the country, to everybody packed into that lobby, wherever there are people, I just want to tell you from the bottom of my heart that I love you with my whole heart. And I don't want to leave. I don't want to go. I don't...

It is the greatest privilege of my life to serve this church as a senior pastor. And a couple of things I want to share with you before we go any further. Man, for the last year, I don't know how many people have given their life to Christ in this church. Maybe over a thousand of you. I don't know. And I just want to share with you that when I return

in August, you have an opportunity, all of you who have given your life to Christ in the last August, you have an opportunity, all of you who have given your life to Christ in the last year, you have an opportunity to take that next public step of faith with Christ in our annual baptism experience. Now, because of the size of our church and what the Lord has done, normally we do this on a Sunday morning, but we don't have the space to do that on Sunday morning. Our baptism, we have space for a thousand people to be baptized. And so we're actually going to have a baptism weekend. So we will be baptizing on Saturday morning, the 24th, and Sunday morning, the 25th.

And then, you know, while I'm gone, you'll see the registration open up for that. There's only space for 1,000 people. So when it opens up, this is your opportunity to be registered, to be baptized. If you don't understand what that is, baptism is just the outer sign of an inward act of what Christ has already done in your heart. So if you've been saved, if you've been born again, you belong to Christ all throughout the New Testament, people were saved and then they were baptized. No class, no six-month coaching, no year trying to... People were saved and they were immediately baptized. Don't over-spiritualize it. Okay, that pool is a watery grave.

You go down in that watery grave symbolic of your past life. You rise a brand new man and woman symbolic of your new life. Don't over-spiritualize it. Baptism is not for the people who are not saved. It's not for little children. Baptism is for those who have placed their faith in Christ, okay? So you have an opportunity to do that, all right? And obviously, it's not a secret that this is my family and I, our last Sunday here before we leave. If you're

new, we don't want you to be nervous. We serve faithfully, my family and I, for 11 months, and then we take off the month of June to just be replenished, to be poured back into, to spend time with our family. This year, we're going to add a few more weeks after that to pour into our daughter, Izzy, who just graduated from high school. And Izzy graduated the valedictorian of her high school. So before she steps into whatever God has for next, it's our tradition as a family, when kids graduate like Malachi did last year, we take an extra couple weeks to pour into them

personally. Like I was saying to all of the brothers and sisters who were in here in our last gathering, we don't force our children to go to college. We don't force them to go to the military. We've trained up our children with the passage Ephesians 2.10. And according to Ephesians 2.10, I taught my children since they were small that they are God's workmanship. They have been created in Christ Jesus to do the works that God has prepared for them beforehand, to walk those paths. So according to that passage, before Izzy was born, God already had paths that he intended for her to walk down. And so I've taught my children, if that path is college, praise God. If it's not college, praise God. If it's serving in

the military, praise God. If it's not in the military, praise God. Because I've taught them that purpose is not something you pick purpose is something you discover listen hear me there's a lot of people confused trying to figure out their purpose you don't choose a purpose you discover a purpose and that's why if you walk up on my children and ask them what they want to be when they grow up they're not not going to say, I want to be a lawyer or a doctor. They're going to say, I want to fulfill my purpose. Because according to Ephesians 2.10, before they were born, Jesus already prepared paths for them. That's why one of the most important things you would do in this life is not build things, but discover things. We discover the paths that Jesus already created for us. When I was in my

mother's womb, that miracle womb with a damaged cervix, when I was running the streets in Queens in North Carolina, the Lord had already prepared this path for me that I'm on right now, but I did not know it. I was trying to be an attorney. I was a pre-law major. I got a degree in criminal justice. I was headed to law school and God led me down this path. I'm on right now. I discovered this path. So I want to just encourage some of you parents. I'm not going to force upon you to do what we do, but I just want to remind you before your child was born, that little baby, God already prepared paths of righteousness for them. So one of the best things we can do for our children is not handcuff them, but disciple them down the paths that God already created for them.

And maybe for some of you who are adults who are still searching, that's American Christianity. If you serve Jesus faithfully, you keep him first. He will guide you down the path that he has for you. So let me say this one more time. You do not pick your purpose. You discover everything that God has for you. And you can't discover. Can y'all hear me out there in the lobby? Just wave at me in the lobby if you can hear me. Everybody, y'all can hear me good? Wave at me if you can hear me.

Right? So you don't choose a purpose. Your purpose is to serve God with your whole life. And as you do that, he will lead you down the paths that he has for you. Amen in the lobby. Y'all shout at me in the lobby. Amen in the lobby. Amen. Yeah. Now, family, if you are a guest or if you're a digital disciple and you're watching live across the country,

we know we got digital disciples in the room. We're so thankful that you're here and that you travel. And if you're unbelieving in the room, you could definitely belong before you believe. We're thankful for all of that. We are in a series right now called Wisdom and Wonder. We are walking through Matthew 12 through 20 together. Matthew was an outcast Jew. He was saved by Christ in the first century A.D.

He went on to become a follower of Christ, a martyr of Christ. He wrote the book that bears his name. That's the book we're studying together. I'm supposed to be preaching to you the second half of the message I preached last week, it's not even taking my time. The question is, how transparent can I be? Okay, all right. Be truthful. A moment of transparency, right? We're family, right? All right. I did not study this week. Okay? I did not prepare this week.

Okay? It's been hectic in my house. My wife is preparing to leave our house. She's headed to Africa in a few days. Things have been hectic in my house. Kenny and I were traveling this week. We went to, I don't know where we went. We went to, I don't know where we went. We went to Tennessee.

We were speaking to a group of young missionaries that's going out around the country to pour into teenagers around the country. And so I have not studied this week. I have not prepared a message. I don't have a sermon. All I have is my Bible and the Holy Spirit. Okay? And Kenny was telling me when his wife Erica picked us up from the airport, she was like, yo, Dad, I don't think you should preach this Sunday. I think you should just, you know how you're always telling people one day you're just going to read the text and go home? So maybe this Sunday you should just read the text and go home.

And I told you all that day was coming. So what I want to do is I want to just read to you the text. I hope you're not disappointed. If you are, I appreciate your disappointment. But I just want to remind you, the scripture says about itself that the word is alive. It is active. It is sharper than any two-edged sword. And as we read it, it will read you. So we're going to do something today for the first time in our history. I'm just going to read the text.

There are some things I remember that I said to the first gathering that I will say to you as the Holy Spirit brings them to my remembrance. If he does not, then I'm not going to remember. It's all right. Whatever is going to be said is going to be said. And we're going to walk this text together. Amen. Are y'all okay with that? So I don't have a message title. All I have is the word of God. So today I was supposed to be preaching to you Matthew chapter 15, verses 10 through 20. And I'm going to read this. And after I read this, I want to say some things to you personally.

My wife will come and then I'm going to dismiss you into God's presence. Lord Jesus, eternal God and ever wise Father, I repented from not being prepared this week. I repented for not having a message ready, but I am a prepared messenger. And your word is alive. And Lord, you know the people in this room, you know the people that is watching right now, you know what they need to hear. I pray in my weakness, you would communicate to your sons and daughters, even the unbeliever, as we just read the scriptures together. I pray whatever needs to be said would be said. I pray you would bring revelation and insight. And I just pray there will be an outpouring on us right now with just love and intimacy and unity and oneness as a family. In Christ's name I pray.

Awaken us like that phone, Lord. Sound the alarm in our heart. You keep reminding us that alarms are going off, that time is running out. Yes, time is running out. As these phones have gone off in our presence, let an alarm go off in our soul. In Christ's name, I pray. Stay there, Sam. So what I'm going to do is we're going to walk these verses together and maybe we'll do something interactive

I'll read, we'll talk and we'll put together a sermon together can we do that? so in my bible I don't preach with notes anyway but in my bible I'm staring at this headline. It says, what defiles a person? Obviously, because I've read the entire book of Matthew, I know where Jesus is going next in this text.

As I'm thinking about this particular header, what defiles a person, I was sharing with your brothers and sisters in the first gathering, I was sharing with them that one of the things that I've been paying more attention to over the last two years is the condition of my heart. And it started when, like in the beginning of the launch of 2819, which was about almost two years ago, in January of 23. Now, I got this report from Brandon, who is our director over logistics, and he does the operations in terms of logistics. And I don't look at all of our reports in terms of attendance. I don't look at our financial reports. I don't know how much money came in last week. I don't know how many people was in here last week. I don't pay attention to that stuff. And I was sharing with your family earlier that maybe that's an area of weakness

for me as a pastor. Maybe I should know what kind of money is coming in. Maybe I should know how many people are showing up. I should know that, but I just don't think about it. Okay, we all got our strengths and our weaknesses. That is an area of weakness for me. I don't think about money. My wife, she runs the budget in our home. I don't think about the bills. I've worked multiple jobs my whole life. She takes care of bills. If it wasn't for her, we'd be under a bridge. So I don't think about money. It was my father-in-law before he died. He said to me, just listen, when you start your churches preach the gospel trust God to provide you don't got to manipulate people and I've been that way for 10 years I I I'm not doing a $50 line I'm not gonna do a hundred dollar line I I don't think

about money and and maybe I should so I'm not good at raising capital I'm not good at raising capital. I'm not good at getting everybody to give. That's not my strength, okay? I love teaching, and I love exhortation. I love the proclamation of God's word. And I remember Brandon came to us not that long ago with the report, and I just happened to look at that report, and he was reminding me that in January of 23, the first message I preached from Matthew under the new ban of 2819, there was 183 people in this room. It was scattered. There was empty chairs everywhere. And I remember how discouraged I was sitting there on the side knowing I'm about to get up here and preach to 183 people. The room was practically empty, but I kept my head down, and I just stayed faithful. I said, Lord, whoever you put in front of me, I'm going to proclaim the gospel to them as it is set in the word.

And I remember when Brandon came to us a couple weeks ago and staffed me and said, do you know there's over 2,500 people showing up on Sundays at 2819? I said, excuse me? It's a true story. I said, excuse me? He said, there's over 2,500 people showing up every Sunday morning at 2819. It might be over 3,000 people in the church right now. And I said, how did that happen? We're just preaching the gospel. We're just walking through Matthew. No gimmicks, no stunts, no special promotions. How did that happen? I didn't even know. And when he told me that, man, it got into my heart. And after the meeting, I was thinking about that. There's thousands of people that come to 2819.

Like, how is that possible? And I started thinking, and I was thinking about that. There's thousands of people that come to 2819. Like, how is that possible? And I started thinking, and I was thinking about it too much. I don't think about attendance. I don't think about money. But I started thinking about that. And as I thought about it, I started smelling myself. Anybody's ever smelled yourself? I'm not talking about you need a shower.

I'm talking about you knock something out the park and you was like. Like you started, like anybody know what I'm talking about? You started feeling this. I mean, come on, you see this on social media, people feeling themselves. Side note, the most popular person on Instagram is Vanity. She has more followers than anybody else. Right? So I was almost like feeling myself for just a moment like, oh, snap. Like people are really showing up to hear the proclamation of the word.

And that, listen, that thing, this is a true story. I'm just being transparent. That thing got in my heart. And as I watched what God was doing in 2019, I seen his favor. I seen the growth of the ministry, the growth of our influence. Man, the more God elevated us, the more I wanted to go down in my heart. The more he elevated us, the more I wanted to be humble. The more he elevated us, the more I wanted to deflect glory, and when I started smelling myself, you know what I did? Man, I told my wife and my kids I got to leave. Two weeks ago, three weeks ago, whenever this was. I went, I got myself a hotel. I took two jugs of water, my notepad and my Bible, and I locked myself in

a hotel room for a week. It's a true story. I locked myself in a hotel room for a week and I wrung out my heart in that week. I wrung out my sin. I wrung out pride. I wrung out arrogance. Everything in me that was making me feel myself, I started feeling like Philip Anthony Mitchell. Man, I went in there and I wrung out that sin before the Lord. I read the entire New Testament and I came across Paul's words to the church at Corinth. Yo, neither the one who plants nor the one who waters, they are nothing but only God that makes things grow. That's why it is error to boast in yourself, in our preaching, in our singing, in our whatever.

It's error to boast. The Lord says, neither the one who plants. Or if Kenny comes behind me in water, he said the one who plants in water is nothing. But the only person worthy of glory is the one who makes things grow. That's why it is offensive to God for men and women to boast in anything except the cross. This is why Paul said, I boast all the more in my weaknesses. So that the power of Christ can be displayed in me. I'm a hood dude from Queens

with no theological education. Still struggling with my own weaknesses, my own failures, my own lusts, my own issues, my own pride, my own arrogances, my own issues, my own pride, my own arrogance, still dealing. Here are all these people. Here is 2019. And how dare I feel myself even for a moment? and so in that week man i i wept i cried i found new instrumental worship i wrung out my sin that's a healthy thing to do you know watch and and this is important because listen to me as i was in that

hotel room like this passage has been serious to me for a long time now matthew not now matthew i'm sorry psalms 24. It's one of my favorite psalms now. When the writer asked a question, who can ascend the hill of the Lord? Who's going to stand in his holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart. He is the only one that will stand in God's presence. So this thing about

purity, listen to me. I'm just, I'm freestyling. This thing about purity is important to me. I'm trying to remember what I shared with the first gathering. Purity is important to me. And I know when you hear purity, the first thing you think is sexual holiness, and it's not that. Purity in the Scriptures has less to do with sexuality. When purity shows up in the Old Testament, it has to do with cleansing. And in the Old Testament, cleansing, watch, external things, buildings, basins, lamps, like cleansing things to make it pure. But Christ, in the New Testament, when he comes, he transfers purity from things that are external to things that are internal.

It's why in his first sermon, he said, blessed are the pure in heart. They shall see God. And there's a lot of people I know from your foolishness, you have not seen God. I know from the way you wall out, you have not seen God. I know from your foolishness you have not seen God I know from the way you wall out you have not seen God I know from your lack of faithfulness you have not seen God I know from the fact you never shed a tear you have not seen God I know from the fact you think that this life is all there is to offer you you have not seen God I know the fact that you don't desire to be with him in glory. You have not seen him because when you've seen him, you even want to be with him. You'd be like Paul. You'd be like,

it's okay to be here, but I would rather be. And if I can choose, I would rather be with the Lord. And the truth is a lot of you have not felt that ever because you have not seen God. Because once you see him, once you get a revelation of what he has done for you, you'll be like Paul who said, I am betwixt. Half of me like, I want to leave and go be with the Lord for to be with him is much better oh snap but when I think about all of the churches and all of the people that still need to hear the gospel I know I still got to stay in this wretched body and when you've seen the Lord, you start to hate the flesh. Anybody, you almost get angry like, I hate you.

Why are you always lusting? Why are you always mad? Why are you always angry? Why are you always rebellious and disobedient? I hate you. I hate you. I wish I could just take you off. I wish I could just take off the flesh.

See, you feel that way when you're seeing God. And for as much as you think this is not important about a defiled person, listen to me, family. All of your issues, just let me just freestyle. All of the times I've hurt my wife, I've hurt my children, every person I've ever hurt, every mistake I've ever made, all of the hurt that you have exported into the lives of other people, all of your insecurities, all of your hang-ups, all of your self-condemnation, all of your beating yourself up all the time, all of your battle and shame, all of the stuff that you hate the most, you know where it's coming from? It's coming from your sinful nature and flowing out of your heart. The scripture says from your heart comes all of the issues of life. And I know somebody says, oh, he got such a good heart. No, I know what the scripture says about my heart comes all of the issues of life and I know somebody said oh he got such a good heart no I know what the scripture says about my heart and yours I don't need to

know you I know what the scripture says about your heart that your heart is wicked and it is deceitful and the question is who can really know it your heart will deceive you some of you think you all of that and you can't see your blind spots you can't see them dark areas in your heart will deceive you. Some of you think you're all of that and you can't see your blind spots. You can't see them dark areas in your heart that are offensive to the people that surround you. That's why, side note, that's why one of the best things you can do is when multiple people are telling you the same thing,

you should probably pay attention to that. I don't know where that came from, but I probably need to say that again. When multiple people who love you and who are spiritual and godly are telling you the same thing, you should probably pay attention. Don't deflect because that stuff is coming out of your heart. And so since the church has been growing and since God has been blessing us with favor this thing that has been important to me me Philip Anthony Mitchell I can't speak for you me I really want a pure heart listen now I'm no no listen to me I want a heart that is pure I want an interior life that is consecrated I want God to look into my heart and see his image there.

I want God to look into my heart and see his commandments there. I want God to look at my heart and see someone that hates his sin. And when things keep rising up that are anti-Christ in my mind and in my heart, I want to just keep wringing them out. I want a heart that's not defiled. Right? So I'm looking at this head of what defiles a person. And verse 10 says, and he called the people to him and said to them. Now I'm a pictorial person. I was telling you brothers and sisters. So you're getting a little bit of how I study. When I study, I ask questions of the text. When I read, I see images. So this is not like fairy tales. It's history,

right? So you remember last week, Jesus was rebuking the Pharisees, his principal enemies. He was having a one-on-one conversation with them. They came to him, confronting him about his disciples not washing their hands before they ate and they said why do your disciples break our traditions he turns it back around and said why do y'all break the commandments of god he calls them hypocrites and i encourage you to not be a hypocrite but to be real to not be fake to not be phony that there, that there should be congruence between what you say and what you do. So just imagine, it says, and he called the people to him. So in my mind, as I read the text, I see him fussing out the Pharisees. I like that. Then like turning his back on them, saying, I'm done

with y'all. Then he looks out over the crowd and he says, y'all come to me real quick watch come to me and he says hear and understand that's powerful to me because it's like y'all been listening to these pharisees like a lot of us listen to the false teachers all the time and so what jesus does he pivots to to protect the people from bad doctrine so he he rebukes the Pharisees. We're creating a sermon, right? Do y'all see this in your mind? Like, come on, walk with me. Y'all got to help me because I'm doing this just off the cuff now.

He rebukes the Pharisees. He calls the people to himself. And I can see him turning his back to the Pharisees to protect the people from their bad doctrine. He says, I want all of y'all to hear and understand. Now, let's just read the text. It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person. Did you see that? I'm coming for all of us who are legalistic, who condemn people for eating pork.

I remember this was me when I was in the nation of Islam, bowing down five times a day and praying, not eating pork until I got frustrated. Like, yeah, pork is a filthy animal. It'll tear up your heart. But if you eat it, that doesn't defile you. That's what Jesus says. If you eat bacon, it doesn't defile you.

I mean, let's be honest. Can we be real? Bacon is one of the best things to get you out of bed in the morning. Like, that thing will grab your nose. Anybody? It'll pull you right out of... And you'll be in your bed and bacon will just smack you. See?

But some of y'all, man, you're so legalistic. You've been hanging out around Hebrew Israelites and hanging around about people with false doctrines, and they say, don't eat, don't touch, don't taste. You've never read Galatians. Don't eat, don't touch, don't taste. Don't do, don't do, don't do, don't do. The scripture says for freedom, you have been set free. So we shouldn't think just because somebody's a vegan, you're more spiritual than somebody who eats ice cream. My wife and I were vegans for four years, vegetarians, and there was almost an air of arrogance on us. Like, look at all of those carnivores. They shouldn't be eating all that meat. It's not healthy for them. You're right. It's not healthy. I mean, the Lord originally created all of us to be vegetarians. The only reason we ate meat is because of sin. If it was no sin, we would still be eating what he gave us in the garden.

Fruits and vegetables and berries. We'd probably be much healthier. I eat steak. I eat chicken. I lift weights. So I'm not knocking meat. Trust. I eat all that good stuff.

But listen to what the Lord says. Nothing that goes in your heart, nothing defiles you. Just bless the Lord and eat your food. So we should stop condemning people for their diet. If they eat meat, they eat chicken, they eat fish, we shouldn't condemn them for that because that doesn't defile. In essence, it doesn't make them unholy. It may make them unhealthy and you may end up with Christ before your time, but it doesn't make you unholy. So we should stop condemning each other for doing that, right?

He says, what goes into the mouth does not defile a person, but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a person. So whatever flows out of the heart is what defiles a person. What you say defiles a person. Whatever's coming off your lips is what defiles a person. And what's coming out of your mouth, we know it's attached to your heart. So we know what you're about by what you post, by what you say, by what's coming out of your heart. We know how you get down. You know how I get down, right? So he says, man, listen, then the disciples came to him and said, do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard you saying this? Now, I'm looking at this and it's crazy because it's like, I see the disciples coming to him in

private saying, Lord, when you was talking about not washing the hands, you know, the Pharisees was offended at your teaching. It's crazy to me because he called them hypocrites. Like we're studying together, right? Just put the two together. Who is offended at truth? Hypocrites. People who don't have congruence are offended at truth. Hypocrites are offended at truth. People who are duplicitous are offended at truth, right? They're offended at truth. And some of us, man, you'll be walking on eggshells around people. You're scared to post a passage because somebody following you might get offended. Brothers and sisters, man, offend them for the gospel's sake. I don't know why we're always trying to sanitize the scriptures. No, the gospel is offensive. You know what the gospel says about you and me?

The gospel says about you and me that you are a sinner. The gospel says that you were born in sin. The gospel says you are separated from God. I know you think that God is my friend and you got a bracelet. No, the scripture says if you are not born again, God is your enemy. That God got beef with you. He got issues with you. This is what Paul said to the church at Ephesus, that all of us who are not saved, we are the objects of God's wrath. It's crazy to me to see people in the world, or they be at their little awards,

I want to thank my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. No, he's not your Lord and Savior. He's not your friend. He's actually your adversary. He is your judge until you are saved. We don't want to offend nobody. No, we need to let the atheist know and let the Muslim know. Yes, God loves all human beings, but until you are saved, according to Paul, they are objects of wrath. Not objects of affection. When I was unsaved, the Lord had beef with me.

When I was in the street, the Lord had beef with me. When I was doing, the Lord had beef with me. And the only thing that kept me alive until he won me was his grace. No, everybody look at me. Watch. Watch. We're going to clap for this. We're going to clap for this. He said, but I thought I was the object of his wrath when I wasn't saved. Yes, but you was the object of what's called common grace. That is Lord being kind to everybody, even if they don't deserve it. So we should be thankful that he kept you alive long enough to bring you into the kingdom. So the Pharisees are offended. Now,

who gets offended? People are offended at truth. offended people are offended at truth man offend people with truth and people are offended at the gospel good the gospel is offensive it tells me that i am a sinner separated by god listen and and some of you you i know you you were born in the church you. You've been in church your whole life. You were born on the altar. Your mother gave birth to you on the altar. So you think you came out saved. You never read Psalm 51 when David said, in sin did my mother conceive me. You see, that's why we all need the Savior. No, listen to me. People think I don't need Jesus because you preach him wrong. Yeah, walking up on some wealthy man saying, come to Jesus. He's going to make your life better. He don't need your fake Jesus. Let me tell you who needs Jesus. Everyone who was born in sin,

when the Lord takes the Ten Commandments and stacks it up against you on the day of judgment, nobody is going to get past that ten without Christ. You don't believe that? I could run you through all ten right now. Some of you won't get past the first one.. You don't believe that? I could run you through all 10 right now. Some of you won't get past the first one. The Lord is going to judge the whole world by his moral law. Those 10 commandments, everybody is judged by them. That's why it points people to their need for a savior. You say, you don't believe me. Take the rich man and the poor man and just give him the first commandment. You shall have no other God before me. 99% of us are not going to get past that one. If you loved anything more than God, you've already broken the first one. You shall not covet. If you've ever

been jealous of somebody, you've broken that one. You shall not steal. You ever took a pen from your job, you've broken that one. Taking stuff from your job and putting it in your, you've already broken that one. You stole a paperclip, you've broken that one. You shall not bear false witness. If you've ever told a lie, you've already broken that one. You shall not bear false witness. If you've ever told a lie, you've already broken that one. See, and you stack yourself up against that moral law. You realize, oh snap, I'm hell bound. That's why we need Christ because he was the only person that fulfilled the law perfectly. He lived a perfect life. He lived a perfect life in his mind, in his thoughts, in his heart. He never broke the law. That's why he was able to die a sacrificial death, exchanging his righteousness for your unrighteousness so that you, a guilty sinner, could stand justified before God. you're not righteous because you have good behavior you're not righteous because you

come to church we are only righteous if we stand in Christ so that when the Lord looks at me through the ten commandments he sees Christ in me and when he sees Christ in me, he looks at that son and daughter, he says, ah, righteous. They make a mistake, righteous. They commit a sin and get back up, righteous. They wasn't faithful in one season of their life, righteous. Righteous. Gosh. Dang.

Anybody thankful that you're clothed in christ when you were wilding out in your mind and your heart, man, but the Lord sees you clothed in Christ. This is why, man, we should love Christ and adore Christ and exalt Christ and be lovers of Christ and proclaimers of Christ. Because when my Father in heaven sees me as righteous, he sees me because I've been clothed in Christ. Watch. If it's anything other than that, you can boast in your good works. Or because I've been in church my whole life, you can boast in that. Or because I've been moral, you can boast in that. Or because you're a good person, you can. But see, no one can't boast because none of us can get past those 10 laws. What verse are we in together?

So he said, man, they was offended at you, at your saying. And verse 13, he answered them, that's okay. Every plant my heavenly father has not planted will be rooted up. It's giving the wheat and the weeds. It's giving the parable of the wheat and the tears. It's giving a couple messages ago. It's giving when the Lord says he's planted sons of the kingdom and the devil comes and plants sons of the darkness, sons of satan they both live in the world together they grow together they look almost alike they're at the same job they're at the same church they creep into your squad they grow together and the lord said leave them alone he said don't worry at the end my father is going to uproot all of them that does not belong to me. It's giving. The reapers are coming. It's giving.

You can't fool God. It's giving. You can hide out if you want, but the Lord is going to bring a separation at the end. It's giving. Stop playing with God. It's giving. It's giving. Stop thinking you're safe because you come to church.

It's giving come out of false religion. It's giving come out of moralism. It's giving come out of legalism. I'm about to go deeper. For the atheist in the room, the non-follower of Jesus in the room, I'm going to take a step of faith. The Islamic person in the room, the Muslim in the room, the five percenter in the room, the Mormon in the room, it's giving. Run to Christ while you hear him pulling on your heart. It's giving. Tomorrow is not promised to you. It's giving. Today is the day of salvation. It's giving. Listen to the brother that was once in Islam and was delivered into the kingdom and his eyes was open. It's giving. Today is the day of salvation. I don't know if they're in the room because I can't see. But it's giving run out of false religion.

Run out of moralism. It's giving hurl yourself on the altar and say, Lord, forgive me for my sins that's carrying you to hell. I feel something in my heart. It's giving Christ, pouring out a type of love on you in this moment to awaken you that how many times you're going to keep hearing that call. It's giving, I'm calling you again. I'm reaching out to you again.

I have a plan for, I'm reaching out to you again. It's giving like, surrender this time. It's giving, just trust me and see what I do with your life. Why is this important? Oh my gosh, that was a transition. I like that. That's how I write sermons. I ask questions like transitions.

That was dope, Rhonda. That just came from the Spirit. I didn't even know where we was going, but I like the way that felt. Why is that important? For the next verse. For Jesus says, let them alone. They are blind guides, false teachers,

false apostles, false evangelists, false pastors, false apostles, false evangelists, false pastors, false prophets, false Facebook preachers, false imams, false fill in the blank, the leader of the mosque, false Mormon leaders, false Joseph Smith, false Mary Baker Eddy, false Confucius, false. Joseph Smith, false. Mary Baker Eddy, false. Confucius, false. Muhammad, false. All of them buried. Only one man, we never found his bones. Jesus called the Pharisees, who were false teachers, listen to his word for them, blind.

And he said, if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit. Yo, you know what that's code word for? If false teachers keep getting propped up by ignorant people, they all are going to end up in hell. This is why you got to love sound teaching and love sound doctrine. This is why, man, I was telling your brothers and sisters earlier, this is why you got to hate false doctrine. Man, this is why, listen, man, I gave everybody in the first gathering a homework assignment. I give you the same thing. Like, I was saying to them what I'm saying to you right now before I finish. Listen to me, man.

This is one of the things I'm trying to protect you from. Too many of y'all listen to blind teachers. You know how you know you listen to a blind teacher? They make every sermon about you. And they put you at the center of every text. And they make the Bible about you. And you are the hero of the Bible. And you are the hero of every sermon.

And all of their preaching is motivational and inspirational. And all it's about is moving you and your emotions. So they got to force you into the text. Forget exegesis. It's eisegesis, which is exegesis. They lift a scripture out of context and they use it as a platform to springboard into a 45-minute talk about what they want to talk about. And in the talk, they make it all about you. It is all self-help and narcissistic.

And what they're creating for you in your mind is a God that does not exist. A Jesus that does not exist. Watch. So you're praying based on everything being around you. You think the Christianity revolves around you and the Bible revolves around you and God created you so he could serve you. Listen, I know some of y'all have been perverted by that because listen to your prayers. You go into your prayer closet and it's a 45 minute begging session for everything that you want. And when he doesn't answer your prayer, watch this, you're mad. Watch. How many Christians have you heard? Man, they're frustrated with God. He's not answering my prayer.

And he's not answering prayer because you've ascribed to a Christianity that's not in the scriptures. God did not create you to serve you. He created you to serve him. See? So when you understand that, it transforms your prayers. Your prayers become, Lord, what do you want me to do? Lord, transform my heart. Lord, open my eyes.

Lord, increase your anointing on my life Lord open the door for me to share the gospel Lord what do you have for me to do Lord purify my mind Lord help me in my marriage help me to be a good husband help me to be a good wife you're crying out for inner transformation

so you can be a better witness and a better disciple can I go deep again you You're crying out, Lord, your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth. Watch. You're crying out for the lost. You're crying out for the unsaved. You're praying for the people gripped in the east by Islamic strongholds. You're praying for Jesus to keep appearing to them. You're praying for Jesus to win them and love them and deliver them and save them. You see drama in the news and you cry. You see people who are unsaved and you cry. You see people who are far away from God and you cry. You hear people sitting on the famous Atlanta pastors that said Jesus was 85% wrong when he was under Joseph. And you get angry at that.

I don't care. I said that. How could any man stand in a pulpit and say 85% of his life Jesus was wrong because he was submitted to Joseph? Are you hit in the head you are a wolf and a false prophet so how could you talk like that you said the lord of glory listen pay attention god in a body was wrong watch see this is why and people in the church celebrate because they don't read. Now, just look, common sense. If Jesus was God in the flesh, and according to that pastor, 85% of his life he was wrong,

that means Jesus was in sin until he was 30. If Jesus was in sin until he was 30, how could he die for you? How could an unperfect lamb die for humanity if he was in sin? If 85% of his life he was in sin, that means he was sinful until he was 30. But watch. But especially black people, we hear that and we throw towels at them and we celebrate them and we say, don't judge them. And as long as you have itching ears, there will always be a market for false prophets.

This is an example of everyone who celebrated in that moment of the blind leading the blind who don't read, who don't think. The minute somebody says Christ is wrong, up, out, back door. You cannot blaspheme my Lord and Savior like that and think it's going to be okay. What are we talking about? If the people of God don't stand up for your Savior, who's going to stand up for him? We're just a bunch of cowards.

We let anybody talk anyway about the Lord and we say nothing. I tell you right now, disrespect Muhammad. Watch how the Islamic community rise up. I've never disrespected Muhammad. I know he lived in the 600s. I know he was a great leader. I know he was a visionary. I know he hijacked foreign religions and created Islam. I know he had a vision. I just know he was not the son of God. And I just know he created a false religion. And I just know he saw a demon and his wife and his uncle convinced him, just say, no, God visited you.

So I don't disrespect him he was a great leader I just said he was not the Christ he was not the son of God he was never raised from the dead he is not seated at the right hand of God the father make an intercession for me. I was supposed to just be reading. I'm sorry. Gosh, man. No, I know what happened. I'm stalling because I really don't want to leave. I don't want to leave y'all. I don't.

I don't want to go. This is the first sabbatical I don't want to leave. I'm enjoying this too much. I love y'all too much. Somebody said you're going to be right there when I get back? Who said that? You're going to be right there when I get back? Anybody going to be right here when I get back?

All right. All right. So let's just finish. All right. Let's just read the rest. 15. And Peter said to him, explain the parable to us. And he said, are you also without understanding? Do you not see? And let's just finish to the end. Do you not see that whatever goes into... Now remember, Jesus has corrected him about the washing of hands. Do you not see and let's just finish to the end do you not see that whatever goes into now remember jesus has corrected him about the washing of hands do you not see that what goes into the mouth passes through the stomach and it is expelled that is you can moral with your diet is not what defiles you.

You can eat whatever you want. Verse 18, but what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart. And this is what defiles a person. Now, before we close, I just want you to pay attention to this word heart. Jesus says what defiles a person is what comes out of their heart. This word defiles in their context could be like stuff that's in the sewer, in the trash. He says what ruins a person is what's in your heart. Everybody look at me. Before I let you go, look at me. The Lord says, what ruins a person is what's in your heart. You don't believe that? What has toppled ministries? Things coming out of the heart.

What has toppled businesses? Things coming out of the heart. What has ruined politicians? Things coming out of the heart. What has ruined marriages? Things coming out of the heart. What has toppled businesses? Things coming out of the heart. What has ruined politicians? Things coming out of the heart. What has ruined marriages? Things coming out of the heart. What has destroyed relationships? Things coming out of the heart. Listen, all the things that ruin human beings are things flowing out of the heart. So where should we be focused on dealing or focused on?

The heart. The heart can't be fixed in your own effort. You have to be saved. The Lord has to be in there in the person of the Holy Spirit, working sanctification in you. You can't fix your heart by being moral. You can't fix your heart with good behavior. Christ has to fix that heart.

And look at the last thing he says. I know you're not going to like these last verses. He says, for out of the heart come evil thoughts and murder. Some of y'all say, well, I've never committed a murder. 99% of us, we're safe. No, you're not safe. Because Jesus said, if you hate anybody without cause, you've committed murder in your heart. So if you've ever hated somebody, I hate my father, I hate my mother, then you have killed them.

That's murder. Just look over your shoulder. See how many people have you slain. He said, listen, the list that he's given right here, he says, when I see these things in you, these are the things that defile you. That make you like sewer, putrid in my sight. So what defiles our hearts, mine and yours? Evil thoughts. Everybody slow down. We land in a plane. We're like, we're cruising into Atlanta airport. Evil thoughts defile the heart. Murder, physical or hating people, defiles the heart.

Adultery defiles the heart. And he's not just talking about the physical act. You remember what he said in the Sermon on the Mount? Brothers, brothers, brothers. Brothers. You stomach through social media and you come across a pair of hips and you slow down and you come back. And now you're stuck there for 20 minutes. You've just committed adultery.

For if anybody looks with lust, Jesus said, you've committed adultery. Sisters, sisters, tall, dark, and handsome. But that's somebody else's husband and you're dreaming about them at night. You've committed. I wish I could find one person in here that's never felt lost. You can come up here and finish the message see i wish i could find one person that never had a foul thought has never disliked anyone for bad cause see defile bad thoughts murder bad thoughts defile murdertery, sexual immorality.

Do you really want me to? No, no, get out of here, pastor. Go to sabbatical. Go to sabbatical. Go to sabbatical. We don't want to talk about sexual immorality. Oh, not in the American church. We don't want to talk about that, right? But listen, I don't want to beat you up, but I just want to tell you that the scriptures, in the scriptures, sexual immorality, God hates it with a passion because it's a sin against your own body. Sexual immorality is worship with another human being before God. That's why they put prostitutes in the temple in the Old Testament. So when you're laying down and you take something that God intended for the covenant of marriage to watch, bind two human beings together. Man, when we use it for our own personal edification, our own personal desires, our own, man, it defiles the heart.

Man, this became important to me i was telling the early brothers sisters i remember when my wife and i got saved i'm gonna put myself out there i already got permission so i could say this again i know your mother might be watching but we don't we in we in too deep now right i remember when i first got saved my wife and i first got saved we lived in an apartment together she couldn't afford to get her own apartment. I couldn't afford to get my own apartment. And I remember that first night, man, after we got saved, I came out of that bathroom weeping tears. I knew God saved me, but she, my wife, I'm attracted to her. That one right there and i i remember man i went into that room and and we blessed the lord that night

laid it down that night but I was a Christian now so as soon as soon as it was over I felt guilty for the first time and now the spirit alive in me brought the law of sin in me and I'm like oh snap this don't feel good and you know I did? I started sleeping on the couch. And she stayed in the bedroom. And I set a boundary so I can honor God. And for months, I stayed on the couch. She stayed in that bedroom. Did not touch her after that first night.

We got married in an office. A pastor, I went to a pastor and said, listen, I don't want to be in sin. So he married us in private. Nobody knew. So we could be holy at home. And then we had a public wedding later on and everything we were so broke because remember i lost my job i was in prison the day after i got saved i lost my job at the tsa had no job and and god moved on people's hearts to pay everything for our wedding we honored him in private he honored us in public. We honored him in private.

He honored us in public. And I just pray some of y'all would hear, like, you would hear this and be like, you know what? I pray that there will be an explosion of weddings or an explosion of separations. One of the two. People in this room, because I want people in our church to take sexual immorality. Listen, this thing in our culture, I want us to take it serious. I actually want to pastor a church where people are taking sexual immorality serious. We're either marrying people left and right or people are breaking up left and right.

They're creating boundaries left and right. Like I really want couples to be like, yo, yo, yo, yo, you look good. Like, babe, you look good, but boundary. You know what? Why don't you have a different kind of sex? Have sex with each other's mind. Have sex with each other's spirit. Why don't you have a different kind of sex have sex with each other's mind have sex with each other's spirit why don't you make love with conversation and honor god with your body watch how clear your mind is gonna be

move on philip move on move on move on move, move on, move on, move on, move on. I was telling your brothers and sisters, y'all clapping, but y'all numb to this. You know how I know you're numb to this? Because you see the minister on social media, the minister on Instagram, and he's having his fourth gender reveal, and he's not married to the woman he's with. And then you go on there, and you like his post post and you say, oh, congratulations on the baby. And every time we do that, we are promoting his sin. This is your fourth gender reveal in eight years to a woman you refuse to marry,

but you are minister on the platform. And every time you go up there and like that post, see, you think, oh, but it's just, it's the baby and we got to celebrate the baby. But what we're really doing is celebrating sin. My first child was conceived that way. And I'm talking to you like this. Watch, because this is called love.

I want you to stop thinking that we can do church and live any way we want and think you're going to be okay in the end. I'm trying to help you. I'm actually trying to help you. Before I read the last verse, you know what I'm trying to protect you from? I don't want you to be the object of Matthew 7 21. For in that day many will come to me and say, Lord, Lord, did we not do all of this in your name? He's going to say, you know how terrifying it's going to be to die? Stand before the Lord. I went to church my whole life. I gave my tithes and my offerings. I served on a team. I was wilding out the whole time though.

And he's going to say, you thought you were safe. and I already know you brought your friend with you and your friend is like this how he talk every week I ain't coming back there next week go to the church where the blind is leading the blind. I just want you to love the Lord and here's what I want you to do. Just try.

I told everybody in the first gathering you have homework I want you to go home and read first John because y'all don't believe me you you think you think I'm so radical no I think this should be normal I I I encourage you go home and read first John and see how they talk in the New Testament go home and read first and second Peter read Galatians see how they talk in the new testament go home and read first and second peter read galatians see how they talk in the new testament come up for air and then turn on american preaching and tell me does it sound like what you read in the bible or are we being duped by blind guides who are leading us to hell why am i talking to you like this because listen j Jesus doesn't want you to have a defiled heart. He says, these are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.

You know what I want for you? I truly want for our church. I want to... Hold one truly want for our church. I want to... Hold one note for me, Sam. Gosh, man. man I pray about this every day except Friday I pray about this every week I shed more tears about this

than anything else how desperately I want everyone under the banner of 2819 local and abroad to be truly saved. Truly born again. And pursuing Christ with your whole heart. Loving him, obeying him. Trying to live right before, like, I want you to not have a form of godliness.

Man, I want people to run from the ways of the world, run from vanity. I want you to enjoy the beauty of holiness and purity and life in the spirit. I want you to wake up in the morning and you feel Jesus because you're living for him. I want you to be going through the day and you're having interactions with Christ because he sees that you're trying to live right. I want you to lay down in your bed at night and you feel the assurance of Christ. I want him to be speaking to you and loving you and wrapping his arms around you. I want you to be revealing things to you in the word. I want you to go into your secret place and you feel his presence.

I want you to love him. I want you to see things on social media that's not right, and you start to cry, and you pray. I want you to be in the gym, and you're praying for the loss. I want you to be walking through the stores, and you're concerned about the loss. I want you to be an agent that at any time God can use. I want you to be a person who's anointed for God's service. Any place he sends you in any circumstance you are ready I want you to be a person he can trust with resources and revelation and truth and insight I want you to be powerful I want you to be a

man of character I want you to be a woman of integrity I want you to be a woman as virtuous I want the most prettiest thing to be a woman of integrity. I want you to be a woman that's virtuous. I want the most prettiest thing to be on you is what's on the inside. No, hear me, especially my sisters. I know your face is dope. I know your hair and your bundles are dope. I know you got a shape. I know you keep your feet done. I know you dope, but the prettiest thing about you should be what you got going on on the inside. See, I don't, nobody want to clap for that, but watch, you know why you don't want to clap for that? Because you have not read it. When Peter said the beauty of a woman should be that of a gentle and quiet spirit. The beauty she has on the inside.

You've never read that. So all your post is trying to get attention. And then all you're doing is making your brokenness palpable for everybody to see. The more you keep flaunting, the more we know you're insecure. Man, and I want to, listen, I think 2019 is a revival. I truly think the Lord is doing something in 2019 that is an anomaly.

It is a revival. It is waking up Atlanta. It is waking up Atlanta. It is waking up the country. It's making people think differently. I think God is doing something here that is special. Listen to me. People flying here to be in the room.

2019 is not a building. It's not this brick box that we're in. It's a people. It's not this brick box that we're in. It's a people. Come here, Len. It's a people. And I want Jesus to... I want Jesus

to be like, he's searching. I want to give birth to a revival in the southeast. I want to give birth to a revival in Atlanta. He's searching. Can I find a group of people that would turn their heads towards me? That would give their heart, that would stop, that would come out of sin, and they would run towards me for real. On them, I'm going to pour out everything. Why not us? Why not now? Why not in this hour? Why not be the light shining on a hill?

Stop making 2819 me. Stop making it this building. Stop telling people I'm going to church. No, we are the church. Oh, would he have to wait 20 years from now to find another group of people say let me try it with them come on man come on man this is in my heart man come on you know what i want i want when i leave i want to come back to a church that's better a church that said you know what man we're going all out for jesus we the summer is the time when people sin the said, you know what? Man, we're going all out for Jesus. The summer is the time when people sin the most,

but you know what? We're about to hold it down. We're about to hold it down. Yeah, we're going to be out here in these streets in the summer proclaiming this gospel and praying down the heavens and curbing ourselves from our sin and wringing out the pride that's in our hearts. Man, we're going to be apologizing to people and loving each other deeply and running from sin and setting boundaries and being holy and being anointed and feeling fire

on Sunday morning. We're going to be the people to do that. I want people to bump into you with the shirt on. Like, dang, listen to the way they talk. Listen to how they pray. Listen to how they live. Listen to how they love. I want you to do more than church.

This is like Sunday. If it's just church, that's lame for me. I don't want to lead a church. I want to lead a movement. I want to know that I died and I gave everything for the glory of the one who rescued me. what defiles a man or woman? Not what you eat. What's in your heart.

And my prayer for you is that you would think deeply about purity and about your heart and you would come out of hypocrisy. Come out of being alive in here and full of sin out there. Come out of hypocrisy. Come out of being fake. I want people to say, what church you go to 2019 and they bump it into authentic people.

Like, like, like, you really love him like that? Like, y'all really pray like that? My prayer for you is that during the summer, listen to me. Two things. One, that you would take seriously the stewardship of your heart. I don't know if... that you would take seriously the stewardship of your heart and you would allow my wife and i the grace to rest if you would be kind to us if if if you if you have enjoyed my preaching if you've been impacted by any message i ask ask that you would in return, that you would be kind to my wife and I. She's been under a lot of pressure.

She's been holding our house together. She's been getting stuff right for the staff, getting stuff right for the church. She's leaving for Africa in three days. My house right now is tense. We're under a lot of pressure right now. We got to pour into Izzy before she makes whatever decision she's going to make. I've been selfish because I don't want her to leave. I'm dealing with the emotions that my daughter's graduated, and I'm going to ask that you would be kind to us by allowing us to rest and to pour into my children. How can you do that? I don't want to get phone calls from my

staff that people are not coming, and people are not giving, and people are not serving, and people are not showing. As soon as you checked out, pastor, the people checked out. They made you an idol, and as soon as you left, they left. They said they're going to come back when you come back. Please don't do that. Please allow me to rest by not worrying about you. And I won't have to be worried if I know everybody's coming every Sunday. Everybody's being faithful in their giving. Everybody's being faithful in their serving. Everybody's praying.

Like, I wanted to come back to a church that's better than the one that I leave. We said, Pastor, you know what? While you're gone, we got got you not just in praying but in faithfulness i don't want to hear man the money dipped and now we can't pay the staff and we can't pay our rent to be in the building and people like i don't want to have and i'm on zoom calls while i'm trying to pull into my like would y'all just be gracious to us it's like when Paul was writing to the church of Corinth now do this much more in my absence be more faithful more generous more committed more dedicated let the let the leader send me a text in the middle of the summer saying the church is stronger than ever before

people are serving they're coming they're praying they. People are serving, they're coming, they're praying, they're giving, they're loving. Listen, it is phenomenal. Watch. Rest, man of God. Rest, woman of God. Would y'all do that for us? Got anything you want to say to them before we leave i don't hello everyone good all right awesome um you know what we do what my does, it is very weighty. You know, I know a lot of people don't know the life of a senior pastor or whatever. And a senior pastor that really is trying to do this thing for real is heavy. It's a heavy, heavy weight that he carries week in, week out. And, you know, we as his family, we feel when he's going through. We don't always articulate it.

We don't always talk to him about it. But we know we have to roll with whatever he's rolling with, you know. And every year when we get ready to take our sabbatical, I get kind of like antsy, like, I don't know. You know, we just love being here. And, you know, I don't want to leave my responsibilities. And I feel very called to our people. But after we come back, while we're in the sabbatical, I see a different version of him. I don't know if my kids, we've never really talked about it, but it's a more relaxed, a more engaged.

And I'm not saying that he's not engaged with us because he is, but when he's just able to rest, it is good for our family. It's good for us. And I just want to thank everybody for allowing us this time to go and just, and rest and connect and, you know, and dream and, um, you know, just seek God for ourselves so we can come back a better version of ourselves for you guys. So, um, I just want

to thank everybody, you know, um, I love you guys. I know I don't know everybody and the, our family's growing, our spiritual family's growing so fast. And so, I mean, it's just amazing to me. Um, but yeah, I love you guys. We love you. Uh, we think about you guys all, we think about our spiritual family all the time. Um, And we will come back better. So. Thank you. One last thing I want to say I just want to um encourage everybody because you know pastor was saying um you know we we are called to make a difference and I just want to encourage everyone that we is you know how you hear people talk about, oh, it's the next generation. No, we are the generation of world changers.

We have the ability to make a difference for Christ. Even though you may feel like, why would God use me? I'm so inadequate. I'm so like, I don't have the knowledge. I don't have the confidence. You know, he can use us. And he is using us even now. So I just want to encourage you guys. We are people of change.

We can make a change for the better. We can impact people for the glory of God. It can be done through us. It doesn't have to be the next generation. We are the generation. So, yeah. I was going to pray over you and release you, but I would disobey the Holy Spirit if I don't do this. Would everybody bow your head and close your eyes for just a moment? Just a moment. There's a man, a woman in this room.

A man, a woman watching me right now. You feel Jesus working in your heart. You feel convicted. You know you're a sinner. You know you've broken God's laws. You know you were just like me. You know where you're headed. But you sense as the word was being proclaimed that the Lord started doing something in your heart.

You started crying or shedding tears. I know you're in the room. You felt the Lord meet you right there in your chair. You felt yourself giving your life to Christ. You felt something supernatural happening in your heart. A woman testified that happened to her while I was preaching. She felt God save her in her chair. She serves on a team today. That happened exactly a year ago. I'm talking to you. You know who you are. You've done church for a long time.

You've done the world for a long time. You're tired. You're weary. You want a heart that's not defiled. You felt like Christ was working in your heart. You're sitting in a room and you were shedding tears feeling like the Lord was working. You felt like Christ was working in your heart. You're sitting in the room and you were shedding tears, feeling like the Lord was working. You felt like the Lord saved you right there. The Lord is saving somebody right now. If that's you, before I walk out of here for the last time in a month or so, I'm about to embarrass the devil and I'm going to pray for you and celebrate you. We're not in no rush.

You know what? And you know what? No, forget that. Every eye open, every head up. If I'm talking to you with everybody watching, that one brother, that one sister, I want to lay hands on you. I want you to get up from your seat,

tell the person next to you, get out of my way and I want you to approach me right now. And I want you to shame the devil and approach me right now. Come on. I want you to shame the devil, and I want you to approach me right now. Come on. There you go. Come on. Come closer. Come closer. I want you to shame the devil and approach me right now. Come on, y'all celebrate as they're coming. Come on. Celebrate. Have you found the Lord doing something in your life?

Run to Jesus right now. Run, run, run, run, run, run, run, run, run, run. Run to Jesus right now. Run, run, run, run, run, run, run to Jesus right now. Run, run. Run your rounds, Jesus. Jesus, breathe within Lord, have your way Lord, have your way

In me Like a mighty soul Like a mighty soul Serve within my soul Lord, have your way soul lord have your way jesus Jesus breathe within Lord have your way Lord In me Like a mighty storm

Like a mighty storm Stir within my soul Lord have your way Yes, cry. Like a rushing wind. Christ, shed tears, Christ, Christ, Christ, Christ, Christ. Lord, have Your way Amen Like the rushing wind Jesus breathed All the noise and noise Have Your way He ran away Lord, have Your way in me

Like a mighty storm Still beneath my soul Lord, have Your way in me In the night Like a mighty storm Slurred within my heart Lord have Your way In the night Like a rushing wind Jesus breathe

See Lord have you won Lord have you won In the night of my death Like a mighty storm Like a mighty storm Sir, within our soul Lord, within our soul Lord, have Your way Lord, have Your way

Lord, have Your way In me Like a rushing wave Like a rushing wave Like a rushing wave Jesus breathes Jesus breathes And I'll have you up And I'll have you up

And I'll have you up With me Everybody look right at me. Please don't move. Please don't move. Please don't move. Just give me two minutes. You're not going to see me for a couple weeks. Just give me two minutes.

Everybody at this altar, your head bowed. Only you. Don't look at me. That's my God daughter. Somebody bring her closer. Let her in here. That's my God daughter somebody bring her closer let her in here that's my goddaughter let her in here leave her right here every head bowed every eye closed at this altar you're just telling the lord you're sorry for all your sin you're confessing your sin saying lord i'm sorry i surrender in your own heart, right now, just say, Lord, I surrender right now.

No magic prayer, no pixie dust. It has to be a sovereign work of God. I see people shedding tears all across this altar. I want my elders up here. I want Kenny up here.

People weeping everywhere. the Lord is catching these tears he sees you on your knees my brother please don't move and now father I pray over every man and woman at this altar. Every single person up here shedding tears. Tears of repentance. Tears of brokenness.

Tears of surrender. Tears of saying enough is enough. I thank you, God, by the power of your Holy Spirit. You are sovereignly saving, transforming women. I thank you for that brother that's shedding tears right there. He's going to be a better man when he leaves here. I thank you for this brother that's shedding tears right there. He's going to be a better man when he leaves here. I thank you for this woman that's shedding tears right here. She's going to be a better woman when she leaves here. I thank you for my God daughter. Father God, I pray God your spirit that is coming alive on the inside of them right now would burn like a fire on the inside.

I pray God you'll give them a deep love for your presence, for your word, for the gathering of the saints. I pray you give them a hatred for the things deep love for your presence, for your word, for the gathering of the saints. I pray you'll give them a hatred for the things in the world, the things that are sinful, the things that are ungodly. I pray, God, you will lead them down the paths that you had for them, God. I thank you for the sister that's crying out right there. Her name is being recorded right now in the book of life. I thank you, God, Lord, for all of them, Lord, that you are saving right now and delivering them from hell and from darkness, that they belong to you. And now,

Father, you said, when one sinner repents, all of heaven rejoices. So, Father, right now, we rejoice. We rejoice. We rejoice. We rejoice, we rejoice, we rejoice Jesus we wave it Lord have Your way in my life Oh like a mighty sun Like a mighty sun Sun within, So within my heart. Lord, have your way.

Lord, have your way. Lord, have your way. Lord, have your way. Have your way in me, Jesus. Like a rushing wind. Like a rush. We ask you, Jesus, breathe. Breathe.

My God, have your way. My God, have your breathe My God, have Your way Lord, have Your way Have Your way in me, Jesus Like a mighty storm Surrendered my soul Lord, have Your way Lord have Your way In me

In me My crushing way My crushing way Jesus breathe Jesus breathe And Lord have Your way Have Your way in my heart Have your way in my heart Have your way in my mind, Jesus

Like a mighty storm Like a mighty storm So even if I Lord, have your way My God, have your way Have your way in me, Jesus Lord have Your way, my God have Your way Have Your way in me Jesus, like Your rushing wind Jesus breathe within me

Lord have Your way, Lord have Your way Like a rushing wind, like a rushing wind Like a rushing wind, like a rushing wind Like a mighty song, like a mighty song Like a mighty song, like a mighty song Like a mighty song, like a mighty song Like a mighty song, like a mighty song Like a rushing wind. Like a rushing wind. Like a rushing wind. Jesus, breathe.

Lord, have your way. Lord, have your way. In heaven. Like a mighty storm come Soar within my Lord, have your way Lord, have your way Lord, have your way

Lord, have your way Amen She went Jesus breathed With him Lord have your way Lord have your way In me

Come on y'all say it like a mighty storm Like a mighty storm. Stir within my soul. Lord have your way. Lord have your way. In me like a rushing wind. Like a rushing wind Jesus breathe in

Lord have Your way in me Like a mighty storm Stir within my soul Lord, have Your way In me, Jesus, there I know You're there Jesus, Jesus, where are You? I know Jesus breathes And I have you

I have you And I am I am I am I am I am the light So is this, so is this I am the light Lord, have you a light, have you a way

Lord, have you a light, have you a way Lord, have you a way Yeah Jesus, please, please Lord, I'm your man Lord, I'm your man Jesus Everybody look right here. Everybody look right here.

I want to know you more. I want to know you more. I surrender. Yes, I do. I surrender. I want to know you more. I want to know you more. I surrender.

Yes, I do. I surrender. I want to know you more. I want to know you I want to know you I want to know you I surrender I surrender I want to know you I want to know you more. I want to know you more.

I want to know you more. Everybody just all to look at me. If you can, I want you to look at me. If you can, I want you to look at me. If you can, I want you to look at me. Y'all don't move. If you're in the lobby, don't move. If you can, look at me.

Only God knows what is happening in your heart today. I don't know. I see an avalanche of tears falling. The Lord knows what is true repentance if he's really done a work in your heart. So I'm going to talk to you in faith like he's really done something in your heart. I'm going to talk to you like you were supposed to be here today.

If the Lord has really done a work in your heart my brother my brother those tears you got in your eyes my sisters my goddaughter that according to this book the scripture says all of your sins

past, present and future they have all been forgiven and wiped out by the blood of Christ. If you have really passed from death to life, then according to these scriptures, you're no longer object of God's wrath. You are now his son.

It's okay. You are now his daughter. It's okay. And even now his daughter. It's okay. And even when a parent failed you, you have a heavenly father who loves you perfectly just the way that you are. And will not leave you the way that you are. According to this book, you have passed from death to life. You escaped hell. Eternal glory is your new future.

And you are headed down the paths of righteousness and purpose for God's glory. If you live in another city, when you get back to your home city, you need to find a Bible teaching church and plug in there. Listen to me, because time is running out. Christ is going to return soon. You need to find a place where you're hearing the Bible taught. And if you live in this city, you don't have to look no further. We welcome you to be a part of our family. You don't got to sign anything. You don't got to fill out anything. There's no membership. We're not opening the doors of the church. The only thing I'm asking you is to just hang out with us for six months.

If the Lord has not done anything in your life in six months, we pray you will be where God wants you to be. When you leave here today, there is a black tent outside and at that tent we prepared a gift for you in that bag is a copy of god's word the esv and material to teach you your next step in your walk with jesus it's not complicated you need to be fed like a baby and if you don't want the gift and you don't want to stop there that's fine fine. Just keep coming back. Just give us six months. Okay? Now, listen to me.

After today, you're going to make mistakes again. What's your name? Precious. How old are you? 25. After today, you're going to make mistakes again, Precious. What's your name, bro? Your name is Philip what's your name bro Rodney

Philip, Rodney and Precious my daughter is here my God daughter after today y'all are going to make mistakes again look at me but this time you don't have to beat yourself up

you fall down dang it I yourself up. You fall down. Dang it, I messed up. Lord, forgive me for my sin. Help me to do better. You stand back up and you keep walking forward. And then the last thing I want to tell you, what's your name? Trenesha. Woman of God, what's your name? Charlotte? Charlene.

And Trenesha. I want you to hear me. I want you to know that you're not alone in your walk. Even if you got ratchet, crazy friends, you're not by yourself Because I want you to know you have a family now and I want you to hear them So that's your family behind you. You heard that, Trenisha? That's your family behind you. You didn't hear them?

Y'all let Trenisha know she's loved. What's your name? Claudio. Y'all let Claudio know he's loved. Yeah! Those tears in your eyes? Today's the beginning of the rest of your life, Claudio. Today is the beginning of the rest of your life. You'll never be the same after today.

And I just ask you to do one more thing for me before I let you go. If you live here in the city, could you be here when I get back so I can talk to you every single week? What's your name? Cherish. Cherish. You live in Atlanta? You don't live in Atlanta. What city do you live in?

Petersburg, Virginia. You traveled here today to be here? For a wedding. But you wanted to come here. So you just slipped in here if it'll use here for a wedding. Look at me. You didn't come here for no wedding. The Lord used the wedding to get you to this moment right here. You came to Atlanta for your future eternally to be transformed.

So now I want to say to all my new brothers and sisters and everybody out there, as my wife and I prepare to leave, I commit you now fully into the hands of Jesus I commit you to the authority of the elders our highest authority in the church in my absence associate pastor Kenny I commit you to the hands of our senior elders, these godly men. A commission to the hands of the word of God. A commission to the hands of the spirit.

This is Christ's church. It's not built on me. It should flourish without me. Amen. Now everybody bow your heads and lift up your hands just gently may the Lord keep you may the Lord bless you may the Lord lift up his face and make his presence shine upon you and give you peace

may the Lord add to you now his favor and his goodness and his mercy. May he keep you in all of his ways and keep you in his love and keep you in his presence. I commit you now fully to Christ. Fully to his spirit. Fully to his word.

Fully to the authority of the elders. I love you with my whole heart. And I pray you'll be a better church when I return. I pray blessing over you. And all of our new brothers and sisters. In the mighty. And majestic. And the matchless name of our Lord and Savior.

Now somebody take the roof off of this house.