Life.Church with Craig Groeschel - Chasing Light, Part 2: Greed

Episode Date: March 14, 2015

Light brings clarity. It’s the catalyst for growth. It helps us find our way. Life simply can’t happen without light—and there’s nowhere it shines brighter than at its source. Get a better glimpse in Chasing Light. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Hey, everybody at all of our life churches. It's great to have you with us today. And our network churches all over the world, we love your pastors, and we love every single one of you as well. Church Online, welcome today. We've got back a great guest speaker who was with us last week. Before we dive into today's message, I want to tell you our next series is very, very special to me. It's called I Deserve It. We're going to look at four gospel stories and see that people deserve something bad.

but because God is good, he didn't give him what they deserved. The thief on the cross deserved death, but God gave him life. Peter deserved to be counted out, but God gave him the second chance. Zekees deserved to be rejected, but God, through Jesus, accepted him. And the woman caught in adultery, she deserved condemnation, but God gave her grace. I can't wait to share this message series with you called I Deserve It. But today, it's my honor to welcome back to lifechurch.TV. Pierre from Rochester, New York.

Actually, he's from South Africa, who moved to Rochester, leads an amazing church called the Father's House. If you want to listen to his teachings every week, you can listen to him on the Father's House or on iTunes. This guy, he will minister to you deeply because he's a great man of God. This message is born out of prayer. I love this man. I'm thankful for his ministry.

Would you please join me in welcoming today, Pastor Pierre DuPicci. All right. I'm back. It's so awesome. I want to take a moment and just honor your pastor. Let me tell you a fantastic story. I love to baptize. Baptize to me as like a doctor bringing babies into this world. It's the most beautiful, the most beautiful moment. I get really, really jealous when they have other people baptized people. I'm like, I want to get in. I want to get in. It's such a beautiful moment. And I baptized the young man. His name was Peter. and Peter had an accent and I picked up on that accent really, really thick Irish accent

and when I baptized him he began to share his story with me that because of church online that your teams have developed here at Life Church and we've been riding on that since the beginning Peter received Jesus and when he heard in Scotland that we are

yeah Scotland that we are baptizing Peter Peter flew all the way to Rochester, New York to be baptized. And after that, he went straight back to Scotland. Listen, that is what you guys are doing. You are giving permission. You are giving the framework. So I want to honor your pastor, Craig, and his wife, and this beautiful team for what you guys are doing. Craig, thank you so much.

We deeply appreciate it. Now, I don't know why it is, but you guys were talking about my accent, and you're like, yay, accent. It's not so fun when you go through drive-through. It isn't. You know how I do it? My kid's on the back of the car. I open the back windows, and I tell them what to say. Because it's so hard.

I don't know why. We had a series, and the message title was Stuck in a Fence. And it was plain in my ears, and I get to church, and it was the days of the bulletin. And on the bulletin, it says, and today's message passed up here, stuck in a fence. I'm like, what do you preach on stuck in a fence? I said stuck in a fence when you're angry.

You know what I mean? Not stuck in a dumb fence. Anyway, let me pray. Let me pray. Then we're going to get back to that message because I know that today's message is going to bring up the heat wherever it's heard. Every time I preach it, it brings up the heat in my own life because it challenges something so.

uniquely about us as human. Come on, let's pray together. Heavenly Father, would you put weight to the words I speak? God, would you give entrance to your word? God, I pray that you would unveil all those foolish arguments that are keeping us in bondage. Thank you, Holy Spirit, that you are mindful of every heart. Those who are in this place right now and hearing this message that feel far, would you just gather them real close? Let them just experience the warmth embrace of a God that loves the worst part of them. And I thank you that those who are near, that we will just feel the urgency of your heart for lost people. Thank you that you hear the spray in Jesus' name, amen. Now, last week I shared with you a story. Now, if you were not in church,

I'm going to be so kind and I'm going to retell the story. Now, I know for a lot of you, that have heard the story I'm about to tell you, you're going to try and remember what I said and go like, oh, his story changed. I'm going to purposefully change it so you can't say that. But I'm going to stay as close as I can. Why is this story so important? Because over Christmas, 2 a.m. one evening,

or actually in the middle of the morning, I was reading the story and it deeply impacted my life. This is how the story goes. A wanderer stumbled this way into the property of an old monastery, an abbey. Now that monastery is everything that your mind will tell you right now. The old stone walls reaches into the forever. These walls carries the story of lives, people, families. This village history is so thick in these walls.

There is a very distinct sense of silence, but it's not silence, really. It's peace, tranquility. You know when you're just being to breathe much deeper, but then there is an animal smell, cows, maybe chickens, that provides for this very simplistic community, and this wanderer was very curious, and he began to look for the front door, and he found this big old door, and as he opened it, it creaked, and his eyes began to adjust to the darkness. And if you've been in one of those monasteries, you know the beauty of the simplicity of something

that is just so ancient. Oh, but his eye immediately caught a small-figured woman, and she looked at him, and it kind of startled him because she walked towards him, and she had a bit of a snap in her step. But when he saw her eyes were gentle and a whispered, she said, what is it that you seek? He said, well, I really just want a few nights to sleep. She smiled.

She says, well, we've got an old cottage in the back that we've been using as a storeroom for a while. And if you prepare to clean it, you can sleep. Oh, he agreed, and the two of them began to walk off to this old cottage. And she began to instruct him. When you get to the cottage, the windows are boarded up, and you've got to pull it off and scrub the windows, because unless light enters the room, you would not know what to clean. Then out of the blue, almost out of context, she said this.

Ancient saints have identified three things that obstruct light from entering the human soul. Pride, preoccupation with our own importance and our own power. Now, if you've not heard the message from last week, you've got to hunt her down because I spoke about pride. Then last preoccupation with pleasure, especially sexual pleasure, and one day your pastor's going to do a phenomenal job preaching that message. But here's the one that she said, greed, preoccupation with possessions, especially money. Then she gave him a bucket to scrub, and it's almost like she never said that, and work began, and he began to clean, and immediately the light began to penetrate the window and it began to reverect. and it began to reveal what's been living in this darkness for a long time. Layers and layers and layers of dust, spiders, and pigeons, mice,

a whole bunch of implements that are just rusted. Oh, with that, she came and she gave him a pillow and a sheet, and she says, have a good night. Well, you can't really have a good night in this mess. But in the next morning, there was a knocking at the door, and as he opened, she smiled. wanting to invite him for breakfast and she says how was your night he says not so great she laughed she says of course it wasn't look at this place dilapidated it's falling apart she says how can you sleep in this and then out of the context out of the blue she says

maybe that is why the world is so prickly that's so hard to get along with because most of them have not had a good night of sleep Their souls are in disrepair. Darkness. Light has not entered the room. Their souls remain in darkness. Now, where I want to rest here today, is the one thing that I know we are all born with. And that is a preoccupation with possession. Listen, every single baby that's born is born with hands that take.

I know she's your princess, but she's coming for your wallet. I'm telling you right now. Because before she's going to say mommy or daddy, she's going to say mine. Her first barnyard fight is going to be around possession. Well, let me tell you something else that is crazy. It doesn't change much in their teenage years. Because you see, their world becomes more cruel filled with judges. based on brand. Their frail and fragile self-esteem is made to believe that acceptance comes through possession. And then they go to college, and the college letters begins to pour. And my son is in that stage.

So all the colleges are saying, we want you. He came the other day, and he brought all the letters. He said, Dad, look, everybody wants me. I go like, no, let me explain to how this work. They want me. You just go on behalf of us. because I'm paying. That's who they want.

Because the moment the letters for colleges come, so comes the credit card. Hey, we love you. You're awesome. Pay now. Pay later. Why wait and work hard like your parents until you're 45 to get what you want? There are ways to get it right now. You see, this is not greed.

This is just early infection. This is just the danger. that comes in early, because you see, this is the one thing you've got to understand with greed. It takes time to incubate and develop, but once it lays, hold of your heart, it will ride you all the way to the grave. Now, let me just clarify, and I want to say this very carefully, that greed is not measured in possession, but an infection. Because it's very simple. You see, if you measure it in possession, after church, you can walk down the parking lot and go like, greedy, greedy, greedy, not greedy, greedy, greedy, and the way you do it, anything that is newer than

your 74 Ultsmobile is greedy. You see, it's not how it works, because I have made poor, greedy people. Greedy manifest in people, not in possession. I wrote this because I really think this describes it best. Greed is the anger and the entitlement because I have a right to possession. A greed is the envy towards those who have stuff. Greed is the gluttony of stuff. It is the sloth of thoughtless spending and consuming.

Greed is the pride of having stuff. But above it all, why is it's so important? And we talk about greed. I'm going to tell you why, because greed destroys our ability to really trust God. You know what it promises? This is the bill of sale that greed brings. If I have a lot of stuff and if I've got a lot of money, then I can secure my future and my future happiness.

I don't have to trust anyone because I have taken care of it all. I don't need to walk and trust relationship with God. I don't need a shepherd because this shepherd's doing mighty fine, baby. So that is exactly what greed does. It tries to erase God as your source. You say, how is that even possible? I want to read to you in the book of Lucas' story. You know the story.

But I want you to stay with it. Don't check out on me, okay? I want you to count how many times this guy talks about himself in the first person. In the book of Luke chapter 12, verse 5 to 20, it says this. Then Jesus told the story, a rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. He said to himself, what shall I do? I don't have room for all my crops. Then he said, I know I will tear down my bonds and bold bigger ones.

then I'll have room enough to store all my wheat and other goods, and I'll sit back and say to myself, my friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now you can take it easy, eat, drink, and be merry. I don't know about you, but I get real concerned when somebody talks to themselves on the first person so many times. Because there is no mention of other people. He never said, look what God is doing to my life. I'm going to help a lot of, oh, no. You see, greed has room for no one else but you because it's saying the more I have the more I'm secure in my future greed knows no limit to hoarding and storing you see I've come to this conclusion ladies and gentlemen that greed is purely rooted in unbelief and fear and somehow it believes that tomorrow

may come to a meltdown and if I'm not ready if I don't have enough for my tomorrow then I'm going to be in this demise. And let me tell you what it does. It totally erases the activity of God as an active source in your tomorrows. Do you know if the world melts down that our God has already been there? Do you understand that he is able to make all grace abound? Do you understand that the God who has brought you this far is the God that can lead you through? If you can only understand, listen, if you can only understand how much of your now, right now,

is a product of God's goodness over your life, and how little of what is going on right now in your life is about you? I heard the story, maybe you have two, of a woodpecker that was just picking in this tree, but he didn't see that the weather was tumultuous, and the next thing, a lightning bolt hits out of heaven and split the tree in two. Pow! The woodpecker look around, and he, He turned to the other woodpeck and says, I didn't know I had that in me.

Isn't it true? That if we look at our lives and thinks it's because of us, not understanding, it's the goodness of God that has brought us this far. Listen, I believe that if we erase the activity of God's provision in our lives, we will lean towards self-determination. You know what it says? If it's going to be, it's up to me. And I believe that is so dangerous. So the question that I always ask is this, how do I detect greed in my own life? Well, I'm going to say something that you may not agree with.

Let's just say you're going to fight this. And I don't think you fight it mentally. I think you fight to deal with the truth of it. I would fight to deal with the truth of it because there is a very simple equation of how you and I can determine how much greed is gripping our heart. It's very simple. You turn back in the last six months of your life. and see how much you have given towards two specific things.

Not your feeling towards those things. Your actual giving towards those things. Now, turn to your neighbor and which you just tell them, man, the heat's rising right now. Is he preaching to you or what? Because this is freaking you out. I can tell. It's okay.

Because remember, we were all born this way. We all deal with it this way. None of us in this place are pure saints. We all deal with it all the time. So these are the two places that God points us to give. So they came to Jesus one day and they said, hey, Jesus, should we pay taxes to this occupying dog, Caesar that is here, undermining everything that's beautiful? You know, he is the scum of the earth and he shouldn't be here.

We have nothing to. Should we pay taxes? I don't know if you've ever read that and go like, just say no, Jesus. Please, I beg you. Just say no. At least I can go like, Jesus said, no taxes. I guess no taxes. Because I'm a follower.

Jesus said, pay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar. You know why? Because taxes funds the earthly kingdom. Taxes is what makes our world work. But then Jesus says, but also give God what belongs to God. In other words, Jesus says as much as you don't like paying taxes, in the same way, there is the kingdom of God that needs to be funded. When I read that and I spoke recently about this, I said to people,

do you understand how much of the dreams of God has been frustrated because greed is occupying hearts? Do you know how many orphanages are not happening because greed is occupying our hearts? Because somehow we begin to believe if we do not hold back, we have no future. Listen, the place that God wants us to give is tied. Now, the book of Malachi, and I know, you know, the scripture, it says, bring one-tenth of your income into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house, and God says, test me in this way. I love that scripture, test me, because you find it nowhere else in the Bible.

God says, test me if you do that, because I know it's a hard thing. I know it's a hot thing. And now human heart to trust the invisible God to the extent that I'm willing to part with what I think I need in my tomorrows, that's a big deal, ladies and gentlemen. God says, you know what I will do with that kind of faith? I will reward it and open the windows of heaven over your life. You know what I truly believe? I've come to this conclusion that God can do more with that 10% than what I can do with that 10%.

That he is able to not only make His kingdom work better, but he will bless the one because of their faith. Now, I'm going to tell you something as a pastor. I have only enough faith for that kind of giving weekly. I have a debit order that goes through because I don't want to wrestle this thing every week. I don't want to go like, what does the Bible say again? Oh my gosh, I'm sweating right now, freaking out.

And especially if you miss it that second week and now it's double. Have you ever had that double overwhelmed feeling you're like, no, uh-uh, no. I owe you, Jesus. I, come on now. And then three weeks and four weeks time, you go like, that's Disney vacation. Uh-uh, uh-uh, uh-uh. I surrender Jesus, let's start again.

You know what I mean? I have faith for one week. But I truly believe with all of my heart that giving to God is what keeps greed off my heart, number one. But the second place that God says and points us to give is in 1st John chapter 3, verse 17 in the Living Bible. He says, but if someone who is supposed to be a Christian, I love the way he phrases that, has money enough to live well and seize a brother in need? and won't help him, how can God's love be in him? Oh, it's hot.

That's so hot because in my city, there's a lot of needy people. Maybe in your city is the same, but I know my city. But you know what is really strange about the way that God is wired me, and I'm afraid that there are many of me's among you? Every single time I see a needy person, I have this invisible. court case going on. I stand back and I become a very strong public accuser and a very weak public defender and I'm a judge and a jury all at the same time. I look at them and go like, they want some nice shoes over there. So where did you get those shoes? Because needy people

don't wear shoes like that. Are you scamming me? You know, I have a prophetic gift. I can discern. Are you scamming me? I'm going to tell you the truth. I once prayed for a guy. All the ask was a couple of dollars and I was young and I prayed God if he's lying I pray when he takes this money that he would drop dead Jesus please Lord teach him a lesson this is the truth I did you know why I did because I didn't want to give I want to make it hot and in that moment I'm just being honest with you in that moment if God dealt with me like I deal with needy people where would I be because I don't know about you but God doesn't give me what I deserve. He gives me what I need. How many times have I messed up made wrong

decisions? And then I go like, God, I messed up. And then His grace bails me out. Shouldn't His grace bail out people who do not deserve it? But he doesn't send angels. He sends Christians. He sends you and I. So the question is not, are they worthy of my grace? The question is, God, what do you want me to do. And I believe that you have an ability to hear the heart of God. And when there's no greed that has gripped your heart and you realize that when you become generous, the generosity will not cease. Listen, you cannot empty a generous pocket. You cannot. It's a law like gravity. The moment you begin to say, I'm going to trust the Lord and I'm going to live a recklessly generous life, you will begin to find that God will use you. Because the Bible says, when you give

They will turn to God and realize this is not normal. So let me step forward just a little bit. The question that came to my heart was simple. What is hindering my generosity? What is it? What is hindering for you and I to become lavish, extravagant in our giving? And simple, I know that there are many things I can say. I can go like, hey, I'm careful and I'm a planner.

I've heard a lot of people say, Pastor Pia, you have no idea how I was. raised. You have no idea how I struggled. And I understand, listen, I fully get what you are saying, but the thing that scares us the most is uncertainty. Do you understand that if you know you're going to win the lottery tomorrow, guaranteed, you will be a whole different giver today with what you have? Because if you're guaranteed tomorrow, wouldn't you just go like, hey, this is so awesome. Listen, the country that I'm from right now, their currency is so bad, it's 12 to 1. If you ever want to go and have a vacation, go to South Africa. Listen, I'm promoting tourism, South Africa. Go. You have no idea

how great it is. Wherever you go, you divide it by 12. Think through it. It is so awesome. You invite everybody for dinner and you pay $50. It's like, hey, who wants to come? I'm considered the most generous person. You know why? Because the money goes so far. They're right. But God wants us to have that kind of freedom. God wants us to be that kind of people. You're not. You're see, I've come to this conclusion. Wherever I focus my attention, it will either freeze me and lock me up, or will it release me in my generosity? Pierre, what do you mean?

Like you, I know what's going on in the news. Like you, I'm not clueless when we think about the oil prices that are coming down and the gold prices that are falling and ISIS is getting crazy, and the world is just an amaze. And we know something else is going to happen. And I look at my children and their future and everything that's got to go with that, when I begin to focus on those things, I want you to know that my heart begins to palpitate and I breathe shallow because I'm so uncertain. And I'm like, what if this is not going to happen? And my hands are getting tighter and tighter because I am so uncertain.

But you see, if I fix my attention on Jesus, who's the author and the finisher of my faith, when I begin to fix my attention on the Lord that is still my shepherd, he has never failed me yet. Listen, there is no single thing that the world can throw at us that God cannot. Oh, I can get down right now because the Bible says I've never seen the righteous forsaken or they seed beg for bread. Our God shall supply in all of our needs according to His riches and glory in Christ Jesus. My question is, is God more than enough? Has he been in your tomorrows? Does he know what is coming? Is he a good God?

Will he take care of us? If you don't, just look back because again, hey, the woodpecker, everything that has happened in your life. life up to now is his goodness and he's doing. And that moment when I begin to focus on the greatness of a God who is jealous over my life, I am confident that I can live with generosity in the now of my life. Because if not, darkness will come into my soul and greed will lay hold of my heart. There are campuses that will not be built. There are people that will not be helped.

Listen, because I've come to this conclusion, whatever God's going to do on the earth, he's going to position his sons and daughters bless their lives so that they can get on with the king's business. That's the way that God works. So I want to give you a couple of things because you see, the question is how do we defeat greed in our lives? I want to tell you this.

You cannot pray it away. You cannot even foster it away. You've got to give in order for the world. the tentacles of greed to let go of your heart. You've got to let go of it. I love how 2 Corinthians chapter 9, verse 8 says this. And I'm reading in the Amplified, and then I'm going to give you a couple more things,

and I'm going to close. 2 Corinthians chapter 9 verse 8, he says, and God is able. Can you just say that with me? God is able? Come on. Just one more time say, God is able. You know what it says?

He can be trusted. He's good for it. He is able to make all grace every favor and earthly blessing come to you in abundance so that you may always and under all circumstance and whatever the need is be self-sufficient. Listen, possessing enough to require no aid, support and furnished in abundance for every good work and charitable donation. You know what the Bible says. God is able to bless you in a way that you can respond to needy people and to the kingdom call of God. with great abandonment. So how do we chase the light, ladies and gentlemen? We've got to choose every day to live in generosity. How do we live in generosity? In my life, I can simply tell you that giving to God is weakly.

I believe in it because God commands he's blessing over that kind of faith. Secondly, I look for ways every day where I can be a blessing. Now I'm going to give you a tip, and then I'm going to give you a tip on the tip. Whenever you go through the drive-through, it's the greatest fun to pay for the car behind you. It's awesome, because most people want to follow you and say thank you. But then you just go faster than they go. It's awesome. But now be careful.

First find out how much they have ordered. I was recently, I saw some, Pastor Craig, I saw some kids in Starbucks from the church. I saw two of them. And I said to them, I'll pay for them. Now, here's the other thing. They can't know you do that. Then it's pride again. You know how that goes?

Like, hey, thank me now. No, no, no. You've got to be like a ninja. They've just got to go like, it's got to be an angel. I love that. So I gave him my card, my Starbucks card. We love Starbucks. Gave my Starbucks card.

I didn't ask a question. And then I put the Starbucks card back I paid. And when I got close to the church, the text message come through your balance is zero. I go like, I had 50 bucks in there. And then I started getting it. Twitter, thank you, from like 20 kids in the church. Thanks for the coffee. Thanks for the coffee.

I bought coffee for a whole truckload, a whole small group in that moment. So first find out what it is. Let me tell you another thing that the Lord prompts my heart. Somehow I always find myself in front of single old ladies that buy white bread, spam, and milk. Do you know that you do not need the spirit of discernment? to know that someone is struggling when it's white bread, spam, and milk. You don't need an invitation of heaven that says, I love throwing in a couple of things and then walk away.

And they go like, who did this? They go like, he was just here. And I want them to go like, oh, my God, must be an angel. How powerful that testimony. But recently, an old lady chased me down. I was running. She was running. This is true.

True story. And I looked at it and I'm going, she's going to break her hip. I've got to go catch her. And I ran to her. I don't know her from the bar of soap. All but $20 from my side. And the tears were trimming down her face. She had no words and all I can tell her,

God, lady, God is mindful of your heart. Jesus loves you. And I know you're looking at me. You're like, oh, I love your story. I love your story. Here's the thing God wants you to have your story. God wants you to have these kind of stories because you see, that is what it's like when the sons and the daughters of God is free from all that kind of greed and lust and pride that holds us captive like the rest of the world. So I can tell you this, that giving makes me more like Jesus.

Giving makes you more like Jesus. Because the starting point to the gospel is simple. For God so love the world that he gave. Can we pray together? Heavenly Father, this is a tough one. Because like Peter, I want to say, I believe, help my unbelief. Oh God, we get really, really stirred up in our hearts. And we can just hear a thousand arguments just pumping through our veins.

but I pray that you would help our hands to open for we have never seen the righteous forsaken all their seed back for bread God help us little by little to trust you and we will discover that you are able to make all grace abound in our lives that we too will be surrounded by testimonies of good things that God has done through ordinary lives

so I pray for people that are struggling right now God even like the widow with a might that out of the little they have, they will take a portion and share that with someone else. I thank you that you provide bread and seed to sow. So, God, I pray that you will help us, that the light of heaven will continue to penetrate our hearts. May your kingdom come, O God. In Jesus' name, amen. You guys tell, Pastor Pierre, thank you.

Thank you. All of our churches, let's continue. the similar attitude of prayer. Father, we thank you that you brought a great man to bring a great message about your great goodness in our lives. And so, Father, we pray your Holy Spirit would speak to all of us and that we would be transformed in your presence. All of our churches, as you reflect on what God is saying, I know that every single one of us, we can recognize selfishness in our own hearts. We're born with a selfish and a greedy nature. But I know that God is speaking to so many people as he is to me and really moving us beyond greed to a place of irrational generosity.

If God is prompting you, moving, you stirring you, you recognize you can't pray it away, you can't even fast it away, how do you get rid of greed, you'd give it away, and you'd say, yes, God, help me to be more like Jesus, help me to be even more generous where I am. Would you lift up your hands right now? All of our churches, I hope that's every single one of you would say, yes, God stir this with him. me. Father, thank you so much for a church full of people who are irrationally generous. God, empower us to lead the way with irrational generosity because we truly believe it is more blessed to give and to receive. Father, I thank you today for those who will tithe for the first time

returning 10% back to you. God, I thank you for those who give offerings above their tithe. Father, I thank you for those who see the needs in the community and give spontaneously to meet the needs. I thank you for those who generously help people every single day. God, give us eyes to see. We thank you, Father, that you've given us resources beyond what the vast majority of people in the world could ever even dream of. God, we are so blessed. Make us a blessing to others. We pray, oh, God, that because we've been in your presence, you would stir us to radical generosity, to be a blessing that others would take note and say,

why are they giving as they are and we can tell them about your son Jesus who gave it all to us. Minister to us, make your church generous for your glory we pray. All of our churches as you continue in an attitude of prayer, I love the way Pastor Pierre

ended his message talking about the greatest love of all. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son. Why did God send Jesus? because we needed his grace. Because every single one of us, we've fallen short of God's standard of holiness. All of us have sinned.

And so God sent Jesus to be our Savior, the one who was without sin, became sin for us on the cross, died and rose again. So that anyone who calls on his name, that includes you, anyone who calls on his name would be saved. God sent Jesus to give his life for us. our only reasonable response is to give our lives back to him. And honestly, that's why many of you are here today and you recognize it. Why would you not, and a selfishness and greed, you would be the Lord of your own life? But because of the goodness of God, because of what he did, you say my only reasonable response is to give my life back to him.

Today, by faith, I call on Jesus, I surrender my life, and I give him my whole life. That's your prayer today, all of our churches. is you say, yes, I surrender to Jesus today. I give my life to him. Would you lift your hands high right now and say, yes, Jesus, I surrender. All of our churches lift up your hands and call on his name. Church online, you click right below me. And as we have people at all of our churches calling out on him, as God gave Jesus for us,

we give our lives to him. Would you pray with those around? Do you pray a lot, Heavenly Father? Thank you for sending Jesus to give his life. so I could live. Forgive me of all my sins. Change me and make me new. Fill me with your spirit so I could follow you, know you, and serve you with all my heart. My life is not my own. Today I give it to you. I give it all to you. Thank you for new life. Now you have mine. In Jesus name, I pray. Life Church, would you worship big today?

Worship loud. Welcome those born into God's family today.