Time it gets messy the shepherds left work it's one thing to write a check but I mean to leave work to not work so much to give time to family or a friend or to minister or to open your home in a small group Oh but I have to leave work early and other people get ahead while I yeah takes faith doesn't it you're starting to see. Time is way more valuable. But it goes beyond that the Christmas story then introduces a new character and we get Joseph who's engaged and as you read disengagement period in the Jewish culture is you know the families would be involved in the families would agree this is the right man this is the right girl and in this culture would be a semi a range marriage and then there would be what's called the patrol and so you would get engaged and then you'd have up to sometimes a year and then with then get the house ready and get financially responsible and where they're going to live and live a tro the period was very official I mean it wasn't like today when you're engaged in say hey you know I'm not sure this is really right let's break in Gauge meant the only way to break an engagement then was to have a divorce now listen to Joseph Story in and think of what it would be like especially guys think of this is your girlfriend and you hear the story about her. Matthew Chapter one beginning verse 18 it says this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about his mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph but before they came together she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit because Joseph her husband was a righteous man he didn't want to expose her to public disgrace but he had in mind to divorce her quietly but after he considered this an angel of the Lord. That phrase often an angel of the Lord is the pre-incarnate Christ angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said Joseph son of David Do not be afraid to take Mary home with your wife because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit she will give birth to a son you will give him his name Jesus because He will save his people from their sins and all this took place to fulfill what the Lord said to the prophet the Virgin will be with child who will give birth to a son and they will call him Emmanuel which means God is with us when Joseph woke up he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and he took Mary home to be his wife now just you talk about your reputation All right guys those of you that think about way way back for some of you when you were engaged in your girlfriend comes to you and says Hey I just want you to know I've never been with another man but I'm pregnant and you say well how can this be. And she says well it's God Oh really yeah it's got Angel told me. Yeah Ok so let's get now you haven't and jelly visit and this angel literally I mean in the middle the night you have this dream and he speaks to you and says it's Ok and then he says this is the savior of the world the Messiah is coming Mary told you the truth this is the real deal I want you to do it now sometimes we read the Bible stories like Joseph Some wind up religious robot Oh yes God set it up I'll do it God set it up I'll do it he's a guy he's thinking oh wait a 2nd I mean this is this is when the sexual mores were way different than they are now I mean you could get stoned for adultery you don't have babies out of wedlock so now Joseph is going to marry a girl that's pregnant one of the guys down at the bar are going to say. Just a few full just a few idiot can you believe that I mean all of his life the suspect the suspicion how in the world could any man marry some woman who's pregnant with someone else's kid in that day his reputation gone. Let me ask you when you start thinking about money or time or reputation What's the most valuable What's the hardest to give I'm going to guess that group this size we have people that probably give your money faithfully and I bet there are people in this room that actually are pretty willing to give your time. But I bet there's some of us that as relatives come in or when a topic comes up at work and it's one of those black and white issues and you know the Bible says this and it's really clear in your personal convictions or here but you know if you would fly your flag and verbalize that they would think you're one of those bible thumping intellectual evangelical weirdos and you know what you do. Anything. Because what people think of you matters more than what God thinks of you and how you appear and it might impact your career and might impact the future. You tell people you go to church here and they look at you like so you're just not smart or what you're not a thinking person you're you're not an intellectual Are you willing to give God your reputation are you willing to kind of go out there on the limb and say you know Lord and by the way I don't mean be stupid I don't mean be argumentative I mean there's a lot of Christians that please you know act in ways that actually hurt God's reputation I'm talking about you know those areas when the Spirit of God is prompting you to step up and verbalize and model what you really believe and all this pressure that you're so afraid of what people think generous people. Joseph gave his reputation for Mary it was beyond her reputation I mean her reputation was ruined but she gave her future we picked the story up in Luke chapter one it's in the 6 month God sent the now notice the Angel Gabriel he's the great messenger of God who is announces the greatest announcements in Scripture Gabriel goes to Nazareth to a town of Galilee to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph descendant of David the virgins name was Mary an angel went to her and said Greetings you're highly favored the Lord is with you I mean I just I don't know how or where this happened but I just picture it had to be in a private place and you know maybe Mary was just getting ready for bed or maybe she couldn't sleep that night and and all the sudden. Changes in the room I mean light emanating out of him he starts to speak to her her response is Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be wouldn't you . But the angel said Do not be afraid Mary youth on favor with God you will be with child and give birth to a son and you're to give him his name Jesus this is really good because at least Joseph gets a dream that says Jesus is the name and Mary gets a visit as Jesus is a name so when they talk together they're on the same page. Then notice he will be great and we call the son of the most high the Lord God will give him the throne of David and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever and His kingdom will never end Mary understood what was going on here the throne of David his kingdom later in the same book she has this prayer this magnificent prayer and she talks about how God is faithful to the humble and she quotes $12.00 to $15.00 different parts of Old Testament passages this young girl was godly maybe 1516 years old knew God love God found favor with those words the throne of David Hill become the son of God she understood the long awaited Messiah God visiting the earth fully God fully man is going to take up presidents inside my body and I will give physical birth to the Son of God and I will be the mother of the Messiah. But she sort of had a methodology question and so her response is how can this be since I'm a virgin and the angel said the Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the most high will overshadow you so that the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God and then almost as though can you imagine all 1516 year old girl trying to take all this in and it's like the angel said you know by the way let me let me give you a little touch of reality you know Elizabeth your aunt Yeah you know the old lady who can't have kids yeah I mean way past child Yeah Right now she's 6 months pregnant and what we find is after this Mary goes and visits her and I think it was a great encouragement to her faith especially when she walked in the room and John the Baptist would leap inside of Elizabeth in recognition of this is the mother of the Savior of the world and he says for nothing is impossible with God and then I love her response because. Now I want to talk to you ladies and I don't know much about this except I have one daughter and one wife and I talked to my wife a lot about the dream she had someday and what the wedding would look like and this guy that she was going to marry and the kind of person he would be and maybe you know 2 or 3 kids or. You know when you're a young girl don't you have dreams about your future and what it's going to look like and who he might be and you know where you going to live and you know back then I don't think they had white picket fences but you know Mary gave her a future way her life was never normal and her response was I am. The servant of the Lord be it into me hoarding here where. You're listening to living on the edge with Chip and Chip's message today is from his series The genius of generosity for more information about this series or the ministry of living on the edge please visit our website living on the Edge dot org Well now let's join chip for the rest of today's talk here's what you got to grab. God who actually made all that there is wants to do things in you and through you beyond your wildest imagination but he doesn't have your heart and can start to guide you into you can demonstrate you trust him and you say Lord I'll trust you with the training wheels of of my money and then and then you begin to say I'll give you the best of my time and then it's your reputation and then here's a lot of people get there and what they say is now God here's what I want you know inside this box for my future as long as I work at this kind of job marry this kind of person never get geographically beyond where I am you know I just want you know inside this box you can do whatever you want with my life. And you know what God does with most people's lives he does exactly what you let into inside that little box and you can go to church and you can write your 1st check to the Lord and you can read your Bible and you can go to a little Bible study now and then and even share your faith now and then and feel like but but God's been tapping on your shoulders what about your future what about your future you're willing to go anywhere 80 percent of all the people in America have a job they hate but they won't leave it because the economic income is greater than doing what they were made to do. So I mean it's a scary you're starting to get generous when you say God I want to do with your future anything you want done in my future and that usually requires some sort of step of faith and then people that we interview or people that you know that have the sort of winsome attractive love for God that who's out of them it's the kind of Christians we all someday kind of want to be I will tell you what they've given their future to God and they're doing some things and experiencing saying they never dreamed whatever happened they thought it only happened really spiritual people really smart people really holy people and what I would tell you is the Bible is filled with only ordinary people through whom God does extraordinary things and their parentless it isn't gift or talent or smarts or heritage or background that for requisite is trust and availability and that's why the Christmas story has a graduate level in generosity because it's un likely people who God does improbable impossible amazing things as increasing levels of generosity and she gives her future and then Jesus does what he gives his life Mark 1045 for even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and give his life. For many the word for there means in the place of as a substitute for and you can kind of see I sort of picture you know down here they see a star a little bit of revelation they respond to it they get an angelic visit over here while he gets a dream with an angel of the Lord she gets a visit from Gabriel. Jesus. Before the foundations of the Earth looks through the portals of time in the eternal now and who for the joy not reluctantly who for the joy was it hard yes to the anguish in his soul Yes Was it in the garden was it a struggle completely I like that because it is for me too but when he gave his life it wasn't a reluctant it was for the joy set before him endured the cross despising the shame offering himself so he could pay for you and you and me and you and you and whosoever would believe in him the father goes beyond that the father gave his son in that window in that moment of time when Jesus hung upon the cross for the 1st time in eternity the father would turn away from the Son and the just wrath of God Your sin and my sin in the sins of all people of all time would be placed on him with assent offering and so he would cry my God my God why have you forsaken me. And he would take on your sin and mine and the father would give and for some of us as you learn to become generous and God uses you there is an eyes that can your life that's why the pictures in the Old Testament there's been times when one of my kids has been an idol in my life and God are you willing to let him loose and go away and pursue this career that I thought he's never going to make any money he's never going to have life and it's probably not going to work out. And it's a long way from here yes Lord or let your kid go to a mission field there's another time in my life when my wife was an idol. And she would tell you now that's one of the hardest most difficult times but what God did in and been through what precious possession What are you hanging on to that God just wants to pry your little fingers also of so he could let you experience his love last night at the end of the service there was a guy waiting around for quite a while and he. Thought what's up and he said I just came here to thank you I said for he said I've been kind of involved in ministry in 29 years old I'm going to graduate program now and I do some teaching in my church and I've told people all kind of stuff for lots of years but in the last 2 weeks 3 of the biggest things happened that just shattered my life and he said you know something they were 2 or 3 things that I've always held back even though I was involved in ministry and read the Bible in 2 or 3 things that were just not trusting of those and I for the 1st time in my life told God I'm all in and I surrendered my life I mean I've been a Christian for years but I surrendered all that I am all that I have got I want you to know I'm afraid but I believe that you're good in the Yukon you're a son and a shield you give grace and glory you won't withhold any good thing but now I'm taking that step and he said I just can't tell you what's happened in my life my heart I've been a Christian most all my life but the power and the experience of God and the love of God that I've heard about but never experience came because I gave Why what's the Scripture teach give and be given good measure pressed down shaken together run over back into your lap but it's not about money. Money is the training wheels Yeah when you give Yeah but time same reputation future life precious possession there's 3 little things I want you to fill in I've shared these but I want you just jot down 3 observations about the Christmas story and graduate level generosity number one generosity is not so much a virtuous act as it is a virtuous response each time it was God God put the star God sent the angels God was in the dream God appeared to Mary he loves you he's reaching he's drawing you so generosity has something great you do you respond 2nd God doesn't measure generosity by the size of your gift but the size of your sacrifice and I would just ask you to begin to ponder what would it look like to go from the step that I'm on to the next step on this journey where I was at there's a sacrifice but not as a some legal list to govern God's favor but I want to respond to God's love at a deeper level of love. And finally increasing levels of generosity bring increasing levels of reward and blessing. I mean each time the blessing is greater and greater greater and greater greater. Because you give and God always gets back. You know before we do anything I want to stop right now and I want you to think about what you've heard I mean this scripture completely redefines generosity I mean there's the there's the training wheels of money but reputation future life and then God is the most generous being in the universe he gave his son and as you listen today I'm sure you had the lens of generosity but have you ever received the most generous gift that human being could ever receive the forgiveness of your sins not based on your merit not working to sort again God's approval but to realize that Jesus hung upon the cross to pay for your sin in your place and that all you need to do is turn from your sin with the empty hands of faith and cry out Oh God I have fallen short I have sand I need you I believe today that Jesus died to pay for my sin I ask you Lord Jesus come into my life forgive me cleanse me. Make me your son make me your daughter I believe you paid the price and you rose from the dead and I want to follow you I want to receive your gift if you've never done that do it right now in your own words just tell God you're sorry for your stand ask Christ to come into your life and accept the forgiveness that you already have and for many of you who are thinking to yourself you know I remember when I did that Can I ask you. Are you generous the way Jesus is have you given him your future. Have you given him your reputation does your time and your finances reflect that your surrender that your all then give all that you have to God that he might take it turn it around and give back to you the life that really life. Now if you just prayed along with Chip I hope you'll take a minute and call a set 188-833-3600 extension 3 we'd love to talk with you and get a free resource in your hands specifically chosen to help you or if you prefer you can just go to our website living on the Edge dot org where you'll find that same resource on the new believers tab best of all it's available at no charge we just want to help you get started on your new journey of faith. Well for Chip What a day this is been great I have to tell you that teaching on money and wealth and work and the kind of things we're teaching on is at the core of discipleship and transforming people's lives I'm thrilled that I got to teach on this and I can tell you people will be realigning their priorities their lives in the finances because wherever their money goes according to Jesus their heart will follow so thank you very much for your support financially in this ministry that allows us to teach those kind of truths so if you're looking for a place to invest in ministry that will really make a difference living on the edge might be a great opportunity well if living on the edge is ministering to you and you want to be part of ministering to others across America and around the world today would be a great day to join the team to give a gift online just go to living on the Edge dot org Or if you prefer just give us a call at 188-833-3600 extension 31 behalf of chip and everyone here thank you for your prayers and your financial support Well I hope you'll be with us again tomorrow when chippy begins a new series called The real habit what the Bible actually says until then this is Dave Drury saying thanks for joining us for this edition of living on the edge. You've been listening to living on the edge with Pastor chip Ingram furnished by Dunn and Company on k j o l streaming live on the Internet at the k j a well dot au argy and our future does not depend on our. Welcome to reach in your world this is respond. And establish an American author and pastor once said greed is not a financial issue it's a heart issue and I have to say I agree with that the it doesn't take a rocket scientist to tell that greed drives. All sorts of hurtful behavior and results in all types of broken relationships this is why I've maintained focus on Hebrews 135 of the Bible throughout the years which says keep your life free from love of money and be content with what you have for he has said I will never leave you no forsake you I think the main reason people get greedy in the 1st place is because they believe the lie that their future depends on them they think I have to make this money so I can be secure in the future but the truth of the matter is that Jesus Christ is the only true security that will have a high of and he promises to never leave us nor forsake us this week pray about the people you know who strive to get the security from things like money and then start a conversation with them and share with them about God whose presence is so much better that in effect money could have a buy. This is nice but. Thanks for listening to the program and if you'd like to help with the band's Alyson tool contact just the day request a free copy of the Gospel of John is a practice pocket version titled Living Water is just right for giving away your free copy of living water polo 1800 s. Louis the number again 1800 s l u I we play this program encourages you that we hope you'll join us next time for more reach in your world with Louis. Dating apps now offer something else because in center on Johnstone street with the point as we've mentioned on breakpoint in the point more than a few times the us is facing a crisis of loneliness it's one of the tragic ironies of our over connected world that more people are lonely Well according to The Washington Post last week some major dating apps like Bumble have added a new service for people who are looking for friends to post article also interviewed a professional matches. He charges clients more than $700.00 to match them with 3 friends and this was interesting the people described in The Post story who couldn't find friends it was because others failed to check their boxes of interest . And that's part of the loneliness problem true friendship like all forms of focus on the other our culture preaches self interests. And no self sacrifice maybe if we were the kind of friend to be we could offer the world something it's missing . This is wondering if you've ever thought about becoming an investment partner of well you can do that by committing to an ongoing recurring gift of $45.00 a month or more or $540.00 annually it's important that we build a solid core of committed investors as we grow the impact of local Christian radio you can learn more at Facebook dot com slash radio or well. And remember any gift in any amount makes an important impact on those who listen every day you can donate online to at. With your credit or debit card just look for the blue donate button and remember to pray as well thinks. Evolution this is c.e.o. Of the ministry that. South of Cincinnati. Is 14000000000 years. Long before me all throughout history is a contract due to the gravity but the guy. Takes it from the effects of gravity. Explosion forces the contract but that assumes the. Universe has 300000000000 trillion. And yet. Formed much faster in the past but there's no evidence for this. There's so much more to discover about astronomy and the age of the earth when you go to our website answers radio. Or visit our planetarium and the high tech Creation Museum listen live anytime anywhere. On Facebook dot com. This is k j o Well listener supported Christian radio for the Western Slope urban Montrose and always had 91.9 f.m. Time for some of life with Pastor j.d. Greer next on k.j. a Well today on Summit life with j.t. Career if you see in the glory of Jesus and you've been convinced of the truth of His resurrection only to return intentionally to the above. What else is there left for me to say what could possibly be more convincing than Jesus' death and resurrection. In the sunlight with j.t. Rear I'm your host Elizabeth the undressed go once you've been saved you're secure forever you can't lose that salvation or can you today pastor j.t. Talks about this important question describing the proof of true saving faith it may not be the most comfortable topic but it's absolutely essential for each of us to evaluate where we stand with God we're in a series called Hebrews Christ is better and if you've missed any of the previous messages you can listen to them online at g.t. Grier dot com. Titled this message persevere. Pick up basketball at a local possible court point a game called 21. Just a one on one game with a guy and the guy was you know to say the least pretty rough character he had a long ponytail came down to the small of his back he had so many tattoos on his face that I honestly did not know what the original color of his skin was he had so many piercings in his face it looked like he'd fallen headfirst into a tackle box he cursed every other war if you like every word that came out of his mouth every sentence needed a few expletives before it made sense to him he bragged the entire time about girls he was sleeping with now this is not to say that I have anything against Gaza or ponytails or tattoos or piercings that's not the point of that but just to say that this guy did not fit the profile of a normal church person if you're going to think profile of the are in church this guy would be pretty much what you would think about and so about halfway through the game I started to share my testimony with him about how I'd come to Christ the way you would share it with somebody who's never been in church before and about 3 sentences into my story he stops he grabs the basketball and he says Dude are you trying to witness to me. And it threw me off a little bit 1st of all that I just knew the word witness you know as I went to church where you know that day and he goes he goes you're trying to witness to me he says bro that is so awesome he says nobody tried to witness to me in several years because the 1st time he said I get the look of part of the more he said well let me tell you a little bit about my background he said I grew up in a church school of my grandmother church and and he said I want to make Asian Bible schools and I was always in church he's about 14 years old I went to a middle school student can't he said a man that preacher got up there and he preached a killer sermon and I was so convicted about my sand and I came forward of the response time and I prayed and I asked Jesus to come into my heart he said I must a cried a 1000 tears he said I got bad ties at the end of the week started to read my Bible every day I started a f c a group on my school campus he said a sort of going to youth group all the time I want to mission trips I'm going to rise versus I haven't led to my friends to Christ the 1st 2 years after I become a Christian he said then I had my 16th year of high school or 6 months if you're Michael. 16th year when I was in high school he said and I His words were I discovered sex he said it's cover sex and I thought I like sex and I didn't want God tell me when I could have sat down when I could have sex isn't so I decided to put my relationship with God on hold for a little while he said that kind of went all the way through college then when I got to college he said I just decided I didn't believe in God anymore period he said you need to be honest with he says the reason I probably started to believe that God exists is I didn't want him to exist he says but you know however now he says I don't even believe there's a God he says I live however I what he said he said that is such a fate and distant memory for me he said but here is what is awesome he said I was raised he says the church that I was saved in was a Southern Baptist church he said they have this doctrine called Eternal Security which believes that once you've been saved you're always saved he said. And he looked at me he said aren't you aren't you a Baptist you know awkward silence for me and I didn't say anything he said he said he said I think I remember something like the church you could use about it or he said he said so here's what's awesome he was even if you're right even if there is a God and even of Jesus is the only way I'm still covered he said because I you know I got saved as clearly I meant it because I prayed this really sincere prayer and I was a Jesus freak for like 2 years this is so even if you're right there is a God I'm wrong I'm still Ok I'm still covered in that awesome meetings about that maybe it's like it's your shot now what do you say back to a person like that what do you say I mean just for the record I do believe the Bible teaches internal security and here he had asked it prayed as Jesus into his heart all indications were that he was sincere he showed immediate fruit getting excited about Jesus getting busy for him like I said I believe in the Bible teaches eternal security I'll show you that here in just a minute so was he right was he right can he because he made a decision that someone in the past live with the assurance that he is saved forever regardless of how he lives now we're going to look at a passage of scripture today that addresses that very question it is Hebrews Chapter 6 so if you have your bible that invite you to take it out and open it he reads 6 Hebrew 6 as you're turning there let me 1st explain to you why it is that I do believe. In what Christian theologians call internal security which is again the idea that once you've been saved by Christ you are saved for ever Here's why I believe that John chapter 6 verse 37 I will give you a couple of verses here the references down you can study a more in depth later John 637 all the father gives me will come to mean whoever comes to me I will ask have rats a lot better and never cast out and this is the will of Him who sent me that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me to raise all of them up on the last day all that The Father gives to Jesus will come all that come are saved not of them or lost. John 10 what 27 My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me and I give them eternal life and they will never perish and no one will snatch them out of my hand Jesus gives the sheep eternal life he says here and they never perish in the enemy try as he may not even the enemy can snatch them from the hand of Jesus Romans separate rest 29 for those whom he For knew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his son and those whom He predestined He also called and those whom he called he also justified and those who me justified he also glorified begin there is not one shred of room for anybody to be lost in that chain he did say some of those he predestined he went on to justify and some of them he glorified But you know God got a pretty good recidivism rate and once he you know start the process he's got like 90 percent that it has all once God put you on that train you never get off the conductor make sure that you make it all the way to the station so all those He predestined called there are the ones he justified and all the ones he justified they're the ones that he glorified That's why I believe in eternal security but with that knowledge with that knowledge knowing that we believe that when I believe that I want to read a warning in Hebrews 6 that seems on the surface at least like it's like it saying the opposite Hebrew 6 verse 4 for it is impossible in the case of those who have been once in lightened who have tasted the heavenly gift and have shared in the Holy Spirit and have tasted the goodness of the Word of God in the powers of the age to come and then to fall in a way it's impossible to restore them again to repentance since there crucified once again the Son of God in their own heart and holding him up to Contents Now before we unpack that. Verse of that set of verses let's let's make sure that you understand the context because it always helps whenever you interpret any verse to know the context of that verse and that's why I told you that the author of Hebrews brings up in chapter 5 of Hebrews a pretty obscure Old Testament prophet by the name of Mel sizzle That's right and right after he brings him up remember I told you that the author seems to get hacked off that the people he's writing to don't already understand the stuff about no kids or that I mean after all these are Hebrew people the Old Testament had been written in their language they were the ones that were supposed to not only understand it they were supposed to teach the rest of the world that yet how do you know it's written Hebrew people because the name is Hebrews that's how we know so they were supposed to understand it they were supposed to teach everybody else and here they don't even understand their own body and so we didn't really have all these people and he's goes off on this rant stored in verse 11 jet revive about this milk is it we've got much to say and it's hard to explain that you people have become so dull of hearing. For though by this time you ought to be teachers you need somebody to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God then he starts talking about the difference between milk and meat and he says to them that by this point in their lives they really ought to be eating spiritual meat but they still need to be bottle fed milk and when you're an infant all you did is milk and pureed food but if you're 15 years old your mom still cutting up your hotdog for you or you're still nursing at 15 I mean that's not that's creepy it's Ok if you're an infant but if you're older and you're still doing that there's a problem and it's like you know here you are you're not supposed to be have been seeing you more and you're still Evans and you can't even take solid food we've got to keep bottle feeding you milk. To Cheder 6 hours one therefore let us leave the elementary doctrines of Christ go on to maturity not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works or faith or God and instructions about Washington's the laying on of hands the resurrection from the dead eternal judgment now real quick to see Don't misinterpret that he's not saying that we need to move on from Christ right because I've told you this before that spiritual growth is never growth beyond Christ only grow deeper into Christ right I mean keep in mind what he's saying is he wants them to go to his attack to see how he is how all the Old Testament points to Christ that he's not talking about going beyond Christ talking about learning to see Christ in every day you never really grow immaturity beyond the Gospel he's talking about getting beyond the elementary things of the gospel it's like we say around here that in Jesus Christ is not the diving board of which you jump into the pool Christianity crisis the whole pool and ultimately what it means to go deeper spiritual has to go deeper in Christ so that's not what he say's that we just got to give young the elementary things the the but you know how you begin in Christ so we keep going verse 3 this we will do if God permits so he's going to go back to discussing milk isn't that that's his point I'm going to go back to his or that but then he says this verse for almost in passing so it's like oh you know a little mental you know would you call that stream of consciousness verse for for it is impossible in the case of those who've been once and lightnin taste of the heavenly gift and share in the Holy Spirit has the good of the Word of God the power of the age come and then they fall in a way to restore them again to repentance their crucified once again the Son of God their own arm holding him up to get out all right wow what does that mean there's a number of problems with those verses don't you see it I mean 1st it sounds like you can lose your salvation you can fall away 2nd it sounds like if you do lose it you can never get it back impossible to renew them again to repentance. So the 1st question people ask about this passage is Who's he talking to is he talking to save people or is all going on say people and some people say well he's got to be talking to I'd say people because truly saved people cannot lose their salvation yet it sure sounds like he's talking about a saved person doesn't it I mean In Lightened tasted the heavenly gift shared in the Holy Spirit tasted the goodness of the Word of God the powers of the age to come that sounds like a saved person so is the teaching that people who've been saved can lose your salvation and that if you lose it you can never get it back. Well that can't be true because there are too many other places in the Bible that teach exactly the opposite from that I start when I study the Bible I start with the assumption that the Bible to God predict itself because I believe that the Bible is written by one author is 40 different human all there is but one ought to do all of them and I believe that one author never contradicts himself Tusshar the assumption that what looks like a contradiction is not a contradiction and what I will tell you is this in those places where you see an apparent contradiction in the Bible those are the places that when you press on them you'll find that the deepest riches truth is usually underneath what looks like a contradiction so I courage oppressed into it that's what I think you're going to see here for me having studied the Bible now for nearly 20 years I will tell you that the Bible discovering the Bible to me is like like discovering a huge body of water the 1st thing that you notice when you come upon a body of water is you stepping out oh it's wet it's different on the ground I was just walking on then if you pick it up in your hands you see it's pure then you know if you go out into it you see it's deep and then you know if you go all the way around it you see it's all connected it's all one body of water it's all the same stuff studying the Bible is like that you know the 1st thing that I kind of buy the Bible is wow this is different this is the Word of God and then I then I encounter it's pure it does something for my soul and then I'm like whoa it's deeper than I ever thought and then after I study the Bible I'm like it's all interconnected it's all telling one story it's the gospel that keeps me put forward everywhere it's the Holy Spirit speaking from Genesis to Revelation saying the same thing. So this is I don't think these things contradict I think what you're going to find is that they harmonize beautifully and show you some unbelievably important stuff about the nature of true faith so let me give you kind of a thesis statement that if you take notes and I highly encourage you to take notes I think statistically I can prove that you're much less likely to go to hell if you take notes than if you don't write so I would encourage you to write this now this passage does not teach that you can lose your salvation but it does teach you something important about the nature of saving faith and that is it endures to the in this passage does not teach that you can lose your salvation but it does teach you something very important about the nature saving faith namely that it endures to the in now going to make 2 observations about this passage that again I would encourage you to right now this 1st one the actual sentence that I'm going to give you is my 1st point might be the longest point I've ever given at the summit church and I know that anybody who's a speech teacher in here will say this is not how you're supposed to have short punchy points I tried to shorten this one and I couldn't so you just have to deal with it number one number one the writer is not trying to make a definitive statement about any one person salvation he is giving a general pastoral warning to a congregation made up of both genuine and superficial believers who want to read again the writer is not trying to make a definitive statement about any one person salvation rather he is giving a general pastoral warning to a congregation made up of both genuine and superficial believers. See I believe those words In Lightened shared in the Holy Spirit taste of the goodness of God's word I believe that these are more descriptions of the movement as a whole than they are of any one particular person as people who are part of this movement they have all shared at least in some aspect in each of those things you see in every congregation including this one there are people who get caught up in the movement but never really deal with Jesus Christ they participate externally they come they get excited they learn the songs they pray a sinners prayer they get bad ties they maybe join a small group maybe even go on a mission trip but it never represents for them a deep embrace of Jesus Christ and what the author is saying to them is essentially this look if you see the glory of Jesus and you've been convinced of the truth of His resurrection only to return intentionally to the vomit of your sin what else is there left for me to say what could possibly be more convincing than Jesus' death and resurrection what greater argument is there that God could use but the fact that you deserve to go to hell because you had defied the living and Almighty God came and stood in the way of his own justice to take it into his body which humiliated and tortured for you if that does not move you then what else is there left for me to say isi the analogy he gives in the next verse to get out of her 7 Look at this for land that has drawn the rain that often falls on it and produces a crop useful to doze for whose sake it is cultivated that receives a blessing from God but if it bears thorns and thistles it's worthless near to being cursed and it's industry burned in other words if you've got a piece of ground. And you're a farmer and after you plow the ground if you fertilize the ground after use properly seed the ground and its watered and the environment is right if that piece of ground only produces thorns and thistles then what else you conclude then that piece of ground is worthless and just needs to be thrown away to be cast out in the same way he says right if after hearing the Gospel only more thorns of rebellion are produced in your heart what else can God do or what else could I say he's exasperated would be will reside in what else is there left for me to see say if that doesn't move you if you can hear the story about God who took on his own wrath for you and then just as a movie you says there's nothing left that can say I understand I understand those of you in here who don't really believe the gospel and that's why you walk away I understand that there is you that are in here who are like you know I believe of course I believe that God came and died for my sin of course I believe that deserve the wrath of God Of course I believe that there is one God who created everything and read it all into existence and spoken all the word of his mouth and holds it up all by the word of his power in and hold the molecules my body together he was in is and is to come and course I believe that I deserve hell but God came and then was ripped to shreds and humiliated for my sake so that I could be to believe all that it is that moved me that much that doesn't make any sense to me at all and it didn't make any sense for the writer either he's like What else is there left for God to say if you believe that and it doesn't move you the gospel is that you were so bad that Jesus had to die for you but that you were so he was so loving that he was glad to die for you and only one of 2 responses appropriate to that for you to walk out into by them believe and say that's not true or for you to fall at your feet or fall at his feet in abject worship only one of those 2 responses makes any sense at all. So I interpret this passage as the author giving a b. Wilbur general warning to a congregation a congregation that like all congregations like this one is filled with the genuine and superficial believers not a description of one particular person and he's not attempting to lay out the mechanics of individual salvation if you were doing that he might have used different terms so in lightened become partakers of the Holy Spirit taste of the goodness of God's word These are statements about the movement as a whole and everyone who has shared in that movement has tasted of those things at least to some degree that's my 1st observation about the passage here's my 2nd number 2 in this passage we see that the faith that saves is the faith that endures to the end in this passage we see that the faith that saves is the faith that endures to the end you see the Bible teaches that once you've been truly saved you cannot lose it but it also teaches that one of the signs of genuine faith is that it endures forever that's a big thing throughout the book of Hebrews we have come to share in Christ elf we hold our original confidence firm to the end he was $1215.00 see to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God no root of bitterness springs up and cause us trouble and by and then he become defiled or destroyed bitterness and unforgiveness can grow up in somebody's heart and kill their faith and what that happened several times at this church and it causes you to fail to obtain the grace of God He was Shepherd tempers 38 my righteous one God says shall live by faith but if he shrinks back my soul has no pleasure in him we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed but of those who have faith and Per and Per preserve their souls. Then he was shot for 6 the chapter you're in right now jump out a verse 11 look at this it was 6 verse 11. We desire each one of you to share the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end you see that you will have the full assurance of hope if both you endure to the end you will have the full assurance of hope only if you endure to the end so on the one hand I believe that once saved always saved but on the other hand that only those who endure to the end will be saved and that if you shrink back or fall away you will not be saved the only way that both of those can be true is if one of the signs of a truly saving faith is that it into are forever. The only way that both of those can be true that once saved always saved and then there's virtue of their neighbors and that there's going to church too the only way they can both be true is if one of the sides of truly saving faith is that it endures forever. Even a message about the importance of perseverance You're listening to summit life and Pastor j.d. Greer if you missed any part of today's message you can listen to it again online at j.d. Career dot com Well Pastor Judy the series on here is cool because even though we're studying a New Testament book it's really more a study of the Old Testament and it seems to me like the point of the whole book has been Don't give up yeah absolutely that's a book written to people whose faith in Jesus was I guess lukewarm at times and sometimes just really struggling because of how difficult it was to to live out their Christianity in a very hostile world I would think that the writer of Hebrews rather it was Luke or Paul or somebody else they are are writing to an audience very similar to the one that is listen here to some of Life one of things we develop to go along with the series that I think will help you internalize it is our team is designed this really beautiful set of press it would love to give you each one is a 7 inch print that has a name of God a short prayer where you reflect back my name of God and turn it into a promise and just some some really well done or the goes along with that we want these to challenge you to encourage you most of all to remind you to think about God all day long it's like the Prophet Isaiah said as a 26 to God will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is fixed upon you these prints will help you keep your mind fixed upon God Check him out it Gedge dot com You see all of America and I think you like him. We would love to give you these 10 pieces of prayer are today it's our way of saying thanks in new donate support Senate life at the suggested level of $25.00 or more call 8663355228663355220 or give in request the artwork. Online at g.t. Career dot com Well tomorrow we're continuing this important discussion about the assurance of salvation I'm Elizabeth in dress go reminding you to join us Friday for Senate life with j.t. Career. Today's program was produced and sponsored by your ministry You've been listening to Pastor j.d. Greer and to some of life on k.j. You know well local Christian radio for the Western Slope heard in delta on am 1400 and streaming online at k j o l g So tune for Haven today at 10 o'clock pagan and for out of it that's our culture not an easy time to follow God just like Daniel in Babylon. But Daniel knew who he was what he believed and why he believed it that's exactly the kind of equipping you get from movie radio the kind of encouragement you can give to another movie listener right now help others stand up like Daniel with your kids go to my movie radio dot org My movie radio or. Retirement what comes to mind here that's right but it may be that God has a greater purpose for your retirement than what you just imagined in his book Uncommon guide to retirement just plain and suggest that retirement needs to be viewed from both a biblical and practical perspective redefine this next season from self actualization to self-surrender retire in a way that's caught honoring purposeful rest well and truly get your copy of an uncommon guide to retirement at publishers dot com I give to the radio because it had found impact on my family over the years a recent email to movie ready go my great grandmother turning to Christ listening to her 8 children and her husband all found and my mother came to Christ listening to him and 3 said I'm indebted. For it spiritual influence on my family to go to my body radio dot or my movie radio or. You here the. War has casualties including trade wars president trumps tough stance with China has been hard on American farmers tit for tat tariffs only part of the problem biofuel waivers for refineries . With gasoline. Ethanol accounts for roughly 40 percent of the u.s. Corn crop with 5 years of low market prices and the threat of mediocre harvests because of bad weather American corn producers are claps and under the pressure $23.00 Corn Growers Association sent a letter to the president in September noting in the countryside is growing closures of ethanol plants costing more than $2700.00 jobs it also means less demand for soya and corn products lowering the price points for farmers growing these crops one farmer in Iowa has said he's never seen farmer so tired and frustrated you know Jesus calls out to the weary and current come to me he said I will give you rest welcome to Haven today I'm Charles Morris sharing the great story that solid. Jesus and we're continuing a series called it's beginning to look a lot like the American Thanksgiving holiday is almost here just a week away and Christmas coming not soon behind and there are of course the never ending debates about when we should put up our Christmas decorations and break out the Christmas music but I think these 2 holidays compliment each other nicely what more do we have to be thankful for than a Savior who was born to die so that we could live in these next few minutes we're going to be looking at lessons $3.00 and $4.00 from 9 lessons and carols both are found in Isaiah which many have described as the 5th Gospel even though it's in the Old Testament and in a moment we'll be joined again by the dean of the chapel at King's College Cambridge 4th. Quarter. Oh ah. Ah ah Dar the. Way the.