The Village Church
How to keep the fire burning? Know Jesus! - Audio
Great. Are you sure? All right, let's check. If you have your Bible, please open it to Jeremiah chapter nine. When I was in college, a good friend told me that I never finished where I started. And yes, I was offended by that statement, but he was right. I had a habit of starting out on a project with great fire and great excitement, but eventually over time and a couple weeks later, it wasn't as cited anymore. The fire was gone. What about you? Do you ever struggle to finish what you start? A workout, a new job, a diet plan, a book, a relationship or whatever, is the fire still there? Or about the search as we continue to move forward. Will we finish what we started or will the fire simply be smothered out over time? And all of us eventually end up in other places, will we finish what we started? The founder of the Salvation Army told a group of new officers, this, he says, I want you young men always to bury mine. There's the nature of a fire to go out. You must keep it stirred, fed in the ashes, removed. I want you to always bury mine, village church, there's the nature of a fire to go out. You must keep it stirred, fed in the ashes, removed. Now, I believe the fire in our church is burning and it's strong, but for how long? Something has to keep the fire stirred. Something has to keep it fed in the ashes removed, and guess what? It's not our numbers, it's not our money or lack of money or our resources or our building or who we know and don't know. The answer to this question, the answer that's going to keep this fire going is the answer to one question, why does the village church exist? The answer to that question is what's going to keep our fire stirred, fed in the ashes removed. Have you ever thought about that question? If you're a visitor today, that should be a question, you should be asking yourself, why is this church here? Who are these people? Why do they come down here every week? The answer to this question would keep the fire going. The answer to this question would give us longevity and ministry. The answer to this question would protect us from burning out. The answer to this question is the vision of our church. Why does the village church exist? Where is this? To know Jesus, to enjoy Jesus, to glorify Jesus. That's why we exist. That's our created purpose, and that would keep the fire burning. It's strengthening us, knowing Him and enjoying Him and glorifying Him. And so for the next, this Sunday for the next two Sundays, we're going to talk about these three aspects of our created purpose, because these things, we keep our fire stirred, fed in the ashes removed. The first one to know Him, so if you have your Bible, open it to Jeremiah chapter 9 beginning in verse 23. Thus says the Lord, that not the wise man boast in His wisdom, that not the mighty man boast in His might, that not the rich man boast in His riches, that let him who boast boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord, who practices staff, fast out of justice and righteousness in the earth, for in these things are delight, the clairs, the Lord, please pray with me. Father God, as we come to your truth, it's not man's opinion, it's not the opinion of this church, it's not a suggestion, it's not an ideal, but it's true. The words from the very mouth of God, your word, with it's without error, that you have given to your church, to your people, and so I pray for your spirit will come and take where this preach and apply it to my heart. I don't believe all this all the time, and so I need the spirit to work in me. I need this. I don't know about anybody else, but I know what I need, I need this, and everyone here needs it as well, so the spirit I ask you to do, what I can't do and what we can't do in ourselves, that it's apply to God's truth to our life. We need you to do it, counselor, helper, our deposit that guarantees our inheritance. We need you, if they're a person in the Trinity, to move in this place today, and then cross name our prayer, amen. Jeremiah chapter 9, verses 23 through 26, it is part of the prophet's temple messages that he spoke to the people of Israel, who were as usual and constant rebellion against the Lord God, and for us this morning these words are a reminder of one of the things the Lord wants for us, and that is to know him, to know him, but there are things that get in the way of us knowing him, whether you know him for years or whether you don't know him this morning, there are things that get in the way of that, and Jeremiah mentions those in verse 23. They're not the wise man, both in his wisdom, they're not doing rich man, both in his riches, they're not the mighty man, both in his might, boasting in self. In the first chapter of Jeremiah, this is what the Lord says to his people, "Our pronounced by judgment on Israel concerning all their wickedness whereby they have forsaken me, and offer sacrifices to other gods, and worship their own hands." He also says, "For my people have committed to evil, they have forsaken me, the fountain of living water, to make for themselves cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water. Their fire for the Lord was being smothered out by these man-made cisterns that cannot hold water." In these words, in 923, speak of broken cisterns, the wise man who boasts in his wisdom, that's a broken cisterns, the rich man who boasts in his riches, broken cisterns, the mighty man who boasts in his might and strength, again, broken. Now, the temptation is for us to say, "Well, I wish so-and-so was here to hear this." It's a good message for so-and-so, but guess what, you are the so-and-so, and so am I. So don't think about who is not here, this is for you, for you. Is that by asking that you're here, you're here to hear God's truth? Because those of us who have known Jesus for some time, for some years, we still struggle with this, or is it just me? We all have broken cisterns in our life. We all have boasted in our wisdom, our might, our riches. And it's boasting that Jeremiah is talking about, it's done without reverence to God. It is actually done in opposition to him. It's glorifying oneself, it's a person saying, "In my wisdom, I'm glorious. In my might, I'm glorious. In my riches, I'm glorious. In my goodness, I'm glorious. In my role as a parent, I'm glorious. In my role as a business owner, I'm glorious." All those things we think that make us glorious, important, this is what he's talking about. What is it for you this morning? What is it for you? Could it be education? Could it be a certain lifestyle? Could it be theology, politics, ministry, money? What is it for you? There's nothing sinful about being wise, is it? Is there anything sinful about being rich and being mighty and having strength? No. The problem is with us, our boasting in them, or you covet them because you don't have them. You either do one or two other, you boast in them because you got it, or you covet because you don't have it, and the Lord says, "No." Both things, is you worshiping the works of your own hands, saying, "To me be the glory for all the one and four things I've got and all the one and four things I've done." It's all because of me. An example of this is in this past year Olympics, you saying both, the fastest man in the world, right? Fastest. He says it himself, "I'm a legend." The greatest athlete to live, he is the fastest man alive. He knows that he boasts about his arrogance about it, but his accomplishment is a broken system. Because one day, he won't be the fastest man alive. One day, that's going to be gone. One day, his record's going to be broken and replaced by someone else. Knowledge can pass away, can be taken away, riches can be taken away. Everything that you have wrapped your life around can all be taken away like that, like that. They're taken away, what do you have left? What do you have left? That's why they're a broken system, because they can't give you life. They can't be your savior, they can't save you. Don't build your whole life on a prideful pursuit of these things or a prideful preserving of them. Don't worship them. They can't be Jesus to us, they cannot hold water, but what they will do is smother out your fire for Christ, if you misuse them, who will smother it out. And all your whole life is built upon broken system, if you misuse them. That not the wise man boast of his wisdom, that not the mighty man boast of his might, that not the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boast boast of this, that he knows and understands Yahweh, that him who boast boast of this, that he knows and understands Yahweh, is that exciting? Are you sure? You can give him the son of school, I mean really, I'm talking about, in a place where you truly live, is that true of you? Not here on Sunday morning, the hustle of boss of life, in the stresses of life, in the sufferings of life, is that true? It's true for everybody on Sunday morning, it's about when you get home, when you get back to the issues that await you, when you get back to work tomorrow, what are the issues of the way you, is it true then? Psalm 34.2 says, "My soul makes us boast in the Lord, let the humble hear and be glad. Do we boast in the Lord this way, believers, that we understand and know Him, or does it mean to understand Him? To understand the Lord means you can apprehend Him, you have insight in who He is, you believe in Him, to know Him when you have gained knowledge of Him, or saving knowledge." This is just not some general understanding and norm of God, that's just intellectual and practical, but it implies that you not trust and depend upon Him. That's what it also means. As one believer said, this means we not only have right apprehensions concerning His nature, His attributes, and relation to man, but we receive and retain the impressions of Him. We hold on to Him in saving faith to the point where the boast of your life is in the Lord in what He has done, the songs we just song about, this is what He did, because you can gain the whole world and in the end do what? Lose your very soul. You can have the best life now, or your best life later, for the believer we know it's later. No matter how good it is for you here, it ain't going to be what it's going to be there. And if you think this differently, then you don't understand, you don't get it. The text says, "But you understand and know me, that I am the Lord who exercises love and kindness, justice, and righteousness on the earth." The Lord practices love and kindness, why? Because He's merciful, kind and loyal. That's why He does it. Why does He practice justice? Because He's just and completely sovereign of all His creation. He's the ruler, He's the boss. Don't make no mistake, yeah, we have an enemy and play against what? He compares, He's very small, compares to our God. Don't forget who's actually the boss of His creation, it's Yahweh, I don't care what happens in the world, He is still the man, there will be the man, King of His creation, Yahweh. He practices righteousness, why? Because He's holy, and He's righteous in His character. As John 1.5 says, "God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all." Is that the future you have of Yahweh, merciful, just, holy, that's our God, and do you know Him in saving faith? If so, are you dependent upon Him and trusting Him still? You have to understand that Yahweh is not just your fountain of living water at the moment of salvation, He is still your fountain, you don't ever leave that fountain, you don't drink from it once, you continue to drink from it daily for the rest of your earthly life, the fountain of living water, that would keep your fire fed, stirred in the ashes removed. Now listen, He's no broken system. Has God ever let you down? Now He's slow, He don't always move fast, but He moves. But I'm asking you, has He ever let you down? Has He ever let you hang Him? He always comes through on behalf of His people. Our problem is we're going to move faster than He sometimes does, but this is why His way is not always, He always moves on behalf of His people. We're the ones that are broken, not Him, how often do we forget that? Were they Jesus to the Nicodemus, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God, unless a person is born again, he or she would never know or understand the Lord this way. You can come to church all day long, but if you don't know who Him in seven faith, you're never going to know the Lord this way. This is not just a general knowledge of God, this is a personal knowledge of Him, who He is, a saving God, merciful, just, kind, holy, you've got to be born again to know that. A person needs a new heart, that's what we need, a new heart. They get verse 25, "Behold, the days of coming in class of the Lord, we're now uponage all those who are circumcised, manly in the flesh, Egypt, Judah, Edom, and the sons of Amen and Moab, and all who dwell in the desert who cut the corners of their hair, for all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart." What do you make of those words? What is He talking about there? He wants more than just freshly obedience. He wants more than just you checking off the list and doing good things. He wants your heart. That's what He wants, a circumcised heart, a heart that has been renewed by the Holy Spirit. That's what the Lord wants, because if He has your heart, He has your life, right? Right? Yes. If you had the law, did they not, but not all of them had the right heart. Ezekiel 36, you don't have to turn now, I'm going to read it in my small print Bible. Ezekiel 36, beginning in verse 25, it says, "I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleanness and from all your idols. And I will cleanse you. I will give you a new heart, a new spirit I will put within you, and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh." That's what He's been talking about. That is what is needed. And that's the problem. Every human being has this problem, before the come of Christ, a heart of stone, a heart that will not bend to Him, but He said, "I'm going to give you a new heart, a heart of flesh." And we all need this heart transplant, why? Because we all have fallen short of His glory, every person that has ever lived have fallen short of His glory. The best person you know, the best human being you know, the person you look up to say, "Man, I wish I could be like that person, that person is still a sinner just like you have fallen short of His glory." In order for you to be made right, in order for you to be made right with the Father, it's going to take more than just you following the rules. It's going to take more than just you working harder. It takes Jesus in His finished work. You have to rest and depend and receive Him as your Savior. That's what makes you right. His work makes you right. Not your work. And you say, "I believe that." You've got to continue to believe it. Continue to rest on it, because we all forget it. We all forget the gospel and the hosts of both of life. We all forget that Jesus made us right with Him. This way you can always remember what Jesus did for you on the cross, what He did for all of us. Jesus is wisdom from God, the righteousness from God. Jesus is the only one that can make a person right with the Father. And this is not a church game, this is a matter of life and death. The gospel invitation is extended to you this morning for your charge. Will you receive Him if you don't know Him? Will you? Will you receive Him in saving faith? And if you already have, are you growing in Him? Is the fire still there? If it's not there, maybe you feasting on something else other than Jesus, and you need to repent, and have to hold a spirit to renew the joy of salvation through knowing Jesus. A friend of mine sent me an email this week from John Piper, said, "The gospel in six minutes." This is what Piper says about the gospel, "The news that Jesus Christ, the righteous won't die for our sins, rose again eternally, triumphs all over His enemies, so there is no combination for those who believe, for only ever last in joy. We never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never outgrow our need for that gospel." And if you think you do, then you need to be busy with Jesus this morning and repent. Whenever you think the gospel is asked a way to get saved, then we get stronger by leaving it and doing something else. We are strengthened by God through the gospel every day until we drop. Don't ever think the gospel is that way we get saved, then we get strong by leaving it and doing something else. We are strengthened by God through the gospel every day until we go to the grave. You never outgrow your need to preach the gospel to yourself on a daily basis, amen? Lord, I need that gospel, Father, every day, and forgive me for all the times in which I live as if I don't. All the times I plan my day, my life, family, as if I don't need it, as if I just need a little bit of it, as if I just needed it the year I became a Christian. I need it today, still. We all need it. Forgive us of our time, Lord, when we think we don't. Forgive us of our pride, our arrogance, our boasting, and what we think makes us great in our accomplishments. Let us boast in this that we know and understand our Father and the Christ in my play. [BLANK_AUDIO]