Striving for Holiness | Francis Chan

You guys can have a seat. I I don't know about you, but last night I went to bed just thanking God for the cross. Like I just laid in bed. Last thing I did was I just after Louis talk, I I just kept think thinking about the cross and enjoying the cross and thanking God over and over.

I This is not what I do every night, I'm sad to say. But last night, that's what I did. I went to bed praising God for the cross. When I woke up, the first thing on my mind was, "God, thank you for the cross." I I want this to be every night and every day, but it isn't.

But I thank God for the message that was spoken last night cuz it got me thinking that way. And I thought, gosh, what a what an amazing message because that's what a sermon should do is not get you thinking about Louisie or the speaker or anyone else. It gets you praising Jesus.

And I go, "Wow, that was amazing. That's all I thought about last night. That's all I thought about this morning was going, God, you're so amazing. How did you do that? How could you love us that much? And I just I I even asked God, God, help me to thank you deeply cuz I don't want to casually say thank you for what you did for me.

You know, like like Julia was talking about how John the Baptist, you you know, his whole point of his existence was look, behold, there he is. There he is. There there's the lamb of God. Look, I I just brought you to him. Now I'm dropping you off. Go.

And and you read later in chapter 3, some people are saying to John the Baptist, they go, "Hey, some of your followers, they're leaving you and they're going to Jesus." And John the Baptist is like, "That's the plan. You know, he's got to increase. He's got to become more and I've got to become less and less and less.

This is good. They're supposed to go with Jesus." And that was the plan here. It's like, can we somehow just drop you off at the feet of Jesus and then you go with him? It's it's it's like on Thursday. On Thursday, I dropped off my oldest daughter to college for the first time.

You know, it's like, "All right, Thursday, go honey. You're out of here." you know, and there's that bittersweet like, oh man, I remember when I brought her home from the hospital, this little bloody thing, you know, and and uh and now to drop her off, but it was like, good, good.

You know what? This is good because I've got a decrease. You go with Jesus now. You and Jesus, you're on your own, okay? You're in better hands now with him than with me. So, go get close to him. Draw near to him. And uh I couldn't help but think about last night when Louie was talking about the uh the garden of Gethsemane and Jesus being there.

You know, as a as a dad of of five children, I pictured my oldest daughter. And I thought, what would I feel if she's looking at me and going, "Dad, is there any other way like like if and the words of Jesus where he says my soul is grieved to the point of death where Jesus is going I ALREADY FEEL LIKE I'M DYING RIGHT NOW.

This is killing me. I am sorrowful to the point of death and then to go to his dad and go daddy is there any other way? Is there is there any other way? I mean, to the point where he's sweating drops of blood and I try to picture my daughter looking at ME AND GO, "DAD, IS THERE ANY OTHER WAY?"

TO WHERE SHE'S dripping blood from the intensity and saying, "I already feel like I'm GOING TO DIE RIGHT NOW. IS there any other way?" And to do it three times. Three times. To come to me and go, "Dad, is there any other way?" And I just tried to think as a dad, how could I look at that?

But then for Jesus to say, but but not not MY WILL, BUT YOUR WILL. Not my will, but your will. If there's any other way, please take this cup from me. As he's as he's sweating drops of blood, please take it from me, but not not my will.

Your will be done. And then to hear that it was the will of the Lord to crush him. And all night I'm just going, "God, are you kidding me? You went through that for me? I help me thank you. Help me. Thank you, Lord. Cuz I I don't think I can do justice.

I don't want to just say, "Thank you for the cross. Help me, God. Help me thank you with every bit that's in me." That's all I want to do is thank him. Thank him. Thank him. Praise him. Praise him. Praise him. And I don't want us to leave the cross.

I don't want us to move on from the cross. I just want to drop you off there. That's all we want to do. Everyone that's going to be on the stage, we're just saying, you know what? We're just telling you, go with Jesus. Oh, you're leaving us and going with Good, good, good, good.

Because we've got to become less and less and less. Your parents need to become less and less and less. And your your youth pastor needs to become less and less and less. And everyone is trying to drive you to the feet of Jesus so you could just commune with him, thank him by yourself, enjoy him, love him, get to know him, man.

Forget about us. Get close to him. That's what this is all about. It's a good day. It's a good day. So, this afternoon I'm going to Africa. Um, yeah, pretty exciting. Anyone want to go with me? >> All right, let's go. I But you know what? One of the coolest things about this trip, I'm going with maybe the most intriguing guy in my life right now.

This guy is so interesting to me. He's like that guy on that beer commercial. The most interesting man in the world. He he ran a marketing firm. He was running a marketing firm. Big deal, you know. But in his spare time, he would go to the Middle East.

He would go to Africa and he would set up these feeding programs for those who were starving to death. He would figure out ways to dig wells and get clean water to them. He would build medical clinics out. This all in his free time. He would hire evangelists out there just to go and spread the gospel.

He he would he would rescue traffic children. He would go to the red light districts in some of these towns where it just seemed like the the women just felt trapped like there's no other way to make a living other than being in this little tiny shed and having guy after guy come into my room for dollar two dollars you know and and and he go to these girls share the good news of Jesus see them fall in love with Jesus but then educate them and some of them have become become nurses.

Some have become, you know, teachers. But the coolest thing was I saw pictures of him walking these girls up the aisle on their wedding day. And I thought, "OH, I WANT TO DO THAT." You know, is there anything cooler you could do in your life than to lead someone like that out of that lifestyle, introduce them to Jesus, and have them fall in love with someone?

You walk them down that aisle and give them away on their wedding day. I just go, "Lord, I this guy is so cool to me." And you know, so I'm just intrigued by this guy and I I just one one day he he told me one of his secrets.

He says, "You know, I wake up every day and I think this is going to be the best day of my life." He says, "And you know what it usually is." And I thought, "What? Every day? That just sounds exhausting, doesn't it? I mean, I get it if we did it today cuz it's passion.

It's going to be the best day of my life. But really, you're going to do that tomorrow, too. You know, next Wednesday? Because I I I just thought in my mind after he told me that I thought I like having like a few throwaway days in between, you know, and go, "Okay, next Saturday is going to be amazing."

You know, and sometimes even throwaway years where you go, "Oh, when I graduate, when I get into that position, when I get married, that's going to be the greatest year." No, when I have my kid, that's going to be the greatest year. But why not believe that we have a God that could make every day better than the last?

Why not believe that today, like this next worship set, could that be the greatest worship in your life? See, you have control over that. You could say, "Okay, this next time we sing, God, I want to be more passionate than I've ever been." To say, "God, the next time I pray, I want it to be the most intimate you and I have ever been."

To say even right now, okay, when Francis reads from the word of God, okay, when he's done with all his stories and he actually opens the word, you know, can you make it so that I just get it? like I get your word like never before. Make it the best, the best, the best and to keep on increasing in all of these areas.

Do you believe that? Are you even striving for that? You know, I uh there's so many things in our lives we can't control, but the things that make your life the best, those are under your control. You know that? See, you you can't control your money. God could take it away any second.

You can't control your job, your position. God could end that. Whatever. People can end it. You can't control your relationships. You can't control other people and what they're going to do to you and whether they're going to love you for the rest of your life or not. You can't control that.

But the things that make your life great are under your control. See, you can decide. You could decide, you know what? This year I am going to be the purest I've ever been. God, I want you to put to death sins in my life. And I I according to the word, I can do that.

You can decide and say, "God, I want to be so close to you this year. I'm going to seek you with all of my heart and to go after those things." I I love what Peter says in second Peter. Second Peter chapter 1 verse one, it says, "Simon Peter, a servant, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ."

I love that phrase. He's assigned Peter, servant and apostle Jesus Christ. To those, that's you. to those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours. Peter says to me, Francis, you have a faith of equal standing with me. See, we we've got Please get it out of your heads that somehow you are inferior to someone else in your faith with God.

Okay? Don't don't come to passion and go, "Oh man, Louie must have this really, you know, Piper must be here, you know, here's Christine, you know, and and and then here's me." Because what Peter immediately is saying is, "Look, you've got a faith of equal standing with the Apostle Peter.

Equal standing." That's the word of God. You've got a faith of equal standing. I hear all the time when I talk about God or I talk about, you know, living by faith or this time I had with Jesus, people have literally looked at me and said, "Well, that's easy for you.

You're Francis Chan. What does that even mean?" Like, we do that. We go, "Well, that's him. That's her." And I'm going, "But that's not scripture." Peter says, "You've been given an an equal faith. You're on equal standing with me." In fact, in the next verse, you know, after he says, "May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord."

Look what he says in verse three. His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness. his divine. So God's divine power has given you everything you need when it comes to life and godliness. Do you believe that? >> So you're in equal standing with Peter and God himself by his power, he just gave you everything, everything you need as it pertains to life and godliness.

Now, that doesn't mean we don't have limitations in some areas. Like, I could study all day long, you know, but my mind I don't I don't know that I'll ever know as much as Piper. I'm not saying my mind is there. I got limitations. There there are going to be people.

He's not saying that. He's not talking about intellect. Just like Chris Tomlin. Chris Tomlin could could shoot baskets all day long, all year long. Get a private coach and just practice. Shoo. Shoo. Shoo. Dribble. Do this. Do this. and he'll never beat me. It's it's limits. We have limitations.

We have physical limitations. We have intellectual limitations. But what the scripture is saying, he says, "All things that pertain to life and godliness. I will never be the best athlete in this room. I can't. I I just I'm limited compared to some of you. But there's no reason why I can't be the one that's most alive, >> you know.

And there's no reason why I cannot be the godliest person in this room. And there's no reason why you see, you've been given everything. This is scripture. Don't believe the lies that everyone else tells you that you're somehow inferior. No, this is up to you. You've been given it all by his divine power.

God says, "Here it is. I'm granting it to you. Everything you need. You can have the purest mind. Did you know that you can have the purest mind? Your thought life could be the purest one because he's given you everything you need for that. You have the ability to have the purest mind, your thoughts, to make a covenant with your eyes and say, "God, by the power of the Holy Spirit, purify me.

I want that. Make this the purest year of my life. can help me to receive more life from you than ever before. Because he says it's through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence. He didn't call us to mediocrity. >> Do you understand that?

He didn't call you just to survive and to try not to sin too much. He called you to his own glory and excellence. That's what he saved you for. Oh God, I want all of that life. I want all of that godliness. I want your spirit just to flow through me.

Powerful, powerful words. Then he says, then it gets even better. Verse four, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature. Are you kidding me? Not only that, he says you can actually partake.

You become partakers. It's not just like Francis is here and God's going to help me out being beside me. No, he says, "Read my promises sometime. What did I tell you? My spirit would actually enter into you." Okay, so now you're not even just walking alongside of me, but you're an actual partaker of the divine nature.

Amazing. These promises are for you. You ever read like the Old Testament and some of those miracles and you ever you ever read some of those Old Testament miracles and go, "God, could I just see one of those?" Right? You ever do that? You read the Old Testament, GO, "GOD, ALL I need is one of those."

Okay, just just one. I don't care. Name it. Fire from heaven. That'd be cool. have someone thrown in a pit of fire. Let me just see him not burn. You know what? Whatever. Any of those. It doesn't have to be me in the pit. I just want to watch someone.

You know, it's just God, can I see one of those? Or or do you ever go or you ever look in the New Testament, you read about Jesus and go, gosh, could I just see one? I just want to see one. I just want to see him the water one.

Okay. Walking on water. Can I just see it? Can I see it? And I've done this where I'm reading scripture. I'm going, God, I just need one. Let me see one of those. But I realized when I long for the Old Testament miracles and when I long to see something Jesus did, then I have a faulty understanding or experience of the Holy Spirit. >> If I'm longing for the Old Testament, if I'm longing for Jesus, then I don't understand the Holy Spirit.

Because everyone back then was, "Man, I can't wait for the future. I can't wait for this period of time." We talked about this last year. For those who were here, remember Ezekiel's vision, you know, in Ezekiel in chapter 36. You got to understand, they were all envying us.

They were envying this day when God was going to put his spirit inside of us. We'd be partakers of the divine nature. They're going, "Are you kidding me?" I mean, I get the Holy OF HOLIES, MAN. NO ONE GOES in there. You're telling me that much power is going to enter into people?

I want a piece of that. You You read about it in in Ezekiel Ezekiel uh 36 where he says in in verse 26, "I'll give you a new heart, a new spirit I will put within you. I'll remove your heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

And I will put my spirit within you and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. God says, "I'm going to do a new thing, a new thing. I'm going to do something new. Okay? You know how you can't obey the commands right now?

Wait till you see what happens in the future. I'm actually going to put my spirit, yeah, my spirit into people and to get them to the point where they'll actually have the power to walk in my commands. They're going to they're going to actually become a slave to righteousness.

Okay, that's what the Holy Spirit's going to do into them. And then you see this this this vision and then in in the next chapter where uh he he's put in this valley of dry bones in chapter 37 and and in verse 7 he says I prophesied there was a sound and a rattling and the bones came together bone to its bone and I looked and no way there were sinnus on him and flesh came upon them skin had covered them you know it's like he's in this valley of bones and suddenly these bones start rattling and coming together he goes this is what it's going to be people go, "This is nuts.

God just put these people together. He just put their spirit, his spirit in them." You know, I I have um I brought some uh chicken bones and I don't know if you can see that, but just this pile of chicken. And I don't I can't see the screen.

Are you focusing on my chicken bones? Are they Are you Can you see my bones on the screen? Okay. Seriously, you guys are You guys watch what happens. Just stare at watch what's about to happen. All right. Just had to give it a shot. But imagine imagine. Seriously.

Okay. What if what if right now we're looking and suddenly you saw these bones rattling and start coming together. Okay. And then what if you know the the ins the things the liver and stuff start growing and then flesh grew on it and then feathers grew on it and then suddenly this thing jumps off of the stage and just YOU KNOW JUST STARTS GOING.

I mean just try to imagine what you would do. You'd go best passion ever. You know this that was insane. You would walk away GOING YOU'LL NEVER BELIEVE IT. FRANCIS BOUGHT A fivepiece meal, you know, took all the meat off, it turned into a chicken, right? You would never be the same again.

And the Bible says that's what people should see when they see you. When they go, "What happened to you? How did you do this? That was the miracle that's supposed to take place in us." So then we're not longing for these Old Testament miracles. when I'm wishing I could have walked with Jesus, he says, "It's going to be to your advantage." >> That's right. >> And so somehow I've got to believe this.

And I was praying, God, could you get a new generation to believe in this miracle that they are partakers of the divine nature that they will stop idolizing speakers and pastors. Yes, learn from them, grow from them, but they're just here to drop you off at the feet of Jesus >> to say, make you a partaker of the divine nature and go, man, the power that's in you, I want to release you.

I want everyone to see this chicken. You know, I want to see everyone. I'm going to I'm going to leave this open just to leave room just in case. Um you guys right here watch it and tell us if anything happens but that's that's what's supposed to be man has that happened in your life some of you last night do you understand when you understood the cross for the first time and you said you know what Jesus I want you I want you I want that I'll give everything up for that I I I just found this treasure you can have everything I finally have eyes to see. give me that.

The Bible says, "Now you trust in those promises." It's through those promises that you become a partaker of this divine nature. And then I love what he says next. Having escaped from the corruption that's in the world because of sinful desire. Then he says this in verse five five.

For this reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue. Your virtue with knowledge, your knowledge with self-control, self-control with steadfastness, steadfastness with godliness, godliness with brotherly affection, brotherly affection with love. But I want you to pay attention to what he says. Verse five, for this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue.

Do you understand those words? Make every effort. See, this is not a passive. Cuz some of you guys are going, I see what you're saying. I guess it didn't work on me. I think the Holy Spirit entered me, but it didn't work because I'm still not holy. I still don't know that much.

I'm still not that guy. The Bible says this is not some passive act. >> Yes, God does this. He makes you a partaker. He puts you on equal standing with Peter. But then he says in the very next verse, he goes, "So now you make every effort. Okay, you do something.

You don't just sit there and go, "Okay, God, make me holy." No. He says, "No, you make every effort. Make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue. Supplement. Are have you been doing that? Have you been making every effort going, "God, I want to be this virtuous the virtue."

It it it it's it's the word's interesting. It's almost like an appropriate um like an appropriateness, like a like a godliness. I guess I guess it's the word we would use for godly. like, okay, someone who has faith should have these results. Like, these glasses should help me to see.

Um, this table should hold up this Bible. Um, that's what tables do. Um, this these this key should fit in that lock. Um, this Christian should be godly. You understand that? Like, it's the natural outcome. this moral excellence. We as believers should be morally excellent because the spirit of God is in us like Ezekiel promised.

He's going to put him in us and we're going to be able to obey his commands. So someone with the spirit in him is going to have this power. And he says, "So, but you've got to make every effort at it. I've got to strive for this Holy Spirit that's in me.

You've been given me everything that pertains to life and godliness. So guess what? I'm going to use that and I'm going to make every effort to be the godliest man or woman. I'm going after it. And he goes, "And then add add to that um make every effort to add to your your virtue knowledge.

Add to your virtue knowledge. Make every effort towards knowledge." Okay? It you don't just naturally know all the things. People go, "Well, I don't know the Bible that well." And I go, "Have you made every effort to do that?" Seriously, are you a student of the word of God?

I understand some of us don't have the same mental capacities as other people. Some of you are beyond me. Some of you are below. It doesn't matter. The issue is are you making every effort to pursue this knowledge. Look, I hate I hate reading. I can't I I just don't like it.

Yes. Thank you. Okay. Me and him hate reading, man. We just hang out all day. We'd rather play video games. We'd rather go surf. We But reading, I just I don't enjoy it. I'd rather snuggle with a cat. And I hate cats, you know. It's just I I just don't enjoy.

It's not natural. But I go, you know what, Lord? Your word says I should be making every effort to add to my moral excellence this knowledge of you. And I want to know you. So, I'm going to study this word and I'm going to force myself and I'm going to read this over and over.

Man, I I'm going to commit to reading through your word every year. Do you know it only takes 10 minutes a day and you can read through the Bible in a year? You don't even need that. They've got these apps now that read it for you. You push a button and it takes 12 minutes. 12 minutes a day and you can uh you can listen to the Bible as you're driving just going, "You know what, God?

Okay, maybe I have a I have a hard time reading. I'm going to listen. I'm going to listen." And uh and then you just push play. I'm not going to do it right now. But you know, it's just you just go, "God, I want to know you." And that's why I'm getting into your word right now.

Even 10 minutes a day, and you'd get through the whole book, which which probably some of you have never done in your whole life. And the Bible says, "Make every effort to know me. Make every effort to add to that moral excellence. Yes, you're a godly person. Yes, you know you you're the morally morals are there."

And I'm saying, "You need to know me. Really know me. Understand more about me. Know my character. Know what I love. Know what I hate. Make every effort towards that." And then he says, "Add to your knowledge self-control." This is key. This is such a big one for all of us.

He says, "Make every effort to add to your knowledge self-control." I have heard so many people blame the Holy Spirit for their lack of effort where they go, "Well, I asked God to take away my desire for marijuana. I told him and he didn't." I told him, I go, "God, take away this lust for women."

And he didn't. I asked God to take away these un, you know, improper sexual desires and he didn't take it away. And what does the scripture say? It says, "Make every effort towards self-control." What is self-control? It's when you want to do something and you don't do it.

And there are times when it's going to take every bit of energy in you where you just want to scream at someone and it takes everything in you to just hold back and go, "I'm not going to yell. I'm going to love her. Oh gosh, I want to say it.

Just let me say it." It's going to take every ounce of effort not to push send, right? or to look at this website. It's like he says make every effort towards that. Yes, there are times there are times when a different miracle happens where you pray that God takes away.

I've heard of this people who have been addicted to I've friends like this. They were addicted for years on crack for 20 years. Prayed that God would take it away. Boom. They said it was weird. It's like I woke up and it was gone. But that's the exception.

There's others who just have to make every effort, every effort, and you fight and you fight and you fight and you go, "Look, I know I have power over this. God promised me he would not let me be tempted beyond what I can handle. There's a way of escape and I'm going to take that route.

I'm going to make every effort I'm getting out of this one." That's what self-control is all about. He says, "Add to that self-control, perseverance. Perseverance." Because there are days when we all want to give up. Okay? You're not alone. We all want to quit. There are days when your temptation is so strong, you go, "God, would you just take me home?

I don't want to fail you. I'd rather you just kill me right now cuz I don't know if I'm going to make it through the day without sinning against you." And he says, "Make every effort toward that perseverance. You have it in you. I've given you everything you need for life and godliness.

I gave it to Peter. I'm giving it to you. You're a partaker of the divine nature. This can happen. Make every effort. Don't give up. Don't give up. Make it through another day. He says, "And add to your steadfastness godliness." Godliness is worship. Godliness is this idea of bowing down.

What I was doing last night, what I did this morning, it takes effort to worship him all through the day, doesn't it? I was thinking about this passage. I've been meditating on this passage the last two weeks. And it's weird because it's so dumb, but sometimes it takes every ounce of effort in me just to turn off the radio.

You ever find that like you want to worship, but then a song comes on, you're like, I kind of want to listen to that one. You know, I got to conf Never mind. Um, yeah, why not? Um my I've got four daughters and one of them got like a year ago um this Taylor Swift CD.

It's really embarrassing, but she put it in my car and I started to like it. And you know, pretty soon she's like, "Dad, when am I going to get that CD back?" Like, "Never, ever. ever. Okay, I'm just giving you an example of confession, you know, and so even I'm on so sometimes it's just hard to turn it off, you know, and go, gosh, this is so dumb.

Here I am a pastor, a speaker, and I don't want to push that button to worship. It takes effort to block. Like like Louis said, we are the most distracted people ever. And to just say, "No, I'm not going to think about anything else when I go to bed tonight.

I'm not turning on that TV. I'm not jumping on that computer. I'm just going to worship him because I want to make every effort to be this godly person. I want to add this godliness to me. I want to be a person of worship." And that means taking away some of these distractions.

You know, there's a do not disturb button on this. I'm pushing that. I I just don't want any noise. I don't want any people. I want to be a man of worship all throughout the day godly. It takes effort though. It takes effort. You can't just say, "Oh, I'm just not one of those people that worships all the time."

You're not making the effort. He goes on adding to that. He goes, "Add to that brotherly affection." Brotherly affection. People are going to irritate you to death. Right? People in your own ministry are going to irritate you to death. Youth pastors, your students are going to drive you crazy. >> Your students, your leaders will drive you crazy.

You're going to bother one another. You're going to do this. And he says, "Would you guys make every effort towards this brotherly affection? You guys, we need this so badly. I understand there's going to be theological differences in this room. And I'm going to disagree with you on some of the finer points of theology, but I got to be able to pursue this brotherly affection for you.

Okay? Some of you may believe differently on some of these issues in this book. Does that really excuse you from loving me dearly like a brother? Or if anything were to happen to me, you're like, "No, don't let that happen to me. That's my brother up there." Make every effort towards that.

Make every effort towards love. Add to this. This is work. Love. Isn't this who you want to be? Don't you want to be at the end of your life? Go, God, I just want to be the the most loving, you know, you know, towards unbelievers, towards the poor towards people who hate me, towards my enemies.

I just want to be so loving. I want to have this brotherly affection. I want to be pure. I want to be steadfast. I want to have self-control. I want to have so much knowledge of you. And I can have it all. And then I love how he says uh in uh one of the verses eight, if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

If these qual if these qualities are yours and increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful. I love that God guarantees you if you just work on these character issues, you won't be ineffective, >> right? >> See, so often we do it backwards, right? I mean, we all want to do great things for the Lord, don't we?

Don't you just want to go, God, I I I just listen to the Bernett. Are you kidding me? They they own TV for your glory. And you go, I want to do that. I want to do that. Well, how do you do that? according to the Bible. Don't just pursue that.

He goes, if you pursue these qualities and you increase in them every year, I promise you, you will not be unfruitful or ineffective. See, sometimes we do it all backwards. You go, I want to do this. I want to do this. No. Why don't you work on being this, and I promise you, you'll do some amazing things.

God promised. Cuz some of you are sitting here, you're going, man, this is my fifth year of college. I haven't even declared a major. I don't know what my plan is. I don't know what God's calling me to. And I'm telling you, yeah, you do. Brotherly affection, love, self-control, perseverance, godliness, virtue, knowledge.

Pursue these things. You won't waste your life. None of us want to waste our life. Not after reading Piper's book. We don't want to waste our lives. We go, God, I I want to do something. I don't want to just sit here. I don't want to just grow old and and collect seashells.

I don't want to do that, right? I want to do something while I'm here. And God says, "Okay, start with you. Start with your character. You've got everything you need. Now go after it. You be be the godliest person in this room. You get the most be the most intimate with Jesus.

There's no reason, nothing stopping you. You're a partaker of the divine nature." My favorite part of this verse now finally got or passage verse verse 9. Whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind. I love that phrase. Whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he's blind.

And having forgotten he was cleansed from his former sins. He goes, if you lack this, he goes, you're so nearsighted you're blind. I love that phrase. The idea of being, you know what nearsighted is? You can only see the things that are right in front of your face.

Like I wouldn't be able to see you. All I could see is my my my hands. He goes, "Some people are so nearsighted. All they can see is what's right in front of them at that moment." They forget all of these things I just talked about. Like like like if I dropped my phone right now, like some of you dropped your iPhone and that you crack the screen. you're this whole weekend is ruined for you, right?

It's going, "Oh, man. It's it's 22 months before my next upgrade. Why didn't I get insurance?" And suddenly all you're doing is staring at this one thing. Never mind that you have faith on equal standing with Peter. Forget that you're a partaker of the divine nature. Forget that God's given you everything you need for for life and godliness.

Forget that one day you're going to stand before God completely pure because of the cross of Jesus Christ. Forget that one day we're going to be together with him just no more death, no more sickness, and just security like forever and ever and ever inheriting the riches of his kingdom. the one who died for us because you cracked your screen and you're so nearsighted going, "Oh, but you don't understand.

I had a chance to buy the protective case last week and no one's going to get through to you." Why? Because you're so nearsighted. You're blind and you miss out on all of these things. And I've seen this in so many people. You're going to get so nearsighted.

You guys, we're not going to live that long. Okay? Some of us won't be here next year. It's any second for us. Don't get so nearsighted that you lose sight of these spiritual realities. That's why second uh Corinthians 4:17 says, "Our light and momentary troubles." I know it doesn't feel like light and momentary to you.

Some of your pain right now, it's so real. You just think it's like Jesus going, "Is there any other way?" And and yet, well, God says, "Your light and momentary troubles. They're achieving for you this eternal weight of glory that far outweighs them all." So he says, "So we don't look to the things that we can see.

We look to the unseen." Have you ever done that? Look at things that you can't see. He says, "Stop looking at what you can see." He says, "Because the things you can see are transient. They're temporary. Everything you see right now is temporary. When you look in the mirror, take a good look, cuz that's temporary."

Okay? You're not going to look like that in 10 years. Can try to do plastic surgery, whatever, but usually just makes you look creepy. Just Just It's temporary. I'm temporary. You're temporary. This table's temporary. That screen's temporary. My time is very temporary. I only got two minutes left.

It's all temporary. Okay? Everything you can see. And the Bible says, "Look to the things that are unseen." You know what's crazy is I've been praying for you before I came here. I I've been praying Second Kings chapter 6 over you. Second Kings chapter 6 is that passage.

You've read it before, but I don't know how seriously you took it. Second Kings 6 is that story where Elijah has an army that's going to kill him. Remember that? And they surround his house and his servants like, "Dude, YOU'VE GOT A WHOLE army outside waiting to kill you."

And Elijah's like, "Lord, open his eyes. Give him eyes to see." And suddenly his eyes were open. and he sees like these chariots of fire and this whole army that he never saw before and going, "Oh, I guess we're fine." And then God says, "Okay, you opened his eyes.

Would you blind everyone else?" And everyone went blind. So, I told you it's it's easy. You just have to see these things you don't see. and have been praying, oh, God, could you take thousands of young people and maybe for the first time in their lives, they they give them eyes.

That's why blew me away last night when Louie talked about this. Give them eyes. This happens almost every year. You know, where Louis and I, some go, "Oh, you know, when you and Louis hang out all year long, I I see them once a year, but somehow our messages always come together perfectly, where God was saying, you know what?

They need eyes to see." And I started praying the same thing Elisha prayed for his servant. God, give them eyes that they could take their eyes off of the things that are right there causing them to be nearsighted. Your job's not going to last forever. College isn't going to last forever.

You know, whether you're married or you're not, it doesn't matter. Marriage is not that long. It it's it's just all temporary stuff. Can you see that you're a partaker of the divine nature? Can you see that? If Peter was right here standing next to me, it's like, big deal.

You guys would all go running to Peter. I'm like, why? We're the same. I We're partakers of divine nature. We've just both been dropped off at the feet of Jesus, getting close to him. Two weeks ago, I had one of the best, maybe the best prayer time of my life, okay?

You know, talking about how this could be the best and and and what I did cuz I want you to try it. I want right now, right before the worship team comes up, I want you to have the best work, best prayer time ever. I can't guarantee that, but you can.

And what I did was for the first time after reading and meditating on 2 Corinthians 4 and I thought he tells me to look to the things that are unseen. I just said, "God, I'm going to forget about everything I could see and touch right now." And I just closed my eyes and I was no longer in my living room.

There's no floor in front of me. There's no chairs in front of me. You know, there's no trees outside. There's nothing else. I go, "God, I don't want to look to the things that are seen, just what's unseen." And I thought, what's left? What's left when I take away everything I can see and touch?

My soul, God, angels, and demons, and the spiritual world in this thing that's not flesh and blood in the true war. That's what's left. And now suddenly I'm worshiping God in spirit and in truth and just for a moment forgetting anything that's out there. And I just want to see if we could all do that together.

Just bow your heads right now. Just close your eyes and don't be nearsighted right now. Forget about anything you could see and touch and look to the things that are unseen. That though we don't see him, we love him and there's this being in heaven in all of his glory.

Like like Lou, he says, "You can't see it, but he's there." And the angels are screaming, "Holy, holy, holy." And that God watched as his son was going, "Daddy, is there any other way?" And he says, "Oh, it's my will to crush him for you." So don't be blinded by all these things you can see right now in your spirit.

Would you pray to God in spirit and truth and just thank him for the cross?