Maturing in the Lord

0:11 Man, seriously, I always love coming to APU. And I was thinking this morning as I was praying for you of so many things that God has done just in my life during my time at APU. I started speaking here, I believe in the year 2000. It was 2000 or 2001. And I used to come like five times a year and do chapel. And then they started not liking me as much. But I just, I even remember like years ago, you know, someone just transcribed like my APU messages and said, this should be a book. And we turned it into crazy love. It was out of the messages here. And I was just thinking about the different things that happened. And as I was praying this morning, I'm going, God, I was trying to think back.

1:06 Because people used to say, what's your favorite place to speak? and I would go, man, it's APU Chapel. APU Chapel, seriously. But it was back when I used to be in that Upper Turner room. I think some of you guys are watching in there, and you're probably yelling right now, but we can't hear you. But it was just the coolest environment. And I was thinking back, I go, God, what has changed in me? Because in a lot of ways, we grow as we get older. Hopefully we mature, become more Christ-like. but I'm always looking at in what ways have I dipped? How am I different? And the Lord was revealing to me this morning about how I used to come to this campus. I remember early on just believing I'm going to walk in there. I'm going to share the Word of God and I'm going to change the atmosphere in that place. Not me, but the Holy Spirit through the Word of God. And I had this confidence like this was a bunch of young people ready to do something with their lives and change the trajectory of the church. And that was my mindset. And God was revealing to me that over the years, some of that has subsided. Some of that has weakened.

2:24 Because, man, nowadays, we have to be so careful. Like if I say one sentence in the wrong way, man I'm in a lot of trouble right if I say one wrong word some of you will just take a hold of that and just you know wreak havoc into my life and so so a lot of times you start teaching to avoid conflict rather than being a prophet of God you know and you're you're thinking okay I better say this just right I better say this is right better say this will hurt someone's feelings this one will make him mad. This will cause half the crowd. And you know what? I was reading in Jeremiah this morning and Jeremiah didn't care. You know, he just said it. And this morning's reading, you know, he got beat up and put in stocks and gets back out and starts yelling at the people again. And I'm like, man, God, I don't want to be that false prophet that's worried about what this might do or what might this might, you know, it's just, just say it and, and just surrendering again and going, God, what do you want to do?

3:35 Because I'll tell you, there's a part of me that I look at the generation like what, the way you guys are growing up. And I feel so bad because I feel like so much started in my generation where church became a place where we asked everybody, hey, what would you like in a church? What would you like? Okay, you like this? Okay, I'm going to do this for you. What would you like? You like this? You enjoy this? Okay, and it was all under this, well, we just want to get you there. So then you'll get the word of God. And then you'll have the Holy Spirit in you. And then you'll fall in love with Jesus and you'll serve him. So it was good motives. How can we attract you to our gatherings?

4:20 But what happened over time is like people won't come to those gatherings anymore unless all those things that attract them are there. and I just think gosh I helped spearhead that movement and now it's to me I feel like it can be so insulting to him when people don't want to gather just to be in his presence that it's no longer like a I can't believe we're talking to him type of moment anymore I mean, honestly, it's great. Like, I love the worship this morning. Man, I love to worship, but you've got a crazy voice. Okay, but I loved it, you know. I'm in the presence of God. I am worshiping, and I can hear your voices. And for the last 15, 20 years, just being in here and hearing the voices in chapel, man, I always love it.

5:18 I'd love to start every day like this. But let me ask you a question. Honestly, when you are alone, totally alone, what is worship like? seriously, like when no one else is around, is it just as beautiful, or maybe even sometimes more beautiful, because something inside of here, something inside the Bible says, that when the Spirit enters in you, you from the depths of your soul, you start crying out, Abba, Father. Like it comes from the inside. You don't need all of the externals to be there, so that you'll finally eke out some words and feel some sort of emotion. It's supposed to come from the inside.

6:13 You guys are a part of a generation that talks a lot about different speakers and songs and, you know, worship teams. And I don't hear a lot of people going, Jesus is so amazing. I was alone with him this morning. and I was just in tears thinking, I can't believe I'm in the presence of the living God. And I'm like, is that happening?

6:41 What's it like when you're alone? See, the Bible says that the Holy Spirit is supposed to do something when he enters into you. And it comes from the inside out. So you don't need all of this other stuff. This other stuff's fine and we continue to do it. but what's coming from the inside? I was reading this a few weeks back. 1 John 3, listen to what he says in verse 5. He says, you know that he appeared in order to take away sins and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him keeps on sinning. No one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous as he is righteous.

7:38 Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. No one born of God makes a practice of sinning. For God's seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he's been born of God. By this it is evident who are the children of God and who are the children of the devil. Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother. do you see what he's saying there he says when you're born of god his seed enters into you and because he lives inside of you you can't keep sinning because it's just like my children they can't stop looking like me i'm in them my dna is in them in the same way god here is saying whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil. And whoever has the God's seat abiding inside of him. Again, it's about what's inside. Man, church has become this thing where everyone needs an accountability group. And if they don't call you that week, you're going to fall back into your sin. Oh, it's my accountability group's fault. They didn't hold me accountable. They're just calling me on Tuesday and Thursday.

9:18 And they missed a week. And so that's why I fell back into sin. And it's because my pastor doesn't preach this message hard enough. It's because of this and this and this. It's because of this temptation, this temptation. No, it could be because the Spirit of God doesn't live in you. if you need people to beg you, like, come on, please, just read. Just read the Bible three minutes a day. Try to pray maybe four minutes a day and just work yourself. If you need someone to beg you, if you need someone to beg you to get the sin out of your life, nothing's happening inside. I just remember, you know, when I first came to know Jesus, man, in high school, there was something inside of me. You couldn't have stopped me. Like, I wanted to be with God. I wanted to know Him. I wanted to learn about Him.

10:21 My youth pastor didn't have to beg me. And when I would get alone, it's like I would know what was sinful in my life and I couldn't live with it anymore. That's why the Bible says, he's saying, look, whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil. No one born of God makes a practice of sinning for God's seed abides in him and he cannot keep on sinning because he's been born of God. By this it is evident who are the children of God and who are the children of the devil. Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.

11:09 So some of you guys are going, what are you saying, Francis? Are you saying that if I'm practicing sin right now and that I have hatred toward my brother, that I'm a child of the devil? Of course not. But the Bible's saying that. Okay? And you've got to decide, okay, what am I going to do with that? Okay? Who cares what I think, what I feel, what your friends know? But you know, he says, look, he says, no one keeps on sinning. No one who abides in keeps on sinning. No one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. And he says, little children, let no one deceive you. Let no one deceive you. Because some of you are going, wait, but that's not what I was told. And he says, little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous as he is righteous.

12:06 You're going, wait, but I was taught that if I prayed this prayer, and I was taught if I got baptized, and I was... Let no one deceive you. You can look in your life, read it for yourself. There's something that's supposed to happen inside of you. It's not an external thing. That's why later on, the verse I've preached here before, he goes in verse 16, he says, By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. If anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? Again, he's saying, look, if you've got the world's goods and you see someone in need and you close your heart, he goes, how could God's love abide in you?

13:03 You see, something was supposed to happen that comes naturally. Man, no one had to beg me to give to the poor. There was something inside of me like, help me, help me. I want to give my money away. I am constantly searching for the right people to give the money to that are truly in need. I don't have to be begged to get rid of my sin. I don't have to be begged to get rid of my money. I don't have to be begged to come into the presence of God. When his seed entered into me, these things happened.

13:45 And I... here's my concern is like last week I was doing a big event in a stadium in Dallas. Okay. So just Bible belt to, you know, thing. And I'm praying for them. And I'm saying, God, what do you want me to say to them? And I got this vision. I don't know if it's of the Lord. He's had this picture of thousands of people in this stadium, but it wasn't a stadium, it was a giant swimming pool. And everyone had a life jacket on. And so thousands of people with life jackets paddling around in an enormous pool. And the picture was, I looked at all these people with their flotation devices, and I couldn't tell who could really swim. Because everyone was being propped up artificially.

14:40 but what happens when you take that life jacket off is there something inside where you don't actually need it because you can actually swim yourself see that's what the holy spirit is supposed to do in your life my concern is some of you may have been artificially propped up by a christian family a christian church you know christian pastor christian friends and now you're a Christian university and you're a Christian chapel. Well, take that thing off for a second and let's see if you can swim. Let's see what's inside when you're alone. Man, seriously. when you're alone, do you cry out, Abba Father? If I were to drop you off in some group of people where no one knew God, would everything inside of you go, I'm good, I'm good, God, I know you, I know you.

15:36 And you have no people to hold you accountable. You're like, man, I hate sin. You're kidding me? I've got to get it out. Is everything in you crying out, Abba Father? and wanting more and more of him. Man, you think people have to beg me to use my gift for the church? Oh, please just serve. Come on, just show up. Pass out a bulletin. Be a greeter. Do this, do that. Play the drums. Whatever. No way. The Bible tells me in 1 Corinthians 12 that to everyone is given a manifestation of the Holy Spirit for the common good. Like that right now, I was praying that even during worship. I'm going, God, you say that it's not just me going up there because I have an ability to speak. It's not just some fleshly gift, but you promised that there's some way that the Holy Spirit would speak through me, and he would go into the depths of who you are. And it would be spiritual. It was a manifestation. It's God showing up and speaking through me. And I just started getting excited. I'm there on my knees during worship going, God, could it happen? Could it happen that as I'm speaking, it's not really me speaking, And it's not just my words going into their ears, but something spiritual happens.

17:11 God, and I was just praying, God, could you just have your spirit fall on this place in a way that I don't even expect, where internally it's like, we get it. We get it. We've been so off. And my spirit cries out, Abba Father. This morning, I was reading John 11. That was in my Bible reading. And it was about Lazarus being raised from the dead. and God was asking me, do you believe? You believe that you can do the same things that Jesus did and greater things in these? Then why are you walking in that chapel just ready to give a message and hoping to get through it? I sent you to raise the dead. Do you believe that the Spirit could manifest you through you, Francis, that it wouldn't be you? And I just pictured Jesus being here on the stage with me in all of His glory, and me saying these words, and then Him doing the power, Him being like Lazarus, get up. That people here that maybe even grew up in a Christian family and everything else, you've never taken that jacket off, that you realize, man, I can actually swim a lot faster without this thing.

18:25 And to believe in the power that's in you to impact the church, that to believe that there could be something started here today where something stirs in you. See, like, no one could stop me because something was happening inside. I have such a burden for the church right now. where I read the scriptures and I'm going, God, you wanted us to love each other so deeply that when I took the bread and the cup, I'm thinking I'm supposed to love my sister as much as Christ loved me, but he went to the cross. That means if, what's your name? Asia. You know, like if Asia was supposed to go to the cross, I'm like, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. You know what? I love you. I'm going to go for you. I'm going to go for you. Like, man, I'm sure we'd get along. We're fine, right? You know, we're good. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay. You know, but to love to that degree where I'm supposed to go when you go, no, no, no, take me to the cross. Like that's what he wanted of the church. And he goes, when you become one like that, the world's going to believe that I was sent from the Father.

19:39 And we're not even aiming for this anymore. But that's my heart. I'm going, no, no, I'm going after this. I'm going after this. And I'm praying for a generation to rise up. But I can't be a speaker of Franklin. Come on, you guys, let's do this. Come on, let's start a church. Let's do it. No, it's got to come from inside of you where you're burning inside and going, man, Jesus, I love being with you. I love your presence. And I don't know, I have friends that just seems like they don't get it, Lord. I want this in them. Like they've got to love being with you. God, I love holiness. I love your law. I know it's horrible. It like hurts sometimes. Get rid of my sin, but I want to be holy. I can't help it. I hate whenever I get a little dirty. I'm just sick to my stomach. Put that in my friends. Like that's the spirit. I want to manifest the Holy Spirit to build these people up. So God, speak through me, use me somehow. Man, I want this. I want to be united with a group of people. I want to become perfectly one. Like John 17 says, just as the Father and Son are one, He wants us to be perfectly one. And you go, God, is that even possible? I go, no, it has to be. I'm pursuing this.

20:58 I've got to have this. See, but it's not someone talking me into this stuff. It's coming from the inside. You guys, this is the word of God. And I grew up in a generation where we told people like you, going to our gatherings, like, bring a friend. Bring a friend. We're going to have a pizza night. bring a friend or we have a famous athlete bring a friend i'm gonna dress up like a snowman and sing hallelujah chorus you know bring a friend or you know bring a friend we're gonna and pretty soon all we did was take people to things and we didn't tell people look you have power to be his witness when the holy spirit comes upon you you will receive power you as a human being will receive a crazy amount of power to be his witnesses in Jerusalem. You don't just bring them to an event where I speak. You look at another human being in the eyes. The Holy Spirit does this through you, and you be his witness. You tell them, look, here's what happened to me in my life. Here's what Jesus has done for me. Here's what I've been praying for you, and I want it to happen in your life. Man, we have a whole generation of millions of people who call themselves Christians that can't look another human being in the eye and tell them the most important thing in their lives.

22:35 When meanwhile, there's other of us, others of us, who inside there's like this burning desire where it's like, I have to be his witness. It drives me nuts if I'm not making disciples, if I'm not having an impact in people's lives. It's coming from the inside. Why? Because the Holy Spirit.

22:58 And Satan hates this. Satan would love for you all to think that the best you can do is one day invite a friend to an event rather than believing you've got tremendous power to be his witness and everything in you is burning like I know I was not made to just have fun. I can't even live a life of just having fun. It drives me nuts. Sure, I'll play here and there, but it's like, oh, if I'm not doing anything for the kingdom, I can't go on. Why? Because the Spirit's in you. I want to challenge you.

23:44 I want to challenge, and we can't do it in chapel. I want to challenge you to get alone at some point today. Find a place where no one can get to you. and take the life jacket off and ask yourself, is anything happening inside where I just cry out, Abba, Father, and go, you are my real dad. You're everything to me. Because God says, if you don't love me more than your father, mother, wife, kids, and that love is this affectionate, like friendship love. You can tell when someone's in love and obsessed with someone. Is that you with Jesus?

24:41 Because if you don't love me that much, he goes, you're not worthy of me. Is anything coming from inside? When you're alone and that life jacket's off, do you go, man, God, you're showing me the sin in my life and I want it out. And I have power over that. When you're alone, do you realize I was created for something more than this? And I am called, I have a gift to build up the body of Christ. I've got to do it. I can't stand just going through the motions and living life. I'm created for this. Is that happening in you?

25:14 Because it's better now to find out if you can't swim. Okay, then to come to the end like so many will do. It says in Matthew 7, they come to the end and they go, Lord, but didn't I do this? Didn't I do this? Didn't I do this? And he says, depart from me. I never knew you.

25:36 That was, yes, you went to church with your family. Yes, you went to Christian school. Yes, you did this. Yes, your accountability group held you accountable. I never knew you. My seed wasn't in you. This is serious, serious stuff. And I know, you know, nowadays we don't really talk about being a child of the devil. Because that's old school. No, that's scripture. You're like, well, is it really like I'm a child of God or a child of the devil? Yes. People are trying to get you to believe like there's this big middle ground, right? Where you go, well, I'm not really worshiping Satan. I know I'm not really worshiping God right now. I'm just being me. I'm just doing me for now. You guys, what do you think it means to worship Satan?

26:29 Do you think we're supposed to sing songs to Satan? Is that what he asked for? When Satan was tempting Eve, you know, we say, hey, sing to me. Worship me. No, what is he telling you to do? Do what you want. Do what you feel like doing. Come on, you want to take that, don't you? take it. If you read the satanic bible, which I hope you don't, you'll see that the satanic bible itself is not saying sing praises to satan. Number one command of the satanic bible, do what you want.

27:07 That's why in Ephesians 2, he says you were dead in your trespasses and sins in which you once walked. So you were dead in your trespasses, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air. What were you doing when you were doing you? He goes, you were following the pattern of the world. Everyone in the world is going to tell you, you just do you. You just do what's inside of you. He goes, don't you understand you're following yourself, but you're not just following yourself, you're following the course of this world and you're following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience, among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath like the rest of mankind.

28:14 but God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ. By grace, you've been saved. That's my prayer, you know. I'm not up here bragging like, oh, look, I overcame. No, I'm saying I would have done the same thing. I would have been following Satan too, doing what I wanted to do. But then God, because of his great mercy, he entered into me and made me alive in Christ. And I am praying that for APU for every single one of you. Get alone. Take that life jacket off. if you can't swim.

29:07 Figure it out today. Amen. See ya.