My Today, Their Tomorrow

September is a special month for us here at the church, a significant month for us because it’s our birthday month. And it’s not just where we celebrate being a year older and we all you know made it another year. It’s a month where we particularly and specifically turn our attention to become grateful for God’s faithfulness. 44 incredible years of ministry. Come on, can you put your hands together if you think that’s amazing? And we call it legacy month, as they’ve been saying. And the reason is because we start to turn our attention to the legacy of faith that’s been passed down to us, but also we turn our attention to the legacy of faith that we’re responsible for passing down to the next generation.

And when people use the word legacy in the world, they tend to mean like what you’re remembered for, right? He’s got a great legacy of bear hunting, a great legacy of arts and crowd and whatever it is, that that’s kind of like what the word legacy is for and used for, but that’s not how we use the word legacy, and that’s not how scripture uses the word legacy. In fact, you could say it like this legacy is not what I did for myself, it’s what I’m doing for the next generation. Legacy is not what I did for myself, legacy is what I’m doing for the next generation.

And just to remind you one more time in case you missed it, of what’s coming up in this month. So I’m speaking for the first Sunday of this month. Next week is Pastor Cindy. Week three is Pastor Jordan, and then week four is Pastor Marshall. That’ll lead us to September 22nd, where that’s the legacy offering. We’re believing that everyone, this is what we believe every year, in 100% participation. And so it’s not about the size of the gift, it’s about giving something that is an opportunity for you to partner with us in faith and in resource in what God is doing in the coming month. And of course, or in the coming years, and then, of course, on the 29th is the installation service, where they’re going to be praying over us. And so that’s going to be, we want you to understand that that’s not going to be like a business service, it’s a spiritual service. And so, what we would love for you to do to be, there’s going to be lots of pastors that are going to be here from around town, pastors from out of town, they’re going to be here. We’re going to be praying. And so, what we would love for you to do is just we’ll make it easy for you. Come every Sunday for the entire month, bring a gift on the 22nd, and come believing God for great things on the 29th. Can you do that? Okay. And I can already tell, sweetheart, I’m gonna need a water. It’s not a rush, but whenever you get the chance.

Exodus chapter 3 and verse 6 simply says this. Then he this is God, he says,

I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. At this, Moses hid his face because he was afraid to look at God.

It’s my title. If you’re taking notes this morning, is this my today, their tomorrow. My today, their tomorrow. So, Heavenly Father, today we say thank you for being here with us. We know that when we gather here, that your spirit is here with us, and so we ask that you speak and we commit our hearts to listen and to learn from you. And we say thank you, and we love you. It’s in your sense that we pray. Everybody said amen.

We serve a generational God

So when God reveals Himself in Exodus chapter three, he does it when by saying this: that he is the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. If you didn’t know, Abraham was a man in scripture, and he had a son named Isaac, and Isaac was a man in scripture who had a son named Jacob. So Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. We serve a generational God. A generational God.

And now I want you to turn, if you have your Bibles, to Hebrews chapter 11. I’m going to be reading some scripture this morning. I hope that’s all right with you. Anyone appreciate the fact that we have the inspired word of God here that we can read any time we want. We love scripture. We’re a scripture church. We will always be a scripture church. And I will never apologize for reading scripture from the platform. Hebrews chapter 11. If you don’t know, this is called the hall of faith, and you’ll, as we read it, you’ll see why. I’m sure I’m just gonna jump around a little bit, beginning in verse 4. Says this,

By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did. By faith, Enoch was taken from this life so that he did not experience death.

Verse 7,

by faith, Noah built an ark to save his family.

Verse 8,

by faith Abraham went when called to a place, obeyed and went.

Verse 11,

and by faith, even Sarah.

I don’t know why Sarah gets an even. Even Sarah. She seemed like a perfectly good character, but even Sarah, who was past childhood bearing age, was enabled to bear children. And then listen to this, verse 13. I’m hoping you’ll zone in and you can try to understand these verses, but they’re gonna require you to think a little bit. Verse 13:

all these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised. They only saw them and welcomed them from a distance.

Hmm. And then it continues on, verse 17.

By faith, Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice.

Verse 20,

by faith, Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau.

Verse 21,

by faith, Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons.

Verse 22,

by faith, Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites.

Verse 20, are you seeing a pattern? Verse 23,

by faith, Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born.

Verse 24.

By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land.

Verse 30, I’m almost done.

By faith, the walls of Jericho fell.

Verse 31,

by faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.

And then verse 39, I want you to focus in again. But the writer of Hebrews says that none of these things, none of these people, as admirable as they are, received what had been promised. The question is why? Well, verse 40 tells us, very next verse it says this since God had planned something better for us, so that only together with us would they be made perfect.

So Abraham is waiting on us. Moses is waiting on us. Joseph is waiting on us because unless we do our part, their part isn’t fulfilled. And the things that they were promised don’t come to pass. It says this they were they did not receive what was promised to them because only with us there’s something that the promise would be fulfilled. We serve a generational God. A generational God.

Some of you know, you may not, but probably most of you do. I have a seven-year-old daughter named Grace. If you’re new, you should know that. And for as long as my daughter Grace has been alive, my wife and I, we’ve both been preachers, if you want to call us that. There has never been a time where she has known us to work any other jobs than that of a pastor and a preacher. And so because of that, Grace has turned into a little bit of a preacher herself. And so I have a quick video. Now I realize playing home videos by and large is a no-no. Pastors know we know we’re not supposed to do this. The reason is because we love it and you hate it. Like when you show me pictures of you know, a baby, like you know, you love it, I don’t love it. Right, so I know that that’s how it is. But I’m hoping you’ll bear with me for it’s a 45 second clip of this is my daughter, a preaching, and it’s not because I just want to show you, it’s because I’m making a very important point. So will you please turn your attention to the screen for this 45 second clip?

Chapter 16, by meeting help. So one of the persons. Even he did. So let’s answer, sir. Can you answer? I don’t know. You have me, father. We wish we had a day. Crazy of the Lord and God. We need Jesus to God. And the devil was very bad. He had a red face. He had red eyes. He had red horns. He’s very, very nice. Sorry.

And so some of y’all may be thinking, oh, she’s so anointed. No, that’s not the point that I’m making. She it she was preaching not because she has something to say, clearly. When you’re six, this was when she was saying, you don’t have a lot to say when you’re at six. I mean, you’ve got lots to say, but you don’t have much to say, if you know what I mean. She was preaching not because she has something to say, but she was preaching because she sees mom and dad preach. Because she’s seen us do this a whole lot of times. So it’s just natural for her to come and do her best at this. And it’s just amazing to see this. Like how quickly kids learn, and not primarily through instruction, primarily through imitation. That’s how kids learn, right? You teach them a lot by the things that you say, you teach them more by the things that you do. Everyone should know this. Every healthy parent understands this: that their kid is like a sponge. Right? And the things that you do that you’re not proud of, they do. Right? The things that your great moments, they learn. Your worst moments, they learn. And I think it’s both beautiful and terrifying to see just how quickly and how rapidly they’re picking up all kinds of different things from you. My actions, my attitudes, my responses, my habits, my interactions, my priorities are all passed down to her, whether I like it or not. And that’s just the truth.

God’s plan requires the old and the young

And so here’s a big idea that I want you to consider if you haven’t considered it, and it’s this God’s plan requires the old and the young. God’s plan requires the old and the young. And don’t be offended if you’re old. Like, that’s not an insult. If you’re old, you’re old. You have you have some wisdom and hopefully a little bit of money, and we need both. Yeah, I want to say it like this. We need fathers. We need mothers. And I don’t know how old old is to you, you know, like people will say, like, well, age is just a number. You’re only old if you feel old. I don’t know if any of that’s true. But I do want to say this if you’re old and you feel unimportant, you’re wrong. Because we need you. We desperately need your wisdom. We desperately need your encouragement. We desperately need your love. We desperately need your support. We desperately need your help. And let me say this that I need you. In this next season of the church, I need you. And if the music’s like a little bit loud, I need your grace. And and if like I step out in faith and try something and it doesn’t work, and we gotta start over and try something, like I need your grace. And I need you in this church. Because there’s 15-year-olds, 20-year-olds, 30-year-olds who are looking for someone to help them and to guide them. So I’m asking you, if you’re an old person in the church, I’m asking you to partner with me. And yes, I joked about your money, but we really do need it. Look, we just do.

Look over here at all these amazing young people, right? Like here’s one of the reasons that we need you. Like, see, I want to reach the Esais. I want to reach the Constanzas, I want to reach the Giselles. But because they’re incredible, but they don’t have any money. They’re 20. You know what I’m saying? Right? Like, they have jobs and they tithe and they’re good people and they’re godly people, but you know what I’m saying? Right? Like, they don’t have the finances yet, but they have the fire. Right? They’ve got the passion. They’ve got the giftings, they’ve got the anointing. And so that’s why it takes both. And if you if you understand reality at all, you have to understand there’s a season where we give them opportunities to do amazing things, and they don’t pay for it. We do. You just have to that that’s just the way that it works. And that’s not your only responsibility. That’s not my only responsibility, but like a long, long, long, long, long, long, long, long, long, long shot. But just understand that there’s a partnership that has to take place for when we grow.

And look, like we live in a nation that everything is going younger and younger and younger and younger, right? Advertising targets young people. Technology and social media targets young people. The entertainment industry targets young people. The fashion industry targets young people. Even listen to this mod a lot of modern churches target young people. And maybe there’s some good in that. I don’t know, but I’ll say this. God’s plan requires the old and the young together. And so what so what you think, like, what are you doing? Here’s what I’m trying to do. I’m trying to convince you that no matter what season of life you’re in, that I need you, and more specifically, God needs you in this next season of our calling as a church.

Joel chapter 2, verse 28 says this.

And afterward, I will pour out my spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.

So God says that when He’s gonna pour His Spirit out, it’s gonna be on both men and women. Did you catch that? Both men and women. Here at this church, we believe that anything a man can do, a woman can do better, faster, cheaper, higher quality, less mistakes, less things to clean up. Some people think, like, oh, Pastor David, you’re gonna do such an incredible job with the church. So just don’t get it confused. Anything that, anything that can be admired in me, either in the past, presently, or in the future, is there in part, not exclusively, but in part because of the love and support and the help that I get from Jordan. You wouldn’t want to know the church that I would build without her. You wouldn’t want to see it. You never would, because it wouldn’t exist. Right. Like, so if you think, if you think me and Marshall are the secret brains behind the organization, I assure you that’s not the case. It requires both men and women.

But did you notice this that it also says also for the old and for the young? The old and the young. I think the devil is sneaky. Like, because when you’re young, he tells you, yeah, you’re too young. And then when you’re old, he tells you, yeah, you’re too old. The enemy will always tell you that there’s someone better than you. You’re too old, you’re too young, you’re too black, you’re too white, you’re too fat, you’re too skinny, you’re a hypocrite, you’re a fake, right? Your faith isn’t real, you’re not gifted, you’re not called. Understand this though. He tells those lies to everyone. And and you fight those lies. We just did a whole series. You fight those lies. How? With the truth. What’s the truth? The truth is this you have a part to play in fulfilling the plans of God for this generation. And you may be thinking, oh, I hope that’s true for you and the young people. No, everybody. If you can hear, like if you’re breathing right now, you have a part to play in what God is doing in the next generation. You. And if you let the devil talk you out of it because you’re too young and you never break that pattern, you’re gonna be doing that your whole life. Right? Because like you’re too old, or you’re too young, or you’re too fat, or you’re not funny enough, or I could never do what they do. And it’s like people just use that their entire life to not do something. And then they’re on their deathbed thinking, like, man, I sure wish God would have used me in a really cool way. And I’d say this like the devil is a disqualifier. He’s always gonna come to you with this word disqualified. You’re disqualified, but God is a qualifier. It doesn’t mean that every job that we all have is the same. That’s not the case. But we all have a part to play, and it’s all important. Men, women, young, old, white, black, we all have a part to play, and we’re all important.

God desires and requires unity across generations

Malachi chapter 4, verse 6, says this.

He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the hearts of the children to their parents. Or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction.

Lovely. Here’s the point. God desires and requires unity across generations. God desires and requires unity across generations. So I want you to know this. I don’t want a young church. Oh, people be, oh, it’s gonna be I don’t want a young church. I don’t want an old church. I want a kingdom church. And a kingdom church is a church that’s made up of all kinds of different people, all kinds of different backgrounds, all kinds of different skills, all kinds of different abilities, all contributing to one thing. Different ways of seeing the world, different ways of seeing ministry. We’re not always gonna agree on a million different things, but the point is the diversity that’s represented in this room and in the body of Christ doesn’t make us weaker, it makes us stronger. It’s a kingdom church.

And so it’s like, man, people tell me, oh, what are you gonna do? And all those young people come. It’s like, man, I don’t know. I do think there’s gonna be young people that are gonna come. For sure. And I think young people need to come. But understand that I am not doing some deep philosophical strategy thing where, like now, all of a sudden we’re gonna be a church that targets exclusively young people. That’s not gonna happen. This is a kingdom church. And everyone here, brand new, you’ve been coming for 40 years, 44 years, you have a part to play.

Acts chapter 2, verse 38 says this. Peter replied, repent and be baptized. This is the formation of the church in Acts. Peter replied,

Repent and be baptized, every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Then verse 39 the promise is for you and your children. The promise is for you and your children. I want you to think about something that might be new for some of you. When God saved you, he was already thinking about your kids. The plan of God is not just for you. And paradoxically, that’s why you’re so important. I’ve told you this a thousand times. There’s a generation that’s coming after you that’s either blessed or burdened by who you become. And so your decisions matter. Your priorities matter. How you invest your time matters. How you invest your money matters, and not just for you, but for the people who come after you.

And I’m even like listening to my talk here, and I just want to say this. I don’t want any of this to be condemning. I want it to be inspiring. The devil or let’s say the God inspires and convicts, the devil discourages and condemns. You understand that? Right. So God’s not coming to condemn you. God’s coming to convict you, and God’s coming to inspire you, and know that you always have an opportunity to make a fresh start. So it’s great. God says, Behold, I make all things new. And of course, that’s talking about the miracle of regeneration in the Christian. But I think that that’s true of everything. I think God makes families new all the time. Family heals relationships all the time, new beginnings, like a series of conversions where there’s the one conversion where we give our life to Christ, but there’s conversions all along the way where we’re giving more of our life to Christ, more of our life to Christ, more of our life to Christ. And that is not a reason to feel condemned or embarrassed or ashamed. That’s a reason to celebrate. But even as we’re talking about this, it’s like, man, man, that’s a brand new idea for me. Look, that’s great. Praise God for it. And you can start it today.

And so what I have for you is three affirmations. This is pretty quick. Three affirmations that I want to serve as an inspiration for you, taking your place in the kingdom of God, no matter what your age is.

My today affects their tomorrow

Number one is this. Are you ready? Number one is this. My today affects their tomorrow. My today affects their tomorrow. Healthy parents understand this. That we can set up our children by what we do today. And so I want to I’ll just speak for me. I want to live my life in a way that sets my daughter up in the future. Is that right? Any other parents in here? Like I want to live my life in a way that sets my parent my kids up for the future. I want to set my daughter up for blessing emotionally. I want to set her up for blessing relationally. I want to set her up for blessing financially, academically.

And I’ve got a new phrase that I might be new for you, and it’s this generational responsibility. And people talk about you know generational curses and generational blessings, and you bet all that for sure. But I want you to think about this. I’m about generational responsibility. I want my daughter to know what an authentic Christian looks like when she sees me. I want my daughter to recognize how a real man treats a woman by how I treat her mother. I want my daughter to understand what loving parenting looks like because she has loving parents. I want my daughter to know what a healthy marriage looks like because she sees me in Jordan. And if I fail to set that example, listen to me. That’s not her fault, it’s mine. Generational responsibility.

Can I talk to all the dads for a quick second? Husbands, fathers, be faithful. And by that I mean specifically, don’t sleep with other people. Honor your commitment. And it’s not just because you’ve made a covenant with your wife, which you have. You have you have generational responsibility for your children. And they’re gonna learn what a man looks like by what they see at home. Men, ready? Come to church. Do it. Even when your wife’s out of town, come to church. I dare you. But because you have a responsibility to teach your family that God comes first. And if you can’t do it, like that, how are they good? You just thinking you’re just gonna tell them that and never show them. Like that’s not how it works. Generational responsibility is you putting on display. Man, it’s Sunday, we go to church. It’s Sunday, we go to God’s house. It’s Sunday, we worship, right? And we do lots of other things. We barbecue and we put go watch football and we have all kinds of other fun. But we don’t do that before we come to the house of God to worship. Because it’s our way of showing God that God comes first. Right? And so, like you might be thinking, well, then make it more interesting. Look, we’ll do our best. Right? But it’s not about you being entertained, it’s about you leading your family. Right, and so look, you might be some kind of Christian apart from the church. You bet. But your kids probably won’t be. And your grandkids definitely won’t be. Christianity doesn’t long survive outside the church. And that’s just the way it is. And you might be thinking, I don’t like that. Well, listen, that’s the American in you. You just want to have a personal relationship with God and go fishing on Sundays. Right? Just understand this. History tells us very clearly that it doesn’t work. So, like, if you want Christianity to be a priority for you and your children, come to church. Speak positively about the church. Like go into the car, hop into the minivan, you know, today after and say, Man, church was awesome, man. Man, sermon, even if you hated the sermon. Like you’re like, there’s a worship. Just hop in there, say, man, don’t you love that we get to go to church together? It’s not so cool, man. Our church is so awesome. You know why? Because your kids are gonna be like, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, you bet. Right? But if you’re always complaining and whining and like have a sour look on your face when it comes time to church, you think your kids are gonna think this is the greatest place in the world? It’s not gonna happen.

So speak positively about the church. Parents, you ready? Let your kids hear you pray. You have a generational responsibility. You don’t have to be all legalistic about it, you know. Like, but you could pray before meals, you could pray before school, you could pray before bed. You know, you when you’re driving, you see a car accident, you know what you should say to your kid? Hey, let’s pray for them. Like it’s such an easy opportunity, right? And it’s not because it’s good for you, which it is, it’s because you have a generational responsibility to put Christ on display. Married couples, you ready? Put your love for each other on display for your kids. You may not realize this, but one of the greatest gifts you can give your kids is letting them feel safe in your relationship. Right? That’s why I say to my daughter all the time, I say, I say, Grace, who are the two most important people in my life? And she says, Mom and me. Mom and me. And I was like, that’s right. And she says, Why do you always say that? I said, It’s because it’s important you know. It’s important that you know that nothing’s ever gonna come between me and you, and nothing is ever gonna come between me and mommy. Right, and I have a responsibility to show her what a healthy relationship looks like. Your kids will learn what’s acceptable in relationship by what they observe at home.

And so it’s just and look, I realize it’s not meant to condemn. It’s not gonna meant to condemn any of you, but to just know this today is a fresh start. And just putting this on that it’s like I have responsibility for me, but I also have a responsibility to the people that come before me. And this maybe the idea is new for you, but listen to this. When God saw my parents, he already saw me. And when God saw me in Jordan, he already saw grace. And maybe you’re thinking, man, I didn’t do this, man. I feel so bad. Like, look, God can always heal the things that we break in our ignorance. Always. That’s also so great. But just understand there’s a better way to live than just doing whatever comes naturally and then praying for a crop failure for all the bad seed that you’ve planted. I think there’s a better way to do it. And it’s just by understanding that everything you do is not just for you. It’s for the relationship, it’s for the generation that comes after you. Maybe you’re like a first generation Christian. Do you know this? That you can set up a generational blessing that can last for years and years and years. Maybe all you’ve known is dysfunction and alcoholism and anger. Did you know that you can break that generational curse and set up a generational blessing that will last generations by the decisions that you make?

And you might be thinking, David, why are you talking about all this parenting? Like it’s not about parenting. The reason I’m talking about it is to set up this point, is that we all share that level of responsibility for the Christians that come after us. And you’re never too young to start sacrificing for people who are younger than you. I was thinking, some of you know. Yeah, Noah, he’s not in here. He’s he’s ministering to the to the kids, which is just so fitting for the story I’m about to tell. Some of y’all know Noah, he’s the big blocky dude and clearly played football. Awesome blonde, blonde kid here, graduated high school a couple years ago. Great football player. You also probably know Owen McDermott. He’s about 11, 11 years old, and he’s kind of like quite the aspiring little quarterback. And so Noah noticed that. And so throughout the summer, what Noah did is he reached out to Jesse and Christine to schedule time with Owen. He would pick him up and drive him to different football fields around town and spend hours with him training him with all the things that he had learned in high school. He and they said that he’d do this during the summer, he did it multiple times every week. Spending time with, and it’s like, man, this kid is giving his, what is he, 20? I think he’s 20. Giving his time, giving his resources, spending his own money on gas. It’s a 20-year-old, he’s not having money, right? He’s spending his money on gas, right? Waking up early so that he can invest into the next generation at 20 years old. And so the question is this if he can do it, why can’t you? Of course you can. Right? Oh, they don’t want to know what I have to say. You might be surprised, man. Right? Like they don’t think I’m cool. It’s not as much about cool as you think. Right? These kids, these kids have it up to here with cool, right? It’s cool all day. But a lot of them don’t have a dad. A lot of them don’t have a mom. Right? And all it takes is for you to jump out of your comfort zone and do something, even in a really simple way. Here’s my skills, high school football. I dare you to find one that’s probably lower on the ring of how can God use this than high school football. Right? But if you offer, it’s not about having the most amazing gifts, it’s about offering your gifts to God to see what he can do with them. So that’s number one. My today affects their tomorrow.

My today honors their yesterday

Number two is this. If you’re taking notes, my today honors their yesterday. My today honors their yesterday. What I do today honors the generations that came before me. Most of you are probably familiar with in Exodus chapter three. It’s Moses and the burning bush. It’s where Moses he comes upon a plant that’s on fire, but it’s not burning up, it’s just on fire, and then a voice starts speaking from the bush. And of course, y’all probably know if you know the story that it’s the voice of God, and this is what he says. We read it at the beginning, but we’re gonna read it again. Exodus 3 6. Then he said, This is the bush, the bush says, which is God. Then he said,

I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.

Here’s what’s weird about that verse. Abraham was not Moses’ father. Isaac was not Moses’ father. Jacob was not Moses’ father. Moses’ dad was a man by the name of Amram. It’s the worst name I’ve ever heard. Amram. Right? So he’s I feel like I could see Moses responding like, that’s not my dad. So he tells the bush. You got the now, you definitely got the wrong guy. You don’t even know who my dad is. So what so what’s happening? Why is God saying this? The reason is this is that Moses is about to do something huge for God. And right before God tells him the plan, he connects the things that Moses is doing with the generations before him. And that connection is like so important.

And I can tell you, and I’ve told you this before, but but for me, when when my faith started coming alive, and when my passion for ministry started coming alive, was when I stopped thinking, oh, this is a cool church in the 21st century that we can leave. It was it was not just that, it wasn’t just like an isolated little block of time. It was this is something that has been passed down generation after generation after generation for thousands of years. And for me, like I can say that, and it might not mean anything to you. But if that ever clicks in your head in your heart, that it’s like, man, this is our time to pass this thing down to a next generation, and it’s been passed for thousands of years. Man, it’s a it’s an amazing reality. And so that’s why in this next season of the church, like we’re not starting from scratch. We’re not starting over, we’re we’re building on top of. And it’s not to cover up, it’s to reach even higher. Right? But there’s a connection that what I do here is for the next generation, but also what I do here, just like what you do here, honors the people that came before you.

I want you to think about think about the chair that you’re sitting in right now. Look at it. Purple, yeah, yeah. Think about that, it’s pretty nice, right? I mean, it’s kind of like a movie theater seat. I don’t know what you call it, right? Better than a than a metal chair that you’re always sliding out of, right? It’s pretty nice. It’s important for me that you realize that I did not buy that chair. Personally, but somebody did. Somebody bought that chair. And if you have been coming to this church less than 30 years, you didn’t buy that chair. But somebody bought that chair. And here’s what I want you to think about. When they bought that chair by putting that check in the offering container as it passed by, as they bought that chair, they saw you. Maybe not your exact face, not exactly what you look like, probably not that, but with their eyes of faith, they saw the thing that they were building. And just like we read in Hebrews chapter 11, these people, they didn’t receive the promises, but they saw them. That’s Hebrews 11. It’s like all of these men and women, it’s like they didn’t receive the promise, but they saw the promise. And the reason is this is that they’re waiting on us for their promises to be fulfilled. It’s not amazing.

And like I don’t know exactly how that works. Like, I don’t know, Pastor Marshall could tell us, is there a balcony in heaven? Like, are they looking, you know, like on to earth? It’s like, don’t get too close to the edge. I don’t know exactly how it works for them to be like looking at us. But the point is that scripture teaches that we have a cloud of witnesses. A cloud of witnesses that are cheering us on, watching us, saying, like, go for it, you can do it. You we set you up. This is your chance, right? They’re they’re waiting on us to say yes. Because what they built, they didn’t see. They didn’t, what they built, they didn’t receive. They just saw. And the cloud of witnesses is what? It’s all these martyrs who gave their life for the faith, burned alive, buried alive, beaten, tortured, executed, beheaded, right? That they’re looking down on us, waiting on our faith. And I could just speak for me. Like, I won’t speak for you, I can speak for me. I say this. I want to honor their faith. Marshall and Cindy, in this season of transition, I want to honor their faith. I want to honor my parents’ faith. Right? And their faith, not their faith in me, the faith that has resulted in them building this amazing and faithful church over 44 years. I want to honor that. And so it’s like, David, what do you what do you have? What do you have in your heart? Like, I’ll tell you, what I have in my heart is not just for the next generation, even though it is for the next generation. It’s also to honor the generations that came before me.

And so it’s this tension that we manage, right? That like as we walk forward, we’re looking forward to the next generation, and we’re also looking back. Because we know that these people are watching us, and they’re ready to receive their promise through what we do. Right? And at the same time, we’re aware of that, and we’re looking forward to the next generation. So it’s this tension. And when we do that, something amazing happens. Like God comes and starts to do something amazing, and we begin to walk in this thing called revival. And now all of a sudden it’s like, man, this room’s too small. So we need more services, we need more teams. Revival is not just something that someone calls a revival. You know, you can call an event whatever you want, right? Oh, we’re having an arrival. Oh, cool. Okay. Like, that’s not what a revival is. It’s not just an event that has the word revival in it. Revival is when God comes and breathes fresh life into something. Right? Where it’s like, we’re just like, we’re doing our thing, and it’s like, man, lives are changing. All of a sudden, like people are coming to God, and we just go, like, how is all this happening? Right. Like, people are families are being put back together. Addictions are being broken. And we’re just like looking back and we’re thinking, like, I don’t even know how and when all this happened. Right? It happens when we all take our place, do our part, bring our best, and just watch what God can do.

My today is possible because Jesus thought generationally

Here’s my closing question for you. Number one, my today affects their tomorrow. Number two, my today honors their yesterday. And let me do this fast. Fly by and I’m done. Number three is this my today is possible because Jesus thought generationally. My today is possible because Jesus thought generationally. Hebrews chapter 12. This is the very next, these are the next verses.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him, he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

I love the way Eugene Peterson says it in the message paraphrase. He says this

keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it, because he never lost sight of where he was headed.

So Jesus did what he did for the generations to come. And when he was on the cross in agony, suffering, he saw you. And he sacrificed then so that we could have this now. And by this I don’t mean the lights and the screens. I don’t mean the smoke machine. What I mean is this, he sacrificed then so that we could have relationship with him now. And he’s our example in everything that we do. And so when we serve, we remember that we’re modeling Jesus. And when we give, we remember we’re modeling Jesus. And we commit our lives to the next generation. We remember that we’re modeling Jesus.

And here’s my closing question. And it’s so simple. Such a simple little question for you this morning. It’s this what legacy am I leaving for future generations? Not what do I want to be remembered for? It’s not about you. Right? What legacy am I leaving for future generations? Because again, your legacy is not about what you do for you. Your legacy is about what you’re doing for the next generation.

Here’s my closing statement. We serve a generational God, and we share a generational responsibility. My today affects their tomorrow. My choices shape the future for those who come after me. My today honors their yesterday. My actions honor the faith and sacrifice of those who came before me. My today is possible because Jesus thought generationally. Jesus endured the cross, seeing the future He was securing for us. What we build today impacts the next generation and fulfills God’s promises to the generation before us.

So, Heavenly Father, this morning we say, we just say yes. That’s what I want to say. I just want to say yes to whatever part you have for me to play in all of this. You know, the crazy thing is this, Father, I believe that Jesus is the Savior of the world. Still in 2024. It’s a crazy world. I believe the only solution is Jesus. And so I’m saying yes to whatever part you would have me play in that. And that in my in my own heart and in my own minds, you would keep me connected to the generations that came before me. That you would never let me as a minister, you would never let us as a church, you would never let us as Christians feel the liberty to disconnect from what came before us. And in the same way, Father, you would never, you would keep it in our heart always that we’re doing the things that we do, not just for us, but for the generation to come. That we have a responsibility to build a place, to build a house, to build a life, to build possibilities for the generation that comes after us. Father, it’s a huge responsibility, but it’s a great privilege. We do what we do in this life, in your house and in the world with joy because it’s a privilege. Thank you for second chances. Thank you that even this morning you’re mending broken hearts. People who feel like they need a second chance. People who feel like they never got a first chance. Father, we believe that you’re healing broken hearts, healing broken bodies, bringing hope, bringing life, bringing peace, being bringing joy, bringing clarity, like fresh godly wisdom to people who need wisdom. Fresh godly hope to the hopeless. Fresh peace for people who feel like they have none. Father, we thank you so much. And we love you. And we simply say yes to what you have for us to do. Again, we say thank you and we love you. It’s in your sons that we pray. Everybody said. Amen.

Hey, will you stand with me on your feet? We’re just gonna beat it into you, but you know, love for you to come the whole month. Please make every effort. We have been meeting for prayer at 6.05. That is not gonna happen this coming Tuesday because it’s a prayer service. Pray first. And so we would love to have you come this coming Tuesday at 7 o’clock for prayer in here. The youth, BC Youth, is just crushing it in there. BC Kids, it’s for the whole family. Love to see you guys this coming Tuesday at 7 o’clock. If you can’t make that, that’s totally okay. But we would love to see you. Please make every effort to be here for all the Sundays in the month of September. Let us know what we can do for you this month. We can pray for you. We can give you a hug. I mean whatever. We just want to be family for you. So we’re gonna be down here. If we can do anything for you, pray with you, believe with you, please just let us know. Love you so much, and we look forward to seeing you next service. God bless.