WEBVTT - Three Barriers That Keep You From Salvation 0:00:00.560 --> 0:00:04.320 Coming to you from the Morning Star Mission sponsored studio. 0:00:04.800 --> 0:00:08.080 This is Carl and crew on Moody Radio. 0:00:09.039 --> 0:00:14.080 Give him praise on this Freedom Friday. Boy, we love 0:00:14.120 --> 0:00:17.160 a good freedom Friday. Come on now. Come on. Ali. 0:00:17.200 --> 0:00:18.479 Freedom Friday, sister. 0:00:18.480 --> 0:00:19.400 Freedom Friday. 0:00:19.600 --> 0:00:22.360 Come on. See there. She can put some mustard to it. 0:00:22.920 --> 0:00:25.320 She had a little, little twang on that Friday. 0:00:25.640 --> 0:00:26.120 Friday. 0:00:26.160 --> 0:00:27.040 Little something there. 0:00:27.080 --> 0:00:28.720 I don't know what it is about Freedom Friday, but 0:00:28.720 --> 0:00:31.680 you gotta have a little twang to it. I don't know. 0:00:31.720 --> 0:00:34.880 I don't know. Do you? It seems right. It seems right. 0:00:34.920 --> 0:00:37.479 I'm becoming like Ali. I just said, do you? I 0:00:37.520 --> 0:00:38.440 never said that before. 0:00:38.640 --> 0:00:39.720 That is very true. You have. 0:00:39.720 --> 0:00:39.960 None. 0:00:39.960 --> 0:00:42.040 Oh no question. Everything. 0:00:42.400 --> 0:00:46.279 Oh, no. Oh, yeah. That's. Yeah. Ali. Yeah. She's got 0:00:46.280 --> 0:00:52.400 a question mark hanging over her head, which is good. Um. 0:00:52.920 --> 0:00:54.600 I have a fear. 0:00:55.240 --> 0:00:55.400 Oh. 0:00:56.720 --> 0:00:58.960 I have a lot of fears. I'm not jumping out 0:00:58.960 --> 0:01:00.910 of a plane, by the way. That's crazy. 0:01:01.030 --> 0:01:02.190 No skydiving for you. 0:01:02.630 --> 0:01:05.350 I don't call that fear. I just call that wisdom. 0:01:05.470 --> 0:01:07.350 A little apprehension with heights. 0:01:07.590 --> 0:01:10.630 Yeah, especially these guys that take these full body glider 0:01:10.630 --> 0:01:12.390 suits and jump off cliffs and then. 0:01:12.390 --> 0:01:14.150 Oh, I can't imagine that, man. 0:01:14.190 --> 0:01:16.869 No, I just don't get it, man. I just I 0:01:16.870 --> 0:01:19.950 love watching the videos on their GoPros, but no, I'm 0:01:19.950 --> 0:01:22.350 not doing I'm not going there. I'm staying on the ground. 0:01:22.390 --> 0:01:22.789 I'm with. 0:01:22.790 --> 0:01:26.710 You. Oh my goodness. But my fear revolves around something 0:01:26.709 --> 0:01:29.910 that happened at lunch in Portland, Oregon, on the river. 0:01:30.670 --> 0:01:36.750 Downtown Portland, nice little restaurant. Beautiful lunch out with a 0:01:36.750 --> 0:01:44.270 few friends. My bride, great waitress, comes out boldly coming 0:01:44.270 --> 0:01:48.070 up to the table. She says to me, fresh mahi 0:01:48.110 --> 0:01:51.270 mahi as she's coming at terminal velocity. 0:01:52.830 --> 0:01:53.310 Oh, no. 0:01:53.710 --> 0:01:56.590 Tried to set that plate down, but it didn't work. 0:01:57.390 --> 0:02:08.380 The entire entree. Rice. Fish. Vegetables. Lemon wedges. Plop right 0:02:08.380 --> 0:02:08.940 in my lap. 0:02:09.100 --> 0:02:09.580 Oh, boy. 0:02:10.060 --> 0:02:13.139 The whole thing. Oh, I mean, they're out scrambling. Here 0:02:13.139 --> 0:02:16.900 comes the general manager. Mr. Claussen, can we launder your clothes? 0:02:16.900 --> 0:02:19.020 I said they're jeans, bro. It's okay. 0:02:19.620 --> 0:02:20.660 It's gonna be fine. 0:02:20.660 --> 0:02:21.300 Oh, man. 0:02:21.660 --> 0:02:27.100 It's okay, it's fine. But ever since then, when somebody 0:02:27.100 --> 0:02:32.940 brings out food to the table, I not any food. 0:02:32.940 --> 0:02:35.180 You bring out a burger or whatever. I'm not yipping 0:02:35.180 --> 0:02:38.460 about that. But I got one of my favorite joints 0:02:38.660 --> 0:02:42.780 in Des Plaines is called. I think it's called Jo 0:02:42.820 --> 0:02:45.900 Cho Dong, but it's spelled Cho dang. You know, it's 0:02:45.900 --> 0:02:49.060 one of those things. Okay, but Cho Dang has these 0:02:49.060 --> 0:02:54.260 hot pots where they come out. No kidding. They are 0:02:54.380 --> 0:03:02.850 absolutely bubbling with boiling brew. So it's a tofu beef spices. 0:03:03.330 --> 0:03:06.169 Super spicy, man. I mean, it's great. It'll clean you out. 0:03:06.210 --> 0:03:08.770 No one walks out of there. It gets regular spice 0:03:08.770 --> 0:03:12.530 or hotter. That isn't absolutely blowing their schnozzle. It's great. 0:03:12.570 --> 0:03:14.210 Decongestant on steroids. 0:03:14.250 --> 0:03:14.850 Wow. 0:03:14.889 --> 0:03:17.930 But every time they set that down, I go back 0:03:17.930 --> 0:03:19.250 to Portland, Oregon. In my. 0:03:19.250 --> 0:03:19.730 Mind. 0:03:20.290 --> 0:03:22.690 You just get a little nervous. Well, I mean, mahi 0:03:22.730 --> 0:03:25.570 mahi I mean, does mahi mahi come hot or is 0:03:25.570 --> 0:03:26.690 it one of those. It was. 0:03:26.690 --> 0:03:29.730 It was it was pretty hot. It wasn't the heat factor. 0:03:29.730 --> 0:03:32.090 It was just the dump in my lap factor. So 0:03:32.090 --> 0:03:36.050 when I see a boiling cauldron of goodies, I'm like, 0:03:36.370 --> 0:03:41.170 now aim that sucker. Oh, don't drop it. Oh, good. 0:03:41.210 --> 0:03:44.210 She touched down. And sometimes they walk up like, yeah, 0:03:44.250 --> 0:03:45.850 this ain't nothing but a thing, right? 0:03:45.850 --> 0:03:47.090 Because they've done it a million times. 0:03:47.130 --> 0:03:50.250 Yeah. And they're looking around. One time she's plopping it down. 0:03:50.250 --> 0:03:52.730 She's looking at her manager saying something to her. And 0:03:52.730 --> 0:03:57.680 I'm like, pay attention to the boiling cauldron that is 0:03:57.720 --> 0:04:02.080 being placed six inches in front of my lap. Can 0:04:02.080 --> 0:04:03.040 you feel that with me? 0:04:03.160 --> 0:04:06.160 A little? A little bit of PTSD from. 0:04:06.160 --> 0:04:08.840 Oh my goodness, isn't that funny how that works? 0:04:08.960 --> 0:04:10.120 Oh, yeah. 0:04:10.160 --> 0:04:14.840 I mean, it's just crazy. You know, it's one thing 0:04:14.840 --> 0:04:17.320 when you're worried about someone else, but when you've got 0:04:17.320 --> 0:04:22.880 control over things yourself. I really hope that you have 0:04:22.880 --> 0:04:25.840 a question mark about, am I going to miss the 0:04:25.839 --> 0:04:35.360 mark for eternity in life today? I really do. I 0:04:35.400 --> 0:04:37.800 hope that there is a holy gut check in you 0:04:37.800 --> 0:04:44.440 where you ask, wow, am I born again? Apostle Paul said, 0:04:45.400 --> 0:04:49.160 examine yourself to see if you're in the faith. And 0:04:49.160 --> 0:04:52.479 by the way, this isn't about being freaked out about 0:04:52.480 --> 0:04:56.589 whether or not you're born again. An imperfection in followers 0:04:56.589 --> 0:05:02.590 of Christ. It happens. This is about when you're when 0:05:02.589 --> 0:05:06.590 you're born again. There is conviction. And I tell most 0:05:06.589 --> 0:05:08.589 people who go, man, I'm just freaked out. I don't 0:05:08.589 --> 0:05:11.349 know if I'm born again. And I tell them, first off, 0:05:11.589 --> 0:05:16.469 your concern is one of the greatest evidences that you are, 0:05:16.470 --> 0:05:19.950 because all that then fills in the blank is by faith. 0:05:19.950 --> 0:05:23.150 You ready to surrender all to Jesus Christ. And they're like, oh, 0:05:23.150 --> 0:05:26.110 I've done that. You know what you struggle with? You 0:05:26.150 --> 0:05:30.909 struggle with condemnation or conviction not dealt with in your life. 0:05:30.910 --> 0:05:35.310 But my greater concern are the people that suffer from 0:05:35.310 --> 0:05:39.950 some barriers to salvation. This morning on this Freedom Friday, 0:05:39.950 --> 0:05:46.390 I want to give you the three barriers to salvation 0:05:46.390 --> 0:05:48.190 and what God wants to do with you. This morning 0:05:48.190 --> 0:05:50.229 he brought you here for a reason. Some of you 0:05:50.270 --> 0:05:52.790 have been praying for loved ones or wondering how to 0:05:52.790 --> 0:05:55.419 pray for loved ones. That's the bigger thing, isn't it, Ali? 0:05:55.460 --> 0:05:57.220 It's kind of like, oh, what do I do? I've 0:05:57.260 --> 0:05:59.460 got a I've got a child, I got a husband, 0:05:59.500 --> 0:06:01.540 I got a wife, I got a friend, I got 0:06:01.540 --> 0:06:04.460 a neighbor, I've got this person. I go to church 0:06:04.460 --> 0:06:08.020 with someone, but they they don't know Christ. And what 0:06:08.020 --> 0:06:12.060 do I do? Well, it's it's the Holy Spirit's work. 0:06:12.060 --> 0:06:15.140 But there are things that we can do. And as 0:06:15.140 --> 0:06:18.300 we look at these three barriers to salvation, I pray 0:06:18.300 --> 0:06:21.460 that lights go on and that liberty reigns supreme on 0:06:21.460 --> 0:06:22.700 this Freedom Friday. 0:06:23.300 --> 0:06:25.860 Your shot of hope to help you through the day. 0:06:26.260 --> 0:06:29.220 This is Carl and crew on Moody Radio. 0:06:29.540 --> 0:06:33.100 I love this story out of acts 16. It's about 0:06:33.100 --> 0:06:36.100 the missionary journey. Paul and Silas actually find their way 0:06:36.140 --> 0:06:40.820 via a vessel through Neapolis on to Philippi. And then 0:06:40.820 --> 0:06:42.380 they go into the city, and they sit down with 0:06:42.380 --> 0:06:48.300 a group of women, and they sat down and spoke 0:06:48.300 --> 0:06:51.820 to the women who had come together. And then it 0:06:51.820 --> 0:06:55.010 says in verse 14, this really cool one who heard us. 0:06:55.490 --> 0:06:58.250 Isn't that funny? So they spoke to a group of women. 0:06:58.810 --> 0:07:03.130 One who heard us was a great woman named Lydia. 0:07:03.170 --> 0:07:06.409 She was a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira. 0:07:06.850 --> 0:07:09.690 And the Lord opened her heart to pay attention. So 0:07:09.690 --> 0:07:14.730 they're speaking to these women. But one heard, isn't that great? 0:07:14.770 --> 0:07:15.850 I love that distinction. 0:07:15.970 --> 0:07:17.330 Oh, isn't that beautiful? 0:07:17.450 --> 0:07:19.809 I wish more heard, but at the same time, I love. 0:07:19.850 --> 0:07:23.010 I love the this one person. The Lord cut through 0:07:23.050 --> 0:07:25.610 her heart and she said, hey, I'm all in. 0:07:27.570 --> 0:07:30.130 So there's a few things here going on, but one 0:07:30.130 --> 0:07:33.810 is when we preach the gospel or when we share 0:07:33.810 --> 0:07:37.250 with a friend. I've had this happen many times when 0:07:37.250 --> 0:07:40.450 I've been preaching the clear gospel of Jesus, and I 0:07:40.490 --> 0:07:43.650 see people. This last Sunday I was preaching the gospel 0:07:43.650 --> 0:07:46.450 at our church in the campus in Elk Grove, and 0:07:46.450 --> 0:07:48.650 I saw three high school boys. In fact, I was 0:07:48.650 --> 0:07:50.690 talking to some guys afterwards. They say, you see those 0:07:50.690 --> 0:07:54.440 high school boys, they just know no mom or dad 0:07:54.440 --> 0:07:56.920 in the church. They just join 180 Chicago. 0:07:57.080 --> 0:07:57.840 That's great. 0:07:57.880 --> 0:08:02.200 Three high school boys, they are sitting on the. And 0:08:02.200 --> 0:08:03.840 when I say, you know, sitting on the edge of 0:08:03.840 --> 0:08:06.520 your seat, usually that's a you know, that's. 0:08:06.560 --> 0:08:07.600 An expression. 0:08:07.600 --> 0:08:09.960 An expression there on the edge of their seat. One 0:08:09.960 --> 0:08:12.640 guy I felt like saying to him, dude, go back 0:08:12.680 --> 0:08:14.920 a couple inches, you're about to do a face plant 0:08:15.920 --> 0:08:17.200 just leaning in. 0:08:17.200 --> 0:08:17.680 Wow. 0:08:17.720 --> 0:08:20.080 But then in the audience you can see some people 0:08:20.440 --> 0:08:24.560 that are hearing, but they're not hearing. Isn't that something? 0:08:25.520 --> 0:08:28.800 And can you observe even in the body language? 0:08:29.320 --> 0:08:31.320 I think I know in the spirit and the body 0:08:31.320 --> 0:08:34.000 language what's going on? I don't always get it right. 0:08:34.040 --> 0:08:34.400 Sure. 0:08:34.440 --> 0:08:38.120 But I often do. But here's what's amazing in this 0:08:38.120 --> 0:08:41.720 story here in acts 16, they spoke to these women 0:08:42.080 --> 0:08:44.760 and one heard. Now, there might have been more, but 0:08:44.760 --> 0:08:48.120 one heard. And they're they're focusing on Lydia. And they said, 0:08:48.120 --> 0:08:52.040 and the Lord opened her heart. Wow, is that awesome, Ali? 0:08:52.160 --> 0:08:55.199 And that's what has to happen. I mean, lest we 0:08:55.200 --> 0:08:59.200 think that it's us opening our own heart. I mean, 0:08:59.320 --> 0:09:02.240 we have a part in it, but ultimately it's the 0:09:02.240 --> 0:09:05.600 spirit that has to draw us. Yeah, yeah. 0:09:06.000 --> 0:09:09.000 I have such joy in my heart because, boom! Crew, 0:09:09.559 --> 0:09:13.640 you're off the hook. You share your story, you talk 0:09:13.679 --> 0:09:16.440 about the Lord. You sit down with the men and women. 0:09:16.559 --> 0:09:19.880 You sit down with those boys and girls, and you pray, Lord, 0:09:20.920 --> 0:09:25.880 open the heart of one cause. One to hear I'm 0:09:25.880 --> 0:09:29.160 speaking cause one to hear. Isn't that beautiful, guys? 0:09:29.280 --> 0:09:30.120 It is. 0:09:30.160 --> 0:09:33.600 I mean, isn't it beautiful? Okay, coming up here in 0:09:33.600 --> 0:09:39.840 three minutes, I'm going to share. I'm going to speak 0:09:39.840 --> 0:09:46.760 the gospel. Three barriers to salvation. And I'm going to 0:09:46.760 --> 0:09:49.190 ask the Lord to open your heart to hear. 0:09:50.110 --> 0:09:52.990 This is Curling Crew on Moody Radio. 0:09:53.950 --> 0:09:59.030 I'm going to speak the gospel here, and I am 0:09:59.030 --> 0:10:02.110 praying that the Lord causes you to hear. What a 0:10:02.110 --> 0:10:07.750 beautiful thing, man. Pressure's off here. There are three barriers 0:10:07.750 --> 0:10:09.949 to salvation, and I'm going to go through them quickly. 0:10:09.990 --> 0:10:13.270 The first is rebellion. Just good old fashioned rebellion, you 0:10:13.270 --> 0:10:17.990 might say. Well, really? Yeah. In Romans one we find 0:10:17.990 --> 0:10:21.390 for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against 0:10:21.390 --> 0:10:24.510 all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. And that makes sense, 0:10:24.510 --> 0:10:28.110 who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can 0:10:28.110 --> 0:10:29.990 be known about God is plain to them, because God 0:10:29.990 --> 0:10:34.590 has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely 0:10:34.590 --> 0:10:38.390 his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived 0:10:38.429 --> 0:10:41.470 ever since the creation of the world in the things 0:10:41.470 --> 0:10:48.100 that have been made. So they are without excuse. Here's 0:10:48.100 --> 0:10:51.860 an amazing reality of this text. All you got to 0:10:51.860 --> 0:10:55.140 do is look around at creation and go, oh my goodness. 0:10:55.380 --> 0:10:58.459 I mean, I put bird feed out in our feeders 0:10:58.500 --> 0:11:01.020 again and those things are coming back. And I just 0:11:01.020 --> 0:11:04.459 sat looking through the slats of our blinds yesterday for 0:11:04.460 --> 0:11:09.500 just a couple of minutes. These birds are so amazingly built. 0:11:10.100 --> 0:11:13.300 I mean, these guys are amazing and they can't see 0:11:13.300 --> 0:11:15.740 I see them, so I'm really up close and personal, 0:11:15.740 --> 0:11:18.660 you know what I'm saying? And and I'm watching these 0:11:18.660 --> 0:11:23.780 things and I'm like, man, how can you how can 0:11:23.780 --> 0:11:28.180 you not see God? You know what I'm saying? Yeah, 0:11:28.179 --> 0:11:32.699 but here's the reality. A heart that's hard can look 0:11:32.700 --> 0:11:36.700 at all of creation and go, I'm not going your way. 0:11:37.460 --> 0:11:41.580 Rebellion is one. Blindness is another. Second Corinthians four three 0:11:41.620 --> 0:11:44.620 through four says, and even if our gospel is veiled. 0:11:44.740 --> 0:11:47.650 This is Paul's preaching here. it is veiled to those 0:11:47.650 --> 0:11:51.050 who are perishing, in their case, the God of this world, 0:11:51.050 --> 0:11:55.610 that Satan has blinded the minds of unbelievers. Great. We 0:11:55.650 --> 0:11:59.610 got a blinding problem going on here. Now I just 0:11:59.610 --> 0:12:01.810 want to speak to this one. Some of it is 0:12:01.809 --> 0:12:07.250 just straight up light pollution. You cannot see stars in 0:12:07.250 --> 0:12:11.450 the city of Chicago. Not well with all the light pollution. 0:12:11.610 --> 0:12:16.329 And sometimes we are blinded from the light of Jesus 0:12:16.330 --> 0:12:20.970 Christ because we've got so much stuff. Light polluting the 0:12:20.970 --> 0:12:25.650 ability to see the one who loves us. Maybe God 0:12:25.650 --> 0:12:30.210 is taking you out of town spiritually today. Maybe he's 0:12:30.210 --> 0:12:34.370 taking you to the woods and you're looking up, going, oh, 0:12:34.410 --> 0:12:36.410 you're speaking, but I think I'm hearing it for the 0:12:36.410 --> 0:12:44.010 first time, Carl. Another barrier to salvation is deception. We 0:12:44.050 --> 0:12:46.640 hear this a lot around here. Not everyone who says 0:12:46.640 --> 0:12:49.199 to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, 0:12:50.120 --> 0:12:52.000 but the one who does the will of my father 0:12:52.000 --> 0:12:56.600 who is in heaven. On that day, many, many will 0:12:56.600 --> 0:12:58.880 say to me, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in 0:12:58.880 --> 0:13:01.000 your name, cast out demons in your name, and do 0:13:01.040 --> 0:13:03.360 mighty works in your name? And then I will declare 0:13:03.360 --> 0:13:05.680 to them, I never knew you. Depart from me, you 0:13:05.679 --> 0:13:14.880 workers of lawlessness. So this is really simple. I've just 0:13:14.880 --> 0:13:18.280 been speaking here for a few moments. We've just been speaking. 0:13:20.120 --> 0:13:25.000 And the question is, is someone hearing? Because just like Lydia, 0:13:25.000 --> 0:13:29.120 the seller of purple from the town of Thyatira, the 0:13:29.120 --> 0:13:32.360 Lord opened her heart. Maybe the Lord's open in your 0:13:32.360 --> 0:13:36.800 heart today. And I want to ask you, are you 0:13:36.800 --> 0:13:39.960 ready to surrender your life to Jesus Christ for the 0:13:39.960 --> 0:13:44.910 first time ever? No more rebellion. You look at creation 0:13:44.910 --> 0:13:46.550 today and go, I don't know how I didn't see 0:13:46.550 --> 0:13:48.550 it before, but this heart of stone you're turning into 0:13:48.550 --> 0:13:50.470 a heart of flesh. I see it and I surrender. 0:13:51.150 --> 0:13:54.670 Maybe it's been blindness. I don't know what kind of 0:13:54.710 --> 0:13:57.030 light pollution I had, but I did not see the 0:13:57.030 --> 0:13:59.670 light of the world. And I see him right now 0:13:59.750 --> 0:14:06.630 so clearly. And maybe it's deception. I thought all my 0:14:06.630 --> 0:14:11.069 Christian stuff could get me right with God. And it hasn't. 0:14:14.590 --> 0:14:16.670 And you're hearing the voice of God. You're not hearing 0:14:16.670 --> 0:14:19.510 my voice. You're not hearing alleys or Young Thunder's voice. 0:14:19.510 --> 0:14:23.070 You're hearing the voice of God saying, come on, give 0:14:23.070 --> 0:14:26.150 me your life. And I want to tell you how. 0:14:29.110 --> 0:14:33.550 Jesus said to a troubled heart, I am the way, 0:14:33.550 --> 0:14:36.590 the truth, and the life. No man can go to 0:14:36.630 --> 0:14:42.270 the father but through me. No woman can get there 0:14:42.980 --> 0:14:47.060 but through Jesus he said, I am the way. He 0:14:47.060 --> 0:14:49.900 got to turn around. Repent. Surrender your life and follow 0:14:49.900 --> 0:14:54.820 Jesus Christ today. All in. It's not looking over your 0:14:54.820 --> 0:14:57.460 shoulder saying, hey, I know you're there. It's turning around. Saying, 0:14:57.460 --> 0:15:02.460 I'm going with you today. Too many people in church saying, hey, 0:15:02.460 --> 0:15:06.700 I know he's there. He's a good man. Today you're 0:15:06.700 --> 0:15:09.220 surrendering all that you are to Jesus. I am the way. 0:15:09.220 --> 0:15:13.180 I'm the truth, he said. The truth is this we're 0:15:13.180 --> 0:15:16.980 sinners born with our backs to God. Alli born with 0:15:16.980 --> 0:15:18.020 your back to God. Right. 0:15:18.260 --> 0:15:20.580 Every single one of us. Yes. I was born with 0:15:20.580 --> 0:15:21.620 my back to God. 0:15:23.260 --> 0:15:26.620 Born with your back to God. And it means you 0:15:26.660 --> 0:15:29.740 gotta repent. Turn around. And in order to repent, you 0:15:29.780 --> 0:15:33.860 got to know that there's a reason to turn around. Yeah. 0:15:34.740 --> 0:15:37.900 You gotta admit I'm a sinner. I'm missing the mark. 0:15:38.140 --> 0:15:42.130 I admit it. I'm not doing it. It's not working. 0:15:43.610 --> 0:15:46.730 I give my life to Jesus. See, belief in Jesus 0:15:46.730 --> 0:15:49.450 real biblical belief is the full and total surrender of 0:15:49.450 --> 0:15:53.130 your life to him. It sure ain't perfection, but it's 0:15:53.130 --> 0:15:56.170 just surrender. It's like saying, I'm jumping in your arms 0:15:56.170 --> 0:15:59.450 right now and he's got you. And I'm asking you 0:15:59.450 --> 0:16:02.690 right now, is that you? I've been speaking, but have 0:16:02.690 --> 0:16:06.170 you been hearing. And if you have, the Lord has 0:16:06.170 --> 0:16:10.490 opened your heart. And I want you to pray with 0:16:10.490 --> 0:16:13.450 me right now. This is a prayer of faith. I 0:16:13.450 --> 0:16:15.570 don't care where you are in this world right now. 0:16:15.570 --> 0:16:18.450 I don't care where you are. What state, what burg. 0:16:18.490 --> 0:16:22.210 I don't care if you are. You might have us 0:16:22.250 --> 0:16:26.690 on Wi-Fi at 30,000ft. You might. I don't care where 0:16:26.690 --> 0:16:30.050 you are right now. Today is your day of salvation. 0:16:30.490 --> 0:16:33.330 It's a cry of the heart. You might whisper along. 0:16:33.330 --> 0:16:35.770 You might shout aloud. You don't have to say a word. 0:16:36.010 --> 0:16:39.770 Your heart surrendered to God is an act of faith. 0:16:40.210 --> 0:16:43.760 And it's putting words to your soul just like this. 0:16:43.760 --> 0:16:48.000 Say it with me today I give up, God, I surrender. 0:16:49.680 --> 0:16:55.560 I'm turning around today. You've had a heart of rebellion. 0:16:56.680 --> 0:17:00.360 Maybe you've been blind. Maybe you've been deceived. But today 0:17:00.360 --> 0:17:06.200 you're going in a new way. No more barriers. Is 0:17:06.200 --> 0:17:12.600 that you? All in with Jesus, holding nothing back. Count 0:17:12.600 --> 0:17:15.320 the cost. Think about it. It's going to. This is 0:17:15.320 --> 0:17:19.440 going to change some things now, friend. Whole new direction. 0:17:19.560 --> 0:17:22.640 It's the best life ever. I can testify to that. 0:17:22.960 --> 0:17:26.560 But this is a new day. Is that a new 0:17:26.560 --> 0:17:35.920 day for you? Is it good? All in with Jesus today? Good. 0:17:35.960 --> 0:17:41.030 Holding nothing back, right? Brand new. Never had this kind 0:17:41.070 --> 0:17:44.350 of surrender before. The surrender before maybe was just cries 0:17:44.350 --> 0:17:46.869 to God with, you know, giving him one hand. He 0:17:46.869 --> 0:17:49.990 wants both hands, both feet, all in with Jesus today. 0:17:50.070 --> 0:17:53.989 Is that you? Good. I'm going to pray for you. 0:17:53.990 --> 0:17:55.469 And then we're going to give you a link to 0:17:55.510 --> 0:18:00.870 help you. God. Thank you. We've been speaking, summer hearing 0:18:01.470 --> 0:18:04.870 because the Lord opens the heart and I give you 0:18:04.869 --> 0:18:07.270 thanks in the name of Jesus that you're still working 0:18:07.270 --> 0:18:10.950 miracles today. God, you're still taking rebels with hard hearts, 0:18:10.950 --> 0:18:14.750 and you're taking, uh, blind people with light pollution. And 0:18:14.750 --> 0:18:18.910 you're you're showing them the the light of the world, 0:18:18.910 --> 0:18:21.590 and you're taking those in deception and you're showing them 0:18:21.590 --> 0:18:26.510 the truth. That you are the way, the truth and 0:18:26.510 --> 0:18:30.470 the life. Now God flood them with life. Flood this 0:18:30.470 --> 0:18:34.710 young lady with life, this older gentleman with life, this 0:18:34.710 --> 0:18:39.580 teenager listening right now. Flood them with life. And I 0:18:39.580 --> 0:18:44.420 give you praise in Jesus name. Amen. We want to 0:18:44.420 --> 0:18:47.220 help you, Ali. Walk them through what they're going to 0:18:47.220 --> 0:18:47.820 get here. 0:18:48.020 --> 0:18:49.820 Yeah. We have a resource that we're going to send 0:18:49.820 --> 0:18:53.700 to you. If you text the word new to 855 0:18:53.740 --> 0:19:00.740 five 7898. Just text new to 855 five 7898. You're 0:19:00.740 --> 0:19:03.300 going to get an auto reply to your phone. Click 0:19:03.340 --> 0:19:06.580 the link. Read through it very carefully. There's some hyperlinks 0:19:06.580 --> 0:19:09.219 embedded in there. What to look for in a church. 0:19:09.220 --> 0:19:11.420 How to make sure that I've got a Bible in 0:19:11.420 --> 0:19:14.100 my hands, and an opportunity to get a resource sent 0:19:14.100 --> 0:19:17.700 to your home from us. So if you today, today 0:19:17.700 --> 0:19:21.500 you are turning to Jesus for salvation. There's no other 0:19:21.500 --> 0:19:23.820 name by which men will be saved. Just text the 0:19:23.820 --> 0:19:33.780 word new to 855 7898, new to 800, 555 7898. 0:19:33.820 --> 0:19:37.290 And if you listen closely, there's angels celebrating what God's 0:19:37.290 --> 0:19:39.610 doing in you. It's a new day, friend. 0:19:40.369 --> 0:19:43.250 He was sharing the gospel on the radio and then 0:19:43.369 --> 0:19:47.650 he got saved. Young thunders in the crew. It's Carl 0:19:47.650 --> 0:19:49.250 and crew on Moody Radio. 0:19:49.410 --> 0:19:52.450 Okay, this is a big aha moment here. And this 0:19:52.450 --> 0:19:55.890 is a great inductive study on this Freedom Friday. I 0:19:55.930 --> 0:20:01.090 want you to know the pressure is off. Imagine what 0:20:01.170 --> 0:20:03.930 Paul and Silas would have felt if they were called 0:20:03.930 --> 0:20:09.250 by God to head on a voyage through Neapolis, Samothrace, 0:20:09.250 --> 0:20:14.330 first Neapolis, and then on to the district of Macedonia 0:20:14.330 --> 0:20:18.330 into Philippi, and to plop down with a group of 0:20:18.330 --> 0:20:21.890 women and share the gospel. Imagine if they were commissioned 0:20:21.890 --> 0:20:25.730 by God, saying, you got to go save people. Man, 0:20:25.730 --> 0:20:27.170 that pressure would have been heavy. 0:20:27.770 --> 0:20:29.970 Oh goodness. Yeah, you would have been thinking about it 0:20:29.970 --> 0:20:32.490 all the time. Every time someone didn't listen to you, 0:20:32.490 --> 0:20:33.890 you would have been like, oh man, I didn't get 0:20:33.890 --> 0:20:35.879 that one. I think I was supposed to get that one. 0:20:36.000 --> 0:20:38.720 Oh, yeah? Yeah. And I didn't say that just right. 0:20:38.720 --> 0:20:39.080 Yep. 0:20:39.119 --> 0:20:40.000 You ever had that before? 0:20:40.359 --> 0:20:41.000 Oh, yes. 0:20:41.119 --> 0:20:42.840 I didn't say that just right. 0:20:42.960 --> 0:20:43.360 Boy. 0:20:45.400 --> 0:20:47.959 It's such a common one. That's like, every time, every 0:20:48.000 --> 0:20:49.800 time I go, oh, I don't know, I don't know. 0:20:49.800 --> 0:20:51.760 I could have done better there. I could have done better. 0:20:53.960 --> 0:20:56.600 And you know, how you do better is when you 0:20:56.600 --> 0:20:57.960 realize the pressure's off. 0:20:58.119 --> 0:20:58.560 Amen. 0:20:58.920 --> 0:21:03.400 So this story from Lydia, from Thyatira, who was a 0:21:03.400 --> 0:21:08.000 seller of purple, is one awesome example because I don't 0:21:08.000 --> 0:21:12.959 know who else heard, but they spoke. And the way 0:21:12.960 --> 0:21:15.439 the narrative goes until the story. Ali. And then you 0:21:15.440 --> 0:21:16.879 can read what you want to read. But this is 0:21:16.880 --> 0:21:19.879 a great story. I mean, this is they sat down 0:21:19.880 --> 0:21:22.680 and what did they do? They began to speak the gospel. Right? 0:21:22.720 --> 0:21:24.359 And Lydia heard. 0:21:25.280 --> 0:21:25.800 She heard. 0:21:25.920 --> 0:21:28.199 She heard and her heart was opened. 0:21:29.080 --> 0:21:31.920 Yeah. And the coolest thing here is found in verse 14. 0:21:31.920 --> 0:21:35.830 And it says the Lord opened her heart to pay 0:21:35.830 --> 0:21:40.030 attention to what was said. Isn't that awesome? 0:21:40.070 --> 0:21:40.950 Yeah, I love that. 0:21:41.030 --> 0:21:43.470 Have you ever sat down with someone that you really love? 0:21:43.470 --> 0:21:47.310 And you're like, they're hearing me, but they are not 0:21:47.350 --> 0:21:48.109 hearing me? 0:21:48.830 --> 0:21:50.950 Yeah. You just feel like. You feel like it's kind 0:21:50.990 --> 0:21:52.590 of going in one ear and out the other. 0:21:52.630 --> 0:21:57.230 Oh, yeah. Or you feel like it's like they've got this, um, 0:21:57.270 --> 0:22:00.510 it's kind of like an airfoil, like a race car. 0:22:00.630 --> 0:22:03.390 And it's like your message is like air over a 0:22:03.390 --> 0:22:04.389 race car. It's like. 0:22:04.910 --> 0:22:05.750 Yeah, just kind. 0:22:05.750 --> 0:22:07.270 Of over the top and back. 0:22:07.310 --> 0:22:11.470 Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. And there's nothing you can do about that. 0:22:11.470 --> 0:22:14.390 That's not up to you. It's up to what God's 0:22:14.390 --> 0:22:17.630 going to do in them. 0:22:17.710 --> 0:22:22.270 The pressure's off. Well, Carl, what do I do? You 0:22:22.270 --> 0:22:27.229 know what? I'm going to boil it down here. Matthew 516. 0:22:28.869 --> 0:22:32.389 Let your light so shine before men and women, boys 0:22:32.390 --> 0:22:34.500 and girls, that they may see your good deeds and 0:22:34.500 --> 0:22:37.140 glorify your father who is in heaven. That's for sure. 0:22:37.140 --> 0:22:38.619 Something we can do, right, Ali? 0:22:38.700 --> 0:22:42.740 Yeah. I mean, and when you have good information, you 0:22:42.740 --> 0:22:44.820 have good intercession. You always say that. 0:22:44.859 --> 0:22:45.980 Yes, yes, yes. 0:22:46.700 --> 0:22:49.139 When you have good information, then you pray rightly. 0:22:49.619 --> 0:22:50.020 Yeah. 0:22:50.060 --> 0:22:50.820 For people. 0:22:51.100 --> 0:22:53.780 So you pray. So you pray. How can you pray 0:22:53.780 --> 0:22:55.859 according to this Lydia story? How can you pray? 0:22:56.380 --> 0:23:00.060 Well, you can pray that someone would first listen, that 0:23:00.060 --> 0:23:03.860 they would be willing to sit down and have the conversation. Okay. 0:23:03.900 --> 0:23:07.140 You can pray that they would not just hear the 0:23:07.140 --> 0:23:09.940 words and that it would go into their ears, but 0:23:09.940 --> 0:23:12.419 that they would actually hear it and it would go 0:23:12.420 --> 0:23:13.659 into their heart. 0:23:14.140 --> 0:23:15.020 Yeah. 0:23:15.020 --> 0:23:18.140 You can also pray that God would take the pressure 0:23:18.140 --> 0:23:20.379 off of you and just allow His Spirit to speak 0:23:20.380 --> 0:23:21.260 through your words. 0:23:21.380 --> 0:23:24.380 Okay, that's a cool implication from the text, isn't it? 0:23:24.420 --> 0:23:24.900 Absolutely. 0:23:25.020 --> 0:23:28.300 Here's what's cool. Paul and Silas came in. They sat down. 0:23:28.300 --> 0:23:32.410 They knew this is the Lord's work because that's what 0:23:32.770 --> 0:23:37.290 is written by Doctor Luke in Acts 16. And the 0:23:37.290 --> 0:23:41.530 Lord opened her heart. Yeah. How cool that we don't 0:23:41.530 --> 0:23:43.650 have to open our kids hearts to the Lord. 0:23:44.369 --> 0:23:47.090 It's so freeing, because when we feel like the pressure's 0:23:47.090 --> 0:23:51.090 on us and we. We start to strive, we start 0:23:51.090 --> 0:23:56.850 to beg and plead, and it becomes more about us. 0:23:57.050 --> 0:24:00.290 Us. I mean, we're panicked. 0:24:00.730 --> 0:24:03.410 And it's not that we don't. It's not like about 0:24:03.410 --> 0:24:06.570 us in terms of a selfishness aspect, because our heart, 0:24:06.609 --> 0:24:10.090 our heart's desire, is to see our unsaved loved one 0:24:10.090 --> 0:24:13.530 come to know Jesus. But it becomes about, okay, how 0:24:13.530 --> 0:24:14.930 can I do this better? 0:24:15.609 --> 0:24:20.210 Yeah, it really can. Yeah. So coming up, we're going 0:24:20.250 --> 0:24:24.570 to do something crazy here. We're going to pray that 0:24:24.570 --> 0:24:27.290 the pressure is off of you today. We're going to 0:24:27.290 --> 0:24:30.209 pray for you. We can pray for you as Christ followers, 0:24:30.210 --> 0:24:33.210 that the freedom that you would feel today is that 0:24:34.890 --> 0:24:37.010 the Lord has opened their heart. Okay, you know what 0:24:37.010 --> 0:24:39.970 that gives you? It gives you the latitude to tend 0:24:39.970 --> 0:24:44.409 to your own lordship, to tend to. All right. If 0:24:44.410 --> 0:24:47.850 I don't have that pressure on me, I now can 0:24:48.050 --> 0:24:52.169 actually tend to me shining brightly rather than me getting 0:24:52.170 --> 0:24:57.010 it rightly. Little iteration there for you. And that's liberty, 0:24:57.010 --> 0:24:57.810 isn't it, Ali? 0:24:57.850 --> 0:25:01.930 It is. It is. Because then you're trusting in the 0:25:01.930 --> 0:25:06.090 Lord who opens hearts. Yes. And you're not trusting in 0:25:06.090 --> 0:25:10.090 your own ability to convince somebody of something. 0:25:11.090 --> 0:25:14.250 Who has felt the pressure to save a loved one, 0:25:14.290 --> 0:25:17.810 a friend or a neighbor. And you've carried it around 0:25:17.810 --> 0:25:21.330 for years. You've thought, I got to get this right. 0:25:21.330 --> 0:25:23.730 Just text in. We're not going to read out numbers. 0:25:23.730 --> 0:25:25.930 I just want to hear how many of you have 0:25:25.930 --> 0:25:28.290 suffered with that. We know we get tip of the iceberg, 0:25:28.290 --> 0:25:32.840 but who here has suffered with that? That's what I thought. 0:25:32.880 --> 0:25:37.280 Or that's me just texting something like that. 855 five 0:25:37.320 --> 0:25:42.080 7898 you thought it was on you, or maybe you 0:25:42.119 --> 0:25:45.440 knew it wasn't, but today, now it's like, all right, 0:25:45.440 --> 0:25:50.400 this Lydia's story makes it clear the Lord opened her heart. Boom. 0:25:50.400 --> 0:25:57.439 Now I can pray. 855 five 7898. Who thought it 0:25:57.440 --> 0:26:00.960 was on you? Or at least you felt the weight 0:26:00.960 --> 0:26:04.000 of something being on you that God never intended? And 0:26:04.000 --> 0:26:07.439 today may be your freedom is is that it's not 0:26:07.480 --> 0:26:11.600 on you who was stuck there. And today you're getting it. 0:26:11.920 --> 0:26:19.800 Just text us 805, 55, 78, 98, 805, 55, 78, 98. 0:26:19.800 --> 0:26:21.480 We're not going to read out numbers, and we don't 0:26:21.480 --> 0:26:24.960 have names and we're just going to celebrate this. They're 0:26:24.960 --> 0:26:30.270 coming in now 805 55 Five, 7898. Somebody said yep. 0:26:30.670 --> 0:26:34.070 When someone says I have, that's me. See? They're coming 0:26:34.070 --> 0:26:37.390 in here and can I. Big confession. Are you ready 0:26:37.390 --> 0:26:41.830 for this? That's me. And you know what? You can 0:26:41.830 --> 0:26:46.750 be clear on this today. And like a banana peel 0:26:46.790 --> 0:26:49.790 on a sidewalk, you can slip back into it tomorrow. 0:26:49.950 --> 0:26:52.070 You got to hold on to these truths. Look at 0:26:52.070 --> 0:26:53.830 the responses pouring in here. 0:26:54.190 --> 0:26:57.230 I mean, so many people have felt this, this sort 0:26:57.230 --> 0:27:03.190 of pressure of, I have to get them saved me. 0:27:03.190 --> 0:27:04.229 I got to do it. 0:27:05.710 --> 0:27:08.950 And if they don't follow Jesus, that's my. 0:27:08.950 --> 0:27:09.550 Fault. 0:27:13.510 --> 0:27:15.510 We're going to pray for you coming up on this 0:27:15.510 --> 0:27:22.230 Freedom Friday, because the greatest powerful witnesses in light shining 0:27:22.230 --> 0:27:26.110 know that it's God who saves souls. All you do 0:27:26.109 --> 0:27:28.340 is shine and share. That's it. 0:27:28.619 --> 0:27:33.020 She's a choreographer extraordinaire and everything is Greek to her. 0:27:33.700 --> 0:27:37.260 Super di is in the crew. It's Carl and crew 0:27:37.300 --> 0:27:38.419 on Moody Radio. 0:27:38.859 --> 0:27:41.940 On this Freedom Friday. Couple things are happening. People are 0:27:41.940 --> 0:27:45.980 surrendering to Jesus. But here is the beauty. In acts 16, 0:27:45.980 --> 0:27:49.540 we get a story of Lydia. She's a seller of purple. 0:27:49.540 --> 0:27:53.140 She's a entrepreneur. And she happened to be huddled up 0:27:53.140 --> 0:27:57.140 with a group of ladies in Philippi. And Paul and 0:27:57.140 --> 0:28:03.580 Silas sailed into town by way of Neapolis and Samothrace first, 0:28:03.580 --> 0:28:07.740 and then Neapolis, into the district of Macedonia and then 0:28:07.740 --> 0:28:12.379 into Philippi. And they sit down and they speak. But 0:28:12.380 --> 0:28:16.699 at least one person heard what a huge thing, guys. 0:28:16.820 --> 0:28:21.540 They spoke. At least one heard. And that was Lydia. 0:28:21.780 --> 0:28:26.210 And you know why the Lord opened her heart. Were 0:28:26.210 --> 0:28:32.210 Paul and Silas swashbuckling gospel presenters. Actually, Paul was a 0:28:32.210 --> 0:28:37.129 little bit insecure about his ability to communicate well. So 0:28:37.130 --> 0:28:44.450 here's the deal. The pressure's off. God is the one 0:28:44.450 --> 0:28:48.450 who saves the Holy Spirit. Convicts of sin. It's the 0:28:48.450 --> 0:28:52.170 Lord that opens hearts. He pulls down blinders. He takes 0:28:52.170 --> 0:28:54.330 a heart of stone and turns it into a heart 0:28:54.370 --> 0:28:58.730 of flesh. We can pray. We can share. We can shine. 0:28:58.850 --> 0:29:01.250 We can get it all right. Actually, you can have 0:29:01.250 --> 0:29:03.770 a three point outline with a poem at the end. 0:29:03.970 --> 0:29:08.290 And that doesn't necessarily mean that anyone will really hear 0:29:08.290 --> 0:29:12.690 unless the Lord opens their heart, but he can. Ellie, 0:29:12.690 --> 0:29:16.410 I want you to pray this back over people. We've 0:29:16.410 --> 0:29:20.290 got so many responding, going, shoot, man, I felt so long. 0:29:20.330 --> 0:29:23.410 I just somebody said, I've. I've felt the weight of 0:29:23.410 --> 0:29:26.800 trying to save my sons for years. And this sets 0:29:26.800 --> 0:29:28.200 me free today. Isn't that awesome? 0:29:28.240 --> 0:29:33.600 Yeah, it really is. So let's pray. Lord, we come 0:29:33.600 --> 0:29:37.000 to you and just thank you that you are sovereign 0:29:37.920 --> 0:29:41.719 over all things. Lord. And I pray, Lord, that as 0:29:41.720 --> 0:29:45.760 you give us opportunities, first help us to be faithful 0:29:46.360 --> 0:29:50.240 as ambassadors, that we would be those who let our 0:29:50.240 --> 0:29:53.800 light shine before men, that people would see our good 0:29:53.800 --> 0:29:56.480 deeds and praise you in heaven. Help us to live 0:29:56.480 --> 0:29:59.520 those kind of lives. And Lord, when you lead us 0:29:59.520 --> 0:30:03.920 into moments where we have the opportunity to speak, I 0:30:03.920 --> 0:30:07.320 pray that you would remove pressure, that you would remove unbelief, 0:30:07.600 --> 0:30:10.280 that you would remove doubt, and that you would give 0:30:10.280 --> 0:30:13.880 us full freedom to speak as you would lead. And Lord, 0:30:13.880 --> 0:30:16.560 for the person who is going to hear us, Lord, 0:30:17.640 --> 0:30:22.800 allow hearts to be opened. Please, Lord, would you give someone, 0:30:22.840 --> 0:30:27.030 even today. Even this weekend. Give them ears to hear 0:30:27.390 --> 0:30:31.510 what you are saying through us. Open their heart. Help 0:30:31.510 --> 0:30:35.390 them to pay attention, Lord, not to our words, but 0:30:35.390 --> 0:30:39.469 to you, God. I pray that we would see people 0:30:39.470 --> 0:30:43.110 saved even this weekend. God, as we're gathering, as we're 0:30:43.150 --> 0:30:47.310 attending sporting events and family gatherings and other things that 0:30:47.310 --> 0:30:49.950 happen on the weekend. Lord, I pray that this verse 0:30:49.950 --> 0:30:54.270 would come to mind all across Chicagoland and beyond. This 0:30:54.270 --> 0:30:56.630 would come to mind that we would speak and that 0:30:56.630 --> 0:31:03.030 you would open hearts to pay attention. Lord, it's your 0:31:03.030 --> 0:31:05.390 work and not ours, and we thank you that you 0:31:05.390 --> 0:31:07.670 allow us to play even a small part in it. 0:31:08.350 --> 0:31:12.030 The pressure's off and we thank you. In Jesus name. Amen. 0:31:12.310 --> 0:31:19.430 Amen. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention. They 0:31:19.430 --> 0:31:27.820 were speaking. Lydia heard the pressure's off. Ali prayed. It 0:31:28.300 --> 0:31:31.660 gives you more freedom to shine more brightly and gives 0:31:31.660 --> 0:31:35.100 you more freedom to not get it perfectly. Isn't that. 0:31:35.380 --> 0:31:39.460 Isn't that I. I want to just I want to 0:31:39.500 --> 0:31:41.860 I want to jump in a pool somewhere, man. I mean, 0:31:41.860 --> 0:31:44.140 this is liberating stuff, guys. 0:31:44.140 --> 0:31:46.660 It really is. Because, you know, there's a lot of 0:31:46.660 --> 0:31:50.140 conversations around evangelism. And, you know, I think especially with 0:31:50.180 --> 0:31:52.340 young people, young people are always kind of like, you 0:31:52.340 --> 0:31:53.860 got to get out there. You got to share your faith. 0:31:53.860 --> 0:31:55.739 You got to share your faith. And I think if 0:31:55.780 --> 0:31:59.140 you've grown up in Christian, in kind of a Christian culture, 0:31:59.300 --> 0:32:05.340 you sort of absorb this low grade pressure of, okay, I. 0:32:05.340 --> 0:32:05.500 Got. 0:32:05.500 --> 0:32:06.740 To do it. I got to do it, I got 0:32:06.740 --> 0:32:09.620 to do it. They might not know Jesus. The Lord 0:32:09.620 --> 0:32:11.300 is the one who opens hearts. 0:32:11.700 --> 0:32:16.700 He does. Okay, cool. Fun little announcement coming up here. 0:32:18.140 --> 0:32:21.420 It's Freedom Friday, guys whom the son sets free is 0:32:21.420 --> 0:32:22.060 free indeed.