Well, are you ready for the word of God? Amen. Why we do what we do. I've been serving the Lord here on staff now for six years, and before that, for three, I was serving at another church in Springfield, Missouri. And why I do it is something that I must consistently remind myself, especially when this is an area of work that's not easy. It's not a simple task. It's not a simple job. You know, at one point, I used to just be absolutely baffled and just appalled by the amount of statistics that would show pastors quitting the ministry while they're even still young, and many more continuously throwing in the towel today. But as I get more experience, and the life responsibilities increase, and as I grew up with a little more, I can find myself now actually having more sympathy towards it. But it all comes back to why I do it in the first place and why anyone who chooses to serve the Lord does it. The answer goes all the way back at the beginning of creation and why we exist in the first place. It was for him and for his glory. It was for him and for his glory. Colossians 1 16, for by him, this is the same one Christ, the one who's the head of the church and had the preeminent in all things. All things are created, all that are in heaven and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether it be thrones or dominions or principalities or powers, all things were created by Him and for Him. What was true then is still true now. We exist, Lighthouse, we exist to bring glory to God and enjoy Him forever. In everything you say, in everything you do, you are to bring glory to God. This is your mission. See, when you lose sight of this, which pastors, teachers, they seem to lose that sight. When you lose sight to this and failure to be doing these things out of love for the Lord and for people, they will lead you to discouragement. When churches stop making it about the glory of the Lord and out of a love for Him, they start to decline. Their numbers may increase, but God's presence there and God's hand on it will decline. See, our mindset needs to not be on this idea, well, I have to do these things. Well, I have to serve in Awana, I have to do VBS, I have to do all these, I have to do these after ministry stuff, I have to do Sunday school, I have to. If we would just remove this mindset of, I have to, I have to, I have to, when it comes to the Lord, you need to change it to, I get to. I get to do these things. I get to have an opportunity to minister to kids, teach them about the love of Christ before the world starts to teach them about who Jesus is. Because I guarantee you, you go try to learn about Jesus in the school system today, they're not going to learn about the Jesus of the Bible. See, 2 Corinthians is a letter written by Paul And he is an apostle to this apostle. He is into the church in Corinth. Many of the churches, though, that we read about in the New Testament are ones that we can take example after. You know, you read the book of Ephesus. You read the book of Philippians. You read the book of Thessalonica. These are some great churches. Like these are some things we can learn for. If you're in the book of Corinth, you would know the Corinthian church is not the church I want to learn and take after them. Unless you want to look at it as, this is what I'm not supposed to do. This church that was established during the second mission trip Paul was on, he was actually here for 18 months. This was a church filled with many issues, and they received a lot, I mean a lot of rebukes from Paul. They questioned his apostleship, whether he was legit or not. They questioned him and criticized him of his speaking ability. They had division over which leader they prefer. You see, I'm with Paul, I'm with Apollos, I'm with Peter. A member was even having an affair with his stepmother. They took the Lord's Supper, one of the most important things and set apart things we can do as a church, and they turned it into a party. People were getting drunk. As a result, there were people dying after taking it. There was just issue upon an issue. Despite these things, though, Paul still had a sincere love for these people. He had a desire for them to grow in the Lord. Corinth was also the only place Paul basically got to go into and not get beaten to a pulp before he went to the city. He got to stay there for 18 months without any physical harm done to him. And without further ado, our text today is mainly 2 Corinthians chapter five, but I like to backtrack a little bit and read the last of chapter four. So beginning in chapter four, 16, all the way to 21. We got some scripture today, but you guys told me you're ready for the word of God this morning, so you can't backtrack now and say, well, that's too much scripture. For which cause we faint not, but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us far more exceedingly an eternal weight of glory, while we look not on the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God. And house made not with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house, which is from heaven. If so be that we be clothed upon, we shall not be found naked. For we that are in the tabernacle do groan, being burdened, not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon. That mortality might be swallowed up of life. Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who hath given us unto us the earnest of the Spirit. Therefore we are always confident, knowing that whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord. For we walk by faith and not by sight. See, we are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord. Wherefore, we labor that whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that everyone may receive the things done in his body according that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men, but we are made manifest unto God, and I trust also are made manifest in your conscience. For we commend not ourselves again unto you, but give you occasion to glory on our behalf, that ye may be somewhat to answer them which glory in appearance and not in heart. For whether we be beside ourselves, it is to God, or whether we be sober, it is for your cause. For the love of Christ constraineth us, because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then we are all dead. and that he died for all, and that they which should live not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them and rose again. Wherefore, henceforth know we no man after the flesh, yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more. Therefore, if any man be in Christ. He is a new creature. All things are passed away, and behold, all things are becoming new. And all things are of God, and who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given unto us the ministry of reconciliation. To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them, hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us. We pray you, in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. For he hath made him to be sin for us who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. Heavenly Father, we thank you so much for such a wonderful text, Lord, and continuously having, not just this week alone, but as for henceforth, Lord, that we are reminded of why we do what we do here, Lord. It's to aim to please you. It's to bring you glory. It's to bring you honor. And we do so out of a love that motivates us. So thank you, Lord, for being our God and being with us. And we just pray this message will not just only apply to my heart only, but everyone else in here to listen to it. We love you, Lord, and thank you for the gospel. It's in Christ's name we pray. Amen. So beginning, we do what we do because we have a hope that motivates us. See, our perspectives must simply go beyond all the things that we can see on the outside. Verses 16 to 18 says again, for which cause we faint and nod. This is we don't get discouraged. We don't just run off and leave behind. But though our outward man perish, Yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us far exceeding an eternal weight of glory. For while we look not on the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. See, Paul talks about how he constantly, he faced death, he faced hardship after hardship as he traveled. Even though he was constantly facing these things, It didn't really trouble him all that much. It didn't leave him discouraged, because he had a proper understanding between life and death. He knew that his outward man would perish. And if he were to live, he still gets to win people to Christ. If he were to be killed and he'd go to heaven, Well, he gets to be with the Lord. He lived his life as a win-win. He says his inward man, the real him, the real spirit, when you came to know the Lord, the one that came alive on the inside is renewed daily. See, the bodies that you see here, everyone around you, that's not the real us. Our spirit is the real us. See, he knew that this life on earth was temporary, so anything that happens to him is nothing in comparison to the eternal glory that awaits him. However, now does this mean that we just disregard everything in life because one day everything's gonna get better? Well, not at all. It means we ought to make it count. We have an anticipated hope of new bodies that are promised. Verses 1 through 4 again says, for we know that our earthly house of this tabernacle will be dissolved. We have a building of God and a house not made with hands eternal in the heaven. For in this we grow and earnestly desire to be clothed upon with our house, which is from heaven. If so be that being clothed, we should not be found naked. For we that are in his tabernacle do grow and being unburdened, not that for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life. See, the statement that carries on is connected by the conjunction for. From beginning to 18, now to verse one, he says for. Using this metaphor, our earthly house of this tabernacle. This word tabernacle comes from a very unique Greek word, skanas. Skanas is to refer to some kind of hut or a temporary set of residence. You know, you go camping in the woods, you set up your tent, and it might be a nice stay for a couple days or so, but would you really want to live in that thing from now on? Well, probably not. It's an idea of a temporal place of residence. Here, he's using this metaphor to refer to what? Well, he's simply referring it to his earthly body. He calls his earthly body a place, a temporal place of residence. Tabernacles, neither tents, were not meant for a permanent state of residence. He says that if this body is destroyed, he has a house not made with hands eternal in the heavens. There is a new body that which God has prepared us for. What we're in now is a temporary home. Salvation isn't just simply for the soul and the spirit, it's also for the body. Resurrection is how God will save our bodies. We have a new glorious body to come. This is actually the same concept into which Jesus refers to when he says these words to his disciples. John chapter 14, one through three, Let not your heart be troubled, but ye believed in God, ye believe also in me. And my Father's house are many mansions. He's using that same metaphor here. If it not were so, I would not told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come and receive you unto myself, that I, where I am, that ye may be also. I know we usually get taught all of our lives that one day we go to heaven, we're going to go into this big mansion. Well, that's actually not quite what Jesus is referring to or how that metaphor is being used. But rather, all of our bodies are there already awaiting for us. God set that promise and we're awaiting that to come. And one day it will happen. People are saying, well, I was really looking forward to that mansion. You got something way better for you in store than a physical mansion in heaven. Believe me on that one. He says, then we grow and earnestly desire to be clothed upon our house made in heaven. So there's a longing that these believers have on the inside for their future glory. We have indeed a salvation from sin's penalty. When we understand we trusted Christ, we were saved from the penalty of our sin. We have an ongoing salvation that the Lord does, and we are continually saved from sin's power. The power sin has over your lives. We await a salvation once and for all from sin's presence. We have it from the penalty, the power, and the presence. And that presence one day is not going to happen until we're removed from this life and Jesus comes back. See, we all know the limitations of our current body. All of that will one day change. And to continue the teaching, it's not that we're going to just be bodiless spirits. It says we're going to have spirit bodies. How that works? Well, I've studied a lot of the scripture, but I still can't explain how it works to have basically a spiritual body. Some things I'm just not meant to understand, but I can apprehend that this is what the scripture teaches. And to God, the body itself is not actually a negative thing. It's not that the body itself is the problem, but in this sin-corrupted world to which our fallen bodies have fallen in. See, Jesus approved the essential goodness of the body by becoming a man. If there was something actually inherently evil about the body, well, Jesus would not have added humanity. Our desire as Christians also is not to be just pure spirit or to escape the body, but it's that we would have a perfect and resurrected body that is not in subjection to sin, nor to the death, nor of the hardships we face with it today. Verses five through eight. This is our confidence, and this is how we have that hope promised to us. This is the guarantee of it to happen. Now he that wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who has given us the earnest of the Spirit. Therefore, we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord, for we walk by faith and not by sight. We are confident, I say, willing rather to be absent from the body and be present with the Lord. So it says here that the one who prepares this himself is God himself. God said he's gonna happen. God's the one who prepared it. And he's given us his Holy Spirit as our assurance. This word here for earnest, it means it's a pledge. That is the part of the purchase money or property that's given into an advance as a security. You know, when you buy a house, you write down what? Well, you do your earnest money, you do your deposits. Usually when you wanna buy other things, you often do have a deposit that'd be placed if you went to a reservation. God has given us his spirit as a deposit to us that you have your eternal salvation. And if that is true, if the Holy Spirit is our guaranteed contract and our earnest of our future bodies and our salvation to come, then the only way for it to cancel is what? It's for God to take it back. God has got to be the one to say, you know what, I remove it from there. Is God going to do that? Absolutely not. That we know is not going to happen because it says, This gives the believer, they hear the word confidence. Paul says that he would rather be absent from the body and be present with the Lord. He acknowledged that we walk by faith and not by sight. How could Paul go through all of those hardships and all those things and yet not be taken out of the count? It's because he had his faith, he had his eyes set on the things that which were not seen. The Lord is indeed present with us now, but we get to look forward to an even greater presence. And what we do what we do, why we do what we do, is so we can please God. We do it because we want to please God. This is what our aim ought to be for everyone here. Verse nine, wherefore we labor, that whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him, for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that everyone receive the things done in his body according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. See, we labor, this is a unique word that means it's a strive, it's a make it your aim, it's your target, that no matter whether present or absent, we may be accepted of Him, meaning well-pleasing, the same way with the offering being accepted, it's pleasing to God. These are things that we can do now in these temporal bodies. We can please God. The life of a Christian can fit into these two categories. You can do one. You can choose to live your life in your freedom that God has granted you. You can choose, you know what, I want to live my life and do what I want to do and I don't care what anyone says. You can live to please yourself. Or you can look at it this way, because of what the Lord has done in my life, because he's given his son on behalf of my life that should have been mine, I want to use my life and my body here to do what he wants me to do. I want to do what pleases God, because ultimately if that's what I was created for, That's the purpose I'm going to serve. That's where my true hope, that's where my true happiness, my love and peace is going to be found, is doing its purpose and what you are done for. You all know how the things work down here. What's a toaster for? Well, Are you going to try to stick a pizza in a toaster? Well, I guess there's a piece of toaster on there. But the thing are set for a purpose. If God's people are fulfilling the things that which God designed them for, that's where their satisfaction is going to happen. It's been said that the only one who's going to truly satisfy that heart is the one who created it. You were created for him, by him, for his glory. When we get to heaven, though, there will be no need to use our eyes. There will be no need to rely on faith. We'll be able to see Him face to face. No need for endurance through the trials, no more need for courage or boldness about telling it about Jesus, because we'll already be with Him. But while we are present in these bodies now, it is our opportunity in all eternity to please God in these areas. So why should we do these things? Well, what difference does it make if I'm saved and I just choose not to do what I think what's best for me? What if I just do all that? Is it gonna matter? It's all temporary. And as I went back, it is true that once you're saved, it is an absolute done deal. But what we do for the Lord now does indeed matter. If you look again at verse 10, it says, for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ. received, done, and things in his body, according to the things he hath done, whether it be good or bad." This is not to be confused with what's called the Great White Throne Judgment in the Scripture. This is a judgment, the Great White Throne, for unbelievers in the future. Every single unbeliever is going to be presented with their works before God, whether they make it or not. And spoil alert, if you read the end of Revelation, not one of them passes that judgment. This here, the judgment seat of Christ, is for believers. In the Bible, you'll see three of them. They said, one, the great white throne, this is after the thousand year reign. Two, this is the judgment of the nations, known as the bema, or the sheep and the goat. And the third is the bema judgment. This is what verse 10 here is referring to. Now don't get alarmed. The judgment here is not a matter of going to heaven or not. This judgment is exclusively for the believer and his rewards. It's a believer to receive rewards, not a lecture nor a setup for punishment. And because of what the cross has accomplished, we are no longer under God's wrath. Believers at this judgment seat, they'll be judged by the things done in our bodies, whether they've been good or done with bad, according to what he has done. So we must live in the understanding that what we have done in this life is going to be judged. It's going to be tried. It is possible to indeed to have a saved soul, but a wasted life. I don't know about you, but I speak for me. I don't want to live a life that the Lord saved and then just decided to disregard and say, you know what, thanks God, but I'm gonna go my own way. Because of what the Lord did for me, I want to do what he wants for my life. But it's more than that. This should also serve as an encouragement in our service to the Lord. There's a principle in Hebrews 6, verse 10, where it says, why would I bother doing something like Vacation Bible School? Man, isn't it just an exhausting week? It's like, I could be doing much more things better for myself. For God is not unrighteous to forget your work of labor of love, which you have shown towards his name and that you have ministered to the saints and do minister. See, Paul understands that all the hardships in life are worth it. One reason is because he will be rewarded at that judgment seat of Christ. See, those who feel burned out, I understand the ministry burned out. Doing ministry, serving, all those things you may feel gone unnoticed or even unappreciated. So Awana, Sunday school, nursery, VBS, announcements, serving the donuts, cleaning, setting up tables, greeting, sound booth, the list keeps going on and on and on of all these positions that we need God's people to step up and fulfill in order to make the local church function. If you are doing these things out of a love for the Lord and out of wanting to please Him, they are never going to go unnoticed by God. That's why we can continue doing it, because we're not doing it for ourselves. We're not doing it for even just the people. We're doing it out of a love for God, which shows our love for the people. It's His love and His righteousness that motivates this. Verse 11, knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men. We are made manifest unto God, I trust also are made manifest in your consciousness. For we commend not ourselves again unto you, but give you occasion to glory on our behalf, that you may somewhat to answer them which glory in appearance and not in heart. There is a whole lot out there going on claiming the name of Christ in churches that are making glory in all the appearances. Here in verse 13, for whether we be beside ourselves, it is to God. Whether we be sober, it is for your cause, and for the love of Christ constraineth us, because with us we judge that if one died for all, then are we all dead. And that he died for all that we should live, not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them and rose again. See, Paul understands the terror of the Lord. He understands that God is a righteous God, and he will not leave sin undealt with. Therefore, he persuades men, and his heart was for no one to face that righteous judgment. See, this phrase beside yourselves is a way to be beside ourselves. This is a phrase that means crazy or irrational thinking. See, Paul was considered to be crazy by many of the people, especially his old Pharisee colleagues. At the human level, he was crazy. At the stuff he endured, the stuff he did but still wanted to go on, Paul, you're crazy. He was even told, hey, you go into Jerusalem, you're going to be bound and put into prison right away. He went anyways because he knew the Lord called him to appear before kings and preach the gospel in Rome. He received confirmation that he would even get beaten and taken away and continue to pursue it. See, he had so much passion to serve Christ that he had no choice but to be radically different. People would think Paul is insane because of his aim for Christ. If that's the real reason you're being called crazy, then call us crazy. There are good reasons to be called crazy or insane. But have you ever been called crazy? I'm sure Mary's been called crazy plenty of times. So, well, I hope it was because of your love and the passion that you have towards God. I hope it's because you seek to please God and people will just see that. It's like they can't fathom it. That is a huge blessing, especially when a lost world sees that and says, wow, they seem to love the Lord too much. That is a good thing, guys. Don't be just ever discouraged by that. But in reality, Paul was not truly crazy. Instead, he's motivated by Jesus's love. His love was demonstrated at the cross and he died for everyone. And since he died for all, it says we should not live unto ourselves. Paul says, I am crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live. The old you died and the new you was born. What we do, we do what we do because it's our nature. Because it's our new nature as new creatures in creation in Christ. Verse 16 through 17, wherefore, henceforth know we no man after the flesh, yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more. Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature. Old things are passed away, behold, all things are become new. Because of this new life that was made possible by Jesus, our old earthly attachments are no longer important. They're far less important. Before Paul understood the gospel and got saved, he clung to a lot of things from his flesh. This was a man who hated Jesus, who persecuted Christians. And after on that road to Damascus, Paul saw Jesus no more as just a simple man, but for whom Jesus really is, God in the flesh who came to take away the sin of the whole world. We also ought not to see people according to the flesh, but to regard them according to the spirit. So if you look around the room, what do you see? If you want to assume everyone in here is saved, which I would not ever dare do that, you're looking at your brothers and sisters in Christ. You're going to be with them for eternity. So some would say you best start getting along with them now. So the moment you put your trust in Christ, you became a new creature, a new creation. No matter your background, no matter your ethnicity, it says anyone, this is a promise for anyone who put their trust in what Jesus Christ did on the cross for them, you will become a new creature. But unfortunately, too often, we live after that old man instead of the new. Because when that new you came alive, that old man was still there to battle. You're still in your flesh. but now you have something new about you. Your spirit is not gonna let your flesh get its way without having a battle. We are also ambassadors for Christ and trusted with this ministry of reconciliation. All things are of God, who hath reconciled unto himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given us the ministry of reconciliation to wit, are to explain that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them, and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us. We pray you, in Christ's stead, you be reconciled to God. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." See, reconciliation is a very unique word. It means to exchange or change thereby in order to bring together something that was separated. Rebellious people here, they've been brought back into a relationship with God according to what Christ has accomplished. He says, because of this ministry of reconciliation, God and Christ can have a relationship with you. As believers, we have that responsibility to tell people about this truth. It's never your job to save another person. Christ is the only one who can do the saving. Your job is to pass on the information, the same message to which saved you, you pass it to another. ambassadors for Jesus. This is whether or not to, hey, you need to become an ambassador for Jesus. He writes it plainly that you are an ambassador. An ambassador is someone who goes into another place and represents their own, their own. It doesn't matter if you like who's in office or not. If you're an ambassador for the United States, it doesn't mean you're representing Joe Biden or whoever's president. You're representing the whole United States as a whole. That is a huge and high honor. How much more of an honor is it to be an ambassador for Christ? much more than simply being an ambassador for a country. If you're a Christian, as I said, you are an ambassador for Him. Not, hey, you need to become one. It's your status of who you are. You're representing Him whether everywhere you go or not, whether you realize it or not. You're either a good ambassador or you're a lousy ambassador. It's as simple as that. The great exchange here, that the Father made Jesus, who knew no sin, was perfect to be sent for us. God took our sin and put them on Jesus. And he took Jesus' righteousness and placed them on us. Verse 21. I call that the great exchange. There is not a debt we are to pay off. There is a grace we're enjoying. Grace simply means it can't be paid back. The power of the gospel is what changes us. It's the power of gospel that motivates us to love other people. It's the power of gospel is why we can glorify God and make everything we do our aim, to please Him. So why do we do what we do? It's because we have a relationship with the God of the universe and he purposed this for us to glorify him, to grow into someone more like his son. Every service, every trial and hardship we endure is completely worth it because we can glorify God and be more like his son. There will be a day we will no longer have to deal with this current body. We'll see Christ. We'll be made like Him, it says. And I understand all the weariness that can come with serving the Lord. We can rest assured, though, that the Lord does see it, and He does understand. Even when you feel like it's not significant, our love for Him ought to be enough to keep us going. There is going to be a day we no longer have to deal with all of our simple life issues. all of our even problematic life issues. We'd no longer deal with flesh, sin, trials, or hardships. Instead, we're gonna spend eternity with the one who loved us so much and gave himself for us. When it says that he made him to be sent for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in him, it means on that cross, Christ was treated as if he lived your life. And in response, the moment you put your trust in Him to save you, you are then treated as if you have lived Christ's life. That is why it's such an amazing grace that we sing. This is the things that Paul looked forward to. This was his hope. And until then, as ambassadors, Lighthouse Baptist Church, we are ambassadors for Christ. Whether we want to or not, we represent not just Christ alone, we also represent our church everywhere we go. And if you're out there cursing, you can't control your temper, please don't mention Lighthouse Baptist Church sometimes. Don't make us all look bad. As his servants, as his children, let us make our aim. Why we do what we do, because my aim and focus, we want to please God. Our love for him is going to drive us, and it's going to be what carries us through. And until then, let's make it our aim to please God in everything we do. In Jesus' name, we let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for just being the awesome God that you are. And Lord, all the things that we read in scripture, all the things that we know that we ought to be, we really cannot measure up ever according to our own strength, Lord. We need you to take control. We need you to take the lead. And so as we follow you. So Lord, we thank you for this message. And we thank you for the truth of your word. And we thank you for the empowerment. And the reason to do what we do is not because of our own strength or ever of our own drives, Lord, but it's because of your love and it's because of your because of your majesty that we can look forward to. We thank you for all the gifts that you have bestowed upon us, Lord, and may we not take these things for granted, but instead be able to give back to you and look forward to the things that you do in our lives. So Father, we just want to look out and thank you for being the God that you are. And really, Lord, we can't thank you enough for sending Jesus to tithe for people like us. Lord, just as it's written, Lord, as you commended your love towards us, and that while we are yet still sinners, Christ died for us, and much more than we'll be able to escape that wrath to come, being justified by grace. Lord, we thank you for this day, and we thank you so much for all the things you continue to do in our lives. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. Pastor. Good job. We're a little light today, but I'm sure glad you're here. Those of you who've been visiting for a while, and we're glad to see you and others who are visiting even for the first time today. This church is not like every church. You've visited other churches, I'm sure you've been there, you've seen this and heard that, This business that Justin was talking about, being an ambassador for Christ, he bought us. We're not our own. I don't have a right to live for myself. And I owe a debt. It's a debt of love. Paul told us, he said, don't owe no man anything but to love one another. Our church has been described in a lot of different ways. People think about Christianity as one big something or other. The only church talked about in the Bible is real church, which is like this one. Maybe a little bigger, maybe a little smaller. But a church is God's people who are ambassadors for Christ, who've joined together through the ordinance of baptism, and they are a common ground. We are Jesus with skin on. We are the body of Christ. There's nothing more important to me in this world than serving the Lord the way he told me to do it. I put it on the wall a long time ago, so everybody see it every day when you come in. Unto him be glory in the church. There's no other organization on the planet that will give Jesus the glory for every good thing that comes from it. There's a lot of good things come out of this church. Some of your lives have been transformed from total disaster to a wonderful day every day. And it's because of Jesus. It's because of what he's done. And he's got more to do. And we're the ambassadors. I wish that everything I did brought glory to the Lord. That's not really, that's not the way it is, but that's the way it should be. And it's my heart's desire. We need to bring him glory. And I wanna tell you, I'll tell you from the bottom of my heart, there's nothing more important to me than being a part of this organization, the Body of Christ here at Lighthouse Baptist Church. There's no other place like this place. You're not gonna find another place like this place. Some of you looked and you didn't find another place like this place. It's because of what Jesus has done here. It's because of who he is and who he's made us to be. He has made us to be the righteousness of God in him because he took our sin for us and gave us his own perfect righteousness. It's not just a figurative symbolic thing. He literally did that for us. That's why we're not the same inside. Never will be again. I long for that new body. I do. This old one is just, it's just about worn out. Are you a part? Why are you here? You're here because God has led you here. Did he just lead you here to listen and be a spectator or does he want you to be a part?