He Is Able

NORTHPOINT INTRODUCTION (Groundbreaking Slide) Good morning. My name is David Sorn, and I’m the Lead Pastor here. Believe it or not, we are just 9 days away from our Ground Breaking ceremony for our Building Expansion. Which, is still crazy to me. We literally just had our Grand Opening of this new building…just 20 months ago this weekend. We would love for you to come out on Tuesday night the 30th at 6:30 and celebrate with us. We want everybody to literally bring your own shovel (seriously), because we want you and your family to be a park of breaking ground with us! (Northpoint Elementary Slide) The first phase of construction will be the Renovation of our current building Specifically, the expansion of the worship center and the widening of the kids’ hallway. And so therefore once we begin construction, for the next 3.5 months or so, our Sunday services will take place at Northpoint Elementary (just down the road), We’re going to have great outdoor services, so bring a lawn chair with you. And then kids will be inside in the beautiful spaces they have in the school. And we’ll be back to 3 services That all starts on June 4th! I do want to mention to you today that we are in need of many volunteers to help with set up or tear down at Northpoint …just for handful of times this summer (not for the next 10 years) These volunteers will help set up the outdoor stage, speakers, setting up kids’ classrooms etc. Remember, we’re not a cruise ship, we’re a row boat. And so we all pick up an oar and do this together. Particularly, for at least some of these volunteers, we are in need of some physical strength on this team in some areas. So if you can help with this huge need, would you sign up TODAY via or app, the connection card, or at the special set up table we have out in the lobby table? And one final announcement before we get into the message….I know a bunch of you are very excited about outdoor services, but others of you may feel unsure. If you’re unsure, I want to remind you what CHURCH really is according to the Bible. Church, is the gathering of Christian believers to learn about and worship their God together. And that does not need to happen in a controlled, air conditioned environment. If that’s your definition of church, then you’d have to throw out about 95% of churches around the globe And so while some of you might think it’s crazy that I’m saying this, some of you need to hear this. Don’t stop coming to church this summer because it’s different, or because it’s hot. Church is not about convenience or comfort. Keep coming so you keep growing If you take the summer off, your heart will begin to grow colder towards Jesus. That’s true of any relationship And I would even say, don’t be afraid to keep inviting people to come, even though we’re outside. The Holy Spirit is not going, “Oooo, I really wanted to raise your unsaved friend from the dead, and give them new life…but I can’t do that outside because the lighting just isn’t right” That’s not how God works, and that’s not what church is. All right? All right. Let’s get into our message. PASSAGE INTRO (Series Slide) We’ve now come to our 6th and final message on the book of Jude. So let’s go ahead and grab our Bibles Jude 24 25 Page 837 Next week, we have a one week break between series, so I’m going to teach a one off message from a passage in Romans Also, next week we’ll be announcing which book of the Old Testament we will be teaching through this summer, so I’m excited for that. But here we are at the end of this short letter of Jude, and Jude takes a surprising, and encouraging turn here at the end. He has spent most of this fiery letter warning us about the danger of false believers But then, he concludes his letter with a beautiful doxology. Doxology just means Word of Praise… And it’s often a short song of praise. (Jude 24 25) 24 To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— 25 to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen. TO KEEP YOU FROM STUMBLING This morning, I want to focus our eyes on two glorious truths about God from this passage Here is the first HE IS ABLE #1: To keep you from stumbling This is a beautiful verse, and it’s quoted fairly often, but not always in connection with its context. But you and I know, that in context, Jude has spent basically an entire letter warning about the slippery slope of false belief. And so when he writes that God is able to keep you from stumbling, he’s thinking, primarily, that God is able to keep you from stumbling into false belief. Now, that also includes sin, because false belief leads to sin. And in this day in age, where it feels like many are falling away from the faith… …Jude would say to you, “God is able to Keep you from that” Would you rely on Him for that? In fact, he is SO able that notice it says that he is able to keep you from…stumbling. We kind of expect that Jude would have written the word “falling” here, but he writes stumbling, which, of course, is a lesser form of falling. Because long before the Christian falls into public sin (I mean serious sin; sin that has really negative consequences for them & their family) Long before that fall…there are a thousand stumbles. But God is able, my friend, not only to keep you from falling, but to keep you from stumbling. In fact, that word “keep” in the Greek (the original language of the letter) is a military term. It means to guard, to watch over. Jude is saying that your God is standing guard over you. He’s there to help you not stumble into the pain of false belief. (Title Slide) It’s like when you’re teaching a young kid to ride a bike without training wheels for the first time. Most kids don’t get it the first time, or even the 5th time. You give them a little push, and they start pedaling. But as a parent, you’re still running with them, to keep them from absolutely stumbling and falling on the pavement. And the first few times, you’re catching them. That’s the image of the Christian life on earth with your heavenly father. You are pedaling along in life, and your heavenly Father is running with you, and He is willing, and able, to keep you from stumbling. But I think our problem, especially in a thinking church like this one, is that we are apt to say, “Sure, that’s nice, David, but we’re all sinners, and so I’m going to still sin, I’m going to stumble. What does the Word say? It says that he is ABLE to keep you from stumbling. Sure, you’re right, that doesn’t mean you can be perfect, and you’ll never sin again. That, of course, is not the teaching of the Bible. So, sure rightly think about your sin, but this verse is saying that you need to also rightly think about your God! He can help you defeat your sin. IT says “He is ABLE,” and this doesn’t lie! He is ABLE to keep you from stumbling! Do you believe that?? DO you remember that this is who God is?? I fear that some of you have just resigned yourself to sin. You’ve just said, “It’s who I am.” “I’m a critical person. I’m judgmental. “I don’t know if that’s ever gonna change. Or you’ve been struggling forever with pride, or selfishness, or addiction And it’s gone on so long, that as a Christian, you’ve kind of given up on getting victory over those things. But I want you to put your eyes on this Biblical promise: It says, He “is ABLE to keep you from stumbling.” God is able. He is right there behind us as we ride, able to catch us. Would you call out to Him again? Remember who He is! He was willing to die for you, and so He’s willing to fight for you. Jesus didn’t just die for you, and then leave you. And yet some of us live like that’s true. But it’s not; He’s right there with you. He is able! And Christians, can we even fathom how many times He’s caught us from stumbling, and we didn’t even know? The times he has kept us in our jobs, when we should have been let go The times we were on our bike ride of life, and we were ready to make choices that would’ve led to the downfall of our marriages (our families), and as we tipped, he caught us! When we get to heaven and see all the things God saved us from that we never even knew about, we will fall to your knees in praise. And if He can keep you from stumbling, He will do even more (Philippians 1:6) – NIV being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. TO PRESENT YOU WITHOUT FAULT Because not only does God love you so much that He can, and wants to keep you from stumbling… If you are a true believer in Jesus, He will keep you, until your day of salvation in heaven. In John 10, Jesus says this about you, Christian: (John 10:27 28) – NIV 27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. So knowing that, look back to Jude, verse 24 again 24 To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— This is one of the great truths of the Bible, and not enough Christians think deeply on this. This is the truth HE IS ABLE #1: To keep you from stumbling #2: To present you without fault So here is what Jude is saying: God’s love for you is so great…that He will guard you, and watch over you in this life, and then your Savior, Jesus, will present you in heaven…without fault. That is, technically, without “blemish” In the Old Testament, in the days before Jesus came to earth, God’s people would have to offer sacrifices for their sin. And they would have to offer an animal, that was “without blemish” In other words, it had to be perfect. But when Jesus comes, he is the new “perfect sacrifice” He was without fault, without blemish, without sin. And it’s by his sacrifice on the cross that now we can be forgiven. And when we believe in faith that Jesus Christ died for us, the Bible says that He takes on our sin on the cross…he’s dying for our sin. And then, in a shocking trade, we get to be clothed in his righteousness…his perfection. It’s like wearing his clothes that now identify you with Him…as a person without fault. So when Jesus presents you in heaven, Jude is saying that here is what He can say to the Father: (listen very carefully to this…open up your heart to this…cuz some of you know this, but you don’t KNOW this) When Jesus presents you, He can say: Here they are! My beloved!! I have paid for their sin, with my life on the cross. I have walked with them every day of their life. I was there to keep them from stumbling Father, I have not lost them, no one could snatch them out of my hand. And now, I present them…as perfect. Not because they lived a perfect life, but because of their faith, they now wear my robe of righteousness. (and then what does Jude say? Did you catch this?! This is amazing!) It says…you are presented before God’s glorious presence without fault and WITH GREAT JOY) Think about that!!! Do you believe that? Is that how you are thinking of Jesus? Because that’s what the Word says! Some of you may have lost sight of the JOY Jesus has for you. You have begun to falsely picture Jesus as mad at you, or frustrated, or like he would prefer to withdraw from you and your failures. And you’re picturing that because you believe that He only sees your sin. But remember, he also sees the covering of your sin. (Title Slide) I’ve officiated a lot of weddings over the years, and one of my favorite parts is watching the Father of the Bride walk his daughter down to present her to the groom. The love he has for his daughter, in her beautiful white dress, and the pride that he feels about her in that moment… …it’s, incredible. And it’s just a sliver of the even greater joy that Jesus will feel presenting you. If you’re going, “No way!” It says, “He is able to present you without fault.” He is able! And he’s going to do it with JOY! Jesus will say, “That’s THEM!!!!! Father that’s them!” “Look at them!” “I love them! “You remember their first day of Kindergarten?” “Remember when they were learning to drive, and they accidently drove the car into the mailbox! Ha! “Remember when they were teaching their little ones about your Word? All curled up together on the couch?” “Oh, how I love them!” “And Father, I present them to you now, as perfect, because of my sacrifice, and welcome to our Kingdom” THAT IS WHO JESUS IS!! So hear this again, because this is why Jude starts with “To Him who is able!” Look at verse 24 again now that we’ve talked it through (READ IN BIBLE) “To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy… 25 to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen. Amen! BAPTISM (SWITCH TO BAPTISM SUNDAY SLIDE) All right, I want to call our Baptismal Team on stage right now As we are going to celebrate a baptism at this service Baptisms are a visual reminder that God’s Son, Jesus Christ has paid for our sins. And by our faith in Him, we were forgiven, washed clean. We are given that new robe of righteousness. And not only that, that God has raised us up from the dead and given us new life. Baptism is a symbol of what happens when a person believes in Jesus (that their sins were washed clean) Baptism doesn’t save you. But it is such an important symbol of his love. Every person you see baptized at Renovation Church is baptized by a sponsor (people who’s had a spiritual impact on them) But before we do the baptism, we get to hear their testimonies So I want to invite up: 8:00 – Ruddi 9:10 – Brit & Melissa 10:20 – Kristin & Tony 11:30 – Tina, Tammy, & Samantha GOSPEL (Worship Background) Thank you for your story. I think these stories that we get to hear so often are so important. Because I wonder if some of you in here still feel stuck. You’re new to church, or just coming back to church, or maybe you’ve been in church, but you’ve never really known Jesus. At least not the one the Bible was describing today. And I wonder, do you feel like no one could forgive you? Maybe you feel like, there’s no way He could love you…if HE really knew you…and what you’ve done. And how could He forgive you? And I would say, “HE IS ABLE” And not only is He ABLE, He is willing. What you heard about in those stories, God wants to do in your life. If you would believe, in faith, that He died on the cross in your place, taking the punishment for your sins… He will forgive you. He will give you eternal life in heaven (because you’ve be clothed in his righteousness) And He will come into your life right now. And listen, if you think, that there is no way he could change your life…because it’s too messy… HE IS ABLE. Just give Him a chance. Invite Him in. And if you need to do that today, I urge you to receive the greatest offer ever and accept his forgiveness and make Him your leader. In fact, let me give you an opportunity to do that. Let’s just have everyone close their eyes If you need to do that for the first time today, would you just raise your hand wherever you are. To say, “It’s me God. I want to know your love. I want to walk with you and be forgiven.” If that’s you, raise your hand up high. Amen. All right, I’m going to ask you all to stand, and we’re going to sing part of this song out one more time… But now, sing it from your heart, to the God Who is able! And for those of you that raised your hand, I’m going to ask that as we sing this final song, for you to find the nearest aisle… …walk to the front, and I’m going to lead you in a prayer, to make Jesus your Savior & Leader We want to pray with you and celebrate with you. You can come. (Sing Song). Seriously, don’t hide, this is, I believe, the most exciting moment of your life. Come and pray to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Dear God I confess to you, that I have sinned against you. But God I believe, that you sent your Son Jesus, to take my place And God I thank you, for forgiving my sins. And now I commit, to following you, with my life. Copyright: David Sorn Renovation Church in Blaine, MN You may use this material all you like! We only ask that you do not charge a fee and that you quote the source and not say it is your own.