He Will Keep You - John 6:35-40 - The Heart of Jesus

Praise the Lord was going on Mercy Hill. Hope you're doing well. My name is Tina and I and the student director here in the Lord is been doing some cool stuff about 200 students each month, hang out with this inmate, students, and we would love to have your student therein. My favorite thing recently is a thing called next conference for 10th, 11th and 12th graders and just seeing some students wrestle not only what the Lord is doing their life right now, but what he might do long-term news is awesome and in and in our dream here in Macy's. We say students are the movement what we mean by that is we want there to be no baseball team. No dance club, no homeschool, whatever. No private school no charter school no school in Guilford for side anywhere where you can't find it. Inmate student loving you in word and deed, and live in the gospel out right for you guys.

That's our dream that's what we want to save it only what happens if we got Army leaders, which we already do and we would love to see more people come in. We have over 50 adult leaders born into your students every single week and given of the time and just really invested in going the distance were praying for more and I will put up some information for you. If you have ever wanted to leave the students. Yet background even if you don't if you're a teacher or a parent we got so many parents were investing. Please email us. We need to we want you will train you don't gotta be caught qualify.

God qualifies those he calls. He doesn't call to qualified a minute somebody to Amadou's arm invite a man AG also Griffin up here to read our Scripture for this weekend and after he does that, which is on page 18 of the heart of Jesus book there in front of you. After he does that when you pray for you.

Parents of students and then begin our sermon for this weekend. Let's read room in John six verse 35 Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me, and yet you do not believe all that the father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out for I have come down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me this is the will of him who sent me that I should lose nothing at all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day for this is the will of my father that everyone who looks on the sun and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last father. We love you we love our prayers. We love her students. We know being a teenager and easy being a parent of a teenager is easier. Pray for Lotta grace in our households for one another for every parent here to know that there's nothing there going through the somebody else's and will love to connect and will love to get to know them that we love our students.

We pray this big things of their lives that you would just have your way and then Lord we just pray part-time now as we shift our attention to hear in your where that be a blessing or you would accomplish your purposes got you are the greatest got apart from you.

We could do nothing, would you move in power. Use my name meant.

Love you bro, I Give enough roster of quick pace so if you join us this weekend were in week three of our heart of Jesus series okay and this week I will start with the Mr. Rogers intro. So here we go. Basically what the heart of Jesus means is this a means what is Jesus really like at his core, like who is this dude I've heard what he did but I don't know who he is necessarily as to what we want to do is spend some time all these weeks are diving into what he's like at his core, and the reason I brought up Mr. Rogers is there's been a resurgence in the last few years of people trying to figure out was what that dude did in who he is the same.

That's what people were trying to get to the bottom of unites and shows for kids seem like a good guy and then he was resurrected in a character called Daniel the Tiger okay I don't know how many all got kids, but we are Daniel the Tiger fans my household okay and he teaches my kids some great stuff. If you feeling and mad and you want to grow our take a deep breath and count to four and my household, we don't say that when were angry to prevent anger.

We are about to be receiving a consequence for acting out our anger the like. But when you feeling that I'll buy no no no no no no no no no no that's that's not what Daniel meant no backup backup.

Okay, but you know what's really cool there's movies out there there's books. There's all kind of research. Right now it really is, is this guy the real deal or when the camera went off to Mr. Rogers to out the person for not having ice and is bright you don't mean like that's kinda like it's almost like journalists at that time were trying to find that the crack like he can't be the real deal. You know I think sometimes we Jesus.

We hear he died on the cross, but we don't know who he is. Like, what is he like is what he did in who he is the same or different. So that's what were doing to spend some time in this weekend is the heart of Jesus. We want you to see Jesus desires to be our source of satisfaction and confidence.

That's what he desires to be for us and I would invite you to buckle up the might be half of Andrew size, but I can talk just as fast as him okay so here we go, what you need to know for this week's passes that Austin just read is that Jesus had like a lot of hype building up at this time. Okay he had just performed a miracle. The feeding of the 5000, you did it with five loaves and two fish. So bread to start a multiplied make it rain a little bit is coming out of nowhere and and the Jews were like mantis is tied into some things in the Old Testament that the hike was high and they were starting to gather more more crowd like this free bread, you know, so the hike was high so I got two things only talk about with you this weekend.

The first one is the bread some I say the bread verse 35 Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life.

Whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst seal Jesus's response to the height being high is to cut to the chase. He didn't want to keep drawn the crowds he wanted to cut right to it.

So he says I am the bread of life is like, let's get real.

So that's what were about to do this we get together. He's basically saying I didn't come to give bread I came to be bread.

I didn't come to give you something.

I came to be that something Jesus is offering himself to his audience. The initial reaction of the crowd is like okay so like do do I stand right here to get the bread like glaucoma where you were yesterday when you handed out the five loaves. How does this work is is that what I gotta do in Jesus and under no I don't think you get the bread. Whoever comes to me, and whoever believes in me shall never hunger shall never thirst. He's talking some big words and someone in the crowd is probably think it let me get this straight. I come to you and I believe in you and that's better than you just given me bread I get that's basically what he saying, so we had asked this question, what is it mean the common belief. Luckily, that the author of this book. The book of John. He he gives a lot of clues all throughout his book. You could do a belief study through a highly encourage it.

But here's a few verses that help us in John chapter 1 it says this he came to his own and his own people did not. Some I say receive him but to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become the children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor the will of man, but of God.

So we see that some believe in Jesus is to receive Jesus belief is not knowing he's the bread but coming to him as he is the bread is to get your hunger satisfied your thirst quit when you're hungry you eat when you're thirsty, you drink it's in action of the hunger is to eat an action of your thirst is to drink.

Jesus doesn't give something to satisfy. He himself is what satisfies a thing receive me in that way it's a metaphor that he keeps taking deeper and deeper. He wants to be our satisfaction. To believe in Jesus is to be satisfied by Jesus.

That's what he wants mantis what he wants us his heart is to satisfy you.

I want to show you this will show you some other verses that are very similar to our sticks out from John chapter 4 the woman said to him, sir, give me this water so that I will not be thirst or have to come here to draw water. Jesus said her go, call your husband and come here. The woman answered, and I have no husband. Jesus said her you are right in saying I have no husband breve had five husbands and the one you now have is not your husband what you have said is true. Did you notice the similarities between that text in our text this weekend so this weekend were looking at.

He gives the bread. Then he says I am bread in that story he is at a well with her. Okay and he says I'm water and she's like okay will give me Jimmy like what you talk about subtle. Gotta come back. Here's a long walk is hot. I don't want to know it. She's got a doing the same thing like none I know I'm living water right what he's trying to get her to see is this in any eat. He doesn't ask about the husband write out your cash that he gets a little but what he's doing is he saying your soul is trying to quench itself on something that is not me. And when you do that because I want to be that to you. So he brings up the things she's running to be what only he can be tracking with that, I will treat you like my students. We track it so so what that means is tying it over to our passage. We need Jesus to be our bread but my friends when we don't go to Jesus to be our bread. We will ask something else to be. That's what it means to be human. That's what it means because God made us in his image and we were made to be satisfied by him in this change my life when I was 18 years old, 11, 12 years ago how to mount 3012 years ago this change my life because I realize I'm not just Jason approval.

I'm not just Jason's poor some not just chase and popularity.

I'm looking to something to be my bread to satisfy me to give me something to quench something so my question to you here this weekend is what are you chasing what you trying to feast on like is the bread of life do you run to something like liking yourself is that your bread is chastened that the fulfillment of your sexual appetite shortbread is making money your bread as being an expert.

Your bread. What is your bread, your soul was made to feast on Jesus to receive them to trust him to want him to love them, but hear me today friends if we don't take him to be our bread of life. The exact opposite of what Jesus said will be true of us. We won't have her hunger and thirst, quit shall be endless. That's how that works. So that's what coming and believing is, but how can Jesus say you'll never hunger or never thirst.

How can you say that Jesus later in verse 40 on my toccata, read it one more time for you to start talk about eternal life. The sound similar, never hungry, never thirsty maternal like never ending those words are very similar verse 40 said this, for this is the will of my father that everyone who looks on the son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.

Some I say eternal life L eternal life is a really important biblical concept, particularly in John's book okay and this is what we gotta see this is a really big verse. You gotta memorize if you and Christ is going to memorize. This will save you a lot of trouble in your life. John 17 verse three says this and this is eternal life is Jesus speaking that they may know you the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you have sent this what Jesus is saying eternal life is knowing God, y'all eternal life is not about endless amount of time is about a quality of life, not just the duration of life is not eternal existence only its internal quality.

It's a it's the is the quality of the thing, not just the quantity of yeah you will be resurrected on the last day. He said you could say like this heaven is the culmination of eternal life, not the beginning of it dollar eternal life starts when you know Jesus it'll start when you die is the culmination of a down payment.

You get.

That's the good news is you can live the eternal life right now.

Eternal life is one of those things if you got it you get if you don't got it you won't get it, you won't get what you don't got that's kinda how that works but if we waiting to get what we don't got were not don't get what were not get in right now that's kinda how that works you funny so it's about. It's about your quality of life, not just the quantity of your life. Jesus desires to be your satisfaction today and forever. That's what he wants to be man. That's what he wants to be but he doesn't stop there. Now let's talk about how he promises to never let us go sick if they want to talk about is the keeper. Some I say the keeper verse 37, said this all that the father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. Not only does Jesus promised to always satisfies you, he promises to never let you go what he saying is if you come to me you're going nowhere this and once I meal this is a never ending feast and I got you sometimes often force-feed you if I got to what you and going nowhere. Listen friends. Jesus is the great keeper.

Jesus doesn't keep us because were capable. He keeps us because he's the keeper.

He does not keep us because were capable. He keeps us because he's the keeper we hear Jesus died for our sins, but we struggle to believe before. Not good at living with him he's going cut us from a roster in this weekend is going to hit us a couple of different ways in the way you going to know how it's hidden you is you got asked start asking yourself the question, what is the source of my confidence in my walk with God. What is the source of why I'm confident or not confident in my walk with God. So believer during this time you should be thinking about that question into the unbeliever. If you're sick of being the king of your own life.

Jesus offers to satisfy you be a better king to you than you are.

And guess what, you get to sit back and listen how if you choose to join this family you don't keep yourself in. He keeps you in his word you is not you better keep up is. I'll keep you and us good news man that's available to you today so believers we fall into one of two categories.

We either think I don't need keeper I got me only thing he will keep me were to look at both of those. Some of us are very confident in our walk with God for honest and you need to hear. If you didn't keep you you be gone in two seconds and we need to hear that.

Others of us don't believe he will keep us and we need to be assured that you don't keep you in. He keeps you blessed are with those of us who might be a little arrogant.

Eileen this way by way by the way does being honest with you I need to be humble to have been humbled.

I will be humbled, y'all, we don't earn our way with Jesus in it. We don't earn our keep either. That's not how this works for this type of mindset you we tend to think that our rhythms are what keep us weak tend to think that our efforts were keeps us look. God is not opposed to effort.

Pretty is opposed to earning you can't earn nothing in the kingdom. What this typically looks like is is when the going gets tough. You don't feel good in your walk with God. Your effort is what makes you feel good, not the fact that he keeps you is you. First, that makes you confident this person feels deep down like I don't want to be kept. I want to earn my keep. He keeps you, though you don't keep yourself, your rhythms don't keep you he keeps you in his keeping you empowers your rhythms, your rhythms don't impress and but I gotta keep the I promise you that is is is backwards. God opposes the proud, and he gives grace to the humble.

You know you have that I can keep myself.

I was certain is always applied other people. That's when you know you got that you got it you keep in you. I need to think of somebody else who needs to be kept right. Pastors are notorious for this young artist story of a pastor is on airplane and he's, you know, traveling to go speak somewhere okay and he's posted up on into the islands. Woman stars make eye contact with him down the lane is Lico must be familiar with my ministry and it is just like thinking about it and she's walking out the keep making eye contact and that she did so she goes. Hey, are you any spoons have. You going to sit right there, or likely to eat those peanuts, you know like she asked him that that type of question. He was just like crushed by who you think you are due.

You know we can be so prideful.

Sometimes friends if that's you today. God doesn't keep you because you're you he keeps you because he's him allow that to just wash over you and the good news is you're gonna be a lot more fun to be around and full of joy and just liberated and loose.

When you entrust yourself to the keeper is to try to be your own keeper so I want you to to fight to entrust yourself to the keeper repent of. Try to keep yourself now want to talk to those of us who need to be assured today if we are honest, some of us have zero confidence in our walk with God. We believe we've come to when we love him we want to love him are our maybe even in the towns we don't desire God, we desire to want to desire God and that's that's evidence that that God is moving in your life is if you want him.

He's done something or you wouldn't is not normal to want him. So now I'm talking to the one who is come to God and believes in and you know just has no confidence. I think there's two obstacles to our confidence that he will keep us there's two really big ones that keep us like knowing Jesus died for me, but functionally I'm not walking in that because I'm not confident I am worthy to walk in that so there's two types of ways that we get messed up your two categories.

The first one's guilt and the second was shame. Talk about guilt for second guilt is what we experience when we do wrong. So in a lot of ways we should feel guilt all about you. I do a lot of wrong.

I get angry. I'm proud of. Think about things I should not just my motives are gray all that my words maxes with him.

He was out in my thoughts. All of it is messed up and for that we feel guilt. Some I say guilt when we feel guilt we can ask the question how does Jesus keeping me applied to my guilt, check this out from first John chapter 2 my little children, I'm writing these things to you so that you may not sin.

But if anyone does cents might say anyone we have an advocate with the father, Jesus Christ the righteous.

This verse is so good because the goal of the Christian life is to make you the type of person who doesn't just have some ticket that says I don't get the penalty of sin is also to be removed to remove the power of sin in your life so you cannot sin like that sounds awesome. I want to not like hate people. I want to not be jealous of my best friends. I want to love people.

I want to not be proud. I want to not be tempted to gossip.

I want to just be like Jesus and God wants to do that in your life. But when you sin you have an advocate when your conscience condemns you yacht your notice. All right here when Satan tenants me to despair entails me of the guilt with in word. I look and see him there made in into all my sin because the sinless Savior.my sinful soul is counted for evil God, the satisfy book on him in part on me to look on him and pardon me, in a case from one of the worship team knows.

Anytime somebody just ain't feeling it. I gotta I'll step in yellow don't want that notice why you never see me before. Listen, this is what those kind of songs get after Jesus doesn't see who you are. Apart from him.

Once you come to him. He sees who you are in him. You're not removed from him. It's almost like you're a branch in a vine where is the vine star in a branch stop. It's almost like you're in him believer. Jesus will keep you because you're in him in some sense the Bible gets after you been brought into the very life of God himself.

You are one with the father the son and Spirit. Go read John 17 that's what he wants.

You're not. You're not like, given some past and separate from him you are brought into him. That's the Christian life. If you struggle to believe God will keep you because of your past sin. Jesus, where do you believer isn't keep up is I will keep you that's guilt else.

Talk about shame if guilt is the feeling because we did wrong. Shame is the feeling that just somehow I just am wrong.

I'm just I'm just wrong. Guilt comes from wrongdoing. Shame comes from wrong, being that's what you feel. I'm just busted. I'm glad he takes away my sin. But in some kind of way to get send us that my sin ain't a problem. I'm just the problem. Even if I was sinless. I don't like me. I hate me and we shame cycle in the Lord never intended for us to do that in and sometimes the shame piggybacks on the guilt which is true. You should feel the guilt and then your trying to plot a gospel and that's a good battle ended in the shame piggybacks on that and it gets convoluted in a hurry, and depending on what you've been through in your life what's been done to you.

This can get really complicated in your subconscious. The neurology of your brain physiologically through abandonment or whatever it is you begin to delete that is just true that I'm not. I've heard it said that Jesus may live in your heart but grandpa still lives in your bones.

What that's get after like traumas a thing. It just it just it is in the goal what God intends to do is take what we know in our head, move it to our heart and soon get our bodies to where they obey it and believe it to like physiologically weak we can be reshaped into the image of God. Romans six that stuff so good at present your members consider yourselves dead to sin and then don't present your members like it is moving ahead to heart to hands and God's grace massages. That is sometimes all is okay to need a trauma informed Bible sold full of the spirit. God loving counselor was going to speak into your life.

I do that every month. I don't plan on stopping and as a part of my rhythm to get the head to the heart to the hands okay and if you reach out our pastoral team where the weather is me a pastoral rock pastor Ronald on our student team or any of our pastors were not looking to fix you. We want to walk with you if we do find somebody else to help you were to do that this stuff gets deep.

So when shame hits we need to remember we have a keeper. Sometimes it's easier to believe that God loves you, than that he likes you is love feels general, his liking me feel like I don't know TO know about that, and that speaks to what shame is a little bit. He doesn't just tolerate us he loves us. He keeps us in. That doesn't make the pass go away. The rejection, the abandonment, the fear, the feelings of loneliness and being expendable.

None of that goes away. But what the grace of God does is it transforms it one of my favorite things about when Jesus was raised from the dead. I'll know if you know this. One of the disciples was struggling and he comes to him when he resurrects and comes and sees his boys by a man feel my hands were here that's my side. You know it's so cool about a resurrected Savior. He's got some scars. His resurrected body didn't wipe away what he went through redeemed what he went through. He had a redeemed body. The grace of God heals our wounds. It doesn't wipe them away. He wants to massage you with his grace, and it takes time and that's okay.

And as part of what being a part of the church is all about.

Notice I said being a part of a church I'm just going to a church. What were doing is is we are committing to continually hearing guys were continually confessing sin continually praying and asking for help continually singing, continually serving continually struggling together what God is doing to our collective self can't subconscious is I will keep all y'all.

I'll keep you will keep all y'all I got you, and we need the ordinary means of God's grace over and over and over and over to believe what's actually true is true, down to the very fingertips of how we function y'all. The reality is, if we believe he keeps us.

We will keep going to mass are bred for satisfaction. Their reciprocal y'all see that because he keys me. I can keep going back.

I don't go to musket hype and then feel the same rejection never go back.

He got me.

Now let's go back. He got me.

Now let's go back. That's the good news of the gospel. It makes me confident for some of us were just disconnected to one of the main ways. Here Marcio. We believe discipleship Is a community and in groups to start it up if you were able to jump in one or maybe you just jumped in with us recently. Discovery groups is your your next step discovery groups are great way the next several weeks. On Wednesdays we got childcare just come all get a group is gonna be awesome. There's a spot for you. Come check it out.

They start this week yelled irony for both the person who needed to be humble like need today and the person who needs to be assured like me today is funny. Some days I need to be humble and someday them. I will Gaddi to be assured it out us got out I works that the irony is that both of those individuals are looking inward for confidence. I am enough.

I feel good about me and God.

I don't feel enough.

I don't feel good about me and God and what God wants to do is take your eyes from doing this and just just did just look up and just just get get outside of yourself extra nose like that. That's a lightweight sadist outside of you, the whole Christian faith is something that came to you, but what we do is we take that and then we start making it into something about us. That's good day bad day thinking we got a void that are good. These don't get is in the kingdom and they won't keep us in. Once we are in and are bad deeds don't disqualify us from the kingdom that once were, and they don't kick us out best, how that works.

Stop looking inward for confidence look outward. God doesn't keep you because you're capable he keeps you because he is the keeper is what is meant. Maybe you're here today and you're like I said I just… I just see if I'm honest I don't believe if I'm honest, I'm not so sure.

How can you know this God wants to be satisfied wants me to be satisfied in him. How can I know he won't let me go. Why would he do that that'll make no sense to me.

What I bring to the table if he's all keeper what what part do I played on us with the cross is all about Jesus dying on the cross isn't just something Jesus did, is an extension of who he is. He went all the way to show us he's the real deal and what he did in who use at the cross, Jesus was empty so you could be filled and he was lost. So you could be The good news of the gospel man hello but just as good news today. I got a keeper. I don't know about you, I need a keeper when the anger hits and then I get reminded all one your kids might have your anger problem. I need the keeper I can't buy into that. I need the keeper right now because the more I buy into that. The more I'm going to shame cycle and I guess what I'm end up doing more anger you need the keeper. I don't know what it is in your life, but maybe knowing Jesus died for your sins made easy to see his heart this weekend.

See how much he wants to satisfy you any promises to keep you