WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.840 Real life presents the Jack Hibbs podcast with intention and boldness to proclaim 2 00:00:05.840 --> 00:00:10.320 truth, equip the saints and impact our culture. You want to have a change 3 00:00:10.320 --> 00:00:16.680 life, obey what God's word says. All of us have a past. Recognize it and then 4 00:00:16.680 --> 00:00:22.560 tell yourself this. I'm now in Christ. My past has no power over me anymore. If I 5 00:00:22.560 --> 00:00:27.120 keep thinking thoughts about my past, I need to bring my thoughts under the 6 00:00:27.120 --> 00:00:32.760 captivity of Christ. God either saves me sovereignly of his own works by his 7 00:00:32.760 --> 00:00:36.760 power, or I'm not saved at all. 8 00:00:38.240 --> 00:00:44.640 You can get the outlines of this podcast by going to jackhibbs.com slash podcast. 9 00:00:44.640 --> 00:00:50.040 Today, if this podcast lifts you up and encourages you to live a more fulfilled 10 00:00:50.040 --> 00:00:54.920 life in Christ, then make sure you leave us one of those five star ratings. To us, 11 00:00:54.920 --> 00:01:00.480 that's like saying amen or yes, then that rating will encourage others to listen. 12 00:01:00.480 --> 00:01:06.320 Now, open your hearts to what God's word has to say to you. Here is Jack Hibbs. 13 00:01:06.320 --> 00:01:11.120 There's a real problem in our perception or understanding of what is a 14 00:01:11.120 --> 00:01:15.920 father of Jesus Christ in the day and in the age in which we live in. And I want 15 00:01:15.920 --> 00:01:19.920 you to know, it's not a stretch for us to understand that it's God's will, that 16 00:01:19.920 --> 00:01:24.200 you and I walk in such a way and talk in such a way that we have the opportunity to 17 00:01:24.200 --> 00:01:29.320 show the world that we are really followers of Jesus. And if that's the truth, 18 00:01:29.320 --> 00:01:34.840 then we, we will be attractive to people. People will want to know who's your God. 19 00:01:38.120 --> 00:01:42.240 And what makes you tick? What are you living for? You seem to be kind of 20 00:01:43.760 --> 00:01:48.160 shielded from the strangeness of this world. What's with you? You seem to have 21 00:01:48.160 --> 00:01:53.840 peace in the midst of a storm. And God will open up those doors because that's 22 00:01:53.840 --> 00:01:57.680 where Jesus is walking. And if we're walking with him and if we're talking with 23 00:01:57.680 --> 00:02:03.000 him, great things will happen. I expect it. Because we're walking and talking in 24 00:02:03.000 --> 00:02:09.320 route to heaven, we are to be the people that we are now in Christ. You want to ask 25 00:02:09.320 --> 00:02:16.040 yourself that question and point number one. So be who you are now. That immediately 26 00:02:16.040 --> 00:02:20.520 demands this question of us, for all of us to ask this of ourselves. How do you 27 00:02:20.520 --> 00:02:25.000 know that you're a believer? Is it a tradition where your parents believers? Is it 28 00:02:25.000 --> 00:02:30.160 because why your wife's a believer or your husband is? What is the reason as to why you 29 00:02:30.160 --> 00:02:35.320 are a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ? I promise you this, it cannot be handed down 30 00:02:35.320 --> 00:02:42.400 genetically. It's not handed down by association. You don't go into heaven so to speak or 31 00:02:42.400 --> 00:02:48.240 into the family of God on the coattails of your grandparents or your father or your mother. 32 00:02:48.240 --> 00:02:54.000 It's a willful decision that you make and that is lived out in the Lordship of Jesus Christ 33 00:02:54.000 --> 00:03:00.200 over your life. And when you've made a decision for Christ, I love this first point because 34 00:03:00.200 --> 00:03:06.200 be the person that God has made you to be now. Because we once lived who we once were 35 00:03:06.200 --> 00:03:11.720 and that didn't work. Remember her BC days? In our last service together, we learned 36 00:03:11.720 --> 00:03:15.600 about the gifts of the Holy Spirit. So think of it this way. God is saying to you right 37 00:03:15.600 --> 00:03:20.840 now as a believer, no matter who you are. Imagine on your back there's a big silver, 38 00:03:20.840 --> 00:03:27.740 beautiful key. You know the key that you turn, those kind of keys, like a little robot 39 00:03:27.740 --> 00:03:33.720 kind of guy or marching. Think about a big key on your back and God is winding you up 40 00:03:33.720 --> 00:03:39.560 now that you're his child and he wants to let you go. It's God's will that he let you 41 00:03:39.560 --> 00:03:45.720 go in this world and that you be out and about your father's business. That's the life 42 00:03:45.720 --> 00:03:50.240 here to be living and he's equipped you. He's empowered you to do that. And I think we 43 00:03:50.240 --> 00:03:55.640 should start celebrating the person that Christ has died for on the cross and has given 44 00:03:55.640 --> 00:04:01.520 us as to be as a believer. I tell you what it is sure to deal with your past. It'll deal 45 00:04:01.520 --> 00:04:06.800 with my past. Number one thing about growing up is to keep looking forward. It's vitally 46 00:04:06.800 --> 00:04:14.520 important. And so Romans 12 verse 9 says let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil? 47 00:04:14.520 --> 00:04:22.120 And cling to what is good. There's three exhortations here. Let the word let, the word 48 00:04:22.120 --> 00:04:27.640 abhor and the word cling. The word let is to unleash it. It's to open the gates. Imagine 49 00:04:27.640 --> 00:04:33.920 if there's a lion inside of a cage and somebody hand you the key and says now you go, you 50 00:04:33.920 --> 00:04:38.680 let that lion go. I think you should be careful about that. Why would you be careful 51 00:04:38.680 --> 00:04:44.800 because it's a lion? Well listen, when the Bible says let love, can I put it this way? 52 00:04:44.800 --> 00:04:52.160 Let love go. Let it out. When God's love goes out of your life, the world will change. 53 00:04:52.160 --> 00:04:56.360 You think about if people got serious about Christianity and following Jesus, if we started 54 00:04:56.360 --> 00:05:01.400 to love people, just this service alone. Imagine if it happened all across the United 55 00:05:01.400 --> 00:05:11.320 States and in Canada and Mexico, South America and Europe and Asia and the Orient that Christians 56 00:05:11.320 --> 00:05:16.800 began to boldly love other people. Imagine it could happen. Think about it. If Apple 57 00:05:16.800 --> 00:05:21.800 can sell computers and phones in one moment because of the internet or whatever it might 58 00:05:21.800 --> 00:05:26.680 be, don't you think the Holy Spirit can move faster than that? God touches His people 59 00:05:26.680 --> 00:05:30.200 and people decide to start loving on other people. The world could change. Now don't get 60 00:05:30.200 --> 00:05:34.920 me wrong. I'm not saying that we're going to usher in this age of all that stuff. We 61 00:05:34.920 --> 00:05:39.800 know that our love is going to look brighter as the world gets darker. This world is heading 62 00:05:39.800 --> 00:05:44.120 headlong towards help people. Things are not going to get better. Things are going to 63 00:05:44.120 --> 00:05:49.720 get worse on the grand scale of God's plan. Having said that all along the way, your love 64 00:05:49.720 --> 00:05:57.400 for God will mitigate the pain of others and certainly of those of the church, family. 65 00:05:57.400 --> 00:06:02.040 And so when he says to us, let love be without hypocrisy. I want to read this to you. This 66 00:06:02.040 --> 00:06:07.400 is the read. Listen, this is the who we are. This is what we're to do about it and this is 67 00:06:07.400 --> 00:06:13.840 the why. In 2 Corinthians 5, you know it, well, verse 17, it starts out this way. Therefore, 68 00:06:13.840 --> 00:06:18.160 if anyone is in Christ, if you're taking notes today, you should circle the two words 69 00:06:18.160 --> 00:06:26.080 in Christ. This is key language. I like to call it Christian code. Don't tell me that 70 00:06:26.080 --> 00:06:29.040 you're born again. Don't tell me that you're a Christian. Don't tell me that you go 71 00:06:29.040 --> 00:06:36.000 to whatever church. I don't care. Only those who know the truth know that that experience 72 00:06:36.000 --> 00:06:42.040 is what's known as being in Christ. Do you know that? The answer is, do you love God? 73 00:06:42.040 --> 00:06:46.440 Yes. Do you follow God? Yes. Are you trying to figure out from the believer or not? Yes. 74 00:06:46.440 --> 00:06:52.240 I'm in Christ. I want you to start thinking that way because it's not the way the world 75 00:06:52.240 --> 00:06:59.240 thinks. Everybody believes in God. You got to ask them God who? But one of the believers 76 00:06:59.240 --> 00:07:03.440 is going to know the answer that I'm in Christ. You're in Christ if you've made Jesus Christ 77 00:07:03.440 --> 00:07:10.320 your Lord and Savior. So if anyone is in Christ, he's a new creation. All things have passed 78 00:07:10.320 --> 00:07:15.000 away. Behold, all things that become new. Now, all things are of God who has reconciled 79 00:07:15.000 --> 00:07:21.160 us to Himself through Jesus Christ. That's not all. Watch. And has given us the ministry 80 00:07:21.160 --> 00:07:27.280 of reconciliation. That means we've got the power to get people to make up. That is 81 00:07:27.280 --> 00:07:31.760 that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses 82 00:07:31.760 --> 00:07:36.880 to them. And has committed to us the word of reconciliation. That means true believers 83 00:07:36.880 --> 00:07:43.080 will do everything they can to get things worked out rightly, biblically, verse 20. Now 84 00:07:43.080 --> 00:07:47.000 then we are ambassadors for Christ as though God were pleading through us. We implore 85 00:07:47.080 --> 00:07:52.160 you on Christ, be happy, reconciled to God. But it all begins knowing that you are a new 86 00:07:52.160 --> 00:07:59.400 creation in Christ. Brand new. You've been made new on the inside out. And the Bible says 87 00:07:59.400 --> 00:08:05.640 to leave those things that are behind. Let them pass away. And listen, I'm going to say 88 00:08:05.640 --> 00:08:11.040 this. I'm going to upset some people, but this is the deal. The Bible needs no support. 89 00:08:11.040 --> 00:08:17.640 The Bible needs no additions or edits. You want to have a changed life, obey what God's 90 00:08:17.640 --> 00:08:24.600 word says. All of us have a past. Recognize it and then tell yourself this, I'm now in 91 00:08:24.600 --> 00:08:30.480 Christ. My past has no power over me anymore. If I keep thinking thoughts about my past, 92 00:08:30.480 --> 00:08:36.480 I need to bring my thoughts under the captivity of Christ. God either saves me sovereignly 93 00:08:36.480 --> 00:08:44.480 of his own works by his power, or I'm not saved at all. But he is powerful enough. Well, 94 00:08:44.480 --> 00:08:51.520 you need to take the seventh step course, just sign up, pay the fee, and you'll get healed. 95 00:08:52.560 --> 00:08:58.480 What did the world do for the last couple of thousand years without that website? Are you 96 00:08:58.480 --> 00:09:05.680 hearing me? We live in an age that has neutered the power of God's word. The Bible has the power 97 00:09:05.680 --> 00:09:10.800 itself. Well, you just can't speak the Bible like that and expect it to happen. I'll tell you 98 00:09:10.800 --> 00:09:14.640 what, you want to live like that? You go ahead and live like that. I refuse to live like that. 99 00:09:15.520 --> 00:09:22.000 When God says something in his word, his love speaks to me and says, Jack, yes, or Jack, no, 100 00:09:22.000 --> 00:09:28.080 or Jack, wait. But he speaks and he leaves and he guides because he's alive and he's real. And I 101 00:09:28.080 --> 00:09:33.040 want you to be excited about that because that's who you get to be now because Christ is in you. 102 00:09:33.040 --> 00:09:38.240 The Bible says he's the hope of glory. And that's who we're walking with. It's not a fairy tale, 103 00:09:38.240 --> 00:09:43.440 it's not a game. And I wrote some things down. They're in my notes, but you'll see them. So let's 104 00:09:43.440 --> 00:09:48.160 just look at them together. There's these lists that made me think, we were the lost who have been 105 00:09:48.160 --> 00:09:54.160 found. Are we not? We were lost, but now he found us. We were the orphans who are now sons and 106 00:09:54.160 --> 00:10:00.800 daughters of God. Listen, we were the enslaved. We are now the redeemed. We were the world 107 00:10:00.880 --> 00:10:07.600 who are now the church. We were the darkness. The Bible says we are now the lights of the world. 108 00:10:07.600 --> 00:10:14.560 Jesus said that. He said, you are the light of the world if Christ is in you. And all of this is 109 00:10:14.560 --> 00:10:20.080 important to us because of this profound truth and this fact. It's found right there at verse nine 110 00:10:20.080 --> 00:10:27.520 and it says, let love be without hypocrisy. This is the famous, of course, the word agape, the love of 111 00:10:27.520 --> 00:10:33.120 God. This is, listen, cheer up. This is God's love inside of you that God places in you 112 00:10:34.000 --> 00:10:38.320 that's to be lived out of you. Only the believer can do it. Watch this, this things. 113 00:10:39.440 --> 00:10:44.080 A religionist has to fake it. Someone who is moral, they have to fake it. Somebody who doesn't 114 00:10:44.080 --> 00:10:49.360 have the love of God, you have to fake it. What does fake it mean? Fake it looks like this. I love 115 00:10:49.360 --> 00:10:53.600 you. Yeah, I just, I love you too. I love you. You know, on the inside, you're saying, oh, 116 00:10:53.600 --> 00:11:02.320 this person drives me crazy. I can't stand it. It's spoken, but it's never followed through. 117 00:11:02.320 --> 00:11:07.120 Are you hearing me? It's sad, but it's not done. God will have nothing to do with that, folks. 118 00:11:08.480 --> 00:11:11.600 God is not one who talks and then doesn't expect anything to happen. 119 00:11:13.840 --> 00:11:18.960 When God speaks, he expects not only results, but when he speaks, his word brings about results. 120 00:11:19.920 --> 00:11:26.720 And God knows that we are as dust and we are weak. That's why the Holy Spirit moves inside 121 00:11:26.720 --> 00:11:34.080 of the true believer. And it's the spirit of God who is the love of God emanates out from us. 122 00:11:35.120 --> 00:11:41.200 And so this is so vitally important. Mark it down, please. You and I now are lovers of God. 123 00:11:41.200 --> 00:11:46.400 Now we are. We're lovers of God. This is let love be without hypocrisy. It means open up that 124 00:11:46.400 --> 00:11:52.960 cage, let that lion out. In this case, it's love. Start doing it. So what do we begin? Start doing 125 00:11:52.960 --> 00:11:57.520 it. When God prompts your heart, believer, I was speaking just to the believer, when God prompts 126 00:11:57.520 --> 00:12:03.680 your heart to do an act of love, do it because he's the one that's calling you. Do it. Watch how 127 00:12:03.680 --> 00:12:10.880 thrilling it is to obey God. He'll blow your mind, but he says, let it be without hypocrisy. 128 00:12:11.680 --> 00:12:19.200 The word hypocrisy here is the Greek word that, among other things, unfained, genuine, 129 00:12:19.200 --> 00:12:24.160 if it's without hypocrisy, it's sincere. You know what sincere means? By the way, sincere means 130 00:12:24.160 --> 00:12:29.520 without wax. I don't even know that or not. You sign all your letters sincerely, Fred. 131 00:12:29.520 --> 00:12:34.320 Well, the word sincere, you may or may not know, means without wax. You see, why do I sign my 132 00:12:34.320 --> 00:12:41.440 letters like that then? Because it's an ancient, ancient, old world announcement that my statement 133 00:12:41.440 --> 00:12:47.680 or my love or my commitment or my word that I just gave you is without hypocrisy. It means that 134 00:12:47.680 --> 00:12:53.600 there's no wax in what was given. It was all real. This was real. It's not going to melt under the 135 00:12:53.600 --> 00:13:01.200 heat of scrutiny. Thus you sign it without wax. It means you signed it because you mentored. 136 00:13:01.920 --> 00:13:09.360 God says this. He says, let your love be given to others in such a way that it's authentic. 137 00:13:10.000 --> 00:13:15.360 And look, the word means being one face as opposed to being two faced. Literally, 138 00:13:16.240 --> 00:13:23.520 hypocrite, the face of the theater in Hollywood, the screen actor's guild is none other than one happy 139 00:13:23.520 --> 00:13:30.640 face and one sad face. That's the hypocrite. The two faced individual is the actor, which is 140 00:13:30.640 --> 00:13:39.760 amazing to me. They're actors in Hollywood and they do movies. What is their talent? Acting. 141 00:13:41.120 --> 00:13:46.160 How do you know if they're telling you the truth ever when they're out of character? 142 00:13:47.280 --> 00:13:54.480 You hope. But who are they? For example, all these actors that are very famous. We think we know 143 00:13:54.560 --> 00:14:00.960 them. We don't know them. We know them to the lens of Hollywood. But according to their own 144 00:14:00.960 --> 00:14:06.960 profession, they are a heap of creeds. They work and live in a world of being two faced. 145 00:14:07.920 --> 00:14:13.280 A politician is famous for being two faced. But you don't have to be an actor or a politician 146 00:14:13.280 --> 00:14:20.160 to be two faced. All you have to be is someone who is insincere. And your love is not real. 147 00:14:20.480 --> 00:14:25.680 You want to talk about real love. Everybody wants, you know, remember Tina Turner said, 148 00:14:25.680 --> 00:14:30.720 what's love got to do with the poor thing? It has everything to do with it. Nobody told her, 149 00:14:30.720 --> 00:14:36.720 I guess. I don't know. First Corinthians chapter 13, you knew I was going here. I could feel it 150 00:14:36.720 --> 00:14:46.000 in your mind. What is love? What is love? Paul says, though, I speak with the tongues of man and 151 00:14:46.000 --> 00:14:55.440 of angels. Wow. So charismatic. But have not love. I've become a sounding brass or like a 152 00:14:55.440 --> 00:15:02.160 clanging symbol. It's like, can you like shut your mouth? It's hurting me. You're doing all of these 153 00:15:03.360 --> 00:15:10.400 things that are thrilling, but your life is loveless. Can you not make any more noise? 154 00:15:10.880 --> 00:15:18.560 And I've become a clanging symbol. He says, and though verse two, I have the gift of prophecy 155 00:15:18.560 --> 00:15:24.160 and understand all mysteries and all knowledge. And though I have all faith so that I could remove 156 00:15:24.160 --> 00:15:30.400 mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. By the way, you can remove the word love and put in 157 00:15:30.400 --> 00:15:37.440 Jesus. If I have not Jesus, I'm nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, 158 00:15:37.440 --> 00:15:44.000 oh my goodness, so many people give stuff away in their benevolent acts thinking that God was so 159 00:15:44.000 --> 00:15:48.880 impressed by their act caught on video that God saw it on YouTube and he's going to make sure that 160 00:15:48.880 --> 00:15:56.640 they go to heaven. No. We should help those that are in need. We don't get brownie points for 161 00:15:56.640 --> 00:16:00.240 helping people that are in need. Do you know that? We're supposed to. It's like, it's like the guy. 162 00:16:00.240 --> 00:16:05.600 I mean, this has really happened in marriage counseling. You sit down with a couple and you're 163 00:16:05.600 --> 00:16:10.160 trying to figure out what's going on and you say, you know, do you have anything to say for yourself, 164 00:16:10.160 --> 00:16:19.200 sir? Well, I've never cheated on her. Do you think I pull out like a little happy face for the 165 00:16:19.200 --> 00:16:24.160 great answer? You get a star for that. You don't get a star for that. You're not supposed to 166 00:16:24.160 --> 00:16:34.400 cheat on her. When the Bible tells us this about love, we are to live this love out. It's not 167 00:16:34.400 --> 00:16:41.600 to be spoken about. It's to be walked out if I could put it that way. Verse three says, 168 00:16:41.600 --> 00:16:45.920 and though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, 169 00:16:45.920 --> 00:16:53.920 but have not loved it, prophets mean nothing. Love, in fact, insert Jesus again where you see the 170 00:16:53.920 --> 00:17:03.200 word love. Let's just read it that way. Jesus suffers long. Jesus is kind. Jesus does not envy. 171 00:17:03.200 --> 00:17:11.200 Jesus does not parade himself. Jesus is not puffed up. Jesus does not behave rudely. Jesus does 172 00:17:11.200 --> 00:17:18.320 not seek His own. Jesus is not provoked. Jesus thinks no evil. Jesus does not rejoice in 173 00:17:18.320 --> 00:17:24.880 iniquity, but Jesus does rejoice in the truth. Jesus bears all things. Jesus believes all things. 174 00:17:25.520 --> 00:17:34.000 All things. Jesus endures all things. Jesus never fails. That's who He is. That's the love of God. 175 00:17:34.000 --> 00:17:39.360 This is the supernatural agape that God says is available for you and I to love other people, 176 00:17:40.000 --> 00:17:44.320 and we've got to recognize that today that as a Christian, God wants to flow His love out of our 177 00:17:44.320 --> 00:17:51.840 lives. You need to remember that. We're lovers of God now, and because we're lovers of God, we will 178 00:17:51.840 --> 00:18:01.040 love the things that God loves. And that's great liberation. In John 13, 35, Jesus says, but this 179 00:18:02.000 --> 00:18:08.800 by this all will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another. Powerful, 180 00:18:09.680 --> 00:18:16.400 powerful truth, Romans 5, verse 5. Now hope does not disappoint because the love of God has been 181 00:18:16.400 --> 00:18:22.400 poured out. Notice this. It's past tense. Been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was 182 00:18:22.400 --> 00:18:30.800 given for us. First John 3, 18. My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but indeed 183 00:18:30.800 --> 00:18:39.280 and in truth. And by this we know that we are of the truth and shall assure our hearts before 184 00:18:39.280 --> 00:18:44.960 God. What does that mean? It means that can I look at my life? Can others look at my life and judge 185 00:18:45.360 --> 00:18:49.840 me? You know, the Bible says we're to judge ourselves. Did you know that? The Bible says if we judge 186 00:18:49.840 --> 00:18:55.760 ourselves according to the Scripture, in the end we will not be judged by God. Why? Because the 187 00:18:55.760 --> 00:19:01.280 Scriptures and the Lord is one of the same. Can you imagine showing up before the Lord Jesus? And 188 00:19:01.280 --> 00:19:08.000 he says, welcome. Come on in. Don't you want to talk to me? No, it's all good. I mean, I don't 189 00:19:08.960 --> 00:19:12.960 know. All the trouble you caught in the Word of God in your life when you lived it. 190 00:19:14.800 --> 00:19:18.880 You got convicted about this. You heard my Holy Spirit speaking to me. You went to the word, 191 00:19:18.880 --> 00:19:24.160 you saw what you did wrong. You asked me to forgive you and Jesus' name. My father forgave you 192 00:19:24.160 --> 00:19:30.240 because I asked him to. And come on in. So we said, Mary go around, go for it. Whatever heaven's 193 00:19:30.240 --> 00:19:36.480 going to have, go fishing. I don't know. But listen, judge yourself now. And even today the 194 00:19:36.480 --> 00:19:41.440 Bible tells us to examine ourselves to determine whether we are in the faith or not. That's my 195 00:19:41.440 --> 00:19:48.000 faith real. There's only one way to tell. Does God's love come out of you? You see, it's not what we're 196 00:19:48.000 --> 00:19:55.520 doing. I'm not going to go to heaven because I pass to the church. That's probably a detriment. 197 00:19:56.720 --> 00:20:01.040 The Bible says in the book of James that those who teach the Word of God will be judged more 198 00:20:01.760 --> 00:20:08.400 in the day of judgment. That's terrifying. It's going to be love. Lord, I need you to live your love 199 00:20:09.280 --> 00:20:11.280 out and through my life. 200 00:20:16.240 --> 00:20:21.040 This Jack Hibbs podcast as well as all the broadcast outreach opportunities are listening 201 00:20:21.040 --> 00:20:28.320 or supported. Will you consider partnering with us through a special gift? Go to jackhibbs.com 202 00:20:28.320 --> 00:20:31.520 to learn more and stay connected.