Month: October 2025

Our culture is all about empty words. We scroll through social media, look at all these Instagram posts about love, look at all these relationship posts that we know will be broken by morning, and look at all these perfectly filtered pictures. Nothing in social media even remotely resembles reality. We’re masters at how to say the right thing while doing absolutely nothing at all.

And let’s be honest, my friends. The church is infected with this same disease.

The Problem With Going to Church

Look, it’s time to call a spade a spade: the average churchgoer does not attend church in order to be the church. They attend church in order to feel like they’ve checked off their religious “to-do” box for the week.

Sunday morning we come, we drop an envelope in the offering plate (sometimes empty), we sing a few songs, we listen to a message, and then we take Jesus right back out the door when we leave.

We’re masters at lip service.

But Jesus never called for lip service. He called for life service.

James 1: 22 goes straight to the heart of the matter: “But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” The one who hears God’s word but never takes action is like the one who looks in a mirror and then immediately walks away and forgets what they look like.

How many of us are spiritual amnesiacs who, the second we leave the service, forget who we are?

Jesus’ Parable That Exposes Us All

In Matthew 21, Jesus tells a parable about a father with two sons. He asks each of them to work in the vineyard.

The first son answers back, “I don’t want to!” But later he repents and does go and work in the vineyard.

The second son says, “Yes sir, I will!” But he never shows up.

Jesus asks the crowd, “Which one did the will of his father?” The answer is obvious—the first one. Jesus then crushes everyone in the room: “Truly I tell you, tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you.”

Ouch.

Jesus was saying the religious leaders of the day—the ones with all the answers, who attended all the services, who looked the part—were being outrun into heaven by the very people they looked down on!

Why? Because saying “yes” is meaningless if you don’t back it up.

The Deadly Sin of Delayed Obedience

We must be clear on this point: delayed obedience is disobedience.

The moment God tells you to do something and you hem and haw and rationalize or refuse, that’s not obedience. That’s rebellion. God didn’t say, “Okay, wait 15 years to do this, you know, when you’ve thought about it enough.” No, God said, “Do this.” If you fail to do it, you’re disobeying God. The fact that you got around to it eventually doesn’t negate the fact that you said no at first.

How many times have you heard God say:

• Tell someone the gospel, but you were worried about what they’d think about you?
• Give, but you thought of yourself first?
• Serve, but you wanted to live your own agenda?
• Forgive someone, but you wanted to stew in your own vindictiveness a little longer?
• Invite your neighbor, but it felt uncomfortable?

And how many times have you said “Yes, Lord” and done absolutely nothing?

Ananias and Sapphira: A Warning to the Church from the Early Church

The church in the book of Acts gives us a window into how dangerous it is to lie to the Holy Spirit. We see the story of Ananias and Sapphira, who sold their property, but decided to keep some of the money to themselves, while telling the church they had given it all.

Peter asked them, “Why have you lied to the Holy Spirit?” And both of them died on the spot.

Thankfully, the Holy Spirit doesn’t do that today or our churches would be littered with bodies on Sunday. But the point is this: when we lie to fellow Christians, we’re lying to the Holy Spirit. The moment you give your life to Jesus, you become one in Spirit with every other Christian in the world. We are one. When you lie to other believers about your love for Jesus, you’re lying to Jesus Himself.

What Does Life Service Look Like?

Life service is simple: your walk matches your talk.

• Loving your neighbor doesn’t just mean having a nice sentiment, it means actually showing up to help them when they need it, even when it’s inconvenient.
• Following Jesus means your life actually changes, not just your vocabulary.
• Giving generously means sacrificing something that actually costs you, not just throwing spare change in God’s direction.
• Witnessing means you open your mouth and actually tell people about Jesus, even if it scares you.
• Serving means you get your hands dirty in ministry, not just rip apart the ones who do.

You know, the two greatest commandments are pretty simple. Love God with everything you are, and love your neighbor as yourself. Everything else flows out of these two commands. But we can’t say we love God while treating our neighbor like an inconvenience. We can’t claim to love Jesus while we live like the devil.

Missouri Principle: Show Me

“I’m from Missouri, you’ve gotta show me.” There’s something about that old Missouri saying that has so much wisdom to it. Words are cheap. Anyone can say anything. But what do you show people with your life?

Don’t tell people you love them and then lie to them. Don’t tell God you’ll obey Him and then tune Him out. Don’t tell yourself you’re a committed Christian when you look like someone who’s never even heard of Jesus.

The Message of Repentance

John the Baptist had one primary message for people: Repent. Turn around. Stop doing the same stupid things over and over again, thinking you’ll get different results.

The religious leaders heard this message and did nothing. But the prostitutes and tax collectors—the ones society had already given up on—heard this message and they turned their lives upside down.

Repentance is not a class you go to. It’s not a 12-step program. It’s a conscious decision you make to stop living one way and start living another, trusting God to help you follow through.

If you’re an alcoholic, stop going to bars. If you’re addicted to pornography, stop going to places that feed your addiction. If you’re caught in gossip, stop hanging out with the people who encourage you to do it. You can’t change your life if you keep doing the same things.

The Power of One Simple Yes

God doesn’t need you to have it all together. God doesn’t require a degree from seminary or perfect theology. All God wants from you is a yes.

One simple yes. Backed by action. Your yes can change the trajectory of your entire family tree. Your yes to God could be the one thing that saves your kids, transforms your marriage, or reaches your neighbor.

When you say yes to God and actually follow through, you’re not just changing your own life. You’re setting in motion a ripple effect that will last for generations.

Stop Straddling the Fence

Jesus is not a donkey you can straddle. You can’t serve both Jesus and the world. You can’t be 50% in and 50% out. You’re either 100% for Jesus or you’re against Him.

Trying to do both will just trip you up in the end. You can’t please both God and the world. Decide today whom you will serve, and live like it matters.

Challenge: Lip Service or Life Service?

So here’s the challenge question: Are you giving Jesus lip service or life service?

Are you a hearer only or are you a doer?

When you say, “I love Jesus,” does your life follow through on it?

It’s time to stop playing church. It’s time to stop just talking about faith and actually walking in it. It’s time to stop making excuses and start making moves.

Just one step forward. One. Just meet God there and let Him walk with you the rest of the way.

Your yes matters. What are you going to do with it?

Can I get an AMEN? Well, hold that thought, let’s try that again. If you said, “No, thank you, I’ve got enough of that amenity, move along now,” then I might have just lost you. Maybe your initial reaction was… “What does he think we do?” You’re probably thinking, “We’re saved, as in, we go to church, we do Bible studies, and such. We do that stuff because we love God and are trying to live for Him.” Wait a minute. Let me see if I can find this. If you said, “Oh, yeah, man. We love to worship and make a joyful noise unto the Lord,” keep reading, cause I am talking to you. You’re like, “Ya, right? But am I one of them?” To put it another way, let me put it this way. Do you know Jesus? Do people know you know Jesus? If they don’t, guess what? The demons know. Your kids know. Your neighbors know. Your spouse knows. The problem is… does Jesus know you? That’s the big question. It’s a simple question, but ask yourself. Does Jesus know you? Am I one of those people… one of “them?” Do you know the president? Of course you do. He’s president. You don’t know him like your pastor knows him or your mayor knows him. You might be able to pick him out of a lineup. That’s cool but not important. What if you were the president’s wife or daughter? Yeah, THAT is important. Are you one of His kids? If so, when we get to church, or any other gathering of His people, we should beam like those little lighthouses with a joy that attracts others and screams: “LOOK AT US!” Do we do that? Maybe it goes like this. We come in and head straight for the coffee pot. By the way, where’s the coffee pot at? Where are we going to meet our people? Where are we going to fellowship? Hey, where do you think Satan works in our lives? In our BIBLICAL studies. He’s certainly got us well-trained and indoctrinated in ‘church.’ Where’s that pot at? Do you come in, and where is your face? I see more “church people” who look like they sucked on PVC pipes full of pickle juice. What’s up with that? You know, if we don’t get excited about what we have in Jesus Christ… no one else will either. You know, I have been asked many times, “What is our first step of restoration in our lives?” There is a first step and a last step to it all. First, let’s go to Romans 6:4. (NASB) “We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” Baptism is that first step. Let’s go to I Peter 3:21. (NASB) “Baptism now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” Now, baptism isn’t the water; it’s just like dipping the old couch in the water before we take the cushions out and start restoring. Baptism is our public declaration. You see, the whole idea of baptism is based on God’s restoration of the world through the flood of water; He has water figured out. We get baptized, and then God begins the restoration process within us. If it’s good enough for Jesus to be obedient to the Father, I can be obedient to Him in that area. Some of you were baptized for dead people. I used to baptize people for the living, but now I only baptize the dead to bring them back to life. I get this question a lot. Pastor, why do you insist on people getting baptized? Aren’t they saved just by believing? Isn’t baptism an option for us? Let me tell you something, everything we do as a Christian is optional except for being obedient to Christ in baptism. If you’re going to be disobedient there, I can’t expect you to obey Him in other areas. In the end, there are no wasted songs, sermons, or baptisms. They are all stored up for God’s glory to be revealed in our lives. We don’t have to take classes. Do you know why? As soon as the Ethiopian eunuch believed in Philip’s preaching of the scriptures, he wanted to be baptized. No classes, just obedience. That is what baptism is. If you’re not willing to be obedient in baptism, you’re not going to be obedient in other areas either. If you’ve made it this far, thank you. I’m not saying, go on down there and get baptized. Look at the scripture again. We were buried with Him through baptism… Do we walk in newness of life? Does your life look different now? Do the things that used to excite you make you puke? We’re just starting a restoration process. We come out of that water, and we’re called to walk in newness of life. Yeah, your life will look different. That’s part of the problem. We’re trying to keep certain areas of our lives in control and hold onto our will. You know you’ve met some older restored furniture. It has to be stripped and sanded before restoration can take place. Oh! When you get hurt, His glory gets revealed in you. But it has to hurt first. So, here is what I want you to do… and this isn’t the old sales pitch. I surrender all, all to Thee. I freely give stuff. I want you to say, “Okay, Lord, I will let you restore my life.” Let’s pray… Lord Jesus, we thank you for the glory you’ve already displayed in our lives. But Lord, we confess that there are some things that we still try to control that we shouldn’t. Help us, Lord, to be obedient. Help us to walk in newness of life, to look different than this world. Thank you for calling us, thank you for saving us. Thank you for calling us to full surrender. We love you, we praise you, and we worship you now and forevermore. Amen.