Corre tu Carrera con Perseverancia | El Secreto de Pablo para un Avance Espiritual

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- I'm running on stage because it's the Run Journey.

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That felt appropriate.

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I don't know how your group went that this past week.

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Anybody finished the week two board in your group,

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get all the way? Wow. Good job by you.

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It is tough. Every time you pick the wrong question

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we go back eight miles. I'm like what?

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And then we all share for the golden question

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we only get five. Who made this game? Unbelievable.

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By the way, if you're brand new,

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welcome to the Run Journey.

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I'll give you a quick catch up.

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Basic premise is that no matter who you are,

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you have a race to run, a God given race,

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territory that He wants you to take.

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And He wants you to not just run, but win.

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And the only way to do that is to learn to run it God's way.

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The model that we're following and how to do that

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is Paul, who wrote most of the New Testament

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and is the only one who ever said,

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follow my example as I follow the example of Christ.

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And so that's what we're doing.

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One of our key pieces of Scripture

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is what he wrote in Romans 5.

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Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings,

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knowing that suffering produces endurance,

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and endurance produces character,

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and character produces hope.

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There's a progression that God wants in your life

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to make a better, more hopeful, stronger,

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filled with His power you.

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That's what we're after in this thing.

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Last week, Alli Patterson talked about suffering.

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An amazing, amazing message. Amazing.

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Literally one of the most powerful messages

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I think I've ever heard.

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If you missed it. Do yourself a favor.

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Go back and watch it,

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crossroads.net or it's in our app,

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which you can find for free in the App Store. Catch up.

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Today is about endurance.

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The point of suffering isn't just to suffer.

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The point of suffering is to produce endurance.

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So we're talking about that today.

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I have endured in many ways in my life.

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One as a parent. I have three children,

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and I have endured.

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Are there any first time parents in here?

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You're here. Actually, you don't have to raise your hand.

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We can we can identify you

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because you've got like three diaper bags.

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You know? Your trunk is stuffed with 9 kinds of strollers.

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Once you have, like, more than a couple kids,

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you sell the strollers.

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In fact, if you have 3 or 4 kids,

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I know that you're a parent

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because you don't have a diaper bag.

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In fact, you don't have any diapers.

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If your kid makes a mess in their pants,

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you just like, take it off, shake it out

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and just put it right back on.

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It's not even supposed to be reusable, right?

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You're just like, "You're fine, you're fine."

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If God ever blesses you so mightily

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as to only have one child for the evening,

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you call it date night and you praise Him.

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You're like, this is great. Easy with one. Why is that?

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It's because God increases your capacity.

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Endurance leads to character.

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Endurance leads to increase capacity.

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You literally hold kid number two and three

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with stronger arms because you've endured

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raising kid number one.

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That's what we're talking about today.

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Each week of this journey, we've been visiting

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a new place in Paul's race.

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And today we're going to the city of Athens.

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It's the place that maybe most models endurance in Paul's race,

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in part because it happens smack dab in the middle.

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There's 17 years from Paul's conversion

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to when he steps foot in Athens,

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and then 16 years from Athens until his death in Rome.

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He goes to 37 cities and regions before Athens

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and 35 after. So it's right in the middle.

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Just like every week, today we're going to start with

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a virtual pilgrimage. Let's go to Athens.

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- Welcome back to Real Encounters

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Season 5, the Run Journey.

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We are here again in Turkey and in Greece

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really just uncovering in this third week

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the life of Paul even more.

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We've been to Tarsus and to Philippi so far.

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And this week is good news because we talked about

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suffering last week, and on the other side of suffering

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is honestly a gift, the reward of having endurance.

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And we see Paul have that in a space called Athens.

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Hit us with what's going on in Athens

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that would kind of take Paul there,

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that would really make him a guy who could endure there.

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- Sure. Yeah. I mean, Athens is amazing. It's so famous.

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And it was obviously in the ancient world

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because Athens was really the birthplace

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of all the things that Greek culture has brought to us,

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you know, democracy, for instance,

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you know, architecture, mathematics, philosophy,

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all the things that Western culture

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and civilization is built on were kind of born in Athens.

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So Athens was incredibly important in ancient Greece.

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It was one of the three great cities of ancient Greece.

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And it's just famous as it was in Paul's time.

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It had the greatest building in ancient Greece

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was the Parthenon, which sits up

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on the Acropolis overlooking Athens.

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And this is the city to which Paul came.

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Now, but what's great for us is that

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when we go there today, we see

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what the archeologists have uncovered and preserved.

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And again, we get the context of Paul's time there.

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- I'm interested, Nurullah, in your context,

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what does endurance look like for you

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as you kind of keep pressing towards

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and using what you have from learning from suffering?

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What does that look like?

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- Yeah, and when I think of all of that, actually,

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I think the world we live in today is like Athens, right?

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With all the worldviews around us,

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and especially with the content that I produce online.

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Right? I'm bombarded with questions and comments

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from atheists, agnostics and Muslims.

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And so I am not only to respond to all these things,

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but also to stand firm in my faith

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and sometimes to endure those offensive ones as well,

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because not all of those people who are making

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those comments are very nice.

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You know, sometimes they are very aggressive

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and some people are very shocked.

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They're like, "How are you able to, like,

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respond with such patience and such a soft way?"

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And of course, I do not claim any credit for myself

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because as a, you know, a fallen human being,

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I would not be able to do that by myself.

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But it is all through the power, strength

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and endurance that I received from Jesus. Right?

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- That is the life of Paul. That's what he does.

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He endures well.

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And so we're going to head to Athens to learn

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what he has to say about our lives

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and what it might mean for our own journey.

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- Welcome to Athens.

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One of the most influential cities in the world

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for 3000 years and counting.

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This is the birthplace of democracy.

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This is where the Olympics were created.

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This is where we get our Western ideals of culture

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and philosophy in art.

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To call this place historic falls far short.

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It's like calling a Leonardo painting decent.

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It's not historic. This place is a living legend.

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And the crown jewel of the entire place

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is this building right here.

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This is the Parthenon perched on the Acropolis,

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the tallest rock in the city.

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It sits like a king on the mountain

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overlooking the entire city.

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It was constructed in the fifth century BC,

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and it has seen some things.

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One example, year 334, Alexander the Great.

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Maybe you heard of him.

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He defeated the Persian army and decided to celebrate

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by hanging his shields on the side of the Parthenon.

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You can still see the holes and the circles

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from those shields 2300 years later.

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By the time Paul walked into this city,

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this place was already ancient and legendary.

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Now also up on the Acropolis are other temples around.

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We have the temple to the goddess Nike, for instance.

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One that may have influenced Paul's writings

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that goddess Nike is often depicted in sculptures

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holding a victor's wreath, ready to place it

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on the head of the winner of the race.

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Now, in those days, the victor's wreath

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was made of laurel leaves.

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Nowadays, in the city you can buy lots of souvenirs,

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they're made of gold

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or more likely, plastic and metal painted.

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Sorry, Gracie, I bought you one.

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It's not real gold. Now, you know.

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But back in those days, they wilted very quickly

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because they were natural.

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Maybe this is where Paul got the idea

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that he put forward in 1 Corinthians 9

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about the wreath that doesn't fade.

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Paul wrote these words:

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Everyone who competes in the games

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goes into strict training.

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They do it to get a crown that will not last,

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but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.

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Is that what happened? I don't know.

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What I do know is that for millions of people,

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for thousands of years coming to this city

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has been on their bucket list.

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And so what did Paul feel when he finally

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walked into the city of legends?

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Well, all indications are, meh.

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Seriously, there's no writing he ever says

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where he wants to come to Athens.

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He only stays here for a few weeks.

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And there's nothing to say he ever came back.

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Coming here, as beautiful and as magnificent as it is,

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was not on his radar.

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But it was on God's map for Paul's race.

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And so when he got here, Paul was ready.

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Before coming to Athens, Paul had been in Berea

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and Thessalonica and gotten run out of town both times.

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He had left behind his buddies Silas and Timothy

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to finish unfinished business there,

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and came here to Athens to wait for them.

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For Paul, this is basically a long layover

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in a really cool place.

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Now, Paul wouldn't have known it, but this was

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smack in the middle of his missionary journey.

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In the middle is significant because the middle is

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the time in the race where most of us

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start to change our pace just a little.

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We start to slow down, stop pushing as hard,

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stop grinding.

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The disciplines and the habits that got us here

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start to have cracks.

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But for Paul, he decided to walk around the city.

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He could have, by the way, kicked his feet up.

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That would have made all the sense in the world.

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No one here was expecting anything from him.

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He could have gone on vacation,

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stuck in the metaphorical AirPods, put on his shades

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and just gone and hung out at the beach.

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Would have been great.

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But instead, Paul decides to dive head first into the city.

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He came here to this place, the Agora,

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the center place of the city, the heart of the city

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where business and shops and restaurants,

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government buildings, meeting places were all right here.

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And another thing, as he walked around, he noticed

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that there were also idols and altars every where.

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Behind me is actually an altar to the god Zeus.

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Now, in its prime, there would have been

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a giant statue of Zeus on this altar,

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steps that led up

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and places for people to make offerings to him.

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Paul saw this altar,

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and he also mentions another one that he saw,

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an altar to an unknown god with no statue,

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because they didn't know who he was.

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And Paul, that bothered him deeply,

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so deeply he decided to take action.

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Here's how the story goes in Acts 17:

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Now, while Paul was waiting for them in Athens,

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his spirit was provoked within him

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as he saw that the city was full of idols.

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So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews

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and the devout persons, and in the marketplace every day

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with those who happen to be there.

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When Paul sees all the idols in the city,

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the Scripture says that he's provoked.

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That word means sharply poked, like in the ribs

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with a sword or a spear or something.

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This is significant because the middle of the race

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is when most of us start to get desensitized

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to the needs of people around us,

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to the promptings and leadings of God in our life.

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But not Paul.

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Rather than become more self dependent,

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Paul becomes more God dependent,

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more sensitive to His leading,

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more understanding that when He gives me a poke

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and He gives me a prompt, I need to lean in and pay attention.

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Paul does this because he trusts the race.

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He trusts the path that God has laid out for him,

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the one he describes in Romans 5.

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We rejoice in our sufferings,

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knowing that suffering produces endurance,

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and endurance produces character,

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and character produces hope,

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and hope does not put us to shame.

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The first time I heard that verse,

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I heard the translation that said persevere.

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And I just thought, "Oh, okay, so you you suffer

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and then you just have to like, suffer more."

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Because when I think of perseverance,

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perseverance is like, grit your teeth and get through it.

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Just hold on tight and hope that it's over soon.

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But that's not the word.

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The word is actually cheerful, hopeful endurance.

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It's a reward that you get.

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The definition I would give to endurance

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is it's the capacity to persevere

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and it's a capacity that God promises to increase

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in your life as you move through suffering.

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This is the gospel story that from death comes life,

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from suffering becomes a capacity and a strength

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that you did not used to have.

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This is the journey and it leads to breakthrough.

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There is no such thing as spiritual breakthrough

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unless you stay the heck with it.

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Endurance is an absolute essential.

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When Jesus talked about praying, for example,

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He said, "You know, when you pray, just keep going.

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Don't stop. The reason you're not seeing

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more breakthrough in your prayer

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is because you're quitting too early. Keep on going.

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Keep knocking, keep asking, and then you'll see breakthrough."

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This is what Paul does.

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At a time when most people would have kicked their feet up

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and gone into vacation mode, Paul goes on the offensive.

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Interference, playing defense; endurance, playing offense.

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Paul came here to the middle of the city.

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We're on a street in the middle of the agora,

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between two Stoas, these large covered porches

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where the Stoics, hence the name Stoa,

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would sit and have conversations.

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There's actually a rebuilt one over my shoulder

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in the distance, you can see the long colonnade,

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and the beautiful tile roof.

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It gives you a flavor for what this would have

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looked like in Paul's time.

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Paul walks in here and he starts to have

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conversations with people.

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And unfortunately, but probably not surprisingly

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to Paul by this point in his race,

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not everyone's a fan of what he has to say.

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Some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers

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also conversed with him.

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And some said, "What does this babbler wish to say?"

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Babbler means rag picker

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or alludes to the idea of a rag picker.

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Back in the day, there were scraps of rags around,

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and there were people who would grab the scraps

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and they'd try to sew them together

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into some kind of a blanket abomination thing.

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And so the people are saying, "Well, this is you, Paul.

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You're grabbing these little scraps of ideas.

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This is interesting. You're just picking them up

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and you're assembling them into just an absolute mess."

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This is basically a smart person way

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of saying you're really stupid with just a lot more words,

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which doesn't really sound that smart to me.

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But anyway, that's what they say.

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And Paul is not put off.

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This is actually a point in our race

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that many of us are going to have to learn to endure.

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Can you endure criticism? Can you handle pushback?

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When people come against the ideas that you have,

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or the calling on your life or the race

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that you feel like God has for you to run,

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can you endure the judgment that might come your way?

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Can you endure being misunderstood?

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This is a critical part of the race, and for Paul,

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he had the capacity to push through it and keep going.

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Here's how the story continues.

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Others said, "He seems to be a preacher

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of foreign divinities," because he was preaching

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Jesus and the resurrection.

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And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus,

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saying, "May we know what this new teaching is

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that you are presenting?

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For you bring some strange things to our ears.

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We wish to know, therefore, what these things mean."

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Their tone wasn't. "Oh, Paul, that's so interesting.

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We have a book club that meets up on the hill.

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Do you want to come with us

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and share some of your interesting philosophy?

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We can drink rosé, eat some charcuterie. It'll be great."

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That's not what's happening here.

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This is a serious accusation:

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You are preaching foreign gods. We must know more.

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And they take them up to this place where we are right now.

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This is the famed Areopagus, also known as Mars Hill.

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It's the place where the Archons of the city would retire to.

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What's an archon?

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Well, the Archons were the general ruling class in Greece.

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They were nine of them.

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And though by Paul's time they weren't

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the absolute rulers in the city,

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they did hold some measure of power,

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particularly over the courts and over law.

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And when the archons would retire,

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they'd be automatically added as part of the Areopagus.

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Something like a court that held something like trials

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against people who had these accusations

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brought against them.

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We know that they heard cases around homicide,

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arson, and religious cases.

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In fact, if you rewind the clock 400 years,

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there's a famous case that matters greatly

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for this moment that Paul finds himself in.

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It's the trial of Socrates in 399 BC.

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Socrates is brought in front of the same body,

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the Areopagus, under the same allegations,

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preaching foreign gods.

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And in Socrates' case they find him guilty

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and order him to be executed.

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They force him to drink hemlock poison, and he dies.

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Now for Paul, growing up in Tarsus,

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the Athens of the East, home of philosophy,

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being well educated, he knew of that case.

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He understood from the moment they said,

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"Preaching foreign gods, let's go to the Areopagus,"

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that this could turn out very, very poorly for him.

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And yet Paul chooses to endure.

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Paul does not back down.

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What he does next is proceed to give

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the absolute masterclass on how you share the gospel

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in a language that someone else can actually understand.

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Here's the start of his message in Acts 17:

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So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said,

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"Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way

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you are very religious.

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For as I passed along

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and observed the object of your worship,

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I found also an altar with this inscription:

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'To the unknown God.'

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What therefore you worship as unknown

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this I proclaim to you."

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Paul is brilliant here.

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He finds common ground and a way

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to even encourage them and affirm them.

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He goes, "I notice that you're very religious.

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In fact, I actually found when I was down in the agora

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an altar to an unknown God, one you already worship.

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I'm not preaching about foreign gods.

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I'm preaching about one of your gods.

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All I want to do is tell you about

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the God you already worship." Brilliant.

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He breaks down their objections.

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He opens ears and he proceeds to share the gospel,

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the message of Jesus in a language that

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these Greek people could actually understand.

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It's amazing.

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If you ever come to Crossroads and enjoyed a message,

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you've ever had a moment where you were like,

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"It felt like you were talking to me.

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It felt like you understood me."

00:20:27

Well, the foundation of how we preach

00:20:29

and how we communicate, you can trace to

00:20:31

exactly this moment on this hill,

00:20:33

Paul in front of the Areopagus, sharing the gospel.

00:20:37

Brilliant.

00:20:38

Now, not surprisingly, but unfortunately,

00:20:41

Paul's taking heat for this.

00:20:43

There are theologians over the centuries

00:20:44

who've taken shots at him, who said

00:20:46

he must have been out of his mind in this moment,

00:20:49

or this isn't the real message that he gave.

00:20:51

Luke must have edited the words in Acts

00:20:53

and left some stuff out, because surely

00:20:55

he wouldn't have watered down the gospel.

00:20:58

He didn't water it down.

00:20:59

He made it refreshing in a way that they wanted to pick up

00:21:03

and actually drink.

00:21:04

Because Paul, in this moment, he's successful.

00:21:08

His endurance pays off.

00:21:11

It's not that everyone claps their hands

00:21:13

or asks how to be saved, but there are definitely people

00:21:17

who, at the end of his speech say, "I want to know more."

00:21:22

See, in a moment when most others would have

00:21:25

kicked back and relaxed, would have leaned out,

00:21:29

Paul leaned in.

00:21:31

In a moment where many others would have decided

00:21:34

to put down their arms, Paul takes them up

00:21:39

and says, "Today, I have good news for you."

00:21:43

Paul has a secret that you and I have to have

00:21:46

if we're going to follow Jesus, we're going to win our race.

00:21:48

The Jesus mindset of running with endurance.

00:21:51

Hebrews 12 puts it this way:

00:21:54

Therefore, since we're surrounded by

00:21:56

so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also

00:21:59

lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely,

00:22:02

and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,

00:22:06

looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith,

00:22:09

who for the joy that was set before Him endured the Cross,

00:22:13

despising the shame,

00:22:14

and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God."

00:22:18

This week we're talking about endurance.

00:22:20

This is the next step for us to understand

00:22:23

if we want to win our race, if we want to run

00:22:26

the way that Jesus wants us to run,

00:22:28

we have to increase our capacity to endure.

00:22:55

- We go from Athens as it looks today

00:22:58

to Athens as it looked back then.

00:23:01

This is actually the same building that we just saw,

00:23:03

the Parthenon as it originally looked.

00:23:06

It was painted, had sculptures everywhere,

00:23:09

gold and iron and ivory. It was incredible.

00:23:15

This building is a picture of what we're talking about,

00:23:18

a picture of endurance.

00:23:21

It stood in the same place for 2400 years.

00:23:26

You might think, well, it must be like in a lucky place,

00:23:28

right? Maybe. No earthquakes.

00:23:30

No, actually, it's the opposite. Lots of earthquakes.

00:23:32

This thing has endured hundreds of them.

00:23:35

It's seen the rise and the fall of the empire

00:23:37

that built it, the Greeks.

00:23:38

It's seen the rise in the fall

00:23:40

of the one that came next, the Romans.

00:23:41

It's even been shot at and blown up.

00:23:45

In the year 1657 the Ottomans controlled this area

00:23:49

and they needed a place to store their gunpowder,

00:23:51

and so they decided, "That'll work."

00:23:54

And they use it as a storage locker.

00:23:56

The Venetians came by to attack Athens.

00:23:59

They couldn't land on the ground.

00:24:00

They had ships in the harbor.

00:24:02

And so one guy said, "What if we shot a cannon at that?"

00:24:05

Hit the gunpowder and blew out the side in the roof.

00:24:09

They've literally been repairing it ever since.

00:24:11

In fact, when we were there, it was the first time

00:24:14

in 200 years there were no scaffolding

00:24:15

on the outside of the building.

00:24:17

They took it down about a week before we got there.

00:24:19

They put it up just after we left.

00:24:21

Crazy crazy crazy crazy.

00:24:23

Now it's a picture of endurance, not because it's old.

00:24:27

It's a picture of endurance because it suffered greatly

00:24:31

and it's still standing.

00:24:34

I think when Paul came to this city,

00:24:35

he resonated with that structure.

00:24:37

He could see his own story in it.

00:24:40

As we heard in that video, Paul got here.

00:24:43

He didn't just go sightseeing.

00:24:45

He didn't stay on the top of the hill

00:24:47

and admire the beautiful building.

00:24:49

Instead, he went down to the marketplace.

00:24:52

He got to know the people and their culture

00:24:55

and their ideas.

00:24:56

He decided to endure in his race.

00:24:59

And what he learned there started to bother him.

00:25:03

Bothered him so greatly that he started talking about it.

00:25:06

And what that did is it ended him up

00:25:08

in the middle of a storm, took him to the top of a hill

00:25:12

where he was in front of the Areopagus

00:25:14

on trial for his life.

00:25:17

A storm that he did not ask for, maybe didn't deserve,

00:25:20

but it was there anyway.

00:25:23

See, on a sunny day you don't need endurance,

00:25:25

you just need patience. You just, you just wait.

00:25:28

But when the storm comes, when the rain starts,

00:25:33

the call becomes to endure.

00:25:38

And what you and I have to understand from the beginning

00:25:40

is that God's not so interested in changing the weather.

00:25:44

He's interested in changing us.

00:25:48

As a human I think we have two main reactions

00:25:50

when there's a storm that we need to endure.

00:25:52

One reaction is anger. It's defy the storm.

00:25:56

And why are you here? And shout at it.

00:25:58

In my life, I've never shouted away a storm.

00:26:01

Maybe that's worked for you. Doesn't work for me.

00:26:04

Knee jerk reaction number two is not just anger,

00:26:06

it's fear. It's, "Oh, no, this is horrible.

00:26:08

I gotta run, run, leave the storm."

00:26:10

But if we do that, we'll miss out on

00:26:13

what enduring the storm will produce in our life,

00:26:15

the character that God wants to build in us.

00:26:20

Storms can be hurricanes.

00:26:21

Maybe you're in one right now and you're racing

00:26:23

there's something that feels like

00:26:24

an overwhelming hurricane.

00:26:26

It's just gonna batter you to your knees.

00:26:30

It can also feel like a drip a day, you know,

00:26:32

just drip, drip.

00:26:34

Another diaper and another diaper.

00:26:37

Maybe you're in school, it's homework.

00:26:39

It feels like all your teachers get together

00:26:42

at the start of the day and they're like,

00:26:43

"How can we absolutely crush him?

00:26:45

How can we make her evening awful?"

00:26:48

You know, they're like, "Why am I even doing geometry?"

00:26:51

It's it's not because you're going to

00:26:52

ever need to find the cosine of anything, I promise.

00:26:56

But it's that the work of enduring changes you.

00:26:59

Maybe you're in business and it's rising costs

00:27:02

and it's staffing issues.

00:27:03

Maybe that's what you're enduring.

00:27:04

Whatever it is, the point is,

00:27:06

God doesn't want to change the weather,

00:27:08

He wants to change you.

00:27:10

And we have to understand that

00:27:12

if we're going to get to the place of endurance

00:27:14

that produces character.

00:27:17

Character is what God's after.

00:27:18

You know, every storm I've ever been in in my life,

00:27:20

it humbles me.

00:27:22

It's like it like grabs my weaknesses,

00:27:25

all the places where I don't know what to do,

00:27:27

and it shoves them in front of my face.

00:27:30

And guess what? That's what God wants.

00:27:33

That's exactly what He wants.

00:27:34

Endurance produces character.

00:27:37

In fact, the first step,

00:27:38

I've got four steps to endurance for you today.

00:27:40

First step is to admit your weaknesses.

00:27:45

So it's happened to me over the last couple of weeks.

00:27:48

My job is to lead our staff and lead our church.

00:27:52

And you might know that our church is going through

00:27:54

some things right now, some difficulties,

00:27:56

and that has taken my weaknesses and my shortcomings,

00:27:59

and it's shoved them in front of my face.

00:28:02

People ask me, "How are you doing?"

00:28:03

And the most honest answer is, "I feel like an empty cup.

00:28:08

I feel like a jar that was full, but man,

00:28:12

the wind just like knocked it over.

00:28:14

And all the water, all the water, it's gone.

00:28:17

It poured into the sand. The sun came out.

00:28:19

It's all. It's all gone."

00:28:20

And people keep coming up to me wanting a drink.

00:28:23

And I'm like, "I got, I got nothing. I got nothing."

00:28:28

The verse that God's used to sharpen me in this,

00:28:32

to develop my character in this is this one:

00:28:34

2 Corinthians 4:7, it says:

00:28:38

But we have this treasure in jars of clay

00:28:43

to show that the all-surpassing power is from God

00:28:46

and not from us.

00:28:47

We're hard pressed on every side, but not crushed;

00:28:51

we're perplexed, but not in despair;

00:28:53

persecuted, but not abandoned;

00:28:55

struck down, but not destroyed.

00:28:59

Now I love the endurance that's in that second part.

00:29:02

Hard pressed, but not crushed. Awesome, love that part.

00:29:04

Does not happen unless you and I admit the first part,

00:29:07

"God, I'm a jar of clay."

00:29:09

You're a jar of clay. "God, I have cracks, I have chips,

00:29:14

I can be empty, I can be broken.

00:29:18

I could fall and I could -- And I could break, God."

00:29:22

If you're not willing to admit your weakness,

00:29:24

there is no path to endurance in your life.

00:29:25

And this fights against everything

00:29:27

you've ever been taught, probably in your whole life.

00:29:29

Don't show your weaknesses.

00:29:30

Why would you do that at work? That's a stupid thing.

00:29:32

Don't admit your failures and your flaws.

00:29:34

Why would you do that? Hide them. Protect them.

00:29:36

When the pressure comes, just tell everybody you're Iron Man.

00:29:39

That's not what Scripture says. No, no, no.

00:29:43

A friend of mine as a means of encouraging me, I think,

00:29:46

he pointed out to me a verse from --

00:29:49

A section from one of Paul's letter, 2 Corinthians 11.

00:29:52

It's like this list where Paul goes like,

00:29:54

"Hey, uh, what have you endured in your life?"

00:29:58

And then he goes, "Hold my beer."

00:30:00

And he goes, "I've been shipwrecked.

00:30:02

I've been starved.

00:30:04

I've been in trouble from robbers and danger,

00:30:06

and I've been naked and I've been afraid. I've been --"

00:30:08

He goes to this whole entire, I've been --

00:30:10

I've been beaten with rods and beaten with whips.

00:30:12

All this stuff, and then at the end of it,

00:30:14

to cap it off, he says this, 2 Corinthians 11:28:

00:30:19

And apart from all the other things,

00:30:21

there is the daily pressure on me

00:30:23

of my anxiety for all the churches.

00:30:25

He goes, "Do you know what's worse than all that stuff?

00:30:28

Church leadership, that's what's worse."

00:30:31

And I'm like, "Paul, I feel seen. I feel so seen.

00:30:35

Yes and amen, Paul. I feel seen."

00:30:40

Listen to what he says next. Here's his very next words.

00:30:43

"Who is weak, and I am not weak?

00:30:47

Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?

00:30:50

If I must boast, I will boast of the things

00:30:53

that show my weakness." Weakness.

00:30:58

See, the way to endure is not to fake strength.

00:31:01

The way to endure is to admit your weakness. Why?

00:31:04

Because God doesn't trade power for pride.

00:31:07

Because God doesn't exchange power

00:31:09

for an awesome report card.

00:31:11

God trades power for a show of weakness. Period.

00:31:16

Paul said this in 2 Corinthians 12:

00:31:19

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you,

00:31:22

for my power is made perfect in weakness."

00:31:26

Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses,

00:31:28

so that Christ's power may rest on me.

00:31:31

This is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weakness,

00:31:34

in insults, in hardships,

00:31:35

in persecutions, in difficulties.

00:31:37

For when I am weak, then I am strong.

00:31:40

Paul got to the point in his race

00:31:42

where he's not just like, I'll survive it.

00:31:44

He goes, I delight in it.

00:31:46

I'm happy to talk about my weaknesses.

00:31:48

I'm happy to take your insults because when I'm weak,

00:31:50

then I am strong.

00:31:51

Step one if you want to endure is to admit your weakness.

00:31:55

Say, God, I'm a jar of clay.

00:31:58

That means I need filled and I need reformed.

00:32:02

Step two is to ask Him to do that.

00:32:05

Ask Him to refill you and ask Him to reform you.

00:32:08

We've been doing a Bible in a year as a community

00:32:10

in the Crossroads App.

00:32:11

There's about 3000 of us doing it.

00:32:13

If you're not doing it, you're welcome to jump in.

00:32:15

We've been in, like, the hard part of the Bible

00:32:17

that you have to endure, right? Like all the lists.

00:32:21

So and so begat so and so begot so and so.

00:32:23

You're like what?

00:32:25

I may have listened to some of it on two x speed in my car.

00:32:29

Just -- Chuck Mingo said he did too, so I think it's okay.

00:32:34

It's okay. Thankfully, we're in the part

00:32:36

where there are stories again.

00:32:37

And the other day we were in Numbers 21

00:32:39

and there was this story that jumped off the page.

00:32:42

This is the part of the story where the nation of Israel

00:32:44

has left Egypt, they're in the Exodus.

00:32:47

And this is what happens. Numbers 21.

00:32:49

And the people spoke against God and against Moses,

00:32:53

"Why have you brought us up out of Egypt

00:32:55

to die in the wilderness?

00:32:56

For there is no food and there's no water,

00:32:59

and we loathe this worthless food."

00:33:02

Then the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people,

00:33:05

and they bit the people so that many people of Israel died.

00:33:10

I'm like, I feel so much better when I get mad at my kids

00:33:13

when they complain about dinner. You know?

00:33:15

I've never been like, "Here, hold this python."

00:33:18

So God did, He's like, "Hey, here's snakes."

00:33:20

And I read that, I was like, wait a minute.

00:33:22

I think there's a story somewhere that Jesus talks about

00:33:24

like, if you ask God for food, he won't give you a snake.

00:33:29

And then I found it. There sure is.

00:33:30

Matthew 7: Jesus said, which one of you,

00:33:34

if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?

00:33:37

Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent?

00:33:41

If you then, who are evil,

00:33:42

know how to give good gifts to your children,

00:33:44

how much more will your Father who is in heaven

00:33:47

give good things to those who ask Him?

00:33:50

It's like, wait, uh, hold on a second.

00:33:53

Isn't that what you did?

00:33:55

Like, isn't there a story where you did the exact same thing?

00:33:58

And then I looked at it closely

00:34:00

and something jumped off the page at me.

00:34:01

Do you know what they didn't do back in Numbers in the Exodus?

00:34:05

They never asked. They just complained.

00:34:08

"God, there's no food. God, I don't have what I need.

00:34:11

God, it's your fault what's happening to me?"

00:34:13

And by the way, complaining to God's okay,

00:34:16

you can complain to God.

00:34:17

Psalms is full of laments.

00:34:19

There's actually a whole book called Lamentations.

00:34:22

It's okay to complain, but don't stop at complaining.

00:34:26

Ask God to fill you and to reform you.

00:34:31

See God loves you. God, He loves you so much.

00:34:34

God loves you exactly as you are.

00:34:38

And He doesn't want you to stay that way.

00:34:41

That's what I'm talking about.

00:34:42

Endurance produces character.

00:34:46

He has more for you.

00:34:47

You can ask God to fill you and to reform you.

00:34:49

And that's what He's after.

00:34:50

The you tomorrow will be better than the you today

00:34:53

if you do that.

00:34:54

In fact, the worst you that will ever exist again

00:34:57

is the you right now if, if you follow God's path

00:35:01

of endurance that leads to character.

00:35:04

A more hopeful you is coming, a more joyful you is coming,

00:35:07

a more powerful you is coming

00:35:09

a more faithful, holy, righteous you is coming.

00:35:11

It's amazing if, if, if you will endure, if.

00:35:16

I think us adults we can believe

00:35:18

that we've stopped growing and that's okay.

00:35:21

They say horizontally, might grow horizontally on accident,

00:35:24

but no, no, no, God wants you to grow.

00:35:27

It never, it never, ever stops.

00:35:29

He's constantly renewing your character, the inner you.

00:35:33

Here's what Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4.

00:35:36

He says: We do not lose heart.

00:35:38

Though our outer self is wasting away,

00:35:40

our inner self, our character is being renewed day by day.

00:35:46

Ask Him to refill you. Ask Him to reform you.

00:35:50

Third step to endurance, act. Act.

00:35:53

Yes admit, yes act -- or admit, yes ask.

00:35:58

But you also act. Do something.

00:36:01

In our groups this week for our golden question,

00:36:04

we have one every week that everyone's going to answer.

00:36:06

The golden question this week involves reflecting

00:36:08

on this scripture from the section where

00:36:10

Paul talks about all runners run. only one gets the prize,

00:36:13

from that section he says this. 1 Corinthians 9:25:

00:36:17

Everyone who competes in the games

00:36:19

goes into strict training. Strict training.

00:36:23

Now, I think that we hear that word strict

00:36:25

and we're like, "Okay, strict.

00:36:26

That must mean like, uh, like one arm push ups, you know?

00:36:29

That must mean, like a -- I need to run a marathon.

00:36:32

I need to memorize whole books of the Bible."

00:36:36

But maybe, maybe, but probably not.

00:36:40

Strict doesn't mean extreme.

00:36:42

Strict means every day. That's what it means.

00:36:47

It doesn't mean a marathon. It means a mile.

00:36:50

It doesn't mean one arm push ups. It means 20 every morning.

00:36:54

See, when I find him in my life, when I get unhealthy,

00:36:56

I'm not unhealthy because I don't know what to do,

00:36:59

physically unhealthy, right?

00:37:00

I know what to do. Diet and exercise.

00:37:03

Every time. You do too.

00:37:06

You're not confused about what to do.

00:37:08

But we still we buy all these books

00:37:10

and we we watch all these videos

00:37:11

and we're looking for the shortcut and the secret

00:37:13

for anybody to tell us anything different.

00:37:15

No diet and exercise. You already know.

00:37:17

I already know, just not doing it.

00:37:19

And I think the same comes with a strict training.

00:37:22

Maybe, maybe, maybe there's something God wants you to do

00:37:25

involve in strict training to endure

00:37:26

that you don't know about.

00:37:28

But I'm going to guess that you already know what it is.

00:37:32

You're just not doing it.

00:37:35

Maybe in your race, in order to endure,

00:37:37

you feel this distance between you and God

00:37:39

and you know you need to close that gap.

00:37:41

If so, I'd recommend praying every day.

00:37:45

Just set a timer for ten minutes every morning.

00:37:48

Just do that day after day after day.

00:37:50

After 30 days I promise you won't feel that gap anymore.

00:37:54

Maybe you're in a spot in your race where to endure

00:37:56

you need wisdom, you need discernment,

00:37:58

you need to understand what does God even say about this?

00:38:00

If that's where you're at,

00:38:01

I developed a habit of reading the Bible.

00:38:03

You can join us in the app.

00:38:05

I've already given the cheat code.

00:38:06

Listen to it on two x speed. It's fine.

00:38:09

Just get it. Just start doing it. Just start doing it.

00:38:13

Maybe what you lack in your race in order to endure

00:38:15

you have a gap called wise counsel in my life,

00:38:18

people who know me and love me

00:38:20

and know and love Jesus and can speak truth into my life.

00:38:23

If that's you, start making plans for how your group

00:38:25

might continue past the Run Journey.

00:38:27

You need those people in your life.

00:38:30

Maybe in your race it's literal, physical energy

00:38:33

is what you lack. Awesome. Diet and exercise.

00:38:36

Do something. You know what to do. Pick one.

00:38:39

Maybe in your life it's financial health

00:38:41

that's holding you back. Awesome.

00:38:43

Sign up for a class. Get some wise counsel.

00:38:46

Get healthy. Get get paying the debt down.

00:38:49

It can happen. It can. But you need to act. Act.

00:38:56

Why do all this, by the way? Why?

00:38:58

Why admit? Why ask? Why act?

00:39:00

It's because it's worth it. It's worth it.

00:39:05

See, when you endure, God will make a better you,

00:39:07

a stronger you.

00:39:09

A hero for me when it comes to endurance right now

00:39:12

is my son, my oldest son, Ben.

00:39:15

He's a freshman in high school, and he has endured,

00:39:18

and I've seen it change his character.

00:39:20

About a year ago at school, he started getting bullied

00:39:23

for no particular reason, just being him.

00:39:26

And we had lots of conversations about it,

00:39:28

about the high and holy calling of following Jesus,

00:39:31

where we love our enemies,

00:39:33

where we pray for those who persecute us,

00:39:36

and where we also tell the truth,

00:39:37

even when it's hard, even when it feels unsafe.

00:39:41

He endured and his character changed.

00:39:44

A month ago at school he started getting picked on again

00:39:47

because our church was in the headlines.

00:39:48

Kids telling him, "Oh, your church is fake

00:39:50

and everybody's awful and everything you've ever learned,

00:39:52

it doesn't count. It was all -- it was all wrong."

00:39:56

So we had conversations about being a jar of clay.

00:40:00

Said, "Hey, buddy, every leader in your life,

00:40:03

me included, is a jar of clay.

00:40:06

Have I ever done something that upset you?

00:40:09

Ever gotten too angry at you?" He goes, yeah.

00:40:11

I go, "That's the jar of clay.

00:40:13

That's because I got cracks and I got chips,

00:40:15

and I ain't perfect, man. I'm not.

00:40:18

Have I ever done something that blessed you and helped you?"

00:40:20

Yeah. "Well, that was the power of God inside of me.

00:40:23

It's completely real."

00:40:25

His character changed. He endured.

00:40:29

This past Monday at school, again,

00:40:31

our church is back in the headlines.

00:40:32

And again he gets picked on. "Your church is awful.

00:40:35

And your opinions are revolting," and all this stuff.

00:40:38

And so again, we had another conversation

00:40:40

about how sometimes the hardest but the holiest thing

00:40:44

is to stay silent like Jesus.

00:40:47

Scripture says when He was accused,

00:40:50

He was like a sheep before its shearers. He was silent.

00:40:52

I think the hardest thing to do is just to keep your mouth shut.

00:40:56

He endured and his character changed.

00:41:00

A year ago he would have been crushed

00:41:03

by anybody coming against him, anybody picking on him.

00:41:05

And that's not where he is now.

00:41:07

Not only that, his character has changed

00:41:09

where his race is now helping other people.

00:41:12

Sarah and I got this incredible email

00:41:14

from his school on Wednesday.

00:41:15

I'd love to share it with you.

00:41:17

Comment: Ben knows how to be a good friend.

00:41:21

A classmate was clearly having a very difficult day.

00:41:25

Ben was compassionate and went out of his way to help them.

00:41:28

He ensured that they were supported and not alone.

00:41:39

By the way, that kid was getting bullied.

00:41:42

See, when you endure, God will change your character.

00:41:46

Can I just tell you, as that kid's father,

00:41:48

I begged God to stop the storm.

00:41:50

I begged God to change the weather.

00:41:52

"God change the weather. He doesn't deserve this.

00:41:54

This isn't -- This isn't justified. Change the weather."

00:41:57

He didn't. But you know what He did do?

00:42:00

He changed my son's character.

00:42:02

I'm telling you, He wants to do the same for you.

00:42:07

He wants to do the same for you. He does.

00:42:10

One day the storm will end. It will. It will.

00:42:15

You know me, the storm I'm in right now,

00:42:17

the pressure that we're facing, that I'm facing.

00:42:20

I'm making a choice. It's to stay in the storm.

00:42:24

Is to say, "God, if there's anything

00:42:26

you want to change in me, would you change it?

00:42:29

God, I don't know how to do this, but would You fill me?

00:42:32

Would You? Would You reform me?

00:42:33

If there's anything different You want me to do,

00:42:35

just show me what it is. Just show me."

00:42:37

I don't know what happens next.

00:42:39

I don't have the answers. But guess what?

00:42:41

I worship a God named the truth. He's the truth.

00:42:45

He knows the path He has for you. Do you trust Him?

00:42:50

I told you I've been empty, a poured out cup this week.

00:42:53

But there's also been a miracle that happens

00:42:56

every time someone walked up to me

00:42:58

and wanted a drink of water, the craziest thing has happened.

00:43:02

I think I'm empty. And I asked God to fill me.

00:43:05

And I tip myself over for the person in front of me

00:43:07

and fresh water pours out for them. Crazy.

00:43:10

So I look at this verse and I can say this:

00:43:12

2 Corinthians 4: But I have this treasure

00:43:16

in this jar of clay to show that

00:43:19

the all-surpassing power is from God, not from me.

00:43:24

I'm hard pressed on every side, but not crushed;

00:43:29

I'm perplexed, but not in despair;

00:43:32

I feel persecuted, but not abandoned;

00:43:34

struck down but not destroyed. Not destroyed.

00:43:38

See, I have no idea when blue skies

00:43:41

might come again in your life.

00:43:43

I have no idea when it might feel like blue skies here again.

00:43:46

I have no idea. But guess what?

00:43:47

I know they're coming, I know they're coming.

00:43:50

I know that the best for our church is the days yet to come.

00:43:53

I know that last week and last month and last year

00:43:56

the mission was reach the lost with the message of Jesus

00:43:58

in a language they can understand.

00:44:00

And it'll be the same next week and next month and next year.

00:44:03

I know that there are the least of these that need lifted up.

00:44:06

I know there are girls on the other side of the world

00:44:08

that need protected and rescued.

00:44:10

I know there's an awakening that God wants to birth

00:44:12

and He will. He will, if you and I endure.

00:44:18

It's not time to quit.

00:44:20

It's time to say, "God, I'm weak.

00:44:22

Would You fill me and reshape me?

00:44:23

Is there anything You want me to do?

00:44:26

Is there anything You want me to do in my life?"

00:44:28

Paul said this in Philippians 1:6, he said:

00:44:32

I am sure of this. I'm sure of this,

00:44:36

that He who began a good work in you

00:44:39

will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

00:44:42

I'm sure of it. Friends, I'm sure of it.

00:44:46

I'm sure of it.

00:44:48

And maybe you're in a place where you go,

00:44:49

"That's awesome for you,

00:44:51

but I'm not sure of it in my own life.

00:44:54

I can't see the blue sky at the end of this storm.

00:44:57

I don't know if I can keep enduring.

00:44:59

I don't know if I can make it." That's okay.

00:45:02

Fourth, and maybe most important step to endurance

00:45:05

is ask God to show you.

00:45:08

Ask God to show you His love for you.

00:45:11

Ask God to show you His arms around you.

00:45:14

Ask God to show you Him filling you with His power.

00:45:19

Ask God to show you the blue skies that are coming.

00:45:22

Ask God to give you a picture of hope

00:45:23

on the other side of the storm.

00:45:26

Ask God to show you what it means

00:45:28

to trust Him with your whole life.

00:49:22

- Let me pray a blessing over you.

00:49:24

God, I bless You that You're the God of endurance.

00:49:28

I bless You that you're the God who doesn't ask us to fake it,

00:49:32

but the God who says, "Admit your weaknesses,

00:49:35

and I will give you power. I will give you strength."

00:49:37

God, would You do that this week?

00:49:39

Would you give us the courage to admit it?

00:49:42

Would you give us the faith and the trust in You

00:49:44

to ask You to fill us and to reshape us?

00:49:47

And God, would you give us the strength to act?

00:49:49

If there's anything You want us to do,

00:49:51

would You whisper it in our ears?

00:49:53

Holy spirit, I invite You into

00:49:54

every quiet moment we spend on our own.

00:49:59

I invite You to cover every group and every conversation.

00:50:02

You lead, You steer.

00:50:04

Give us the ears to hear, the eyes to see,

00:50:08

and the feet to follow You in our race.

00:50:12

You're good God, and we love You. Amen.

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