Shane Idleman addresses the urgent need for a 'Great Reset' within the Church, emphasizing the importance of spiritual awakening and dependence on God amidst societal challenges. He warns against complacency and encourages believers to seek God wholeheartedly, reminding them that true revival often comes through trials and tribulations. Idleman highlights the historical context of the Church's struggles and the necessity for Christians to confront sin and remain steadfast in their faith. He calls for a return to prayer, fasting, and a deeper relationship with God, asserting that God's sovereignty is the ultimate source of hope and sanity in uncertain times.

The title this morning is The Great Reset of the Church. But there's something in our nation, and actually in the world, that's going on. It's not a conspiracy theory, you know, some things we can't trust. But there's something called The Great Reset. How many of you have heard of that? And, oh, there's a lot of people, that's good. And it's not a conspiracy theory because you can look at websites, you can look at agendas that are taking place. The Global Summit, where a lot of the global leaders met, and they laid out their plans. And they want there to be a global reset. And one nation in the way is yours truly, right? America. And what they're trying to do is get everybody dependent upon the government. Get everyone dependent on the one world system. And we know it's not a conspiracy theory because we also read the Bible. And we see that that is a direction that America is going and the world is going. And they wanna reset. And I think that's a lot of behind the virus is shutting down small businesses. And you see that the big stores are not suffering, are they? The top billionaires increased their wealth by 28% during COVID. 20%, they're already billionaires. And so you see small businesses really hurting. And that's what I believe, it's a legitimate virus, of course. Don't get me into the numbers and things like that because I just found out recently there's no reporting of the flu anymore, I guess. So there's a lot of shenanigans going on. So you take something that's real, something we wanna be sensitive to, but at the same time also get to the facts and get to what's going on. So they're using it as a means to shut down the economy. And that's why I believe the political race right now is so important. Biden will only seek to do that even more, mandatory masks, lockdowns, and shut down the economy to a degree to where they wanna become dependent upon the government. That's kind of the goal, that's the agenda there. So you can research that more on your own. But I wanna talk about the great reset of the church, the great reset of the church. And this turned into two messages. Next week, I'm gonna talk about God's sovereignty is your sanity. You can tweet that, you can Facebook that. Always remember that, God's sovereignty is your sanity. That's how you're going to stay sane in these dire times. That's how you're not going to lose it or get carried away or get anxious and irritable and fearful and cave. God's sovereignty will be your sanity going forward. What does sovereignty means? Full authority, full control, the right to do what he pleases. Thank God that we can rest in who God is, amen? I put something on Facebook and Twitter and all these other things this week. And I said this, no matter what happens January 20th, Jesus is still King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Christ is Lord. That's where our allegiance lies. That's who we serve. That's who we follow. We don't get caught up in a lot of the other things. We stay focused on Christ and Christ alone. That road is narrow. Oh, there are many who go by the wide path, but narrow is the way that leads to eternal life. It's been a very difficult sermon because what I want to do is offer hope, but what I also want to do is prepare. So how do you do that? Many of you are struggling through that right now with maybe your kids or grandkids. You want to offer hope, but you also want to prepare because if we're not prepared, that's not wise either. Sometimes we can be deceived or make wrong decisions or lack wisdom. So my goal was trying to offer hope, but also prepare the church. And that's been a very big challenge this week. But something I want to encourage you with is this, that the church has always been on a rollercoaster ride of trials and disappointments, ups and downs, encouragement, peace. There's been seasons of peace. There's been seasons of persecution. And so we have to remind ourselves like Esther, that we've been called for such a time as this. And as I was studying church history, around 200 AD to about 250 AD was a time of peace in the church. And then around 250 AD, one of the emperors and those in ruling authorities decided to tell people they had to have a certificate to show that they worshiped the false God. Hmm, sound familiar? You know, I won't get into where I'm going with that, but you know what I'm saying? Because there's so many things out there, you have to have a, you know, at some point they want you to have a vaccine certificate to travel. And you're seeing all that. I'm not trying to make a connection here necessarily, but that there has always been a season of persecution. And at 250 AD, they had to show a certificate that they bowed their knee to the false God. And many people would not even know that they would not do that. They were actually killed for their faith. Many people would renounce Jesus to save their life. And then they came back to the church, repenting and broken. And then they would require of those people something called penance. Have you heard of that? If you're raised Roman Catholic, that's where that came from. They would have to do a certain amount of penance and repentance to be let back in the church. So we see, even in, when was that? Probably 350 or so AD and different seasons where Nero and his persecution of Christians. And then you see a time of not much persecution. And then you see more. And then you see the time of the Spanish Inquisition. And you see the Bloody Mary, you've heard that name before. And the martyrs, William Tyndale, John Hus and Whitecliffe, two of those men were burned at the stake for translating the Bible. And you see so much. So this is not, we've become so comfortable that we forgot that the church has always been persecuted. We've been blessed. And what happens though is our blessing can sometimes hurt our intimacy with God. Because I don't know about you, but it's brokenness and dependence that keeps me close to God. It's suffering, it's persecution. That keeps me close to God. And when it becomes comfortable, well, sometimes you just don't go to church as much. Isn't it interesting that the church, people used to go to church faithfully. Now the new trend is twice a month. Probably on its way to once a month. And then, well, whenever it's convenient. Oh, you get some persecution coming, you'll see the church fall again. Because that drives us to God, unfortunately, many times. And I read a lot about American history. And I don't know how many of you knew this, but there was something called the Black Robe Regiment. Many pastors would show up in their black clerical gowns and underneath would be the uniform of the army to fight against Britain. So many people don't know this. The pastors led a lot of that charge. There was a standing up for what is truth. There was a wanting to defend the weak and the fatherless. And it's a hard balance to find. And many people believe that the first great awakening with Jonathan Edwards, John Wesley, George Whitefield sparked the movement of the Revolutionary War. And people say, well, Christians shouldn't go to war. And true, personally, I can't. But as a government, you can. Because God has given the government to be a tear to those who do evil. And many times we make a mistake by applying Jesus's teaching to the institution of government. We try telling our president, turn the cheek to North Korea. No, no, no, no, no, no. That's a Jesus verse for us. But the government is operating differently. But the encouraging thing, you've heard me talk about this a lot, revival. God reviving his church is often birthed in travail, meaning it's sparked in travail. Its difficulties can lead to revival. Think of a pregnancy of a woman, right? She's going through the labor pains before that child is born. Same thing with the church. Sometimes there's labor pains. To separate the wheat from the chaff. To separate the sheep from the goats. And also, who are the true followers of Jesus Christ? And it begins, those who begin to press in. They begin to start prayer meetings. They begin to make God a priority. And they begin to seek him again with all their heart. And that is your sanity in these uncertain times. Get your kids anchored into God's sovereignty. Get your mind anchored into God's sovereignty. What does that mean, Shane? It means God will not bow his knee to anyone. They will bow their knee to him. He stands high and lifted up. He is on the throne. He is to be exalted and worthy no matter what comes. See, that's what many Christians, here's what's ironic, and I know it's difficult. We've been called for such a time as this. We've been practicing for this. But when this gets here, we get scared. We've had it too comfortable. Is 2021 the great reset of the church? You can Google it to get a lot of this information I'm talking about. Is 2021 the great reset of the church? And again, to prepare you and to be hopeful as well. So I'm going to talk about something that most people don't talk about, because I feel God put on my heart strongly the last couple of weeks, because the church is to discern. We're supposed to be sober. We're supposed to be vigilant. We're supposed to use wisdom. We're supposed to contend for the faith and talk about all the issues that confront us today. Nowhere in God's word will you see the compartmentalized and don't talk about these certain issues, only talk about these issues, because the gospel changes our hearts when we talk about everything that's affecting us. So what I'm going to talk about, I'm going to give you two scenarios. But first, the reason for the title of this message, the great reset of the church, the church must reset. It's painfully obvious that many people are not seeking God with all their heart, with all their strength. And if I saw more families broken and more parents fasting and more kids weeping over their sin, I would be more encouraged. And I've been saying all year that the church is afraid, but she's not humble. She's worried, but she's not broken. She's comfortable and she's complaining. Where's mine? Where's this? And there's a lot of hoarding going on and not a lot of brokenness and humility. And that's why the church might need a reset, amen? Because God works through his church. It's important that we have that relationship with him. Now what's coming up this week, let me encourage you, either way we win. No matter what side you're on, either way, as a Christian, either way you win. God is still on the throne. Christ is still King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He's not too concerned. He knows what's going on. His sovereignty is my sanity. But I have to talk to you about both scenarios to prepare you. For example, people say, you know, if Joe Biden were to come out of this as the president, call me stupid, but there's a lot of voter fraud going on. It's crystal clear, crystal clear for those who want to look at the evidence. I have Sidney Powell's 270 page document of all the evidence. It's crystal clear if those want to look at it. But we don't know what will happen because on Wednesday, the Congress meets, the Senate meets, they contest it. They have closed door meetings. Then even legal attorneys who are well-versed in the constitution say, well, it could go this way. It could go this way. And people say, but how would God allow fraud? Well, throughout the Old Testament, many kings were dethroned by fraud or by treason or by uprising or by, you know, people taking over power. And so I'm careful here because God's perfect will and his permissive will are sometimes different. His perfect will is that the righteous are in authority so that the people don't groan. His perfect will is that his word is brought back into the schools, back into government offices, his word is to be elevated and highlighted. His word is not something we run from, it's something we run to. And you begin to put people in positions of office who respect his word. And that's why I love people like Mike Pompeo, who's in office, or Ben Carson, or Tony Perkins with the Family Research Council. Countless, countless other Christians that are there. It's very important, it's very good. And what's the press secretary, Kayleigh, right? That's the hardest job on the planet. And you have people in positions of authority and political offices that love God. And there's something to be said about that. However, I don't know what God's will is in this area. I'm not one of those guys making videos going, thus saith the Lord, Trump for four more years. There's gonna be a lot of apologies and retractions if that doesn't happen. Now I should tell you, I'm hopeful. I'm hoping for the best, but I'm putting it on the altar until the day I know what God's will is. Me and my wife did that when we were dating. We put the marriage on the altar and said, Lord, it's yours. Until we say I do, then you're stuck, okay, right? Did that sound wrong? Then you're committed. Not stuck, not stuck, not stuck. All right, Levy, let's edit that part out of the sermon and put in there committed. So once you say I do, you try talking for an hour and not messing up at every service. Once you make that commitment, and now we know what God's will is, right? A lot of times I make decisions I can't say I know for 100% sure it's God's will. The only time I can say that is when I look to His word. I know for certain without a shadow of a doubt that Christ is Lord, He is Savior. He died on that cross, He rose from Calvary, and God has redeemed mankind, and He is coming back again. God's word is the inerrant, God's word is the inerrant, inspired, authoritative word of God. He will stand the test of time. His word will not go out void. But I don't know sometimes the feelings going on up here. And I was so encouraged. The time we were planting this church, and I wasn't certain, Francis Chan was actually leaving his church kind of the same time there, and I heard him say, I didn't know for 100% certain if we should have planted this church in Simi Valley. And I was like, oh, good, I'm not the only one. Because I trust God, but I don't trust Shane Eidelman. Feelings, thoughts, so I don't know exactly what's going to happen. So I'm not doubting anything because God didn't tell me something. Doubt is when God tells you something and you begin to doubt what God says. I don't know what His sovereign plans are. I don't know what's gonna happen. I have hopes, I have goals, and I'm praying for certain things, I'm fasting for certain things, I'm hopeful. But do you know how many people are going to just be messed up, for lack of a better word? Though their faith will waver, they've been trusting on all these prophetic voices saying this, and could God use a Biden win to humble the church? Because God doesn't look through the lens of America or the presidential race. He looks at the globally. He's just as concerned about Christians in China as America. But that scenario, if it were to happen, I believe it could be like a judgment. God allowing. Now, why would God give four years of mercy and grace and trying to bring His word back in other areas and then take that away? And just saying this, I'm gonna get tons of hate mail. So just telling you up front, I'm not gonna read it. Look at the, no, you don't listen to haters. You really don't. You do not listen to haters. Well, you're not open for constructive criticism. Oh yeah, I ask our elders, I ask our deacons, I ask our core team all the time. But we cannot listen to critics. If you don't want any critics, don't do anything, don't be anything, don't say anything. And you'll have no critics. Jesus had critics. But if that were to happen, social media will censor the truth under Biden. Clamp down on truth. What I'm telling you is called hate speech, according to some. Isn't it funny how love speech is hate speech? I love you enough to tell you the truth that same-sex attraction is not right according to God's word. Gay marriage is not right according, I love you enough to tell you the truth. Well, that's hate speech. Woe be to those who call it good, evil, and evil good. If that's hate speech, then parents hate their children because they warn them, they admonish them, they challenge them, often. See, telling you what God's word says is not hate, it's love. But you're going to see that be targeted. The churches will be targeted. They might even go underground. So I kept my real estate license. Kind of joking. I mean, do you know who's in the crosshairs more than anyone? Pastors of bold churches, without a shadow of a doubt. Why has Facebook knocked our audience down 150, 200,000 people a month? We don't reach anymore because it's called shadow banning. They go behind, they put the settings where hardly anybody can follow you. Twitter won't let us post things. YouTube sometimes says copyright issues. You got, da, da, da. It's just that everybody is against you except God Almighty. You plus God is majority. That's the only thing that keeps me going. Never forget that. You plus God is the majority. So we go into this season of difficulty and persecution and churches who don't confront sin will be fine. They won't shut them down because you're telling people what they want to hear, not what they need to hear. And this is the time I believe that Paul warned Timothy of. I believe you're living in it, folks. Right now, they will look for teachers. The time will come when they will not endure. They will not put up with sound doctrine, but they will look for teachers who will tell them what they want to hear, continue in your sin, encourage them in their sin. Never call things out. Never call them trepidants. Coddle them when they come in and coddle them when they go out. The only problem with that is lives are not radically changed unless they're confronted with the sinfulness of man. Unless you get John the Baptist back in the pulpits again, crying in the wilderness and saying, turn back to God Almighty. He is the only hope. He is the only strength. America, humble yourself before God Almighty. That's the only hope. So at what point do you get a little bold and you say, not on our watch? And you fight that fight, spiritually speaking, as Christians. Can you imagine, what cracks me up, the most popular sermons you'll see on YouTube today, 200, 300, 400,000 views, are all the people saying nothing about this. Lives will not be radically changed in passive, silent churches that don't want to confront sin. Why? Because a false prophet is not God's prophet. Now, I'm not saying all silent churches are false, but one of the number one signs, if you've been coming here a while, you've heard me talk about this. What is one of the number one signs of a false prophet throughout the entire Old Testament? You're gonna be surprised by this. The number one sign of a false prophet is to tell you peace, peace, when there's no peace. Somebody could be coming to this church in an hour, let's say, an army, hypothetically here, and if all I say is, guys, it's gonna be a wonderful day. We've got barbecue and potluck, and you guys just look great this morning. We're gonna talk about positive thinking today and how you can be a millionaire if you invest in this certain amount. And we're just gonna encourage you. And I know the army's coming. I've read the, I've got the information. I know they're coming. I know there's, this is not gonna be good. But because of cowardliness and a false prophet wanting recognition and to be liked, they say, peace, peace, when there is no peace. God says, I have not sent these false prophets, yet they ran. I have not spoken to them, yet they spoke. But had they truly stood in my counsel, had they given the people the word of God, all of the word of God, the positives and the negatives, the heaven and the hell, the grace and the mercy, but also the holiness of God, he would have said, they would have turned the entire nation back to me. Is not my word like a fire that devours? Is not like my word like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces? But you have perverted the words of the living God by not warning people of their sin. If you don't like what I'm saying, it's because you need to hear what I'm saying. Is that not true? That is absolutely true. Because I'm simply telling you what the Bible says, trying to balance love and grace and mercy. And I love that song like you all do. It's a grace that's brought me here thus far. It'll be grace that takes me home. Thank God for God's grace. But because of his grace on my life and his mercy on my life, I need to warn. I need to confront. I need to challenge. Paul said, Timothy, rebuke, exhort. Well, those are two strong words, rebuke, exhort the people. What kind of shepherd doesn't warn the sheep? The silent pulpit, folks, is not God's pulpit. Every time I talk about this, the more time I spend with God, the bolder I become. It's amazing. When you're bold for God, you know, don't you get criticism? Try hundreds and hundreds of negative things a week. But thousands of positive things too. The silent pulpit is not God's pulpit. A true pulpit, the true spokesperson for God is very loving. But also, they've always been bold. They've always been confrontational. They're filled with Holy Ghost fire. You think Jesus was just nice all the time when he preached? What would have Bethesda and Chorazin if the good works that were done in you were done in tire and sight and they would have repented long ago with sackcloth and ashes? The judgment of God is on you. Oh, you Pharisees, you whitewashed tombs, you brood of vipers. You look nice right now, but you're dead on the inside. You travel land and sea to win one prostitute. When you want him, you make him twice as son of hell as you. Jesus, what is wrong with you? He's speaking the truth of love. And you've got to get to the heart of issues. You've got to warn. Because all of us preaches, the whole person, the volume, the fluctuation of the voice and the body language. And that's what Jesus drove out the money changers. He wasn't very nice to those guys. Right? He kicked them out. He didn't do more than kick them out. Jesus, what are you making over there? Oh, I'll show you in just a minute. Boy scout knot. And you whip them out of that temple. Why? Because you've made this place a den of thieves. But my father's house, my father's house will be called a house of prayer for all the nations. Remember when you used to come back in the house of God with fear and trepidation, you would come into his presence, you would feel his power. You come expecting God to move. And God would move. Leonard Ravenhill speaking to pastors said this. I love this quote. He said, in all you're getting, get unction or get out of the pulpit. Isn't that true? I would tell young pastors that. In other words, in everything you're doing, get the fire of the Holy Spirit or get out of the pulpit. Because you're a spokesperson for God and his word filled with the spirit of God. You don't have that. What are you doing? Go be a car salesman. I prayed all day to be nice today, just, but God wants us to speak boldly. Doesn't he? I love what else Leonard Ravenhill did. You got to read this guy's books. He was at a big church. I'm probably in the seventies, 1970. Well, big church was like 50 deacons, right? Phil, you remember this? Can I send it to you? And he said, and two deacons were at the prayer meeting. And he said fire all, fire the other 48. Cause you see the spiritual condition. If those serving can't even make prayer meetings, we've lost our temperature for God, the hot and the cold, we become lukewarm. But for months, I've been wanting to have an all night prayer meeting, but I'll be disappointed because I doubt anyone will come. Maybe two, maybe three. Out of what? We're going to have 800 here this morning at services. And you tell me God's real in your life. You fear him. You're filled with the spirit. God have mercy on our souls. This is not church. You think church is coming to hear a few songs, hear a message and go fill your stomach. Church is encounter God. To remember what Christ has done to come in a thankful broken spirit and come here much different than when you arrived. But then if there is a Trump victory, it could be a season of mercy on the church. But again, I'm careful here because I mean, I'm as patriotic as they come. I could recite the country boys can survive song and love America, hunting, fishing, love our military, but that can't oversee my love for God or outweigh my love for God. But there's something in our nation that's been bothering me. It's like, you can't be a proud American anymore. We can't be proud of what God has done. Are you kidding me? Israel was very proud of Israel, of what God has done to Israel. See, it's okay to be a proud American, not proud in the sense of, oh, and you elevate a nation over Christ. You don't drape the cross with the flag, but you say, God, thank you for pulling us out of the mire and clay. Thank you for blessing our homes and our children. Could we not be a blessing back to you and being proud of what God has done? Proud that the constitution and that the framers framed the constitution with God's word. And I actually just came across, this was the first prayer in Congress. You can't see it. It's just a sketch of these men on their face, on the chairs and lists of different men and where they were. And they actually took it to prayer to God in Congress. So people say the church should be quiet. It makes no sense to me. Makes zero sense. Because the church should infiltrate all areas of life. God built a powerful nation from the conception. Yes, many, many mistakes, but also he raises up a remnant. And the media won't tell you all that, will they? They'll just tell you about slavery. Did you know that there were many, many founding fathers who abhorred the practice of slavery and tried to stop it? Did you know that? Well, you won't hear that unless in the media. 26, I think of the 56 signers of the declaration of the independence were ministers of the gospel. Oh, Yale, Harvard University all started to preach the gospel. What would they say today? What would Harvard say today about God's word? The rules of Harvard said, let every student be plainly instructed and earnestly pressed to consider well the main end of his life, which is to know God and Christ Jesus and to lay Christ at the bottom as the only foundation of all sound knowledge and learning. Harvard University. See, that's why we get fired up. We're not trying to push this on you. We're trying to hold the line. Atheists say that 10 commandment monuments offends me in the courthouse, remove it. Well, removing it offends me. So where are we going to stop listening? Who's offended and say, let God's word be who it is. Let God's word be high and exalted. It's okay to acknowledge God. Shane, you must've not read that Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion nor prohibit the free exercise thereof. The establishment clause. Yeah, we're not establishing a national religion. We're acknowledging the sovereign hand of God that's been upon our nation. We've got to get, what do you think the heart of God is? No, grow distant from me? Remove me from your school? Why are our schools, they look like battlegrounds. Policemen at the schools? When I was growing up. See, we've drifted and we're contending. But a Trump victory will not come without a heavy price. There'll be massive civil unrest and massive deception. Anybody right now having a hard time on getting your true information? Or just me? This side, nobody over here? I'm gonna go on this side. You know who to believe, right? And there'll be even more massive deception. And that's why you've got to be anchored in God's word. And I tell people all the time, stop watching all these conspiracy theories and YouTube videos, but get anchored in God's word. Yes, it's okay to know some things that are going on, but your anchor, your stability needs to be in God's word. But I believe it'll also divide the church. Christians will be forced to make a decision. Will they stay silent about civil unrest and back it? Or will they have more in common with Antifa than God's agenda? Will they articulate biblical views of racial unity under which we can all unite or gravitate towards ungodly organizations? Even the Christian, the church is being divided right now in many areas. But be encouraged, either scenario, either scenario, it will, I believe, spark the fuel for revival. And there'll be a cry that goes out, will thou not revive us again that your people may rejoice in you? Throughout the whole Bible, there was always a cry. A cry would go out, oh God, revive your people. Or oh God, pour water on a dry and barren land. Or oh God, we are desperate for you. We cry out to you. We want you to move in our lives. And here's the biggie, I'm willing to do whatever it takes to meet you, to encounter you, to have intimacy with you. Lord, show me I am your servant until the day I die. I don't know about you, but I'm praying and fasting this week. Anybody else? Uh-oh, I'm gonna have to give you one more opportunity. I'll take the word fasting out. Anybody else praying this week? Yes, I'm not even gonna look. Everybody, a lot of hands. Because, and people say this isn't important. It's very important, because you're talking about protecting innocent life. You're talking about honoring God's word or mocking God's word. You're talking about putting people in positions of leadership with integrity and responsibility. I think the president appoints like 3,000 different appointments throughout the United States in the course of their, so it's very important. I don't know how the church can be separate from this. Either scenario though is going to spark, I believe must spark a revival, some type of a wake of the great reset, because many people come to church asleep. They come maybe twice a month if they feel like it. Where's the hunger for God? Where's the hunger for God? When people use the all night prayer meetings or they would want to come to church or they couldn't wait to get to church, now they'll fit church in if it doesn't ruin their schedule. And there's a lack of hunger for God. Why? Because of complacency. Myself included. All of us can fall into that mode of complacency. Eat too much, drink too much, make too much money, and everything's comfortable right now, but God began to pull that rug from you. I bet you'll be in church. And the cry goes out just like in the Old Testament time, will thou not revive us again? God, will thou not revive us again that your people may rejoice in you? God works through his church. You want to change this nation? You want to change this state? God works through his church. That's why there needs to be a massive reset. Spiritual power. Do you agree we're lacking spiritual power? I mean, you can find clips where there's the underground church in China or in the Middle East. We sponsor someone there in the Muslim territory. When you talk to them, it's like the book of Acts. You know, blind eyes are opening. Healing takes place. They might even pray for somebody who recently died, a little child, and raised from the... Do you know Jesus said that? Well, either the Bible's right or it's wrong. He who believes on me, speak in other tongues, raise the dead, heal the sick. That's what the Bible said. The problem is, it's not the Bible, it's our intimacy with God. More intimacy, more power. More humility, more power. Spiritual power flows from spiritual purity. And there used to be something about holiness and God's word being sacred. They were striving for holiness and come out from among them and be separate. There's a desire to want to... That's why, I mean, it's kind of funny, but it's kind of not. When I mentioned fasting, no hand goes up. Why? Because it starts... Can you really not miss a couple meals? Is King's stomach that much of a dominant force in your life? Because that's what the Bible talks about. In prayers, in fasting, Paul said, Ezra in fasting, Nehemiah in fasting, Psalms, David fasted, Esther fasted. If I perish, I perish, for we've been called for such a time as this. And you starve King's stomach and you begin to focus on King Jesus. The early church all did it. Throughout New Testament history, throughout early church history. It's a way of starving the flesh, the appetites of the flesh to be filled with God. You know this, you see it on a practical level. How good do you feel after a big Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner? You feel like praying? No. I feel like watching a Netflix series and sitting on the couch. See, it affects you spiritually. Hunger, good thing. Food, good thing. But when it becomes to rule and dominate your life, and there used to be all night prayer meetings and fasting and holiness. And if that sounds boring to you, then I got to really wonder, are you filled with God's spirit? Because when you're mightily filled with God's spirit, the things of God are not boring. There's a hunger for them. You might not be there, but there's a hunger for them. There's a desire for them. You want more of God. There's a spiritual hunger. There's a, and the sacredness. Did you know that the love for God is not the beginning of all knowledge and wisdom? The fear of God. When was the last time you heard him? Can you imagine next week, I'm talking about the fear of God. Half the audience out there would not be listening. The fear of God. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. The fear of God is changes. It's how you live. When I fear God, I fear how I live. I feel reverence and respect for him. We take his value, we value his word. We don't mock his word. We take things seriously. We walk into the house of God with passion and purity, and on fire for God, expecting God to move. And the church needs a reset. Have you heard of the church of Laodicea? In the book of Revelation, that's where I believe we find ourselves today. Jesus said, I know your works. Just think if he would speak to us today. Shane, I know your works. Oh, thank you. Or you, I know your works. I know what you're doing for God, but you are neither cold nor hot. So then, because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of my mouth. He goes on to say, do you not know that you're wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked? See, Jesus wasn't very seeker-sensitive. He was sensitive to God's word. He told them the truth. And he warns his church. He says, I know what you do. I see you do things, but you're not hot. You're cold, obviously. When we could talk about the history of the Laodicean church and the water springs and hot water, the bottom line is, both appear to be pretty good. Or depending on your view, at least he knows where you stand. But if you're lukewarm, what is lukewarm? Have you had lukewarm coffee, lukewarm tea, lukewarm anything you wanna put back in the microwave? Do something for me, Christ says. Church, get back on your face and begin to pray again and begin to seek me with all of your heart. Humble yourself, that's what he says. Return to your first love. Bring repentance back into your life and begin to seek me again with all of your heart and all of your strength. In this church, a many more conviction was replaced with complacency. Now, the reason I'm being a little forthright and a little strong is to wake us up. We need that, we need to. I love when people go home and say, I don't like what you said, but I went home and I thought about it. I went home and I thought about it. You gotta wake them up, get them up. You ever get your teenagers up out of bed by throwing some water on them? Right, that'll do it a lot quicker. You got teenagers sleeping, hey, get up pretty soon. Okay, get up pretty soon. But that's what many pastors do when they're preaching. Low volume, nice, meek, mild, it's okay, it's okay. There's no stirring, there's no conviction. The pornography industry is making billions. The addiction rate is skyrocketing on porn, alcoholism, opiates, families are falling apart. Men are walking away from their God-given responsibility to lead their families in the fear and admonition of the Lord. Fathers, husbands, get on your face before God. And if you need to turn the TV off, put that darn thing in the garage and become filled with the fire of God again. Listen, to experience God, you've gotta get rid of the deeds of the flesh. You've gotta seek him. God wants to know how bad do you want it? How bad do you want a relationship with me? Do you want it bad enough to remove that thing that is pulling you down and destroying you? How long are you gonna keep playing games, church? That's the call to the lukewarm church. Show me a verse where Paul said, "'Coddle sin, play with it.'" He said, "'Crucify it.'" Don't give the devil a foothold. Remember, somebody goes to slam the door, you put your foot there, it's a little crack. Many people give the devil a foothold to get into their homes and into their marriages. And the lukewarm church disdains the heat of conviction. They will label bold preaching as legalistic, rigid, and arrogant. Have you heard that before? I'm called all three of those names in one week. So rigid and arrogant, legalistic. Oh, you mean just following God's word? That's legalistic? Let me tell you what legalism means so you know. Legalism means, it'd be like if I'm going, listen, you better not do this, and you better not do that, and you better not go to the movies. And pastors, you only have to have suit and ties on. If you go to the movies, you're bad, and God doesn't love you. You better follow all these rules. And I put all these rules on you. That's legalism. That's not good. That's Jesus plus this. But the love of God's word says, if you want to be holy and set apart for God, be careful what you watch. Be careful what you view. If you want that relationship with God to be deep and intimate, make some choices. Make some definitely, some different choices. Begin to feed your mind on things that honor God. You'll be filled with the spirit of God. See that one's out of love, one's out of anger and arrogance. But I'm telling you the same thing. God's word. One from a heart that loves people, the other from a heart that's angry. Isn't that why a lot of kids reject God's word later on in life? We try to make it about following rules at our house. We try to make it about a relationship. Listen, this is what's going to happen if you break that rule. They are guardrails. Anybody take that heel out of here? Going home over 60th Street. Aren't you glad those guardrails are there? Could you imagine if it just went, oh wow, why are they there? Now I can't have fun. Now I can't go rent a Corvette and have fun. Look, they're trying to ruin my fun. That's what people think about God's word. It's not trying to prevent you from having fun. It's guardrails through the canyons of life. And getting back to that point of realizing that. The Laodiceans, like many of us, they thought they were in the center of God's will. Think about this church. They were large, they were wealthy, they were involved in the community. Isn't that most churches in America? I mean, a lot of them. You know, they're doing good and they're wealthy and we're working in the community, but Jesus said, you are wretched, you are poor, you are blind. What does he mean? Well, wretched is your condition. You're miserable, you're poor spiritually, you're blind, you're spiritually blind and you're naked. So the call goes out to us as it went out to that church, humble yourself under the mighty hand of God. Who are you trusting? And let me tell you right now, many are counting on the Supreme Court or pants or politicians this week. Let me tell you, you better count on God Almighty. He is the only source of strength. Christian, put on the full armor of God. What is that? Put on the breastplate of righteousness and the shield and the belt of truth and put on the armor of God that you may be able to go out and do battle because that's what's coming either way. Either way, everything's all, Trump wins again, we'll be good. No, it's going to be all hell is going to break loose. You think Antifa is just going to be just go back to work? You think George Soros is just going to be quiet funding the media? 90% of all the media you listen to is owned by six corporations. You don't think they spin stuff? It's actually lying. They lie, they're deceitful. Blessed is the man, Psalm says, who walk if not in the counsel of the ungodly. Where are you getting your information from? Blessed is the man who walk if not in the counsel of the ungodly nor stands in the path of sinners nor sits in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in CNN. His delight is in the law of the Lord and in it he doth meditate day and night. As a result, he'll be like a tree planted by living waters who will bear its fruit in season. Don't give up. I don't know where God has you this morning. Don't give up. I don't see any fruit. Don't give up. God could be breaking you down in order to build you up. You don't see the tree growing, but you see the seed is working underneath the soil. Listen to the right information. I'll close with this verse, Matthew 6, 25. Jesus said, therefore, I tell you, do not be anxious. Who needs that this morning? Oh, wow, that's more than I thought. Balke, you okay up there? There's so many anxious people. Do not be anxious. Listen, I can get anxious. Can't we all? And it's interesting when he talks about this, he also talks about if God cares for the sparrows. I watched a sparrow this week. It's interesting. I mean, see, they have to go out and do something, right? They can't just sit there. The babies can. The babies can sit there and the mom feeds them. But the sparrow has to get out and do a little work. She has to go look for the worms or whatever it's there. So you have to do something. God can't move a vessel that's sitting. Nope, it's not going. Put the thing in drive and start walking in faith and serving God and see where he directs you. But do not be anxious about your life. Let me look at this word and I'll close with this, anxious. Do you know what that means? It means to draw in opposite directions, to divide into parts. Like I said, the wrong person in office, both pastors are in the crosshairs. We're going down first. They're going after the voice that's speaking the truth. The voice that's counter, whether it's vaccines, whether it's the global reset, whether it's speaking the truth about things, they're gonna go after those. What are we leaving for our kids? Anybody thought about that? What are my kids gonna do? And see, anxiety can come in into the heart that's not steadfast on God. Listen, if God's taking care of you, he can take care of your kids. As a matter of fact, did you know God doesn't have grandkids? So your children are children of God. Trust in him, trust in him to see them through. Therefore, do not worry about, do not be anxious about your life, what you eat or drink or your body or what you'll put on, basically everything we're worried about, right? 401ks, retirement, easy living. Now, I think good living can be a blessing of God. I'm not against that. It's not what you own, it's what owns you. Where's the heart at? But it's interesting here, this word anxiety. Do not be anxious tells me I can be anxious or I will be anxious. So it means this, to draw in opposite directions, divided into parts or to go to pieces. So you have this, do not be anxious, which means going in different directions. Have you ever been that unstable man? You're listening to all this on the news and what's gonna happen? But I went to church and now, oh, I feel better today. And then on Monday, here I go again, and I'm anxious because I'm double-minded in my thinking. I'm not grounded in God on a daily basis. I'm letting my mind go where it shouldn't. And Paul says, take your thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ, why? Because we wrestle not against flesh and blood. Your battle is not out there, your battle is spiritual. We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, but against powers, against the rulers of darkness. And therefore, take every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. You have to take your thoughts captive. And even get to a point where you say, I might be martyred for my faith. I might go to jail for my faith. But my faith is in God. This life is but a breath compared to eternity. And you get your mind focused on the right things. Basically, you have to starve your fears, amen? You have to starve your fears and there can be no divided loyalty. There's no serving of two masters. There's no wavering of two opinions. If God be God, follow him. That's what Elisha said on Mount Carmel. He told the people, how long will you waver between God and Baal? They're worshiping Baal, but then they're worshiping God. He said, how long are you going to try to go back and forth? If God be God, worship him. Like Joshua said, as for me and my house, we will serve God. I will walk within my house with a perfect heart and set nothing wicked before my eyes. So let me end with this. Jesus must be your source of hope. Jesus must be your source of hope. I don't know where you're at this morning or you're listening later, but he's got to be your source of hope. That's the only sure foundation. That's the only anchor. That's the only thing that will never fail you. There's a song, hope has a name. It says, there is a song, I know it well. A melody that never failed. On mountains high and valleys low, my soul will rest, my confidence in you alone. So if you're a Christian this morning, I want to encourage you in two areas. Get back on track with putting God first. Make him the priority. Get back in his word. Join us on Sundays as we go through the Bible. Be at the prayer meetings. We have 6 a.m. worship every Sunday morning. Every Sunday morning. And that's one way to gauge how hungry you are spiritually. If that's boring to you, then that might be a problem. And sometimes you have to fight the flesh. You have to say, I'm going to be there, God. I don't care if I'm tired, I'm putting you first. And you begin to seek God like never before and you begin to be filled with the spirit. And then there could be those listening now or here that you don't have that peace. You're worried. You're worried how things could go down. Or you're worried about your future. Let me tell you, the Bible's clear. If you repent and believe that Jesus is Lord and Savior of your life, you will be saved. Look at the urgency in Paul. Oh, King Agrippa, I would be to God that you would take this truth. Paul would go everywhere. Oh, would be to God. Make the decision. Turn your life over to him. Jesus came and he said, go, preach repentance. Warn them from the wrath that is to come. Call them to me. In the book of Hebrews, if you hear his voice, harden not your heart. And again, if you hear his voice, harden not your heart. So I've come here this morning to tell you, some of you need to soften your heart. Even if you're a Christian, you become cold and callous and legal. You couldn't get to a prayer meeting if you were paid $1,000. You've drifted so far from God that you come as if you're doing him a favor. And he says, I want your heart. I want all of you. That's where I'm going to move in your home. That's where I'm going to restore your marriage. That's when I'm going to bring your prodigal sons home. When you humble yourself before me, it's that easy to say, okay, God, you're God, I'm not. I acknowledge my sin before you. That's what, you heard the word repentance a lot. What it means is this. I'm walking this way. I turn from my sin and now what? I believe that you died on the cross for my sin to cover me. You are my Lord and my Savior. I bow my knee to you. And that's where peace comes from. The hope that passes all understanding, the peace that passes all understanding comes from that relationship. And I want to encourage you kids, if you're here, young adults, you can't follow your parents' coattails. You don't, your mom and dad aren't standing by you in heaven. You one day will face almighty God. And trust me, he's not going to say, show me all your good works. Do you know my son? Did Jesus Christ cover your sins? Well done, thou good and faithful servant. But you know what the other coin of that is? Well done, thou good and faithful servant. Or he'll say, depart from me, I don't know you. There's no middle ground. There's no middle ground. Depart from me, I don't know you. But I did all these things. I went to church. I was raised in America. I own a Bible. I went to Christian school. My parents, let me tell you, I don't know you. I don't have a relationship with you. You've never repented and believed in the only name that saves. That's quite sobering. It's a wake up call that we need. Listen, this isn't, we're not playing games here, guys. This is eternity. We're talking about the souls of people.