Sunday Morning Worship & Word | April 10 , 2022 | Pastor Nate Whitley “I’m All In”
by Nathan Whitley
April 10, 2022 · First Apostolic Church of Knoxville (Knoxville, TN)
Kind: sermon
Scripture: Ezekiel 14:12-20, Job 13:15

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/nathan-whitley--sunday-morning-worship-word-april-10-2022
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

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you can start making your way back to your seats and just keep this great spirit of worship here in the house today [Music] and a wonderful spirit that the lord has graced us with this morning aren't you glad to be in the house of the lord here today aren't you glad to be with god's people [Applause] this is an exciting day we're excited about what the lord is going to do today but today at the conclusion of our service will be our summit group fair and i'll give you more information about that here towards the end but it's a great opportunity for us to reach people to connect with others and we're really excited about that if you probably already had gone through that part of the lobby and seen some of the great groups that are available this summer for our summit group fair and so we're excited about that don't forget next sunday resurrection sunday is anybody excited about easter sunday here at first apostolic church amen we're gonna have a great time invite someone adultish in project 180 went to west town mall yesterday and they invited hundreds of people to be here for easter sunday can we give all of our adult-ish and project 180 students and leaders amen there are plenty of cards still available out in the lobby actually they're right out this this door here uh today but grab some of those little beautiful circle cards that uh pastor anthony has designed and put together so grab those invite somebody i maybe you feel you feel just a little bit bashful to invite somebody to church we'll invite somebody that you know send somebody a text message that you haven't seen in a while a family member a co-worker send somebody a message on facebook or instagram inviting them uh to the house of the lord it's just that easy to do that you don't necessarily have to uh find a stranger to invite but just invite somebody that you know if you just invite one person that they come we'll fill this sanctuary but look around today look around this crowd that's here today i'm thankful that we've got a house full today and worship of the lord i'm excited about that i'm just anticipating a great time next sunday for resurrection sunday ezekiel chapter number 14. ezekiel chapter number 14. we're going to begin reading at verse number 12. and i'll try to be very cognizant of time and what we're going to try to do at the conclusion of today's service and we're going to have a great time in the lord ezekiel chapter number 14 beginning at verse number 12. the word of the lord came again to me saying son of man when the land sinneth against me by trespassing grievously then will i stretch out my hand upon it and will break the staff of the bread thereof and we'll send famine upon it and we'll cut off man and beast from it look at verse 14 though these three men noah daniel and job were in it some would say in it they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness saith the lord if i cause noise and beast to pass through the land and they spoil it so that it be desolate that no man may pass through because of the beasts though these three men were in it some would say in it as i live saith the lord god they shall deliver their sons nor daughters they only shall be delivered but the land shall be desolate or if i bring a sword upon the land and say sword go through the land so that i cut off man and beast from it though these three men were in it some would say in it as i live saith the lord god they shall deliver deliver neither their sons nor daughters but they only shall be delivered of themselves or if i send pestilence into the land and pour out my fury upon it in blood to cut off from it man and beast though noah daniel and job we're in it someone say in it as i live saith the lord god they shall deliver deliver neither son or daughter they shall but deliver their own souls by their righteousness this morning i want to preach to you with your help and the help of the holy ghost all in all in someone say all in let's pray lord we want to be all in today lord i pray that there would be a great spirit of inspiration and encouragement refreshing from your word god and i pray that you would just help me to say the things that you'd have me to say and help me to say it with clarity and understanding but i pray that you would challenge someone to go all in for you today and i pray here that we would move towards you in greater commitment and devotion to you and to your mission in jesus name we pray and everybody said amen clap your hands one more time unto the lord today [Applause] all in all in there's nobody in that right now as you've seen a second ago so don't be scared all in god's judgment upon israel and judah was at its peak during ezekiel's ministry israel had been taken into captivity by the assyrians while babylon took judah into captivity all of israel's rebellion unfaithfulness and unwillingness led to god's judgment upon them the unfaithfulness had been their sinful issue for hundreds of years god had sent prophets to warn them yet they would not listen and so to put our text into context this morning ezekiel was a prophet to judah while they were in captivity in babylon ezekiel's prophetic messages were vivid and visually and verbally just just absolutely vivid in this text some of judah's elders came to ezekiel in the midst of their exchange the lord gives ezekiel a message for those elders while these elders had set up idols in their hearts god urged them to repent of their idolatry and unfaithfulness god through ezekiel contrasts all of israel's unfaithfulness with three men noah daniel and job and he says multiple times if these men were in it only they would be saved in other words these three men were unlike all of the others of israel they were faithful they were obedient all three men endured in other words they were all in and i want to encourage somebody today to be all in this is no time to be waffling wavering or waving goodbye it's time to be fully committed to christ and his church it's time to be all in on your purpose and calling it's time to be all in on the ministry and the mission of reaching people it's time to be all in i wonder if somebody would say all in today come on it's time for us to be all in all in well why did god choose noah daniel and job when he could have chosen so many other men and women of faith let's start here number one all three were faithful noah noah was a man who walked with god despite his environment and culture the world was full of wickedness and evil god was ready to destroy all of the world but noah was a just man perfect in his generation and walked hand in hand with god furthermore the bible says that noah found grace in the eyes of the lord noah didn't allow his culture to dictate his walk with god or his lifestyle this type of faithfulness to live out your convictions is commendable the world is not our measurement for faithfulness the world is not our measurement for faithfulness or righteousness as the world gets more and more vile we should attempt to increase our level of faithfulness and consecration this isn't a time to sit back and just hope the lord comes back instead we should seek to increase our level of commitment and reach the world are you hearing me today it's not time to throw in the towel it's time to increase our faithfulness if you believe that someone say amen [Music] noah daniel and job daniel was faithful despite god's people being unfaithful so noah is faithful in the midst of a wicked and evil generation but daniel was faithful despite god's people being unfaithful israel and judah were god's covenant people yet they were as apathetic and indifferent as the heathen nations around them daniel was just a young man while exiled in babylon he didn't blend in with the world around him in babylon no especially when it was convenient to do so he was in he was in the midst of the lap of luxury partaking of the best schools and danies of babylon yet he remained faithful to god when it became inconvenience excuse me when it became inconvenient daniel did it anyway can i tell you this and you not hate me covenant people can be unfaithful yeah noah lived in a world of heathens idolatry wickedness but daniel lived in a day when god's people were unfaithful a church culture can grow cold and indifferent i remember when some of y'all were on fire fight on fire right in march 2020 the world's shutting down let's get right now we're two years removed from that it's easy to get back and get back to just going through the motions it's easy to partake of a time of ease and blessing to get to all of a sudden make church all about you and your preferences when you forget about the difficult times and the times when you are inflamed with passion and zeal for living for god we need some daniels today we need some daniels who don't just stand out from the heathens but we also need some daniels who will stand out from the cold the indifferent and the apathetic we need some daniels in the church to say there might be other people who are drawing cold and lukewarm but not for me as for me and my house [Music] i'm going all in i'm going all in [Applause] going all in job was faithful despite his circumstances to make a long story short job was a righteous and just man like noah and daniel satan believed job's faithfulness was only due to god's blessings and provision and if god took those things away job wouldn't serve the lord but oh was satan wrong oh no job was not like everybody else he was not he was not serving god just for the blessings he was serving god because he was god and he's worthy of our faithfulness job would say though he slay me yet i will trust in him are you hearing me come on are you serving god just for his blessings or are you serving god because he's worthy of your faithfulness and your devotion i'm wondering there's somebody who's all in not on the blessing but they're all in because god is good all the time he's good when the world is evil he's good when the church is growing cold and he's good even though i'm suffering i'm gonna be all in oh hallelujah [Applause] don't let your personal suffering keep you from faithfully serving god just because everybody else isn't doing it doesn't mean that you can't it's time for you to be all in you got to make up your mind as for me and if my house doesn't want to i'm going to serve the lord it's not dependent upon them it's not dependent upon you it's for me [Music] it's not sometimes we get that backwards i feel the holy ghost right now after my house and me and so when your house doesn't serve the lord it's not going well in your house you say well but it starts with me it does not start with your husband it doesn't start with your kids it doesn't start with your grandma it doesn't start with your pastor as for me it begins with me i'm going all in i'm putting everything i'm pushing it off i'm in you can sit around if you want to you can backslide if you want to you can get cold if you want to but as for me i'm going all in today the circumstance might not be right the culture might not be right the government might not be right but as for me i'm going on i'm in it if you believe that you should clap your hands i'm going to preach myself hoarse this morning but i wonder there's somebody who's going to be all in [Applause] when you're church that's all in on faithfulness faithful to god oh yeah i'm faithful to god behind my tv screen or my computer screen you can make it to walmart you can make it to west town mall and you're telling me you can't come to the house of the lord you're not all in that's right [Applause] faithful to the house of the lord when these doors are open you should be here when there's something going on you should be here because that's a mindset that says i'm all in whether it's my day or not my day whether it's going my way or not going my way i'm going to be [Applause] all in i'm all in on truth i'm all in on doctrine i'm all in on holiness i'm all in on worship i'm holding on giving i'm all in are you are you in are you in are you in if they were in it are you in it what i want to be all in someone say amen yeah i feel him now i feel him now all right here we go all three were faithful that all three were obedient noah told god told noah to build an ark for the saving of his house every detail was given to noah noah didn't argue or debate god about the need for an ark or question god about the type of wood that was needed for the ark he didn't ask god are you sure about the size are you sure about the dimensions noah listened and obeyed even if it didn't make sense noah didn't complain or doubt he didn't try to cut corners or do things according to his own will instead noah was all in let me tell you something there will always be those who argue with god's word there will always be people who attempt to cut corners find loopholes and talk themselves out of doing what god has said but there needs to be a people who stand up while others shrink back there needs to be some believers who don't have to question god's word or give themself over to their doubts you need to be all in on god's word obedience is always in season but it might just be out of style daniel while babylon he's all alone no parents are there listen to me young people daniel's a young man about 17 years old when he's taken into exile into babylon he's there without his parents there's no prophet in sight furthermore there's no priest and there's no temple if anyone could have slipped into compromising his beliefs it could have been daniel no one would have known otherwise but that wasn't the case daniel obeyed god even when his peers and superiors weren't around who could have blamed daniel to give in to the crowd and the rest of israel and their unfaithfulness and disobedience but daniel knew that it was israel's disobedience that got them exiled from their homeland in the first place beloved hear me today there will always be people in the church who don't do everything according to god's word and it's not your place to put your nose up and say well lisa i'm doing it all there will jesus said this there will be some 30 fold some 60-fold and some 100-fold but there but just because there are 30 does not mean you can't give a hundred all right come on just because they're at sixty doesn't give you the right to be at thirty what you need to do is say i'm gonna be all in they can do that they can live that way that's not my measurement that's not my yardstick i'm going to be all in i'm going to give it all that i've got well i ain't going to do that if they're not going to do that is it in god's word and are you are you listen they're not going to be the one who answers for you [Applause] you in there they're not going to be the guy's not going to say now hey since uh since they were at 60 fold and you know what you know what you you should have been at 60 fold too that's not what he's going to say he's going to pull up your name he's going to pull up your good works he's going to look at your deeds and now you can't give him an excuse and say well sister so and so did this and brother so-and-so did that and they're up there and they're back there what are you doing oh jesus it doesn't their their lack of obedience doesn't mean you don't have to obey that's not the measurement or the yardstick to be used if no one is even around daniel there might not be a prophet or a priest around but you know what daniel said i don't care if they tell me not to pray i'm praying i don't care what kind of meat they put in front of me i'm not eating it you know why i've got a conviction to be all in [Music] i don't need somebody else around to live right if god said it i'm going to do it if you believe that why don't you clap your head oh lord [Applause] how about job childless sore covered job could have thrown his obedience to the wind his wife wanted him to curse god and die his friends wanted him to admit that he was just a secret sinner who was doomed to suffer for his sins but job didn't let that keep him from obeying god job knew those sacrifices that righteous living and that obedience didn't cause his plight rather he knew all of that was necessary whether it was a good day or a bad day or if it was like vacation or not vacation [Music] y'all still there yeah don't don't invite me to a rock concert and stone me now obedience is obedience whether you're on vacation or not [Applause] listen calm down oh yeah if it's a good day or bad day this is not going my way he's not answering my prayer righteous living is always going to be getting god's attention well i didn't feel nothing sunday so i'm just not going to live that way tomorrow or this when you see me all of a sudden out oh pastor oh listen you know i'm not your judge and i'm not your priest i'm your pastor and i'm going to tell you what the word of god says and whether you want to do it or not is up to you but as for me i'm going to be all in i've decided i'm going to be are you hearing me now i'm going to be separate if you want to or not i'm not going to change this because you don't want to i'm still going to live this way and obey this way whether you're around or not [Music] all in all some of y'all might be all out right now all in on wanting to drag me out of here by my caller how about this all three men endured all three men endured noah built the ark without a hint of a raindrop or a cloud in the sky and you know how long he did it a hundred years a hundred years you know how many days that is 43 800 days he built an ark can i tell you something that's called endurance it's going to take time if you're going to build anything it's going to take time faithfulness and obedience is a lifetime achievement an ark isn't built in a day and neither is a life of faith all right amen a disciple isn't built in a day let me just stop and say this let me bookmark this for a second somebody gets the holy ghost somebody gets baptized i'm not expecting them to be a hundred year old saint the next day [Applause] and you shouldn't either we used to sing a song he's still working on me i'm afraid we've changed our tune he's still working on them i'm so glad he's perfected me i've been around since noah was here and i'm not changing why isn't he working on them yeah no you know what jesus said this he said why why do you look at that piece of dust in their eye when you've got a gigantic beam in your own oh oh oh endurance endurance but when i got the holy ghost i got the real thing is there a fake holy ghost or is that instead an environment that you are you are presenting people and allowing people to fail instead of saying i'm so glad you got the holy ghost let me help you grow let me help you mature let me show you the way i'm not here to point my finger at you i'm here to offer you a hand i'm being all in it takes a lifetime to build a ministry it takes a lifetime this church was not built built yesterday 65 years a family isn't built in a day a legacy isn't built in a day it's showing up day in and day out it's putting in a time whether it's 43 days or 43 000 days i'm going to endure [Applause] how about daniel he endured exile captivity being away from the familiarity of family and home he endured wars and rumors of wars he endured false accusations and lion's dens he's seen kings rise and fall he's seen visions and dreams that wouldn't come to pass in his lifetime in other words daniel endured the power of uncertainty the only thing what that was certain was daniel's god when you know that god is in control of all things it doesn't matter what the world does or what the world goes through i'm going to endure how about job the endurance of job can be written about for a lifetime some people are scared of the book of revelation i'm not scared of revelation i'm scared of job oh man revelation i i got it i get it that doesn't scare me you know why because god reigns job scares me losing your kids suffering in your health your friends calling you a sinner that scares me read job it is not an easy read but job was a man of endurance it might have looked like he was never going to endure his trial it seemed as if he lost everything never to recover suffering well means enduring well and that's what job did he endured and was given a double portion of all that he had lost previously that doesn't mean the scars of suffering would disappear instead it would just be a testimony that god had kept him i want to be all in i want to be faithful i want to be obedient and i want to endure he probably what what in the world is this up here what is this up here in the early 1900s musicians you start making your way in the early 1900s there was a group of missionaries when they were about to embark on a mission to a foreign land they wouldn't pack a suitcase instead they took a coffin they packed their belongings in the coffin they would get in those boats and travel to foreign lands not knowing what was waiting on them but they knew if i die i die but i can't stay here and not make a difference i'm going to be all in one man was on a boat he brought nothing with him at all he was going to a dangerous part of africa and one of the sailors asked him said good sir where are you going and he told him he said i'm afraid my friend that you might just die when you get over there that's a wild people over there and that missionary said brother i die before i got on the boat there was another man a missionary by the time by the name of peter milner he was going to be a missionary to the new hebrides islands in the south pacific off of australia's coast every other missionary listen to me now that attempted sharing jesus with his group had been killed milne had no guarantee that that would also not be his fate still [Music] he packed his coffin because he was all in he went with his coffin and spent more than 50 years with these tribesmens and cannibals and he taught the gospel he died of natural causes the tribe buried him in a grave noted this on his tombstone and hear me when he came there was no light when he left there was no darkness god have mercy [Music] when he came there was no light but when he left there was no darkness can i tell you we've got to be all in right now no one ever made a difference by giving only 50 of their time and their efforts no one ever changed the world with an apathetic attitude no one ever made a lasting change by being unfaithful no one made a difference by being disobedient and no one ever changed the world by being a quitter it's time for us to be all in stand with me stand with me i've got a great concern right now and listen to me just wait wait just one second nathan just wait one second i got a concern that there are too many people in this place who think that god's will for you is to only show up three times a week and sit here for 90 minutes each time that's all i got to do that's all i got to do no no no god didn't send christ and die on a cross for you to sit in a pew just three times a week that's not the only thing we're called to do go ye out into the world and preach the gospel well that's just for preachers no no no go and make you disciples of all men it's not ty listen we can't hear me now we can't be the hands and the feet of christ if we're sitting on our rear ends three times a week that's right that's right that's right i'm going to say it again because you didn't hear me we can't be the feet in the hands of christ by sitting on our rear end just three times a week in a pew i believe in coming to church but that's not what he saved you to do this is a place where we are come to be commissioned to go out and reach the world we're not coming here to be passive consumers we're in here to come and get our directions to go and make a difference in our world it's time for us to be all in being all in is about giving your everything to jesus christ it's packing your coffin and heading towards the mission it's packing your coughing and setting sail towards the dangerous terrain of faith you can be all in when the world around you is wicked and evil you can be all in when the church world is becoming more carnal and apathetic you can be all in when life isn't going your way and you can be all in when you feel like being all out you can be all in when you feel like being all out but you need to make up your mind today [Music] i'm packing my coffin i'm packing my coffin i'm not gonna pack it with mercedes and fishing rods and and clothes and purses no no no i'm packing this with me and i'm going and i'm gonna be all in i hope i've challenged somebody today you know what preaching is preaching is comfortingly afflicted and afflicting the comforted i hope somebody's been comforted today but i really hope somebody's been afflicted you know what and i'm just going to be a pastor and you can just go ahead and drag me on out of here by my my my caller today no one ever made a difference by showing up late for church that's right these folks those folks those folks have been here since 8 15 this morning this does not happen we don't i'm just go ahead and preach you don't have to like it you don't have to like me because i at this point in my life i'm all in on you not caring amen amen we don't pick these songs today [Music] we pick these songs tuesday we have been preparing and picking these people and planning this stuff out since tuesday we didn't show up at 10 o'clock today and just throw this together and you have no right to walk in here at 10 05 or 10 15 and complain about the sound complain about the songs complain about the air complain about the preaching i'm all in on that i've got sunday school teachers who've been praying studying and writing their sermons all week you better get your kids down there i'm all in i'm all in i'm all him and you can say well you're a pastor all you do must be nice to work one day a week i work seven days a week thank you very much i don't have a day off i'm not complaining about that but i am complaining about some people complaining because now i know what that means that means you're not all in the only thing that you're all in on is complaining you don't have if you don't listen i'm sorry pastor and bishop you can fire me tomorrow but listen if you have no right to complain if you have if you don't have skin in the game if you're not serving in sunday school if you're not serving in production if you're not serving in music if you're not serving and teaching and preaching bible studies if you're not serving in project 180 if you're not serving any of these things i don't want to hear one more complaint from you because there's some people who are all in and when you complain about that you're attacking me and you're attacking them it's time for us to be all in [Music] i'm listen god's not going to come back for a complaining church he's not going to come back for a church that's critical and cynical and hateful and divided well they're doing that and they're doing that what are you doing it's time to be all in amen amen i wonder if somebody would lift up their hands right now and say lord you know i've not been all in lord i've been a consumer and i've not been a disciple lord i've been a complainer and i've not been i've not been doing what i need to do there's more for me there's more for me i want to be all in it's just it's important that i'm all in you're coming it's not time now to be passive it's not time now to throw in the towel it's time to be all in come on somebody i want to be some young person some young person who's like daniel and said i don't care what the world around me is doing i'm going to be all in maybe there's somebody on the job and your job is full of people who are perverted and they have awful language but you're gonna say you know what i'm building an ark i'm building an ark i'm gonna be faithful come on is there somebody god's been prodding you god's been convicting you about doing something for him it's not time to to be callous towards that call it's time to pack your coffin and be all him it's time to be all in it's time to be all in come on [Music] [Applause] [Music] it's what i need come on i'm all in pass for me ask for me pass from me as for me and my house [Music] oh yes jesus [Music] [Applause] [Music] come on someone is take my life [Music] [Applause] [Music] take my wings [Music] [Applause] oh [Applause] [Music] oh [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] somebody lift up their hands right now there's a great spirit of conviction in this room that the lord's come knocking on your heart's door today saying it's time to be all in it's time to stop playing games come on noah made a difference by being a quarter of the way in nobody's ever changed anybody's life by being just 10 but somebody needs to be all in today on the mission there are some things that god's been calling some of you to do and it's time to do it it's time to be all in i believe that there's somebody god's been dealing with about your level of devotion and conviction and your your commitment today's the day you need to say lord i'm all in i'm all in lord i'm all in one more time would you close your eyes father [Music] lord i've delivered your word today and i prayed that your spirit would touch those who need to be afflicted out of their apathy and out of their comfort god the days are short the hours are few and it's time for us to be all in time giving all our all for you jesus god i pray that you would raise up some more soul winners some more prayer warriors some more sunday school teachers some more singers some more preachers and teachers god it's time to be all him it's time to be all him would you clap your hands under the lord today