Robert Jeffress - Radical Discipleship (Part 2)

December 30, 2025 | 27:29

Pathway to Victory offers a practical application of God’s Word to everyday life through the clear, biblical teaching of Pastor Jeffress.

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Dr. Robert Jeffress | Robert Jeffress - Radical Discipleship (Part 2) | December 30, 2025
  • ♪ music ♪
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  • From the pulpit of the first baptist church
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  • Of dallas, texas, this is "pathway to victory
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  • With dr. robert jeffress."
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  • Hi, i'm dr. robert jeffress
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  • And welcome again to "pathway to victory."
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  • Have you ever considered what genuine commitment
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  • To jesus christ really looks like?
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  • Today we're going to explore what jesus meant
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  • When he said that following him would cost everything.
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  • It's a challenging but crucial message
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  • About the difference between simply believing in jesus
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  • And becoming his committed disciple.
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  • My message is titled "radical discipleship"
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  • On today's edition of "pathway to victory."
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  • ♪ music ♪
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  • ♪ i've been changed ♪
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  • ♪ healed, freed, delivered ♪
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  • -♪ i've been changed ♪ -♪ i've been changed ♪
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  • -♪ healed ♪ -♪ healed ♪
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  • -♪ freed ♪ -♪ i'm freed ♪
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  • -♪ delivered ♪ -♪ delivered ♪
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  • -♪ i've found joy ♪ -♪ i've found joy ♪
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  • -♪ peace ♪ -♪ peace ♪
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  • -♪ grace ♪ -♪ grace ♪
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  • -♪ and favor ♪ -♪ and favor ♪
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  • ♪ and right now ♪
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  • ♪ right now is the moment ♪
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  • ♪ today is the day ♪
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  • ♪ i've been changed ♪
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  • ♪ i have waited for this moment to come ♪
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  • ♪ and i won't let it pass me by ♪
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  • ♪ so we say ♪
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  • ♪ i won't go back, i can't go back, to the way it used to be ♪
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  • ♪ before your presence came and changed me ♪
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  • ♪ thank you lord and i won't ♪
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  • ♪ i won't go back, i can't go back, to the way it used to be ♪
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  • ♪ before your presence came and changed me ♪
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  • ♪ changed me and thank you lord ♪
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  • ♪ i won't go back, i can't go back, to the way it used to be ♪
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  • ♪ before your presence came and changed me ♪
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  • ♪ thank you lord ♪
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  • ♪ changed me ♪
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  • ♪ jesus changed me ♪
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  • ♪ you changed me ♪
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  • ♪ music ♪
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  • Start the new year
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  • With daily encouragement when you request
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  • The 2026 "pathway to victory daily devotional,"
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  • Featuring 260 brand new devotional readings
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  • From dr. robert jeffress.
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  • This beautiful leather-bound volume includes larger print
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  • And a gorgeous hand cover with brown and gold accents.
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  • Plus, right now, your gift will be doubled in impact
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  • Through the now is the time matching challenge.
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  • Request your 2026 "pathway to victory daily devotional"
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  • And double your impact when you give a generous gift
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  • To support the ministry of pathway to victory.
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  • ♪ music ♪
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  • I'm choosing jacob over esau to give the blessing,
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  • Not because i have emotional hatred toward esau.
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  • God loved esau, he blessed esau,
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  • But he said i am making a choice of jacob over esau.
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  • And what jesus is saying is if there ever comes a choice
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  • Between pleasing your family and pleasing god,
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  • Then it really is no choice for a disciple.
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  • We choose to follow jesus even over our own family.
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  • Do you remember the name francis schaeffer,
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  • The christian apologist who's now in heaven?
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  • Francis schaeffer came from a non-christian home.
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  • He was saved when he was in high school,
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  • And he knew almost immediately after that
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  • That god had called him into ministry.
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  • So he went home to his non-christian dad
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  • And announced that when he went to college,
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  • He wanted to prepare for the ministry.
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  • His dad was furious.
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  • He forbade him to do so and said if he did,
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  • He would refuse to support him.
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  • Schaeffer went back to his bedroom, prayed about it,
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  • But he was still resolved to follow god.
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  • He told his father he was going to do
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  • What he felt like god was commanding him to do.
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  • His father slammed the door in schaeffer's face.
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  • Few days later, his father came back to him
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  • And told him he had had a change of heart
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  • And that he would indeed support him in college.
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  • Francis schaeffer later wrote that that decision
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  • To obey god regardless of the cost
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  • Was not only the foundation for his future ministry,
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  • It was the foundation for his dad's eventual salvation.
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  • The fact is god has called every one of us
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  • To that kind of unconditional allegiance.
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  • Secondly, discipleship demands a willingness to die.
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  • It demands a willingness to die.
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  • Look at verse 27.
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  • "whoever does not carry his own cross
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  • And come after me cannot be my disciple."
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  • We've talked about this before.
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  • The cross, if you saw somebody carrying a cross
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  • Through the streets of jerusalem,
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  • You knew that person was on the way to his own execution.
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  • The cross was not some sentimental ornament.
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  • It was a cruel instrument of execution.
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  • And jesus said, "if you're going to be my disciple,
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  • You have to voluntarily die."
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  • Not physically necessarily,
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  • But you have to be willing to die to your own dreams,
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  • Your own goals, your own pleasures,
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  • Your own possessions in order to please god.
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  • Your one desire above all others is that of jesus
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  • Who said in john 4:34, "my food, my sustenance
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  • Is to do the will of him who sent me
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  • And to accomplish his work."
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  • And sometimes to do god's will means putting
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  • To death the things you want most in life.
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  • Alexander maclaren, the preacher of yesteryear said,
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  • "the road to spiritual progress is marked
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  • With the bloody footprints of wounded self-love."
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  • Paul said it this way in galatians 2:20,
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  • "i have been crucified with christ
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  • And it is no longer i who live,
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  • But christ lives within me.
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  • And the life which i now live in the flesh,
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  • I live by faith in the son of god who loved me
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  • And delivered himself up for me."
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  • Now let me say here, many times if you're a christian,
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  • God leads you through the desires he places in your heart.
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  • That's one way, we've seen before
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  • That he gives us direction, but nevertheless,
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  • To be a disciple means if it ever comes down to a choice
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  • Between what i want and what god wants,
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  • I'm going to choose god every time, not just 90% of the time,
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  • It is always your will, not mine, be done.
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  • We've talked about the definition of a disciple.
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  • We've looked at the two demands of discipleship.
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  • Now let's look at two descriptions
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  • Jesus gave us of discipleship.
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  • First of all, he compared being a disciple
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  • To that of being a builder.
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  • Look at verse 28, "for which one of you when he wants
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  • To build a tower does not first sit down
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  • And calculate the cost to see
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  • If he has enough to complete it."
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  • Now the tower he's talking about here
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  • Is not a 50-foot skyscraper, it's a watchtower.
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  • It was only a few feet high,
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  • But a person would sit in that watchtower
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  • To guard the vineyard against animals that might come
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  • And destroy it or others who would come and steal the fruit.
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  • Jesus said, "if you're going to build a tower,
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  • You better make sure you've got the money to complete it."
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  • Why, look verse 29,
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  • "otherwise, when the builder has laid a foundation
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  • And is not able to finish, all who observe it will begin
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  • To ridicule him saying, 'this man began to build
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  • And was not able to finish.'"
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  • Whenever i read that story,
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  • I think about the fairmont hotel right across the street.
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  • Do you remember, those of you who lived in dallas,
  • 00:09:08.426 --> 00:09:10.929
  • When it was first being constructed?
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  • The original developers
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  • Were going to build this luxurious hotel.
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  • They put up the steel infrastructure of the fairmont,
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  • Both towers, and then they ran out of money.
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  • And remember how that rusting infrastructure stood there
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  • For months and months and months?
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  • It was the eyesore of downtown dallas
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  • Until somebody came in and finally completed it.
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  • But for months, it was a testimony to the lack of resources
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  • Of the builder and the lack of good planning.
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  • Jesus said it's the very same way.
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  • For somebody who declares, i am a christian,
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  • I am building a life for god,
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  • But never follows through on it,
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  • They are an eyesore for all of christianity.
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  • John stott describes it this way,
  • 00:09:56.508 --> 00:09:59.744
  • "the christian landscape is strewn
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  • With the wreckage of derelict, half-built towers.
  • 00:10:02.947 --> 00:10:07.419
  • The ruins of those who began to build
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  • And were unable to finish,
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  • For thousands of people still ignore christ warning
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  • And undertake to follow him without first pausing
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  • To reflect on the high cost of doing so.
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  • The result is the great scandal of christendom today,
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  • So-called nominal christianity.
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  • Large numbers of people have covered themselves
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  • With a decent but thin veneer of christianity.
  • 00:10:34.879 --> 00:10:39.084
  • They have allowed themselves
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  • To become somewhat involved, enough to be respectable,
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  • But not enough to become uncomfortable.
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  • Their religion is a great soft cushion.
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  • It protects them from the hard unpleasantness
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  • Of life while changing its place
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  • And shape to suit their convenience.
  • 00:10:57.202 --> 00:11:00.371
  • No wonder the cynics speak of hypocrites in the church
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  • And dismiss religion as escapism."
  • 00:11:04.676 --> 00:11:09.380
  • Another comparison jesus uses in addition to the builder
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  • Is one of the warrior.
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  • Look at verses 31 and 32.
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  • "or what king, when he sets out
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  • To meet another king in battle,
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  • Will not first sit down and take counsel,
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  • Whether he is strong enough with 10,000 men
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  • To encounter the one coming against him with 20,000.
  • 00:11:27.232 --> 00:11:30.635
  • Or else while the other is still far away,
  • 00:11:30.635 --> 00:11:33.171
  • He sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace."
  • 00:11:33.171 --> 00:11:36.407
  • If you're getting ready to go into war
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  • And the guy who you're going to battle against
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  • Has twice the army you do,
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  • You better determine whether or not you can defeat him.
  • 00:11:43.314 --> 00:11:46.084
  • If not, it's better to settle the matter
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  • Through a negotiation.
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  • The only thing worse than entering a war
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  • Without the necessary firepower to win
  • 00:11:52.624 --> 00:11:56.461
  • Is entering a war without the willpower to win.
  • 00:11:56.461 --> 00:12:00.231
  • Remember what happened in vietnam?
  • 00:12:00.231 --> 00:12:02.901
  • We weren't really determined to win that war.
  • 00:12:02.901 --> 00:12:04.903
  • We got bogged down there,
  • 00:12:04.903 --> 00:12:06.504
  • Because we didn't have the determination to win that war.
  • 00:12:06.504 --> 00:12:09.874
  • It's the same way with the christian life.
  • 00:12:09.874 --> 00:12:12.544
  • Before you say i'm going to be a follower of jesus christ,
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  • You better determine whether or not
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  • You've got the ability to follow through on that commitment,
  • 00:12:18.650 --> 00:12:21.820
  • Whether you even have the willpower
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  • To fulfill that commitment you've made to christ.
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  • Otherwise you're an embarrassment
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  • To yourself and to jesus as well.
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  • Jesus summarizes all of this
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  • With a demonstration of discipleship.
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  • Here's a great test of discipleship, verse 33.
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  • "so therefore, no one of you can be my disciple,
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  • Who does not give up all of his own possessions."
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  • That's a demonstration of whether or not you're a disciple.
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  • Are you willing to give up all of your possessions?
  • 00:12:58.456 --> 00:13:01.492
  • Now, notice he didn't say give away all your possessions.
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  • There's a difference between giving up and giving away.
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  • Later when we get to luke 18,
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  • We'll see that jesus told the rich young ruler,
  • 00:13:14.305 --> 00:13:16.774
  • "oh, you think you're so holy
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  • And you're getting to heaven on your own?
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  • Then go ahead and give away every thing
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  • You have to the poor."
  • 00:13:21.546 --> 00:13:22.914
  • That's not a problem for you, is it,
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  • Since you claim to be so holy.
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  • And that's why he told that particular man
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  • To give away everything he had, but to all of us,
  • 00:13:28.286 --> 00:13:31.055
  • He doesn't say give away everything you have.
  • 00:13:31.055 --> 00:13:34.025
  • One reason is you can only do that one time in your life.
  • 00:13:34.025 --> 00:13:37.929
  • You only can give away everything one time.
  • 00:13:37.929 --> 00:13:41.532
  • He doesn't say give away.
  • 00:13:41.532 --> 00:13:42.967
  • He says give up.
  • 00:13:42.967 --> 00:13:44.736
  • Surrender your right to everything you have
  • 00:13:45.637 --> 00:13:49.474
  • That is important to you.
  • 00:13:49.474 --> 00:13:51.910
  • I read this week about christian businessmen
  • 00:13:51.910 --> 00:13:55.480
  • Who had become so focused on his business,
  • 00:13:55.480 --> 00:13:59.584
  • He would lay awake at night
  • 00:13:59.584 --> 00:14:01.152
  • Worrying about meeting the payroll
  • 00:14:01.152 --> 00:14:03.054
  • And complying with the increasing government regulations
  • 00:14:03.054 --> 00:14:06.624
  • And wondering whether sales would be enough
  • 00:14:06.624 --> 00:14:08.860
  • To be able to pay his employees.
  • 00:14:08.860 --> 00:14:11.229
  • He became so focused on that, he lost his focus on god.
  • 00:14:11.229 --> 00:14:15.400
  • And one afternoon in his office, he said,
  • 00:14:15.400 --> 00:14:16.968
  • "i'm tired of living this way."
  • 00:14:16.968 --> 00:14:18.469
  • And he got down, knelt beside his chair
  • 00:14:18.469 --> 00:14:20.305
  • And he said, "god, today i'm giving you my business.
  • 00:14:20.305 --> 00:14:24.208
  • It all belongs to you."
  • 00:14:24.208 --> 00:14:26.611
  • He felt such a relief, he said.
  • 00:14:27.245 --> 00:14:29.881
  • That night, he said he slept for the first time in months.
  • 00:14:29.881 --> 00:14:34.319
  • He was sound asleep until he was awakened
  • 00:14:34.319 --> 00:14:37.855
  • By the ringing of the telephone in the middle of the night.
  • 00:14:37.855 --> 00:14:40.959
  • A frantic voice on the other end of the phone said,
  • 00:14:40.959 --> 00:14:43.761
  • "your business is going up in flames."
  • 00:14:43.761 --> 00:14:47.265
  • The businessman dressed, he went down to his business.
  • 00:14:48.366 --> 00:14:50.969
  • And sure enough, everything he had poured his life into
  • 00:14:50.969 --> 00:14:55.773
  • Was surrounded by flames.
  • 00:14:55.773 --> 00:14:58.209
  • Somebody came up to him and said, "how can you be so calm
  • 00:14:59.377 --> 00:15:01.879
  • When everything you've poured your life into
  • 00:15:01.879 --> 00:15:03.948
  • Is being destroyed?"
  • 00:15:03.948 --> 00:15:05.850
  • The businessman said, "well, this afternoon,
  • 00:15:05.850 --> 00:15:09.053
  • I gave my business to god.
  • 00:15:09.053 --> 00:15:11.456
  • It belongs to him
  • 00:15:11.456 --> 00:15:12.924
  • And if he wants to burn it up, that's his business."
  • 00:15:12.924 --> 00:15:15.827
  • (attendees laugh)
  • 00:15:15.827 --> 00:15:18.129
  • You know, that's what jesus is talking about here,
  • 00:15:18.129 --> 00:15:21.632
  • Giving up everything we have to him.
  • 00:15:21.632 --> 00:15:24.335
  • Listen to me, as somebody said,
  • 00:15:24.335 --> 00:15:26.304
  • "the christian life is not about a makeover,
  • 00:15:26.304 --> 00:15:29.741
  • It's about a takeover."
  • 00:15:29.741 --> 00:15:31.943
  • It's allowing jesus christ
  • 00:15:31.943 --> 00:15:33.578
  • To take over everything important to you.
  • 00:15:33.578 --> 00:15:37.115
  • Your business, your relationships,
  • 00:15:37.115 --> 00:15:40.385
  • Your money, your dreams.
  • 00:15:40.385 --> 00:15:42.653
  • It's all under his management
  • 00:15:43.287 --> 00:15:45.289
  • To do whatever he wants you with.
  • 00:15:45.289 --> 00:15:47.058
  • He very well may let you keep your dreams, your goals,
  • 00:15:47.058 --> 00:15:50.628
  • Your possessions, but it's always under his control.
  • 00:15:50.628 --> 00:15:55.600
  • That's what he's talking about here,
  • 00:15:55.600 --> 00:15:57.635
  • A great demonstration of discipleship.
  • 00:15:57.635 --> 00:16:00.271
  • And then he says in verse 34, look at this.
  • 00:16:00.271 --> 00:16:02.240
  • "therefore, salt is good, but even salt,
  • 00:16:02.240 --> 00:16:06.044
  • If salt has become tasteless,
  • 00:16:06.044 --> 00:16:08.012
  • With what will it be seasoned?
  • 00:16:08.012 --> 00:16:09.981
  • It is useless either for the soil or for the manure pile.
  • 00:16:09.981 --> 00:16:13.818
  • It is thrown out.
  • 00:16:13.818 --> 00:16:15.386
  • He who has ears to hear, let him hear."
  • 00:16:15.386 --> 00:16:18.756
  • Now at first glance, this seems strange, salt?
  • 00:16:18.756 --> 00:16:22.293
  • Jesus, you are on a roll there.
  • 00:16:22.293 --> 00:16:23.995
  • Why did you get sidetracked talking about salt and manure?
  • 00:16:23.995 --> 00:16:29.667
  • Well, remember what jesus said.
  • 00:16:30.301 --> 00:16:31.969
  • He used this description
  • 00:16:31.969 --> 00:16:33.404
  • To describe the reason he's left us in this world.
  • 00:16:33.404 --> 00:16:36.507
  • In matthew 5:13, he said, "you are the salt of the earth,
  • 00:16:36.507 --> 00:16:41.112
  • But if the salt has become tasteless,
  • 00:16:41.112 --> 00:16:43.514
  • How will it be made salty again?
  • 00:16:43.514 --> 00:16:45.850
  • It is good for nothing anymore except
  • 00:16:45.850 --> 00:16:47.752
  • To be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men."
  • 00:16:47.752 --> 00:16:51.756
  • The reason jesus has left you and us in this world
  • 00:16:51.756 --> 00:16:55.393
  • Instead of taking us to heaven
  • 00:16:55.393 --> 00:16:56.794
  • When we were saved is to be salt.
  • 00:16:56.794 --> 00:16:59.697
  • Now in jesus' day, salt was a preservative.
  • 00:16:59.697 --> 00:17:02.366
  • There was no refrigeration.
  • 00:17:02.366 --> 00:17:04.836
  • Salt was used to not prevent decay
  • 00:17:04.836 --> 00:17:07.572
  • But to delay the decay of meat.
  • 00:17:07.572 --> 00:17:10.575
  • Salt gave the meat a longer shelf life.
  • 00:17:10.575 --> 00:17:14.245
  • And jesus left us here to be a preservative
  • 00:17:14.245 --> 00:17:17.115
  • In this culture, to keep this world
  • 00:17:17.115 --> 00:17:19.250
  • From completely collapsing before god's time
  • 00:17:19.250 --> 00:17:22.653
  • So that people can hear the gospel of jesus christ.
  • 00:17:22.653 --> 00:17:25.323
  • We are a preservative in this world.
  • 00:17:25.323 --> 00:17:27.758
  • Now salt does something else besides preserve.
  • 00:17:27.758 --> 00:17:31.929
  • It makes you thirsty, doesn't it?
  • 00:17:32.663 --> 00:17:34.966
  • Salt creates thirst.
  • 00:17:34.966 --> 00:17:37.235
  • And jesus is saying i'm leaving you here not only
  • 00:17:37.235 --> 00:17:39.937
  • To be a preservative in society,
  • 00:17:39.937 --> 00:17:42.540
  • But to cause people to thirst for god.
  • 00:17:42.540 --> 00:17:46.043
  • As they look at you and the way you live
  • 00:17:46.911 --> 00:17:49.147
  • To make them want to know more about the god that you serve.
  • 00:17:49.147 --> 00:17:54.018
  • That's why i'm leaving you here, jesus said,
  • 00:17:54.018 --> 00:17:56.087
  • To be that distinctive tasting, thirst-creating salt.
  • 00:17:56.087 --> 00:18:01.125
  • Now, in jesus' day, salt was very expensive,
  • 00:18:02.026 --> 00:18:05.429
  • Very, very expensive.
  • 00:18:05.429 --> 00:18:07.064
  • In fact, roman soldiers many times
  • 00:18:07.064 --> 00:18:08.900
  • Would have their wages paid not in money but in salt.
  • 00:18:08.900 --> 00:18:13.404
  • That's where we get the word salary from.
  • 00:18:13.404 --> 00:18:16.207
  • It comes from salt.
  • 00:18:16.207 --> 00:18:17.475
  • It was the way people were paid in salt.
  • 00:18:17.475 --> 00:18:19.844
  • It was a very priceless commodity.
  • 00:18:19.844 --> 00:18:22.513
  • Most people couldn't afford pure salt,
  • 00:18:22.513 --> 00:18:24.815
  • So they would buy a mixture of salt and sand.
  • 00:18:24.815 --> 00:18:28.719
  • But once the salt had broken down
  • 00:18:28.719 --> 00:18:30.821
  • And completely been dissipated, this mixture of salt
  • 00:18:30.821 --> 00:18:33.858
  • And sand was worthless and it would be thrown out.
  • 00:18:33.858 --> 00:18:37.361
  • Now here's what jesus is saying.
  • 00:18:37.361 --> 00:18:38.763
  • He says, "he who has ears, let him hear."
  • 00:18:38.763 --> 00:18:41.899
  • That is hear this and apply it to your life.
  • 00:18:41.899 --> 00:18:45.870
  • A half committed christian is like salt
  • 00:18:46.671 --> 00:18:50.274
  • That has lost its distinctive edge.
  • 00:18:50.274 --> 00:18:53.611
  • When you try to live with one foot in the world
  • 00:18:53.611 --> 00:18:55.947
  • And one foot in heaven, you're of no good
  • 00:18:55.947 --> 00:18:59.150
  • To those on earth or those in heaven either.
  • 00:18:59.150 --> 00:19:03.588
  • God hates lukewarm christianity.
  • 00:19:03.588 --> 00:19:06.591
  • Nobody is ever going to want to know more about god
  • 00:19:07.625 --> 00:19:10.828
  • By looking at a half committed christian.
  • 00:19:10.828 --> 00:19:14.165
  • You've become worthless in the sight of god.
  • 00:19:14.165 --> 00:19:16.968
  • Don't become worthless in the sight of god.
  • 00:19:16.968 --> 00:19:19.470
  • The kind of commitment that god demands from every follower
  • 00:19:19.470 --> 00:19:24.775
  • Is a total unconditional commitment.
  • 00:19:25.543 --> 00:19:28.279
  • One person has expressed that commitment this way.
  • 00:19:29.313 --> 00:19:33.584
  • I'm a part of the fellowship of the unashamed.
  • 00:19:33.584 --> 00:19:37.688
  • The die has been cast, i have stepped over the line.
  • 00:19:38.756 --> 00:19:42.627
  • The decision has been made, i am a disciple of jesus christ.
  • 00:19:42.627 --> 00:19:47.465
  • I won't look back, let up, slow down,
  • 00:19:47.465 --> 00:19:49.700
  • Back away or be still.
  • 00:19:49.700 --> 00:19:51.902
  • My past is redeemed, my present makes sense
  • 00:19:51.902 --> 00:19:54.538
  • And my future is secure.
  • 00:19:54.538 --> 00:19:57.241
  • I am finished and done with low living,
  • 00:19:57.241 --> 00:20:00.111
  • Sight walking, small planning, smooth needs,
  • 00:20:00.111 --> 00:20:03.681
  • Colorless dreams, chancy giving and dwarfed goals.
  • 00:20:03.681 --> 00:20:07.451
  • I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position,
  • 00:20:07.451 --> 00:20:10.788
  • Promotions, plaudits or popularity.
  • 00:20:10.788 --> 00:20:13.958
  • I now live by presence, lean by faith,
  • 00:20:13.958 --> 00:20:17.461
  • Love by patience, lift up by prayer and labor by power.
  • 00:20:18.562 --> 00:20:22.133
  • My pace is set, my gate is fast, my goal is heaven.
  • 00:20:22.133 --> 00:20:26.070
  • My road is narrow, my way is rough.
  • 00:20:26.070 --> 00:20:28.239
  • My companions few, my guide is reliable
  • 00:20:28.239 --> 00:20:31.676
  • And my mission is clear.
  • 00:20:31.676 --> 00:20:33.778
  • I cannot be bought, compromised, deterred, lured away,
  • 00:20:33.778 --> 00:20:37.682
  • Turned back, diluted or delayed.
  • 00:20:37.682 --> 00:20:40.017
  • I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice,
  • 00:20:40.017 --> 00:20:43.354
  • Hesitate in the presence of adversity,
  • 00:20:43.354 --> 00:20:46.157
  • Negotiate at the table of the enemy,
  • 00:20:46.157 --> 00:20:49.026
  • Ponder at the pool of popularity
  • 00:20:49.026 --> 00:20:51.228
  • Or meander in a maze of mediocrity.
  • 00:20:51.228 --> 00:20:54.165
  • I am a disciple of jesus christ.
  • 00:20:54.165 --> 00:20:57.234
  • I must go until heaven returns, give until i drop,
  • 00:20:57.234 --> 00:21:01.572
  • Preach until all know and work until he comes.
  • 00:21:01.572 --> 00:21:05.976
  • And when he comes to get his own,
  • 00:21:05.976 --> 00:21:09.013
  • He will have no problem recognizing me,
  • 00:21:09.814 --> 00:21:13.351
  • For my colors will be clear.
  • 00:21:13.951 --> 00:21:17.188
  • That's the kind of radical commitment
  • 00:21:17.988 --> 00:21:21.425
  • That jesus demands from all who would follow him.
  • 00:21:22.426 --> 00:21:26.864
  • ♪ music ♪
  • 00:21:26.864 --> 00:21:32.103
  • This kind of radical commitment
  • 00:21:32.737 --> 00:21:34.438
  • To christ is more than a theoretical concept.
  • 00:21:34.438 --> 00:21:37.708
  • It transforms real lives every day.
  • 00:21:37.708 --> 00:21:40.945
  • People everywhere, especially the next generation,
  • 00:21:40.945 --> 00:21:44.181
  • Are searching for answers and hungry for truth.
  • 00:21:44.181 --> 00:21:47.485
  • And now is the time to reach them.
  • 00:21:47.485 --> 00:21:49.754
  • With just two days remaining
  • 00:21:49.754 --> 00:21:51.322
  • Until the december 31st deadline,
  • 00:21:51.322 --> 00:21:53.824
  • I'm urging you to participate
  • 00:21:53.824 --> 00:21:55.359
  • In the now is the time matching challenge.
  • 00:21:55.359 --> 00:21:58.696
  • Your gift will be matched and therefore doubled in impact,
  • 00:21:58.696 --> 00:22:01.866
  • Helping us reach the $1.7 million goal.
  • 00:22:01.866 --> 00:22:05.536
  • At a time when so much is at stake
  • 00:22:05.536 --> 00:22:07.905
  • And so many need real hope, your generosity,
  • 00:22:07.905 --> 00:22:11.342
  • Doubled by the now is the time matching challenge,
  • 00:22:11.342 --> 00:22:14.245
  • Will launch pathway to victory boldly into 2026,
  • 00:22:14.245 --> 00:22:18.616
  • Ready to share christ and impact our world
  • 00:22:18.616 --> 00:22:21.385
  • With biblical hope and truth.
  • 00:22:21.385 --> 00:22:23.654
  • The deadline is december 31st, so please don't delay.
  • 00:22:23.654 --> 00:22:28.292
  • Thank you for your faithful partnership
  • 00:22:28.292 --> 00:22:30.461
  • With us at pathway to victory.
  • 00:22:30.461 --> 00:22:32.696
  • Now stay right there.
  • 00:22:32.696 --> 00:22:34.064
  • I'll be back with more in just a moment.
  • 00:22:34.064 --> 00:22:37.635
  • Nearly three decades ago,
  • 00:22:37.635 --> 00:22:39.336
  • Dr. jeffress prayed that god would use pathway to victory
  • 00:22:39.336 --> 00:22:42.306
  • To pierce the darkness with the light of god's word.
  • 00:22:42.306 --> 00:22:45.476
  • And what god has done is miraculous.
  • 00:22:45.476 --> 00:22:48.078
  • We need to share the gospel while there's still time.
  • 00:22:48.078 --> 00:22:51.282
  • Through the now is the time matching challenge,
  • 00:22:51.282 --> 00:22:53.517
  • Your gift will be doubled in ministry impact
  • 00:22:53.517 --> 00:22:56.253
  • Up to $1.7 million.
  • 00:22:56.253 --> 00:22:58.122
  • Listen to what's happening right now
  • 00:22:58.923 --> 00:23:00.391
  • Because of partners like you.
  • 00:23:00.391 --> 00:23:02.293
  • Thank you for calling pathway to victory.
  • 00:23:02.293 --> 00:23:04.462
  • I lost my mom this past year.
  • 00:23:04.462 --> 00:23:07.698
  • I'm an only child, i have no children.
  • 00:23:07.698 --> 00:23:10.968
  • He helps me feel so loved by the lord,
  • 00:23:10.968 --> 00:23:14.972
  • And that i'm not alone
  • 00:23:15.473 --> 00:23:17.308
  • And that he's going to see us through.
  • 00:23:17.308 --> 00:23:22.112
  • I'm a truck driver.
  • 00:23:22.580 --> 00:23:24.281
  • I'm divorced and i don't have kids.
  • 00:23:24.281 --> 00:23:26.350
  • I don't ever go home.
  • 00:23:26.350 --> 00:23:27.918
  • I stay out here and i listen to you all every day on radio.
  • 00:23:27.918 --> 00:23:31.722
  • You all are (indistinct) out here listening.
  • 00:23:31.722 --> 00:23:34.725
  • After my wife died last september, i started drinking
  • 00:23:34.725 --> 00:23:38.696
  • And got involved with the influences of the world.
  • 00:23:38.696 --> 00:23:42.399
  • God sent me a wake up call
  • 00:23:42.399 --> 00:23:44.902
  • And i waked up and i quit drinking.
  • 00:23:44.902 --> 00:23:48.138
  • I will not turn my back on god again.
  • 00:23:48.939 --> 00:23:52.142
  • When you give today, we'll send you
  • 00:23:52.142 --> 00:23:53.844
  • The brand new 2026 "pathway to victory daily devotional"
  • 00:23:53.844 --> 00:23:57.648
  • As our way of saying thanks.
  • 00:23:57.648 --> 00:23:59.483
  • Don't wait, now is the time to double your impact
  • 00:23:59.483 --> 00:24:02.286
  • And transform lives by supporting
  • 00:24:02.286 --> 00:24:03.954
  • The ministry of pathway to victory.
  • 00:24:03.954 --> 00:24:07.458
  • ♪ music ♪
  • 00:24:07.458 --> 00:24:08.926
  • The christian life isn't about a makeover,
  • 00:24:08.926 --> 00:24:11.529
  • It's about a takeover.
  • 00:24:11.529 --> 00:24:13.631
  • When we surrender completely to christ,
  • 00:24:13.631 --> 00:24:15.766
  • We allow him to control everything important to us.
  • 00:24:15.766 --> 00:24:19.503
  • That's what radical discipleship means.
  • 00:24:19.503 --> 00:24:22.606
  • Well, whenever we find something that has been missing,
  • 00:24:22.606 --> 00:24:26.076
  • Our cell phone, our wallet, our keys,
  • 00:24:26.076 --> 00:24:28.679
  • It's natural to feel a measure of joy and relief.
  • 00:24:28.679 --> 00:24:32.650
  • And in the same way god rejoices whenever he recovers
  • 00:24:32.650 --> 00:24:36.387
  • The most important thing of all, a lost soul.
  • 00:24:36.387 --> 00:24:40.024
  • Stay tuned for a preview
  • 00:24:40.024 --> 00:24:41.292
  • Of what's coming up next on "pathway to victory."
  • 00:24:41.292 --> 00:24:45.896
  • Maybe you're outside god's house
  • 00:24:45.896 --> 00:24:47.565
  • Because of blatant sin in your life.
  • 00:24:47.565 --> 00:24:50.834
  • Maybe you are away from the father
  • 00:24:50.834 --> 00:24:52.369
  • Because of a sense of self-righteousness.
  • 00:24:52.369 --> 00:24:55.539
  • But whatever the reason,
  • 00:24:55.539 --> 00:24:57.875
  • God's message to you is the same.
  • 00:24:57.875 --> 00:25:00.778
  • ♪ music ♪
  • 00:25:00.778 --> 00:25:02.913
  • Come home, come home to the father who loves you.
  • 00:25:02.913 --> 00:25:08.852
  • Set your dvr and join us next time for the message,
  • 00:25:09.853 --> 00:25:13.157
  • The value of lost things, here on "pathway to victory."
  • 00:25:13.157 --> 00:25:17.661
  • ♪ music ♪
  • 00:25:17.661 --> 00:25:20.464
  • Each of us will leave a legacy.
  • 00:25:20.464 --> 00:25:23.200
  • What will your legacy be?
  • 00:25:23.200 --> 00:25:25.669
  • Your legacy giving can further the gospel
  • 00:25:25.669 --> 00:25:28.305
  • And be an example to your children about
  • 00:25:28.305 --> 00:25:30.808
  • What matters most in life.
  • 00:25:30.808 --> 00:25:33.344
  • The world my daughters and grandchildren are growing up in
  • 00:25:33.344 --> 00:25:36.847
  • Is vastly different than the one you and i grew up in.
  • 00:25:36.847 --> 00:25:40.517
  • The gospel of jesus christ is our only answer.
  • 00:25:40.517 --> 00:25:44.755
  • And naming pathway to victory as a beneficiary
  • 00:25:44.755 --> 00:25:47.758
  • In your will helps guarantee
  • 00:25:47.758 --> 00:25:50.027
  • That there will be a trusted ministry
  • 00:25:50.027 --> 00:25:52.663
  • That will continue to be salt and light.
  • 00:25:52.663 --> 00:25:55.733
  • Like the ripples that emanate
  • 00:25:55.733 --> 00:25:57.668
  • From a rock thrown into a pond,
  • 00:25:57.668 --> 00:25:59.870
  • Your influence for christ can keep going on
  • 00:25:59.870 --> 00:26:02.940
  • And on after you die with a gift in your will.
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  • Only one life will soon be passed.
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  • ♪ music ♪
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