Greg Laurie - Discipleship: The Next Step In Following Jesus

August 5, 2025 | 27:40

Join Pastor Greg Laurie for a time of encouragement, worship, and Bible study.

#Disciples #Discipleship #WalkwithGod #Commitment #Dedication/Devotion #SpiritualGrowth #RelationshipwithGod #Fellowship #Community #Mentor #Mentoring

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Harvest with Pastor Greg Laurie | Greg Laurie - Discipleship: The Next Step In Following Jesus | August 5, 2025

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Greg laurie: new believers need old believers.
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Old believers need new believers.
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Having a new believer in your life can have a reviving affect
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On you as they discover truth for the first time,
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You can rediscover them.
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You stabilize them, they energize you.
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♪ this is the day, ♪
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♪ the day when life begins, ♪
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♪ this is the day, ♪
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♪ the day when life begins. ♪♪
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Greg: the key to the christian life is commitment
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To christ in a lifetime of growth.
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It's consistency.
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One person defined the christian life as long obedience
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In the same direction.
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So i've tried standup paddling.
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How many of you have ever done standup paddling?
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A few of you.
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Not as many in riverside.
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Okay, i'm just saying.
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But, so a lot of surfers i know who've surfed their whole life
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Have moved over to standup.
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And so i've tried, but i'm not very good at it.
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My wife immediately was great at it.
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She got on the board, she's paddling, catching waves,
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Cutting across the wave.
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I'm still trying to just stand on it without falling.
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And i've noticed that if i have a little momentum,
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It helps me a little bit.
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So it comes down to this, stall and you fall.
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So if you stop, you're just gonna fall over.
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So you have to keep moving, right?
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The same could be said of the christian life,
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Stall and you fall.
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Keep growing as a believer.
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Being a christian is more than just getting fire insurance,
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So that's pretty awesome.
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If all salvation was, was a promise that you'll not go to
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Hell, it would be worth getting saved for that alone.
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Is that right?
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But it's far more than that.
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It's a relationship with god that lasts a lifetime and it's
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Growing in this relationship with god as well.
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Not just following him as your friend or even just your savior,
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But as your lord and your god.
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But some people don't seem to get this.
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They're still in what you might describe as a baby-like state.
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I love babies, they're so cute.
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I don't like to change their diapers,
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But everything else i like.
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And it's wonderful to watch them grow.
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Their first words, their first steps, everything they do is
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Just adorable, isn't it?
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And that i can think of my own children and think of my
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Grandchildren now and all of those great moments
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In their life.
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The first time a baby or really a little toddler now is
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Beginning to eat.
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They feed themselves.
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You know, you feed them at first now they're beginning
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To feed themselves.
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I remember the first time i gave my son, jonathan, ice cream.
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He was still a baby.
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It wasn't the right thing to do but i did it.
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I didn't tell kathy about it till later.
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But i can tell you this much, i took a little spoon, dipped it
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In some vanilla ice cream, i put it in his little baby mouth,
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And i'm telling you, he smiled.
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Jonathan, do you remember this?
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[laughing]
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He loved it.
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Not a good idea to give a baby sugar and vanilla at that early
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Age, but you know, this is the great moments when we watch
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Our kids discover these things for the first time.
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But sometimes people never grow up.
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You can't stay a baby for your whole life.
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When i was in school, on more than one occasion, i would have
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A teacher say to me, "greg laurie, will you just grow up?"
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And it's because i was always causing distractions and getting
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In trouble and making fun of people, et cetera.
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So i would say the same to all of us.
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It's time to grow up because some believers
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Have never done that.
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In hebrews 6 we read, "let's stop going over the basics
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Of christianity again and again.
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Let's go on instead and become mature in our understanding."
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It is time to grow up.
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And this is the role of a pastor.
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We wanna help you grow up, we want to help you mature.
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It's a role of a parent.
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By the way, parents, you need to be parents.
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Your child doesn't need you to be their best friend,
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They need you to be their mother and their father, right?
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That's very important.
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You have to tell 'em what's right, you have to tell 'em
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What's wrong, you have to warn them, you have to correct them,
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And they don't like it.
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They'll fight you, they'll resist you, they'll resent you,
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And one day they'll thank you.
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And then they'll have their kids and you will see your revenge
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'cause it'll happen to them, right?
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But that's my job as a parent.
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And that's our job as older believers, is to find younger
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Believers and help them to grow and mature.
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So let me tell you some things now that new believers need
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And i'm addressing these remarks to two groups of people.
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Number one, to new believers.
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But i'm also addressing my remarks to older believers
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Because this is what you need to do for younger believers.
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And i found a great little outline in a book called,
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"the lost art of disciple making" by leroy eims.
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I recommend that book to you by the way.
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But he had some great points so i'm using some of his points.
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He pointed out, number one, the new believer needs acceptance.
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They need acceptance.
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When someone comes to christ, they need to know that
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They're accepted by god.
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So let me say this to you.
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If you're a new believer, you are accepted by god.
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He loves you, he accepts you.
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In fact, the bible even says "you've been made acceptable
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In the beloved."
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There's nothing you need to do to earn god's favor,
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You have it already.
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And there's nothing you need to do to earn his love,
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You have that as well.
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But we need to say to new believers, we accept you,
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We welcome you.
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Because you know what?
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New christians have a lot of rough edges.
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They haven't learned the new christian vocabulary yet.
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In fact, they might have a few words left over from their old
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Vocabulary that will pop up now and then.
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Be patient with them, be loving toward them.
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I think of how little i understood
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When i came to christ.
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And thankfully there were people that were accepting.
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Paul writes to the believers in thessalonica
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In 1 thessalonians 2:8.
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He said, "we loved you so much.
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We were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of god
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But our lives as well because you'd become so dear to us."
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Number two, a new believer needs assurance.
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They need assurance.
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They need to know that they're saved.
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Remember the devil came to adam and eve in the garden.
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And what was his first temptation?
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Challenging the word of god.
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He says, "did god really say what you thought god said?"
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And that's what the devil will do with the new believer.
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They've accepted christ, and satan will whisper in their ear,
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"do you really think christ has come into your life?
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Do you really think after all you've done
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That your sin is forgiven?"
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So we need to assure them.
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And first 1 john 5 says "these things we write to you that
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Believe on the name of the son of god that you may know
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That you have eternal life."
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They can know and we need to assure them and
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If you're a new believer, we want to assure you as well.
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Number three, the new believer needs protection.
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Paul writes to the believers in galatia, in galatians 4:19,
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"dear children, i feel as though i'm going through labor pains
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For you, and they'll continue until christ is fully developed
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In your life."
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You know, they're like babies again.
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And when you go to a hospital, they'll sterilize everything
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Especially around the little babies because life
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Is so fragile, it must be protected.
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New believers are vulnerable to their own emotions.
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They don't understand it when they had a sense of euphoria
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When they accepted christ and two days later it's gone.
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Maybe they thought, oh, it'll always be this way but it won't.
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You'll have days where you don't feel anything, right?
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So we need to say, "that's okay, that's normal,
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Nothing bad has happened.
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You need to learn how to walk by faith, not by feeling."
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Because the bible says "the just shall live by faith."
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New believers are also vulnerable to false teachings.
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We have to ground them in scripture.
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And old friends are gonna show up that will try
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To drag them down.
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And old girlfriends and old boyfriends will suddenly
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Materialize and temptations they never had will suddenly appear.
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I remember when the christians told me, "greg, you're gonna be
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Tempted by the devil."
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And first of all, i didn't even know there was a devil,
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I'd never heard of such a thing.
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"wait, there's a devil? i just heard there was jesus."
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"no, there's a devil, he's gonna tempt you."
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I said, "how will i know when i'm being tempted?"
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They said, "you'll know."
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Okay, so i was brand-new in the faith, i mean,
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Literally days old.
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I had a little button on my shirt, there was a little
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Picture of jesus on it, i'm wearing my little jesus button.
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I'm sitting in class and there was a very attractive young lady
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Sitting toward the front of the class.
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I'd noticed her before but i'd never talked to her because
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Clearly this girl would not talk with someone like me and at the
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End of the class she walks up to me and says,
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"hi, what's your name?"
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And i momentarily forgot my name.
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I said, "what is it?
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Oh, it's greg, yes, i'm greg."
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She said, "you're really cute."
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I thought, what?
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"you're really cute."
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I'm like, "you're talking to me?"
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And she said, "you know, my parents have a house up in the
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Mountains, would you like to spend the weekend with me?"
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I thought, this is temptation.
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And as i recall, she was wearing a red dress,
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Devil with a red dress.
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No, blue dress, it's blue dress.
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No, but you know what?
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It was temptation.
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And i'll tell you why, that never happened to me before.
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It's not like i had cute girls hitting on me,
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Hard to believe as it is.
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I knew this literally was satan trying to pull me down
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Through a very attractive young lady.
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Thankfully i said "no" to that but that's gonna happen
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To a new believer.
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We need to warn them, you're gonna get tempted,
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You're gonna have people try to drag you down.
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And the new believer, number four, needs fellowship.
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That's why we want to involve them in our lives.
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That's why small groups are so good.
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That's why we're always encouraging you to get involved
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In a harvest group because some things are learned in rows and
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Other things are learned in circles, where you're together
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And you can talk about it and you can ask questions
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And so we need to bring a new believer into the church.
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No one gave me any materials to read after i accepted christ.
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No one gave to me a copy of "the new believer's bible"
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And said, "hey greg, read this."
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In fact, the reason i wrote the notes for this bible was because
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Nothing like this was available when i first came to christ and
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I wanted to have something i could offer to someone
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That could help them grow as a brand-new believer.
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But there's a guy that showed up in my life and i didn't know him
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From adam's house eat.
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And i don't know if adam had a house cat but i guarantee
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He didn't have a dog that he kept in the sling but anyway.
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But this guy, his name is mark, he walks up to me,
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"hi, my name is mark."
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I'm like, "okay, hi."
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He says, "i noticed you accepted christ
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At the bible study the other day."
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I said, "yeah, i did."
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And he said, "i wanna take you to church."
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I said, "oh, that's okay, i don't wanna go to church."
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He goes, "no, i want you to come to church with me."
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"no, no thank you, thanks for asking, but no."
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"yeah, where do you live?"
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"no, i don't wanna go to church with you."
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"what's your address?"
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Next thing i know, i'm in his car on my way to church.
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And i love this guy 'cause he wouldn't take no for an answer,
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He was persistent in the best way possible.
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He takes me to calvary chapel and i walk smack dab into the
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Middle of a spiritual awakening and my life started changing.
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See, the only christians i knew were the ones
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On my high school campus.
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I knew nothing about the church, i knew nothing about the bible,
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I knew nothing about god, i was like just
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A blank piece of paper.
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But mark took me under his wing,
00:12:31.026 --> 00:12:33.329
Effectively he was discipling me.
00:12:33.329 --> 00:12:36.465
There was no question that was too ridiculous to ask him.
00:12:36.465 --> 00:12:40.136
He modeled for me what a christian should be.
00:12:40.136 --> 00:12:43.405
I could observe him.
00:12:43.405 --> 00:12:45.074
I remember going over to his home, he was living with his
00:12:45.074 --> 00:12:47.376
Parents we were still kids and i would have dinner with his
00:12:47.376 --> 00:12:50.446
Parents and they were all christians and we would open the
00:12:50.446 --> 00:12:53.749
Bible and they would tell me things from scripture
00:12:53.749 --> 00:12:56.152
I'd never heard before.
00:12:56.152 --> 00:12:57.586
I remember the first time they told me about the rapture.
00:12:57.586 --> 00:13:00.689
Jesus is gonna come for his church.
00:13:00.689 --> 00:13:02.491
It was so exciting to learn these things and you can be that
00:13:02.491 --> 00:13:06.195
Person for someone else if you're an older believer because
00:13:06.195 --> 00:13:11.300
There are some things that are taught and there are other
00:13:11.300 --> 00:13:14.136
Things that are caught.
00:13:14.136 --> 00:13:16.906
There's only so much i can do behind some pulpit.
00:13:16.906 --> 00:13:20.242
They need to see what a real living breathing
00:13:20.242 --> 00:13:22.444
Christian looks like.
00:13:22.444 --> 00:13:24.446
They need to know how does a christian drive?
00:13:24.446 --> 00:13:28.050
And that's exactly why i don't want a new believer around me.
00:13:28.050 --> 00:13:32.087
"do they drive the speed limit or something close to it?"
00:13:32.087 --> 00:13:34.523
You know, what does that christian
00:13:34.523 --> 00:13:36.292
Do with their free time?
00:13:36.292 --> 00:13:38.294
How does a christian husband treat his wife?
00:13:38.294 --> 00:13:40.496
How does a christian wife treat her husband?
00:13:40.496 --> 00:13:43.432
How do christian kids react to their parents?
00:13:43.432 --> 00:13:46.735
Do christians drink?
00:13:46.735 --> 00:13:48.571
Do christians go to movies?
00:13:48.571 --> 00:13:50.372
The answer is yes, we go see "jesus revolution"
00:13:50.372 --> 00:13:52.541
And some other films as well.
00:13:52.541 --> 00:13:55.010
But paul says to timothy in 2 timothy 3:10,
00:13:55.010 --> 00:13:58.948
"you've observed my teaching and my conduct and my aim in life,
00:13:58.948 --> 00:14:04.186
Which is my faith."
00:14:04.186 --> 00:14:05.821
So yeah, teaching is good, but they need to see you in the way
00:14:05.821 --> 00:14:08.958
That you live.
00:14:08.958 --> 00:14:10.526
Greg: quick question, would you have dental work done
00:14:14.430 --> 00:14:16.465
By a dentist who is missing half his teeth?
00:14:16.465 --> 00:14:20.002
Would you take vocal lessons from a person
00:14:20.002 --> 00:14:23.239
Who could not sing on pitch?
00:14:23.239 --> 00:14:25.741
Would you go learn about diet from someone who is morbidly
00:14:25.741 --> 00:14:30.012
Obese or would you have a physical trainer at your gym
00:14:30.012 --> 00:14:33.716
From a guy or a girl who couldn't even do one pushup?
00:14:33.716 --> 00:14:37.086
I don't think so.
00:14:37.086 --> 00:14:38.354
I think the first thing we look for is, "hey, i want that person
00:14:38.354 --> 00:14:41.390
To do what they're telling me to do."
00:14:41.390 --> 00:14:44.026
Okay, i bring this up because we are called to go into all the
00:14:44.026 --> 00:14:47.663
World and make disciples, but here's what people are looking
00:14:47.663 --> 00:14:50.900
For, they're looking for people that practice what they preach.
00:14:50.900 --> 00:14:54.837
The apostle paul said, "follow my example as i follow christ."
00:14:54.837 --> 00:15:00.109
Be a good example, and that will earn you
00:15:00.109 --> 00:15:02.678
The right to share your faith.
00:15:02.678 --> 00:15:05.314
Greg: new believers need old believers,
00:15:09.118 --> 00:15:12.288
Old believers need new believers.
00:15:12.288 --> 00:15:14.924
Having a new believer in your life can have a reviving affect
00:15:14.924 --> 00:15:19.361
On you as they discover truths for the first time,
00:15:19.361 --> 00:15:23.132
You can rediscover them.
00:15:23.132 --> 00:15:25.701
You stabilize them, they energize you.
00:15:25.701 --> 00:15:30.406
This is illustrated with spending time with children.
00:15:30.406 --> 00:15:33.976
Someone asked me in an interview recently, "what do you like
00:15:33.976 --> 00:15:36.378
To do with your free time?"
00:15:36.378 --> 00:15:38.247
And i said, "i like to eat raw lard.
00:15:38.247 --> 00:15:41.216
Is that bad?"
00:15:41.216 --> 00:15:42.718
No, i didn't say that's a joke.
00:15:42.718 --> 00:15:44.286
Okay, so no, i said, you know what?
00:15:44.286 --> 00:15:45.888
I thought about it for a moment.
00:15:45.888 --> 00:15:47.423
I said, "i like to spend time with my grandkids."
00:15:47.423 --> 00:15:49.191
I call 'em up or text 'em.
00:15:49.191 --> 00:15:50.559
"hey, what are you doing? you want to go somewhere?"
00:15:50.559 --> 00:15:52.328
"yeah, we want to go do this, papa, we wanna get ice cream."
00:15:52.328 --> 00:15:54.697
"then we're going to get ice cream."
00:15:54.697 --> 00:15:56.665
"we wanna walk around in the mall."
00:15:56.665 --> 00:15:58.067
"let's do it."
00:15:58.067 --> 00:15:59.401
"we wanna do this other thing."
00:15:59.401 --> 00:16:00.736
"let's do that."
00:16:00.736 --> 00:16:02.237
See, my job is not to parent them,
00:16:02.237 --> 00:16:03.706
My job is to grandparent them.
00:16:03.706 --> 00:16:07.643
Fill 'em up with sugar and send them on home, right?
00:16:07.643 --> 00:16:14.083
No, but seriously, it's to enter into their life,
00:16:14.083 --> 00:16:17.219
Do what they wanna do.
00:16:17.219 --> 00:16:18.554
You say well, you know, "that's a nice thing for you to do."
00:16:18.554 --> 00:16:21.890
Actually i enjoy it, it's good for me too.
00:16:21.890 --> 00:16:25.127
And i think when you have a new believer in your life,
00:16:25.127 --> 00:16:28.831
It energizes you as well.
00:16:28.831 --> 00:16:31.433
You know, some grandparents have collected a lot of things over
00:16:31.433 --> 00:16:34.937
The years that they have in their home and they say to the
00:16:34.937 --> 00:16:38.440
Grandkids when they come over, "don't touch anything, that's
00:16:38.440 --> 00:16:40.876
Fragile, don't break that."
00:16:40.876 --> 00:16:42.878
You know, get rid of all that junk, okay.
00:16:42.878 --> 00:16:45.247
Put it in a box, no one likes it anyway, just--
00:16:45.247 --> 00:16:49.785
It's funky old stuff.
00:16:49.785 --> 00:16:52.254
Put it away, go admire it sometime in your own.
00:16:52.254 --> 00:16:54.890
When your grandkids come in, make your home
00:16:54.890 --> 00:16:56.925
A welcoming place.
00:16:56.925 --> 00:16:58.761
And the same is true spiritually.
00:16:58.761 --> 00:17:00.662
Have a life, have a lifestyle, have a home that's welcoming
00:17:00.662 --> 00:17:04.633
To new believers.
00:17:04.633 --> 00:17:06.735
It's good for them and it's good for you.
00:17:06.735 --> 00:17:10.539
Because a new believer might ask questions that you don't have
00:17:10.539 --> 00:17:13.742
The answers to, therefore you got to get back in the bible
00:17:13.742 --> 00:17:17.112
Again and they'll remind you of things that
00:17:17.112 --> 00:17:19.481
Maybe you have forgotten.
00:17:19.481 --> 00:17:21.784
I read an article about a number of billionaires who are trying
00:17:21.784 --> 00:17:24.486
To find a cure for aging and some of them are getting
00:17:24.486 --> 00:17:28.057
Blood--i'm not making this up, this seems insane to me.
00:17:28.057 --> 00:17:31.260
They're getting blood transfusions from healthy young
00:17:31.260 --> 00:17:33.729
People from the ages of 16 and 25, believing it will reverse
00:17:33.729 --> 00:17:39.034
The aging process.
00:17:39.034 --> 00:17:41.470
What they didn't plan for was the fact that after getting
00:17:41.470 --> 00:17:43.939
These blood transfusions, they moved back into their parents'
00:17:43.939 --> 00:17:46.675
House and played video games nonstop so.
00:17:46.675 --> 00:17:51.447
No, listen, you want a blood transfusion?
00:17:51.447 --> 00:17:55.184
Get a new believer not a dog, not a cat, they're fine.
00:17:55.184 --> 00:17:59.621
No, a human being that you can help grow spiritually.
00:17:59.621 --> 00:18:04.793
And here at harvest, we are an evangelistic church and will
00:18:04.793 --> 00:18:08.263
Always be an evangelistic church.
00:18:08.263 --> 00:18:13.135
New believers are the lifeblood of the church.
00:18:13.135 --> 00:18:16.305
You show me a church that doesn't have a constant flow
00:18:16.305 --> 00:18:18.807
Of new believers in it, and i will show you a church that's
00:18:18.807 --> 00:18:22.211
Beginning to stagnate.
00:18:22.211 --> 00:18:24.746
As i've said before, we have a choice, evangelize or fossilize.
00:18:24.746 --> 00:18:30.085
We don't wanna live in the past, we rejoice in what god has done
00:18:30.085 --> 00:18:32.654
But that's then and this is now.
00:18:32.654 --> 00:18:35.057
And we wanna keep reaching new people and help them come into
00:18:35.057 --> 00:18:38.961
A relationship with christ.
00:18:38.961 --> 00:18:40.762
And that brings us now to what we call the great commission
00:18:40.762 --> 00:18:44.066
Here in matthew 28 verse 16, "jesus said to his disciples,
00:18:44.066 --> 00:18:50.506
'i've been given all authority in heaven and on earth.
00:18:50.506 --> 00:18:53.876
Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them
00:18:53.876 --> 00:18:58.180
In the name of the father and of the son, and of the holy spirit.
00:18:58.180 --> 00:19:02.384
Teach these new disciples to obey all my commands
00:19:02.384 --> 00:19:05.721
I have given you.
00:19:05.721 --> 00:19:07.256
And be sure of this,' says our lord.
00:19:07.256 --> 00:19:09.491
'i'm with you even to the end of the age.'"
00:19:09.491 --> 00:19:12.995
That brings me to my next point, before i can make a disciple
00:19:12.995 --> 00:19:15.998
I have to first be a disciple.
00:19:15.998 --> 00:19:18.767
Are you a disciple of jesus christ?
00:19:18.767 --> 00:19:21.970
And are you discipling someone else?
00:19:21.970 --> 00:19:24.072
Listen, we should be either discipling someone or we should
00:19:24.072 --> 00:19:29.178
Be being discipled by someone.
00:19:29.178 --> 00:19:32.447
In other words, we should either have a new believer in our life
00:19:32.447 --> 00:19:35.150
That we're helping out, or we should have an older believer
00:19:35.150 --> 00:19:38.587
In our life that's helping us out and guess what?
00:19:38.587 --> 00:19:40.856
Sometimes you can do both at the same time.
00:19:40.856 --> 00:19:44.226
You can have someone that's mentoring you and you can be
00:19:44.226 --> 00:19:46.995
Mentoring somebody else.
00:19:46.995 --> 00:19:48.864
This is really important and it's part of
00:19:48.864 --> 00:19:51.066
What we're called to do.
00:19:51.066 --> 00:19:53.168
What is the great commission?
00:19:53.168 --> 00:19:54.503
Number one, he says, be baptized in the name of the father, son,
00:19:54.503 --> 00:19:57.272
And the holy spirit.
00:19:57.272 --> 00:19:59.107
And what else are we to do?
00:19:59.107 --> 00:20:00.742
We're to teach people to obey his commands.
00:20:00.742 --> 00:20:04.613
And by the way, the great commission is a command.
00:20:04.613 --> 00:20:08.584
In other words, jesus says, "hey, if you can work it out in
00:20:08.584 --> 00:20:10.586
Your busy schedule, would you mind as a personal favor
00:20:10.586 --> 00:20:13.589
To go into all the world?"
00:20:13.589 --> 00:20:15.023
No, he says, "i'm your lord, i'm your commander and i command you
00:20:15.023 --> 00:20:20.395
To go into all the world and preach the gospel."
00:20:20.395 --> 00:20:23.999
I like to be commanded by jesus, don't you?
00:20:23.999 --> 00:20:27.069
That's a great thing to do.
00:20:27.069 --> 00:20:33.408
Remember years ago, i had the privilege of being asked to be
00:20:33.408 --> 00:20:35.811
On the board of directors of the billy graham evangelistic
00:20:35.811 --> 00:20:38.280
Association by billy himself.
00:20:38.280 --> 00:20:42.217
And i remember i was invited into a room where billy and all
00:20:42.217 --> 00:20:46.455
Of those that have served with him for so many years wanted me
00:20:46.455 --> 00:20:48.924
To give them a sermon.
00:20:48.924 --> 00:20:50.892
And i was petrified preaching in front of billy graham.
00:20:50.892 --> 00:20:54.496
And so i was brought under the board and one day billy said,
00:20:54.496 --> 00:20:57.799
I need a hat because billy was always losing his hats.
00:20:57.799 --> 00:21:01.536
Somehow he thought that a ball cap would disguise him
00:21:01.536 --> 00:21:04.740
But people always managed to recognize billy.
00:21:04.740 --> 00:21:07.676
Because he had a profile you could put on mount rushmore.
00:21:07.676 --> 00:21:10.445
You know, very distinctive profile.
00:21:10.445 --> 00:21:12.314
People always recognized him but he wanted a hat.
00:21:12.314 --> 00:21:15.017
"greg," he said, "i want you to get me a hat."
00:21:15.017 --> 00:21:17.419
I felt like i was on a mission from god.
00:21:17.419 --> 00:21:21.056
So, i don't know where we were, we were in some city where he
00:21:21.056 --> 00:21:24.092
Was doing a crusade and went down to the local mall
00:21:24.092 --> 00:21:26.962
And i found a hat store.
00:21:26.962 --> 00:21:28.797
I think it was called lids maybe.
00:21:28.797 --> 00:21:30.799
And i've never seen so many hats in my life and i didn't know
00:21:30.799 --> 00:21:34.069
What his size was, i'm looking and praying god give me wisdom,
00:21:34.069 --> 00:21:37.439
What's the right hat for billy graham?
00:21:37.439 --> 00:21:39.474
And then i finally found a hat and i went to him, "billy,
00:21:39.474 --> 00:21:42.110
I got you a hat."
00:21:42.110 --> 00:21:43.545
It's ball cap.
00:21:43.545 --> 00:21:45.013
He says, "thank you." he put it on.
00:21:45.013 --> 00:21:46.415
The next day there was a picture of him wearing my hat.
00:21:46.415 --> 00:21:49.017
I said, "that's my hat, i got him that hat."
00:21:49.017 --> 00:21:51.787
And then he lost it.
00:21:51.787 --> 00:21:53.455
So, you know, but i love the fact that billy graham said,
00:21:53.455 --> 00:21:57.926
"do this for me."
00:21:57.926 --> 00:21:59.861
It was my honor, it was my privilege to do anything to help
00:21:59.861 --> 00:22:03.765
A man of god like that.
00:22:03.765 --> 00:22:05.701
Now, think the lord jesus christ is saying, "do this for me.
00:22:05.701 --> 00:22:09.404
Look at all that i've done for you, now i want you to do the
00:22:09.404 --> 00:22:12.674
Following, go into all the world and make disciples
00:22:12.674 --> 00:22:15.977
Of all nations."
00:22:15.977 --> 00:22:17.512
It's a command.
00:22:17.512 --> 00:22:19.047
It's not given to only the original disciples,
00:22:19.047 --> 00:22:23.785
Nor is it given to the so-called professionals alone like
00:22:23.785 --> 00:22:27.356
Pastors, or evangelists, or missionaries, these words are
00:22:27.356 --> 00:22:31.693
Addressed to every follower of jesus, they're addressed to you.
00:22:31.693 --> 00:22:35.430
So here's my question, are you making disciples?
00:22:35.430 --> 00:22:38.633
When is the last time you've shared the gospel?
00:22:38.633 --> 00:22:41.036
When is the last time you've taken a new believer under your
00:22:41.036 --> 00:22:44.539
Wing and helped them to grow spiritually?
00:22:44.539 --> 00:22:46.975
And this is something for all of us to do.
00:22:46.975 --> 00:22:49.678
And listen, the calling of god is the enabling of god.
00:22:49.678 --> 00:22:53.615
He will give you all of the power that you need.
00:22:53.615 --> 00:22:56.618
Look at verse 18, jesus says, "all power is given to me
00:22:56.618 --> 00:23:00.188
In heaven and in earth.
00:23:00.188 --> 00:23:01.757
Go therefore and make disciples."
00:23:01.757 --> 00:23:04.593
Now, whenever you see the word, "therefore,"
00:23:04.593 --> 00:23:06.595
Find out what it's there for.
00:23:06.595 --> 00:23:09.030
It's always drawing on what was previously said.
00:23:09.030 --> 00:23:12.200
So contextually, jesus says, "all power is given to me
00:23:12.200 --> 00:23:15.704
In heaven and on earth.
00:23:15.704 --> 00:23:17.973
Go, therefore."
00:23:17.973 --> 00:23:19.608
Wait, but you have the power, i don't have it.
00:23:19.608 --> 00:23:21.176
"no, i'm giving it to you."
00:23:21.176 --> 00:23:23.111
It says, "jesus, go therefore into all the world
00:23:23.111 --> 00:23:26.848
And make disciples."
00:23:26.848 --> 00:23:29.451
What does it mean to go and make disciples?
00:23:29.451 --> 00:23:31.319
It means to lead others to christ, establish them
00:23:31.319 --> 00:23:34.589
Spiritually and do it again.
00:23:34.589 --> 00:23:36.458
It's sort of like wash, rinse, repeat.
00:23:36.458 --> 00:23:40.495
You've seen that on some direction
00:23:40.495 --> 00:23:42.464
For cleaning something?
00:23:42.464 --> 00:23:44.099
Wash, rinse, repeat.
00:23:44.099 --> 00:23:46.535
Or evangelize, stabilize, and mobilize.
00:23:46.535 --> 00:23:50.739
This is our job.
00:23:50.739 --> 00:23:52.073
You do it, you do it again, you do it again, and you do it
00:23:52.073 --> 00:23:54.409
A few more times and then you keep doing it.
00:23:54.409 --> 00:23:56.278
It never stops.
00:23:56.278 --> 00:23:57.813
It's a lifetime commitment.
00:23:57.813 --> 00:23:59.514
Somewhere along the line, we've separated evangelism
00:23:59.514 --> 00:24:03.452
From discipleship but they're really one and the same.
00:24:03.452 --> 00:24:06.288
The great commission is not just gospel proclamation,
00:24:06.288 --> 00:24:10.425
It's follow up and it's discipleship.
00:24:10.425 --> 00:24:13.962
And it would be like a doctor, you know, delivering a baby and
00:24:13.962 --> 00:24:18.233
Then giving the baby a box of pampers and saying,
00:24:18.233 --> 00:24:20.202
"son, you got to get out there, it's a rough world,
00:24:20.202 --> 00:24:21.970
But you'll do okay."
00:24:21.970 --> 00:24:24.272
A baby needs to be cared for.
00:24:24.272 --> 00:24:26.308
Speaking of babies, a study was conducted in a large hospital
00:24:26.308 --> 00:24:29.978
And they discovered something interesting.
00:24:29.978 --> 00:24:32.047
They found that the people working in the nursery noticed
00:24:32.047 --> 00:24:34.649
That the babies who were in their cribs near the door did
00:24:34.649 --> 00:24:38.353
Better than the babies in the cribs in the other parts
00:24:38.353 --> 00:24:41.256
Of the room.
00:24:41.256 --> 00:24:42.724
They wondered why.
00:24:42.724 --> 00:24:44.226
After careful study, they discovered the nurses were more
00:24:44.226 --> 00:24:46.628
Prone to give attention to the babies near the door as they
00:24:46.628 --> 00:24:50.332
Went about their duties.
00:24:50.332 --> 00:24:52.200
This is what a new believer needs, they need care, they need
00:24:52.200 --> 00:24:54.503
Attention, you need to take time for them.
00:24:54.503 --> 00:24:57.606
This is what we're all called to do.
00:24:57.606 --> 00:25:00.275
And listen to what christ says in closing.
00:25:00.275 --> 00:25:02.344
He says, "go into all the world, make disciples of all nations."
00:25:02.344 --> 00:25:07.449
And then he says, "and lo i am with you,
00:25:07.449 --> 00:25:09.551
Even to the end of the age."
00:25:09.551 --> 00:25:11.920
This promise is not simply saying that jesus is with us,
00:25:11.920 --> 00:25:17.993
But he is if you're a christian because jesus said,
00:25:17.993 --> 00:25:21.263
"i'll never leave you or forsake you."
00:25:21.263 --> 00:25:24.499
But this is a promise in its context that is specifically
00:25:24.499 --> 00:25:28.670
Saying to those who are fulfilling the great commission.
00:25:28.670 --> 00:25:31.907
Allow me to paraphrase.
00:25:31.907 --> 00:25:33.441
Jesus is saying, "as you go into all the world and make disciples
00:25:33.441 --> 00:25:37.112
Of all nations, teaching them to observe all things
00:25:37.112 --> 00:25:39.915
That i've commanded you, lo i am with you."
00:25:39.915 --> 00:25:44.219
In other words, i'm gonna be with you in a special way.
00:25:44.219 --> 00:25:47.122
I'm gonna bless you in a unique way.
00:25:47.122 --> 00:25:49.558
I'm gonna use you in a fantastic way as you go about doing this
00:25:49.558 --> 00:25:54.129
Thing that i've called you to do.
00:25:54.129 --> 00:25:56.565
Greg: hi, i am greg laurie.
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I've got some good news for you, god loves you and god has
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A plan for your life.
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Here's the problem, we're separated from god by our sin
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Because we've all broken his commandments.
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But the good news is, is 2,000 years ago, god sent his son
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Jesus christ to die on the cross for your sin and then
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To rise again from the dead.
00:26:21.222 --> 00:26:23.391
The same jesus who died and rose is alive and ready to come
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Into your life right now.
00:26:27.062 --> 00:26:29.230
Would you like your sin forgiven?
00:26:29.230 --> 00:26:31.399
Would you like to know that when you die you will go to heaven?
00:26:31.399 --> 00:26:34.369
If so, pray this simple prayer with me right now.
00:26:34.369 --> 00:26:37.672
Just say, "lord jesus, i know i'm a sinner, but i believe
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You're the savior who died on the cross for my sin.
00:26:41.176 --> 00:26:44.613
I turn from my sin now and i choose to follow you
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From this moment forward."
00:26:48.183 --> 00:26:50.552
Did you just pray that prayer with me?
00:26:50.552 --> 00:26:52.487
If you did, god in heaven has
00:26:52.487 --> 00:26:54.422
Heard you and i wanna send you
00:26:54.422 --> 00:26:56.658
A new testament
00:26:56.658 --> 00:26:57.626
To start reading.
00:26:57.626 --> 00:27:00.095
Announcer: "revelation: a book of promises" by greg laurie is
00:27:00.161 --> 00:27:03.865
Designed to help you see jesus as the centerpiece,
00:27:03.865 --> 00:27:06.301
The star, and the focus of revelation.
00:27:06.301 --> 00:27:09.604
With this eminently practical guide,
00:27:09.604 --> 00:27:12.007
You can experience the blessing promised to those who read,
00:27:12.007 --> 00:27:15.377
Hear, and keep the words of this prophetic book.
00:27:15.377 --> 00:27:18.913
After all, bible prophecy is not given to inflate our brains,
00:27:18.913 --> 00:27:22.550
But to enlarge our hearts.
00:27:22.550 --> 00:27:24.919
Request "revelation" by greg laurie when you give today.
00:27:24.919 --> 00:27:24.919

Greg Laurie - Discipleship: The Next Step In Following Jesus

August 5, 2025 | 27:40

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