Regaining Lost Ground

Pastor Shane Idleman: Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. Listen, are you coming on Sunday just to get here? I guess I'll come on Sunday. But is there a hunger? Is there a desire? I have to get to church, I have to hear worship, I have to hear your word. There's a hunger and there's a desire.

And as you're doing that, the Bible says, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled." Filled with what? Food? Filled with what? The Spirit of God.

Guest (Male): Thank you for joining us here at Westside Christian Fellowship, located in Leona Valley, California, one hour north of Los Angeles. Today on Regaining Lost Ground, we hear part one of this hard-hitting message titled "When a Vessel is Struck."

Second Corinthians 4:7 tells us, "But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us." Do you ever wonder why you struggle in your Christian walk? Are you living every day feeling helpless, like life is against you? Get those answers and more in this uplifting message from Pastor Shane as he shares a message of truth and hope, a sermon meant for you right now, here on Regaining Lost Ground.

You can hear the whole message at Pastor Shane's YouTube and Rumble channels. Make sure to subscribe today. For more information, visit us online at WestsideChristianFellowship.com. We also encourage you to hear more truth from Pastor Shane with the Idleman Unplugged weekly podcast. And now from Westside Christian Fellowship in Leona Valley, California, here's Pastor Shane Idleman.

Pastor Shane Idleman: When a vessel is struck, what's inside spills out. When a vessel is struck, what's inside spills out. Do you know when a vessel is struck, what's inside spills out? What spills out when you're struck? Bad news, finances, things aren't going your way. We all have a certain plan, don't we?

Tomorrow was not my plan. It was not. I was pretty confident, but God never spoke. He never told me. He just said, "Trust me and seek me." And then you really live out Scripture. You do. "Though he slay me, yet will I trust him." And you have to go through those fires to really be purified and build that relationship with the Lord.

So, we're in Acts 13, verse 26. "Men and brethren, sons of the family of Abraham, and those among you who fear God." This is where we left off last week, but I love to remind you about this. Many fear God, but they don't know him. Many fear God, do they not? But they don't know him. Most religions fear God, of course, but they don't truly know him because they haven't repented of their sin and had the Holy Spirit fill them.

Psalm 89:7 says God is greatly to be feared. This really stood out this week because of what it says here: God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of his saints. This is why we don't play games here. We're careful with what type of music and announcements. Church growth models are actually where I am supposed to direct this service and the music based on unbelievers coming in.

I understand you don't want to just totally, but really the point of us coming together is to, well, you can come and watch if you're an unbeliever, but I'm not going to tailor it to what you might be wanting because the darkness is in the heart. We need to let the light of the Gospel shine through in this place and God will be feared in the assembly of his saints. He will be held in reverence by all those around him. So the things we do, the things we support, the things we promote, everything, we want to make sure there's a holy standard there. We don't always hit it, but God is to be feared in the assembly of his people.

As I said last week, to you the word of this salvation. Paul is talking to the Jews. It went to you. "For those who dwell in Jerusalem and their rulers because they did not know him, nor even the voices of the prophets which are read every single Sabbath, have fulfilled them in condemning him." So basically, whatever you're reading on the Sabbath, you actually fulfilled it in condemning Jesus Christ.

If you have a problem with God's word, the problem may not be intellectual but spiritual. Many times we come across people who have a problem with God's word. And if you dig a little deeper, you realize they don't want the facts. They don't want the God of the Bible.

That is what was happening here. God's word was sent to you, and intellectually you had it. "You draw nigh to me with your lips but your hearts are far from me." So be careful, anybody listening who's approaching this intellectually only. I'm all for intellectualism. Praise God the Bible makes sense to me intellectually. If you're intellectually honest, look at how the body was made. You want to be blown away? Study your immune system, your T-cells, your bone marrow, your lymphatic system. Just study what it does. It's amazing.

It's not like, "I'm a Christian, I checked my brain at the door. I believe in Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy." That is not Christianity. It's very intellectual. It makes sense, too. Of course there's a Creator. But you can't just have it intellectually; you must also make the spiritual condition.

Final recap. Though they found no cause for death in Jesus, they asked Pontius Pilate that he should put him to death. And so when they had fulfilled all that was written concerning Jesus, they took him down from the tree and they laid him in a tomb. But God raised him from the dead. And that's why we are here. We know that fact with absolute certainty, that God has raised him from the dead.

By the way, if you need prayer for healing, let the team, we have oil just like the Bible says. Bible says it. So let us pray for you if you're sick between services. Let us lay hands on you. The team is qualified to pray for that and believe in God. Sound good?

Acts 13, picking up here, verse 31. Jesus was seen for many days by those who came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are witnesses to the people. This is what I love about the resurrection. It wasn't just one and done. "Where did he go? I don't know, nobody knows." Do you know how many days he stayed around? 40 days. 40 days.

He appeared to his disciples. He appeared to people. And that's why these people could later give their life because they saw the risen Savior. They saw him. And they said, "We declare to you this great news that promises which had been made to the fathers have been fulfilled." God has fulfilled these promises and he raised up Jesus.

If you're like me, you are like, "If we were there, of course I would believe." You just saw him crucified, now you're walking with him and he is making fish by the beach. Sorry, plant-based only crowd. Boy, that's confusing, too, isn't it? That whole debate. Must be keto, must be plants. Lord, give us direction here.

But this verse is very encouraging. John 20:29, Jesus said to him, Thomas, "Because you have seen me, you have believed." Guys, this is for us, ready? "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." Your faith is actually stronger to some degree than those who actually saw him and believed because that's real faith. I didn't see, but Lord, I take you at your word. I believe you. I have the witness of the Spirit and I'm just believing in faith.

You remember what I've told you before, that just an hour up in those mountains by Arrowhead is where Billy Graham had that crisis of faith. A guy by the name of Jack Templeton was a more gifted preacher than Billy Graham and he began to what we would consider today left and liberal. He began to go that direction, the wrong intellect, began to question God's word and he began to challenge Billy on things.

So Billy Graham laid his Bible on a tree stump and said, "Lord, from this moment forward, I believe this is your word. This is the inspired word of God." Closed it, never turned back. That's faith. And some of you might need that faith because it's crystal clear there's a Creator. There's no doubt in most people's minds that the Earth just isn't sitting here with the moon. Come on guys, hello? I can't even build a chair with wood. How did all this happen? There's a Creator.

And so God raised him from the dead, no more to return to corruption. He has spoken thus: "I will give you the sure mercies of David." Therefore, he also says in another Psalm: "You will not allow your Holy One to see corruption." Now, I'm thinking the Pharisees know this Psalm. Jesus' resurrection from the dead, which means his body didn't break down.

That is what corruption is. David's body was into corruption; "To the earth you shall return, dust to dust, earth to earth." You return to that. But Jesus, nope, he didn't see corruption. And you'd think there's a Pharisee, you wonder like, "Wow, that Zechariah, Isaiah, this." The soldiers actually said an angel appeared and rolled back the stone. The soldiers didn't say someone stole the body. I don't think it looks like they are scared to death. They go back and look what happened and they still hid the truth.

We say, "Wow, that's amazing." That's what pride does. Self-assertive, can't be wrong. Anybody in here can't be wrong? You don't like to be challenged? For David, after he served his own generation by the will of God, fell asleep and was buried and he saw corruption. But he whom God raised up, Jesus, saw no corruption. Therefore, let it be known to you, brethren.

Remember, Paul is speaking in the synagogue to the Jews, breaking down God's word. I wish I could have seen this sometimes. "Therefore, you guys, and through this man, Jesus Christ, is preached to you for the forgiveness of sin. And by him everyone who believes is justified from all things." In other words, he's going to wreck their world right now. "From which you could not be justified by the law of Moses. Beware therefore, lest what has been spoken in the prophets come upon you."

He just told them, "You are following the law and that is not going to save you." How is that going over? When they are struck, what's inside is going to spill out. This is so important for us today too. Even if you break down, there's different religions out there, I don't have to say the different names, but I don't know of one that is not works-based. Works-based.

If you get down to it and you talk to the different groups that knock on your door, it will eventually come out: "Yeah, you have to do these things." That's why you see so many of them; they have to do it. That's the difference. We don't have to, we should want to. And many people don't want to. But they think these works, again look it up if you want, there are religions that say there is no salvation outside of their group because you have to follow their teaching. You have to follow what they believe. And that is deadly and damning.

If you're basing "I am going to be right with God someday because I am such," that's pride. It's sickening. You are going to be right with God because of some of the things you did? Let's think this through. But then it's pride because it's self-assertive, self-salvation. "Self, I can do this."

But then to make things worse, he said, "The prophets actually spoke about you. You guys ready for this? Behold, you despisers." That's to strongly dislike, to hate, to look down with disrespect. "Behold, you guys look down upon God wrongly and upon Christ. You are despisers, you are going to marvel and you're going to perish. For I work a work in your days, a work which will by no means believe, though one were to declare it to you."

Paul is fulfilling this. He is declaring it to them and they are not believing it. And there are many today, maybe not here this morning, but listening later or might come across this. They strongly dislike, they hate the truth. They look down upon it with disrespect. You know those people; they look down upon you because you're a Christian. Anybody have those in your family or friends? I'm the only one that gets slammed? Nobody else in here? Okay.

I hate what you stand for. I look down, you poor Christians. You have to believe something. You believe that everything came from nothing? Tell them that. "Well, no, I am agnostic, there's gotta be a higher power somewhere." And you are going to dictate who that higher power is according to your rules and what you think? How silly is that?

And I talk to people who say, "Well, I think God is," and they tell me. I'm like, "Are you sure? Like, that's a big deal. That is a big deal that you think God is like this. What about if he's not? What about if he's revealed to us who he is through the nature of his Son, through his written word, through the conviction of the Spirit?"

Acts 13. So when the Jews went out of the synagogue, out the door, probably a little hot-headed, the Gentiles, here is the difference. The Jews leave upset; the Gentiles beg them that these words might be preached to them. So when the Jews went out, the Gentiles begged that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath.

Look at the difference. The Jews go out upset; this other group is hungry for more of God. Let me tell you, I could camp out here for a minute of what I've seen over the years. Storm out, "I'm not coming back." And then other people are broken, crying, they come back to the Lord. "Lord, what happened?" It's the same word, different hearts. Pride versus humility. "How dare you challenge us" versus "God, we need you, tell us more, tell us more." Do we not see this in our day?

Now when the congregation had broken up, it's just like us, guys. Fortunately, the vast majority of you leave encouraged. We want to hear more on Wednesday and Sunday. But that doesn't always happen, does it? Hopefully, Alfred, this is a good plug for you to remind them on that Wednesday that you did not like my preaching for a while. He would come in like [grunts]. God was wrestling with him and now it's an incredible couple, what God has done.

I'm just excited that you guys can hear that. So when the congregation had broken up, many of the Jews and devout proselytes, meaning those that have been converted, followed Paul and Barnabas, who speaking to them persuaded them to continue in the grace of God. Guys, this is where we need mentors. If you want to mentor, maybe you're retired, let the office know because we need people to come alongside and just persuade people to keep walking in the right direction.

Persuade them in their faith. They weren't negative. "Look what's happening in the world today. Look what's happening in America. We are going to hell in a handbasket." No, they persuaded them. But I don't want to give this up too soon. The Gentiles were hungry for the word. "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled."

Listen, are you coming on Sunday just to get here? I guess I'll come on Sunday. But is there a hunger? Is there a desire? I have to get to church, I have to hear worship, I have to hear your word. There's a hunger and there's a desire. And as you're doing that, the Bible says, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled."

Filled with what? Food? Filled with what? The Spirit of God. Filled with blessings, filled with peace. Guys, I will tell you what, I will take peace any day of the week than any other comfort. Knowing God, having that peace. And that is blessed. When you read this, blessed are those.

Don't believe the lies of the prosperity gospel that says you're going to be a millionaire. God wants you healthy, wealthy, carefree. You're going to prosper just as your soul prospers. You doing okay financially, anybody? Well, you're not exercising faith. Come on guys. How ridiculous.

Can I just be honest? The people I know that come here, I know them pretty well, they are the most blessed, paycheck to paycheck sometimes. It's amazing. Now, there are those who are doing really well financially. God uses them, of course, to bless others. Thank God for that. There is a whole mix there.

But blessed means God's got you. His grace is upon you. He is leading you, he's guiding you. He may heal. If not, he may sustain while you're waiting. And it's just being, there's something in freedom, I am walking in the blessings of God. Lord, you know my heart.

Also, which makes no sense, most of us don't have jobs where we're going to be millionaires. So where is this money coming from? Have you ever thought about that? Of course you have three jets and you're a millionaire because you sucker people all over TV to send you money. That is not the same as most of us. I don't live in that world, neither do you.

They were persuaded. It's a continued trusting in Jesus alone for salvation instead of the works of self-effort that they were accustomed to. Rely on God's empowering presence versus your performance. You cannot rely on your performance. And we know those people; they're performers. "I have done this, I've done this, man, Pastor, I've been reading the Bible." Okay, that is good, but don't base your walk with the Lord based on your performance.

It has to be based on intimacy, on God's empowering presence, on seeking him. And so the next Sabbath, almost the whole city came together. I bet they did. Can you imagine the talk of the town? But when the Jews saw the multitude, oh oh.

Guest (Male): You've been listening to Regaining Lost Ground with Pastor Shane Idleman. You can find more information at WestsideChristianFellowship.com. That's WestsideChristianFellowship.org.

And for all the latest on what God is doing with his ministry here, please be sure to follow us on most social media platforms. Westside Christian Fellowship is located 60 miles north of Los Angeles in Leona Valley, California. Thank you again for listening to today's message of Regaining Lost Ground, where we are reminded daily: times change, truth does not.