Jesus calls on us to be obedient in all things.

Pastor Linn: 00:05 -video playing-

Pastor Linn: 01:09 Hey, Cornerstone, how are you doing?

Pastor Linn: 01:15 Man, super, super glad that you're here today. I think we've got a conversation that's going to be powerful and helpful in your lives. Before we dive in, real quick, if you've been around a while, you know that we've been in the process of trying to secure a loan, and the last update we gave you is that we were in the...the group that we were doing the loans through was putting us through an appraisal process. The appraisal came back lower than we all wanted. So, my best understanding is we have a loan. It's just with the appraisal there, they can't loan us the amount that we'd like to be funded at. So, it was actually the loaning group that came back to us and said, "Look, we don't like that appraisal. We think we can get a better appraisal." They're actually paying for a second appraisal right now, believing that that appraisal will come in higher this next time. So, we'll keep you updated. We'll let you know how that goes. But we're just praying that that appraisal comes in stronger than it did the last time, and that we can fully fund what we're trying to get done in a first phase out there. If I've got any regrets about the journey we've had so far with the building, it's that I don't know that I have encouraged us to pray as much as we should have been praying, so I just thought we would take a moment today and pray together. I'm going to ask you that as you leave this place, until we get word on this second appraisal, that you would pray every time you think about the church and just ask God to do His will. So do me a favor, stand with me right now, and I just want to spend a moment together just saying, "Hey, God, you do what you want to do in this particular occasion." Let's pray.

Pastor Linn: 02:47 Hey, dearest Heavenly Father, we simply come to you in a moment when, honestly we don't have any control. We can't determine this outcome, but scripture says that you turn the heart of the King the same way that your finger draws the course of the river. And so, we're asking you today that you would turn the heart of the appraiser, that you would cause him to be favorable, that you would give us an appraisal that allows us to be funded more fully, as we move in this project. And, God, you know our hearts. The only reason we're talking about building is so that we can have more seats, so that more people who haven't figured you out can come to this place. That the people who were already here would have places to do bible study and go deeper in their faith and walk with you. And, we just believe from the bottom of our hearts that that's your heart and your passion and that's why we've been moving forward on this. And so, God, we're going to lay it in your hands. We're going to trust you for outcomes. We're going to ask you to do what only you do this. This we pray in Jesus' name, Amen.

Pastor Linn: 03:53 Hey, thank you, guys. Grab a seat. Second week...second week in a series that we've been calling, "Right In Their Own Eyes". If you've been here, you know that it's a conversation about the nation of Israel during a time called the Judges. And, when they begin this book of Judges, Israel is at an amazing place, at a healthy place. And yet, by the time you finish the book of Judges, they have gone drastically downhill. They have made horrible decision after a horrible decision after a horrible decision, and where we find them in the end is just terrifying. Matter of fact, last week...last week was horrifying. We went through probably the worst passage of scripture in the entire bible. Some of us are in counseling, based on last week. And you know, so if you weren't here, you know, and you are just courageous, you can, you know, go back and hear the sermon about concubines and chainsaws. I would advise against it, but you can. And...but the bottom line is simply this, that the children of Israel ended up in a horrible spot, and the Bible actually describes how they got there. It simply says this. Every time they had a decision made, every time they had a choice, every time they needed to decide what to do, everyone, Scripture says, simply did what was right in their own eyes. They decided what was best for them, what from their perspective thinking about their circumstances, what they thought they ought to do in a moment like that. Everyone simply did what they thought was right in their own eyes, and they went downhill, downhill, downhill. The conversation we've been having is simply to say this. Boy, it is really, really important what you do with your eyes; how you make decisions with your eyes; where you place your eyes. And so, we're going on today.

Pastor Linn: 05:42 Most of us in this room, you would remember in high school having a conversation with your parents that went something like this. If your friends jump off a cliff, would you jump off a cliff? You don't have to do what everybody around you is doing. You don't have to be all freaked out and all full of peer pressure and deciding, are ready for this, that some 14 year old has figured out the secret of life, and therefore, it's incumbent on you to impress the other 14 year olds around you. Because the crazy part is, they're just as screwed up as you are, and they're all worried about impressing everybody else all around them. And then, if that's not enough, are you ready for this, in four years when you graduate high school, you will never see them again, and it will all be for not. Isn't it...Isn't it...just, man, isn't it heartwarming to know that you and I have grown beyond that? That somewhere we crossed that mystical line, and we no longer cared about what people thought of us. We did cross that line, right? I mean, did it happen in college? I mean, we went off to college, and we said, "Hey, I'm an independent thinker, and I'm totally self-confident. I don't need to worry about what anybody else at college thinks about me." Maybe...maybe it happened when we got married, or maybe it mystically happened when we had children of our own, before we had to have that conversation with them, because...because.... Look, think about this, it would be totally crazy, wouldn't it, if you and I were actually adults and still worried about what everybody else thought, and taking our cues from everybody else. I mean, that would be worse, wouldn't it? If you and I were adults and still living with peer pressure? That'd be worse than when we were 14 year olds and living with peer pressure. And, the reason it would be doubly crazy is because the way everybody else is living is finally playing out, and it's just so obvious where it gets them. I mean, you watch how everybody else lives. And, young women are so terrified that they'll spend their entire lives alone that they put their bodies on display, hoping that some young man will notice them, and it's just so clear that the type of young men that they're attracting have no interest in making any sort of commitment to them. They just want to get what they can get. I mean, we would never live like everyone else. And, young men in our culture today are trying to figure out why would I ever actually make a commitment, because I can already get the greatest benefit of marriage for free? So, why would I make a commitment to anybody else? I keep my options open with everybody else." Married men are wondering, "Can I have an affair and not get caught? I mean, my coworker seems to be getting away with it. His wife doesn't know, so technically, he's not hurting anybody else. So, I wonder if I can do what everybody else is doing."

Pastor Linn: 09:02 We watch people get the brand new suburban, and parked right next to it is their Series 5 BMW. We just go, "Wait, wait, wait, like, I can't be like everybody else." What we don't see underneath it is the fact that they're leveraged to their eyeballs, and everybody else drinks too much, or everybody else pops a couple of pills, so they can take and dull the pain of living in a way that has no purpose and no real meaning and no fulfillment. I mean we'd be crazy, right, to live like everybody else or take our cues from how everybody else lives? And then we see a Facebook post, and we say, "Hey, whoa, whoa, whoa, wait a minute, why doesn't my wife look like his wife?" Or ladies, you go, "Oh my goodness, look how romantic he is. Look how caring he is. How come my crumb of a husband is never like that guy? My husband won't even shave, and look at that guy." Or, we see this post and the whole family is in the Caribbean, and they're all lined up, and everybody's having great time, and they've got perfect, little kids...perfect, little kids. Where did you get our curmudgeons? How did they get perfect, little kids? And, what you and I don't realize is that three seconds before the photo, those my parents were screaming, "Shut the blankety blank up and smile." And, they took the picture, and then it went right back chaos. I'm just telling you the highlight reel looked really, really good. You and I are going to go home today, and we're going to pull in the driveway, and the guy down the street is going to pull in with his big Bayliner boat. He didn't go to church. He's going to be polishing the silver, and it's going to look like his life is pretty darn good. And, if you and I aren't careful, here's what we're going to ask, "I wonder...I wonder if I could be like everybody else, and manage around the chaos of everybody else. Maybe, just maybe, I can make this work and be like everybody."

Pastor Linn: 11:15 It's interesting, because this is the very struggle that gets Israel going in the wrong direction. Matter of fact, in the passage of scripture that we're going to look at today, it happens just before the book of Judges, just before the decline. And Joshua, who's been their general, who's taken them to their promised land...they've conquered a whole bunch of the other nations that were in there, but they didn't conquer them all. And, Joshua says, "Look, I'm aging out. I can't be your general anymore. You're gonna have to finish this yourself, but here's the thing you can't do....you can't do this....you can't start watching those other nations and thinking that you can turn your back on God and start behaving the way they behave and somehow have it turn out good for you." Be careful, be careful, be careful where you put your eyes, he says. So, matter of fact, let's grab that passage. It's in the book of Joshua. If you're not familiar, if you go to the front of your Bible and start working to the right, you're going to find this book of Joshua. Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua. It's the book just preceding the book of Judges.

Pastor Linn: 12:27 This is Joshua making his final appeal. He's stepping down from leadership, and he's saying to them, "Guys, if you're going to navigate what's next, you've got to be careful where you put your eyes and who you look at for your future." Here it is, it's Joshua, Chapter 23, starting in Verse 12. Here's what he says to them, "But, if you turn away, and you align yourselves with the survivors of these nations, so look, look, look, here's the deal, if you just start saying hey, "It's okay, and we can live together, and we can be friends, and you know, we can, you know, swap, and you can have wives out of ours, and we'll take wives from you, and we'll just be kindred spirits." If you begin to align your life with those that don't know your God, yourselves, with the survivors of these nations that remain among you, and if you intermarry with them and associate with them, then you may be sure...look, look, look, this isn't maybe. This isn't, hey, if you get lucky, you'll avoid the pain. This is for sure. This is for sure that the Lord, your God, will no longer drive out these nations before you. Instead, are you ready for this, they will become snares and traps to you. They will be whips on your backs. And then maybe the most powerful....and thorns in your eyes, and Joshua just says, "Look, look, look, you cannot turn your eyes on them and not be affected by where you're looking." Because...because, are you ready for this? If you don't get anything else today, get this moment. Whatever has your attention, wherever you turn your focus, it will determine your destination. I'm going to say that again. Wherever your eyes land will be where you end up.

Pastor Linn: 14:39 There's two types of Christians that try to watch the world and yet live for Christ. The first type are what I call "Arm's-Length Christians". These are Christians that would say, "Look, I know. I know I can't end up like the culture. I can't do that." And, I get...I get that they don't live for Christ. I can't watch the same things they watch. I can't...I can't navigate my marriage the way that people who don't know God navigate their marriage. I get that. So, here's the deal, I'm going to live at arm's-length. I may have my eyes on them, because it's really intriguing and there's a couple of things that are really, really enjoyable to watch, but...but I know I can't be that, so I'll live at arm's-length away from those who don't know my God. Here's the problem, when you live at arm's-length from the culture, you understand the culture is a sliding scale, that the culture is forever moving darker. And, as you stay an arm's-length away going, "No, I get it. I get I can't do that, and I can't behave the way they behave, and I can't treat people the way they treat them. I can't make decisions like they make decisions, so I'm going to live an arm's-length away." And, the culture moves. Ask any 10 year old, "Hey, what's happened since you....?" And, they'd say, "Oh man, the culture has gotten way darker since I was a kid." And, isn't it true that the culture's gotten way, way, way darker while you've been watching? And, if you are a type of Christian who says, "Hey, I'm going to live an arm's-length away from those who don't know my God, and I'm not going to ever be like them." What goes unnoticed is that culture moves, and you've moved with it. And, the reality is you started here, and you've ended up in a place that if someone had said to you years ago that this is how you'll...you would have said, "Oh, no, no, no." Because when you live at arm's-length from culture, here's the deal, you'll always be a little less dark than the people around you, but you'll be way darker than when you started.

Pastor Linn: 17:02 There's a second type of Christian that tries to navigate, "Hey, I'm going to keep my eyes on the world, but I'm going to keep my eyes on Jesus. They are what I call "Middle Livers". They're trying to navigate some sort of neutral middle ground between everyone else and Jesus, and so, they spend their lives doing this. Just constantly watching back and forth, because I don't want to get too far from that, I don't want to miss any opportunity there, but I don't want to deny this. So, here's what they do, they take every single decision and they say to themselves, "Hey, I've got to figure out which one works for me, and then I'll decide." So, they have a moment. They're sitting in a church service like this, and the pastor says something about reading their Bible, and they go, "Well, no, I...I can see the logic of that. That makes sense to me. If God's got some answers that I don't know, it would probably be a reasonable thing for me to read my Bible once in a while." But then, you get to this whole idea of abstinence and waiting till you're married to have sex. I mean, come on, that's crazy, right? I mean that's so old and that's so....I mean why would anybody do that, because look, look, look, are you ready.? You've got to test drive a car before you buy it. Here's something that just blows my mind, I don't know about you, but when I go test drive a car, guess how many times they let me test drive it? Once. Then the guy says, "Put a down payment down. You've been test driving that car for three years. When are you going to belly-up ?"

Pastor Linn: 19:10 They say, "Hey, you know what, I probably should be in church. I get that. I get this is where I kind of hear the word of God. I'm around other believers who are encouraging me to do the right thing, so church attendance....I can kind of understand why that's beneficial. I'm willing to choose that and commit to that, but you know I'm still going to party. I'm still going to go out with friends. I'm young...I'm young. I mean, I'm, like, I've got a limited lifespan here where I can actually have fun before I'm old like the rest of you, so I'm going to have fun." And, you realize what happens when you pick and choose which parts of the world and which parts of Jesus you're going to follow, and then, you end up being a person who reads their bible just before they sleep with their girlfriend, and comes to church on Sunday with a hangover from what they did on Saturday. It's the deadly Middle. And, when you do that, are you're ready? You're doing what's right in your own eyes. It's exactly the struggle that the children of Israel have. We call that type of Christian "Selective believers". I'm going to select to obey the things about Jesus that make sense to me and the things that I agree with him on, but I'm going to choose to do the things that everybody else does. If it looks like it's getting a good result, and if it looks like positive things are happening, then I'll just selectively obey or do that. You realize, there is no better way to live a miserable Christian life than to live a Christian life halfway looking at the world and halfway looking at your Jesus. Matter of fact, grab your bibles, because Jesus had this very conversation. It's Revelation, Chapter 3. Leave your finger in Joshua, if you have a chance, but turn with me to the very last book of the Bible. It's Revelation, Chapter 3.

Pastor Linn: 21:09 Revelation, Chapter 3, starts in Verse 15. This is Jesus talking to Christians who are trying to navigate the middle soil of one eye on everybody else and one eye on Him, and here's what he says...Revelation, Chapter 3, starting in Verse 15. He says, "I know your deeds. That you are neither cold nor hot. Look, you're not just, like, living a hundred percent in the world and just being cold to everything I said, and you're not on fire for me. You're not committed to me. You're something else other than cold or hot." And, he says, "I wish that you were either one or the other. I wish you would choose. Just either decide, hey, I'm going to go out, and I'm going to live recklessly, and I'm going to live the way that everybody else does and live with all the consequences of that, or I'm going to follow Jesus with all my heart. I wish you would choose one." So, because you are lukewarm, you're half cold, half hot, which is lukewarm. It's like drinking a cup of coffee after it cools down. It's like drinking a cup of lemonade after the ice all melts. He says, "Because you're lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I am about to spit you out of my mouth." Now, the Bible commentators kind of cleaned up that phrase, because "spit" there actually means throw up. Jesus says, "When you live a half-hearted, double-eyed life, it just makes my stomach sick. You say, 'I am rich and have acquired wealth. I do not need anything.' But, you do not realize that you are wretched. You're pitiful, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me: gold refined in fire, so that you can become truly rich; white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness.; and, salve to put on your eyes, so you could actually see. You could see what being like everyone else actually costs, and you could see what following me really brings." You get that any Christian who lives in the middle will always be miserable and discontent, because you don't have the benefit of either side. You have the leftovers of each.

Pastor Linn: 23:35 Matter of fact, when I was 14 years old, my youth pastor teaching that very passages of scripture talked about Christians who try to live with one eye on the cross and one eye on the world. That's...that's the world. That's four years of seminary to draw that, guys. I just want you to know. And, you get when we talk about the world, we're just talking about the world system, the...the way that other people live around us that don't know our God. And, he said, "Hey, when a Christian tries to live with one eye staring at the cross and one eye staring at the world, it's the surest way to be a miserable Christian." And, I know....I know that's a little teenager and youth groupie, but it's an accurate description, isn't it, of exactly what Jesus was saying about Christians who live in the middle. Here's the worst part guys, It's Christians who live in the middle that make all the rest of us look like hypocrites, because people who don't know our God and are far from God, look at Christians who selectively follow Jesus when it's convenient, but then selectively do what everybody else is doing whenever it's fun, or they think it's going to pay off for them. And, they say, "Dude, look, you're not a real Christian. You're a pretend Christian. You're not in for this Jesus thing. You're in it for what you can get from it. The only time you follow Jesus is when it's convenient for you to follow Jesus, because the reality is the moment it gets hard, you're just like me. And if that's all that Jesus you have in you, no thanks." But, guys, you want to hear the terrifying part? You know who is most affected by Christians who live in the middle? They're kids...they're kids, because they get to see us every day, and they look and go, "Mom, Dad, look, I mean, you're all about going to church, until there's something better to do on Sunday. If there's ATVs, or if there's a game and you've got tickets, I mean, then Jesus goes in the pocket. And, here's the deal, you're all good about going to church and following all the rules, until the rules get a little bit hard. And then, you're lying just like my friend's parents lie, and you're cutting the same corners they are." And, look, I don't need your religiousness. I don't need your pretending. What's the theme word that comes out right now in this generation? Be authentic, and mom and dad, I'm tired of watching you pretend to be a follower of Jesus Christ. So, my choice is to absolutely be real, as I follow all of my friends. "

Pastor Linn: 26:43 Guys, look, I'm not I'm not telling you that if you get out of the middle and begin to live for Christ that your kids turn out perfect, or that your marriage is great. I'm just simply saying this, if you live in the middle, then I know which direction you're pushing them. No wonder...no wonder Jesus said, "I wish...wish you would get off and start living either cold...I mean, just be honest about it. Just...just live like everybody else is living, because then nobody is going to associate that with me. No one's going to get confused and throw away Christianity, because they'll just know you're not in. Or, follow me...follow me, so that people can see what a Christian on fire and sold out to me...and what their marriages are like...and what their children turn out like. Follow me, so people can get a taste of real Christianity by seeing you." Can I tell you what the dilemma of the children of Israel was, because it's the same dilemma that you and I have got? They had to figure out whether or not they believed that God wanted good for them.

Pastor Linn: 28:11 This is...this is what has us stuck. Because every last Christian has got to decide, "Hey, does God really love me, and does he have the best intentions for me, or is God just some sort of a capricious jerk up there in heaven? He's like a nine year old boy who likes to take crickets and stick them on sticks and then hold them over a flame, just to watch him squirm. And, God's got all these rules, because he just wants to screw me up and watch me wiggle and writhe. Does God love me and have my best at heart, even in the moments I don't understand his rules, and I don't agree with his decisions, but he has my best in mind? Or, is he a nine year old, holding me over the flames?"

Pastor Linn: 29:00 I'm early in ministry. I was working as a youth pastor in a small church, and I gave a lesson on a Sunday. I mean, it was...it was probably my best lesson ever. It was deeply theological. Kids were leaning forward in their chair. I mean, it was just ...it was just an amazing lesson. I walked out that Sunday just thrilled to death and pretty proud of myself, and some of the kids went home and told their parents about the lesson. The parents then went to the Elders and told the Elders about the lesson, and next thing I knew, the Elders went to Pastor George, and if you've been around here for any length of time at all, you know that Pastor George was a mentor in my life. Deeply, deeply, deeply, impactful in my life, and he was my supervisor. And so, the Elders go to George and they say, "Hey, Linn taught this thing in high school that doesn't line up exactly with where we are as a church. You need to tell him to stop." So, the next thing I know, I'm sitting at lunch with Pastor George, who says to me, "Hey, Linn, that lesson you did on Sunday?" I said, "Yeah, the best lesson that ever been given on the Bible? That lesson. Yes, I remember." And, he says, "You can never teach that lesson again." And, I said, "Wait, wait ,wait, why?" He said, "Because it doesn't line up with exactly what the church believes." And, I went, "Whoa, whoa, whoa, seriously? Wait wait wait. I've got like 14 verses to back it up, and what...and what the church believes kind of comes from like tradition and not necessarily biblical. So, can I show them my verses?" "No." "Are we willing to talk about it? I mean, kind of going to the Elder Board and can we just theologically talk?" "No." I'm just telling you in my 24 year old wisdom...in that moment, I'm thinking, "Okay, here's what we're going to do, at the next Elder Board, I'm going to burst through the door, and I'm going to take my Bible and I'm going to teach them the word of God. And, they can repent right there, or at the very least, are ready for this, I'm going to take...I'm going to write a thesis paper. I'm going to nail it on the Elder Board door, and they can read it on their way in, and figure out how wrong they are theologically and biblically." As I sat there machinating about all the reasons I totally disagreed and why it was so unfair, I looked across my table at George, and here's what I knew about George. I knew George loved me. I knew George wanted my best, and although I totally disagreed with him, and I totally disagreed with the Elder Board, I thought this is so wrong. It's just wrong. But, that man loves me, and that man wants the best for me. And so, I said to George...I said, "George, tell them okay. Tell them as long as I'm the youth pastor here, I'll...I'll never teach that lesson again." And, what I did not know is that the Elder Board had said to George, "if he refuses, if he argues, or is obstinate in the least, you fire him on the spot." And my friend had actually come, possibly not even agreeing with them, but trying to work the best for me. Guys, you're just going to have to decide that about Jesus. Because there's going to be moments you won't agree, and there's going to be moments when you see scripture and you go, "I hate that. I don't even understand why God put that in the Bible." In that moment when you have to decide, "Am I going to look at what everybody else is doing, or am I going to look at my Savior, who I believe loves me and has my very best in his intent. And so, I'll just do that." Go back to the book of Joshua.

Pastor Linn: 33:09 Joshua, Chapter 23. Front of your Bible, work to the right. We didn't read the whole passage the first time. Listen to the final words that Joshua says to the people. Here it is, Joshua, Chapter 23, Verse 13. Then, you will be sure that the Lord your God will no longer drive out these nations before you. Instead, they will become snares and traps to you, whips on your backs, and thorns in your eyes, until you perish. If you look at what everyone else is doing, this will screw up your life. This will cause nothing but ache and harm for you until you perish from this good land, which the Lord your God is giving to you. And, what you and I have got to resolve and say, "if I continue to look and do what everybody else is doing, I will never know the goodness that he is doing for me." So, where are your eyes?

Pastor Linn: 34:23 Here's what I wanted us to have the opportunity to do today, I wanted us to have the opportunity for some of us in this room who would say, "Linn, I think I've had eye problems. I think I've...I think I've tried to stay just an arm's length away from everybody else. I thought I was doing better, because I wasn't like them. Some of us there tried to navigate the middle, and we've been selective believers. We've done whatever the world was doing when it made sense, and we did what Jesus said, if it looked like it could work out. And, I'm asking you today, would you believe that he loves you and always has the best for you? Because if that's true, then put your eyes on the cross. I want to give the opportunity for anyone in this room to say, "Linn, you know, I think that's what I need to do today." In just a moment the band is going to come out, and we're all going to stand together. They're going to play, and then you're going to have the opportunity to make your way to the cross and just take the ribbon that you received when you came in and throw it over the arm of the Cross. Just like thousands of us have done, and it would be your statement, "I'm fixing my eyes on the cross."

Pastor Linn: 35:46 Now, here's what you need to hear me say, I don't want anyone to feel manipulated into doing this. So, if you're here today and you're a sold out Christian, you'd say, "Hey, Linn, I made that decision a long time ago and I've been living that decision pretty consistently in my life." Then, don't come up. Don't do it. Don't feel obligated. You've already got this thing settled in your life, so just stay where you are. And, some of us in this room you'd say, "Linn, I'm just not ready for a decision like that. I'm pretty new in my walk, and I'm not ready to make that type of commitment." Then, just stay in your seat. Don't don't move. Everybody's going to think you're a super-committed Christian, because you're staying with the super-committed Christians who didn't come up. So, don't don't feel weird. This is for the rest of us who would simply say, "I think I need to move my eyes today."

Pastor Linn: 36:43 Let's pray. Hey, dear Lord Jesus, we we simply come to you in this moment, and if we're really honest, peer pressure still bothers us. We catch ourselves looking to those who don't know you for some of our cues. And today, it simply occurs to us that we serve a God who loves us, who on every occasion has wanted the best for us. And so, we choose today that even in the moments that we don't agree with, even in the moments that seem confusing, I choose to put my eyes on you. God, give those of us in the room that need courage right now the courage to take a simple little ribbon and throw it on a cross and make a really, really big statement. This I pray in Jesus' name, Amen.



Recorded in Chandler, Arizona.