ver been good to you when you make some noise for the King of Kings and the Lord of lords
wow help me welcome all the campuses tuning in Bellevue Dupont Yakima online how’s
everybody doing here in Tacoma this morning goodness like pastor Kevin said my name is Pastor
Charlie Hughes and I just have to take a second while you’re still standing to give honor to pastors Kevin and Sheila
Gerald do you love your pastors they are they are heroes of mine they’re
people I’ve looked up to since I was 10 years old and if God uses me in a sliver of the way in my life in my life that
he’s used to you then I’ll have a lot to be proud of so I look up to you I thank you for what you’ve done building the
church here in Washington state but also how you’ve helped build the global church we love you we applaud you we celebrate you thank you for who you are
you can go ahead be seated man I’ve been looking forward to today for
so long I’ve been a fan of this church for years well I’m not just saying that I’m just not trying to be I’m not trying
to be cute like I mean that I’ve been a fan of you all for a while and I’m kind of just pinching myself being here right
now so if I misbehave a little bit if I act out just know it comes from a good place um I’ve come prayed up prepared locked
and loaded ready to preach it so anybody in this church who’s going to preach with me this morning okay okay
let’s pray together father God in the time that we have left together
we ask the Lord that you would speak no one is here to hear from Charlie Hughes this morning God we’re here to
hear from you so father I ask Lord then the time we have left that you’d speak to me that you speak through me that you would get
a word in the heart of your people that would change us for the better from the inside out it’s in Jesus name we pray
together loudly Champion Center amen okay I want to start this morning off a little bit differently than usual look
to the person on your left now look to the person on your right figure out which one you like more
I want you to tell that person whichever one you like best what children’s television network channel was on most
in your house growing up or if you’re the uncle the aunt the parent the grandparent of a child what television
uh Children’s Network is on your house most right now go ahead tell that person
has it gotten awkward yet okay where are all of my Disney Channel
families at Make Some Noise wave at me okay where are all of the Nickelodeon
families at Make some noise all right how about the Cartoon Network families
let’s take a moment extend our hands towards these people they obviously prayer deliverance from whatever they’re going through
trauma in that household I was a Nickelodeon kid growing up and uh actually growing up one of my
favorite shows on Nickelodeon was a show called Drake and Josh anybody remember it a few of you
um one of my favorite characters on Drake and Josh was actually the manager of the movie theater that Josh worked at
her name was Helen Helen was sassy she was hilarious she was large and in
charge and it was actually revealed on one episode of Drake and Josh that Helen this fictional character was a child TV
star herself on television and she had a she had a catchphrase in this show that she was in her catchphrase was that is
not my job that is not my job now look to the other person who’s sitting next to your obvious second choice for whatever reason
and tell them that is not my job say it was some sass with some attitude that is not my job it’s just fun to say
that is not my job the title of this morning’s sermon is
that it’s not my job open up your Bibles turn on your Bibles we are going to be in the Book of
Matthew we’re going to be reading a segment of the greatest sermon ever preached by
Jesus Christ himself it’s called The Sermon on the Mount we’re going to read verses uh
25 through 34 of Matthew chapter 6 they read this
therefore I tell you do not worry about your life what you will eat or drink or about your body
what you will wear is not life more than food in the body more than close look at the
birds of the air they do not sow or reap or store away in Barns and yet your heavenly father feeds them
are you not much more valuable than they can any one of you by worrying add a
single hour to your life and what do you worry about close see how the flowers of the field grow
they do not labor or spin yeah I tell you that not even Solomon and all his Splendor was dressed like one of these
if that is how God closed the grass of the field which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire will he
not much more clothe you you of little faith so do not worry saying what shall we eat
or what shall we drink or what shall we wear for pagans run after all these things and your heavenly father knows that you need them
I hear the two verses I really want you to pay attention to and lean into verses 33 and 34 but seek first his kingdom
and his righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well therefore do not worry about
tomorrow for tomorrow will worry about itself
each day has enough trouble of its own
I believe the reason why so many people have no joy today because they are too worried about
tomorrow when you attach your joy to Something in the future you turn today into nothing
more than a temporary waiting period in your mind where worry is welcome and all contentment for the current moment is Cast Away
I think too often too many people allow Their Fear for the future and how
far they think they are from what it is that they want cause them to sign up for a job that does not belong to them and
to assume a responsibility that was never meant for them by trying to write their own story take control of their destiny
or snatch the pen out of the hand of the one who already knows the end from the beginning now
I’m not saying that you should not plan prepare or pray about your tomorrow
but if you worry for what the future holds has led to your joy being completely
totally entirely predicated on your tomorrow being exactly what you want to be that I think we might have a problem
because I think you’re going to find yourself Time and Time and Time and Time Again chasing after and settling for
less than God’s best for your life whatever little royalty is a pleasure
you’re getting from the future that you’re trying to write looking bright I don’t even think is real Joy anyways whatever hope you have right now that’s
making you think that you know what you’re doing by trying to make your tomorrow your responsibility I believe is a counterfeit version of the
authentic Eternal joy that God desires for you to experience within the context of his will for your life that’s what you call happiness not Joy
there’s a difference can I break it down for you this morning can I break it down for you this morning Romans 12 12 says
that we are to be joyful in Hope joy and hope are innately interconnected
it’s really hard to have one without the other they go hand in hand so I think if we really want to have a good
understanding as to what Romans 12 12 is telling us when it says that we are to be joyful in hope I think we must ask
ourselves the question in what do most people find Hope in
I think most people find Hope in the potential of something they’ve
been waiting for and working towards and wanting beginning to be realized
like maybe you’re here today and you’d say that you have hope in your life right now because you’re in the running
for a promotion or maybe you’re here today or you’re watching from another campus or online you say that I’ve got hope right now
because I think a raise might be coming my way I mean that will give me hope anybody else or maybe you hear and you have hope
because you’ve recently started serving here at the Champion Center or you’ve signed up for a small group and you’re hopeful that as you serve and as you
attend this group you’re going to meet people who will become good friends of yours maybe you’re here and you’re hopeful because recently
you’ve been on a few dates and things have been going well and you’re hopeful that this person you’ve been on a few
dates with could become someone in the near future that you are officially dated maybe you’re here and you’ve been dating
somebody for a while for months for years and you’re hopeful that the future is looking bright or should I say shiny
are there any ladies in this place that I’m preaching to right now don’t look at him look at me don’t look at him look at me keep your eyes
forward sorry fellas there could be a plethora of reasons
why you are currently experiencing hope in your life but if the reason you currently have hope
are any of the reasons that I just gave to you then I think we might need to rethink some things because I don’t think this is the hope
that Romans 12 12 is describing I don’t think this is being joyful in hope I think this is being happy in Hope
you see happiness is based on and found in happenings
a while back I went on a few dates with this girl and things were going good I was enjoying
getting to know her and then one night as I was driving her home dropping her off at her house right before she got
out of my car she looked at me and she asked me Charlie what’s your expectation for our relationship
truth be told I wasn’t really expecting that question it kind of caught me off guard but I was like um
I like you I think you like me and assuming things keep going well my
hope would be that in the near future we take that natural next step and make things official
she took a second pause thought to herself then she opened her mouth and said
yeah I don’t think I’m in the place to be in a relationship right now All My Hope and happiness in that moment
went out the window it evaporated Into Thin Air I’m trying to make the point that hope
that is found a potential that hope that is found in happenings has ultimately hope that has an expiration date
it’s hope that has a hole in it I would not call it hope that is shallow but I
would call it hope that is Hollow as I understand it Joy is different from happiness and that it is transcendent of
circumstance as depicted in Scripture Joy is a supernatural feeling of
fulfillment and pleasure that comes from God that is consistent
constants perpetual eternal
so with these definitions and distinctions in mind what I’m getting from Romans 12 12 when it tells us to be joyful in Hope
is that our joy will only be as strong as reliable
as consistent as what we choose to place Our Hope in
so if you want to Hope that makes you happy
and lasts a little while by all means place your hope and potential find your hope and happenings
but oh if you want to Hope that makes you joyful and is incapable
of failing you disappointing you or running out then I recommend you place your hope in something that is just
unchanging and that is just as never failing if you want a consistent hope any persistent joy that comes with it
you need a consistent source I think the reason
why so often when we look at the world around us it can seem as if Joy is in such short supply
is because our world has gotten too use to finding hope and the potential of what excites us rather than in the God
who cares for us so when we take inventory of Our Lives and there’s no potential for anything
exciting there’s no hope and there’s no joy but you can find great hope and great
joy in this scripture says that our God is Alpha and Omega
he is the first and he is the last he is the beginning and he is the end way before potential ever stepped on the
scene and long before your problem ever had to say King Jesus has been seated on the throne and he’s not changing he’s
not going anywhere this is why Nehemiah chapter 8 verse 10 tells us that we don’t have to live in a constant state
of whining crying grieving lamenting morning when what we thought would last and satisfies ends up failing us know
but instead but rather the joy of the Lord can be our strength Jesus wants the joy and the love we have in him to be
the source of our strength in the sustenance of our joy of Our Hope
he wants that to be what carries us through but this verse Nehemiah chapter 8 verse 10 this verse
gives me some insight into the strategy and schemes of our enemy because of the joy of the Lord is
supposed to be our strength then this tells me that your enemy the devil Satan yes he’s real and he is going to do
everything in his power to try to steal your strength by attacking your joy by
trying to shift your focus from the victory you have in Jesus and placing it on situations and circumstances in your
life that leave you feeling defeated your enemy the devil he wants you to believe
that waiting on God trusting in God hoping in God is not worth it will not
work and is a waste of your time he wants you to believe that all of your problems are far too
urgent to be on God’s timeline that if you don’t find somebody
to spend your life with now you never will so you might as well settle for the first loser who comes your way
who does not value you as the Masterpiece of Ephesians 2 10 says you are and will eventually end up putting a lid on all that God wants to do in for
and through your life that if you don’t get a job and start making money now you’ll never be in a position to one day
live comfortably and retire so you might as well drop out of school and quit your internship and take the first dead-end job you can find even if it means that
you’ll be unequipped unprepared and unavailable when the time would have eventually come for you to step into the unique calling and Mission that God has
placed you on this planet for by allowing
for what the future holds coerces into trying to take control of our tomorrow we proved as how unfit we
are for the job that we’re trying to do because we think we’re thinking ahead we think we’re being responsible
we think that we are thinking thinking things thoroughly but really we are thinking far ahead enough
as scholar and theologian C.S Lewis writes if you aim at heaven you’ll get Earth thrown in but if you
aim at Earth you’ll get neither as human beings
who unlike God are limited by time space and matter we don’t have the capacity today
for tomorrow to be our concern if we don’t have the capability to note or control what will happen in the future anyways
so if we want to have any shot at getting back our joy if we want to have any shot at repossessing our peace if we
want to have any shot at finding faith for the future then we must acknowledge and we must accept that tomorrow is not
our job and now is necessary today
today is what God wants to use to build trust equity our trust in him
but also his trust in US it’s the mystery that surrounds tomorrow from today’s vantage point
that’s what God wants to use to encourage you to trust in him it’s in light of your own inabilities to
know or control what will happen in your tomorrow that God wants to leverage for you to realize how powerful he is and to encourage you to rely on him
of course from where you’re standing today when you think about tomorrow and all you’re going to have to navigate and you look at what you currently have to work
with it feels and seems like you don’t have enough but you have not yet let today run its course
this was going on in your life today right here right now the good the bad the ugly and
everything in between that God wants to use to dress you armed you equip you with everything you’ll need to face the
challenges of tomorrow today is what God is using to get you ready and build your resume
so here’s my advice do not give yourself permission to worry about tomorrow
until you have persevered through today I try to practice and imply this advice
in my own life preaching the word of God is one of the greatest joys of my life there are few
things I love as much as preaching and there’s nothing I love as much as preaching to Champion Center what’s up
but I will say there is a lot of work in preparation and sometimes stress that
goes into writing a sermon I probably spend 20 hours on every sermon that I preach and whether it be
that the riding was harder than expected or the memorization took longer than I thought it would normally about a few
days out from every time that I get the opportunity to preach I have this moment of panic when I think to myself
how in the world am I going to be ready to preach the sermon in time
and this is when I do my best to call an internal timeout start a conversation with myself and say
Charlie last time you felt this way and last time you were freaking out and you made the decision
to continue to do what only you can do and then you trusted that God would honor that by showing up and doing what
only he can do when time came for you to get on that stage and hold your Bible
you were ready and God came through do not give yourself permission
to worry about tomorrow until you have persevered through today do not freak
out do not stress out do not trip about tomorrow until you have persevered through today because until today is
over with God still has time to show up and prove himself
Maybe you should encourage your today about your tomorrow by reminding
yourself of this truth stick with me now today is The Tomorrow you were worried about
yesterday somebody on your road missed it I’m gonna say it one more time
today is The Tomorrow you were worried about yesterday
with me this time today is The Tomorrow you were worried about yesterday don’t
you get spiritual amnesia don’t you forget how good and faithful God has been to you don’t you go trying
to rewrite history and forget the part that God played in your story yesterday you were scared and unsure if you’d even
make it today but with God’s help and in God’s timing and by God’s grace you made
it you’re here you’re still standing you’re still breathing so I think you should encourage your today about your
tomorrow with the testimony of your yesterday Champion Center if God was good and faithful to be there for you
last time come on why would you not have the faith to believe that he’ll be good and faithful to be there for you next time when you choose to focus on all the
times that God did come through for you when God was a man of his word when God didn’t make good on his promise faith for the future no longer seems illogical
fear for the future is what begins to seem a logical so I think you should trust God today as if today is already tomorrow’s yesterday and Keith came
through because the same God who is there for you yesterday is the same God who’s there for you today is the same God who will be there for you tomorrow
oh he’s the same God yesterday today and forever is there anybody in this church who knows that he’s not changing he’s
not going anywhere he’s still the same God give him some praise for about the next five seconds
he’s the same God but here’s the thing
you only have the opportunity to exercise trust and faith in God like this
today somebody say today is the training ground
that God wants to use to stretch grow build strengthen your trust in him but today is also the trial period
that God is using to get a good look at your character and observe your behavior to determine
if you are worthy and deserving of his Trust someone needs to hear this the degree to
which you trust God will inform God that agreed to which he can trust you
those who trust God with all they have are those who seek God
and all that they do so to seek God because righteousness is the standard
that God requires for people to rightly relate with him to seek God is to seek living righteously
is choosing to chase after what heaven has to offer in acknowledging and accepting and
realizing that Holiness is the exclusive means for receiving what it is that heaven holds
but because the appeal of sin is instant gratification few things required trusting God
like living righteously it’s the brutal practice in the painful process
of saying no to what is in front of you so that way you will one day be able to
say yes to what God has not yet even made available to you but I’ve come to encourage someone this morning
when God sees someone with the stubbornness with the strength
with the self-control to deny sins best offers today
so that way they will be able to say yes to what God has not yet even made available to them tomorrow
this is someone God knows he can trust because this shows you don’t fold easy
you’re not controlled by your appetite no you’re a person of conviction
Temptation does not cause your trust in God to easily waver or your vision for what yet has not been made material to disappear
when God sees someone who’s willing to seek him by living righteously this is someone
God knows he can trust because this shows God so clearly that you understand what your job is and you
understand what his job is this is what I’ve been waiting and wanting to tell you I think this is why God has brought
me to Washington State all the way from South Florida to let someone know that today
is your job but tomorrow is God’s shop obedience is your job the outcome is
God’s shop faithfulness is your job the future is God’s job
Joy doesn’t have to be something that you just look forward to but never living
peace doesn’t have to be something that seems possible for everyone else but you
a life free from anxiety stress and worry about your tomorrow doesn’t have to be just wishful thinking
it can be your reality Joy becomes your reality when you release yourself from the responsibility
that was never meant for you to begin with your job is to let God do his job
by having faith for the future and by letting your trust in your savior sustain you through today
this is the part of the sermon where I’ll invite the band to come up behind me make me sound more spiritual as I close
Champion Center let your greatest joy be found in this Jesus already got the greatest word you could have about your tomorrow
done for you the greatest source of anxiety you could ever have about your future Jesus has
already taken care of two thousand years ago Jesus lived a perfect and sinless life
never was to he sin never once did he make a mistake never once did he slip up never once if he trip up never once did
he mess up only to be falsely accused wrongly convicted and die a criminal’s
death in your place on a cross and on that cross 2 000 years ago with his final dying breasts he said the
words its is finished but hear me don’t miss this his final words were not I am
finished because as he was on that cross he knew that three days later he would conquer the grave and he would defeat death and
he’d rise with all authority and Power in heaven and on Earth that way if you choose to place your hope
and your trust and your faith in him you will be free from the Eternal punishment your sin has earned you
making Jesus your personal Lord and saving is the biggest best and most important decision you could ever make
but hear me how crazy of us would it be to believe that Jesus has the power to eternally
save us but not to temporarily satisfy us let the facts
that Jesus loves you enough and is powerful enough to eternally free you from the punishment your sin has
earned you rescue the joy your worry for tomorrow has tried to steal from you by placing all your problems in the proper
perspective if Jesus has the power to save you then he is the power to satisfy you if Jesus
has the power to defeat power to take care of your tomorrow if Jesus has the power to conquer the grave
then Jesus has the power to have a plan for every mystery that makes you worry if Jesus has the power to forgive you of
your sins then Jesus has the power to handle every uncertain aspect of your future Jesus would not have endured 39
lashes Jesus would not have endured Nails in his hands and his feet and Jesus did not die on a cross in your
places to save you and leave you here just to save you for you to stay where you are just to save you for this be the
end of his involvement in your life no I want you to know Jesus does not do your salvation as the finish line of all that
he hopes to do for you Jesus views your salvation as the starting point of all that he desires to do in through and for
your life your enemy would never admit it but the reason he’s been trying to deceive you into believing that the
future sure doesn’t look bright it’s because he’s terrified that if you were to realize that because the tomb is empty your future is full of
possibilities there would be no tactic there would be no scheme there’d be no weapon that your enemy has in his
Arsenal powerful enough to stop you from becoming who God has created and called you to be I want someone to know this
morning because the tomb is empty you can be full of Hope because the tomb is empty you can be full of Faith because
the tomb is empty you do not have to worry about tomorrow
if this word was for you and if you’re able at all campuses I would like to invite you to stand to your feet
I think this was encouragement that someone needed I think if you’d apply these principles to your life I think you can get your
joy and your peace and your hope back but maybe you’re here today
and before God can give you peace today so you don’t have to worry about your tomorrow I think we need to make sure that you first have given your life to
Jesus the greatest worry you could ever have about your tomorrow is knowing where you will spend your eternity I think today you should leave
knowing for sure and for certain where you’re going to spend eternity Jesus loves you he lived a perfect life for you he died
on a cross in your place for you and he rose from the grave three days later so that way if you choose to enter into a
relationship with him one day you can spend eternity in heaven with him so with every head bow and with every eye closed
if you’re here today and you feel a tug on your heart to give your life to Jesus
I believe today is the day of salvation you might think that you just stumbled in here now you’re here on Divine appointment
God desires to meet you where you are right now and change you for the better to save you eternally so I’m gonna ask
everyone to repeat this prayer after me for the benefit of those giving their lives to Jesus for the first time pray after me loudly dear Jesus come on
louder dear Jesus amen I give you all I have foreign
my commitment my allegiance my life now belongs to you
God all I ask in return is for your hope it’s for your peace
your freedom your salvation I believe Jesus is
who he claimed to be that he’s God that he lived a perfect life
that he died on the cross and Rose from the grave and because of that
one day I will now spend eternity in heaven with him
now before I ask you to look up at me if you just pray that prayer for the first time on the count of three I just
want to ask you to get bold because I think you just made a decision that is too good to keep to yourself I’m just likely to raise a hand one Jesus Loves
Me Two your life is forever changed free if you would raise your hand we would love to celebrate you come on let’s
raise our hands over this place if you escape your life to Jesus
praise God praise God come on let’s celebrate all those whose lives were just changed Jesus we love
you Champion Center God bless you