Sunday Morning Service 10:30AM- The Greatest Kingdom ~ Pastor Jarrod Doyal ~ Matthew 6:33

Good morning, church family. Wow, that's loud. A little hot. Good morning, church family. Hi, Nick. I'm sure glad you guys are here. Glad you guys can make it out this morning. I want to invite you to stand with us, and we'll pray, and we'll get started.

Lord, we thank you for another day, and thank you for allowing us to be here, and thank you for the country that we live in, Lord. Thank you that we get to enjoy the freedoms that we do, Lord God, that we can gather in your name freely, Lord, without fear of persecution, Lord, that we can spend time in your word without fear of persecution, Lord. So we thank you. We ask your blessing upon this time now.

We love you, and we praise you in Jesus' name. Amen.

Your waters stand to mercy, and nothing can keep us apart. So remember, people, remember your children. Oh, God is enough. Your grace is enough. Oh, see that again. Your grace, your grace is enough for salvation. And all your people sing along. Oh, God, your grace, your grace is enough for salvation. You guys can go ahead and have a seat if you like. You can stand against the power. You shine in the shadows. You can stand against the power.

Oh, Lord God, we give you praise for how great and awesome and mighty and faithful you are, Lord God. Oh, God, you're faithful even when we're not, Lord. Lord, you're victorious when we aren't. And, Lord God, you are great just because of who you are and how much you love us, Lord. Lord, as we sing this last song, I just pray that we would surrender everything that we have to you.

If something isn't adding up, this wild exchange you offer us. I gave my worst, you gave your blood. Seems hard to believe.

You're telling me you chose the cross. You're telling me I'm worth that much. That that's the measure of your love. How else could I sing? Sold out, sincerely abandoned.

I'm complete through the sin. That's your surrender. It's a mirror, not deep surrender.

And I just can't get over it. What kind of self-control is this? You had angels at your fingertips. But on the cross you remained. I can't repay the kindness. But I can praise with everything I've got. Since death had all its power out. Just like the grave. I'm completely, deeply sold out. That's your surrender. It's a mirror, don't get... The best of my soul.

It's raising my life. It's breathing my lungs. Considering. Consider it. The dangers I hide. The victories I don't. The battles I fight. It's the crown that I hoard. Considering. The grave that you want. The praise of the heavens. The kingdom to come. Considering. Be a man. Free.

That's your surrender. To mirror.

And I... Oh Lord God, may this morning... Oh God, I pray. I pray that we would just surrender. Come to this place of surrender, Lord, in our lives. If there's any area of our life, Lord, that is not surrendered to you. I pray that we would abandon that. And seek wholeheartedly after your kingdom, Lord. Your righteousness. We love you, Lord God. We praise you in Jesus' name.

Amen. Let's take some time and greet one another. Good morning. If everyone could find their seats. We'll start with some announcements. I hope everyone is ready. I hope everyone had a great July 4th. I know I did. It was really good to celebrate our 250th. And we had a great time with the family. We're also grateful for the nation we live in. And something definitely to be grateful to the Lord for.

On the left side of your bulletin, there's the usual activities going on this week almost every day. There's several home fellowship groups that I encourage you guys to get involved in. It's a great way to... Really get to know each other and have some great fellowship. And to study God's word. And to have some great discussions. In the center section, there's some activities coming up.

We still have the baptism planning July 15th at Paris Park. Reminder, there won't be a meal. But there will be drinks and desserts. I encourage you to bring a lawn chair. If you're interested in being baptized, there is a sign up still in the lobby. Or you can talk to Pastor Ryan or Jared. There's a women's breakfast July 11th in the Agape room. This 11th, the youth group will be going to Rock River Rapids in Derby.

There is also a sign up sheet in the lobby for that if you're interested in going. There's a women's retreat coming up. Hosted by Calvary Chapel of Wichita on September 18th through the 20th at Waboka, Oklahoma. And there's a QR code there in the center if you'd like to get more information in regard to that. A reminder, we do have a team that's going to Guatemala on July 28th.

If you pull out the insert, you can see a picture of the folks that are going. On the back. There is a list of some requested items for donation. And there is in the lobby a suitcase and a table with a stack of already donated items if you'd like to contribute to that. There is a deadline on that. You can't continue to donate items until Sunday the 26th. And then they will be leaving on Tuesday the 28th through August the 4th.

And they have specifically requested that you guys pray for them before and during the trip and any time. And remember them in prayer for safe travels. And that God will use them in their ministry. And with that, I think we'll get ready for our responsive reading. One other thing I did forget to mention. If you bought sheets for the cheer fundraiser, those are in Pastor Ryan's office.

The office is unlocked. So I think there's, they're all labeled with your names on it. So if you bought those, feel free to go pick those up. So. For responsive reading this morning, we're going to be in Salt Lake. We're going to be in Salt Lake. This morning, we're going to be in Psalm chapter 5. Psalm 5. As you're turning there, you'll stand in the reading of God's word.

I'll read the odd verses if you'll follow along with Pastor Allen in the even verses. Psalm chapter 5. For the choir director, for flute accompaniment, a psalm of David. Give ear to my words, O Lord, consider my groaning. Heed the sound of my cry for help. My King and my God, for to you I pray. In the morning, O Lord, you will hear my voice. In the morning, I will order my prayer to you and eagerly watch.

For you are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness. No evil dwells with you. The boastful shall not stand before your eyes. You hate all who do iniquity. You destroy those who speak falsehood. The Lord abhors the man of bloodshed and deceit. But as for me, by your abundant loving kindness, I will enter your house. At your holy temple, I will bow in reverence for you, O Lord.

O Lord, lead me in your righteousness because of my foes. Make your way straight before me. There is nothing reliable in what they say. Their inward part is destruction itself. Their throat is an open grave. They flatter with their tongue. Hold them guilty, O God, by their own devices. Let them fall. In the multitude of their transgressions, thrust them out, for they are rebellious against you.

But let all who take refuge in you be glad. Let them ever sing for joy. And may you shelter them, that those who love your name may exult in you. For it is you who blesses the righteous man, O Lord. You surround him with your favor as with a shield. Let's pray. Lord God, we thank you for your blessing. We thank you that you are the one who makes us righteous.

Lord, surround us with your favor, with your grace, with your unmerited favor, Lord. This morning, God, and as we open up your word, Lord, bless this time. In Jesus' name, amen. Please be seated. All right. This is just it here. Well, good morning, church family. I'm sure glad you're here. I'd ask your prayers for Pastor Ryan and his family as they're traveling today to Florida.

Pray that they get some good rest. And relaxation and restoration while they're there. Before we kind of dive into the word this morning, I wanted to take a moment and just read some verses that talk about the kingdom of God. And they're all out of the first few chapters of Matthew. But it kind of starts to paint the picture of the theme of our message this morning.

So Matthew 3, verse 2. This is John the Baptist. He says, Repent. For the kingdom of heaven has come near. Jesus, when he began his ministry, he began his ministry the same way, saying in Matthew 4, 17, he says, Repent. For the kingdom of heaven has come near. Matthew 5, 3 says, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs. Matthew 5, 10.

Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs. And finally, Matthew 6, 33. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. So if you have your Bibles, open them up to Matthew 6. The week before last, my wife and I and some sponsors, we had the amazing privilege of taking a group of youth group kids to Falls Creek Church Camp.

And if you've never heard of this place, it's absolutely amazing. It's the largest Baptist church camp in the world. They run a fresh group of anywhere from 3,000 to 5,000 kids every single week all summer long. And it is just an absolutely amazing place. We had an amazing week. We saw hundreds of people get saved. But we, ourselves, also had a very, very interesting week.

If you'll notice here. We've got our golden plunger. If that doesn't tell you anything. We had a very, very interesting week. We dealt with a lot of rain. We dealt with a lot of plumbing issues. We also used the plunger as sort of our banner in Tabernacle for our youth group to find us. And our motto for the week was, our cups and our toilets overfloweth. Like I said, the Lord moved and worked in hundreds of places.

The Lord moved and worked in hundreds of kids' lives. In our group specifically, we had two kids come to know the Lord for the first time in their lives. We had two recommitments. Two who wanted to get baptized. And two who answered the call to vocational ministry. So, I mean, praise God, guys. Come on. I kind of get geeked up about that. We had a lot of issues, but it was all worth it to see those kids make decisions for Christ.

The message today is sort of a continuation. Of the theme of Falls Creek, which was the greatest. It's based off of the Great Commission in Matthew 28. And through the week, we looked at several aspects of the Great Commission and God being the greatest. We looked at the response to Jesus. When we're in the presence of Jesus, how do we respond? We respond with worship, humbleness, repentance, and confession.

We looked at the greatest focus, which was to go forth and make disciples. We looked at the greatest relationship. Our relationship that we have with our Creator and our relationship with others. And then lastly, we looked at the greatest journey. The journey to become more and more like Jesus every day. This morning, I've titled the message, The Greatest Kingdom.

The Greatest Kingdom. And during one of the tabernacle services, The Greatest Kingdom. Excuse me. They had a poll to determine who was the GOAT. Who was the greatest of all time. They had a poll to determine who was the greatest basketball player. The greatest golfer. The greatest football player. So on and so forth. And I was really halfway tempted to do that same thing this morning.

But I didn't want to be responsible for a church split. I didn't want Ryan to have to come back and have his church be gone. But like I said. This morning's message. Like I said. This morning's message is all about the greatest kingdom. And I think it ties in really nicely with America's 250th anniversary. We just celebrated that yesterday. And I hope you guys had a great time.

We did. Nobody got hurt. Praise God. And I want to start off by saying that we are so incredibly blessed to live in the United States of America. Amen. Yes. We are so incredibly blessed to live here. We get to enjoy this freedom. We get to enjoy the fact that we get to come here on a Sunday morning and on a Wednesday night. And open the word of God. And study it.

And sing praises to him freely without fear of persecution. And mind you. There are still places in the world that you're not free to do that. And so I've never known a day where I woke up and I couldn't do this. I've never known a day where I've woken up and couldn't be free to open my Bible. Or come to church. Or sing praises to God. I'm grateful to all the men and women who have sacrificed so much to protect our freedoms.

And our way of life. In fact, you know, many of my family have served or are even serving right now. And to those who are here this morning or watching online. If you've served or if you are serving. I just want to say thank you. I so very much appreciate your sacrifice. And there are many who would argue that America is the greatest country on earth. And I'm one of them.

I would argue that America is the greatest country on earth. I've talked with people who were born elsewhere. But immigrated to this country. And they've said the same thing. As a matter of fact, I was on an airplane this last March. Flying out to New Mexico to see my brother. And a couple of us said. The couple I was sitting next to. The guy was from Texas.

And the lady was from Europe. His wife was from Europe. I forget which country. So I kind of got to know him a little bit. And started talking to him. And I asked the lady. And I said, well, how does America compare with where you came from? And she said, there's no comparison. I mean, America is so much better than where she was. And she loved this place so much that she even told me that she went and took all the classes.

Passed all the tests. And became a naturalized citizen of the United States. And so, you know, in many respects. And by many metrics. The United States is, in fact, the best and greatest country in the world. But it's not perfect. It's not perfect. I want to read you some statistics I looked up on the internet. And you can find any of these just through a quick Google search.

But globally. The United States ranks 12th in education. We rank 59th in crime rates. We're among the highest in consumer debt. And these numbers were staggering to me. As of September 2025, the U.S. has racked up over $18.5 trillion in consumer debt. Now, to be fair. I'm going to break that down for you. 69% of that is mortgages. The other 31%. Which is roughly $5.75 trillion.

Is broken out between car loans. Student loans. Credit cards. And miscellaneous debt. So we're among the highest in consumer debt. There are two metrics that I found the United States ranks number one in. Number one. We're number one in incarceration. We incarcerate more people per capita than any other country in the world. And we also are number one in defense spending.

Last year the United States federal government spent roughly $954 billion in defense. That's more than Russia, China, and the next four countries combined. $954 billion. So like I said. I think. I would argue that our country is the greatest in the world. But it's not perfect. Far from it in fact. I still have to lock my doors at night. I pay way too much in taxes.

As we all do. Cost of groceries. The cost of gas. The cost of medical care. Is outrageous. Stuff still breaks. And I either have to fix it or replace it. People still do bad things just because they can. And in my opinion. Despite all those shortcomings. I still think we're the greatest nation on earth. But again. We're far from perfect. So this morning. I want to tell you about the greatest kingdom.

The greatest nation ever. The kingdom of heaven. Jesus gives us a little glimpse of the kingdom of heaven in the book of Matthew. So if you want to open your book to Matthew chapter 6. We're going to start in verse 19. And it says this. Don't store up for yourselves treasures on earth where moth and rust destroy. And where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven.

Where neither moth nor rust destroys. And where thieves don't break in and steal. For where your treasure is. There your heart will be also. The eye is the lamp of the body. And if your eye is healthy. Your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad. Your whole body will be full of darkness. So if the light within you is darkness. How deep is that darkness?

No one can serve two masters. Since either he will hate one and love the other. And he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. Pause right there. Here in Matthew chapter 6. Jesus is giving his sermon on the mount. The most famous sermon in history. And I'd like to really hone in on verses 19 through 21 here. And he starts off by saying.

Don't store up for yourselves treasures in heaven. Where moth and rust destroy. And where thieves break in and steal. Well why would Jesus say that? Why would Jesus tell us not to store up for ourselves earthly treasures? Well I think for a couple of reasons. Number one. He doesn't want us to become focused on our possessions. And money. And number two. I think the answer is right there in verse 19.

It says. Where moth and rust destroy. And where thieves break in and steal. Come to the realization that nothing on earth. Nothing created on earth is going to last forever. I've known people who literally store up. Huge stores of gold and silver. Because they think the world is going to end. And I'm not saying it's not wise. To have some on hand. But like eventually even that's going to go away.

Rust is going to get to it. Silver gets tarnished. Thieves can break in and steal it. So do you think that kind of thing is going to happen in the greatest kingdom ever? No. If you park an old classic car out in the field. What happens to it? It eventually gets rusty. Right? The answer is it eventually rusts away. So why is that? The answer goes all the way back to Genesis.

After the fall of man. When man sinned in the garden. Everything became corrupted. Everything became less than perfect. And everything we've ever known since. Is the same way. It's less than perfect. Every person. Every family. Every community. Every school. Every living thing. Every government. Every nation. Every kingdom and empire. Has been corrupted. And nothing that was created is going to last forever.

That's why when you drive by a field with a bunch of old cars in it. They're all rusted out. It's because they're less than perfect. They're corrupted. Even that gold that people try to hoard is corrupted. And it's eventually going to go away. But Jesus says here in verse 20. He says, But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven. Where neither moth. Nor rust.

Destroys. And where thieves don't break in and steal. You see in the greatest kingdom ever. The kingdom of heaven. Nothing and no one is corrupt. Nothing and no one is corrupt. Moths and rusts don't exist. And there are no thieves. The kingdom of heaven has the lowest crime rate ever. There is no crime. I'm convinced there are no locks on the doors in heaven.

And I'm just going to straight up walk into my neighbor's house. And without knocking. It's going to be great. It's going to be awkward. But it's going to be great. You know. But going back to my previous point. I think we as Americans by and large. We have a tendency to focus on our own kingdoms. On our own possessions. Or on our own money. And we have a tendency to try to grow our own kingdoms into the greatest kingdoms.

And that's not where Jesus wants our focus. If our focus is on our own kingdoms. Where is it not? It's not on his kingdom. If our focus is on our own kingdoms. What would happen if all of that went away tomorrow? What would happen if our kingdoms. If everything that we owned. Everything that we dreamt of. Went away tomorrow. If a fire took everything that you own.

Would you be okay? No. I'm just, I'm reminded, I'm going to get off on a tangent here, so I'll try to make sure I get it back here, but I'm reminded of a guy named Tim Tebow. You know, he's a, he was a amazing college football player, won the national championship, played in the NFL, but never did quite make it in the NFL. You know, for him, like football was like a huge part of his life, but his focus wasn't

on his own kingdom. His focus wasn't on his dreams, his goals. His focus was on Jesus, and so when the Lord took one of the most important things to him away, he, guess what? He was okay. He was, he knew he was going to be okay, because his focus wasn't on his own kingdom.

I heard a story from another pastor of this, of this guy, and I'm going to speak in super, super generics. It's going to be super general, but the, you'll get the point. I heard a story of this guy that, that owned a store, and he poured everything into it, and he was like, everything that he had into this store. He sacrificed much of his personal life, much of his, his finances, personal finances, into making sure that this store was going to survive, that he would spend late nights, he would stay up late at the store, and then he would go home, sleep a little bit, get up early, and go back, all in an effort to make sure that the store was going to be okay, that it survived, and he worked hard. He worked hard, but he also worried hard. He worried

about the finances, and making sure that it was going to survive financially. One day, this guy shows up out of nowhere, knocks on his door, and he says, sir, I'm sorry to tell you this, but your store caught fire in the middle of the night, and it burned down to the ground. It was a complete loss. There's nothing left. The man just smiled. The man smiled. He lost everything. Everything he

had was in that store. He lost his income and everything, yet he smiled, because all of that worry that came with owning and operating that store was gone. It felt like he had a huge weight lifted off of his shoulders. He didn't have to do it anymore, and I found that the more, I found that the more we worry about our own kingdoms, the more that we try to build and focus on our own kingdoms, the more that we worry about those things, the more that we have anxiety, and the less peace that, the less peace we have, and we've got to make, you know, we've, we've got to make sure that everything's well maintained. We've got to make sure that nothing gets broken. We've got

to make sure the payments are up to date. Everything's insured. The taxes are paid, but everything, all of that, all that stuff, everything about our kingdom is going to go away.

It's all going to go away. It's all going to wear out eventually. When my dad, my dad passed away in 2011, one of the things that I inherited from him was, was his truck. It was a 2002 Chevy Silverado half-ton, and when I got it, it was in great shape. There's hardly a scratch on this thing. The tires were great. I mean, it was near pristine condition, but as, as time has gone on, the tires have worn out. I've had to replace parts on this

thing. It's been through a hailstorm. The roll top is pretty well falling apart. Even the trim's starting to come off now, and it's even been through a couple of deer. You know, it's been a while. You know, so eventually, I'm going to have to replace this truck, although I'm kind of hoping to be raptured home before then, but it's all going to go away eventually, and I cannot have

all of my time, my money, my energy, my emotions wrapped up in my own kingdom. I cannot have them wrapped up in my kingdom. Instead, I need to have them wrapped up in his kingdom, the greatest kingdom. Jesus tells us here, starting in verse 25, he says, therefore, I tell you, don't worry about your life. Don't worry about your life. Don't worry about your life. Don't worry about your

life. What you will eat or what you will drink or about your body, what you will wear. Isn't life more than food and body more than clothing? Consider the birds of the sky. They don't sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren't you worth more than they? Can any of you add one moment to his lifespan by worrying? And why do you worry about clothes?

Observe the wildflowers as the field grow. They don't labor or spin thread. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon and all of his splendor was adorned like one of these. And if that's how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won't he do much more for you, you of little faith? So don't worry saying, what

will we eat or what will we drink or what will we wear? For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. Pay attention here, verse 33, but seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. And all these things will be provided for you. Therefore, don't worry about tomorrow because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Here Jesus tells us

that when we're wrapped up in building our own kingdom, we start dealing with things like anxiety. We start dealing with things like worry. And now I could be wrong, but I doubt it. I don't think God ever intended for us to live in just constant worry and constant anxiety. And when our whole, when our whole focus becomes building our own kingdoms, I think there are just these unintended

consequences. That's when the worry, that's when the anxiety starts to happen. They start popping up in our lives. But when our whole focus is on the kingdom of God, the kingdom of heaven, his kingdom, all those things go away. All the anxiety, all the worry, all the depression, all of it, it goes away. And instead of seeking to build our kingdom, he tells us to seek his kingdom. And all

those things will be provided for you. He tells us that he cares for the birds of the field. And he, he cares, excuse me, he cares for the, the, the birds of the sky and the flowers of the field. And if he cares enough to take care of them, how much more is he going to take care of and provide for you? So instead of seeking our own kingdom where our stuff and even our dreams can be taken away and destroyed, where our peace is

replaced with anxiety, worry, and depression, seek first his kingdom where those treasures can't be destroyed, where nothing can be taken, where nobody can come in and steal it. And where our, where our anxiety, where our worry, where our depression is replaced with peace and joy. Instead, seek his perfect, his perfect, incorruptible, everlasting kingdom. So I'm going to channel Pastor Ryan here just for a couple of minutes. But so the question becomes, if I'm supposed to seek his perfect,

incorruptible, everlasting kingdom, where are we going to find peace and joy? And I'm going to ask you this question. If I'm supposed to seek his perfect, incorruptible, everlasting kingdom, how does one find it? I'm glad you asked. Jesus tells us how to find it in the next chapter in Matthew chapter 7. So if you flip over one page to your right, Jesus tells us here in Matthew 7, verse 13, enter through the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who go through it. Narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.

This is actually the verse that our youth group is named after. We, we're, our youth group is named the narrow road youth group. So you see, there are, there are two roads with two gates that lead to two kingdoms, two different kingdoms. It says the wide gate and the broad road leads to a worldly kingdom, a kingdom of destruction. It will ultimately be destroyed. But the narrow gate and the difficult road, that road leads to the kingdom of heaven.

The life, eternal life. Well, how, how do I know which road I'm on? He gives us a clue here in verse 15. Sorry, give me a second. He gives us a clue here in verse 15. It says this, be on your guard against the false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravaging wolves. You'll recognize them by their fruit. Are grapes gathered from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? And in the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit.

A good tree can't produce bad fruit, neither can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that doesn't produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So you'll recognize them by their fruit. He's saying if you're on the wide path, there's going to be signs. You know, I live in Dexter and every day I travel that highway. I travel, travel 166 between Dexter and Arc City. And there's, there's a ton of signage.

When I'm going home, I come over to Dexter and there's a ton of signage. I come over this hill and I swear it looks like Vegas. There's, there must be like 50 signs right there on the side of the road, but there's a whole bunch of signs there. Hey, tell me there's a junction right here. There's another highway that you need to get on to go to Dexter. He says, if you're on the wide path, there's going to be signs. He says to be aware of these false prophets. Well, how do I know a false prophet when I see one? Will they look a certain way? Will they be dressed up in some kind of ominous way? Like, are they going to be having a black hood and a black robe or whatever? I doubt it, but if they do, run. Okay.

Um, he says you'll recognize them by their fruit. Well, what is the fruit? What is the fruit? The fruit is their attributes, their characteristics. How do they act? What are they saying? They'll often claim to have a word from God. And I'm telling you, if anybody comes up to you and says that they have a word from God, it better be this word right here. It better be this word. If anybody tells you anything else, you turn around and look at it.

Run. Okay. They'll often have a huge crowd. Uh, they'll have a huge following. They'll say things like I've had a dream from God or they'll set, they'll start setting dates for things, you know, um, they'll start setting dates for things and they'll direct people away from God and his kingdom. They're leading people away from his perfect, incorruptible, everlasting kingdom to a worldly kingdom, uh, that is going to be destroyed.

Jesus says you'll recognize them by their fruit. You'll recognize them by their characteristics. Are the people on the path that you're on, are they, are they producing fruit consistent with the fruit of the spirit? Do they have love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control? Do they have those attributes? If not, I'd begin to question which road you're on.

Do you have those attributes? Is the path you're on easy? Is it a path of ease? Because Jesus said the narrow road is one that leads to life, but it's, it's, it's a difficult road. The narrow road that leads to life, that leads to the perfect, incorruptible, everlasting kingdom of heaven is not an easy one. It's often difficult. And friends, Jesus never said that being a follower of him was going to be easy. Okay.

On one occasion in Matthew 8, he told a scribe, this is Jesus talking, he told a scribe that wanted to follow him, he said, Foxes have dens, birds have nests, but the son of man has nowhere to lay his head. He told this guy, hey, if you're going to follow me, guess what? You're going to be homeless. You're not going to have a place to call home. The only place you're going to call home is the kingdom of heaven.

Later on in Matthew 16, Jesus himself told his disciples that following him meant that they were going to have to follow him. That they were going to have to deny themselves, that they were going to have to take up their cross and follow him. The narrow road to the greatest kingdom, guys, is not an easy one. It often involves self-sacrifice, putting others before yourself. It often involves trials and

tribulations and afflictions. It's often filled with trials and difficulties. And James, the half brother of Jesus, told us in the very first chapter of his letter, when we can, when we experience those trials and tribulations, to consider it pure joy. Well, gosh, I don't really consider it joy when, you know, I'm dealing with all kinds of plumbing issues, you know, and, you know, there's raw sewage flowing into the bathroom. There's rainwater gushing in. There's a, guys, there was a flash flood in

front of our cabin at church camp. No joke. I'm not kidding. Wildest thing ever. I didn't enjoy it, okay? I didn't enjoy those things. I was talking with my sponsors before and after camp, you know, and they were kind of detailing me, detailing how in the days leading up to camp, like, they were just filled with trials and tribulations. In the days after camp, they were filled with trials and tribulations. During camp,

like I said, like I mentioned, we had trials and tribulations. We had all kinds of water and plumbing issues. But guys, guess what? Knowing that the gospel was going out, knowing that the gospel of Jesus Christ was changing people's lives, guess what? It made it all worth it. It brought in immeasurable amounts of joy. Knowing the gospel that was going out, knowing that seeds were being planted, knowing that the work was being done and that treasure

was being stored up in heaven where moth and rust cannot destroy it, where nobody can break in and steal it, it made it all worth it. And it brought immeasurable amounts of joy because those, the gospel was changing those. Kids' lives. I have a note here to remind the ushers, I hope they're listening out there, to go let the kids know. All right, perfect. I see them. Yes. So I've talked about the kingdom of heaven

being this, being the perfect, incorruptible, and everlasting kingdom, but the question becomes, what does it look like? What do I have to look forward to when I get there? If you'll flip over in your Bibles to John chapter 14, John 14, it's Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, not 10, not 11, not 12. John 14. I'll give you a second to get there. Jesus himself gives us a glimpse

of what we have to look forward to in the kingdom of heaven. Here in verse one, he says, don't let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. And in my Father's house are many rooms or dwelling places. And if it were not so, would I have told you that I'm going to go prepare a place for you? If I go away and prepare a place for you, I will come again and take you to myself so that where I

am, you may be also. You know the way where I'm going. Lord, Thomas said, we don't know where you're going. How can we know the way? Verse six, Jesus told him, I am the way. I am the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. Jesus is talking to his disciples here after the Lord's Supper, which we're going to take here in a minute. And he's telling them that he's going to have to leave. And he's telling them where he's going to go.

And he's telling them how to get there. He says, I am the way. If you want to get to the kingdom of heaven, I am the way. He says that in my Father's house, there are many dwelling places. And if it were not so, I would have told you. Brothers and sisters, in the greatest kingdom ever, there is a place for you. There is a dwelling place for you in God's kingdom.

There are dwelling places. There are dwelling places in his kingdom. And I'm betting there are no locks on those doors. Like I said, when I get to heaven, I'm just going to straight up walk into my neighbor's house. I'm not even going to bother knocking. It's going to be great. Here, I have to lock my doors at night. There, I don't. Here, I have to worry about making my house payments, insurance, taxes, and

all that. There, I don't. My place in heaven's already been paid for by the blood of Jesus. The mortgage has been paid. The taxes, the taxes, the taxes, the taxes, the taxes, the taxes. in insurance are non-existent because guess what? Guess what? There is no chance of my dwelling place ever being taken away. There's no chance of my dwelling place ever being flooded or destroyed

by anything. My place in the greatest kingdom ever is secure. It can never be taken away. It can never burn down. It will never need another roof. I'll never have to have plumbing issues again. Thank you, Jesus. Nothing can happen to it. Nobody can break into it and take anything. The doors will never have to be locked. My place there is secure. How about yours? Do you have a

place secured in the greatest kingdom? Amen? This morning, church family, I have a couple of questions for you to leave with and ponder on. Number one, whose kingdom are you focused on? Your kingdom. Your kingdom, which is less than perfect, it's temporary, and it's corrupted. Or are you focused on God's kingdom, his perfect, incorruptible, everlasting kingdom? Second question, are you on

the right road to his kingdom? Are you on the road that focuses on worldly kingdoms, all of which are going to go away? Or are you on the road that is narrow, that's difficult sometimes, but it leads to the greatest kingdom ever? Well, this morning is Communion Sunday. It looks like we've got a bunch of kids lined up out there, so I'll go ahead and have the ushers

bring the kids in. And parents, if you could be watching out for your kiddos. Worship team, if you want to go ahead and come on up and start getting ready. All right. Well, as I mentioned, this morning is Communion Sunday, and this is a time where we remember what Christ did for us in taking our rightful place on the cross. That we deserved. And in doing so, he gave us this wonderful opportunity for new life in him,

in this life and in the next one. And I asked a question a minute ago about which road you were on. Are you on the narrow road that leads to the kingdom of heaven? And if you are, this communion that we're about to partake of is for you. However, Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 11, that whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup and eats the bread will be saved. And if you're

in an unworthy manner, will be guilty of sin. So brothers and sisters, do you have sin in your life this morning? If you do, I would encourage you to take some time now and do business with the Lord. Get your heart right before him. Confess it. Repent of it. And ask forgiveness. For the believer and follower of Jesus Christ, there needs to be this time of self-examination

before you take communion. And if you need to, if you need to take extra time, let the tray pass on by. Do business. Do business with the Lord first and then take communion. That's the first group. There's another group of people I want to talk to before we take communion here. If you're here this morning and you cannot confidently say you've placed your faith and trust in Jesus as your Lord, as the

Lord of your life and your Savior, I'm going to encourage you to let the tray pass on by this morning. If you're not sure about it, if you think you have, but you're not 100% sure, let the tray pass on by. Let's come get it. Let's get it settled this morning. Okay? If you've never, if you have never come to the point of surrender, you can do that this morning. Today is the day of salvation. Don't wait another day.

Friends, you're not, you're not guaranteed tomorrow. You're not guaranteed your next heartbeat, your next breath. But today be the day of salvation. Let the day that you finally come and surrender your life to the Lord. And if that's you this morning, we would love to talk about it. We would love to talk about it with you and pray with you. Come find me or come find one of my

leaders after church. We'd love to talk and pray with you. So, ushers, if you want to go ahead and come on down. As you, as you receive your, your elements, if you'll go ahead and stand. We thank you, Lord, that you made a way, you made a way into your kingdom, Lord, by the body that was broken and the blood that was shed on the cross. Lord God, you looked at us, saw how just true you

truly sinful we could be. You still went to the cross. You still said it was worth it. So, Lord, we thank you and we praise you. Thank you for what you've done for us. Thank you for what, for doing what no one else ever could. Thank you for taking our sin and paying the price so that we could have a chance at new life, so that we could have a chance to spend eternity

with you in your kingdom. Your kingdom where moth and rust cannot destroy and where there are no thieves to break in and steal our treasure, Lord God. Lord, you are our treasure. Lord, we love you. We praise you in Jesus' name. Amen. Let's partake. And would you pray with me one more time? Lord, we thank you for another day and we thank you for your word this morning. Lord, your word is sharp and powerful.

And Lord God, if we have, if we have focused too much on our own kingdoms, Lord, if I have focused on too much on my own kingdom, Lord, may I, may we abandon it and seek first your kingdom and your righteousness, Lord. May you add all those things that we need to us. Lord, bless us as we leave here today. We love you and we praise you in Jesus' name. Amen. Love you guys. Have a great week.