February 18, 2025 • 28 mins
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Speaker 1 (00:04):
Welcome to this edition of PowerPoint with Jack Graham. A
little later in the program, we'll tell you how you
can get a copy of doctor Graham's book, A Hope
and a Future. But first, here's the message, All on
the Altar.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
What happens in verse one of chapter twelve of Romans
is an appeal. It is an invitation by the Great Apostle.
And he says, I appeal to you, therefore, brothers, view
of all these mercies, because of what we've said, because
what God has done in your lives, by the mercies
of God. To do, what to present your bodies as
(00:42):
a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God? Which is
your spiritual worship? Is your all on the altar? That's
the question that we're asking today. It's what Paul was
saying so long ago, as the Apostle, the Great Apostle.
(01:03):
And yet he's a pastor here. He's pastoral in his approach.
He approached he's not demanding or bullying his way in here.
Speaker 3 (01:10):
He's saying, I urge you.
Speaker 4 (01:11):
The old King James word was I beseech you. It's
almost as though he's down on his knees.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
He's saying, I'm pleading with you as your pastor.
Speaker 4 (01:19):
I'm pleading with you.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
And there's passion here, there's emotion here because of the
mercies of God.
Speaker 4 (01:25):
I plead with you.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
I urge you to give your life over, to offer
yourself unconditionally, holy and completely as a living sacrifice to God.
So many of the things, the great things that have
happened life and my life, have happened at an altar.
I gave my life to follow Jesus at an altar,
a place of decision.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
I went forward they called it in those days, the.
Speaker 2 (01:49):
Altar called, and when the minister would speak and the
evangelist would invite us to Christ, we would come. So
as a six year old boy, I can remember it
like it was yesterday, honest truth. I walked down, literally
in Conway, Arkansas, assawed ust trail. There was sawdust. We
were into a tent, and you're going to go on barefooted.
(02:10):
Not everybody runs barefooted in Arkansas, but some.
Speaker 3 (02:13):
Of us did.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
But I walked down a sawdust trail and I gave
my life to Jesus Christ. Later on, when I was
a teenager, a sophomore in high school, I went forward
in my church and the response to the invitation to
put my all.
Speaker 3 (02:30):
On the altar, and at an altar.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
A place of decision, I gave my life publicly to
preach the Gospel, and it altered, It changed everything for
the rest of my days. A few years later, I
stood at a marriage altar in Mineral Wells, Texas with
my bride, dev and we said our I dos. She
said yes, I said yes, and we were married. We
(02:53):
made a commitment at an altar. It was a place
of devotion and decision. And the response, as Paul is
giving it here, as I am giving it today, is pastoral.
Speaker 3 (03:04):
It is personal. It is passionate.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
It is saying, come to the altar and put your
life on the altar of Christ. Because half hearted never worked.
Wholehearted always works when it comes to Jesus. If we're
going to change the world, it won't happen with casual, conventional, cultural,
(03:27):
convenient Christianity. It will happen with a consecrated Christianity. Consecrated
Christians who are holy and holy. Offered to the Lord
who ever said that you could have a half hearted,
(03:49):
half in.
Speaker 4 (03:50):
Half out fringe.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
Come when you feel like at the church, live for
Jesus when you want to, when it's going.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
To be who said that.
Speaker 4 (04:01):
Who made that.
Speaker 3 (04:04):
A possibility.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
Not God, not Jesus, who said in the Gospel of Matthew,
he said, if anyone's going to follow after me, do what.
Take up the cross, die to sell, take up the
cross and follow me. Ours is the faith of the Cross,
of the resurrection. Not only we believe in the cross
and boast of the cross alone, but we carried the
(04:28):
cross as an act of sacrifice and surrender to the Lord.
And that's what this sermon, this message, this text is about.
So because of these abundant mercies, this astounding grace, amazing
grace in our lives, we then give ourselves to the Lord,
(04:49):
and we do it not just in part, but all
the mercies of God.
Speaker 4 (04:56):
What God has done for you.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
Is amazing, incredible, is his mercies, more and more mercies.
Speaker 4 (05:03):
They're new every morning.
Speaker 3 (05:05):
Great is thy faithfulness.
Speaker 2 (05:09):
But now that God has given us every blessing, life
becomes less and less about bless me, bless me, bless me.
But now Lord, send me, send me, use me for
your glory when we bring our lives on the altar.
In the Old Testament, there were two kinds of sacrifices.
(05:30):
One sacrifice was called the propitiary sacrifice. That was the
sacrifice for forgiveness that Jewish people would make. And then
other sacrifices, all with animals or grain of some kind.
Speaker 3 (05:43):
These were dedicatory sacrifices.
Speaker 2 (05:47):
Giving thanks to God for his provision, for his forgiveness
and his salvation. So the propitiation, that sacrifice, get this
was made by Christ who died to save us from
our sins. So that's his sacrifice. Our sacrifice is the
(06:10):
dedication of our lives, where we bring not dead animals
or grain, but we bring our lives and we put
ourselves on the altar.
Speaker 3 (06:24):
So what is this sacrifice?
Speaker 2 (06:26):
Years ago I heard it defined in three ways that
I'm going to share with you today. First, it is
a living sacrifice. Secondly, it is a lasting sacrifice. And thirdly,
it is a loving sacrifice, and it is a lasting
(06:48):
sacrifice as well. So number one, it is a living sacrifice,
a living sacrifice, living in the sense.
Speaker 3 (07:02):
That it is you on the altar.
Speaker 4 (07:07):
Christ died and now you live, and we.
Speaker 2 (07:11):
Are alive on the altar because of the sacrifice of Jesus.
Speaker 3 (07:19):
We are.
Speaker 2 (07:23):
Living sacrifices. Now, the problem of a living sacrifice is
dead animals. Sacrifices don't go anywhere. Living sacrifices can crawl
off the altar. And some of you, some of us,
from time to time, have crawled off the altar.
Speaker 4 (07:45):
We're no longer there on the altar of God.
Speaker 2 (07:51):
Now some of you may be thinking, Okay, this is
good for the missionary. It's good for the monk, it's
good for the matterstic, it's good for.
Speaker 3 (08:01):
The preachers, for the clergy.
Speaker 2 (08:03):
It's good for those kids who say, Okay, we're going
to go to the ministry full time ministry. That's good
for them. But that's not me. I'm more part time
in my faith. I'm more not all in. I'm just
partly in when it is convenient. This is for the
extra Christianity, extra Christian faith. This is for the superhero
kind of Christian all on the altar.
Speaker 3 (08:25):
No, it is for all of us.
Speaker 2 (08:27):
I like the way it is translated or paraphrased in
the message. Listen to this Romans twelve one. So here's
what I want you to do. God helping you take
your every day ordinary life. You're sleeping, you're eating, you're
going to work, and walking around life and place it
before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for
(08:50):
you is the best thing that you can do for him.
Speaker 4 (08:53):
That's it.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
This living sacrifice means not some ultra kind of experience,
but it is your everyday walk with God. It is
your walking around faith. It is your living faith. It
is your driving around in your car faith. It's it's
the folding the laundry faith. It's the sending a text
(09:15):
kind of sacrifice. It's a taking an exam kind of sacrifice.
Speaker 3 (09:21):
That is a sacrifice.
Speaker 2 (09:22):
It's playing sports, is coaching, it's mentoring, it's leading, it's
it's whatever you do. This isn't just for the super
spiritual types. I'm trying to say, this is for all
of us because of what Christ has done for us.
Speaker 3 (09:40):
It lives.
Speaker 2 (09:44):
Colossius three seventeen. Whatever you do, you're walking around, you're
driving around, whatever you do, do it all to the
glory of God in the name of Jesus, for his glory.
You know why some people don't surrender their lives completely
(10:06):
to the Lord. You know why?
Speaker 3 (10:10):
Because they don't know the Lord like they should know
the Lord.
Speaker 2 (10:14):
They have a warped sense of who God is and
what God expects. Some of you are thinking, you know,
if I really give my life unconditioning the Lord to
follow him like that anywhere, anytime, any costs that, I'm
going to be miserable. I'll stop having fun, i won't
have any friends. I may end up spending my life
on the backside of nowhere somewhere.
Speaker 3 (10:37):
See, that's a warped view of God.
Speaker 4 (10:39):
God is a good God.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
Not only is he good, he does good, and He's
working all things together for the good to those who love.
Speaker 4 (10:47):
Him and the called according to his purpose. God's best
is for you. This is what happens.
Speaker 3 (10:52):
His will is good and perfect and acceptable.
Speaker 2 (10:59):
And so when you take the risk, when you take
the dare and you go all in with the Lord.
Speaker 4 (11:06):
Expect some challenges.
Speaker 2 (11:07):
There will be times as hard the cross may require
some suffering, but the reward is so great. The challenge
is there, but the celebration of the victory is so
great when you give your life to the Lord like this,
because God is good and his mercies. Remember is his
(11:28):
mercies that propel us into this kind of life and lifestyle.
Speaker 4 (11:34):
It's a living sacrifice.
Speaker 1 (11:36):
You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and the message
all on the altar Sometimes answers to life's problems seem
distant and hope seems out of reach, But that's exactly
where God's promises meet us. We want to help you
rest in God's promises even in life's darkest moments by
sending you doctor Jack Graham's book, A Hope and a Future.
(11:57):
It's our way of saying thanks for your gift of
ten dollars more to help proclaim the good news around
the world through PowerPoint. Call now to request your copy
of A Hope and a Future. Call one eight hundred
seven ninety five four six two seven. That's one eight
hundred seven ninety five four six two seven. You can
(12:17):
also text the word hope to five nine seven eight nine.
Don't let stress rob you of peace. It is possible
to break the destructive grip of stress on your life
and enjoy the peace and abundance God desires for you.
That's what doctor Graham helps you do in his booklet
Breaking Free from Stress. We'll send you a digital download
of Breaking Free from Stress when you sign up for
(12:39):
email updates from PowerPoint Today. Just go to PowerPoint dot
org slash stress and sign up today. Now let's get
back to today's message all on the altar.
Speaker 2 (12:49):
It's not only a living sacrifice, but it is a
lasting sacrifice. There's one sense the language of the New
Testament here when Paul gives it, he says, I appeal
to you brothers, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice.
Speaker 3 (13:03):
That's kind of a.
Speaker 4 (13:04):
One and done kind.
Speaker 2 (13:05):
Of word there, that you do it as an act,
a definite act of dedication and devotion to God. So
in one sense, that's why I mentioned some of the
decisions that I made along the way in my life,
whether it was salvation or ministry call or marriage, and
other times in my life there have been definite times
(13:26):
when I've said, Okay, Lord, I am making this this
day a dedication to you. I'm giving my life to you.
God just turns you around. You were going in the
wrong direction perhaps, and God turns you around, and you're
never going to forget about it because what Christ has done.
So it's kind of like that you got on the altar,
you said, my all is here. But we all know,
(13:52):
as I said earlier, one of the problems we've got
of being a living sacrifice as we crawl off the
altar and it can happen has happened to me. So
what needs to happen When that happens, I need to
crawl back up on that altar.
Speaker 3 (14:07):
And not quit.
Speaker 2 (14:10):
One of the challenges we have today is we see teenagers,
high school students, graduate, leave, go to college, maybe military,
maybe labor force. But you leave home and you leave
your faith behind. We've seen it. We've seen drifting and
(14:33):
then diminishing and even deconstruction.
Speaker 3 (14:38):
Of faith.
Speaker 4 (14:39):
People come back say, you know, I don't even.
Speaker 2 (14:41):
Have a faith because they quit. A living sacrifice never quits.
You just keep getting back on the altar. When you fall,
when you fail, when you choose the wrong way, when
you choose to get off, there comes the time you
get back off on the altar.
Speaker 3 (15:01):
You get yourself back up there. It's lasting.
Speaker 2 (15:04):
Don't quit. Everybody wants to quit today. If it gets hard,
if it gets uncomfortable, if I fail, I just quit. No,
this sacrifice is a living sacrifice. It's a lasting sacrifice.
You're on the altar and you keep yourself there. You say,
(15:27):
how am I doing that? This is the work of
the Holy Spirit in your life. Just like Moses when
he was in the desert, he was wasted. He thought
his life was over, and yet God called him out
of a burning bush, and he saw the bush a flame,
and he thought, if I could just get the fire
(15:48):
in my bones again, if I could just get the
fire back, maybe God could use me again. That's you know,
a sacrifice burns, doesn't it. So you get this presence
and the power of the Holy Spirit to burn in you,
to reignite you if you will, and you keep burning
(16:09):
and shining for Jesus. It's a living sacrifice. It's a
lasting sacrifice. It becomes a daily decision, and one final
thing is a logical sacrifice. Because what he says here,
in view of the mercies of God, offer yourselves your
(16:31):
body as a living sacrifice unto God, holy and acceptable,
which is your spiritual worship. And some translations give that
your reasonable service.
Speaker 3 (16:47):
The word is the word.
Speaker 2 (16:48):
We get our word logic from the word that is
translated here spiritual worship or reasonable worship. Some versions given
as true worship, others as proper and true worship. The
NLT New Living says, truly it is the way to
worship him. But it's the word logic. In other words,
(17:10):
I'm saying it's logical, it's reasonable to do this it's
a living, lasting, logical sacrifice, the giving of your bodies
to God. Paul said in Second Corinthians, Chapter six, Verses
nineteen and twenty. What do you not know that your
body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, that you
(17:33):
are not your own, that you are bought with a price,
the precious blood of Jesus. Therefore, glorify God with your body,
which belongs to Christ. So when he says present your
bodies to Christ here in Romans twelve, it means all
of you, including your body. I mean, we live in
our bodies. And what I do to make sure that
(17:57):
my all is on the altar. I pray regularly a
prayer that I'm going to suggest to you today closing
this message. It's something that I pray often at the
outset of my day. I just pray from the top
of my head to the bottom of my feet.
Speaker 4 (18:18):
I start with my mind. Lord, I give you my mind.
Speaker 3 (18:26):
Now.
Speaker 4 (18:26):
I love you with all my heart, my mind, my soul,
and strength.
Speaker 3 (18:32):
Lord.
Speaker 2 (18:32):
May I think true thoughts and praiseworthy thoughts. Guard my
thoughts o God, and renew and transform the way that
I think. And may my thoughts be honorable and pleasing
to you, Oh God, help me that my thoughts would
be filled with faith and love for you. And then
(18:53):
from my mind I move to my eyes. Lord, I
give you my eyes what I see, because the eyes
are the light of the soul.
Speaker 3 (19:05):
Jesus said, help.
Speaker 2 (19:07):
Me to look beyond today and my circumstances and to
see the eternal. To take the long look and have
an eternal perspective. Lord, protect my eyes from seeing things
that are ungodly or immoral, are impure.
Speaker 3 (19:31):
And Lord, may I see.
Speaker 2 (19:33):
With the eyes of Christ people around me who need you.
May I see the hurting and the helpless and the
hopeless and love them. God, I give you back everything. Lord,
May I have the eyes of Christ. And then I
move from my eyes to my ears. Lord, May I
(19:59):
hear your words. May I awaken to hear your words
spoken in the wonders of creation, and especially in the
wonders of your word and in the whispers of your spirits. Lord,
let me hear every detail. Let me so listen that
I will obey you and live for you. Lord, you
said he that has ears, let him hear. Lord. Let
(20:20):
me hear what you want me to do. And especially Lord,
that I would hear your call. God is calling some
of you today, not maybe to preach, but to do
something else in the center of His will. Are you
(20:45):
hearing the call of God? And is your answer always yes?
Speaker 3 (20:50):
Lord?
Speaker 2 (20:50):
Because the moment you say no, Lord, he's no longer
Lord of your life. You can say yes, you can
say no, but you can only say yes Lord.
Speaker 3 (20:59):
You can't say o. Lord.
Speaker 2 (21:03):
So Lord, let me say yes to you and what
you're called. And then Lord, I then pray for my mouth.
I need that because I've got a big one.
Speaker 3 (21:17):
Lord.
Speaker 2 (21:18):
May the words of my mouth I give to you,
the meditations of my heart be acceptable.
Speaker 3 (21:24):
In your side. Lord.
Speaker 4 (21:25):
May my tongue glorify your name.
Speaker 2 (21:29):
The words that I say, the words that I speak,
help me to use words that equip and encourage others
around me.
Speaker 4 (21:40):
Lord, use my mouth to proclaim your name.
Speaker 2 (21:44):
To share Jesus, to tell people about Jesus.
Speaker 3 (21:48):
Lord.
Speaker 4 (21:48):
I give you my mind. Lord, I give you my eyes.
Speaker 3 (21:51):
Lord, I give you my ears.
Speaker 4 (21:52):
Lord, I give you my mouth, and I give you
my heart.
Speaker 2 (21:56):
Lord, because that's your throne. Take you rightful place of
pre eminence in my life. On the throne of my heart.
I get self out of the way. Lord, that you
may reign and rule and live in lordship in my life.
My heart, Lord, guard my heart, for I know the
(22:16):
scripture says, out of the heartflow all.
Speaker 3 (22:19):
The issues of life. So Lord, I give you my heart.
Speaker 2 (22:25):
And then I pray. Lord, I give you my hands. Lord,
here are my hands. May you use them to work
for you, to serve you in the ways that you
have assigned me. And Lord, may my hands be open
to you and giving to others. Lord, let me not
live with hands clenched holding on to what I have,
(22:48):
but Lord, that I would open my hands and serve
you with gladness and joy. Lord, let me lift my
hands and praise and adoration you. Lord, I give you
my hands. And then, Lord, I give you my feet.
Or let them move at the impulse of your love,
(23:09):
the direction of your spirit. May they go where you
want me to go. Lord, I say your will, wherever, whenever, whatever, however, Lord,
not your will, but my will be to take me
to the place is move my feet in the pilgrimage
towards Heaven that would honor you. Lord, I give you
my feet, Send me and use me. That's living with
(23:31):
your life on the altar.
Speaker 1 (23:34):
You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and the message
all on the altar. God's word is the source for
timeless truths that answer the big questions people are seeking.
But so many people around the world have never heard
God's word proclaimed. That's why the support of friends like
you is so important, because together we can carry the
(23:54):
unchanging truth of God's Word across the globe through the TV,
radio and online outreach of PowerPoint. We'll say thanks for
your gift of ten dollars or more to share God's
Truth with more people by sending you a copy of
doctor Jack Graham's book, A Hope and a Future, So
call now to request your copy. When you give, call
one eight hundred seven ninety five four six two seven.
(24:18):
That's one eight hundred seven ninety five four six two seven.
You can also text the word hope to five nine
seven eight nine and thank you for helping take the
Hope of Jesus to a world and need and don't forget.
To visit Jack Graham dot org where you can shop
our easttore, give a gift online, or sign up for
doctor Graham's free daily email devotional. Our website again is
(24:41):
Jack Graham dot org and also be sure to sign
up for Doctor Graham's podcast Bible in a Year pastor
what is your PowerPoint for today?
Speaker 5 (24:54):
First of all, it is so important that we give
our lives fully to Christ. One of my favorite scriptures
is Proverbs three, five and six is a life verse.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do
not lean into your own understanding and all your ways.
Acknowledge Him and he will direct your paths. Now, we
all want God to show us purpose and meeting and
direct our paths. Well, the key to that is the
(25:15):
first part. Trust in the Lord with all of your heart.
And when you're fully committed to Jesus Christ, then he
enables you. He empowers you to do all things that
you need to do to face any circumstance or difficulty,
to meet your obligations, as well as to get done
the things that you want to do.
Speaker 3 (25:33):
For His glory.
Speaker 5 (25:34):
But if you're not fully committed, if you have just
given him part of your heart or half of your commitment,
then you're missing out on so much of your life.
Can you imagine in a marriage if a husband said
to his wife, well, I'm going to give you half
of my life. I'm going to give you part of
my commitment. Well, that doesn't work in a marriage, and
it doesn't work in our relationship with Christ. We need
(25:56):
to make sure that our lives are fully yielded to him.
Sometimes I think even the word commitment doesn't say at all,
because if I commit something, I still control it, I
can take it back. But when we fully surrender, when
we absolutely and totally give our hearts our lives are
all to the Lord Jesus Christ, then he is able
(26:17):
to take what we give and cleanse it and fill
it and use it. I want to challenge you today
to make that kind of commitment, a commitment that says, Lord,
here is my life, all of it. Here is my family,
Here is my future, Here is my career. In the
Book of Revelation, there is a church at Laodicea that
(26:37):
Jesus said, you know, you're not hot or cold. I
would rather be full out for me, full throttle for me,
hot or absolutely cold and away from me. What you are,
he said, is luke warm. And he warned them that
if they continued to be lukewarm lasadaisical in their commitment
to him, then he was going to spew them out
(26:59):
of his mind. I want you as a believer and
a follower of Jesus Christ, not to be in the
middle of a commitment to Christ, but to be fully
given and yielded to Him. And God bless you as
you make that commitment today, surrendering your heart, your life,
your soul to Him.
Speaker 1 (27:16):
And that is today's PowerPoint. Remember when you give a
gift of ten dollars or more to PowerPoint, we'll send
you doctor Graham's book A Hope and a Future as
a thanks for your support today. Call one eight hundred
seven ninety five four six two seven. That's one eight
hundred seven ninety five four six two seven. You can
also text the word hope to five nine seven eight
(27:39):
nine and join us again next time as doctor Graham
brings a message about how God will never fail to
guide you in his plans. That's next time on PowerPoint
with Jack Graham. PowerPoint with Jack Graham is sponsored by
PowerPoint Ministry.
Speaker 2 (27:54):
Say
Welcome to this edition of PowerPoint with Jack Graham. A
little later in the program, we'll tell you how you
can get a copy of doctor Graham's book, A Hope
and a Future. But first, here's the message, All on
the Altar.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
What happens in verse one of chapter twelve of Romans
is an appeal. It is an invitation by the Great Apostle.
And he says, I appeal to you, therefore, brothers, view
of all these mercies, because of what we've said, because
what God has done in your lives, by the mercies
of God. To do, what to present your bodies as
(00:42):
a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God? Which is
your spiritual worship? Is your all on the altar? That's
the question that we're asking today. It's what Paul was
saying so long ago, as the Apostle, the Great Apostle.
(01:03):
And yet he's a pastor here. He's pastoral in his approach.
He approached he's not demanding or bullying his way in here.
Speaker 3 (01:10):
He's saying, I urge you.
Speaker 4 (01:11):
The old King James word was I beseech you. It's
almost as though he's down on his knees.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
He's saying, I'm pleading with you as your pastor.
Speaker 4 (01:19):
I'm pleading with you.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
And there's passion here, there's emotion here because of the
mercies of God.
Speaker 4 (01:25):
I plead with you.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
I urge you to give your life over, to offer
yourself unconditionally, holy and completely as a living sacrifice to God.
So many of the things, the great things that have
happened life and my life, have happened at an altar.
I gave my life to follow Jesus at an altar,
a place of decision.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
I went forward they called it in those days, the.
Speaker 2 (01:49):
Altar called, and when the minister would speak and the
evangelist would invite us to Christ, we would come. So
as a six year old boy, I can remember it
like it was yesterday, honest truth. I walked down, literally
in Conway, Arkansas, assawed ust trail. There was sawdust. We
were into a tent, and you're going to go on barefooted.
(02:10):
Not everybody runs barefooted in Arkansas, but some.
Speaker 3 (02:13):
Of us did.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
But I walked down a sawdust trail and I gave
my life to Jesus Christ. Later on, when I was
a teenager, a sophomore in high school, I went forward
in my church and the response to the invitation to
put my all.
Speaker 3 (02:30):
On the altar, and at an altar.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
A place of decision, I gave my life publicly to
preach the Gospel, and it altered, It changed everything for
the rest of my days. A few years later, I
stood at a marriage altar in Mineral Wells, Texas with
my bride, dev and we said our I dos. She
said yes, I said yes, and we were married. We
(02:53):
made a commitment at an altar. It was a place
of devotion and decision. And the response, as Paul is
giving it here, as I am giving it today, is pastoral.
Speaker 3 (03:04):
It is personal. It is passionate.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
It is saying, come to the altar and put your
life on the altar of Christ. Because half hearted never worked.
Wholehearted always works when it comes to Jesus. If we're
going to change the world, it won't happen with casual, conventional, cultural,
(03:27):
convenient Christianity. It will happen with a consecrated Christianity. Consecrated
Christians who are holy and holy. Offered to the Lord
who ever said that you could have a half hearted,
(03:49):
half in.
Speaker 4 (03:50):
Half out fringe.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
Come when you feel like at the church, live for
Jesus when you want to, when it's going.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
To be who said that.
Speaker 4 (04:01):
Who made that.
Speaker 3 (04:04):
A possibility.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
Not God, not Jesus, who said in the Gospel of Matthew,
he said, if anyone's going to follow after me, do what.
Take up the cross, die to sell, take up the
cross and follow me. Ours is the faith of the Cross,
of the resurrection. Not only we believe in the cross
and boast of the cross alone, but we carried the
(04:28):
cross as an act of sacrifice and surrender to the Lord.
And that's what this sermon, this message, this text is about.
So because of these abundant mercies, this astounding grace, amazing
grace in our lives, we then give ourselves to the Lord,
(04:49):
and we do it not just in part, but all
the mercies of God.
Speaker 4 (04:56):
What God has done for you.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
Is amazing, incredible, is his mercies, more and more mercies.
Speaker 4 (05:03):
They're new every morning.
Speaker 3 (05:05):
Great is thy faithfulness.
Speaker 2 (05:09):
But now that God has given us every blessing, life
becomes less and less about bless me, bless me, bless me.
But now Lord, send me, send me, use me for
your glory when we bring our lives on the altar.
In the Old Testament, there were two kinds of sacrifices.
(05:30):
One sacrifice was called the propitiary sacrifice. That was the
sacrifice for forgiveness that Jewish people would make. And then
other sacrifices, all with animals or grain of some kind.
Speaker 3 (05:43):
These were dedicatory sacrifices.
Speaker 2 (05:47):
Giving thanks to God for his provision, for his forgiveness
and his salvation. So the propitiation, that sacrifice, get this
was made by Christ who died to save us from
our sins. So that's his sacrifice. Our sacrifice is the
(06:10):
dedication of our lives, where we bring not dead animals
or grain, but we bring our lives and we put
ourselves on the altar.
Speaker 3 (06:24):
So what is this sacrifice?
Speaker 2 (06:26):
Years ago I heard it defined in three ways that
I'm going to share with you today. First, it is
a living sacrifice. Secondly, it is a lasting sacrifice. And thirdly,
it is a loving sacrifice, and it is a lasting
(06:48):
sacrifice as well. So number one, it is a living sacrifice,
a living sacrifice, living in the sense.
Speaker 3 (07:02):
That it is you on the altar.
Speaker 4 (07:07):
Christ died and now you live, and we.
Speaker 2 (07:11):
Are alive on the altar because of the sacrifice of Jesus.
Speaker 3 (07:19):
We are.
Speaker 2 (07:23):
Living sacrifices. Now, the problem of a living sacrifice is
dead animals. Sacrifices don't go anywhere. Living sacrifices can crawl
off the altar. And some of you, some of us,
from time to time, have crawled off the altar.
Speaker 4 (07:45):
We're no longer there on the altar of God.
Speaker 2 (07:51):
Now some of you may be thinking, Okay, this is
good for the missionary. It's good for the monk, it's
good for the matterstic, it's good for.
Speaker 3 (08:01):
The preachers, for the clergy.
Speaker 2 (08:03):
It's good for those kids who say, Okay, we're going
to go to the ministry full time ministry. That's good
for them. But that's not me. I'm more part time
in my faith. I'm more not all in. I'm just
partly in when it is convenient. This is for the
extra Christianity, extra Christian faith. This is for the superhero
kind of Christian all on the altar.
Speaker 3 (08:25):
No, it is for all of us.
Speaker 2 (08:27):
I like the way it is translated or paraphrased in
the message. Listen to this Romans twelve one. So here's
what I want you to do. God helping you take
your every day ordinary life. You're sleeping, you're eating, you're
going to work, and walking around life and place it
before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for
(08:50):
you is the best thing that you can do for him.
Speaker 4 (08:53):
That's it.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
This living sacrifice means not some ultra kind of experience,
but it is your everyday walk with God. It is
your walking around faith. It is your living faith. It
is your driving around in your car faith. It's it's
the folding the laundry faith. It's the sending a text
(09:15):
kind of sacrifice. It's a taking an exam kind of sacrifice.
Speaker 3 (09:21):
That is a sacrifice.
Speaker 2 (09:22):
It's playing sports, is coaching, it's mentoring, it's leading, it's
it's whatever you do. This isn't just for the super
spiritual types. I'm trying to say, this is for all
of us because of what Christ has done for us.
Speaker 3 (09:40):
It lives.
Speaker 2 (09:44):
Colossius three seventeen. Whatever you do, you're walking around, you're
driving around, whatever you do, do it all to the
glory of God in the name of Jesus, for his glory.
You know why some people don't surrender their lives completely
(10:06):
to the Lord. You know why?
Speaker 3 (10:10):
Because they don't know the Lord like they should know
the Lord.
Speaker 2 (10:14):
They have a warped sense of who God is and
what God expects. Some of you are thinking, you know,
if I really give my life unconditioning the Lord to
follow him like that anywhere, anytime, any costs that, I'm
going to be miserable. I'll stop having fun, i won't
have any friends. I may end up spending my life
on the backside of nowhere somewhere.
Speaker 3 (10:37):
See, that's a warped view of God.
Speaker 4 (10:39):
God is a good God.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
Not only is he good, he does good, and He's
working all things together for the good to those who love.
Speaker 4 (10:47):
Him and the called according to his purpose. God's best
is for you. This is what happens.
Speaker 3 (10:52):
His will is good and perfect and acceptable.
Speaker 2 (10:59):
And so when you take the risk, when you take
the dare and you go all in with the Lord.
Speaker 4 (11:06):
Expect some challenges.
Speaker 2 (11:07):
There will be times as hard the cross may require
some suffering, but the reward is so great. The challenge
is there, but the celebration of the victory is so
great when you give your life to the Lord like this,
because God is good and his mercies. Remember is his
(11:28):
mercies that propel us into this kind of life and lifestyle.
Speaker 4 (11:34):
It's a living sacrifice.
Speaker 1 (11:36):
You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and the message
all on the altar Sometimes answers to life's problems seem
distant and hope seems out of reach, But that's exactly
where God's promises meet us. We want to help you
rest in God's promises even in life's darkest moments by
sending you doctor Jack Graham's book, A Hope and a Future.
(11:57):
It's our way of saying thanks for your gift of
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of A Hope and a Future. Call one eight hundred
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hundred seven ninety five four six two seven. You can
(12:17):
also text the word hope to five nine seven eight nine.
Don't let stress rob you of peace. It is possible
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and enjoy the peace and abundance God desires for you.
That's what doctor Graham helps you do in his booklet
Breaking Free from Stress. We'll send you a digital download
of Breaking Free from Stress when you sign up for
(12:39):
email updates from PowerPoint Today. Just go to PowerPoint dot
org slash stress and sign up today. Now let's get
back to today's message all on the altar.
Speaker 2 (12:49):
It's not only a living sacrifice, but it is a
lasting sacrifice. There's one sense the language of the New
Testament here when Paul gives it, he says, I appeal
to you brothers, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice.
Speaker 3 (13:03):
That's kind of a.
Speaker 4 (13:04):
One and done kind.
Speaker 2 (13:05):
Of word there, that you do it as an act,
a definite act of dedication and devotion to God. So
in one sense, that's why I mentioned some of the
decisions that I made along the way in my life,
whether it was salvation or ministry call or marriage, and
other times in my life there have been definite times
(13:26):
when I've said, Okay, Lord, I am making this this
day a dedication to you. I'm giving my life to you.
God just turns you around. You were going in the
wrong direction perhaps, and God turns you around, and you're
never going to forget about it because what Christ has done.
So it's kind of like that you got on the altar,
you said, my all is here. But we all know,
(13:52):
as I said earlier, one of the problems we've got
of being a living sacrifice as we crawl off the
altar and it can happen has happened to me. So
what needs to happen When that happens, I need to
crawl back up on that altar.
Speaker 3 (14:07):
And not quit.
Speaker 2 (14:10):
One of the challenges we have today is we see teenagers,
high school students, graduate, leave, go to college, maybe military,
maybe labor force. But you leave home and you leave
your faith behind. We've seen it. We've seen drifting and
(14:33):
then diminishing and even deconstruction.
Speaker 3 (14:38):
Of faith.
Speaker 4 (14:39):
People come back say, you know, I don't even.
Speaker 2 (14:41):
Have a faith because they quit. A living sacrifice never quits.
You just keep getting back on the altar. When you fall,
when you fail, when you choose the wrong way, when
you choose to get off, there comes the time you
get back off on the altar.
Speaker 3 (15:01):
You get yourself back up there. It's lasting.
Speaker 2 (15:04):
Don't quit. Everybody wants to quit today. If it gets hard,
if it gets uncomfortable, if I fail, I just quit. No,
this sacrifice is a living sacrifice. It's a lasting sacrifice.
You're on the altar and you keep yourself there. You say,
(15:27):
how am I doing that? This is the work of
the Holy Spirit in your life. Just like Moses when
he was in the desert, he was wasted. He thought
his life was over, and yet God called him out
of a burning bush, and he saw the bush a flame,
and he thought, if I could just get the fire
(15:48):
in my bones again, if I could just get the
fire back, maybe God could use me again. That's you know,
a sacrifice burns, doesn't it. So you get this presence
and the power of the Holy Spirit to burn in you,
to reignite you if you will, and you keep burning
(16:09):
and shining for Jesus. It's a living sacrifice. It's a
lasting sacrifice. It becomes a daily decision, and one final
thing is a logical sacrifice. Because what he says here,
in view of the mercies of God, offer yourselves your
(16:31):
body as a living sacrifice unto God, holy and acceptable,
which is your spiritual worship. And some translations give that
your reasonable service.
Speaker 3 (16:47):
The word is the word.
Speaker 2 (16:48):
We get our word logic from the word that is
translated here spiritual worship or reasonable worship. Some versions given
as true worship, others as proper and true worship. The
NLT New Living says, truly it is the way to
worship him. But it's the word logic. In other words,
(17:10):
I'm saying it's logical, it's reasonable to do this it's
a living, lasting, logical sacrifice, the giving of your bodies
to God. Paul said in Second Corinthians, Chapter six, Verses
nineteen and twenty. What do you not know that your
body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, that you
(17:33):
are not your own, that you are bought with a price,
the precious blood of Jesus. Therefore, glorify God with your body,
which belongs to Christ. So when he says present your
bodies to Christ here in Romans twelve, it means all
of you, including your body. I mean, we live in
our bodies. And what I do to make sure that
(17:57):
my all is on the altar. I pray regularly a
prayer that I'm going to suggest to you today closing
this message. It's something that I pray often at the
outset of my day. I just pray from the top
of my head to the bottom of my feet.
Speaker 4 (18:18):
I start with my mind. Lord, I give you my mind.
Speaker 3 (18:26):
Now.
Speaker 4 (18:26):
I love you with all my heart, my mind, my soul,
and strength.
Speaker 3 (18:32):
Lord.
Speaker 2 (18:32):
May I think true thoughts and praiseworthy thoughts. Guard my
thoughts o God, and renew and transform the way that
I think. And may my thoughts be honorable and pleasing
to you, Oh God, help me that my thoughts would
be filled with faith and love for you. And then
(18:53):
from my mind I move to my eyes. Lord, I
give you my eyes what I see, because the eyes
are the light of the soul.
Speaker 3 (19:05):
Jesus said, help.
Speaker 2 (19:07):
Me to look beyond today and my circumstances and to
see the eternal. To take the long look and have
an eternal perspective. Lord, protect my eyes from seeing things
that are ungodly or immoral, are impure.
Speaker 3 (19:31):
And Lord, may I see.
Speaker 2 (19:33):
With the eyes of Christ people around me who need you.
May I see the hurting and the helpless and the
hopeless and love them. God, I give you back everything. Lord,
May I have the eyes of Christ. And then I
move from my eyes to my ears. Lord, May I
(19:59):
hear your words. May I awaken to hear your words
spoken in the wonders of creation, and especially in the
wonders of your word and in the whispers of your spirits. Lord,
let me hear every detail. Let me so listen that
I will obey you and live for you. Lord, you
said he that has ears, let him hear. Lord. Let
(20:20):
me hear what you want me to do. And especially Lord,
that I would hear your call. God is calling some
of you today, not maybe to preach, but to do
something else in the center of His will. Are you
(20:45):
hearing the call of God? And is your answer always yes?
Speaker 3 (20:50):
Lord?
Speaker 2 (20:50):
Because the moment you say no, Lord, he's no longer
Lord of your life. You can say yes, you can
say no, but you can only say yes Lord.
Speaker 3 (20:59):
You can't say o. Lord.
Speaker 2 (21:03):
So Lord, let me say yes to you and what
you're called. And then Lord, I then pray for my mouth.
I need that because I've got a big one.
Speaker 3 (21:17):
Lord.
Speaker 2 (21:18):
May the words of my mouth I give to you,
the meditations of my heart be acceptable.
Speaker 3 (21:24):
In your side. Lord.
Speaker 4 (21:25):
May my tongue glorify your name.
Speaker 2 (21:29):
The words that I say, the words that I speak,
help me to use words that equip and encourage others
around me.
Speaker 4 (21:40):
Lord, use my mouth to proclaim your name.
Speaker 2 (21:44):
To share Jesus, to tell people about Jesus.
Speaker 3 (21:48):
Lord.
Speaker 4 (21:48):
I give you my mind. Lord, I give you my eyes.
Speaker 3 (21:51):
Lord, I give you my ears.
Speaker 4 (21:52):
Lord, I give you my mouth, and I give you
my heart.
Speaker 2 (21:56):
Lord, because that's your throne. Take you rightful place of
pre eminence in my life. On the throne of my heart.
I get self out of the way. Lord, that you
may reign and rule and live in lordship in my life.
My heart, Lord, guard my heart, for I know the
(22:16):
scripture says, out of the heartflow all.
Speaker 3 (22:19):
The issues of life. So Lord, I give you my heart.
Speaker 2 (22:25):
And then I pray. Lord, I give you my hands. Lord,
here are my hands. May you use them to work
for you, to serve you in the ways that you
have assigned me. And Lord, may my hands be open
to you and giving to others. Lord, let me not
live with hands clenched holding on to what I have,
(22:48):
but Lord, that I would open my hands and serve
you with gladness and joy. Lord, let me lift my
hands and praise and adoration you. Lord, I give you
my hands. And then, Lord, I give you my feet.
Or let them move at the impulse of your love,
(23:09):
the direction of your spirit. May they go where you
want me to go. Lord, I say your will, wherever, whenever, whatever, however, Lord,
not your will, but my will be to take me
to the place is move my feet in the pilgrimage
towards Heaven that would honor you. Lord, I give you
my feet, Send me and use me. That's living with
(23:31):
your life on the altar.
Speaker 1 (23:34):
You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and the message
all on the altar. God's word is the source for
timeless truths that answer the big questions people are seeking.
But so many people around the world have never heard
God's word proclaimed. That's why the support of friends like
you is so important, because together we can carry the
(23:54):
unchanging truth of God's Word across the globe through the TV,
radio and online outreach of PowerPoint. We'll say thanks for
your gift of ten dollars or more to share God's
Truth with more people by sending you a copy of
doctor Jack Graham's book, A Hope and a Future, So
call now to request your copy. When you give, call
one eight hundred seven ninety five four six two seven.
(24:18):
That's one eight hundred seven ninety five four six two seven.
You can also text the word hope to five nine
seven eight nine and thank you for helping take the
Hope of Jesus to a world and need and don't forget.
To visit Jack Graham dot org where you can shop
our easttore, give a gift online, or sign up for
doctor Graham's free daily email devotional. Our website again is
(24:41):
Jack Graham dot org and also be sure to sign
up for Doctor Graham's podcast Bible in a Year pastor
what is your PowerPoint for today?
Speaker 5 (24:54):
First of all, it is so important that we give
our lives fully to Christ. One of my favorite scriptures
is Proverbs three, five and six is a life verse.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do
not lean into your own understanding and all your ways.
Acknowledge Him and he will direct your paths. Now, we
all want God to show us purpose and meeting and
direct our paths. Well, the key to that is the
(25:15):
first part. Trust in the Lord with all of your heart.
And when you're fully committed to Jesus Christ, then he
enables you. He empowers you to do all things that
you need to do to face any circumstance or difficulty,
to meet your obligations, as well as to get done
the things that you want to do.
Speaker 3 (25:33):
For His glory.
Speaker 5 (25:34):
But if you're not fully committed, if you have just
given him part of your heart or half of your commitment,
then you're missing out on so much of your life.
Can you imagine in a marriage if a husband said
to his wife, well, I'm going to give you half
of my life. I'm going to give you part of
my commitment. Well, that doesn't work in a marriage, and
it doesn't work in our relationship with Christ. We need
(25:56):
to make sure that our lives are fully yielded to him.
Sometimes I think even the word commitment doesn't say at all,
because if I commit something, I still control it, I
can take it back. But when we fully surrender, when
we absolutely and totally give our hearts our lives are
all to the Lord Jesus Christ, then he is able
(26:17):
to take what we give and cleanse it and fill
it and use it. I want to challenge you today
to make that kind of commitment, a commitment that says, Lord,
here is my life, all of it. Here is my family,
Here is my future, Here is my career. In the
Book of Revelation, there is a church at Laodicea that
(26:37):
Jesus said, you know, you're not hot or cold. I
would rather be full out for me, full throttle for me,
hot or absolutely cold and away from me. What you are,
he said, is luke warm. And he warned them that
if they continued to be lukewarm lasadaisical in their commitment
to him, then he was going to spew them out
(26:59):
of his mind. I want you as a believer and
a follower of Jesus Christ, not to be in the
middle of a commitment to Christ, but to be fully
given and yielded to Him. And God bless you as
you make that commitment today, surrendering your heart, your life,
your soul to Him.
Speaker 1 (27:16):
And that is today's PowerPoint. Remember when you give a
gift of ten dollars or more to PowerPoint, we'll send
you doctor Graham's book A Hope and a Future as
a thanks for your support today. Call one eight hundred
seven ninety five four six two seven. That's one eight
hundred seven ninety five four six two seven. You can
also text the word hope to five nine seven eight
(27:39):
nine and join us again next time as doctor Graham
brings a message about how God will never fail to
guide you in his plans. That's next time on PowerPoint
with Jack Graham. PowerPoint with Jack Graham is sponsored by
PowerPoint Ministry.
Speaker 2 (27:54):
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