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At Sandals Church, our vision is to be real with ourselves, God and others. This channel features sermons and teaching from Pastor Matt Brown and other members of the Sandals Church preaching team. You can find sermon notes, videos and more content at http://sandalschurch.com/watch
Thanks for tuning in to the Sandals Church podcast. Our vision as a church is to be real with ourselves, God, and others. We're glad you're here, and we hope you enjoy this message.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Hey, guys. Welcome to Sandals's Church. I'm super excited you are joining us today for this series on miracles. I just wanna start off by saying, if you didn't get a copy of the book yet, please get one of these. It's so important, because our small groups are going through this book while we're going through this message.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And so, I just wanna say thank you for everybody that's left a positive review on Amazon about the book. I did get a negative review this week. It was a 0. So, thank you for that. Actually, this was the review.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Not worth the price. That was the review. I know. And so, whoever that was, I'm praying for your soul. No.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:But let me just say this. These books are free for you if you will get in a group or start a group. We want you to be transformed through community and so get one of these. And if you just wanna buy it, you're not ready for a group yet, just remember, all the proceeds go to help our kids go to camp, and that's super important because camp is a bazillion dollars. And if you don't know that, it's because you don't have kids.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And it's just so so much money and we wanna help families out with that. If you're watching online, you can get it on Audible. If you're not a big reader, or you can just order it. But thank you so much. Get a copy of the book and it's so important.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And, one of the things I'm really proud about this is the QR codes. And I don't know if you guys noticed that, but it's something that I I asked the editor to do. Whenever I'm working, or reading with an author, I always wanna know more about the person that's, helping me grow. And I just feel like for some of you today, you're in here and there was just so many people that came forward for prayer last week. So many hurts, so many wounds.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And if you just need a miracle today, I want you to go to chapter 7 when God says no. And there's something really, really special for you in the QR code where you're just gonna learn why God does a miracle every day and it's something truly profound. When I discovered, it really changed my life and my perspective. So, know more about the book. Let me say this.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:All of us are on a spiritual journey. That's what the book is. The book is really my spiritual journey as a baptist kid growing up, not sure what I thought about miracles. Now, I grew up believing that Jesus did miracles in the bible. That was never in question, but I wasn't sure if he would do those kinds of things in my life and that's where some of you are today.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Now, some of you, you grew up in a great tradition where miracles were encouraged, they were celebrated, and they were seen. And then, there's a lot of people at Sandals Church that are new to Christianity and you're like, miracles? I didn't even know those things were real. And so, we're all on this journey together. And so that's why I want you to come each week to church.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I want you to get the book and let's journey together and just say, hey, God, we don't know what you're gonna do, but we know what you can do. And let's start praying and trusting God in this.
Intro:Thank you so much for joining us today. If this message has served you in any way, I wanna invite you to give today to the work that we are doing here at Samuels Church. You can do that by going to give.sc@anytime. But for right now, let's get back into the message with Pastor Matt.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And so what we're gonna do today is we're gonna start with the first miracle of Jesus. What a great place to start. This is the first miracle he ever does. It's at a wedding. He creates wine.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I know there's some baptists here that are a little concerned about Jesus, but it's okay. He created some wine. And so, we're going to start in John chapter 2 verses 1 through 11 but I just want to pray for us today. And let's just say, God, just show us what kind of miracle you want to do in our lives. Show us your power.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Show us what you and only you can do. So, would you pray with me? Heavenly father, we just pray in the name of Jesus that you would help us lord just discover your miraculous power. And god I pray today that we would leave here knowing that we can ask for whatever miracle we need. So god, move in our hearts, move in our lives, move in our church, move in our country and our world.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:We pray this in Jesus name. Amen. Amen. In John chapter 2 verse 1, it says, the next day there was a wedding celebration. Anybody been to a wedding?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Okay. I love weddings. I don't love doing them, but I love going to weddings. I love celebrating them. I love being with family and friends and it's so just such a great time.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:There was a wedding celebration in the village of Cana. We're not even sure where this village is. They think they know, but they're not sure. It's somewhere near Nazareth. It was within walking distance of where Jesus grew up.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:So, it was in the village of Cana in Galilee and Jesus's mother was there. And Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the celebration and the wine supply ran out. Right? During the festivities, so Jesus' mother told him, listen to this, they have no more wine and he says, dear woman, that's not our problem. Amen?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He's like, why is that my problem? He says, my time has not yet come. You see Jesus has not revealed himself yet. But his mother just ignores him, right? Because she is the Lord's mother and she told the servants, just do just do whatever he tells you to do.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And standing nearby were 6 stone water jars used for Jewish Jewish ceremonial washing. So when you go to the wedding, everybody washes their hands and they clean up. So, you don't wanna use this water. Right? Right.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:But each could hold about 20 to 30 gallons. So, Jesus told the servants, fill the jars with water. So it's not dirty water, this is new water. And when the jars had been filled, he said, now dip some out and take it to the master of the ceremonies. So let's pause here.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Okay. Anybody got friends that are into wine? Okay? I mean, you just you got these friends. Right?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:They want you to enjoy the wine, smell the wine. I got friends that are like, you got to let the wine touch every aspect of your tongue. Okay? I just want them to know whenever I drink, even if it's a Coca Cola, it's touching all of my tongue. Right?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I don't like reserve portions of my tongue for wine. Tammy and I went out to dinner, I kid you not, the couple next to us, they brought out a wine roller coaster. This thing was like this tall where the wine swirls all the way down and you let it breeze. Like, what is it dead? What is this?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Right? Anybody have that friend, they want you to smell it, you stick your nose in there, smell it, and you're like, oh, smell the tannins. I don't even know what a tannin is. Right. It just smells like wine, tastes like wine to me no matter how much I wash it in my tongue or sniff it.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:But that's what this guy is. This guy is a professional wine taster. Now, think about this. Not only is he a wine taster, he's a wine critic. This is someone in Jewish culture that you bring to your party to let everybody know, hey, this is good wine.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He's an expert. And so the servants followed his instructions. And when the master of the ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from, though, of course, the servants knew. He called the bridegroom over. He said a host always serves the best wine first.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Then, when everyone has had a lot to drink, let me translate that for the baptist, they're drunk. He brings out the less expensive wine. But, listen to what he says, but you have kept the best until now. This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was the first time Jesus revealed his glory. Listen to this, and his disciples believed in him.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Because of Jesus, whether you're a Christian or not a Christian, listen to me, because of Jesus not because you're a great person, an important person, a special person, I can ask Jesus for anything I need. Amen. What do you need today? What do you need today? Do you need rent?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:What what what is it that you need? Do you need hope? Do you need healing? Do you need a friend? Do you need a prayer?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:What what is it that you need? You can ask Jesus for anything you need. Jesus's own mother comes to him says, hey, they ran out of wine. Jesus says, dear woman, that's not our problem. My time has not yet come.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:You ever wonder about this sentence like, woah, this feels a little, you know, teenagery. But Mary ignores him and says just do just do whatever he says. Let me ask you a question. What does Mary know about Jesus her son that you don't? What what does she know about Jesus that you don't?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Because I think some of you are missing something. Jesus says, look, this this isn't about me. Jesus doesn't even want to do this miracle. He's like, I think everybody's had enough wine. Amen?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He's like, he's feeling like Coachella. Let's just stop. Let's just stop. The wine ran supply ran out during the festivities so Jesus' mother told him, they have no more wine. Very, very small problem.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Very very small problem. Jesus says, look I I've come to earth to die for sins not to help drunk people stay drunk. But Jesus answered Mary's request. Why? Here's the answer.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Because he loved her. He loved her. Okay. Ephesians 52. Listen to this.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Live a life filled with love. Following the example of Christ. Listen to this. He didn't just love Mary. He loved us.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And he offered himself as a sacrifice. Listen to these words. For us. A pleasing aroma to God. Can I just tell you that Jesus loves you?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And you may have a ridiculous request but he may answer it. Not even because you need it but just to prove to you that he loves you. When I was a kid and I shared this story in the book, my dad and I would do, father son dates. My family didn't have a lot of money, we were the working poor, and we struggled. But we were we were a happy home and I'm I'm grateful for those struggles nowadays.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:But in 1984, a Sacramentan, I grew up in Sacramento, won the Tour de France. He was the first American to ever win a French bicycle race. It's considered one of the most grueling, events in sports. It's one of the most watched events in sports. Matter of fact, 10 times more people watch the Tour de France than the Super Bowl.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I know that hurts as Americans, but it's true. It's true. And so just thousands and thousands of kids in Sacramento instantly went from wanting to be Tony Hawk as skateboarders to Greg Lamont, and I was one of those kids. I was gonna be the next American to win the Tour de France. And so, on my father son date night, I took my dad for our time together to a bike store and I showed him all the bikes.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And I showed him one bike in particular and I said, dad, this is my dream bike. With this, I could win the Tour of France. My dad was super excited until he saw the price tag. You see, the skateboard is about $100. A nice ten speed was well over $1,000.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And for the first time in my life, I saw my dad cry. He went from an exuberant moment with his son to just pain and grief for the fact that he didn't have that kind of money. And I felt bad that I made my dad feel bad and I swear to God, I'll never ask for this bike again until the very next day. And I was at a little league game where a young man came up on the exact same bike that I had selected in the bike store. He said, hey, kid, you want to buy a bike?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I said, is it stolen? He said, no. And here's the thing, I said, how much do you want for it? Listen to this, he wanted 10% of the price that it was at the store. That's an interesting number for those of you who are tithers.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Yeah. God discounted the bike by 90%. My dad buy bought the bike. My mom thought it was stolen. So we went to the police station and it wasn't stolen.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:We went to the bicycle store, they had no record of it. We called Nashiki International, which is now called Giant Bikes. They have no record of this bicycle ever being made. And the young man from Mather Air Force Base that sold me the bike for 10% of the cost, we went to Mather Air Force Base to thank him. They have no record of this soldier ever being on base.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I believe that God answered the prayer of a little boy whose dad was serving the Lord, and do you know why? Just because he loves me. Amen. Just because he loves me. Amen?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And that's the bike. And if you ever have an appointment with me in my office, I hope you're not in trouble. But if you have an appointment with me in my office, you're gonna see that bike hanging above my desk because on my worst days, I remind myself that Jesus loves me. And if you get nothing out of this series, I hope that God does something in your life. One thing.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Or for the rest of your life, you'll remember he loves me. That's right. He loves me. Peter says this Peter says and remember that the heavenly father whom do you pray listen to this he has no favorites. That's repeated in Colossians 325 and Ephesians 69 and Galatians 26.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Four times, I don't know why I'm holding up 8 fingers. Four times. Four times in scripture, God says, I don't have a favorite. Look, your parents may have a favorite. Your grandparents may have a favorite.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Your boss might have a favorite. God has no favorites. He loves Mary as much as he loves me as much as he loves you. Amen. So think about that.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:That's what Mary knows. Mary knows, they ran out of wine. He doesn't wanna do it but he's gonna do it because he loves me. Amen. Because he loves me.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And let me say this, there's no such thing as silly prayers. Anybody ever feel silly? Don't feel silly. You're talking to your father, you're talking to your dad. Hey, dad.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:This is what I want. This is where my heart is. This is what I feel like I need. Philippians 4:19, and this same God who takes care of me, this is scripture will supply all your needs from his glorious riches. Yes.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Okay. Your father in heaven is not on a budget. That's right. He owns it all. That's right.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:There there there are not there's no layoffs in heaven. Angels aren't losing their jobs today. Yeah. Goodness. Listen to this.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He'll supply all that we need according to his riches and glory. Listen to this, which have been given past tense to us in Christ Jesus. Amen. Man, what is it that you need to ask for today? Some of you at the end of service you know you need to come forward for prayer and you're not gonna do it.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:About a year and a half ago, I had a surgery on the top of my head. So, when you're a young person, you're growing. It's a wonderful face. When you get old, you have growth. Yeah.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:So, when you're young, you grow. When you're older, you have growth. So, you stop growing but part of your body rebels and it says, hello. And so I had a growth and I I kid you not. I'm embarrassed to say this.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I'm your spiritual leader. My mom said, I'm gonna pray for you. I said this to my mom. Don't do it. I'll be fine.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Can you laugh at me? But that's what some of you do every single week at church. I'll be fine. I don't need prayer this week. What could go wrong?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Monday's coming. Man, you know, I had surgery. The surgery was fine. They put great drugs on my head. It was fine.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I woke up at 4 AM. Anybody ever had a headache so bad you felt like you had to vomit? And, the first thing I said was, Lord, I'm sorry that I refused prayer. I called my mom the next day. I said, I I am never.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Man, if somebody says, do you want prayer? I'm like, yes, please. I'll take 2. I'll take 2. You know, I wish more of you were like how you are at Mcdonald's.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I'll supersize it. You know what I'm saying? I wish when it came to prayer you're like, I'll supersize it. I'll take the jumbo meal. Give me the extra large drink.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Right? You may not need the coke but you do need the prayer. Amen. And so just say that, hey, I need the prayer. And if you need to come forward, man, we got people that wanna pray for you.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And if you're watching online, let us know. We would love to pray for you. Next, because of Jesus. Does anybody hear a theme? Because of Jesus, I can ask for a miracle no matter where I am.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:No matter where I am. You might be driving in the car listening to this message. You might just have the worst fight of your life with your spouse and and you're watching this message. It doesn't matter where you are because God is with you. God is with you.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:For those of you who are reading along in the book, miracle number 2 in the book is the presence of God, Emmanuel. His name means God with us. He's with us. So, no matter where you are, guess what? He's with you and you can pray.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:You don't just have to pray at church, you can pray at work and by the way, Jesus, this prayer request is at a party. Some of you, you need to leave the party. But if you can't or you're not ready, why don't you start with prayer? Why don't you start with prayer? I remember right before God changed my life, I was at a party and I was intoxicated and I remember going into the bathroom, that's what you do when you drink, and I remember the Lord saying, what are you doing here?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I have called you to something else. God spoke to me at a party, why can't you speak to him at a party? Say, god what am I doing here? Why is it that I have to be buzzed to enjoy my life? What is it Jesus that you know about life that I don't?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Come on now. The next day there was a there was a wedding celebration in the village of Cana in Galilee and Jesus's mother was there. The first miracle takes place at a wedding party, a 3 day party. It's a rager. Multiple days they ran out of wine.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I can ask God for a miracle no matter where I am. I don't know where you are today but I know where God is. He's here. Amen. He's here.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:That's right. And he wants to change your life. Come on. So why not ask him? And can I just say this?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:If you need a miracle, what do you have to lose? I I don't I don't get this. If you need a miracle, what do you have to lose? Matthew 78-eleven. For everyone who asks receives.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, listen to this, the door will be opened. Amen. Listen to what Jesus says, he speaks to parents. He says, you parents, if your children ask for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Listen to Jesus, of course not. So, if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly father give good gifts, wait for it, to those who ask him. I do not promise the miracle you want, but Jesus will always give you the miracle you need. Amen.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He will always give you the miracle you need. And I don't know what it is. I don't know what it is. But the Lord blesses those who ask. What are you missing out on today because you don't ask?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:What are you missing out on your life? What's missing from your finances? What's missing from your heart? What's missing from your relationships? What's missing from your world because you're not asking God?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:The book of James says, you do not have because you do not ask. Ask God and he wants to bless you. Right? Jesus says, bring me the purification jars. Each purification jar, each one of them and I I wanted these buckets here because I want you to understand how much wine Jesus blesses them with.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:This is one of the purification jars. That's some wine people. You know? Quit going to Costco. Go to Jesus.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Amen? Right? This this is one purification jar. Right. And Jesus blessed them with 6 of these.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Wow. Mary just asked for some wine. Jesus said, oh, you want some wine? And he gave him some wine. They said, one scholar said it was enough for 25 100 glasses of wine.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Wow. Full glasses. Isn't that incredible? They had wine for days. Why?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Because Mary asked. If your marriage is on empty, if your hearts on empty, if your life's on empty, why not ask Jesus for a miracle? What do you have to lose? It's the first thing he does. It's the first thing he does.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And again, like I said, these buckets represent 1 of the jars. Just one. Jesus gave him 6 of those. And it was the best wine yet. What if there's something better for you, but you haven't tasted it yet because you haven't asked for it yet?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Number 3, because of Jesus, I can ask for a miracle for anyone. Do you know this? You don't even have to ask for yourself. You don't even have to ask for yourself. I want you to I want you to see something here that you may have missed.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:The next day, there was a wedding celebration in the village of Cana and Jesus's mother was there. Whose wedding was it? We don't know. We don't know. But it was their problem.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Mary asked Jesus, listen to this, to help somebody else. We all have a friend, a family member, a neighbor. We all have somebody in our life that we know needs a miracle and we can pray for them. We can do that. The bible actually commands us to do that.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:First Timothy 21, I urge you. I urge you first of all to pray for all people. Ask God to help them. Do you know what that is? That's a miracle.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:That's miraculous power. Ask God to help them. Intercede on their behalf and give thanks for them. Pray for these people. Amen.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Pray for your kids. Some of you need to pray, lord help me not to kill my kids. Amen. You need to pray that prayer. You need to pray that prayer.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Some of you pray for my neighbor. Pray for my coworker. Some of you And and here's what we do, all that person is too far gone. That person is too far. Aren't you glad God never gave up on you?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:That's right. Pray for him. No one's too far from God. That's why David said in the Psalms, no matter how far in the depths I go, you are there, oh Lord. You're there.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Even in people's most dark space, the Lord is there. You know why that is? He's not afraid of the dark. Some of you have never thought about this passage. Matthew 544-45, Jesus says, but I say love your enemies.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Okay? I have a hard time loving people I'm supposed to love. Amen? You know what I'm saying? Anybody married?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Like, lord, I'm working on that. I'm working on that. I'm gonna start with my marriage and then I'm gonna go to enemies. Gonna start here and then I'm gonna go to my enemies. Listen to this, pray for those who persecute you.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Uh-huh. Wow. Pray for those who persecute you. Then you will be acting as a true child of your father in heaven. Can I just say this?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:America is not going to change because of how we vote. It's going to change because of how we live. That's right. For he gives his sunlight, listen to this, to both the evil and the good. That's right.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He sends rain on the just and the unjust alike. Amen. Man, if you've got a friend or a family member that's far from God, maybe they've cursed God, maybe they've stopped believing in God, you can still pray to God for them. They may not believe in God but God believes in them and he can change their life. He can change their life.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Just this, week it's so funny. I I was at Disneyland, with my family which is an act of love for me, for them. I know many of you think it's the happiest place on earth. I passionately disagree. Passionately disagree.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I think it's the place where families go to die. That's what I that's what I think. But we were there, we had a wonderful time and, it was a great time, but while I was there, somebody that I'm not in a good place with, it's another pastor and he's wounded me. And I've wrestled with this for about a year and a half. Pastors are sinners too and I know that's hard for you to believe because I'm such an example of Jesus.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I understand that. But this pastor and I, we've not been right for about a year and a half. And he just said, hey, I'm on an airplane right now. And he said this, he said, would you pray for me? He asked me to pray for him.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I was What I was hoping for is, hey, would you forgive me? But what I got was, hey, would you pray for me? And I gotta be honest with you, I was convicted by this message instantly. Now, he's not my enemy but we're not right. And so, I told my wife, I said, so and so asked me to pray for him.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:You know what she said? Did you? Because she's married to your pastor. She knows. She knows.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And here's the thing, I said, yes. And not only did I pray for him, but I prayed with another prayed for another Christian that I'd randomly forgot that I was angry at. And I just went, Lord, I I just wanna clear this and I just wanna start praying for people that I have felt persecuted by. What would happen What kind of miracles would happen in your life and instead of being angry at people you just started praying for those people? Because what's going on in the life of the person who left me a zero star review?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Not worth the money. Do you think that's a happy person? Do you? Instead of judging them or being mad at them or let me send you a review. Maybe what we could just do is pray for them.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:We could just pray. And then guess what happens? There's a little more of Jesus on earth than there was before. Next, because of Jesus, I can ask for a miracle. Here's the thing, no matter the time.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:No matter the time. Can I just say this to someone? I don't know who needs to hear this but it's not too late for you. Amen. It's not too late.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Now, all glory to God who is able from his mighty power at work within us to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask for or think. God can do more in your life than you think. It is never too late to ask Jesus for a miracle. It's never too late. That's right.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Some of you today, you don't believe that. You think it's too late for you. You say it's too late for my marriage. I've seen people in this church get divorced and get remarried. I've seen it.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:It's crazy. Now, I'm not encouraging divorce. I don't want you to try that miracle out. But I've seen it. It's not too late for my marriage.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:It's not too late for my kids. It's not too late. Don't give up. Don't throw in the towel. Don't just say, oh I did my best, I made too many mistakes, it's never too late.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:It's not too late for your finances. I've been unable to manifest anything. God, I wanna I wanna give you a shot. It's not too late for my health. Look, you don't die until God calls you home.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:That's right. The doctor is not in charge of your soul. They don't get the last word. They don't get the last say. Let me ask you this question, why is the first miracle that Jesus does turning water into wine?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:What does fermentation take? Time. What is Jesus proving he's the God of? Time. Time.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Man, anybody in here waste time? I can't tell you how many times I've been in the movies and I'm like, the Lord's gonna hold me accountable for that 2 hours. I mean, some of you. Right? You're like, where did the day go?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:It's actually a couple days, but I'm glad you noticed. Ecclesiastes 311, yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity into the human heart. But even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God's work. Listen to this from beginning to end.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Here's the thing about God. He can see the beginning of your life. He can see the middle of your life and he can see the end of your life. That's right. Because he's the god of time.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Amen. God does not exist in time, listen to me, but he created time so that you could exist. Amen. Man. Let me tell you why there's all this push push back in our culture on the big bang theory and why the multiverse is taking over.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Because scientists have figured out if something had a beginning, something started it and they don't like that. And so, they're backpedaling and they're pushing into this infinite universe and this idea that the universe is eternal. Let me tell you something, the universe is not eternal but God is. That's right. And God said it, bang, and it began.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He spoke it into existence. He created time, space, and matter all in an instant and all of them had to be created at once. Let me say this about your life, you cannot go back and change your beginning. But today, right here, right now, you can ask Jesus to change your ending. Tim and I said we went to Disneyland this week and I actually had a wonderful time, but Disneyland is a strange place for me because I remember Disneyland as a child with my parents.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I remember Disneyland with my grandparents who are in heaven. I remember Disneyland dating with my wife. I remember Disneyland with my kids when they were little. I remember Disneyland with my kids when they were awful. Anybody ever been that?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And now, I'm going to Disneyland with my kids who are adults. It was so weird to walk around the park where I have specific memories. Specific memories. Like, I remember my brother falling into the river. I remember that.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I don't know how he got in there, but he had to be rescued. I remember it being spanked with a Mickey Mouse spoon. We told my mom, you can't spank us. You forgot your your weapon. It was the eighties, man.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:You could just go in and whatever. Nobody nobody reported you to the police. They just amened from the side. Amen. Amen.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I remember sitting on park benches with my grandparents. I felt so nostalgic and can I be honest, I felt overwhelmed with so many mistakes I've made? Wouldn't it be nice to go back and change those moments? We can't go back to the beginning, but we can change the end. We can change the end.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:One of the lines I'm most proud of in the book is that whatever chapter you're in in your life it's not the end of your story. Amen. It's just a chapter. It may be a rough chapter. Can we be honest?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:It may be a chapter that's a little longer than you wish but it's just a chapter, it's not your story. It's not your story. And what I say in the book is the storm is never where we want to be, but sometimes it's exactly where we need to be so that we can figure out how to change our lives. Amen. 2nd Corinthians 62, I tell you, now is the time of God's favor.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Now is the day of salvation. What would happen today if you just opened your life up to God? And you just said, God, I I don't even know if you're real. I don't know. I don't know if you made wine or is a wine cooler.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I don't know what it I don't know. But I know this, I'm a terrible god of my life. And I ran out of wine a long time ago. And I'm ready for a new party. I'm ready for a new way to live.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I'm ready to change my life. What if today you just said, God, I'm ready for the miraculous. I'm tired of the mundane. I'm ready to begin my faith journey. And I'm ready to start investigating you, looking for you, and if you're a real God, I'm ready to start serving you.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I wanna know you Jesus like your mother Mary knew you. I wanna trust you. Amen. Listen to the wisdom of Mary. Just do whatever he says.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Think of how different your life would be today if you just did whatever Jesus said. What a different ending you might experience if you gave your life to Christ today. Do you need a different ending? Do you need a different story? Are you ready for something powerful and miraculous?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Look, I don't know what God is gonna do, but I know what he can do. I know he blessed a young boy with a bicycle for no reason other than he loved me. Other than he loved me. He didn't have to do it but he wanted to do it. He didn't have to die for you on the cross.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Did you know that? But he wanted to do it. Yes. He wanted to do it. Because he didn't want to experience heaven without you.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Amen. And so he died so that you could experience it with him. This is who God is. We worship a good God. We worship a great God.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:We worship a miraculous God. And we worship a God who can change your life. But here's what has to change, you have to quit being your author, and you have to surrender to him because he's the only one who can change the pages of your story. And here's the thing you need to know, the bible says at the end of time, there's a book in heaven and it has names written in it. It has the names of those whose story has been changed forever because of the blood of Jesus, and then it has names that are not written.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And the only names that are written in that book are the ones who said, Jesus write me into your story. I'm tired of my story. I'm tired of my journey. I'm ready for yours. So let's bow our heads, let's close our eyes, and if there's anybody here today, that needs to change their story, that's ready for a miraculous rewrite, that's ready for this Jesus that can turn water into wine, that's ready for this Jesus who answers our prayer requests just because he loves us.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:All I want you to do is raise your hand and I'm gonna pray for you. Lift your hand high. Heavenly father, you see every one of these hands raised. And Lord, if they're serious about changing their life today, Lord, you are serious about changing their life. Heavenly father, I just pray that your miraculous power comes upon them right now and that you would manifest your presence to them and they would feel you and sense you and experience you in a way that would change them.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Lord, move in their lives in whatever way you want to move. If it's salvation, God, I pray that they would cry out as sinners asking to be saved. But God, if they're just curious and they just want to know if you're real, God, I pray that you move in a powerful way to where they sense you and feel you right now. Holy Spirit, we ask that you move in this room, you move in this place in a miraculous way. Lord, let us taste the new wine.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Let us taste the wine that you offer. Let us taste the wine that is blessed. The best wine, Lord, that was saved for last. We pray this in Jesus name. Amen.