The True Gospel saves us From the Power of Sin — David Valderrama

Jesus Seeks Those Broken by Sin

Oh love that will not let me go. He just sang that song and it says, Oh joy that seekest me through pain. It pains our hearts when we sin against someone we love. Like when you truly love somebody and you do something that hurts their feelings or grieves them or that offends them, there's pain inside your heart because you love them and you failed them.

But it says, Oh joy that seekest me through pain. The author of this song is saying that there's a joy that there's someone, namely Jesus Christ, that is seeking the one that's in this type of pain being described as the pain from failure, the pain from sinning.

And that's the nature of Jesus is to seek those suffering from sin, those suffering from failure. It's the nature of Jesus to seek those who are defeated by sin. And Jesus was moved with compassion towards sinners.

He was moved with compassion towards those that are weak. A lot of people can't endure. They can't stand being around those that are weak. Weak people are a trial, an annoyance, a frustration, a vexation.

They can't have any joy around weak people. But Jesus Christ is attracted to weak people because he has compassion. Compassionless people are repulsed by those that are weak. But if you were to define compassion, compassion could be defined as attraction to weakness.

It's when you see somebody in failure and defeat and sin, weary and heavy laden, and you're drawn towards them to relieve them of their burden. It moves you to do something for them. Jesus has an attraction to weakness.

If you're suffering from sin, from failure, from repeated sin, you feel like sin has its grip upon your thoughts, your feelings, and your desires. And as much as it pains and grieves your heart and the hearts of those around you whom you love, whom you know love you, and you just can't get the victory over it, I want to tell you Jesus Christ is attracted to you.

And this may blow your mind. You think, I'm ugly. I'm a wretch. I'm miserable. I'm naked. I'm poor. I'm blind. I'm in misery. I'm defeated. There's nothing beautiful about me. Jesus is attracted to you.

Not because of who you are, but because of who he is. Not because of what you can do, but what he can do inside of you if you just believe with all your heart. All things are possible to him that believes.

Everybody say that with me. All things are possible to the one who believes. Do you believe that? I do. So the author of the song says, Oh the joy that seekest me through pain. I cannot close my heart to thee.

Like no matter how much I fell, how much I sin, how defeated I am, how what a wretch I am in my own sight, and even in the sight of others around me. I cannot close my heart to thee. There's something inside of me that convinced that you're real, that you died on the cross for my sins, that you were raised from the dead, and that you're returning again.

And there's a hope on the inside of me that somehow I might get saved and delivered from this bondage that I'm in. And I just can't close my heart to thee. I can't shut you out of my life. I can't shut your people out of my life.

I just gotta have my heart open no matter how tempted I am in this pain. I just can't close my heart. I can't shut you out. Oh joy that seekest me through pain. I cannot close my heart to thee. I trace the rainbow through the rain, this beautiful wondrous colorful sight through the rain and feel your promise is not vain.

The promise is this friends, all things are possible to the one who believes. And this is the promise that the author of the song says, he says, and feel the promise is not vain. That morn shall tearless be.

That one day I'm going to find myself walking in victory over sin, over the bondage that I was in. I'm not going to return like a dog to my vomit anymore. If I'm near it, it's going to like repulse me.

It's going to make me want to vomit. Like I'm not attracted to it. There's nothing inside me that satan can like, you know, fling in my eyes or my ears or, or, or try to tempt me with because I've been delivered from the desire to sin.

And that's where all sin begins. It begins in the heart. Like each one is drawn away when he's tempted by like and enticed by his own desire. He's drawn away by his own desire and enticed. You won't find sin enticing anymore.

When Jesus Christ becomes the love of your life, you find yourself dead to sin. You find yourself hating sin because that sin, there's another song that, uh, Fernando Ortega sings. If I can remember the words there, he says, basically he says that, uh, like how horrible is sin?

How, how like vile is sin? You know, when you look at the body of Jesus Christ, when he was at that whipping post, when he was crowned with thorns, when he was crucified naked, you could see his lacerated body, his flesh, and possibly his bowels and other things hanging out, but none of his bones broken.

His appearance was so disfigured more than any man. The scripture says that's how horrible sin is. Jesus Christ suffered all that because that's how horrible sin is. And he knew the only way to rip out that desire for sin in our heart is to demonstrate his awesome love through the cross and through his sufferings to replace love for sin with the love for him.

As it says, we love him because he first loved us. Paul's unceasing prayer for the church of Ephesus is that they may know the height, the depth, the length, the width, that they may know the love of Christ, which surpasses knowledge that we might be filled with all the fullness of God.

There's a filling from God Almighty when we're illuminated by the Spirit, when our capacity to be able to comprehend and we're made able to understand the height, the depth, the length, the width, to know intimately through experience, deepen our innermost being in the depths of who we are in our heart, the intimate, the powerful, the awesome love of Jesus Christ.

Nothing else will satisfy us but just abiding in that love. Porn won't satisfy us anymore. Roaming eyes, having eyes full of adultery won't satisfy us anymore. Gambling won't satisfy us anymore. Gaming, entertainment, fashion, pursuing our own desires won't satisfy us anymore.

The only thing that will satisfy is just abiding in this constant place of communion with the one who loved us so intensely, so intimately, so completely, so fully, so affectionately as Jesus Christ, and just abiding in that.

The Gospel of Christ as the Power of God

Today I want to talk about the true gospel. If you're in this weak, defeated, powerless place, and you're in bondage to sin, and you're tormented, and you're afflicted, and your loved ones are weeping because they're hurt because of your sin, and you've fallen, and you don't know how to recover, I want to tell you how.

Romans chapter 1 verse 16, Paul says,. For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it, that is the gospel of Christ, is the power of God unto salvation, unto all who believe. Everybody say, the gospel of Christ, the gospel of Christ, is the power of God, the power of God, unto salvation, for all who believe.

What is salvation? Matthew 1 21 says that it's said of Jesus that he will save his people from their sins. He doesn't say just from the penalty of sin, or just from the consequences of sin, but save them from their sins.

That's what, that's part of the gospel. It's in the gospel of Matthew chapter 1 verse 21, that Jesus will save his people from their sins. Paul said, I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation.

Let me ask you this question. I want you to really be honest about what you believe in your heart. Don't say it out loud, just really think about it in your heart. Is the power of sin greater, stronger than the power of God?

Is the power of sin greater or stronger than the power of sin? The power of God. Yeah, you don't have to answer, but just like, I think we would all be like instantly just like, that's obvious. It's the power of God, like with the words spoken.

God said, let there be light, and there was light. He said, let the seas bring forth fishes, and the and the fields, and the grass, and all these things, and the earth bring forth trees, and herbs, and all these different things, right?

That's how powerful God is, that with a word spoken, he can create just about anything. And I say just about anything, because there's one thing, here's something that God cannot create, and that's a man or a woman that loved him.

A man or a woman that loved righteousness and hates sin. God couldn't create that with just a word spoken. It took more. It took God literally becoming a man, like God was manifested in the flesh. In the beginning was the Word.

The Word was with God. The Word was God. All things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made. And that Word, which is God, became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth.

Amen? Amen. That's what it took to create a man or a woman that truly loved Him. Love cannot exist where there's no free will or no ability to choose to do something different. Love cannot be forced. It's something that's born in the heart, according to the Apostle John.

So the gospel is the power of God and to salvation to all who believe. The gospel is the power of God and the power of God. I mean, Paul put it this way in 1 Corinthians chapter 1. He said that the weakness of God is stronger than men.

That the foolishness of God is wiser than men. I would also say that the weakness of God is stronger than sin. The weakness of God is stronger than sin. So how much more is the power of God enough to save us from our sins?

To take out the heart of stone of stubbornness and idolatry and pride and that temptation to hide and cover our sins. When the scripture says, whosoever seeks to do that shall not prosper. But whoever confesses and forsakes their sins shall find mercy.

How many want mercy? Me. I want mercy. It's not enough to say I sinned. Right? Right. That's right. We must forsake it. That's the promise. And the gospel is the power of God to destroy in us that hideous insidious vile thing that would resist putting that sin to death.

That would resist correction. That would resist discipline. That would resist instruction. That would resist wanting to confess it and say, hey brother, hey sister, I've sinned. The gospel is also the power of God that would stir up something within us so effectual that we will really forsake it.

But it's unto all who believe. Paul said, for I am not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to all who believe. Romans chapter 10 verse 9. Some people experience this salvation that I'm talking about when they hear these words at a church service.

That if you shall confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and shall believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you shall be saved. That's pretty simple, isn't it? For with the heart man believes unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made into salvation.

For the scripture says, whosoever believes on him shall not be ashamed. And then it says, for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. I called upon the name of the Lord over 20 years ago.

And I was saved from a life of drugs, addiction to all kinds of sexual perversions, from lying, from sorcery. I was manufacturing methamphetamine, doing every drug I could through a needle, mainlining it all.

Tormented with demons, didn't even realize it. Talking in these strange voices, freaking out my friends and doing all these crazy things. Because I was without God and without hope in the world. But is there hope in Jesus Christ?

Yes, there is. You can be free from addiction. You can be free, like Jesus said, if you continue in my word, then are you my disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.

And the Jews responded saying, we've never been in a bondage to any man. How do you say that we shall be made free? And Jesus says, most assuredly, I say unto you, whosoever sins is a slave to sin. But if the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.

Think Jesus was just kind of elated with these miracles that he was performing and all these crowds that were surrounding him. Do you think that somehow he was elated and puffed up in some way where he exaggerated that profound statement that if the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed?

Or do you think he was serious? He definitely wasn't lying. He is the wisdom and the power of God unto all who believe on him. We cannot compromise this truth regardless of how much failure and defeat we may experience or others around us may experience.

The gospel is the power of God unto salvation and to all who believe, regardless of the results that others experience. I can't compromise or change what I've experienced through believing in Jesus Christ and the freedom that that produced in my life.

Not just a freedom from sinning, but a freedom to like, I just wanted to live for Christ. I wanted to die for Christ. As the apostle said, to live is Christ, to die is gain. I was ready to have my back ripped off, to have my head chopped off, to be crucified, thrown in prison, to be beaten, killed, stoned, whatever it was, it didn't matter.

I longed to live with Christ, to die with Christ, to suffer with Christ because of something that he did inside my heart over 20 years ago. It's called the power of God unto salvation and to all who believe.

That's what it's called. It's called salvation. There's people in churches today that call upon the name of the Lord because they come to Jesus Christ as a broken, sinful person. Wretched, poor, naked, blind, they don't come justifying their sins, belittling their sins, concerned about their reputation.

They know that they've hurt the creator of all things, that they've hurt their wives, they've hurt their children, they've hurt their husbands, they've hurt their friends and their family and their church members.

They've hurt people and they're not trying to belittle it or minimize it. They feel the weight of eternal fire upon them and condemnation and hell and judgment and they come to God broken like the man in the temple that the Pharisee railed upon, who wouldn't even look up to heaven but said, God have mercy on me a sinner.

And he smote his breast. He saw himself as he truly was and he made no excuses for it. No, no apologies or anything. He just, Lord, I am a sinner. Save me. He threw himself upon the mercy of Jesus Christ.

There's people that come to Jesus Christ like that and they experienced salvation. They say a sinner's prayer and they experience salvation. There's some people that say a sinner's prayer and they never change.

There's some people that repent, they change the way they think about life and their worldview and all these things, but they never change. Micah chapter 7, this is part of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The Apostolic Gospel: Christ Died and Rose Again

Whenever the apostles, let's go to first Corinthians 15 first. This is part of the gospel. This is the heart of the gospel and this is what the apostles would preach. Verse 1, Moreover brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also you have received and wherein you stand, by which also you are saved.

If you keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless you have believed in vain. It's first Corinthians chapter 15 verse 3 here. He talks about unless you have believed in vain, for I have delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures and that he was buried and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures and that he was seen of Peter then of the twelve and after that he was seen of above 500 brethren at once of whom the greater part remain unto this present but some are fallen asleep.

So Paul was preaching from the scriptures and the scriptures that he was preaching from was everything that was written in the law and the prophets and the psalms concerning Jesus Christ. The bible says in Romans chapter 10 verse 17 that faith that is the saving faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.

God like moved by his spirit holy men of old so they they uttered and they wrote down the things that they spoke and wrote told prophecy like whenever these two men were on the road to Emmaus these disciples of Jesus.

Jesus had this little walk with him in this conversation and their hearts began to burn on the inside of them as Jesus opened up their understanding and they were able to understand all that was written in the law and the prophets and the psalms concerning Jesus.

Jesus was sharing the gospel from the scriptures to Cleophas and this other disciple on the road to Emmaus. So when Paul says according to the scriptures according to the scriptures and he's preaching the gospel he's talking about the law and the prophets and the psalms concerning him and this is one of the things that I believe he was preaching right here.

Micah's Prophecy of Mercy and the Conquering of Sin

Micah chapter 7 this is what Micah said he prophesied a lot of Jesus he's the one that said in Micah chapter 5 verse 2 he says but thou Bethlehem Ephrathah though thou be little among the thousands of Judah yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel whose goings forth have been from old even from everlasting as the prophet said of Isaiah the prophet said who shall declare his generation like he's from everlasting.

Jesus Christ is from everlasting says right here. But right here in Micah chapter 7 verse 18 this is a prophecy about what God is going to do through Jesus Christ and through the cross. It says who is a God like unto thee that pardons iniquity and passes by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage.

He retains not his anger forever because he delights in mercy. Everybody say that God delights in mercy. God delights in mercy. Let me tell you something about something that I did years ago. Okay I got in trouble with the law.

I wrote a bunch of hot checks whenever I was 16 or 17 years old because I wanted to buy methamphetamine. I opened up a bank account. I put 500 in there and I wrote some hot checks and I bought some laptop computers and some other things things that I thought I could sell for more than 500 and I used it to buy drugs.

They closed my account. There was a warrant out for my arrest. I didn't know that guess what happened whenever I was driving without a license as a teenager and I got caught with that warrant out for my arrest.

They took me to jail. I don't. I guess there was some bail or something that happened where they let me go the next day. But I had a court date and I knew I was caught. I knew I was guilty. They had me on camera.

They have my signature. It was my checking account. I knew I was guilty. What do you think I was pleading then on that court day two things guilty and mercy. I was arrested. I was thrown in jail. I was going to prison.

And hell is an eternal sentence. Hell is forever everlasting punishment driven away from the presence of the lord without hope for any pardon. Do you realize that's where sin leads to. Huh. Anybody. Yes.

Do we really believe that. I want to tell you something like if I had to cross this narrow narrow narrow bridge that was very dangerous and difficult to cross to get to this other side where I knew there was a trillion dollars waiting for me an endless supply of everything I could ever want to do whatever I wanted to do on this earth.

And I the only way to get there was to cross this narrow and difficult bridge. And no matter how much I wanted that trillion dollars that could like allow me to have whatever I wanted in this life. Even if I was a worldly person a person still dead and trespassing the sins still very much lost.

Especially if there were testimonies like countless testimonies of just like millions of people trying to cross that bridge and like the first few steps they plunge into the rocks and dashed upon the rocks to pieces.

Nobody's ever made it across. I have every reason to believe that if I put my feet on that bridge and I try to cross it I'm going to die. Do you think I'm going to do it. Probably not. Unless you were deluded there's no way I would do that.

I don't care how much money is there. Whatever in the world I would want as much as I would want it. If it was there I would have put my feet upon that bridge unless I had a horribly unsound mind. That's what people are doing when they say.

I believe in hell fire. I believe that the wage of sin is death. I believe that those who practice adultery fornication instead of submerged drunkenness revelries and such like will not inherit the kingdom of God.

But I'm just going to cross this bridge because I want what I want. But I believe if I if I if I die trying to get it I'm going to go to hell. But I'm still going to do it anyways. Does that sound. Does that make any sense.

Do we really believe not to the point of true conviction. Apparently it says right here in Micah chapter 7 it says. Who is a god like unto thee that pardons iniquity. Our God pardons iniquity. He delights in mercy and showing mercy.

That judge delighted in showing me mercy 30 years ago or whatever it was he delighted in showing me mercy. I was a teenager I had a hard upbringing it was difficult. And like this worldly earthly judge you know knew it would ruin my record the rest of my life if this felony was on my record and he didn't put it there.

And now I can travel the world entering other countries flying on airlines doing everything we're doing today for the gospel and for the poor. Because that judge had mercy on me. That's all I could do is say just have mercy on me.

Like the sinner in the temple have mercy on me. God delights in mercy because he's attracted to weakness. And as much as he's attracted to weakness and regardless of how vile and sinful and wretched we are he thinks we're beautiful because he knows what we can do.

He knows what he's able to do on the inside of us if we believe. That's why he's attracted to us when we're defeated and and just failing and we're just throwing ourselves on the ground sprawling because he knows what he's able to do inside of our hearts.

If we just believe all things are possible to him philip said to the ethiopian eunuch he said. Now mayest be baptized. If you believe with all your heart all your heart all your heart all your thoughts feelings desires.

With everything that you are you just shut out all the other possibilities for salvation. All the carnal reasoning all the humanism all the opinions. And you're gonna believe the gospel. I believe the gospel is for me.

He whom the son sets free is free. Indeed. That's the gospel of jesus christ. My god delights in mercy. I need mercy. I don't know how you can be attracted to such a wretch as me other than the fact that you are all powerful and you are able to produce in me your very image and deliver me from myself.

Believe. Make up your mind. A double-minded man's unstable in all his ways. He can't expect to receive anything from god. Make up your mind. What are you going to believe if you believe in jesus christ.

It requires all the heart. Everything says who is the god. Like in a thee that pardons iniquity and passes by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage. He retains not his anger forever because he delights in mercy.

He will turn again. He will have compassion on us. So compassion is not just an attraction to weakness but it's it's something that we're able to do for somebody also or to show to somebody express or do for some.

We're able to have compassion on people. And this is how he does it. He says he will turn again. He will have compassion on us. He will subdue our iniquities. Everybody say subdue our iniquities. That means destroy.

That means bring. And that the reign and the rule of iniquity over my life and over your life can be brought to an end. He will subdue our iniquities. He will defeat destroy annihilate our iniquities.

That's the gospel. Yes. And he says. And thou will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. All the sin that i grew up enjoying and pursuing. And all the evil wicked reprobate things i did with my life and with my body.

It's forgiven and forgotten. Hallelujah hallelujah. That's the new covenant. Their sins and their lawless deeds. I will remember no more. I will write my law in their hearts and in their minds. And none shall go to his neighbor saying no the lord for all shall know me from the least to the greatest.

There's something that god does through the new birth. There's something that he puts on the inside of us where we have this unction this anointing this knowledge of the holy one on the inside of us. And it's so powerful that as that song that we sang earlier i cannot close my heart to thee.

Regardless of what trials storms disappointments failures stumblings whatever it is. I can't close my heart to thee. You've done something inside of my heart that's so powerful. I just even if i want to close it and shut it because it's so painful to think about where i'm at right now and how offensive i am in your sight and how i've hurt everyone.

I just can't close my heart to thee. There's a quote by dietrich bonhoeffer that i really like it really stuck with me. I think i heard it two years ago on a road trip he said only he who believes is obedient.

Belief Proven by Obedience

And only he who is obedient believes. I'm going to say that again. Everybody listen up. Real good. Okay all righty this is what the book of first john is about. Only he who believes is obedient. In other words all these people that say i believe i believe.

But they're not obedient. They're offering god lip service not life service. Christianity is something that's been added to their life rather than christ becoming their life. You following me like if if they're if i had this you know if if there was this guy this this what's what are they.

Those guys those daring stuntmen what are they called these uh people that do all these amazing things daredevils. If there was this daredevil that you know we were out of this place called uh some canyon.

I forgot what it was in idaho. But anyways evil can evil. Supposedly you know he he he would try jumping this canyon right. It's probably about a mile wide. And he had this ramp and he was on this motorcycle.

And let's just say that he was able to do this several times. Right. Let's say he did it 1 000 times say he did it like 100 times a year for the past 10 years the same place the same stunt and the crowds of people grew and grew and grew and grew.

And people were amazed. And they're like this is amazing what this guy can do. And on the like the 1001th time he says how many people really believe that i can do this again they all be saying i believe.

You can do it evil. You can be looking you can do it you can do it. And then he says the one that really believes the most right on the back of this motorcycle with me. How many do you think would jump on that motorcycle for free.

Hardly i don't think anybody would see. Jesus says follow me. He says be holy as i am holy. He says i am the light of the world. He that follows me shall not be in darkness but shall have the light of life.

Jesus said if you love me if you really love me you will obey me. If you really love me he said he that has my words and obeys them. He it is that loves me. And my father will love him. I will love him and i will manifest myself in him.

And he that hears my words and does not obey them. He it is that does not love me that hurts. Doesn't it that can hurt. You know like everything in your being you know like you're thankful for what jesus did on the cross.

You thank you for where he brought you from and where he's led you to. But like you're failing and and and you're not obeying him. And and you're sinning against his word. You're sinning against him. You're sinning against your family.

And he says he that has my words and does not obey them does not love me. That ought to hurt. We ought to feel some pain some sorrow. It's called godly sorrow. Worldly sorrow produces death. Worldly sorrow produces repetition.

Godly sorrow leads to salvation leads to repentance. Metanoia. The greek word is an inward illumination resulting of from from yielding to the spirit of god. These these these uh uh proddings of the spirit of god within us in faith we yield to it.

We come to this point of brokenness and surrender where we're thoroughly convinced in our minds and we change repentance. It's not the depth of your sin that god cares about. God is bigger than any sin.

But it's the shallowness of your repentance. God wants more than a confession from your lips. He wants your life your obedience. He knows what he is able to in the heart that truly believes. We have no excuse friends we have no excuse.

The weakness of god is stronger than the power of sin. All things are possible to him that believes. Only he who believes is obedient. And only he who is obedient believes. Second thessalonians chapter one.

Second thessalonians chapter one. Paul says seen in verse six. Seeing it is a righteous thing with god to recompense. Tribulation to them that trouble you. And to you who are troubled. Rest with us when the lord jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that do not know god and that do not obey the gospel of our lord jesus christ who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the lord and from the glory of his power when he shall come to be glorified in his saints and to be admired in all them that believe.

Do you admire jesus christ. Is there admiration in your heart for all that jesus christ has done for you. Does it stir your heart to sing. You are great and greatly to be praised worthy as the lamb seated in the throne high and lifted up.

Does it stir your heart. Is there admiration on the inside of you. Have you really believed the gospel of jesus christ. Because if your sins have been forgiven if you ever knelt to the cross and you believe he died for you and he took that punishment for you and he atoned for your sins and your future is no longer hellfire.

That's going to kindle something in your heart. That's going to transform you. That's going to make you a new creature. Newness of life is what you will walk in. Your desires will be changed. I don't want to watch porn anymore.

I don't want to do these wicked things anymore. I don't want to gamble anymore. I don't want to get drunk anymore. I want to live my life for you lord all the way all the time. I want to wake up with you thinking of you singing of you meditating on you when they go to bed.