Matthew McGarvey's Youth Sunday Sermon

This is a sermon written by one of my AMAZING students! I am blown away by his words and can hear God speaking clearly through this. I hope you can to!!!!

Congregation, what should a church be like? I think it shouldn’t be a place to be at by 8:30 and squeak through, but a harbor for the lost and a spring of renewal for the redeemed. Let’s be honest though…is it really like that anymore? Do people come here to be rejuvenated in fellowship so that they may better spread the love of Christ? Or is it merely a place to come get your slate wiped clean so you can go about your life as normal? I see it every day, people who I KNOW are Christians, I know they love Jesus, but they’re sinning right along with rest of them. I’m not excluding myself, how else would I see it if I wasn’t right there with them? But today, on this great day celebrating our savior’s resurrection, I want to set things straight. Welcome to Sinners Anonymous!

Now I know we can’t break this addiction to sin in a matter of 10 minutes so I’m just going to go over the 10 step process and give some scripture along with it so bear with me.

Step 1 is to admit that we are powerless in our addiction to sin and that our lives have become corrupted by it. Romans 7:18 says "I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out." When you can come to accept this, you’ve started the first leg of the journey.

Step 2 is to acknowledge that we need a power greater than ourselves to restore us to a Christ-centered life. That power can be found through God. Paul recognizes this in Ephesians 4:22-24. “Throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.”

Step 3 is to make the personal decision to turn your life over to the care of God. This is much harder than it looks. I know that this is definitely not talked about in a Methodist Church but by delivering yourself to God, you save yourself from a life in Hell and guarantee yourself a seat in Heaven. Paul best summarizes this in Romans 10 when he says “So you will be saved, if you honestly say, Jesus is Lord, and if you believe with all your heart that God raised Him from death. God will accept you and save you, if you truly believe this.”

On to step 4. This stage instructs you to make a searching and honest moral inventory of yourself. This is where many fall away, and this is definitely…definitely not going to be a happy journey. You’re going to find things out about yourself that you would rather have kept hidden; you’re going to see that you loved sinning, but this is necessary to overcome it. “Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the Lord." (Lamentations 3:40)

Step 5 is to own up to yourself, a person you trust, and to God the exact sins you have committed. This is crucial to overcoming the addiction because if you don’t know what you’ve done wrong, there is no chance to stop doing it. And by telling someone, you now have an accountability partner. This person is now there to help you live in the Lord and stay there. By telling the Lord your sins, you have indicated to him that you are truly seeking to be redeemed. James 5:16 says "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed."

Step 6 is to mentally prepare yourself to have God take away your desire to sin and then…to actually let him. Now this really is a two part step because both are important. If someone yanks away your money, you’re going to fight for it back. You’ve got to mentally prepare yourself to WANT him to take the propensity to sin from your body. And then, when He does, you can be calm and know that you are leading a more holy life. “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.” Says Psalm 51:1-2

Step 7 is two part step like number 6 except in this step, you have to realize that your sins not only hurt you and God, they hurt other people. To get past this step, you need to honestly think about all people you might have hurt by your sins and you need to go and make amends. "Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift." (Matthew 5:23, 24)

Step 8…so close to finishing! This is one of those steps that people tend to look over because they think it isn’t very important, but I’m here to tell you that it is the step that needs to be repeated the
most. This is to recheck your thoughts and your actions to make sure they are still centered on God. "For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith GOD has given you." (Romans 12:3)

Step 9…we’re almost there! This involves praying to God for wisdom and the knowledge of his will. You’re going to need the strength to carry it out so you better ask for that too! This step is, in my opinion, the biggest one in terms of noticeable changes in your life. When you know and are able to accomplish God’s will, your life is forever different. Paul has something to say about this when he writes “For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives” in Colossians 1:9.

And finally step 10. After you’ve gone through this process, you’ve conquered sin, you know God and his plans, and you have acted in ways pleasing to him, now you must go and teach others. If you haven’t listened to anything, listen to this. You have a great influence on the people around you! The words you say don’t always fall on deaf ears. Teach them how to fall in step with God and show them the love of Jesus. Paul, again says it best in 2 Timothy – “You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others.”

With a place such as Heaven to look forward to, sin should not be holding you back, so let these steps guide you. And what I am really trying to get across here is that if one professes that they are a follower of Christ, they must live it also. So, again, welcome to Sinners Anonymous and together we can overcome, thank you.