Graduation Sunday And A Flashback

For those who don't know me, my name is Julian Hernandez and I have the honor and privilege of serving here at Free Church. Um Happy Graduation Sunday. You know, it's pretty funny because some people look at me and be like, you're probably like 26, 28 years old. I'm 21 years old and I walked this stage three years ago. You know, it was kind of weird because Pastor Matthew comes up to me and he's like, hey, um, back in April, I'm really thinking about you coming up here and speaking for graduation Sunday. And I look at him, I was like, bro, really? Like I was kind of kind of caught off guard at first, you know? But it really took me down memory lane of the fact that I was literally walking across this stage three years ago. And it was at a point in my life where I knew of God but didn't really know God at that point. You know, I always went to church, you know, inconsistently, but it would the faith was in my background my entire life. You know, and when Pastor Matthew came up to me, he's like, hey, like, I want you to do this, you know. I'm like, bro, can we flashback three years ago, real quick? Put up the message up on the screen. So this is Pastor Matthew texting me. He goes, Proud of you, bro. You're gonna do great things. I want to see you around more, man. Why is he saying that? It's because every single time I saw Pastor Matthew in the lobby when I was in high school, I'd run right past him. Wanted no encounter, no interaction with him. I was ready just to get upstairs, lift my hands, hear the word, and walk right out. Last one to get here and the first one to leave. That's really what it was. But it's just it's crazy because I look back at that message and it's like seeing the way he's leading me. I'm grateful for his leadership and all that he's done in my life. So I just want to say thank you. So again, thank you. Also, I want to say thank you to Pastor Chuck and Pastor Ashana for coming up here and giving God's word, proclaiming it to you all. You know, here at Free Church, we don't take the word of God lightly. This is a proclamation of God's word, and we believe that it heals, we believe that it restores, we believe that it brings life. So, without further ado, are you guys ready to receive God's word today? All right.

When God Redefines Real Success

So, if you're this is your first time here at Free Church, the we're freshly coming out of a series called God Looks, right? And in that series, Pastor Matthew, Pastor Chuck had a just a variety of sermons that just talked about how God looks for us. Can I get an amen if we're grateful that our God sees us and looks for us in regardless of our circumstances? And just when I was going over my notes, I was looking back and just seeing just some of the bullet points that we talked about throughout those sermons. And one of those things is that God looks to plant his voice. Because right now we live in a world where we're looking over the wrong things and we have other people trying to speak into us and how we should be living our own lives. But in reality, we should be listening to God's voice because that is the only voice that provides guidance, that is the only voice that provides clarity, that is the only voice that provides purpose for the way you should be living on this earth right now. See, also, God looks for to bring us his wholeness. So when we are at wounds and we feel like we're just empty, he comes to plant his spirit in us to make you whole and make you more like Jesus Christ. God looks to encounter you. See, that's just the beginning. When you become saved and whatever it may be, you look back and you know God looked to encounter you regardless of where you are at in your life. Bible says Christ died for us yet while we were still sinners. God looks to encounter you regardless of what you think of where you should be at in your life. And also God looks to redefine. You know, I'm gonna give just a quick testimony of my own life, and it's back to my senior year of high school. And back in senior year, it was my first semester in fall. I was living what I thought was my best life. I was starting quarterback on varsity, I was an all-conference quarterback, accolades going my way. I was getting accepted to all the schools I wanted to, I was getting offers to colleges to play college football, financial aid was going my way. But then something shifted. I was in a point in my life, now in the second semester, January, February, where I had no purpose. I felt like I was unheard, I felt like I was unseen. It went from a season in life where everyone's acknowledging what I was doing, and now it was like no one sees me anymore. It was at that point where I learned that God that was the first time that He truly encountered me. He met me where I was at, and I'm so grateful for that. That I even though I changed my life now that I didn't have to do anything, and yet he still came to me. He still came to encounter me. He came to redefine what I thought success truly was. When I thought that everything was going my way and success was the way I wanted it to be, he interrupted my life to redefine my definition of success, to show me that my success on this world means nothing. My success is where I'm leading up to his kingdom. That is where my success truly should be focused on, and that alone. He interrupts your life, and it's not a means to bring you down, it's a means to lift you up, to redefine and rearrange the way you're living the life right now, and the way he's called you to live your life. That was the year that I learned that I needed to follow the divine exchange. What is the divine exchange in me asking? The divine exchange is when you trade your plans for God's purpose. Hear me. Your plans, your ambitions, your desires, your failures, your successes for God's plan and purpose for you. My success was not according to what the Lord had in store for me. My success was not aligned to his will, but yet he still encountered me and showed me how I should be living my life. He redefined it. And I'm so thankful that to God be the glory that he came into my life and encountered me to where I was at to rearrange everything so that I could be aligned with his will. His plans didn't let me lose direction, but they led me to a destiny. In that moment of life, I felt like there was no outline, there was no template. Why is everything going this way? But in reality, I've been through all that, I found peace, I found provision, and I found power in the mighty name of Jesus. He encountered me to give me a new meaning of life, new beginnings. So thankful that we're where I was at at that point in time where I was going to make a decision in high school as a senior, just to make to blend in because everybody was like, Oh, I'm going to this school, oh, I'm going to this school. And here's Julian. Just lost, no direction, didn't know what he was going to do. And I'm so grateful to say that next year I'll be graduating with my bachelor's in K 12 education. And then the Lord revealed to me that in the future plans, that in the future plans, I'll be going to get my Master's of Arts and Theological Studies. Because there's still more than I could have ever thought in my own life. That he blessed me with more than I can even imagine. That was the year that I learned God plans.

The Divine Exchange Of Purpose

God plans. It may feel not, it may not feel right. It may feel like you're struggling, but yet he's still planning. And I learned that God plans with trials and hardships. See, there's a verse in Hebrews 12, 1 through 2. And it's gonna be up on the screen. I'm gonna flip to it in my Bible as well, too. And under this section, it's titled The Call to Endurance. And it starts off in verse 1. It says, Therefore, since we have also such a large cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every hindrance and the sign the sin that's so easily ensnares us. Let us run of endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus. Underline that, if you have a pen, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, for the joy that lay before him, he endured the cross, despising the shame, and is now sitting sitting down at the right hand of the throne of God. Look back at that verse in verse one. It says, Let us run with endurance the race that lies before you. Church, hear me. When it says the race that lies before you, that indicates that there's a plan right in front of you, too. Regardless of where you feel like you're struggling, you feel like you can't get back up. Nope, there's still a plan. This race that you run on this earth until Christ Jesus comes back, it's a marathon. Have endurance that regardless of when you're going through financial hardships, when you're going through mental breakdowns, when you feel like every wall is crumbling down and there's no opportunity arising for you, that yet he is still planning and he wants you to endure through all that. He has better things set for you. Those trials that you go through, there is I I wholeheartedly believe that those trials just show you that God is still working in you through you for the glory of his name. Those trials they develop a focus. Like it says, keeping our eyes on Jesus through everything that you're going through, stay at his feet, focus on following him, focused on pleasing him. Nothing else. Nothing else matters besides Jesus. Like we sang in a song, just give me Jesus. Focusing on Jesus. Those trials, too, they learn it helps us to increase our dependence on him. Because sometimes what we end up doing in trials and hardships, we look back and we try to go after the wrong things. Go after the things of this world just to make us feel good and make us feel satisfied and make us feel safe. Reality, we're supposed to depend on him, depend on what he has in store for you. Depend that he has good plans for you. And also, too, those trials they foster an endurance for you. You are not meant to sprint and get to your end goal right away. You are meant to endure through this world because who knows the trials and hardships that you go through can be living testimonies to those that don't know Jesus Christ. Those trials that you're going through and you're struggling with are called for you to speak about, to bring the gospel to across this world. Those trials are meant for you to grow you and raise you out of the pit that you were once in. See, when I was studying endurance in that specific verse, I was looking back because the New Testament is written in Greek. And endurance in Greek means hipomony. Hippomony means to persevere, perseverance. You see, we are supposed to persevere through this life because of what is to come. Hear me. You are supposed to persevere through this life because there are still greater things that Christ has in store for you. Persevere through this life because there is eternal glory waiting for you to be with Christ. You are meant to be with Him, you are meant to be in communion with Him. Endure and persevere through the things of this world so it sets you up for the heavenly kingdom that what's to come. Continue to trust in that. Another thing was that if you look back at it, Christ Jesus endured the cross through all the persecution, through every whip, through the crown of thorns, through every stabbing of the nails, he persevered because all he wanted was for you to be saved. All he wanted was for you to be with him for eternity. We are not meant to be separated from him in church. We are meant to be in communion with him. Trust and endure through those trials. Trust that he's working away through you for you for his glory. Those obstacles, it's the path that we have to Jesus, it's a narrow path, it's not a straight path. You're going to go through zigzags and feel like you're never working your way down. And reality, those obstacles that you go through are just preparing you for what God has in store for you. It is not a straight path. Trust that he's leading you through all of this, he is still planning. Submit your plans, receive his purpose. Because at the end of the day, once he's encountered you and once you see that he's still planning for you, it's time for him to elevate you. Build your life in God's word and watch him take care of the

Endurance In Trials With Hebrews 12

rest. See, God plans for the curious to grow. After we're found, after we've seen that we've gone through so much, he still plans for us. He but then now he wants us to grow with that too. We're not meant to stay stagnant and being a stalemate of a seasonal life. Yes, you're gonna go through those moments, but at the end of the day, you are called to higher things and persevere and continue to grow. Because if you stay stagnant, maybe someone that you were called to spread the gospel doesn't hear it because you wanted to stay stagnant. Grow in God's word, grow in your prayer life, grow in godly community, grow in trusting Him. That's all it comes back down to. You see, when I was studying, there was something that was really highlighted to me. And is that when we are curious for God's growth for our life, we must be curious for his voice to receive his plans, but on his timing. If you don't have one of those three, you're gonna have nothing at all. Because if you want to hear God's voice and hear his plans for you, but you want to go into his plans on your own timing, you're never gonna receive them at all. Be curious for what he has in store. See, there's a story, and it's in Numbers 14 in some context at this point. Was that Moses sent scouts to this promised land of Canaan, right? They wanted to see what was going on in this land, and just like the Lord promised, it was a land flowing of milk and honey. But yeah, when these scouts saw this land, they said the inhabitants of this land were too big, we cannot conquer them. They were saying we could not go into this land, we're gonna get beaten down. So then the Israelites don't go through, even though the Lord had promised for them to grow and prompted us to go step into this promised land, they still decided to wait back. Okay, so now the Lord says, How have you crossed me? How have you decided to not follow what I have planned for you? So now you're not gonna go in at all. And here we go. This is Moses now, he tells the Israelites that, and then we pick up in verse 39, and it goes, When Moses told all this to the people of Israel, they mourned long and hard. But early the next morning, they started out for the high hill country saying, We're here, we're ready. Let's go up and attack the land that God promised us. We sinned, but now we're ready. Who are we to say that we're ready for God's plan on our own timing? But Moses said, Why are you crossing God's command yet again? This won't work. Don't attack. God isn't with you in this. You'll be beaten badly by your enemies. The Amalekites and the Canaanites are ready for you and they'll kill you. Because you have left off obediently following God. God is not going to be with you in this. But they went anyway. Recklessly and arrogantly, they climbed to the high hill country. This showed when you follow God's plans on your own timing. It shows when you choose to be independent from the Lord. You choose to do whatever you want to. Like I said in the beginning, I said we are supposed to depend on God and be in communion with Him, not be separated from Him. Let Him lead you when He believes it's right, when He knows it's right. You see, this area, it was called Kadesh Bernea, and I'm probably mispronouncing that. But that area was where Abraham experienced victory when he saved Lot. But it was because of his reliance on the Lord. In that same area where Abraham was victorious, the Israelites failed to answer because they decided to be independent from God. Because they decided to not rely on the Lord. Your prayer life when we make decisions and we go through hard circumstances is that let the Lord go before you, like the way they were in Exodus, a pillar of wind and fire. Wherever they went, it was the Lord going before them in all the decisions and wherever they went. We are not called to be independent from the Lord. We need to wait on him and trust him. See, there's this verse in Isaiah 40, 31, and PM knows about this verse. There's a song called Wait on You, and it sings a verse from the specific chapter in Isaiah that says, But they, but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up things like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. The strength that you lost in those trials, you are now renewed as you seek Jesus. As you continue to go through these trials of the world, and as you make new decisions and you go through new chapters as a graduate, you're going to go through so much things, but trust, continue to seek Jesus because He will guide you through all of this. He will guide you in the tough decisions, he will guide you when it doesn't feel right. Wait on the Lord because that purpose that he has before you, you will run and not be weary, you shall walk and not faint. When you continue to trust and seek him, your purpose that he has before you, you'll continue to move forward and progress not only to him but for him. Progress to him and trust in him. And it all comes back to depending on his word, depending on what he says and what he declares and what he decrees. See, God plans based on the word and not the world.

God’s Word Over The World

Because you're gonna live in this world until Christ Jesus comes back. People are gonna be telling you where you should be at. You should be retired by age 55. You should have cars, you should have business and investments, you should have a whole family, you should have a wife, you should be settled down. No, no, no, no. That's what the world says. You should have a bachelor's degree by 25. No, no, no. That's what the world says. Wherever you're at in your season of life, the Lord has you exactly where he wants you to be. Plans based on what his word says and not what the world says. Can I get an amenities just like whatever it may be that when Christ Jesus and our Father says something, it cannot be reversed. When he declares something over you, it cannot be reversed. It cannot be taken away. What the world can't give, the world can't take it away. Trust in him. Isaiah 55, verse 10 through 11, it talks about just what the word of the Lord does. It says, For just as rain and snow fall from heaven and do not return there without saturating the earth and making it germinate and sprouts and providing seed to sow and food to eat. So my word that comes from my mouth will not return to me empty, but it will accomplish what I please and will prosper in what I send it to do. His word is true, his word is what's right for you, his word is meant to fulfill you, his word is meant to heal life for you, his word is what brings you your purpose, his word is what heals church. When you're going through addiction and going through moments of life where you can't get picked up, and he sees you, my son, my daughter, you are okay. I have you where I want you to be. God plans based on his word, and there's nothing else where anybody or any circumstance could tell me otherwise. This world is temporary, church. His word is not. Just like it says in Matthew 24, Isaiah 40 heaven and earth may pass away, but the Lord, the word of the Lord shall endure and will not pass away. Church, I'm a living testimony of what happens when you go after the wrong things and go after the wrong places to be fulfilled by things of this world that left me emptier than when I first found it. But when I found the word of the Lord, my life shifted, my life transformed. If you're to tell me three years ago today that I'd be speaking up here, I left right in front of your face because I found pleasure, I found satisfaction in what the world told me where I should be at. Your plans and where you're at in your life are meant to be based on God's word and God's word

Waiting For God’s Timing

alone. This world is empty, this world is blurry, it is null, it has no power over you, it has no reasoning over you, it has no sort of storage which should be in your life. The world has no place to have power over you, but the word of the Lord shall reign over you. The word of the Lord shall reign on the throne of heart. One thing I love about God's word is that it has a beginning and it has an end. When we were beautifully and fearfully, masterfully created in our mother's womb, we had plans to prosper us and have peace. That was the beginning. And the end has a name, and that name is Christ Jesus. Hear me. His plans have an end for you. Whatever you're going through, whatever you're struggling with, when it takes you down paths that you were never meant to go through before, he still has a plan for you and it's meant to be with Jesus Christ. Church, do not live in the standard of this world and whatever they think you should be at. Oh, at age 25, this is your median salary. Once you're there, you're good, you're set for life. No, no, no, no, no, no, no. Live where you're supposed to be at, and that place is God's word. That place is the secret place. When you're at home struggling, crying, Lord, why feel so behind? You are right where I want you to be. Graduates, when you step into this next season of life and you wonder when you're with sophomores, juniors, seniors in college and high school, and you feel like they're so ahead, then why are you the youngest? Why are you the youngest in the room? Do not let your youth determine where you should be at in your life. Let the Lord tell you where you should be at. And this goes for everyone. There is no circumstance, there is no definition, there is no template of how you should live on this earth right now. The only template is the living word of God and the God of the Word of Lord.

The Secret Place And Mustard Seed Faith

Church, you are in this world, you are not of it. You are meant to be here to saturate the earth, to be the salt and the light, to bring more souls to his kingdom. You're not meant to just hear his word and just sit back, let him take care of the rest. Trust in him and what he has in store for you. Trust what he has proclaimed for you. The Bible says we are more than a conqueror, that we are a holy priesthood. We are called to be set apart. Be more like Jesus wherever you go in your actions, in your words. But listen, in public, but also in private too. You are in it, not of it. You are of a heavenly kingdom. What does that look like? Is that regardless of what you're feeling and when you're struggling, you can still smile because you have a savior. You can find peace in his name. You can trust him because what his word says for you. And maybe that's you today. Maybe you're struggling to find where you're supposed to be at. Maybe you're in a stalemate, a season of life or like nothing's going your way. What if you just go to the secret place? On your way back home from church, or maybe it's on your way to work, or if it's at your own bed, just sit there, play worship music on and just let him speak to you. Don't come with your own agenda. Just say, Lord, speak to me on how I should navigate through this chapter of life. Speak to me on what decision I should make. Speak to me on how I can be more like you wherever I go. Because his plans are meant for you to prosper, his plans are meant for you to spread his word all over the world until thy kingdom comes. His word brings life. The thing is, when you're in that moment and you're in that secret place and you're wondering, Father, what am I supposed to be doing right now? What if you just came to him with no agenda and had faith? Have faith in him to turn it around. The size of a mustard seed, the Bible says. The smallest bit of faith for him to turn your circumstances to what you thought you could have been at, but now watch him bless you with more even abundance than you can even imagine. There is more for you, church, regardless of where you're at. Have faith in him to turn it around. The thing is, faith does not include circumstances or prerequisites. It should not be, Lord, I'm gonna trust you whenever you open this door for me. No, no, no. You are meant to continue to move on and continue to push forward and have faith that he will turn it around. When you feel like there's a closed door, you continue to walk through it until he opens it. So that he will open it on his timing when he believes it's right. Because sometimes what we end up doing, and we live in this world where it's a tension of self-gratification, instant gratification to make us feel good, to make us feel right. But in reality, he just wants us to endure, he wants us to persevere, he wants us to push through because there is more to come. Your success on this world does not matter compared to when you lay up your treasures in heaven, when you continue to bring life to those around you. Say, God brought me out of this and he's lifted me here, and I can still trust his word because there's still more to come. That is where we're supposed to be at. That's the faith that we're supposed to share to those around us. Patience for his plans, patience for what he's gonna bless you with. And in those moments when you're in your secret place and you're wondering, okay, why is the Lord not speaking to me? Because I've done all this, this is right. I I got my bachelor's degree, I paid my car off, I'm not in debt. The world, the God, our Lord is not after your successes or failures, he is not after your business. Your intimacy with him is not based on what you do on this world. Your intimacy with him is based on you just opening up your heart and raising up your hands and saying, Lord, take all that I have and take it for your way, for your will. Align it with what you say is supposed to be at. Being in moments of solitude, turn that dependency on his word into intimacy with him. Be intimate with him, be close to him. The Bible says that he is near to us, near to the brokenhearted. Trust him for him to turn it around before the circumstances of your life even change. Trade your plans, trade your business for him. It may feel like you're losing everything, but you gain more than you ever lost. Trade your ambitions, trade your desires. Watch him give you your purpose for what he says. I went through a season of life where all the praise was coming to me, and now I'm going into teaching next year, and I've been blessed to say that I'm a high school football and softball coach, and now I get to give God's praise to these kids, to the dark world that they live in at home. I get to be the light to them, which I never would have imagined. But I followed the divine exchange. I was intimate with the Lord, and you can too. Because, church, listen, he's not after what you do on this world, he just wants your heart. Can you receive that word today?