ROMANS 12:2 SAYS THAT WE ARE-- WE ARE TRANSFORMED, COMPLETELY
CHANGED BY THE ENTIRE RENEWAL OF OUR MIND.
SO, THAT LITTLE TEACUP STARTED OUT A LUMP OF CLAY.
AND AFTER ALL THAT STUFF IT WENT THROUGH, IT BECAME THIS
BEAUTIFUL TEACUP.
IT WAS TRANSFORMED FROM ONE THING TO AN ENTIRELY
DIFFERENT THING.
AND I CAN TELL YOU FROM MY STANDPOINT, I AM CERTAINLY NOT
THE PERSON THAT I WAS 40 SOME ODD YEARS AGO.
AND YOU KNOW, THAT GLORIFIES GOD.
IT GLORIFIES GOD WHEN PEOPLE SEE YOU CHANGE AND THEY SEE WHAT GOD
DOES IN YOUR LIFE.
AND WHEN YOU--WHEN YOU CHANGE FROM AN ANGRY PERSON TO A LOVING
PERSON, OR A STINGY PERSON TO A GENEROUS PERSON, THE WORLD NEEDS
TO SEE US NOT JUST GO TO CHURCH, THEY NEED TO SEE US CHANGE
AND REPRESENT CHRIST TO THEM.
ROMANS 8:29, "FOR THOSE WHOM HE FOREKNEW [OF WHOM HE WAS AWARE
IN LOVE BEFOREHAND], HE ALSO DESTINED THEM FROM THE BEGINNING
[FOREORDAINING THEM] TO BE MOLDED INTO THE IMAGE OF
HIS SON." SO, WE HAVE BEEN FOREORDAINED BY
GOD, THAT MEANS HE MADE THIS DECISION A LONG TIME BEFORE,
BEFORE WE EVER SHOWED UP ON PLANET EARTH, THOSE THAT
BELONGED TO HIM.
THEY WERE NOT GOING TO JUST GET LEFT ALONE TO LIVE THEIR OWN
LITTLE LIFE, AND DO WHAT THEY PLEASED, AND ACT HOWEVER THEY
WANTED TO.
WE ARE--HE PREDETERMINED AND FOREORDAINED THAT WE WOULD BE
MOLDED INTO THE IMAGE OF JESUS CHRIST.
THAT MEANS, HERE'S THE SIMPLICITY OF IT, ANY PERSON
WHO WILL NOT LET GOD DO WHAT HE WANTS TO DO IN THEIR LIFE,
YOU WILL NOT EVER BE HAPPY.
[AUDIENCE APPLAUDING]
JOYCE: SEE, IF YOU DON'T LET GOD DO WHAT HE WANTS
TO DO IN YOUR LIFE, OH, YOU MAY LIMP ALONG
AND HAVE SOME KIND OF A LIFE, AND I'M NOT--YOU KNOW, YOU GO TO
HEAVEN BECAUSE YOU BELIEVE IN JESUS, NOT BECAUSE YOU DO
EVERYTHING EXACTLY RIGHT HERE.
BUT YOU WON'T BE HAPPY.
I WAS A CHRISTIAN FOR A LONG TIME, BUT I WAS NOT A HAPPY
CHRISTIAN.
AND HOW MANY OF YOU KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF UNHAPPY CHRISTIANS?
[AUDIENCE APPLAUDING]
JOYCE: "WELL, IT'S THE DEVIL, IT'S MY CIRCUMSTANCES,
IT'S THIS, IT'S THAT.
I DON'T HAVE ENOUGH MONEY." NO, DON'T STONE ME WHEN I SAY
THIS, IT'S YOU.
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
[AUDIENCE APPLAUDING]
JOYCE: HERE'S A LITTLE EXAMPLE I LIKE TO USE.
CLAY, MINE'S NOT GRAY, ANYWAY.
SO, WE'RE GOING TO BE MOLDED INTO THE IMAGE OF JESUS CHRIST.
YOU REMEMBER THE TEACUP?
ROLLED AND PATTED AND SMASHED AND FLATTENED AND SO?
YOU KNOW, YOU'RE JUST--YOU'RE LIKE--I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY THIS
CLAY DOESN'T HAVE FEELINGS, BUT IF IT DID, I BET RIGHT NOW IT'D
BE SAYING SOME STUFF I WOULDN'T WANT TO HEAR.
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: SO, THIS IS A TERRIBLE EXAMPLE, BUT WE'RE
GOING TO PRETEND LIKE THIS IS JESUS, SO...
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: NOW COME ON, GOD KNOWS MY HEART.
SO, THIS IS YOU, THIS IS JESUS, ALL RIGHT?
YOU GOT IT?
SO, ALL OF THIS IS SUPPOSED TO GO IN THERE.
WELL, GUESS WHAT?
UH OH, WE GOT A PROBLEM.
THERE'S A BUNCH OF STUFF HERE THAT'S GOING TO HAVE TO GO.
[AUDIENCE CHEERING]
JOYCE: AND BOY, WE FIGHT THAT, DON'T WE?
IT'S LIKE, "AHHH, AHHH!"
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: SEE, I'M GLAD I GOT A BUNCH OF PEOPLE
THAT KNOW WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT.
"AHHH, OHHH!
NOT THAT, NO, NOT THAT, ANYTHING BUT THAT."
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: COME OUT OF THERE.
WE GOT IT, WE GOT IT, WE GOT IT.
WHOO HOO, FINALLY, FINALLY, FINALLY.
THERE YOU GO, YOU MADE IT...
AND HOW MANY OF YOU WANT TO BE SPIRITUALLY MATURE?
OKAY.
ALL RIGHT, JUST A FEW THINGS.
THERE IS NO MICROWAVE MATURITY.
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: SEE, WE SAY WE WANT TO GET TRANSFORMED,
BUT REALLY WE WANT TO GET ZAPPED.
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: WELL, YOU KNOW WHAT I FIGURED OUT WITH GOD?
HE'S A LOT MORE LIKE A SLOW COOKER.
HE'S A LOT MORE LIKE ONE OF THESE CROCKPOTS THAT TAKES ALL
DAY, BUT BOY ARE THINGS TENDER WHEN THEY FINALLY COME OUT.
[AUDIENCE APPLAUDING]
JOYCE: HOW MANY OF YOU WANT A BREAKTHROUGH IN YOUR LIFE?
WELL, THERE'S NO DRIVE-THRU BREAKTHROUGHS EITHER.
YOU KNOW WHAT IT TAKES?
IT TAKES, NUMBER ONE, THE WORD.
NUMBER TWO--AND I CAN JUST TELL YOU BEFORE YOU EVER EVEN REALLY
START TRYING TO GROW IN GOD, YOU MIGHT AS WELL TAKE POSSIBLY
A FEW YEARS AND LEARN WHO YOU ARE IN CHRIST.
[AUDIENCE APPLAUDING]
JOYCE: YOU GOT TO KNOW YOU'RE LOVED.
YOU GOT TO KNOW THAT YOUR CONFIDENCE CAN BE IN HIM.
YOU GOT TO KNOW THAT YOU DON'T HAVE TO LIVE UNDER THE LAW.
HERE'S THE THING, I'LL SHOW IT TO YOU IN HEBREWS CHAPTER 5,
LET'S GO THERE, HEBREWS 5:13.
PAUL WAS TALKING TO THE--TO THEM ABOUT WHY THEY WERE STILL
BABIES, BABIES.
HE TOLD THE CORINTHIANS, HE SAID, "I WANT TO GIVE YOU MEAT,
BUT I STILL HAVE TO KEEP GIVING YOU MILK ALL THE TIME."
SO, HONESTLY, WHEN YOU COME TO CHURCH, SOMETIMES YOU GET MILK,
SOMETIMES YOU GET MEAT.
NOW, A LOT OF PEOPLE, BABIES LOVE THEIR MILK BOTTLE,
THEY LOVE THAT.
BUT CHRISTIANS AREN'T READY TO GROW UP,
YOU START TRYING TO GIVE THEM MEAT, AND THEY'RE GOING TO SPIT
IT BACK AT YOU.
YOU SAY, "WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?"
OKAY, MILK WOULD BE MORE LIKE "GOD LOVES YOU,
YOU'RE WONDERFUL, YOU'RE AWESOME, YOU'RE AMAZING."
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: WE ALL LIKE THAT, AND WE ALL NEED THAT.
WE ALL NEED THAT, WE NEED TO HEAR THAT.
ANYBODY THAT'S GIVING YOU A WELL-ROUNDED MESSAGE,
YOU'RE GOING TO HEAR SOME OF ALL OF THAT.
BUT WE ALSO GOT TO HAVE MEAT, AND MEAT CONFRONTS OUR BEHAVIOR.
MEAT SAYS, "IT'S TIME TO NOT ACT LIKE THE WORLD."
MEAT SAYS, "IT'S TIME TO GET YOURSELF OFF YOUR MIND AND DO
THE THINGS THAT GOD IS ASKING YOU TO DO."
MEAT SAYS, "IT'S TIME FOR SELF-CONTROL."
AND SO, PAUL SAID, "NOT EVERYBODY IS READY FOR MEAT.
NOT EVERYONE WHO CONTINUES TO FEED ON MILK--NOW EVERYONE WHO
CONTINUES TO FEED ON MILK--" AND I LOVE THIS, I HOPE YOU CAN
GET THIS, "IS OBVIOUSLY INEXPERIENCED AND UNSKILLED IN
THE DOCTRINE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS." WHAT DOES HE MEAN?
HOW ARE YOU--IF YOU'RE STILL FEEDING ON MILK, WHY DOES THAT
MEAN THAT YOU ARE UNSKILLED IN THE DOCTRINE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS?
YOU KNOW WHAT THE DOCTRINE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS IS?
IT MEANS THAT, FIRST, YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE IN CHRIST.
HE HAS COME TO LIVE IN YOU AT THE NEW BIRTH, AND YOUR IDENTITY
NOW IS WHO YOU ARE IN HIM.
THAT'S WHERE YOUR CONFIDENCE IS, THAT'S WHERE YOUR TRUST IS.
YOU KNOW THAT HE LOVES YOU, HE'S NEVER GOING TO STOP LOVING YOU.
AND THEN YOU BEGIN TO WORK WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT TO LET WHAT HE'S
DONE IN YOU BE WORKED TO THE OUTSIDE OF YOU WHERE PEOPLE
CAN SEE IT.
WELL, THAT TAKES CORRECTION FROM GOD.
THAT TAKES CHASTISEMENT.
THAT TAKES THE MEAT OF THE WORD.
NOW LISTEN, DON'T LOSE ME, BUT IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHO YOU ARE
IN CHRIST, EVERY TIME YOU HEAR SOMETHING THAT CORRECTS YOU
OR CONFRONTS YOUR BEHAVIOR, IT'S GOING TO CONDEMN YOU.
[AUDIENCE APPLAUDING]
JOYCE: AND I'M JUST GOING TO TAKE MY TIME AND MAKE SURE YOU
GET THIS BECAUSE I DIDN'T HAVE ANYBODY TELLING ME THIS LIKE
I'M TELLING YOU.
IT TOOK ME YEARS TO GET THIS FIGURED OUT.
AND EVERY TIME I WOULD HEAR SOMETHING THAT CONFRONTED MY
BEHAVIOR OR BROUGHT ANY KIND OF CORRECTION TO MY LIFE, I MEAN,
I WOULD JUST FEEL SO BAD.
"NOBODY'S AS BAD AS ME.
NOBODY'S GOT AS MANY PROBLEMS AS ME.
HOW COULD ANYBODY NEED EVERY MESSAGE THEY HEAR?
I NEED EVERYTHING I HEAR."
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]
JOYCE: COME ON, YOU EVER FEEL LIKE THAT?
"I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU PREACH ON, LADY, I NEED IT.
JUST YOU KNOW, COULD YOU JUST TELL ME TONIGHT JESUS LOVES ME?"
WELL, YES HE DOES.
HE LOVES YOU VERY MUCH, AND YOU'RE WONDERFUL,
AND YOU'RE TALENTED, AND GOD'S GOT A GOOD PLAN FOR YOUR LIFE,
BUT GROW UP.