Summit Life with J.D. Greear

There’s a cliché phrase we often use when someone gets saved. We say that they “gave their life to Jesus.” But what does that really mean? How will our day-to-day lives look different if we’re really surrendered to God? That’s our subject as Pastor J.D. continues our series called All-In. Pastor J.D. originally preached this sermon to his home church, The Summit in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina, but the principles apply to believers everywhere.

 Everyone wants to experience God’s blessing, but how do we really grab ahold of that? What does it take to get the abundant life it talks about in Scripture? Pastor J.D. describes the biblical answer to that question as he continues our series called, All-In.

In our series called All-In, Pastor J.D. is walking through the stories of five Old Testament characters who each give us a picture of what it means to be fully committed to God’s mission. This series was originally preached to Pastor J.D.’s home congregation, The Summit Church in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina, but the principles apply to every believer and every local church.  

If you ever flip through one of those picture book Bibles for kids, one of the first stories you’ll noticed is Noah and the Ark, usually accompanied by a cute illustration of little animals walking two-by-two into the ark. But this account isn’t just a nice story about God saving some animals from a flood; it’s a powerful foreshadowing of the gospel. That’s our subject as we begin our study called All-In.

Did you know that Esther is one of only two books in the Bible named for a woman? It’s been a pretty controversial book. But not because it is named for a woman, but because God’s name is not mentioned— not even one time—in the whole book! Thankfully, however, God has kept it in the Bible for us—because it  really has something important to teach us. Today Pastor J.D. will wrap up a quick trip through Esther and we’ll hear the timeless challenge that it is always the right call to risk it all for the sake of Jesus. Jump right into Chapter 4 with us.

Pastor J.D. opens up Esther, a book that surprisingly lacks the name of God, yet is mysteriously full of God at work. We’re going to see that God has sovereignly arranged our circumstances, just like Esther’s, to be strategically involved in his mission. Grab your Bible, and take some notes as we dive in.

Psalm 91 seems to say that if you trust God, nothing bad will happen to you, and your life will go smoothly. And, well, maybe then if things aren’t going well, you must not be trusting God. That’s troubling, right? It almost sounds like karma. Pastor J.D. uses Romans 8:28 to show us how the promises of Psalm 91 are still true. Today, we’re concluding our series called, Help.

There are some passages in the Bible I’m just not sure what to do with. Well, maybe more than “some”. The Psalms of help and protection especially fall in that category of Scripture I’m not sure if I’m really using correctly. It seems like we gravitate toward them, but I have a hard time applying them to my life.

I’ve started to rely more and more on the different GPS apps on my phone—not because I don’t know my way around, but because they get real-time traffic information and can correct my course. It’s more of a guide than just a map. Today, Pastor J.D. lovingly shows us that what we need is a relationship with a constant guide who, at every point, can provide the next piece. Let’s join in as he concludes his message from Psalm 25.

No matter how strong our faith is, we all have moments when we come to the end of ourselves. The problem is, if we’re honest, we aren’t sure if God can meet us in that place. But Pastor J.D. explains that if we offer our desperation to God in prayer, we will find him eager to listen, eager to forgive, eager to heal, eager to step in and help.