“What I know to be True!”
The lifestyle witness of Nick Holden (Titus 3:3-8 ; 2 Cor. 5:14-21)

How God the Father, through the Lord Jesus Christ, and the regenerating and renewing work of the Holy Spirit, interrupted me, a destitute deceiver, by invading my life with the conquering power of His grace for one distinct purpose. To make me His own personal vessel of mercy for Christ sake. Rom. 9:23

Five things I know to be true and pray that through this message, when I’m done sharing with you the witness that God has established in me, you also will come to know that each one of these can be true for you:

1. God’s grace toward me was not in vain
2. The call and conquest of the Lord Jesus Christ over my life
3. My passion for the authority and authenticity of God’s Word
4. I’m compelled by the love of Christ
5. God’s committed to me a ministry and message of reconciliation

I must let you in on a secret. It may surprise you when you hear this. But I have not always known these marvelous truths. That’s right, for twenty-six years I lived, ate, breathed and fought for myself. I was consumed with Nick Holden and his pleasures. Why? I was lost and perishing and had no clue of the freedom of being forgiven in Christ Jesus. I was full of deception, pride, lust, anger and wrath (Titus 3:1-3). I was selfish and did everything for my own profit. Even when I helped or commended others for doing a good job it was for my own personal benefit. Basically, I lived for my own glory and praise. I do know now what was wrong with me, but back then I didn’t. I was dead in trespasses and sins (Eph. 2:1-5). I was blind to truth and there was a veil over my heart and I could not believe the message of the gospel of Jesus (2 Cor. 4:1-6). I was a product of the fall. I was conceived and born in iniquity with a nature that had a natural bend toward sin. I was depraved and so tainted with sin that everything I did was unacceptable to a holy and righteous God. I truly do know what it means to be reconciled to God the Father through the saving work of Jesus Christ (Col. 1:19-23).
I had been brought up in a ungodly home. I say ungodly because the presence of God and His ways were not supreme or final authority. My dad was catholic and my mom had no religious background. We thought being good was the way to earn passage and points with God. There was always an awareness about the Lord but not an awe centered desire to be well pleasing to Him. Sports, hunting and a good education were our gods. We gave everything we had to play ball and to be the best at what we did. My dad and mom invested their livelihood into us and the equipment we would use so we could be the best. My dad coached us all the way up until High School and then would come to every practice and travel to all our games. I was good at both baseball and football. My senior year I was voted male athlete of the year for Covington High Fighting Lions . Not only was I the male athlete of the year but also voted the best dad by my daughter. That’s correct, my little girl Elizabeth. My wife Stephanie and I started dating during our sophomore year and she become pregnant during our junior year. We were sweethearts all through school, even named by our peers to be “Junior Sweethearts” at the Sweetheart dance that year. What no one knew was that Stephanie was pregnant at the time. The summer before our senior year we were married, and have been now for over 19 years. We have three daughters (arrows), Elizabeth, Lydia & Lauren (Ps. 127). All this was a reality and even factual events that were going on in our life but they were all a lie. Outside of Christ it is impossible to discern the difference between what is real and what is truth. Our lifestyle was filled with facts and real events but it was one big lie (John 18:37).

I eventually joined the Navy and spent close to ten years with them. We traveled and lived in some nice places. We both told everyone we had been saved by Jesus. But we lived how we wanted. We went were we wanted. We watched what we wanted. We drank what we wanted. We talked how we wanted. We listened to what we wanted to listen to and we acted like any other average person. Though we claimed to have a supernatural salvation through Jesus, we had very little to no regard for God‘s way. We were claiming Jesus saves while living for ourselves and on our way to hell. We truly deserved HELL. We were monstrous sinners, who rightfully should be separated from such a just and holy God. BUT because of His mercy and the gift of Christ we have been delivered. God set both of us free from ourselves in 1997and delivered us from sin’s grip so we could know and follow Him.
Today, what I know to be true, is that it all started on a Sunday morning in July of 1997. It was at Northcrest Baptist Church in Meridian, Ms., while Bro. Malcolm Lewis was preaching and teaching from Mat. 16:26 “For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” It was on this day that Jesus Christ INTERRUPTED my life and called me to be His disciple forever. It was on this day that God made me a new creation and He begin to teach me His truth by granting me repentance and gracing me with the faith to believe. Paul reminds Titus of his interruption in Titus 3:3-6, "For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior." I know what it means to be sin, and to live life for myself, pretending that everything is good. Today, by the grace of God, I‘m free. I am free to follow the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ came to make us His very own disciples that would be known as Christians (graced followers of the Anointed One), by a world around us. Are you a Follower of the Anointed One? Are you Jesus’ very own disciple? Are you known as one who is obedient to the gospel of Jesus Christ? Jesus reveals to us in Mark 8:35 that we must lose our life for His sake and the gospel’s. This is why Paul told the church in 2 Thes. 1:8 that God’s wrath will come upon everyone who does not know God the Father and have not obeyed the gospel of Jesus Christ which demands our life entirely and completely. Jesus is a life-giver and life-changer.

How was I delivered and made a disciple of Jesus?

1. By a Permanent Interruption (My life was interrupted by Jesus) Titus 3:3-7
2. By a Powerful Invasion (My life was invaded by God’s grace) Titus 2:11-14
3. By a Profound Influence (My life has been influenced by Christ’s love) 2 Cor.5:14-21
4. By a Progressive Interest (My lifelong interest in knowing the Lord and His purpose) Phil. 3:7-21
5. By a Purposeful Involvement (My lifelong involvement in God’s cause) Mark 8:34-38
6. By a Personal Investment (My lifelong investment in God’s kingdom) John 18:37
7. By a Providential Identity (My lifestyle being identified as a disciple of Jesus Christ) 2 Cor. 4:7-15