How is your joy

In our world today joy is missing in so many….the news robs us, the pressures of life rob us, attacks on our health, family, finances, jobs all rob us…if you add to that, many in the church are so austere that they can enjoy creation and the life Christ has for us.

 

Revelation 4:11 (KJV updated)

 

You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for you have created all things, and for your pleasure, they and we are and were created.

 

God enjoys us, not like a puppeteer enjoys his puppets, but like a loving parent enjoys their children. He enjoys spending time with us in quiet and solitude and in laughter and fun

 

God created laughter, He created joy, happiness, love

 

I think we forget that sometimes.

 

Jesus is God with us, God in the flesh and where do we see him perform his first miracle at a celebration!

 

John 2:1-11

 

The next day there was a wedding celebration in the village of Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, 2 and Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the celebration. 3 The wine supply ran out during the festivities, so Jesus’ mother told him, “They have no more wine.”

4 “Dear woman, that’s not our problem,” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.”

5 But his mother told the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

6 Standing nearby were six stone water jars, used for Jewish ceremonial washing. Each could hold twenty to thirty gallons. 7 Jesus told the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” When the jars had been filled, 8 he said, “Now dip some out, and take it to the master of ceremonies.” So the servants followed his instructions.

9 When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from (though, of course, the servants knew), he called the bridegroom over. 10 “A host always serves the best wine first,” he said. “Then, when everyone has had a lot to drink, he brings out the less expensive wine. But you have kept the best until now!”

11 This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was the first time Jesus revealed his glory. And his disciples believed in him.

 

Jesus shows up at the party and brings six additional guests with him

 

The disciples with him at the time were Peter, Andrew, Nathanael, Philip, James, and John

 

This wedding was either a family member of Jesus’ or a very close friend of His mother, Mary.

 

We begin by seeing that three days after Jesus had called Nathanael, the come to the wedding and Mary is already there.

 

The traditional wedding feast lasted 7 days…let me stop there for a minute….with every wedding they took 7 full days off from their labors to celebrate, feast, dance and enjoy each others company plus they had 22 holidays per year mostly of a celebration of family and thankfulness to God for His provision in one way or another. Joy was very much part of the culture.

 

We must remember Joy is part of the fruit of the Spirit part of the Holy Spirit, part of God.

 

As Jesus and his disciples were there celebrating Mary came to Jesus with a problem…we are out of wine

 

Once again this was probably family and Mary is coming to her eldest son; Joseph has passed so if this is family she comes to her eldest to solve a family problem.

 

John 2:4

 

“Dear woman, that’s not our problem,” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.”

 

 

Jesus and his friends had been celebrating and he is making it clear to Mary out of respect…while this may be a family issue, I have the Kingdom on my mind….his tone here is one of utmost respect for Mary but he needs to make it clear to her that while I am your son, I am not here to do your bidding, I’m here to do my Father’s bidding

 

Jesus was a loving son and he also understood the ramifications of running out of wine at a wedding feast.

 

Running out of wine would be like running out of food at a dinner party or a church picnic yet in the community it would have been worse than here because the whole community would have been invited and it would have been something that would never have been forgotten.

 

Jesus didn’t need to care…he could have just said “oh well, guys lets move on this feast is over these people should have prepared better, they should have done better, they knew what would happen if they didn’t have enough wine and they choose to be ill-prepared” he could have left and been perfectly right….but he didn’t

 

That is not the way God is….God understands the human heart, emotions, our brokenness the way we condemn ourselves

 

How many of you have ever said to yourself…”I’m so stupid!” or I should have done better or should have known better?” I don’t want to see hands but if we are all be honest I will bet most of us have done that at some point.

 

How important is wine in the scheme of all creation? How important is this one wedding in the scheme of all creation? This story is showing us that what you do, what you are concerned about while you may not think it is important to God because of starving children, or war…you need to realize you are important to God and he is big enough to handle all of the starving children and every war and the little things that concern you…Remember this?

 

Psalm 139:1-3

 

O Lord, you have examined my heart

and know everything about me.

2 You know when I sit down or stand up.

You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.

3 You see me when I travel

and when I rest at home.

You know everything I do.

 

Jesus had no need to do anything for this wedding but he knew their hearts, what they were feeling, everything about them and he knew this would remind them of God’s great love….I need to add this… getting drunk was not an option in a Jesus culture so this was not about drunkenness in any way

 

John 2:5-8

 

5 But his mother told the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

6 Standing nearby were six stone water jars, used for Jewish ceremonial washing. Each could hold twenty to thirty gallons. 7 Jesus told the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” When the jars had been filled, 8 he said, “Now dip some out, and take it to the master of ceremonies.” So the servants followed his instructions.

 

I don’t think Mary quite understood what Jesus was saying just yet but she submitted to Jesus and instructed the servants to just do what Jesus wanted

 

The six jars–

 

These were the wash pots, they had water in them to keep cleaning off the tables they were used as part of the Jewish purification rites in other words they were common things.

 

Most of us feel common, we don’t necessarily feel like we are special or unique…we go about our business day after day and hope to just get by…but if we are willing Jesus takes that which is common and makes it into something special.

 

If anyone had known this “wine” had come from these common pots they would have rejected it without even trying it…if they would have rejected it they would have missed out not just on good wine but the best.

 

I think the Lord wants us to begin to think about ourselves that way, we are called of God to change the world…if we allow our lowly beginnings or our view of ourselves to hinder our being used of God so many will miss out on the best wine….we can not view ourselves anything less than the light of the world the salt of the world because Jesus does not lie and that is what He has called us. Just in case you don’t know these verses

 

Matthew 5:13-16

 

“You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.

14 “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. 15 No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.

 

Here is what happened next

 

9 When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from (though, of course, the servants knew), he called the bridegroom over. 10 “A host always serves the best wine first,” he said. “Then, when everyone has had a lot to drink, he brings out the less expensive wine. But you have kept the best until now!”

 

When we allow the Lord to bring the light through us we are not only good at what we do, we can be the best….don’t be ashamed or afraid of God living inside of you…Don’t be ashamed or afraid sharing the truth that you know. You sharing His word and living your life as an example to others is sweet and refreshing to those in need…

 

Psalm 119: 103-105

 

How sweet your words taste to me;

they are sweeter than honey.

104 Your commandments give me understanding;

no wonder I hate every false way of life.

105 Your word is a lamp to guide my feet

and a light for my path.

 

What we have come to understand of real life in Jesus, we must take and share it to bring hope and to bring joy.

 

Jesus chose wine because it was what the culture dictated but it also always brings joy and Jesus did it in the best way to bring the greatest joy.

 

 

He knew what the people needed that was important to them

 

– what is important in your life that you don’t think Jesus would care about? Know that He does because you are important! Let him bring you joy by lifting this burden, meeting that need

 

– whatever view you have of yourself it is probably nothing compared to the way the Lord values you!Stop limiting what God will do in you and through you…just like the pots who were the most inconsequential of things and Jesus made the bearers of the best…he will do the same for you

 

– Recognize just like Jesus did at the wedding, He wants to bring you joy…what is robbing your joy today? He cares for you, he loves you let Him bring you Joy not because of what you have done or who you are but just because He loves you!

 

Why does Jesus want you to know and have joy? John 2:11 tells us why

 

11 This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was the first time Jesus revealed his glory. And his disciples believed in him.

 

Your joy will awaken others to see Jesus, it will cause them to believe, it will heal them.  What will you choose today? Some here have been hurting and miserable for a long time. I’m not saying you aren’t saved I’m just saying the stuff of life, your past, your self-condemnation, your judgmental nature have robbed you of real joy…Let the Lord give it to your today

 

If you don’t know Jesus if you don’t have a relationship with him, today is your day…you can know what it is to have real joy he will heal you, forgive you, bring you freedom all today if you are willing

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Things that prepare you for all God has for you!

Things that prepare you for all God has for you.

 

God has confirmed our call as a church with Charlie being here, there was not really anything he said that we did not already know…some of the things he said to some of you may have felt new but you know in your heart of hearts, He had already been speaking it to you…

 

For example our worship teams want a new sound, I had already talked to them about being a multigenerational worship team, as we are but now they will press in and bring the excitement and life as well as the awe inspiring sound to our worship in an even greater way than we have ever seen before…why because their hearts are right, second they have the desire and agree with the desire God placed in their hearts…so it will happen…but even for them there are some basic keys we must have to prepare for God’s call

 

I don’t want us to miss out on anything God has for us so I want to challenge you this morning to revisit some of the basics so we are able to run our race with endurance to win! Losing is not an option

 

It is not rocket science or brain surgery to flow in the gifts of the Spirit it is the Father’s heart that each one of us do…in fact you may not know this but you are already equipped with a gift

 

Romans 12:1-2

 

And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn toknow God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.(NLT)

 

God calls us to sell out to Him in all we do to be willing to change our attitudes, behaviors (to start thinking and acting like Jesus) we need to no longer look at things the way the world does but know the Father’s heart well enough that we change the world rather than the world changing us….we fight, have divisions, arguments, all because we don’t have His heart and mind yet, thinking like Him

 

He has equipped us already to do this…let’s jump down

 

Romans 12:3–8

 

For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. 4 Foras we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, 5 so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. 6 Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; 7 or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; 8 he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.

 

This is a list of some of the gifts God the Father pours out onto his kids…notice God through his grace has poured these gifts out on us…we have not earned them….we have not worked to make them happen…God has just given them to us to impact our world…

 

You have them, you might just not know it yet because you have not been in a position to hear and understand what God wants to do through you….

 

Someone could give you a router, a pressure cooker, air hammer, hot pepper corer but if you don’t know what they are or how to use them properly without either reading the manual or having others teach you…you could try to use them and hurt yourself or others or destroy what was meant to be a blessing…so it is with the gifts

 

We make it harder than what it is but we have the tools in our tool box to understand and flow in every and any gift all of the time if we are just willing

 

 

 

1) Prayer

 

Jesus is God and yet he would take time to pray either to deal with an issue, like raising Lazarus from the dead or going off by himself to pray, Mark 1:35, Luke 5:16, John 17just to give three examples

 

Prayer is effective to moving mountains

 

James 5:16

 

“The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.”

 

Simply, for Christ-followers prayer is the best way to communicate with God.

 

– Prayer is the vehicle for daily dialog with the One who created us. The importance of daily communication through prayer cannot be overestimated.

 

– It is mentioned over 250 times in Scripture.

 

Value of daily prayer

 

-Daily prayer gives us an opportunity to share all aspects of our lives with God.

 

-Daily prayer gives us the chance to express our gratitude for the things He provides.

 

-Daily prayer provides the platform for confessing our sin and asking for help in overcoming that sin.

 

-Daily prayer is an act of worship and obedience.

 

-Daily prayer is a way to acknowledge who is really in control of our lives.

 

 

2) Word

 

God’s word is life so much so that I would challenge you that if you are listening to any teaching or reading any books by anyone who has not read the whole Bible through…in my opinion they do not understand the whole message of Christ and can easily lead others into error.

 

Let me remind you of one little passage Jesus said about the word…while being tempted by Satan he said this…

 

Matthew 4:3,4

 

During that time the devil came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread.” 4 But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say, ‘People do not live by bread alone,

but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

 

It is God’s word that brings life, health, freedom, and apart from it we will have none….

 

If you read the entire story of the temptation of Jesus defeated Satan not with crazy gyrations or what I like to call Christian incantations but by the word…to defeat the enemy in your life and move in power it is by the word.

 

– One of our most powerful weapons is the “sword of the Spirit” which is the “word of God” according to Ephesians 6:17

 

What does this sword do? Hebrews 4:12answers that question

 

“For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.”

 

It is a living word which means it can have one meaning right now to meet a situation I am in at this moment and a year or ten years from now the same verse may bring out something totally different that is life to me then…

 

– Apart from God’s word we are direction-less

 

Psalm 119:105

 

Your word is a lamp to guide my feet

and a light for my path.

 

As we study the word and listen to quality teaching from those in the 5 fold ministries listed in Ephesians 4 we can stand safe and secure

 

2 Timothy 3:16

 

All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. 17 God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.

 

2 Timothy 2:15

 

Work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive his approval. Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly explains the word of truth.

 

3) Fasting – is separating yourself from food for a period of time to focus on prayer, the study of the word, and the presence of God…Jesus made the assumption that this would be a normal part of every Christ followers life

 

Matthew 6:16

 

And when you fast, don’t make it obvious, as the hypocrites do, for they try to look miserable and disheveled so people will admire them for their fasting. I tell you the truth, that is the only reward they will ever get. 17 But when you fast, comb your hair and wash your face.

 

Practice your gift –God expects us to walk by faith in fact it is impossible to please God apart from faith so we must assess our gifts, begin to use what we know we have for the kingdom and begin to investigate and ask the Lord if there aren’t other gifts that we have like those listed in Romans 12 earlier and learn to develop them, study, talk to one of the Pastors about them and develop them to advance the Kingdom of God

 

Ephesians 2:10

 

For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

 

God gave you gifts because he has good things planned for you and for others if you will but choose to use them for Him you will be fulfilled and change the world

 

I know some of you read the verses and say, “I don’t see anything I am gifted in there” two things first you may have some gift and because you have never explored it you don’t know you have it or second, God has so many different gifts, that we can’t even count them. In many cases the very things you love to do are part of the giftings God has given you to impact the lives of others!

 

1 Corinthians 12:4-7

 

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. 6 There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons. 7 But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.

 

Notice varieties of gifts, ministries, effects…look to develop what God has placed within you to change the world!

 

1 Peter 4:10,11

 

As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. 11 Whoever speaks, is to do so as one who is speaking the utterances of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

 

Then this last verse you hear me quote often

 

Matthew 5:16

 

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”

 

Ladies and Gentlemen please don’t misunderstand me these are not works, these are acts of love….you should want to spend time with the Lord every day in prayer, you should want to read his love letter to draw closer to his heart, you should want to fast to separate your self from everything else…this is how we grow in intimacy and intimacy causes a relationship to be strong

 

God desires for us to flow in every gift powerfully but they must be guided by knowledge of who he is, if we don’t know his heart we will say and do anything that comes to mind, the enemy can easily trick us into believing things that are against God’s word, he can get us into a works mentality that will exhaust us rather than bring us to freedom so we can free others…intimacy does that

 

Then by faith, we begin to put to practice what we know and healing, deliverance, prophetic, freedom, love, joy, peace, all flow from us freely

 

God wants to give you everything and intimacy with Him causes a trust to be built that allows Him to give you everything in power.

 

Will you covenant with Him today to grow in intimacy with Him…pray, study His word, fast, and then practice the gifts he has given you?

 

NEXT WEEK IF YOU ARE READY FOR IT….PART OF THE VISION

Integrity?

Integrity?

A story is told of some young men who were late to class.

Four high school boys were late to their morning classes one day. They entered the classroom and solemnly told their teacher they were detained due to a flat tire. The sympathetic teacher smiled and told them it was too bad they were late because they had missed a test that morning. But she was willing to let them make it up. She gave them each a piece of paper and a pencil and sent them to four corners of the room. Then she told them they would pass if they could answer just one question:

Which tire was flat???

Talk about the lack of integrity in the country.

Integrity Uprightness of Character, honesty.

Looking for people of integrity in our generation perhaps could be compared to searching for a needle in a haystack. Indeed it may be easier to identify a grain of salt in a snowstorm.

What we are seeing in the Catholic church right now is a scramble for integrity. Everyone is talking about it and everyone is disgusted by what has gone on. I hear questions and comments nearly every day of how could this have happened?

Obviously, there were some very disturbed people in the clergy and some have covered it up…we will not know the total fallout for years

When this happened in the 80’s with Jim Bakker, Jimmy Swaggert, Robert Tilton, and Larry Lea

Then others later Ted Haggard, Eddie Long, Marcus Lamb

Galatians 6:1

Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself.

How could something like this happen? Very easily I’m afraid

Jim Bakker stopped praying stopped being in the word 3 years earlier

We have seen the gifts of God, whatever they are, or the blessings of God whatever they are, on us still even though there is a little sin here or there. It doesn’t take long for that sin to overwhelm us and watch our integrity fail.

Let me explain what I mean

True men and women of integrity or rare indeed.

Are you one of them?Is your life characterized by integrity? The Bible clearly indicates that our lives should be. In Matthew 5, Jesus tells us that we should be as good as our word. Are you as good as your word?

We used to teach our children that our reputation was extremely important. Parents would exhort children by telling them that they had worked hard to create a good name for themselves and that the children should work hard to maintain it.

Abraham Lincoln said “For a man to train up a child in the way he/she should go, he must walk that way himself.”

Have you ever wondered what people associate with your name? Do people say that you can be trusted, that you are reliable, that you can be counted on, that you are a man or woman of integrity? These things should be important to us because our lives speak volumes to those around us.

Matthew 5:33-37

 “You have also heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not break your vows; you must carry out the vows you make to the Lord.’ 34 But I say, do not make any vows! Do not say, ‘By heaven!’ because heaven is God’s throne. 35 And do not say, ‘By the earth!’ because the earth is his footstool. And do not say, ‘By Jerusalem!’ for Jerusalem is the city of the great King. 36 Do not even say, ‘By my head!’ for you can’t turn one hair white or black. 37 Just say a simple, ‘Yes, I will,’ or ‘No, I won’t.’ Anything beyond this is from the evil one.

Leviticus 19:12 ’You shall not swear falsely by My name, so as to profane the name of your God; I am the Lord. Explain that they took this to mean that they could with other things.

Jesus is saying that for our righteousness to exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees, our word must be good enough.

Jesus is not prohibiting oaths taken in a court of justice or oaths taken in the name of God on solemn religious occasions. Romans 9:1, Gal 1:20, 1 Cor 15:31, Paul swears oaths through Christ, Hebrews 6:13-14, God swears an oath to Abraham

Jesus is saying that we are not to swear as the religious leaders had been doing.

Matthew 23:16-18

“Blind guides! What sorrow awaits you! For you say that it means nothing to swear ‘by God’s Temple,’ but that it is binding to swear ‘by the gold in the Temple.’ 17 Blind fools! Which is more important—the gold or the Temple that makes the gold sacred? 18 And you say that to swear ‘by the altar’ is not binding, but to swear ‘by the gifts on the altar’ is binding. 19 How blind! For which is more important—the gift on the altar or the altar that makes the gift sacred? 20 When you swear ‘by the altar,’ you are swearing by it and by everything on it. 21 And when you swear ‘by the Temple,’ you are swearing by it and by God, who lives in it. 22 And when you swear ‘by heaven,’ you are swearing by the throne of God and by God, who sits on the throne.

I know this is one of the hard verses in the Bible but hear me out, please.

Jesus is saying, on one hand, you give your word, you make a promise with no intent to keep it “swearing by the altar of God” (God’s very presence) and then you make promises on things less valuable, “the gift on the altar” (the gold or other sacrifices) but on things that don’t really matter, are not eternal you swear making it possible for you to even change your mind and think you are maintaining your integrity.

As Christians, as people whose citizenship is in heaven, we must show integrity in our words and deeds. The keeping of our word depends on the actions that we take.

Integrity with words

Matthew 5:37

 Just say a simple, ‘Yes, I will,’ or ‘No, I won’t.’ Anything beyond this is from the evil one.

James 5:12 

But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath; but your yes is to be yes, and your no, no, so that you may not fall under judgment.

1 Timothy 4:12 

Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but rather in speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe.

Integrity with your actions

– Toward people

At the age of twenty-four, Abraham Lincoln served as the postmaster of New Salem, Illinois, for which he was paid an annual salary of $55.70. Even then, twenty-four years before he entered the White House, the rail splitter was showing the character that earned him the title of “Honest Abe.” The New Salem post office was closed in 1836, but it was several years before an agent arrived from Shington to settle accounts with ex-postmaster Lincoln, who was a struggling lawyer not doing very well. The agent informed him that $17 was due the government. Lincoln crossed the room, opened an old trunk and took out a yellow cotton rag, bound with a string. Untying it, he spread out the cloth and there was the $17. He had been holding it untouched for all these years. “I never use any man’s money but my own,” he said.

It is not what we profess, but what we practice that makes us Christians.

People will judge our God and are doing so today, by the way, we act toward others. We must be people of integrity when we deal with all people. Jesus should affect how we conduct ourselves. When we say we are going to do something, it is as good as done!

Proverbs 20:7 

A righteous man who walks in his integrity How blessed are his sons after him.

– Toward God

Matthew 5:33

“You have also heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not break your vows; you must carry out the vows you make to the Lord.’

Deuteronomy 23:23 

“You shall be careful to perform what goes out from your lips, just as you have voluntarily vowed to the Lord your God, what you have promised.

In Acts 5, Ananias and Sapphira lied to God and that is why they were killed. They volunteered to give the proceeds of the sale of their land to God, but then they withheld part of it.

When we tell God that we are going to commit our lives to Him, we must fulfill that vow to Him. When we say that we love God, then we will keep His commandments.

Horace Greeley, newspaper publisher, and abolitionist had a quote that Harry Truman used to like: “Fame is a vapor, popularity an accident, riches take wings, those who cheer today may curse tomorrow, only one thing endures — character.”

Side note – character is revealed by the fruit of the Spirit active in every way in our lives

I know I started talking about the scandal in the Catholic church, you know I find it appalling and anti-Christ but I also must, as we talked about several weeks ago about judging,…challenge each one of us to live lives of integrity and to show by our actions toward each other and God that we are not like that…we must show the world what a true Christ-follower looks like and at the same time pray for those who are victims and for those who were the predators

If we can walk in the love of God and his grace toward this that not only scandalizes these children who many are adults now but even more so scandalizes the name of Christ the one who loves us the most then, we are true people of faith.

The Catholic church is going to have to deal with its issues but even more so we must live lives that reflect Integrity in all that we say and do….we can not sit in judgment if we have a lack of integrity in our lives

So this is a wake-up call to the church and all Christians everywhere that the Lord is depending on us to be a true reflection of Him in all we say and do! I am in no way excusing their lack of integrity but I am challenging each of us in ours!

What promises have you made to the Lord? your family? your boss? Your employees, your neighbors, can you be counted on to be a person of your word and the Word….does your life reflect the Word of God and Christ-likeness always?

I end with one of my favorite verses Matthew 5:16

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”

 

 

 

Real Truth/Hard Truth Part 3

Real truth hard truth Part 3

 

The first week we talked about, while it is hard we must stand for truth but we must do it by first making sure our hearts are right full love and humility

 

Last week we talked about surrendering our whole heart and being to Christ…he is standing at the door knocking and he is wanting to pour out blessing on our lives but only if we will trust Him with everything

 

Today I want to share with you challenge in our growth and why so many struggle in their faith

 

Once we make the commitment to allow the Lord complete control we have one heart with him and one heart with each other and God can move powerfully in that environment

 

Psalm 133:1, 3b

Behold, how good and how pleasant it is

For brethren to dwell together in unity!

….For there the Lord commanded the blessing

 

That doesn’t mean stuff doesn’t happen bear with me as we very quickly look at a passage I need us to understand

 

Matthew 7:24-27

24 “Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. 25 Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. 26 But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. 27 When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.”

 

Before I get into the main teaching today I need us to see something in this passage

 

Jesus said those who honor his teaching and those who don’t will all go through the same things….rain, floodwaters, and hurricane winds

 

But the one who honors his teaching, stands on His word will never fail no matter how hard everything comes after them they will always stand

 

But those who hear it and reject it will never be able to stand strong

 

We can’t take God’s word lightly, well we can but the outcome will always be destructive if we do…loving God and loving people requires us to continue to grow in him and not stagnateso lets get to the meat of the teaching today

 

Luke 8:4-8,

One day Jesus told a story in the form of a parable to a large crowd that had gathered from many towns to hear him: 5 “A farmer went out to plant his seed. As he scattered it across his field, some seed fell on a footpath, where it was stepped on, and the birds ate it. 6 Other seed fell among rocks. It began to grow, but the plant soon wilted and died for lack of moisture. 7 Other seed fell among thorns that grew up with it and choked out the tender plants. 8 Still, other seed fell on fertile soil. This seed grew and produced a crop that was a hundred times as much as had been planted!” When he had said this, he called out, “Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.”

 

We don’t understand the full impact of this story because we don’t live in an agrarian culture anymore but if a crop failed in Israel at this time it meant financial disaster, poverty, potential enslavement and/or starvation. Jesus was stressing that seed not growing is a very dangerous life-changing situation

 

Luke 8: 11-15

“This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is God’s word. 12 The seeds that fell on the footpath represent those who hear the message, only to have the devil come and take it away from their hearts and prevent them from believing and being saved. 13 The seeds on the rocky soil represent those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they believe for a while, then they fall away when they face temptation. 14 The seeds that fell among the thorns represent those who hear the message, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life. And so they never grow into maturity. 15 And the seeds that fell on the good soil represent honest, good-hearted people who hear God’s word, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest.

We need to realize God’s word is all around us…let me explain my process…I am praying for weeks asking the Lord what he wants me to bring to you…when I get the idea…I pray more specifically and begin my research….I generally spend 30-40 hours researching studying praying and then writing the sermon so I know what I am bringing to you is to the best of my ability what the Lord wants and the way he wants it.

 

On top of that, you will have teachers on Wednesday night doing a similar thing

 

You have a Bible in your hand you should be reading every day.

 

You have my thought for the day when originally written would take a couple of hours each day

 

Christian radio, TV, book, and magazines all there planting seed in your life.

 

The seeds are being sown all around us very few have any excuse for not hearing but we know according to this story that even though God loves everyone some will choose not to live a life of freedom, hope, love but instead will choose slavery to the world and the world system

 

This story also warns us to be aware of the things that will try to entrap us or trip us up

 

Luke 8:13

13 The seeds on the rocky soil represent those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they believe for a while, then they fall away when they face temptation.

 

How does this happen? First, everyone can be tempted, the temptation is not a sin it is giving in to this temptation that we have to deal with.

 

Our roots are not deep because we don’t know the word, the Bible, the scriptures, God’s love letter and heart for us

 

Here is what God spoke to Jeremiah 17:8,9

 

But blessed are those who trust in the Lord

and have made the Lord their hope and confidence.

8 They are like trees planted along a riverbank,

with roots that reach deep into the water.

Such trees are not bothered by the heat

or worried by long months of drought.

Their leaves stay green,

and they never stop producing fruit.

 

Our hope and confidence builds to trust because we are daily in the word and prayer without this we are shallow and little heat, any little temptation and we go back to or former life without hope

 

Think about when difficulties come your way, temptation comes your way….. are scripture verses and/or the Lord’s heart the first thing that comes to mind…or even what would Pastor Tim do or any other Christian who is maturing

 

We spend our lives fighting bad attitudes, addictions, overcoming wounds, rejections we know the floods, winds, and rain will come but do we run to God? Is His word deeply embedded in our hearts so at a moment’s when the temptation comes to revert to our old self or new battles…without a daily deepening relationship through knowing God’s word and time in prayer, many have been taken out this way. Not knowing the word is not the only thing to trip us up

 

Luke 8:14

14 The seeds that fell among the thorns represent those who hear the message, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life. And so they never grow into maturity.

 

What are the cares of this world?

 

Most of them are good things but if they take priority over Christ then they steal your future and blessing from you and fear and wounds take over

 

Finances – God wants you to be a good steward of your finances but everything you have came from him and if you know and are living by God’s financial principles you will never worry about finances again

 

Children – we want the best for them but we must remember that the best for them is God first…we must teach them to pray, be in the word, bring them to church, be the example of a Christian man or woman make their relationship with Christ the priority then everything else secondary…sports, dance, cheerleading, band, will come and go with their interest and age but Christ and a Christ-filled life will guide them and be with them forever

 

Health– John tells us that we will prosper and be in health even as our souls prosper….in other words worrying about our health and the things of this life doesn’t help us it only hinders but if we trust in the Lord seek Him first then we will have what we need

 

Future – Everything is in God’s hands Remember the scripture from Jeremiah? If we put him first and keep him first it doesn’t matter what goes on around us even if there is drought everywhere…if we learn to lean on God’s word get to know him better each day through prayer and the word then we will always be taken care of

 

This leads me to the last verse

 

Luke 8:15

15 And the seeds that fell on the good soil represent honest, good-hearted people who hear God’s word, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest.

 

Want God’s blessing?

 

It is not a matter of allowing Him in to have complete control but daily choosing to read God’s word, know God’s word, and live God’s word…it doesn’t happen all at one time…Jesus is telling us with patience we will be overly blessed

 

Paul said he would “die daily” meaning he would surrender to God’s will every day

 

Jesus told us we must “take up our cross daily” same thing choosing every day to be in the Word, put God first and trust him by being in the word and prayer

 

If you want God’s blessing the key is consistency through the daily disciplines of Reading and applying God’s word, prayer, and choosing to live it out

 

God brings the harvest so there is no fear, anxiety, worry, hurt, but love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, meekness, kindness, and self-control

Are you willing to commit to this for the success of your life?

 

Selling out to God like we talked about last week, requires our choosing to live this life daily….that is the hard truth, it is not politically correct but once you know God’s word you have a standard to live by and prayer makes the relationship real and current

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Real Truth/Hard Truth Part 2 Guess whose knocking?

Real Truth Part 2

 

Guess who is knocking?

 

Revelation 3:20 “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.

 

Written to the church not to the unsaved, why?

 

Jesus is saying that he is standing outside of the church outside of the Christian’s life as they go about their daily routine and He is saying wont you let me in?

 

If the bible tells us….

 

Galatians 2:20

 

My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not treat the grace of God as meaningless. For if keeping the law could make us right with God, then there was no need for Christ to die.

 

Is your flesh rising up, being offended, are you feeling condemned then the grace of God is not alive in you and Christ is not really welcome to his fullest in your life

 

Ephesians 3:17-19

 

Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. 18 And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. 19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

 

If you, even after all the teaching in the past weeks, aren’t feeling the fullness of the love of Christ in its depths, height, width and every way perhaps Christ is not totally living in you yet…if you are still being defeated over and over again then welcome Him in completely into every area of your life then you will know the fullness of His power

 

You can’t beat alcohol, drugs, pornography, or really any other sin by saying I’m going to stop this! You must pursue Him and welcome Him in more

 

1 John 3:24

 

Those who obey God’s commandments remain in fellowship with him, and he with them. And we know he lives in us because the Spirit he gave us lives in us.

 

If you are seeing a limit of the fruit of the Spirit and the power of God in your life perhaps Jesus is not fully welcome in you.

 

OK now that I made you feel guilty and terrible and some even condemned….

 

Allowing the Lord total access to our lives and hearts is a process called sanctification.

 

We invite Jesus into the areas that we feel most comfortable or vulnerable at first. But Jesus wants it all, he wants total welcoming into every aspect of our lives

 

Jesus and house story***

 

Sometimes we don’t realize that we have not allowed him totally in until something bad happens, some struggle overwhelms us, some fear, bitterness, anger, lust, greed, takes hold then the enemy makes us feel condemned and rather than running to the Lord to surrender to him we run the other way away from him and the brokenness just get worse

 

What happens when Jesus is allowed in?

 

Luke 19:1-10

 

Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the town. 2 There was a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich. 3 He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way.

5 When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.”

6 Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. 7 But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled.

8 Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”

9 Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.”

 

 

What happens to us when we allow Jesus in?

 

1) Overwhelmed by his presence

 

Luke 19:6

 

…Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy.

 

2 Corinthians 3:17 For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom (liberty).

 

Psalm 16:11 You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

 

Why live in depression, feeling wounded, rejected, feeling like you don’t fit in

 

Why feel like you are surrounded always by enemies instead of friends.

 

Why live life without joy, freedom, peace love overwhelming you

 

Jesus is standing at the door, knocking and wanting in to every part of you

 

 

 

2) Repent of wrongs, heal relationships, brokenness, wounds; reputations made right…

 

Luke 19:7

 

But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled.

 

James 4:1 “What is causing the quarrels and fights among you? Don’t they come from the evil desires at war within you?”

 

Because of his job, his height, and his attitude there was prejudice against him he was wounded, his relationship in the community broken but being totally open to Jesus brought him to forgiveness and healing

 

Allowing Jesus in didn’t necessarily change the way others looked at Him but it changed Him so the way others saw him no longer mattered, he knew who he was! When we begin to see ourselves the way the Father sees us, we change

 

3) Giving happens – time, talent, and treasure

 

The nature of the Father’s heart is giving

 

Matthew 7:11

 

So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him.

 

James 1:17

 

Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.

 

John 3:16,17

 

For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. 17 God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.

 

Generosity is a sign that you have become completely open to the Lord….you are trusting that the more you give of your time your talent, and your treasure the Lord will pour back into you and you recognize after all that everything you have “every good and perfect gift” came from God in the first place and you are only a steward of all you have and God is the owner

 

 

4) Transformation takes place we become and live as we are new

 

Saulwas a murder of Christians and a religious zealot – greatest defender of the faith author of the majority of the New Testament

Peter, Andrew– mere fishermen who become fishers of men

Matthewa tax collector also hated by the people

Nathaniela good guy who became a great guy and changed the world

120 common ordinary folks in the upper roomwho changed the world

 

5) We become His true, powerful sons and daughters of Christ

 

John 1:12

But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God,

 

1 John 3:1

 

See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!

 

As a child of God we are given all the rights and privileges of a child of the King…nothing shall be impossible

 

 

Here is the real truth….many become too easily satisfied with crumbs from the table. We become satisfied believing whatever condition we find ourselves is the best we can be.

 

If we take the leap of faith to daily surrender to the Lord allowing him more and more control ..in essence we become who were were meant to be and live a life of abundance in the Kingdom

 

Another very powerful thing happens unity…one heart, we have his heart and each others

 

Psalm 133:1, 3b

 

Behold, how good and how pleasant it is

For brethren to dwell together in unity!

….For there the Lord commanded the blessing

 

Real Truth/Hard Truth Part 1

Real Truth/Hard Truth – a non-politically corrected series but a one that will bring hope, life and real love to people everywhere

 

She is just so judgey….

 

The church is so judgey….

 

It is my choice, people need to stay out of my face

 

Why don’t they stay out of my bedroom, choices, or whatever after all isn’t it my truth

 

If you respond to that with, there is a universal truth…some you will get the statement back…”there is no universal truth” the irony about that is the statement “There is no universal truth” it in itself is making a universal truth!

 

 

Think about that for a moment

 

Our cultural mores, standards are always shifting. Some things must shift because life really does change and as truth is applied some things that we held as cultural strongholds are proven to be false

 

Things like slavery, segregation, woman’s rights these three glaring examples are truths the Bible upheld that the culture was backward on long before any abolitionist the Bible said we are all equal in the sight of God and there is no differentiation between people of differing races.

 

Women like Deborah, Esther, In the new testament Lydia, Nympha Priscilla, were teachers and leaders in the church, the four daughters of Philip who were prophets, Euodia, Syntyche, Phoebe all were evangelist who worked alongside of Paul and there were others. This was all done in a culture were women were 2ndclass citizens their witness in a court of law was worth less than ½ of a man’s witness

 

Rather than the Bible being judgey or archaic, it has been ahead of the culture in these areas of truth and in most cases, it is Bible-believing Christians who brought this truth first to our culture

 

Real Truth does not change, however often it needs to be discovered

 

What is the truth about judging people?

 

On one hand, we are a judgment-free zone and we will always be but real love and real truth require judgment…let me show you what I mean

 

Matthew 7:1-5

Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. 3 And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? 5 Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

 

 

This is the scripture most people think about when they talk about as Christians we should not judge….let’s take a closer look today

 

I have spoken about God’s love for us and I hope by now we all are getting it

 

I have spoken about knowing God’s heartbeat for us and my hope is that as you continue to think about that, even go back and re-listen to the sermons to really get it into your spirit that you become secure in the knowledge of God’s view of you and his love for you

 

These are the things that if we grasp them…makes us secure enough, confident enough in who we are and what we believe that we can speak truth to others that brings them to freedom

 

If someone is doing something that is against God’s principles God can’t bless them

 

1 Peter 5:5,6

Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another and be clothed with humility, for

“God resists the proud,

But gives grace to the humble.”

6 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time,

 

God can’t bless us when we do things that violate His plan purpose and general principles for the way He has created us.

 

Everyone wants blessed…right?

 

Do you want to always live in God’s blessings?

 

I thought so…what about everyone that you know? Think about some of the struggles your friends and family are having…if you had the answer to helping them overcome and end their suffering would you share it with them?

 

Let’s make it more severe…if you understand the Father’s heart and you know that certain attitudes, certain actions, certain sins were going to cause your friends or family to spend eternity feeling hopeless, abandoned, utterly alone, suffering, living in fear, never feeling love, joy, peace, hope again?

 

Is it judging if someone keeps getting tickets or wrecking their cars for you to tell them to slow down, drive more carefully or to encourage them to take driving lessons..

 

The problem is much of the church has violated what Peter’s word was we have not shown love in bringing truth to people so we come across as speaking judgment

 

How does that apply to this scripture? I’m glad you asked

 

Let’s really look at what Jesus is saying

 

Matthew 7:1-5

Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. 3 And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’, and look, a plank is in your own eye? 5 Hypocrite! First, remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

 

Jesus is saying and let’s pay attention to this….stop take a look at your own life first…it is easy for anyone to see a problem in someone else’s life but before we do that Jesus is saying to allow the Lord to teach you compassion, humility, and remind you of His heart and love for you

 

Paul challenges us always with this challenge

 

2 Corinthians 13:5

Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified. 6 But I trust that you will know that we are not disqualified.

 

Once we have done this once we have been able to make sure our hearts are pure, once we know the Father’s heartbeat and the have His love….and we have developed the “love your neighbor as yourself” attitude then listen what Jesus says…

 

Matthew 7:5

“…First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”

 

You see it is not being judgey if you know someone is doing something that is harming them or going to harm them physically, mentally, emotionally, or spiritually

 

If you love your neighbor as yourself, out of a genuine heart of love, grace and compassion you will speak the truth to help bring them to freedom.

 

It is not loving to say…I don’t want to hurt their feelings, or who am I to judge whether what they are doing is wrong for them?  Yes some things are gray areas but when we either see it in God’s word that it is going to bring some kind of harm to them or at worse they will spend eternity in hell if they keep doing what they are doing….is that really loving to not be judgey, to not speak the truth to someone

 

How much do you have to hate someone to know what they are doing is causing them or going to cause them great if not irreparable harm perhaps even eternal harm and not talk with them about it?

 

But who is to say what is right and wrong….God….if we are talking about eternity

 

The devil and our culture have played a great mind game

 

The devil loves no one he just hates the things that God loves and his job is to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10)….if he can convince us that silence is loving and a person either comes to some kind of harm and curses God or dies without relationship with Jesus, then He feels he has won because he has destroyed someone God loves

 

That is what we must remember, God loves everyone what does he want for them

 

– plans for good and for a future and hope

– prosper and be in health even as their soul prospers

– have life and have it abundantly

– we know love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, meekness, kindness, faithfulness, and self-control

– we would overcome

– be more than conquerors

 

 

These things and many more are what God has planned for us but we need people around us who are willing to speak truth into our lives to help us grow and protect us from; bad decisions, the enemy’s traps, and ourselves

 

We must love enough to examine our hearts daily and then be willing to speak into the lives of others to so they might not fall as well…if that is being judgey and be judgey but to me that is what I call love

 

Ezekiel 33 

 

There is no real altar call today along this line unless you are willing to say, “God I need to repent of not really loving enough…allowing my political correct line of thinking allows harm to come to others.

 

OR

 

God, help me to see from this point of view, so I will not be afraid or insecure to speak the truth but to be able to speak the truth based on a genuine love for people and seeing them through Jesus’ eyes

 

 

Knowing God’s heartbeat for you Part 6

Knowing the heartbeat of God for you Part 6

 

Do you know that God has seen you your entire life?

 

Jeremiah 1:4,5

The Lord gave me this message: 5 “I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.”

 

You had heard me share many times from one of my favorite scripture passages Psalm 139:1-18that God knows the number of hairs on our heads, he sees and hears everything we do and say, he knows that day he choose us to be born and the day he has chosen for us to go be with Him. He is always thinking about us…Reread it if you have forgotten…

 

Today I want us to look at a passage of scripture that is not so common but is important for us to understand God’s heartbeat for us.

 

John 1:43-50

The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Come, follow me.” 44 Philip was from Bethsaida, Andrew and Peter’s hometown. 45 Philip went to look for Nathanael and told him, “We have found the very person Moses and the prophets wrote about! His name is Jesus, the son of Joseph from Nazareth.”46 “Nazareth!” exclaimed Nathanael. “Can anything good come from Nazareth?“Come and see for yourself,” Philip replied. 47 As they approached, Jesus said, “Now here is a genuine son of Israel—a man of complete integrity.” 48 “How do you know about me?” Nathanael asked. Jesus replied, “I could see you under the fig tree before Philip found you.” 49 Then Nathanael exclaimed, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God—the King of Israel!” 50 Jesus asked him, “Do you believe this just because I told you I had seen you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than this.”

 

Philip and Nathanael were both friends of Peter and Andrew.  All four men were seekers of the truth…they either learned of Daniel’s prophecy of 70 weeks from their teachings in the synagogue or John the Baptist, but all were expecting the Messiah….Nathanael was meditating under a fig tree something that deep thinkers were known to do in Israel at this time.

 

He probably saw his Dad doing this, his uncles, the other men in the village it was something that was a tradition, a common element of life growing up

 

I heard a country singer, I don’t know the singer nor the song but he was singing about being a little by and remembering growing up on Grandma’s front porch. It was a tradition for him, a common element of his life growing up

 

What are some of your memories that are etched into your mind either good or bad growing up?

 

As I was thinking about the country western singers story I was thinking how different life is for people…one of the reasons for the intense differences in this nation is our experiences is or as psychologist put it our frame of reference growing up

 

A child raised in the suburbs even in a wealthy family but whose parents are never home will have one frame of reference one outlook on life that will be different from sitting on Grandma’s porch

 

A child raised in the inner-city without a Dad and violence all around will have a different frame of reference than either of these two.

 

A child raised in a home where they are brought to church and the parents are holy and religious there but at home there is swearing, negativity, criticism, judgmentalism and a lack of godly living. This will give a child another frame of reference, this is the main reason children don’t walk with Christ after high school.

 

A child raised in a Christian home where the parents aren’t perfect but are trying to do their best. The child sees Christ at the center of every decision and the way they are treated by their parents or parent. They have a different frame of reference than all the others

 

These things are at the root of our cultures arrogance, fear, anger, need for entitlement.

 

Nathanael being raised in his environment set him up to be a man of pure heart, seeking the Christ, thinking about scripture always as Jesus reference a verse or two later about angels ascending and descending into heaven, these must have been Nathanael’s thoughts

Jesus saw his integrity and called him to follow!

 

In our culture, it is quite easy to use our parents, our environment, the lack of love, the way we were raised to be a crutch for our present failure, fears, bad attitudes, anxiety, limitations and I get all of that

 

I understand how being raised in a neglected environment, how feeling like you are always at the short end of the stick, how you were not loved as you believe you should how others were privileged in the way they were raised and you were not would be an easy thing to blame for your present condition.

 

I also know the enemy would like you to live there and repeat the same disastrous patterns and continue the limitations to the next generation and the next!

 

Jesus saw exactly where Nathanael was…we also read today that God knew Jeremiah while he was being formed in his mother’s womb!

 

Do you think God knows the good, the bad and the ugly about your childhood?

 

Jesus said this in John 10:14

“I am the good shepherd; I know my own sheep, and they know me,”

 

He knows his own this phrase stress his intimacy in knowing us as is different from those who have rejected him and that he in his knowledge of us has complete oversight over our lives from beginning to end

 

Paul said this in 1 Corinthians 8:3

“But if anyone loves God, this one is known by Him.”

 

And 1 Peter 1:1,2

Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To the pilgrims of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ:

 

Both of these verses tell us that God saw us, as he saw Nathanael, He saw all of our lives all we have gone through.

 

Some in this room were raised in horrible conditions, abuse, neglect, molestation, rejection and patterns of destruction…yes I know you don’t think so but we have those in the church who look and act perfect because God has now made them this way because they choose to trust God over their pain and put Him first in all things.

 

Romans 8:28

“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”

 

What does this mean for us today?

 

I want you to think about how things in your life have molded you and shaped you for both good and evil.

 

How growing up caused you to learn to dislike people because of the color of their skin, their accent, their financial position, their level of education or any number of things

 

I want you to think about how events in your life have caused you to fear heights, certain types of people, dogs, rejection, risks.

 

How certain events in your life have caused you to now feel insecure, fearful, or angry. How you want to judge and reject people before they can do the same to you.

 

How certain events in your life have caused you to distrust people and or God. How you feel as if God has let you down. How tragedies have caused you to be stuck at that moment and everything in your life revolves around that loss, wound, hurt, rejection, or failure.

 

God’s heartbeat for you today is that you know that He knows! Remember Psalm 139 1-18? He knows it all, he did not cause it to happen but he knows.

 

We all have a choice to make, we can continue to allow the tragedy or tragic events of our lives continue to control us or we can realize God knows!

 

Does that make God out to be some kind of mean unloving Ogre?

 

No, somewhere along the line, He was able to get through to you to bring you the greatest message of all, the message of hope, joy, love and freedom and you accepted it….

 

As we grow in Christ there is a process of maturity that is called sanctification and in this we are taught to…

 

2 Corinthians 10:5

 

“casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,”

 

This includes the thoughts of our past!

 

We are not to walk blindly as if nothing has happened but even before you knew the Lord He knew you and saw what was going on…the choice is like Nathanael

 

Nathanael’s choice was to be arrogant allow his past, his customs, his attitude to control him and he could have gotten stuck on “can anything good come from Nazareth?” but instead he chose to not allow his past, his attitude to dictate his future

 

Nathanael went on to impact India and Armenia for the Gospel. Millions have been saved because of him because he gave his past to God and allowed him to use it.

 

Yes, some of your pasts are bad at the least and horribly tragic at the worst but given to God today, he will turn it around to bring life to others

 

You need to evaluate and ask the Lord if your past is limiting you as a man or woman of God, a parent, a friend and limiting the fulfillment of your destiny

 

Bring those thoughts from your past into captivity bring them to Christ…allow him to free you from the limitations…His heartbeat for you today is that your frame of reference does not limit you but you use it to bring life and hope to others…but you have to come to freedom before you can use your frame of reference to bring freedom to others

 

Come today…give your past to the Lord to stop it from limiting you and use it to bring others to freedom

 

 

Knowing the heartbeat of God for you Part 5

Knowing the heartbeat of God for you….Part 5

 

Week number one we talked about the way God sees you versus the way we see ourselves God’s heartbeat for the way He sees us

 

The labels we wear versus what God calls us knowing His heartbeat for the labels He gives us

 

A few weeks ago that we would understand God is always with us that we can have his heartbeat and know when we are in difficult places He will get us through them and we don’t need to fear

Last time I shared I talked about how it is God’s heartbeat to bless His children

 

His heartbeat is that we truly know Him

 

John 11:1-7

 

Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 It was that Mary who anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick. 3 Therefore the sisters sent to Him, saying, “Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick.” 4 When Jesus heard that, He said, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” 5 Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was. 7 Then after this He said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.”

 

When we know the Father’s heartbeat we learn to trust Him despite any circumstance….notice how odd John 11:5,6sounds to us

 

“Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was.”

 

Jesus loved Lazarus, Martha and Mary but he purposely allowed him to die because He loved them and John 11:4tells us why

 

“This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

 

If we see things from God’s perspective, knowing His heartbeat, more importantly, trusting His heartbeat

Romans 8:28

“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”

 

It is not that the “things” are good. They could be disastrous but God is even able to make the disastrous “things” work for our good. He will turn it around

 

We must believe in who He is and learn to trust him

 

Solomon said it this way

 

Proverbs 3:5,6

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.

 

Jesus had no plans to fail Martha, Mary and Lazarus but he had a bigger plan that anyone could imagine. He was going to leave a miracle and a precursor to His own resurrection for everyone to see

 

How often do things happen in our lives, even things that seem disastrous?

 

What is our first response? Do we run to the Lord saying we trust in Him and even though we don’t understand we choose to stand and trust him or do we

 

– complain about what is happening to us

– look for someone to blame for what is happening to us

– Get angry at God for something bad happening to us

 

Martha and Mary kind of did the latter

 

John 11:17-28

 

So when Jesus came, He found that he had already been in the tomb four days. 18 Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles away. 19 And many of the Jews had joined the women around Martha and Mary, to comfort them concerning their brother.

20 Then Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was coming, went and met Him, but Mary was sitting in the house. 21 Now Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 But even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You.”

23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”

24 Martha said to Him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.”

25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. 26 And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?”

27 She said to Him, “Yes, Lord, I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.”

28 And when she had said these things, she went her way and secretly called Mary her sister, saying, “The Teacher has come and is calling for you.”

 

Martha is just like you and me…..”Jesus, I know you can handle certain things, I have faith for those things”  she complained to Jesus about not solving her problem her way!

 

She has a battle with belief and unbelief…”I know whatever you ask God he will make it happen”

 

Jesus “OK I’ll bring your brother back from the dead”… Martha “I know on the final judgment day we all will rise”…. Jesus “Martha let me help you here, I am life”

 

Jesus is saying, Martha, this is bigger than bringing your brother back to life I am going to do this but there is so much fear, anxiety worry about death, it breaks my heart…people don’t really believe that this life is just temporary and that eternity is forever

 

I want everyone to understand though everyone will die in this world, that is not the end. There is a more marvelous place and this fear and brokenness that is all around is breaking my heart

 

Jesus always has a better plan than what we see immediately…it is His heartbeat that we would trust him regardless of the dire need, circumstances, experience, battle, struggle, or fear we may be facing

 

Martha and Mary were upset about their brother’s death they were disappointed Jesus wasn’t there; he didn’t care enough to show up before Lazarus died…do you feel that way about God sometimes? You needed him now…why did he let you down?

 

 

 

Ephesians 3:20

 

“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,”

 

Here is Mary’s response

 

John 11: 29-32

 

As soon as she heard that, she arose quickly and came to Him. 30 Now Jesus had not yet come into the town, but was in the place where Martha met Him. 31 Then the Jews who were with her in the house, and comforting her, when they saw that Mary rose up quickly and went out, followed her, saying, “She is going to the tomb to weep there.”

32 Then, when Mary came where Jesus was, and saw Him, she fell down at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.”

 

Mary the same as Martha….Jesus I had a plan, an idea and why didn’t you do it my way?”

 

Once again when we have the Father’s heartbeat we live in so much peace because we are able to look beyond the circumstances to know that God has something far betterthan we could hope or imagine

 

 

33 Therefore, when Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her weeping, He groaned in the spirit and was troubled. 34 And He said, “Where have you laid him?”

They said to Him, “Lord, come and see.”

35 Jesus wept. 36 Then the Jews said, “See how He loved him!”

37 And some of them said, “Could not this Man, who opened the eyes of the blind, also have kept this man from dying?”

38 Then Jesus, again groaning in Himself, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. 39 Jesus said, “Take away the stone.”

Martha, the sister of him who was dead, said to Him, “Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead four days.”

 

I love this part of the story I believe three things were going on here in Jesus heart

 

  • His heart was broken for Mary and Martha, he was their friend, he loved them and He was feeling their pain…when you go through something the one who loves you the most feels your pain as well
  • His heart was broken for the human conditionthat his friend Lazarus had just died…Jesus is our high priest who understands all that we go through…He understands how we feel when we lose a loved one, the sorrow and mourning we face
  • His heart was broken for the fear and misunderstanding humanity has about eternal life.

 

I need us to take note here that sometimes we can believe what we need from God is truly impossible…Martha was saying he is not just dead Jesus he is rotting

 

When we know the Father’s heartbeat we never give up hope we know he can

 

Move the mountains

Heal anything

Turn the water into wine

Violate any physical law

Feed 30K with a few loaves and fish

Set anyone free

 

What will he do for you?

 

John 11:40-44

Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?” 41 Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead man was lying. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. 42 And I know that You always hear Me, but because of the people who are standing by I said this, that they may believe that You sent Me.” 43 Now when He had said these things, He cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth!” 44 And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with graveclothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Loose him, and let him go.”

 

When you know the Father’s heartbeat it is easy to come into agreement with his purpose and his plan Jesus asks “Can you believe with me that God has a bigger plan here?”

 

Jesus proclaimed the greater miracle so all the world would know…here is where many get messed up

 

– We give God our agenda then when He doesn’t fulfill our agenda we get frustrated

– We give God our plan and when it doesn’t happen the way we want we give up and miss out on what God really wants to do

– we give God our concerns our worries and when He doesn’t respond to them our way, we abandon him

 

Martha and Mary felt this way, obviously, the townsfolk of Bethany felt that way based on what they said in verse 37

 

We all battle seasons of doubt but I have found my doubts leading me to ask honest questions, that in turn, lead me to Jesus

 

Never fear to ask the Lord hard questions or the leadership he has in your life. As long as they are honest and you are ready for an honest answer you will be OK

 

God wants us to have his heartbeat to trust him even when things don’t seem to be going the way we want or expected

 

He always has a better plan it just may take a little longer or a different path than we expect.

 

Can you see some areas in your life you feel like God let you down? Some areas of hurt where you didn’t understand?

 

God has a better plan…Can you lay those plans at his feet today and allow Him to show you the better plan?

 

When you know someone, really know them it is easy to know what their heartbeat is….God wants us to be at peace, to not worry or be afraid, he wants us to trust that God always has a better plan. The key is knowing His heartbeat for you. You are really loved by Him, you see yourself through His eyes, wear only the label He has placed on you, know that he is always with you, always wants the best for you…wants to bless you always

 

That takes trust! Will you trust him today with your future? Will you trust Him with your past? Your past has shaped who you are today but it doesn’t need to control your future God has a better plan

 

 

 

 

 

 

Elementary

Hebrews 6 :1-3

“Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, instructions
about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. And God permitting, we will do so.”

To start off – the point to these verses is not so much the 6 “elementary teachings that we should have already had, but that they are foundational and they are elementary!!

How many of you after being taught something, would think – “I wish I had been taught that when I was younger!”

I know I have. Since I have been mentoring, I have noticed that there has been some lack off elementary teaching in men’s lives. It is what I have come to call cracks in the foundation. Either
some of these have been learned over the years and some missing or none have been learned.

This is not my idea! This is in the Word of God stating that these 6 principles we should have had been taught from the beginning.

Foundation – themelios comes from another greek word tithemi which means – “to place purposely, with care and precision!!!!!!

1 Cor 12:18

“But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased.”

This talks about us being set in the body of Jesus!!! A foundation is layed the same way.

We are about building God’s house!!!

Proverbs 24:3,4 says

“By wisdom a house is built, through understanding it is established, through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures.”

Knowledge – gaining of facts
Wisdom – application of the facts
Understanding – when to apply the facts

Example:

  1. Hammer, Nails, Wood, level
  2. Philippians 4:19 – “And my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

In chapter 6 verse 1 the very first word is “Therefore” a very important word because it is a pivotal word that means that what is about to be said, is connected to what has been already said,
so let’s go back and see what was previously said!

Hebrews 5:11-14

“We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.”

If you are feeling like you are being yelled at, then maybe you are!!!!!!
Maybe it’s time to grow up!!! Ouch!!!!
Maybe God is calling you out of the boat and do some walking on the water!!
I don’t think God is yelling at anybody but He does want us to grow up!!!!
As far as the teacher side of this verse, you may say “I’m not a teacher” I beg to differ with you!!!!

Mentoring program needs YOU!!!!!
Everybody can mentor just like everybody can teach!
Problem with the mentoring program is that there isn’t enough people to mentor.
But I don’t know anything about mentoring!

How many of you knew how to be a good husband or wife or parent before you made that commitment?

In verse 11 it says that we are slow or in some versions dull in learning. In the greek these are defined as slothful and lazy, how does that happen?
Well I think it comes down to choice. If you feed on milk long enough, your system can’t handle stronger or meatier food, there is no challenge to your system.
The verses also say that the mature are constantly training themselves, slow, dull lazy people don’t do that.

The word leave in 6:1 does not mean separate yourself from it permanently but in the greek, the picture that is being painted here is one of a classroom where the teacher has taught the student,
then tested them and has received a passing grade, that student is free to move on. So the mature person is in constant motion of some kind all the time.

1Corinthians 13:8-13 says

“Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease, where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophecy in part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

This is what is known as the Love Chapter!
I have always been taught that this is in the far future when we see Jesus in person, not on this earth, and I still believe this.
But I also believe that these verses also speak to us here and now.

Just like John 17:3 says “Now this is eternal life; that they may know you the only true God and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent”

The “then I shall know fully” is the potential as a mature person.

Ephesians 4:11-16

“It was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be
evangelists and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service so
that the whole body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the
knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness
of Christ.”

Knowing the Heartbeat of God for you…Part 4

Mark 10:13-16

 

One day some parents brought their children to Jesus so he could touch and bless them. But the disciples scolded the parents for bothering him. 14 When Jesus saw what was happening, he was angry with his disciples. He said to them, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. 15 I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.” 16 Then he took the children in his arms and placed his hands on their heads and blessed them.

 

I wanted to take a point from the character of Jesus that I know many struggle regarding. My hope is that over this past weeks as a church we have been coming to an understanding of who Jesus really is and the way the Father really loves us as we have seen it in Jesus.

 

It is funny and not funny all at the same time the comments I hear from people that I hope after today…I will never again hear from people in our church.

 

All of us are growing and in the process of growing we fail, we make mistakes, we sin…when that happens here are some of the things I hear

 

“Well God’s going to get me for that one”

 

“I’m going to be punished for that”

 

“Well at least I’ll be with all my friends in hell for that one”

 

“I hope God didn’t see that I might not wake up tomorrow”

 

I just heard on Wednesday in reference to all of the fires, floods, volcano eruptions….”Somebody really ticked God off!”

 

There are certain denominations that have thrived for years on a God that seemingly can’t wait to punish people for their sins.

 

I really don’t want to see a show of hands but I want you to think if this the way you have viewed God?

My hope is if it was that you are changing that view based on this scripture alone

 

Jeremiah 31:3 (the Message)

 

“I’ve never quit loving you and never will. Expect love, love, and more love!”

 

Is this the same God that you were thinking of just a few moments ago?

 

Children raised in innocence will tend to love and want to be loved in these verses what do we see

 

Mark 10:13

One day some parents brought their children to Jesus so he could touch and bless them. But the disciples scolded the parents for bothering him.

 

First people are so drawn to the love coming from Jesus they were pushing their most precious gift toward him.

 

I know some would want to just push their kids off of someone some days but if Jesus were the vengeful, wrathful, angry God everyone talks about

 

It is another topic for another time but the idea of the vengeful wrath-filled God comes from people who have not read the Bible. Did God do things like that and will he do it again? Yes, but it was never because mercy, love, grace, calls to repent were not given to ad nauseam. God is first and foremost…LOVE.

 

He loves, if possible, to a fault!

 

2 Peter 3:9

The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.

 

So the reports of His wrath, anger, hatred are the very first “fake news”

 

Here is the reality of what we see, remember one of the accomplishments of Jesus was to “show us the Father!”

We see one of the very few times where Jesus actually got angry and the only time where the Greek meaning of an intense anger is directed toward the disciples

 

Mark 10:14

When Jesus saw what was happening, he was angry with his disciples. He said to them, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children.

 

Jesus is saying I value these children. The disciples saw the children as an intrusion into the importance of Jesus’ ministry as men were valued first, women a distant second and children and even further distance third and should be neither seen or heard unless called for.

 

Jesus is once again showing us the Father’s heart and what it should be. You Mom’s know how your heartbeats for your children and if someone hurts your children it hurts you worse than if they had hurt you.

 

Jesus is saying I find those which society does not value as valuable. Everyone created in God’s image is important.

 

Please as a side note parents Jesus is talking to us today to say “let the children come to Him” don’t allow sports, dance, school, even your hurts, fears, rejections of wounds stop you from bringing your children always to church, to learn about him…make it a priority

 

Paul tells us the Kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit…children raised in a loving environment example this..peace/joy knowing their parent(s) have everything under control, blind loving trust. They are covered in God’s righteous until they must make that choice for themselves

 

Then we see this God that people think is so full of wrath, anger, and vengeance does something very loving

 

Mark 10:16

16 Then he took the children in his arms and placed his hands on their heads and blessed them.

 

Once again, Philip, one of the disciples, came to Jesus and said show us, God, show us what He is like, show us who He is

 

John 14:9a

Jesus replied, “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and yet you still don’t know who I am? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father!

 

God’s heartbeat is that this is the way you see him.

 

Someone who…

 

– loves you

– will wrap His arms around you and

– wants to bless you, always.

 

He will come alongside of you when you are afraid, overwhelmed, feel as if no one cares. Someone who will be there when all the world is collapsing around you.

 

At the same time as a loving Father…

 

– will challenge you to grow

– may put you in dangerous positions (last week)

– but always be with you, so you can find out really who you are

 

This is who God is and His real heartbeat for you!

 

Here are a couple more verses you may have never read before

 

Psalm 103:13-17a

The Lord is like a father to his children,

tender and compassionate to those who fear him.

14 For he knows how weak we are;

he remembers we are only dust.

15 Our days on earth are like grass;

like wildflowers, we bloom and die.

16 The wind blows, and we are gone—

as though we had never been here.

17 But the love of the Lord remains forever

with those who fear him.

His salvation extends to the children’s children….

 

God knows exactly what we are, what are limitations are, what are gifts are and He will love us in the way we need to touch the world so that all generations will see Jesus in our lives

 

Psalm 68:5,6a

Father to the fatherless, defender of widows—

this is God, whose dwelling is holy.

6 God places the lonely in families;

he sets the prisoners free and gives them joy….

 

This is a far cry from the wrathful, vengeful God who only wants to punish people when His word says his heart breaks for those without Fathers and if allowed, He will be a father to the fatherless, he wants no one to feel alone but wants them loved always and rather then sending people into punishment wants to bring them out of their self-imposed punishment.

 

Let the little children, let the broken, let the widows, let the hurting, let the mature all come to Jesus so that He can bless

 

What about you today, do you need blessed? Come an just simply ask the ministry team to bless you!