Come To Me

"Come to Me"- Guest Speaker Pastor Reggie Roberson, October 6, 2013

[powerpress] (Pastor Roberson gave an introduction to knowing and serving with Pastor Rollan and B Fisher.)

Like Rollan and B, I've had the privilege to travel around the world and see various church movements.  I believe there is a unique destiny on this church.  If you pay careful attention to and embrace what I am about to tell you, there will be steady growth in your own life and in the lives of those around you.

As I was praying for you, God reminded me about the fire that burned down Chicago.  He told me that the fire is still present and continues to burn homes, individuals, and businesses- morally, socially, and spiritually.  While the Bible speaks of a life giving fire that God gives us, in Jude it talks about this destructive fire, saying:

save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh. (Jude 1:23 ESV)

This fire that I am talking about is a mixture of dark forces of the generational type; dark ideas about God, people, and life; self-centered pursuits and demonic beings that are burning up lives.  What are we to do in order to be free from this fire burning our lives up or down? How do we rise above the resistance morally, socially, and spiritually in this city?

Three Simple Words: "Come to Me"

We understand "Come."  That usually requires a reorientation or rerouting of our direction and course. "To" is directive and definitive. But who is the "Me?"  This is most important.  "Me" is not impersonal like success or money, prestige, or empty ideologies which will stab you in the back.  "Me" is not joy or peace either; those are simply by products of "Me."  "Me" is Jesus Christ who is infinitely attentive, full of wisdom, and possesses tangible power, joy, and peace.  "Me" is Jesus is also reflected in His body of believers.

The main thought is that, if you are going to overcome the moral, social, and spiritual resistance that will try to burn up your life, you must reorient or reroute your entire life toward Jesus and His body of believers.

There are three Scriptures I want us to pay careful attention to that express this thought of coming to Jesus. Before I do that, let me give you the back story of how I received them.

I was supposed to be here with you on March 15th-18th; however, I was hit with sickness for almost two weeks straight. I hardly slept at night (not just me, but all of my family members).  No matter how bad I felt, I wanted to make this trip. So I started praying for a message to share with you all, and I heard nothing from God. (I regularly and quickly hear from God.) As I sat in pain, I closed my eyes and heard God say, "Come to Me." I realized that He was talking to me about current situations. It was more than a message.  From that point on, He corrected me for going, going, going and not coming to Him.  God wants us to go, as said many times in Scripture, but that is, after we have come to Him.  Then He said that this is the issue with those in Chicago;  there is a tendency to be going, going, going and not coming to "Me."

I have three passages that God spoke to me for you. I am going to relate all of these passages to putting on clothes to help us understand them better. In Colossians 3:9-10, the Bible uses clothes as a metaphor to putting on either your old or new life or way.  As we come to Christ, He dresses us with the clothes or life we were designed to live.

1. Matthew 11:28-30 NIV

Jesus said “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

These people start off with clothes that are too awkward for him or her.

This is a person weary and burdened, because they have taken on a situation, a vocation, an ideology, a philosophy, or a lifestyle that they were not designed by God to bear. Jesus is saying, "When you come to Me, I'll reveal what you were designed to be and guide you through the whole process. You'll find rest for your soul... not always immediately from your circumstances." Rest is an inner condition, an attitude, and a state of being at peace.  Jesus yokes you or clothes you with easy and light, not sleasy and tight, by giving you rest.  (Pastor Roberson gave an example of this from UNC.)

2. John 5:39, 40 NIV

Jesus said "You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life."

The people in this Scripture can be likened to those that have clothes that make you appear to own something you really don't.

This person is exposed to the right environment (i.e. church body), but thinks that becoming a better person or having more Bible knowledge is the goal. They are not willing to build lasting supportive and transparent relationships.  Though they appear on the surface to be morally upright, they really lack God's life in them and are really after self-glorification, which makes you empty on the inside. Jesus desires to clothe us with strength and enjoyment that comes from His presence.

3. Luke 15:11-24 NIV

Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them. “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating but no one gave him anything. “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ So he got up and (CAME) went to his father. “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.

These clothes are attracting the wrong people and situations.

This person knows that their sin has separated them from God. They've taken all their God-given gifts and used them for their own pleasure and gratification.  In the process, their souls have been shaken in a cycle of pride and insecurity.  This person makes a decision to humble his or her self and discovers that he or she needs to reorient and reroute his life to Jesus and His body of believers.  It is there that he finds the right clothes or life.  Jesus gives His power, provision, and protection to those who come to Him.

How do we do we come to Jesus practically? What does that look like?

1.    Understand what Jesus offers. (The Gospel is the Good News of new clothes- a new and true life.) 2.    Repent and believe. (Take off your old clothes and put on the clothes God has given you - from going everywhere else and never coming to Him.) 3.    Pray. (Find prayer partners and people you can share anything with. Be transparent and also take time to listen to God.) 4.    Prioritize. (Devote yourself to the following: Prayer & Bible reading and meditation; Spending time with other believers listening to what God speaks through them; With those that don't know Christ, live a life of integrity and compassion, always slowing down and looking to help others.)

If you are going to overcome the moral, social, and spiritual resistance that will try to burn up your life, you must reorient or reroute your entire life towards Jesus and His body of believers.

Second City Church- Guest Speakers Missions & More Series: Reggie Roberson, October 6, 2013

Jesus and a Servant's Heart

The Real World: Corinth - Jesus and a Servant's Heart

[powerpress]

The Transforming Truth: To see Jesus move powerfully in a church and for a city to be transformed, it takes a servant's heart in the people who have been entrusted with His gospel.

During his second missionary journey between 52 and 53 AD, the apostle Paul left Athens to establish a new congregation of Christians in the city of Corinth.  He spent eighteen months in that region and, at the time of the writing of I Corinthians (about three years after Paul's departure),  scholars estimate that the church was between 50 and 60 people.  All churches that you see today were at one time a church plant.  These were started by a leader with a group of people whom Jesus appointed to worship Him and be ever increasing influencers in the communities in which He placed them.  Paul takes time to describe his heart as a model for those who would shape these cities to become all that Christ created them to be.  As we study this section of Paul's letter, we can see the elitism and entitlement that we need to avoid, and the example which we need to follow to reach Chicago and the nations with the good news of Jesus.

Elitism

This, then, is how you ought to regard us: as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed. (1 Corinthians 4:1 NIV)

Through the Holy Spirit, Paul carefully chooses his words to instruct the Corinthians about Jesus, Paul's role, and our place in God's church.  The first thing that we are to recognize in this passage is that we are called to be not only God's children, but also His servants.  Jesus came to the world to proclaim the message of salvation through His perfect life, miracles, death on the cross for our sins, and His resurrection from the dead.  It is the only way to reconciliation with the Creator God whom the whole world will one day stand before in judgment.  Any child that does not serve in the family to advance this cause has a misunderstanding of who Jesus is and what He has come to accomplish.  An immature child thinks that the world revolves around them and that they are merely to be recipients, rather than participants; takers, rather than givers in the house in which they live.  Jesus said otherwise:

The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” He replied, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you. “Suppose one of you has a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Will he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, ‘Come along now and sit down to eat’? Won’t he rather say, ‘Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink’? Will he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’ ” (Luke 17:5-10 NIV)

A sure way to increase your faith in Christ is through service in His gospel cause.  There is no substitute for this.  Part of the barrenness that people feel in their walk with Christ is they find no outlet to give from what they have received.  They become like a stagnant pond where the waters never flow.  You are fed spiritually when you are involved, like Jesus, in finishing God's work:

Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.” But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.” Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?” “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.” (John 4:31-38 NIV)

While learning this, the disciples thought that because they had a particular proximity to Jesus, because they had received privileged instruction and training, that they would eventually graduate to a place of special privileges as Jesus' elite team.  To the contrary, Jesus said that his intimate instruction and investment in their lives was preparation for greater service.  The word (Greek: Hyperetes) literally meant a subordinate, an attendant, or an assistant in general.  This means you are literally supposed to be waiting on Christ, as a server in a restaurant, to fulfill whatever He desires in your environment and in the lives of others.

Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. (1 Corinthians 4:2 NIV)

This is the idea of the stewardship.  As with the apostle Paul, God has entrusted you with the knowledge of salvation through Jesus Christ.  Your acts of charity and love in His name can literally help lead people to reconciliation with God as you hold out the truth of the gospel to those who surround you in the city.

In the following quote, you have this designation of characters:

The speaker: Screwtape, a devil The recipient: Wormwood, another devil The One Wormwood calls "Our Father": Satan The Enemy: God The patient: A human being Virtue: Godly qualities Desirable qualities: Fruit of the sinful nature

"Do what you will, there is going to be some benevolence, as well as some malice, in your patient's soul.  The great thing is to direct the malice to his immediate neighbours whom he meets every day and to thrust his benevolence out to the remote circumference, to people he does not know.  The malice thus becomes wholly real and the benevolence largely imaginary....Think of your man as a series of concentric circles, his will being the innermost, his intellect coming next, and finally his fantasy.  You can hardly hope, at once, to exclude from all the circles everything that smells of the Enemy; but you must keep on shoving all the virtues outward till they are finally located in the circle of fantasy, and all the desirable qualities inward into the Will.  It is only in so far as they reach the Will and are there embodied in habits that the virtues are really fatal to us....All sorts of virtues painted in the fantasy or approved by the intellect or even, in some measure, loved and admired will not keep a man from Our Father's house; indeed they may make him more amusing when he gets there." -C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters (Letter 6)

One can mistakenly hyperspiritualize the idea of serving Jesus.  You can make it to seem that God has to appear in glory each time He wants you to do something practical and of service to him.  Instead, you ought to see the need in the church or the environment in which He has placed you, and find a way to help fill it.

“Some people are so heavenly minded that they are no earthly good.” - Oliver Wendell Holmes

Entitlement

Our culture is dominated by a sense of entitlement.  People feel that because they are living and breathing, they should have all of their desires, whims, and needs met while putting forth minimal efforts to obtain them.  Though Jesus' message is one of grace, giving us what we do not deserve, His mission is one of stewardship in which He entrusts people, lives, and communities to us.  In this manner, we must be shown to be faithful.

In the same way, deacons are to be worthy of respect, sincere, not indulging in much wine, and not pursuing dishonest gain. They must keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience. They must first be tested; and then if there is nothing against them, let them serve as deacons. (1 Timothy 3:8-10 NIV)

The more mature you are in God, the more that you have a responsibility to serve, because you realize that it is not solely about your well-being, but the well-being of the family.  You get to, more so, have the attitude of a slave to those that you come to serve and to whom you are to reflect Christ.  A servant in the Corinthian culture had none of the rights that we enjoy today.  A servant was not honored or lauded.  A servant did many things in secret for the benefit of the master that never received attention or praise.  As servants of Christ, we entrust ourselves to our Heavenly Father who sees and will judge everything.  Having the heart of a servant will allow you to keep moving forward whenever you find the criticism and resistance that will come as you attempt to serve God where you find yourself.

I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God. (1 Corinthians 4:3-5 NIV)

Jesus was found faithful in His Father's house (building the church), and therefore was exalted to having the name that is above every name.

Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest. He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all God’s house. Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself. For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything. “Moses was faithful as a servant in all God’s house,” bearing witness to what would be spoken by God in the future. But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are his house, if indeed we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope in which we glory. (Hebrews 3:1-6 NIV)

Some who aspire to be leaders in the church need to realize that they first need to be found humble and trustworthy serving in their own.

“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own? (Luke 16:10-12 NIV)

The reality that many gifted, intelligent, talented people in our culture don't realize is that leadership in the world, and most especially in the cause of Christ, comes at great personal cost and death to our own souls.  This includes all of our romanticized notions of fame, importance, and getting paid to do exactly what we want to do.  The life of a servant is often hard, inglorious, and challenging, but, in the end, if Jesus is glorified, lives are saved, and disciples are made, it is worth it.

Now, brothers and sisters, I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, so that you may learn from us the meaning of the saying, “Do not go beyond what is written.” Then you will not be puffed up in being a follower of one of us over against the other. For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not? Already you have all you want! Already you have become rich! You have begun to reign—and that without us! How I wish that you really had begun to reign so that we also might reign with you! For it seems to me that God has put us apostles on display at the end of the procession, like those condemned to die in the arena. We have been made a spectacle to the whole universe, to angels as well as to human beings. We are fools for Christ, but you are so wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are honored, we are dishonored! To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless. We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered, we answer kindly. We have become the scum of the earth, the garbage of the world—right up to this moment. (1 Corinthians 4:6-13 NIV)

We have no importance or function except that which is given us by God and acknowledged by men.  You have no authority to lead as a representative of God except through the authority of His written Word.  This means you don't have the ability to pick and choose the manner in which you will ultimately serve Him.  This begs that you ask the question, however, "What are your motives for doing what you do?"  If it is selfish, and not for the honor of Christ, the difficulties that arise with your calling to serve will squelch your fire to fulfill that trust.

“When obedience to God contradicts what I think will give me pleasure, let me ask myself if I love Him.” ― Elisabeth Elliot

A servant pampered from youth will turn out to be insolent. (Proverbs 29:21 NIV)

One Sabbath, when Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee, he was being carefully watched. There in front of him was a man suffering from abnormal swelling of his body. Jesus asked the Pharisees and experts in the law, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?” But they remained silent. So taking hold of the man, he healed him and sent him on his way. Then he asked them, “If one of you has a child or an ox that falls into a well on the Sabbath day, will you not immediately pull it out?” And they had nothing to say. When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable: “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” (Luke 14:1-11 NIV)

Do not exalt yourself in the king’s presence, and do not claim a place among his great men; it is better for him to say to you, “Come up here,” than for him to humiliate you before his nobles... (Proverbs 25:6, 7 NIV)

In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. (1 Peter 5:5, 6 NIV)

In the workplace as well as in the church, let your humble, excellent, fruitful service make way for you rather than your selfish ambition and striving.  In that way love for the people that you are there to serve, rather than position, power, or prestige, will be what drives you.  This is the M.O. that leads to everyone's good and not just your own.  This is the attitude that Jesus Christ commands and displayed through His own life being laid down on the cross for the sins of the world.   We are called to carry our cross and serve with the same attitude.

An Example to Follow

“The day we find the perfect church, it becomes imperfect the moment we join it.” ― Charles H. Spurgeon

This is our life's work and hope that it will be yours as well.  A defining characteristic of parenthood is the responsibility that you have assumed for another individual's life or a family unit's well-being.  This is the inevitable place of progress within the church and in our world.  It is easy to be an arm-chair quarterback, in arrogance judging the players on the field who are actually making plays.  It is easy in the world to be a pundit for all of the issues that beset it.  It is easy in the church to criticize the deficiencies and lack that you see, rather than as a parent, a guardian, and a family member, taking responsibility to help it.  In Christ, we are called to be the humble problem solvers, spiritual parents, and guardians to the church that He is intent to build.

I am writing this not to shame you but to warn you as my dear children. Even if you had ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. Therefore I urge you to imitate me. For this reason I have sent to you Timothy, my son whom I love, who is faithful in the Lord. He will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus, which agrees with what I teach everywhere in every church. Some of you have become arrogant, as if I were not coming to you. But I will come to you very soon, if the Lord is willing, and then I will find out not only how these arrogant people are talking, but what power they have. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power. What do you prefer? Shall I come to you with a rod of discipline, or shall I come in love and with a gentle spirit? (1 Corinthians 4:14-21 NIV)

You do not need a pulpit just because you have gone to Bible college; nor does it guarantee that people will listen to you.  It is the Word of God that gives you the authority to preach, and your life experience which validates your message in people's eyes.  If you want the world to listen to you about Christ's design for relationships, get married, settle down, and raise godly children.  Follow your leaders' example.

As a Christian, you are a child of God, a co-heir with Christ, and part of a people who belong to one another in Jesus.  However, as Paul highlights here, you are also to be servants of Christ in and through His church.  The question is, "How are you practically serving?"

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully. (Romans 12:3-8 NIV)

This attitude of being a servant should translate even into your workplace.  In the church, as a part of the family, you should aspire to be either a mother in the faith, a father in the faith, or a guardian of the precious lives who Jesus is redeeming.  As a servant, you can find practical ways to serve through:

1) Children's Ministry 2) Hospitality and Greeting Ministry 3) Follow-Up and Community Group Leading Spending time with others and inviting them into your group of friends to build community. 4) Set-Up and Tear Down 5) Media and Tech Team 6) University and Outreach Ministry 7) Volunteering with the Jesse White Tumblers 8) Event Planning 9) Worship Team 10) Making meals for others just to be a blessing and inviting someone into your home (even if it's peanut butter and jelly!).  Be quick to be an encourager of others and find positive things to say in regard to your community of faith.

We have wonderful people in our church who are servant hearted, loving, and kind.  Because Jesus is good, demonstrated the ultimate servant's heart, and His work is real, we count it a privilege to serve Him and our world together as a family.

Take-Home Truth:

1) Attend the Spiritual Gifts Training offered next weekend to discover how God has gifted you to serve. 2) Speak to someone at our hospitality table or email info@2ndcitychurch.org to identify a way that you would like to serve in or through the church.

Second City Church- The Real World: Corinth Sermon Series 2013

Jesus and Real Wisdom

The Real World: Corinth - Jesus and Real Wisdom

[powerpress] What we must come to realize if we are going to live successfully as followers of Christ in the world is that there are two sets of wisdom introduced to us in our culture which regularly vie for our attention and our allegiance.  The worldview, or manner in which we interpret the world, is based on these sets of assumptions and affects everything from our romantic life to our work life, our family dynamics to our daily conversations, our routines and the pursuits which we undertake.  Recognizing this, the apostle Paul utilizes his first letter to the Corinthians to expose the wisdom of this age and reveal why Jesus must be the only foundation for a life well built.

Corinth (southern part of modern-day Greece)

Corinth's similarities to Chicago:

1) Corinth was an important cosmopolitan center situated along a major trade route.  It was a port city for commerce, rivaling at the time Ostia for Rome, Alexandria in Egypt, and Caesarea giving access to Judea.  Because of its thriving economy, large numbers of sailors and merchants from every nation flocked to Corinth bringing their religions, cultures, and philosophies.  Corinth was the second richest city in the empire by the end of the second century. 2) During the first century, Corinth was one of the largest cities in the Roman Empire.  It had a large population for the time (100,000), many of whom were freedmen.  Freedmen were former slaves working their way up in the world. 3) Corinth's patron deity was the Greek goddesss Aphrodite (Roman equivalent of Venus).  She was the goddess of beauty, fertility, and sexual love; variously described as the daughter of Zeus and Dione, or as being born from the sea. There was a major sanctuary of Poseidon at the nearby city of Isthmia.  People regularly sacrificed to him as he was believed to control the fortunes of the port cities with their maritime trade. 4) It was the seat of the Roman governor of the province of Achaia and housed the cult to the Roman Emperors.  Chicago is a major influencer and the largest metropolis of the mid-Western territories.  It is affectionately known as Obamaville. 5) All of this positioned Corinth to strategically influence the world for the gospel.

Wisdom of the Age

The Bible consistently makes reference to two types of wisdom: wisdom from God and the wisdom of this age or the rulers of this age.  Wisdom is the proper application of knowledge.  Wisdom from God is centered in His design for the world and His restorative purposes expressed in Jesus Christ. The wisdom of this age consists of the philosophies derived from the attempt to explain and interact with the world devoid of the biblical Creator God.

Because of the obsession with competing philosophies in which the culture of Corinth found itself immersed, Paul reduced his preaching while with them to its base denominator.

And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power. (1 Corinthians 2:1-5 NIV)

There are overlaps in the two types of wisdom, including things such as scientific discovery, technology, and historic facts.  It is within this Venn diagram that God's wisdom and culture are not competing, but are mutually beneficial - with all truth being God's truth.  Where the two wisdoms diverge is in the knowledge of God, that must be bequeathed as God is self-revelatory.  He did so perfectly in the advent of Jesus Christ.  The gospel is fundamentally a testimony about God, proclaiming a historic series of events.  The testimony was continued through Paul, as it is today, through demonstrations of the Holy Spirit's power which point to the resurrected Christ.

If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.” Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.” Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. (John 14:7-11 NIV)

Paul chose to boast solely in the cross of Christ because in its significance was the power of God for the salvation of those who believe (Romans 1:14-17).  As opposed to mainstream self-help programs or lifeless religion, because the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus was a supernatural historic event and not just an ideology, because Jesus of Nazareth is a person and not just a philosophy, Christ has real supernatural power to reconcile humanity to God, save you from your sins, and transform your life.

The wisdom that was set forth by Jesus as directives for life are His commands which reflect His character and design for the world.  It is the third person of the Trinity (one God, three persons), the Holy Spirit, who illuminates the Bible for you, all through the filter of Jesus and His redemptive work.

We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. No, we declare God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived” — the things God has prepared for those who love him— these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ. (1 Corinthians 2:6-16 NIV)

Conventional wisdom tells you that if you want to get rid of a revolutionary or a mischief-maker, then you kill him (i.e. - Bin Laden).  In the case of Christ, it only multiplied His work because of the Holy Spirit who came in His place to every believer.

But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: about sin, because people do not believe in me; about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned. “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.” (John 16:7-15 NIV)

Why then are there so many other versions of wisdom, and what are they in our culture?

He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. (John 1:10-13 NIV)

When people are separated from the one true God because they want to be their own rulers, people try to explain life in alternate manners, many times revealing their ulterior motives.

"I had motive for not wanting the world to have a meaning; consequently assumed that it had none, and was able without any difficulty to find satisfying reasons for this assumption. The philosopher who finds no meaning in the world is not concerned exclusively with a problem in pure metaphysics, he is also concerned to prove that there is no valid reason why he personally should not do as he wants to do, or why his friends should not seize political power and govern in the way that they find most advantageous to themselves. … For myself, the philosophy of meaninglessness was essentially an instrument of liberation, sexual and political." --Aldous Huxley, Ends and Means (London: Chatto & Windus, 1946), pp. 270, 273

Why This Matters:

In Chicago, Pluralism, Relativism, Atheism, Materialism, Hedonism, Apathy, Complacency (Isaiah 32:9-20; Amos 6:1-7), Humanism, Naturalism, and Moralism filter into every conversation, advertisement, and thought without you even realizing it.  (Pastor Rollan briefly defined each of these philosophies and gave the Biblical response to each.)

“The great enemy of truth is very often not the lie--deliberate, contrived and dishonest--but the myth--persistent, persuasive and unrealistic. Too often we hold fast to the cliches of our forebears. We subject all facts to a prefabricated set of interpretations. We enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought.” ― John F. Kennedy

In addition to all of this, many are dominated and driven by fear - fear of the future, fear of uncertainty, fear of the unknown, fear of scarcity or lack, whether it be relationally, financially, or in terms of our significance.  Our lives are often an effort to combat all of these fears in our own ingenuity and strength.  It is the wearing effort and worry (from Hebrew root Amal) that comes to steal your focus and joy. This leads to idolatry, anxiety, depression, and despair.  We try to create heaven on earth without its ruler, God.  It is the same spirit that drove those who were building the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11).  It affects your thinking, your activities, and ultimately your pursuits and living.  Jesus comes to set us free from all of these fears.  It is why daily time in His Word to recalibrate and consistent time with other believers is an imperative.  These give you objective perspective when you are immersed in the sea of the wisdom of this age attempting to carry you downstream.

See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original conviction firmly to the very end. (Hebrews 3:12-14 NIV)

To live in and through Christ requires an active, intentional, daily march to a different beat and in a different direction as you look to follow the only God and to build His Kingdom on earth as it is in Heaven.  You will otherwise be sucked into the tide and be lulled to sleep.

Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly—mere infants in Christ. I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings? What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building. By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 3:1-11 NIV)

How does the wisdom of this age play out in the church?

Preferences become prejudices. There is an epidemic of church hopping in America where people are looking for the superstar preacher or church just like the people of Corinth tailed the pop-star sophists and philosophers of their day.  In such a way, you can become ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of Christ because you are a consumer and groupie rather than one who digs in where God has called you to build the church of Jesus Christ.

Christ, the Only Foundation

For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames. Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst? (1 Corinthians 3:11-16 NIV)

What does it mean to build with Christ as a foundation in your:

Relationships Career Finances Marriage Child rearing Morality and Ethics Voting Worldview Use of your Time Pleasures Pursuits

What are things or philosophies that are the wood, hay, and straw? The wisdom of the age in these areas.

The question must continually be, "Has Jesus been your foundation in each of these areas, or have you allowed the wisdom of the world to define these areas for you?"

Do not deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise by the standards of this age, you should become “fools” so that you may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness”; and again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.” So then, no more boasting about human leaders! All things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, and you are of Christ, and Christ is of God. (1 Corinthians 3:18-23 NIV)

The following applies to both the religious and irreligious when they are foolish in God's sight:

“Foolishness is more than being stupid, that deadly combination of arrogance and ignorance.” ― Paul David Tripp, Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands: People in Need of Change Helping People in Need of Change

The desire to have a respectable Christianity in the eyes of the world can often outweigh your allegiance to the gospel that Jesus commands you to live and preach.  What happens is that you lose fidelity to biblical standards, your convictions are blurred, and the totality of Scripture is not embraced.  Paul says that to walk in the truth of Jesus requires you to become a fool in your own eyes, that you might, in fact, through humility, embrace God's wisdom that is higher than what the age has to offer.  In this way, you offer both eternal and present help to the world.  It is in this place that the joy of the Lord is renewed in you.

"No one has ever yet discovered the word Jesus ought to have said or the deed he ought to have done. Nothing he does falls short, in fact, he is always surprising you and taking your breath away, because he is incomparably better than you could imagine for yourself. He is tenderness without weakness, strength without harshness, humility without the slightest lack of confidence, holiness and unbending convictions without the slightest lack of approachability, power without insensitivity, passion without prejudice. There is never a false step, never a jarring note. This is life at the highest." -John H. Gerstner, Theology for Everyman

How can you summarize true wisdom?  Its beginning is summarized in the GOSPEL video: http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=xp7CMd39hcM

Second City Church- The Real World: Corinth Sermon Series 2013

Jesus and the Call of God

The Real World: Corinth - Jesus and the Call of God

[powerpress] "Welcome to Church" Video

Most of us live with a sense of purpose, whether pursued, hoped for, or slightly perceived. Paul is making it clear from the outset that this is not an arbitrary thing - the call of God is a preeminent theme in the introduction to Paul's first letter to the Corinthians. The God who created you has a clear call, an invitation and a charge, on each of your lives which you must recognize and obey if you are to be ultimately satisfied, fulfilling your life's purpose. Most of us have ideas about the call of God that are independently minded, me focused, and based in worldly standards of success. In this opening chapter, however, the Holy Spirit, through Paul, helps us recognize to whom you are called, to what you are called, and with whom you are called to do it.

To Whom You are Called

I Corinthians 1:1-3 (NIV)

1Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes, 2To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be his holy people, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ—their Lord and ours: 3Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Acts 9 (NIV)

1Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest 2and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” 5“Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked. “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. 6“Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” 7The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything. 10In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!” “Yes, Lord,” he answered. 11The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.” 13“Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. 14And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.” 15But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. 16I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.” 17Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19and after taking some food, he regained his strength. Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. 20At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. 21All those who heard him were astonished and asked, “Isn’t he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?” 22Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Messiah. 23After many days had gone by, there was a conspiracy among the Jews to kill him, 24but Saul learned of their plan. Day and night they kept close watch on the city gates in order to kill him. 25But his followers took him by night and lowered him in a basket through an opening in the wall. 26When he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. 27But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus. 28So Saul stayed with them and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. 29He talked and debated with the Hellenistic Jews, but they tried to kill him. 30When the believers learned of this, they took him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus. 31Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace and was strengthened. Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers. 32As Peter traveled about the country, he went to visit the Lord’s people who lived in Lydda. 33There he found a man named Aeneas, who was paralyzed and had been bedridden for eight years. 34“Aeneas,” Peter said to him, “Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and roll up your mat.” Immediately Aeneas got up. 35All those who lived in Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord. 36In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (in Greek her name is Dorcas); she was always doing good and helping the poor. 37About that time she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upstairs room. 38Lydda was near Joppa; so when the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him and urged him, “Please come at once!” 39Peter went with them, and when he arrived he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them. 40Peter sent them all out of the room; then he got down on his knees and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman, he said, “Tabitha, get up.” She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter she sat up. 41He took her by the hand and helped her to her feet. Then he called for the believers, especially the widows, and presented her to them alive. 42This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord. 43Peter stayed in Joppa for some time with a tanner named Simon.

Who was Paul?

Paul was a Jewish Pharisee, a religious leader, who was trained by one of the day's preeminent rabbis, named Gamaliel. In an effort to prove his zeal for the Jewish law, he was an initial persecutor of the Jewish sect known as the Way (followers of Christ - John 14:6). On one of his mission trips to imprison disciples of Jesus, Paul met the resurrected Jesus (Acts 9). Though knowing full well that a misappropriation of the identity of God meant death, Paul spent the rest of his life proclaiming Jesus as God in the flesh until his martyrdom for this testimony under the emperor Nero in 64 AD. He was convinced of Jesus being the Savior of the world, the promised Messiah, by the Hebrew Scriptures and his encounter with Christ after Jesus' bodily resurrection. I Corinthians, a total of three-fourths of the New Testament letters, and much of the doctrine of the world's largest religion are a result of that conviction.

1) Paul is called to be an apostle of Christ (v. 1).

When Paul is called, he is called to be an apostle to a particular group of people.

Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not the result of my work in the Lord? Even though I may not be an apostle to others, surely I am to you! For you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord. (1 Corinthians 9:1, 2 NIV)

Function and leadership within the church are God ordained, not man-made. It is the authority and confidence from which Paul speaks and leads. When Paul directs the church in its affairs or brings correction in its errors, it is because Christ has appointed him to do so as a representative of Himself. Leadership in the church is not something to be abused by the leader nor taken lightly by those being led. Both must walk in the fear of God to find themselves in the pleasure and purposes of Jesus. This is a difficult scenario for many in the culture today because of church abuses, heresies, and the independence that is promoted in our society. However, going online to get one's minister license does not equate to an appointment from God. Nor does it give one a Christ-centered and submitted authority within a particular body of believers. Godly leadership is a trust and a stewardship that the holder must walk out in humility before the Judge who will hold them accountable for their service (Hebrews 13).

2) This particular church, along with the universal church, is called to belong to Christ and to be holy.

“Christ did not die to forgive sinners who go on treasuring anything above seeing and savoring God. And people who would be happy in heaven if Christ were not there, will not be there. The gospel is not a way to get people to heaven; it is a way to get people to God. It's a way of overcoming every obstacle to everlasting joy in God. If we don't want God above all things, we have not been converted by the gospel.” ― John Piper, God Is the Gospel: Meditations on God's Love as the Gift of Himself

This begins with time set apart to daily meet with Him. This is where your identity is formed, truth is revealed, and your relationship with Christ is built. Through His Word, worship, and prayer, you are made holy. It is in this place that the joy of the Lord is renewed in you.

To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be his holy people, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ—their Lord and ours: (1 Corinthians 1:2 NIV)

It must be noted that Paul is writing to a group, a church community, and not just an individual instructing them how to have a personal faith. We are called to a new identity, a new Father, and a new family whom the Heavenly Father loves and for whom He cares. It is in relationship with other believers that holiness is refined and you are given tracks on which to run.

Holy means set apart for divine purposes. Note that this calling is within a group context, and not singular in scope. You will fulfill your holy calling while a part of the body in which God places you. It is there that you find the teaching, encouragement, correction, loving accountability, and strength that you need to pursue God's ends. Never forget that Jesus (Matthew 16) is building His church, and you are to practically, in life and service, be a part of it. If you can not live out your faith in the context of a church community submitted to Christ, it is not yet a fully formed, Biblical faith.

A walk with Christ was never meant to be a solo sport; it is not a self-help program or solitaire. The idea of a personalized, isolated Christianity is not a Biblical one. The story of Biblical Christianity is a family of believers loving God, loving one another, and being on mission with Christ to love their world. It does not have to be this church, but we encourage each of you to find a local God fearing, Bible teaching, Jesus honoring community with which you can grow, thrive, and come into the purposes if God. God has a call to a local family of believers for you.

Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. (2 Timothy 2:22 NIV)

“The church is not a theological classroom. It is a conversion, confession, repentance, reconciliation, forgiveness and sanctification center, where flawed people place their faith in Christ, gather to know and love him better, and learn to love others as he designed.” ― Paul David Tripp, Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands: People in Need of Change Helping People in Need of Change

To What You are Called

I Corinthians 1:4-17 (NIV)

4 I always thank my God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. 5For in him you have been enriched in every way—with all kinds of speech and with all knowledge— 6God thus confirming our testimony about Christ among you. 7Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. 8He will also keep you firm to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. 10 I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought. 11My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. 12What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas ”; still another, “I follow Christ.” 13Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized in the name of Paul? 14I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15so no one can say that you were baptized in my name. 16(Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don’t remember if I baptized anyone else.) 17For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.

3) The church is called into fellowship with the Son of God, Jesus Christ (v. 9), through the cross.

Fellowship means a shared life.

It all begins with repentance, faith, and baptism. Repentance is a change of mind in regard to the way in which you used to think to now share in the life Jesus exemplified and gives as a gift. The cross is the place of death to your own way of life. Baptism is the pledge of a good conscience to a new master and lover, a public circumcision that empowers the new direction that you are taking in Christ. Your burial in baptism should also indicate that you are no longer merely living for yourself, but for the one who raised you into new life to serve the world that He came to save.

For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. (2 Corinthians 5:14, 15 NIV)

Ultimately we must always remember that God is not here to serve our ends, but by His grace, we have been called into humble service of the King. We must continually ask ourselves the question, "What is He up to, and how is my life playing a part in His grand symphony?"

“Our greatest fear as individuals and as a church should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.” ― Francis Chan, Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God

My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas ”; still another, “I follow Christ.” Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized in the name of Paul? I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, so no one can say that you were baptized in my name. (Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don’t remember if I baptized anyone else.) For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. (1 Corinthians 1:11-17 NIV)

You are not primarily a Baptist, Catholic, Methodist, Presbyterian, Episcopalian, Lutheran, Anglican, Pentecostal, Evangelical, or any other camp. You are not primarily a Calvinist, an Arminianist, a liberal, a conservative, a charismatic, an emerging church groupie, or a traditionalist. You are not part of the black church, the white church, the Asian, Latino, African, European, or Orthodox church. You are to be a follower of Jesus the Christ, the only one who lived perfectly, bled and died for your sins, and was raised to life so that you can be forgiven and have eternal life by His grace and through your trust in Him!

With Whom You are Called To Do It

I Corinthians 1:18-31 (NIV)

18For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.” 20Where is the wise person? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. 22Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength. 26Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29so that no one may boast before him. 30It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”

4) God has called both Jews and Greeks into this fellowship (v. 24).

Jews were the keepers of the law and knowledge of the true God. The majority of the early church were Jewish and all of the writers of the New Testament, minus Luke the physician/historian who wrote both the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts as the earliest recorded history of the church, were Jewish. Jesus was from a Jewish lineage and came as the Messianic fulfillment of the Jewish prophetic writings.

Greeks were Gentiles (everyone else) to whom God's redemptive plan extended through the Savior, as spoken about through Jewish prophets like Isaiah, Jeremiah, and the authors of the Psalms.

5) Both the wise and the foolish, the influential and non-influential, those who were born of noble birth and those who were not, are called (v. 26).

These two things combined speak of the extreme inclusivity (God wants every nation, people, tribe, tongue, pedigree, and background) of the gospel through the exclusivity of Jesus Christ (only Christ's work on the cross saves and is the bridge to reconciliation with God as we repent of our sins).

We all fit into one of these two categories, either like the Jews of that time looking for signs and power feats to validate the identity of the Messiah (which Jesus fulfilled in spades), or we are like the Greeks of that day who exalted intellectualism and philosophy to determine truth. Whether your bent is science or wonders, God has proven Himself on every ground by the historic death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Now what are the implications?

God chose the foolish, the weak, the lowly and despised things to belong to Him and change the world. Our boast is in God's grace alone. This is the call of God.

“For a Christian to be a Christian, he must first be a sinner. Being a sinner is a prerequisite for being a church member. The Christian church is one of the few organizations in the world that requires a public acknowledgement of sin as a condition for membership.” ― R.C. Sproul, Reason to Believe: A Response to Common Objections to Christianity

God has no real weakness in Himself. He is omnipotent. The weakness described in verse 25 is the the voluntary giving of the life of His Son (a real act of strength) for the sake of the world He came to save. It was seemingly foolish, but ended up the most wise act of all, as it led to the redemption of the world that had violently rejected Him and chosen their own death. It was foolish in the way that a Javert in Les Miserables was shown grace by the priest from whom He stole, being given the opportunity to begin a new life with riches unearned by the former prisoner. It was His foolishness that paved the way for us to be born again, be made new creations, have our sins forgiven, and the power and opportunity to live a new life. It is what is available to everyone today.

Second City Church- The Real World: Corinth Sermon Series 2013

Guest Speaker Peter Ahlin on Isaiah 60

[powerpress]

Peter Ahlin Speaking on Isaiah 60- September 1, 2013

Greeting

Brief background on prophecy:

Prophesy in conjunction with love, to encourage:  (1 Corinthians 14:1,3) -->  Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.  The one who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men.

Prophecy should be neither blindly accepted nor rashly despised:  (1 Thessalonians 5:20-22) -->  Do not despise prophetic utterances. But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil.

Words from God will encourage you to follow God and His revealed will: (Deuteronomy 13:1-3) --> If there arises among you a prophet or a dreamer of dreams, and he gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder comes to pass, of which he spoke to you, saying, ‘Let us go after other gods’—which you have not known—‘and let us serve them,’ you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams, for the Lord your God is testing you to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

Brief background on Isaiah:

He lived in a city and region characterized by intensified moral darkness and corruption.  Isaiah said that he was a man of unclean lips living among a people of unclean lips.  He lived during the reign of several Judean kings, including Ahaz, a king who bowed to foreign idols and even had his own son sacrificed in fire.  According to church tradition, Isaiah is said to have been killed during the reign of King Manasseh, who also sacrificed his own son, practiced sorcery, and led the people to do more evil even than the pagan nations that had lived in Judea before them.

He lived in a time of deep national division.  God's people started out as one family and one nation.  Because of the sin of King Solomon, ten tribes out of twelve were torn away from his family and given to someone else to rule.  The strength that should have come from the diverse skills, abilities, and propensities of these twelve tribes was greatly attenuated into the separate nations of Israel and Judah.  In fact, during Isaiah's life the king of Assyria captured the land of Israel and deported its people.

He lived in a land constantly threatened by violence.  The powerful Assyrian kingdom was active throughout Isaiah's life, and, at various points, three of their kings attacked Israel, extracted gold and silver tribute from Judah's temple and treasury, and came up to threaten Jerusalem with 185,000 soldiers.

He had every reason to feel insignificant and powerless to bring about any real change.  He was just one man, dwelling among a people of unclean lips!  He felt the magnitude of the task before him, and he clearly saw the extent of the depravity in the culture around him.  Yet, by the Spirit of God, Isaiah received a prophetic vision of how things would be not just slightly improved around the margins, but entirely and miraculously transformed.

As you think about the cultural ethos in America, Illinois, and particularly in Chicago, does this picture ring true?  Moral darkness, corruption, ethnic division, violence, and the temptation to feel utterly insignificant and powerless to change anything?  Everyone doing as he or she sees fits.  Political corruption.  A heightened sense of ethnic division and misunderstanding.  Incredibly high rates of homicide and other violent crimes.  Less than 100 people in a city of 2.7 million.  It's tempting to wonder if anything can be done to turn the tide.

This July, the Holy Spirit showed me in Isaiah Chapter 60 four specific things that will happen in the life of Second City Church.  And so, with Pastor Rollan's agreement and oversight, I wish to share those four things with you.

(1) In a dark and adverse hour, your church will shine as a bright light and beacon of the radiant presence of Jesus Christ, attracting the sons and daughters of God.  (Isaiah 60:1-4)

Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you.  For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, And deep darkness the people; But the Lord will arise over you, And His glory will be seen upon you.  The Gentiles shall come to your light, And kings to the brightness of your rising.  Lift up your eyes all around, and see: They all gather together, they come to you; Your sons shall come from afar, And your daughters shall be nursed at your side.

LIGHT IN ADVERSITY

This is an age of financial hardship for so many.  Does anyone know the city that in 1960 had the highest GDP per capita in the country?  Detroit!  And now more than 50,000 dogs roam the streets in packs as the population rapidly dwindles.  Financial difficulty is present here as well; for instance, Illinois is the last state in the country for the funding of its long-term pension liabilities; for every dollar that must be paid out in the future to fulfill these obligations, it only has 45 cents.

This is also an age of increasing disintegration of public morality.  Conduct that was thought unthinkable for centuries is now being mandated by judicial fiat.  When public figures get caught acting inappropriately, they no longer even show any sincere remorse:  I’m sorry if anyone was offended.  I’m going to take responsibility for my actions, which means finding out how long I have to hide out before running for office again.  I spent the last two years insulting anyone who questioned my integrity until the moment I was caught – now I have been caught and I really mean this apology!  It seems the only unpardonable crime is believing in absolute standards for right and wrong that emanate from an eternal Creator.

Unfortunately, I cannot tell you that the surrounding financial and moral darkness is just a passing moment; indeed, the darkness is deep.  But the Lord will arise over you, and His glory will be seen upon you.  Through the pages of the Bible, we see this again and again: Matthew Henry comments on Isaiah 60 that it evokes the ninth plague in Exodus, when terrible darkness fell upon the land of Egypt, darkness that could be felt, yet the Israelites had light in the places where they lived.  Paul wrote to the Philippians that they were living in a crooked and perverse generation, but that they could shine blameless and pure, like bright stars against a dark sky.  And so, with this promise to the church comes a commission for every member in it – to shine as a bright light in dark adversity, not to engage in moral compromise in your marriage, in your job, in your academic pursuits.  Jesus said, While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.  Now that He has ascended to heaven, He has called each of us to be the light of the world.  And this church will not be hidden under a bowl. It will eventually be put upon a stand to bring light to the entire city.  Jesus is the Lamb who lights the heavenly city so that it needs no sun or moon, and, if you’ll allow Him, He’ll shine brightly through you into desperate darkness; and those in the dark will be drawn to the light.

(2) A beautiful diversity of many nations will be joined together in your church family, and those who come will be able to build and minister with great efficacy.  (Isaiah 60:5-10a)

Then you shall see and become radiant, And your heart shall swell with joy;  Because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you, The wealth of the Gentiles shall come to you.  The multitude of camels shall cover your land, The dromedaries of Midian and Ephah;  All those from Sheba shall come; They shall bring gold and incense, And they shall proclaim the praises of the Lord.  All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together to you, The rams of Nebaioth shall minister to you; They shall ascend with acceptance on My altar, And I will glorify the house of My glory.  Who are these who fly like a cloud, And like doves to their roosts?  Surely the coastlands shall wait for Me; And the ships of Tarshish will come first, To bring your sons from afar, Their silver and their gold with them, To the name of the Lord your God, And to the Holy One of Israel, Because He has glorified you.  The sons of foreigners shall build up your walls, And their kings shall minister to you.

LOVE IN DIVERSITY

This is an hour of heightened tensions between ethnic groups.  Many civil rights advancements have occurred in the last fifty years, but we are still far from a society where people are judged, in Dr. Martin Luther King’s words, not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.  It seems that when people go on record, they often do one of two things –they pretend that no distinctions exist whatsoever among nations and ethnicities, or they talk as though the differences were utterly irreconcilable.  The world’s answer to offenses against other groups is not repentance and reconciliation; it’s sensitivity training.  In other words, it’s ok to continue having those hateful feelings and thoughts towards others as long as you are sensitive enough not to say them out loud or while being recorded!  The kingdom of God has a far different model.  It is not the model of ignoring distinctions, nor is it the model of despairing of ever been reconciled. Instead, it is the model of loving cross-cultural community, where God-given distinctions are preserved and celebrated in love.

How many of you have seen the movie 42?  While the movie tells a great story as Hollywood is at its inspiring best, it sells far short the Christian faith that Jackie Robinson and Branch Rickey shared. When they first met, Rickey shared with Robinson a devotional passage from Papini’s “Life of Christ” on the Sermon on the Mount, specifically, the portion on “turning the other cheek.” Robinson’s strong moral character was the reason the Bible-quoting Rickey chose him, and Robinson’s amazing commitment to non-violence in the face of numerous hateful provocations was pivotal in the integration of baseball and much of society in the years that followed.  The real story of 42 was two Christian men, purposing to bring transformation to their sphere of influence.

You see, the Bible does not teach that nations and cultures are homogeneous, nor that their differences are irreconcilable ones.  The biblical picture Isaiah shares is that even in the perfected future, national and ethnic distinctions persist.  Tim Keller points out here that every culture brings something different, something for which it is known, and that each culture has strengths and contributions to the flourishing of mankind that cannot be replaced.  Further, these cultural distinctions will persist for all of eternity.  John looked into heaven and saw a countless multitude of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb.  And so, with this promise to the church comes a commission for every member in it -  to demonstrate love in diversity, to model a community of believers from every nation about whom it may be said, "See how they love each other!"  Jesus went through Samaria when his Jewish contemporaries who hated Samaritans walked miles out of the way to avoid it.  Now that He has ascended to heaven, He has called each of us to show His love in diversity.  Jesus is the one who reconciled divided foes both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity between them, and, if you’ll allow Him, He’ll fill you with His love as your church fills up with a beautiful diversity of cultures, languages, and nations.

(3) In a state known for corruption, you will bear a standard of justice.  In a city known for devastation and violence, you will exhibit incredible peace and wholeness.  Violence will stop at your doors and not come within your borders, for you will have the impregnable walls of Salvation and gates of Praise.  (Isaiah 60:17b-18)

I will also make your officers peace, And your magistrates righteousness.  Violence shall no longer be heard in your land, Neither wasting nor destruction within your borders; But you shall call your walls Salvation, And your gates Praise.

LIFE IN TRANQUILITY

This is a region known for corruption and violence.  4 of the last 7 Illinois governors have been convicted and imprisoned for things like racketeering, bribery, and fraud.  The city of Chicago saw 500 homicides in 2012; the rate was calculated in that year to be double that of New York and Los Angeles, with more youth homicides than any other city.  Many political officials use their power to promote themselves or enrich themselves, while many people use implements that should be employed for others’ protection for others’ destruction instead.

By contrast, the agents of the kingdom of God bring peace and righteousness where they go.  Think of the heroic decades-long labor of the Christian Parliamentarian William Wilberforce, to bring an end to the horrific British slave trade.  He was not a man who used his political office to obtain power and wealth for himself; he used his office to advance peace and promote righteousness.  He was also a man who would not give up easily; Wilberforce persisted year in and year out until the Slave Trade was abolished, and then slavery abolished.  The end result?  Righteousness was established and violence prevented.

Scripture teaches us that when our minds are stayed on God, He will keep us in perfect peace.  When every natural circumstance rages against tranquility, God’s peace which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus, as you pray to God with thanksgiving.  As violence may rage all around, you will have peace that this city is desperately craving.  You will also have righteousness.  If you read I Peter 5, where Peter writes to elders, he urges them to act as shepherds, to do with willing hearts and not to act with any dishonest motives or lording authority over others. As you all have gotten to know Pastors Rollan and B, I am sure you have seen hearts of shepherds, without guile, pretense, dishonesty, or desire to promote themselves.  Thank God for this!  But with this promise to the church comes a commission, not just for the pastors, but for every member in it – to embody life in tranquility.  Jesus slept when the most powerful storm career fisherman had ever seen raged around Him.  He also lived so perfectly righteous an existence that He could look around at those who hated Him, ask them if they had any accusation of sin against Him, and then sit back and listen to the silence.  Now that Jesus has ascended to heaven, He has called each of us to embody his life in tranquility.  Jesus is the one who said: “Peace I leave with you.  My peace I give to you, not as the world gives" (with strings attached or for something in return or with a great big catch), but true peace.  Jesus also allows us to be set free from sin and become slaves to righteousness, if we have been united with Him in his death.  And if you’ll allow Him, Jesus will fill you with his peace and his righteousness.

(4) From your church, the seeming least beginnings (both in individual people and in ministries) will grow to serve thousands of people and become like a mighty nation, at God’s right time.  (Isaiah 60:21-22)

Also your people shall all be righteous; They shall inherit the land forever, The branch of My planting, The work of My hands, That I may be glorified.  A little one shall become a thousand, And a small one a strong nation. I, the Lord, will hasten it in its time.

LEADERSHIP FROM OBSCURITY

This city is the architectural wonder of America!  As I look up at these massive skyscrapers, including the tallest building in America, I am reminded that tall buildings are frequently, like the tower of Babel, just another sign of people's saying "let us make a name for ourselves.” (All the more ironic now that the tallest building has actually changed names from the Sears to the Willis Tower.  Human efforts to make names for ourselves will eventually fade.)

This church, however, is not motivated by making a name for itself, but by seeing the name of Jesus Christ exalted in every corner of this great city, and from here to the entire world.  Earlier today, I alluded to the fact that this church is less than 100 people in a city of 2.7 million.  But you need to know that Zechariah 4:10 is true ofSecond City Church: “Do not despise these small beginnings.”  The Lord rejoices to see His work begin.  The principle of the mustard seed is that the smallest seed grows to become a large tree that provides shelter to all kinds of life!  God definitely takes pleasure in starting small!  Remember what Moses said to the people of Israel in Deuteronomy 10:22: “Your fathers went down to Egypt with seventy persons, and now the Lord your God has made you as the stars of heaven in multitude.”  Remember that in one day, the early church grew from 120 people to more than 3,000 people!

But there’s a second principle I want to share with you: the Picasso principle.  The story goes that Picasso was out sketching when a woman stopped and asked him to sketch her.  He agreed, and in less than five minutes the sketch was completed and signed.  “How much do I owe you?” the woman asked.  “Five thousand francs,” the legendary artist replied.  “But that’s ridiculous!” the shocked woman cried. “It only took you a few moments.” “Au contraire, Madame,” answered Picasso, “it has taken my entire life.” Although a sudden change will come, when this church’s influence will grow exponentially, it will be years of preparation in the making.  The church didn’t just grow from 120 – 3000 by mistake; the 120 were meeting together constantly to pray in the days that preceded the day of Pentecost, after 3 years of following Jesus every day.

Isaiah uses the image that God’s people are like the branch of His planting.  And Scripture teaches what kind of plant flourishes:  Those who are planted in the house of the Lord will flourish in the courts of my God.  And so, with this promise to the church, comes a commission for every member in it: to grow into leadership out of obscurity into destiny, to be planted in this house and grow up like an oak of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendor (not our splendor but His).  An oak grows up from an acorn, from obscurity to a mighty destiny.  Jesus started from humble beginnings in a poor carpenter’s shop, submitting faithfully to His parents and making tables and chairs, in a town from which people asked if anything good could come!  Then He launched the greatest movement of people the world has ever seen and will ever see.  The time spent in carpentry wasn’t 30 wasted years; it was an integral part of His preparation for world-altering ministry.  And now that He has ascended to heaven, He has called each of us to be planted in His house, to grow and flourish here, and be launched into our destiny.  At just the right time, God sent His Son.  At just the right time, He will launch you.  Jesus is the rock upon which the church is built, and if you’ll allow Him, He’ll show you how to make and lead disciples, first on a small scale, and then on an incredibly large scale, here and around the world.

Conclusion

Isaiah was a man just like us.  He lived in a spiritually dark time, in a deeply divided nation, in a land constantly threatened by violence, and he had every reason to feel insignificant.  But he chose to take God at His word, and when he heard the voice of the triune God asking: “Whom shall I send?  And who will go for Us?” He said, “Here am I!  Send me!”

The Holy Spirit has spoken. Second City Church is going to be a great light in darkness, a beautiful tapestry of cross-cultural loving community, a powerful example of peace and righteousness, and an influential evangelizer with explosive city-wide and world-wide impact.  But what about you?  If you would say, “Yes!  I’m in.  I want to be planted in the house of the Lord.  I want to be a light in darkness.  I want to be fully committed to a loving cross-cultural community.  I want to be an agent of peace and righteousness.  And I want to be part of Jesus Christ’s mission, here in this local body, to reach this city and this world.”  Stand to your feet and let’s pray.

Second City Church- Guest Speaker 2013

The Cross and My Career

Second Look: The Cross and My Career

[powerpress] Matthew 20:1-16 (NIV)

1 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. 2He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.3 “About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. 4He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ 5So they went.“He went out again about noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing. 6About five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’7 “ ‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered.“He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’8 “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’9 “The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius. 10So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. 11When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. 12‘These who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’13 “But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? 14Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. 15Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’16 “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

What is the point of your work, and what is God's intended purpose behind it? It all commences with the reality that the world is His vineyard (Psalm 24:1,2). Your boss, the company or school for which you work, are ultimately stewards, and you have been placed in your place of work to cultivate that piece of God's creation. You ultimately work for Jesus, thus you want to do an excellent job in your workplace, recognizing proper motives for our work and the means through which you honor God through it.

The Scripture begins, as with all other truths, with God as creator and the proclamation that the world in which you live ultimately belongs to Him. God commissioned you to be a caretaker and cultivator of His creation. You do this through your career, in which you should have a sense of calling. The gospel reveals that it is when you are detached from your maker, life through His Son and your God-ordained purpose, that your life unravels.

"All that we call human history--money, poverty, ambition, war, prostitution, classes, empires, slavery--[is] the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy." - C.S. Lewis

Jesus is here indicating that it doesn't matter if you've grown up Buddhist, Jewish, Muslim, atheist, agnostic, or Christian. There is a temptation and a pull to be culturally indoctrinated, never having put thought into why you actually believe what you believe. Truth becomes an emotional byproduct of your surroundings and upbringing rather than facts that have their foundation in both transcendent and physical realities. Our perception of the metaphysical is colored by our experiences, both positive and traumatic, to the extent that many never venture into objective analysis of why they do what they do.

When Jesus speaks of hiring people in the fields, it is clear that He is not speaking about people who are literally doing nothing. He called His first apostles from being fishermen, tax collectors, and revolutionaries. The issue at hand is a need for conversion. Jesus is speaking of your need to have your perspective about him, your life, and your work, reoriented to His purposes. The converted heart is not just talking about the new believer. It is ultimately a matter of identity, to whom you belong, what things upon which you feed, and what defines you.

“God is not an employer looking for employees. He is an Eagle looking for people who will take refuge under his wings. He is looking for people who will leave father and mother and homeland or anything else that may hold them back from a life of love under the wings of Jesus.”

― John Piper, A Sweet and Bitter Providence: Sex, Race, and the Sovereignty of God

Our Need for Conversion

Merriam-Webster defines conversion in this way:

1a : to bring over from one belief, view, or party to another 2a : to alter the physical or chemical nature or properties of especially in manufacturing b (1) : to change from one form or function to another (2) : to alter for more effective utilization

Where is the conversion seen?

Conversion begins when you come to the cross of Jesus Christ. As you repent of your sin and put your trust in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, you are changed in your very nature. You are forgiven, and the Holy Spirit comes to live in you. This results in devotion to God that should be cultivated privately and felt publicly. In God's mind, there is no division between the sacred and the secular. Every endeavor of life is to be holy, set apart to him. This is why where you spend the majority of your life, in school or in the marketplace, is of great concern to God. Your faith grows in church settings, being strengthened by the affirmation of God's truth through the preaching of His Word. In consistent fellowship, you are comforted by the love of brothers and sisters. The confirmation of God's faithfulness through the testimony of others offers healing to you as you worship and the encouragement of the collective wisdom of His people equips you for your days. All of this is meant to be taken home and deepened daily through your giving, prayer, and sacrifice in the secret place. It is here that you find God's pleasure. These are the mechanisms through which He matures you. These are areas where you first and clearly display your faith in God.

How does the gospel of Jesus Christ cross over to my work life and daily experience?

Matthew 20:17-28 (NIV)

17Now Jesus was going up to Jerusalem. On the way, he took the Twelve aside and said to them, 18“We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death 19and will hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life!”20Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favor of him. 21 “What is it you want?” he asked. She said, “Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.” 22 “You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said to them. “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?” “We can,” they answered. 23Jesus said to them, “You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.” 24When the ten heard about this, they were indignant with the two brothers. 25Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 26Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— 28just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

We desire glory but don't want to pay the price to get it. Many times we don't know what we are asking for when we desire the success in business or in relationships that we see that others have.

We see the finished product of people's efforts but don't know the tedious process it took to get there. The same is true if someone is going to make a concerted impact for the Kingdom of God with their career.

"A Christian man is the most free lord of all, and subject to none; a Christian man is the most dutiful servant of all, and subject to everyone." -Martin Luther, in his 1520 treatise On Christian Liberty (also known as On the Freedom of a Christian) http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2012/october/bonds-of-freedom.html

Jesus has called us to live and emulate the gospel. This generation thinks that they are impacting the world by liking or unliking something on their Facebook page, while doing nothing in reality. This is a deception. Low commitment, spotty contributions have relatively zero impact on the world in which we actually live. Giving online commentaries on the world does not mean that you are helping it. Engaging God and others for Jesus and the gospel, does (i.e. - mentoring children).

What, then, should be your Christian ambition in the workplace?

Jesus Christ was the fulfillment of all that was foreshadowed in the Old Testament and is our perfect king, high priest, prophet, teacher, and God. As a Christian, you are called to be part of a kingdom of priests. This means that you have both a kingly and priestly responsibility where you live and work. As a co-heir with Jesus Christ, a Christian is left in society to rule as God would.

You do this by lifting others and their performance around you so that every customer, employee, and employer receives an increase from your contribution.

You should worship God in your workplace. Work should be worship.

1) As a king or queen

“When you were made a leader you weren't given a crown, you were given the responsibility to bring out the best in others.” ― Jack Welch

You are to be a profitable, restorative agent of the Kingdom of God within your workplace through humble, diligent service to your customers, co-workers, and superiors. This is what it means to be a servant leader and it is your responsibility to bring character, integrity, ethics, and cultivation of the world around you through your work. People, communities, and the culture in which you live should benefit and reflect more of God's glory because of your involvement with them. It should be your daily prayer to find wisdom through which you can do this.

“For you,” God says, “the route to gaining influence is not taking power. Influence gained through power and control doesn’t really change society; it doesn’t change hearts. I’m calling you to a totally different approach. Be so sacrificially loving that the people around you, who don’t believe what you believe, will soon be unable to imagine the place without you. They’ll trust you because they see that you’re not only out for yourself, but out for them, too. When they voluntarily begin to look up to you because of the attractiveness of your service and love, you’ll have real influence.” — Tim Keller, King’s Cross

2) As a priest

Being high powered in business and industry does not mean that you have it together in your private life or home. Our detox centers are filled with those who have come to understand this through hitting rock bottom or the intervention of loved ones. You can not close your eyes to those who need Jesus around you and expect to be found innocent by God. No child of God is meant to remain an infant. However, if you look at the church in America, surrounded by comforts, this is where most of us remain. The individual who won't grow up and lives for selfish pleasures will eventually be judged.

Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter. If you say, “But we knew nothing about this,” does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who guards your life know it? Will he not repay everyone according to what they have done? (Proverbs 24:11, 12 NIV)

“Human happiness and moral duty are inseparably connected.” ― George Washington

Programs like AA have helped countless people, and we hope to have our own Christ-centered support groups in the church. As you are excellent in your responsibilities and live as a servant leader, work will also be your mission field through which you have opportunity to minister through the relationships built there. Wait for them, and God will open doors in the most unexpected places.

We need you who are already established in the faith to be the older brothers and sisters, that as we are crying out for this city, are helping to build the family of God through your giving, prayers, and sacrificial living. It is so that communities can be rebuilt, our city transformed, and your work life be a vehicle, through which all of this occurs. It is so that lives can be saved through meeting King Jesus, being transformed by the power of His love demonstrated on the cross.

Second City Church- Second Look Sermon Series 2013

Idol Wealth

Second Look: Idol Wealth

[powerpress] When we speak of Jesus being Lord of our lives, we must address the things that are most dear to us. These things are our relationships, how we spend our time, and what we do with our money. They are also the things that we try to relegate to a separate realm, detaching them from our devotional life so we can think ourselves spiritual, while leaving these areas untouched. Jesus makes it clear that this mentality is a deception.

Matthew 19:13-30 (NIV)

13Then people brought little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked them.14Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” 15When he had placed his hands on them, he went on from there.16Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?”17 “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.”18“Which ones?” he inquired.Jesus replied, “ ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, 19honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’ ”20“All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”21Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”22When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.23Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”25When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, “Who then can be saved?”26Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”27Peter answered him, “We have left everything to follow you! What then will there be for us?”28Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. 30But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.

We diminish the values of the young and zealous thinking ourselves wiser with age. While this can be true, age does not guarantee wisdom any more than it does beauty. God admonished adults to become like children, yet never for children to be like adults. Could it be that the clarity with which they focus and the simplicity of their values allows them to be more pleasing in the sight of the omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent God?

An idol is anything that you serve above God and look to for your security, wholeness, and salvation. The things which are your idols are often right in front of you, hidden in plain sight. In the case of this young man, as in many cases, the idol in question is money.

“Whatever your heart clings to and confides in, that is really your God, your functional savior. ” ― Martin Luther

Chicago is an environment that will produce many who are young and wealthy. Regardless of who you compare yourself to, by the world's standards, you are wealthy. Idolatry begins in the heart and can be one of the things that it is easiest to deny. Many times you don't know what your idols are until you are faced with the threat of their loss.

“Rules for Self Discovery:

1. What we want most;

2. What we think about most;

3. How we use our money;

4. What we do with our leisure time;

5. The company we enjoy;

6. Who and what we admire;

7. What we laugh at.”

― A.W. Tozer

The Old and New Testaments have about 800 Scriptures combined regarding wealth, including verses on savings, investments, income, tithing, offering, spending, running a business, family budgets, etc. Jesus spoke about money about 25% of the time, because it has and will always be such a big issue in your life. Jesus' teaching ultimately comes down to your perspective regarding money, its source, and whether or not you trust God to instruct you about what to do with it.

“Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first.” (Mark 10:29-31 NIV)

Jesus promises treasure stored up in heaven for those who are generous, and eternal life to those who follow Him in His ways. However, the idolatry of greed attempts to choke out this promise.

Greed is taking more than you need of anything at the expense of others.

It becomes an expense when you have what you need and could do good in the community in which you find yourself, yet hoard or waste your wealth. It is the voice of community that can often help you to discover if the desires within you are pure or subtly sinful.

When the Israelites saw it, they said to each other, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. Moses said to them, “It is the bread the Lord has given you to eat. This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Everyone is to gather as much as they need. Take an omer for each person you have in your tent.’ ” The Israelites did as they were told; some gathered much, some little. And when they measured it by the omer, the one who gathered much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little. Everyone had gathered just as much as they needed. (Exodus 16:15-18 NIV)

One person gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty. A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed. People curse the one who hoards grain, but they pray God’s blessing on the one who is willing to sell. (Proverbs 11:24-26 NIV)

Are there needs in your community while you have more than you need? How has God blessed you to be a blessing?

Once again the solution to this is found in community. We know we're committing outward sins when we are involved in a physical act like adultery. Yet your tone of voice, for example, which can be rude instead of loving, can be unapparent to you without someone else who is objective helping you to evaluate your speech. In the same way, sins of the heart, like greed, can be worked out in community. A Kingdom like Jesus' is a society of interdependent subjects in pursuit of a common goal, the glory of their benevolent King and the well being of their nation. What brother or sister will you allow to speak into your life about such matters, advising you in how you utilize your money?

According to the Bible, it is the love of money, and not money itself, that is evil.

“When I have money, I get rid of it quickly, lest it find a way into my heart.” -John Wesley

The idols of the nations are silver and gold, made by human hands. They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see. They have ears, but cannot hear, nor is there breath in their mouths. Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them. (Psalm 135:15-18 NIV)

Jesus was trying to rescue the young man from this condition, but allowed him to go when he refused. There is a price to free will.

A curious Scripture was:

My shield is God Most High, who saves the upright in heart. God is a righteous judge, a God who displays his wrath every day. (Psalm 7:10, 11 NIV)

Wrath is not just in the terrors that people imagine of death, pestilence, or disease. Romans 1:18-28 speaks of the wrath of God in a different way. When God removes His hand, people are given over to their own self-imposed torment.

“There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, "Thy will be done," and those to whom God says, in the end, "Thy will be done." All that are in Hell, choose it. Without that self-choice there could be no Hell. No soul that seriously and constantly desires joy will ever miss it. Those who seek find. To those who knock it is opened. ” ― C.S. Lewis, The Great Divorce

People that I've seen in the city reflect the same type of attitude towards money as Gollum does toward the ring of power in Lord of the Rings, often with similar results in their lives. Money has not saved them, only isolated them and given them greater opportunity for disappointment, bondage, or despair.

Jesus constantly repeats the idea that you can actually lose to gain, and, in this case, generosity with wealth can collectively be used for much good.

Matthew 17:22-27 (NIV)

22When they came together in Galilee, he said to them, “The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men. 23They will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised to life.” And the disciples were filled with grief.24After Jesus and his disciples arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma temple tax came to Peter and asked, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the temple tax?”25“Yes, he does,” he replied.When Peter came into the house, Jesus was the first to speak. “What do you think, Simon?” he asked. “From whom do the kings of the earth collect duty and taxes—from their own children or from others?”26“From others,” Peter answered.“Then the children are exempt,” Jesus said to him. 27“But so that we may not cause offense, go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours.”

Obligation vs. Generosity

When you think of God and money, God has given directives that are both for your individual and our corporate benefit. The Old Testament pattern begins with our obligation as the tithe, which begins with the first ten percent of all of our income.

Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine. (Proverbs 3:9, 10 NIV)

It is what you owe God, and it is for your benefit as you remember that your source of provision is not your job, the economy, or your ability to hustle. It is the sovereign God who cares for all of creation and has allowed you to continually set your heart at rest in that reality by commanding you to give of what He's entrusted to you. Generosity is a heart attitude repeated in the New Testament that is modeled by God the Father giving His first and best in His only Son, Jesus Christ. He did not give a part, but all of Himself for the greater good. Generosity introduces the idea that the tithe is a floor and not a ceiling to your giving. When you give offerings above and beyond your tithe, this pleases the heart of God when it is done thoughtfully, cheerfully, and for His purposes.

What were the temple tax and tithe? What were they used for?

The temple tax was an annual due above the tithe and had a specific purpose to provide for the regular maintenance of the place of worship. The tithe was given for the food and what would today be the salaries, the basic living expenses, of the Levites and priests who were set apart for full-time work at the temple. God said to bring the full tithe into the storehouse, which used to be the temple, but today is the church. You belong to the universal church, yet are instructed to build your life and serve with others locally. In the same way, there is a practical side to the tithe being given to the local church of which you are a part. God says to bring it into His house, before your favorite charity. There is no biblical statement that says that it can not be split between churches, yet it is practical for the needs of the local house and the expansion of its activities to sow where you are connected relationally, serve regularly, and are being fed. This is the principle of taking care of the house that is taking care of you (Galatians 6:6). Additional offerings above your tithe to help the needy are always encouraged, which God will honor, bless, and add to your heavenly account.

When you give, as a church we hope to eventually do such things as:

1) Continue to pay for the use of meeting facilities as we perpetually to grow as a congregation.

2) Pay for staff members who can preach the gospel, teach the Bible, counsel the church, and administrate the ministry on a full-time basis (Acts 6:1-7; I Corinthians 9). Never forget, time equals souls in the Kingdom, and there are 2.7 million in this city to reach. Statisticians estimate that only 5% of the population of urban environments like Chicago are churched. This would leave an approximate 2,565,000, in the downtown area of Chicago alone, in need of the gospel.

The church will always be propelled by volunteers, but there are those who are set apart by God to expedite Kingdom activity as they devote their careers and livelihood to such a cause.

3) Provide help for the needy of our growing community, helping them to get on their feet (Acts 4).

4) Develop ongoing enrichment and empowering events/conferences to serve our congregation.

5) Supply children's ministry, discipleship, leadership development and outreach material.

6) Purchase additional sound and tech equipment for our worship.

7) Accomplish long-term goals such as developing job training programs for the poor, aid in widow and orphan care, and joining the fight against human trafficking.

8) Advertise the good news of Jesus through our gatherings to our city and beyond.

9) Help plant other churches domestically and internationally.

Everyone can begin somewhere. If every person began to trust God with such generosity, what seems impossible to men can be made possible by our God who multiplies and provides!

This subject is literally a testing of your faith and love for God's Kingdom as you ask yourself, "How can this be done?"

God is very practical and wants to change habits when it comes to things like credit cards, debt, and impulse purchases. When you see all of your money as coming from Him, it can be enjoyed properly, but also consecrated to Christ as you are on mission with Him with your resources. This is when you begin to, as people say, "serve God with your money rather than allowing money to be your god." You begin to work to live rather than living to work. In this case, money becomes your servant, rather than you being the servant of money. God wants to provide freedom to your perspective, heart, and life.

Changing your financial state, but not increasing your wisdom about money, will allow you to end up in the same boat you were previously. This is why we recommend such courses as Financial Peace by Dave Ramsey.

There are many false assumptions about prosperity in the Kingdom. In God's covenant and through His principles of wisdom, diligence, patience, and favor, He gives you the power to produce wealth (Deuteronomy 8). When you do produce wealth, it becomes a heart issue to stay close to your source. It is a matter of using wealth, no matter how much, for its intended purpose so that you are not only blessed, but, like God, are a vehicle of generosity to others. This is what the wealthy young man Jesus encountered missed, but it is the opportunity you are commanded to seize.

God shows us His miraculous provision when we follow His directives.

When you trust and obey God like a child, you are literally breaking the shackles of fear that have held you, and possibly your family, captive for generations. By acknowledging Jesus as your Savior and God as your source, you are freed through the discipline of giving from the idolatry of wealth. You can experience His miraculous provision as you obey His commands and serve our world.

 Second City Church- Second Look Sermon Series 2013

Forgiveness

Second Look Series: Forgiveness - Cole Parleir

[powerpress] Review of Last Week's Message

• Last week Pastor Rollan taught out of Matthew 18, and we learned that a child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven, because they are humble. They lack pride and self-sufficiency. • We learned that the greatest sin is pride, because it is the root of all other sins. • We learned that Jesus is the Chief Shepherd who came to save sinners and build His church. • Pastor Rollan laid out for us the difference between the universal Church of Jesus and the local church, saying anyone who believes in Jesus. and turns to Him through repentance and faith in His death, burial, and resurrection, is a part of God’s universal Church. One who sets his or her repentance and faith to practice locally is involved in the local church. Pastor Rollan defined the local church as:

o A house worship and prayer for all the nations. (Luke 19:19-48; Matt. 18) o A family where issues can be worked out as we grow together into the image of Christ. (Matt. 18) o A place of instruction and teaching form the Bible. (Acts 2) o A series of local bodies of government and God ordained leadership. (Acts 15) o A community of repentance and discipline. If you can’t be excommunicated, it is a social club, not the church of    Jesus Christ. (1 Cor. 5) o A gathering where the sacraments of baptism, communion, and holy marriage are practiced. o A haven of relational encouragement, fellowship, and accountability. (James 5:13-20) o A people on mission with Jesus. (Matthew 16)

Matthew 18:15-35 (NIV)

15 “If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. 16But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ 17If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector. 18 “Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. 19 “Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. 20For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” 21Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” 22Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. 23 “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. 25Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt. 26 “At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ 27The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go. 28 “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded. 29 “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’ 30 “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened. 32 “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ 34In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. 35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

Our greatest need is God’s greatest gift: forgiveness. Forgiveness from God and others are very closely tied together, with God’s forgiveness being the foundation for us to forgive others. Last week, Pastor Rollan spoke of pride being the chief of all sins. If this is true, then humility is the chief of all righteousness. Pride and sin separates us from God and people. Humility is the foundation for all relationships with people and God. The cross of Christ is the revealer of hearts shining light on our sin and our need for forgiveness. The cross of Christ defeats relativistic morality and actually unites all of humanity by making the bold, humbling, yet dignifying, statement from God, “You are all more messed up than you could ever know…and I love you more than you ever thought possible.” The cross truly is the unifier of God and humanity with Himself and each other. A humble heart accepts this level playing field, while the prideful heart rejects it.

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Romans 3:23-24

Our most important need: We’re all sinners on the same playing field, named Earth, and desperately in need of God’s forgiveness.

For God has bound everyone over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all. Romans 11:32

Have you come to a place of humbly accepting your status with the rest of the human race as being in need of forgiveness, or do you have a bumper sticker that with pride and assumption states, “I was born OK the first time?”

Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” John 3:3

Jesus shares with us the power and God’s acceptance of the sacrifice of humility through His calling of a child to Himself as the response to the disciples question, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” The child is reported to not have said a word, but simply to have trusted Jesus and obeyed, coming and staying in the center of the disciples. Jesus then takes their question of hierarchical concern and knocks it down with the answer, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” Whoa! Wrong question disciples, right answer Jesus! As long as we are worried about being great, there is no room for us in the Kingdom of Heaven. In the Kingdom of Heaven, all people, no matter of their role or reward level (yes there are rewards for serving God well in this life), will know the love of God fully, and they will not be concerned about greatness. The people who chose not to love God will not be there.

Why the need for humility and forgiveness? So that you can love God and serve God fully, for eternity.

If you, LORD, kept a record of sins, Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, so that we can, with reverence, serve you. Psalm 130:3

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. Matthew 22:36-38

Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.” Luke 7:47

The more we realize that we have been forgiven, the more we can love God. The deeper the depths of hell, the higher the highs of heaven! Since eternity is in our hearts, we can start experiencing the full life of Christ here and now!

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. Ecclesiastes 3:11

We become reconciled to God and are being reconciled to man.

This is so interesting! In Matt. 18:5, Jesus says whoever accepts one of these “children" in His name (i.e. humble disciples not obsessed with being great), He accepts him, too. There’s a spiritual principle of delegated authority here. When God sends a messenger, it’s not the messenger that’s important, it’s the author and content of the message. God is sending you as a messenger of mercy and forgiveness, in Jesus’ name.

Whoever listens to you listens to me; whoever rejects you rejects me; but whoever rejects me rejects him who sent me.” Luke 10:16 (Jesus talking to the 72)

Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Matthew 18:18 (Jesus confirming the Church's authority to invite people into the family and excommunicate them from it.)

Peter asks a great question in Matt 18:21: If I’m walking in humility like a defenseless little child, how many times do I have to be wronged before I can take justice into my own hands? Seven times? The standard teaching in Judaism at the time based on several Old Testament references was that three instances of forgiveness reflected a forgiving spirit, which made Peter’s offer of seven, a number which generally reflects completeness in the Bible, seem like the perfect answer (taken from an NIV study note). Today we might have said, “Wrong me once, shame on you. Wrong me twice, shame on me.” In typical Jesus fashion of cutting through the Law and traditions of men to get to the heart, He answers, "seventy times seven." Basically, “as many times as it takes.” Jesus again appeals to the truth that He has placed eternity in the hearts of men. If we are going to be with people forever, all eternity, we need to start acting like it now.

Matthew 18:23-25 (NIV) The Unmerciful Servant

“Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24 As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold[h] was brought to him. 25 Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt. 26 “At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ 27 The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go. 28 “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins.[i] He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded. 29 “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’ 30 “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31 When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened. 32 “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ 34 In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. 35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

The unmerciful servant owed 10,000 talents. One talent was equal to twenty years worth of wages for a laborer. Today, at 40 hours a week, at minimum wage in IL, one talent was worth $343,200, meaning that the servant owed $3,432,000,000. The servant who owed money to the unmerciful servant owed $6,600 in today’s money.

We can forgive, because we have forgiven. The One who owns everything has paid our bill, meaning we don’t have to collect what others legitimately owe us. Not only has Jesus Christ paid for our sins, but we have become children of God through Him, as well, and our Heavenly Father promises to meet all our needs according to His riches and glory. He paid our debt and gave us the world, if we obey Him, unlike the unmerciful servant.

An unforgiving heart is an unforgiven heart and is subject to torment... -The Reformation Study Bible note on Matt. 18:23-35

“What goes around comes around…until someone forgives.”—Cole Parleir

Supporting Scriptures

Do you have prayer blockages?

Matthew 6:9-14 (Forgive to be forgiven)

"This, then, is how you should pray: "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins."

 Matthew 5:23-26

23 “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift. 25 “Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. 26 Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.

 Psalm 130:3 (Forgiven to serve God)

If you, LORD, kept a record of sins, Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, so that we can, with reverence, serve you.

Matthew 7:12-14 (Do to others what you want done to you; it’s hard.)

So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets. Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.

Matthew 9:1-8 (Physical healing to prove authority to forgive sins)

And getting into a boat he crossed over and came to his own city. And behold, some people brought to him a paralytic, lying on bed. And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven." And behold, some of the scribes said to themselves, "This is man is blaspheming." But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, "Why do you think evil in your hearts? Or which is easier, to say, "Your sins are forgiven.' or to say, 'Rise and walk'? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins"-- he then said to the paralytic--"Rise, pick up your bed and go home." And he roe and went home. When the crowds saw it, they were afraid, and they glorified God, who had given such authority to men.

Second City Church- Second Look Sermon Series 2013

The Chief of Sins, The Chief Shepherd, and His Chief Objective

Second Look: The Chief of Sins, the Chief Shepherd and His Chief Objective

The chief of sins is pride, which is ultimately the root of all that separates us from God and makes us slaves of sin. Jesus is God incarnate, the chief shepherd, who humbled himself to buy us back from our slavery to sin. Now, his chief objective is restoring the world through His church that we might one day enjoy Heaven on earth.

The Chief of Sins

Matthew 18:1-14 (NIV)

1At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. 3And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me. 6 “If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. 7Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to stumble! Such things must come, but woe to the person through whom they come! 8If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9And if your eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell. 10 “See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven. 12 “What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? 13And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. 14In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.

There is a delicate balance between loving God with all of your mind and having the trust to receive instruction like a child. We are commanded to, and commended when, we do both. Pride towards God and others is what gets in the way of this.

"There is one vice of which no man in the world is free; which every one in the world loathes when he sees it in someone else; and of which hardly any people, except Christians ever imagine that they are guilty themselves ....The essential vice, the utmost evil, is Pride. Unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and all that, are mere fleabites in comparison: it was through Pride that the devil became the devil; Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind...As long as you are proud you cannot know God. A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you..." - C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Why the analogy of a child?

A child is a trusting soul. However, a child lost in a department store knows when they are lost. They have no trouble acknowledging it because they feel the fear, the anxiety, and the threat of uncertainty. Even if someone tries to help them, they are usually not open to a stranger's help, because they have been trained to be on guard. When they are found, they cling to their parent and won't let them go as long as the memory of that experience remains. This is how you will be when you have a true revelation of God.

Jesus said to cut off that which causes sin in your life. It is often pride when you have been forewarned of the detrimental effects of your sin but you refuse to cut off that which is destructive.

“If you ask me what is the first precept of the Christian religion, I will answer first, second and third, Humility.” – St. Augustine

Is Hell Too Heavy a Price to Pay?

In regards to hell, Jesus used the word Gehenna. Gehenna was a region where trash was taken and burned. When you talk to those who have been exposed to the church and the non-Christian alike, they bring up the idea of "hellfire and brimstone" preaching as if it is a slight on the church and part of why they have, in an enlightened way, opted out of such fear tactics to decide their fate. The popular opinion is that because the mass of our culture has rejected such an idea, it is no longer relevant or true, that it is an antiquated, outmoded, and primitive concept. You can deceive yourself into thinking that because the mass does not embrace it, you have the right, even the intellectually liberated obligation, to throw off such ideas or institutions that promote them. In doing so, you throw off Jesus, who spoke more about hell than any other teacher. The truth is that you will have to wake up to this reality no matter how long you put off the thought.

"Grace doesn't overlook sin, it empowers obedience." -Bill Johnson

It is ironic that those who ordered the crucifixion of Jesus were those who deemed themselves the most religious. They lacked humility and, therefore, missed the grace of God. The apostle Paul was initially no different, yet changed his speech from being a Pharisee without equal to the chief of sinners as he aged.

"Christ sends none away empty but those who are full of themselves." - C.H. Spurgeon

The Chief Shepherd

Why the analogy of the sheep?

We are like sheep, because we forget God's love and truths, wandering continually into the wolf's lair. Thanks be to God that we have a chief shepherd and under shepherds who fight for us!

The chief objective of God the Father expressed through his Son, Jesus Christ, is to reconcile a lost and dying world to Himself. This is the message of the cross where He is on a mission to create an ever growing community of worshipers whom He loves and who love Him! People often get offended about the talk of numbers in the church. Numbers are people, their stories and their lives, none of which are disposable to God. Jesus speaks in these terms and says very specifically as the good shepherd that He will leave the 99 going in search of the lost 1. He declares that there is more joy over the 1 found than the 99 not in need of His salvation. Make no doubt about it: We are here as a church to reach people with the love and gospel of Jesus Christ. He cares even when others do not. He is here to save and change your life today.

His Chief Objective

It is impossible to love Jesus fully without loving his bride, which is the church. It is difficult at times because of the pride in our hearts and the sin in our midst. Nonetheless, Jesus is building his church.

Matthew 18:15-20 (NIV)

15 “If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. 16But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ 17If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector. 18 “Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. 19 “Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. 20For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”

There is just as much religious, unregenerate behavior in the traditional church as the non-denominational church. They both represent cultures in which people can become comfortable and hide.

Who can be a part of Jesus' church?

Those who have been born again, having repented of their sin and put their trust in Jesus' death on the cross, burial, and resurrection from the dead are part of God's church.

There is a difference between calling yourself a Christian and being a part of the church that Jesus is building. Podcast Christianity is not being a part of the church. Nor is sitting home watching your favorite TV minister or gathering together with your Christian buddies. Though these are wonderful outlets for receiving encouragement, they do not encompass Jesus' requirements or purpose for His local body of believers. You must be engaged faithfully as a consistent participant of the church.

There is both a universal expression and a local expression of the church.

Wanderers and vagabonds only identify with the universal church because it is more comfortable. It lacks any type of accountability or pruning capabilities because there is no commitment.

The church is:

1) A house of worship and prayer for all the nations. (Luke 19:19-48; Matt. 18)

2) A family where issues are worked out as we grow together into the image of Christ. (Matt. 18)

3) A place of instruction and teaching from the Bible. (Acts 2)

4) A series of local bodies of government and God-ordained leadership. (Acts 15)

5) A community of repentance and discipline. If you can't be excommunicated, it is a social club, not the church of Jesus Christ. (I Corinthians 5)

6) A gathering where the sacraments of baptism, communion, and holy marriage are practiced.

7) A haven of relational encouragement, fellowship, and accountability. (James 5:13-20)

8) A people on mission with Jesus. (Matthew 16)

How do you know where God has joined you?

You begin with prayer, but it does not end there. I did not pray to find out whether I belonged to the Fisher family. I accepted God's providence. I asked myself the question, who is feeding me, clothing me and paying my bills? Who is teaching me to grow into a man and equipping me to survive in the world. That is my family, that is my home. It is the place where you were born (again), where you are known, where you work to make yourself known and have been asked to contribute as a viable member of the household. It is very practical and more obvious than it seems, but all of these ingredients must be working together to find your place.

A selfish Christian looks solely to have the church serve their needs. Though this is a benefit, it does not end there. If that is all that church is to you, you will ironically, in the end, lose the very thing that you were searching for. Jesus repeatedly said if you find your life you will lose it, but if you lose your life for Him and the gospel, you will find it.

I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. I have no one else like him, who takes a genuine interest in your welfare. For everyone looks out for his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know that Timothy has proved himself, because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel. I hope, therefore, to send him as soon as I see how things go with me. And I am confident in the Lord that I myself will come soon. (Philippians 2:19-24 NIV)

Laziness will be a killer in your walk with God. If you are only in the church as long as people keep you there, you will soon be out and find reasons to justify why.

Your love for God will be tested when you don't get your perceived needs met, but instead show up to worship God anyway.

“Do not be deceived, Wormwood. Our cause is never more in danger than when a human, no longer desiring, but still intending, to do our Enemy's will, looks round upon a universe from which every trace of Him seems to have vanished, and asks why he has been forsaken, and still obeys.” ― C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters

Don't look for things from people that should only come from God. This includes your security, fulfillment, value, and rest. Don't look for things from God that He has ultimately delegated to people. This includes your spiritual community, your accountability, and your practical outlet for service. You love God by loving His people and the world that He died to reach.

God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. (Hebrews 6:10 NIV)

Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. (Hebrews 10:23-25 NIV)

We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, “I love God,” yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother. (1 John 4:19-21 NIV)

I encourage you to ask the question as to whether you show up to worship God because you feel that you are being entertained in the place that you are. Being a part of the church is about worshiping God the Father, Creator of everything seen and unseen, through His Son, Jesus Christ. However, in the West, with our consumer mentality, we shop for the best experience that will satisfy our whims and desires. Many bring the engrained marketing slogans of our culture into the church and act as if it is a shopping network, rather than a family to which He joins you. We don't choose our family. God chooses it for us.

Offense will expose the true object of your worship. If your church experience is about you, and not the Jesus who is building His church, there will soon be some relational disappointment or rub to give you reason to leave, inevitably worshiping the one you were there for anyway.

There is validity to hurts that have been experienced in the church, i.e. - money or sexual scandals. However, we only get knocked off course when we had the wrong person on the pedestal in the first place. The object of esteem should always be Christ Jesus, the perfect one. It is then that love for His imperfect bride will continue.

Second City Church- Second Look Sermon Series 2013

Transfiguration

Second Look: Transfiguration

Matthew 17:1-8 (NIV)

1After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. 2There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. 3Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.4Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”5While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”6When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified. 7But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.” 8When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus.

The gospel is a message where the proof is literally in the pudding. Beginning with the historic life of Jesus, and continuing for thousands of years in the stories of those who would love and obey him, there is no denying the power of Jesus Christ to save and change lives.

The message of Jesus Christ is one of reconciliation and transformation, both of which Jesus exposed on the mount of transfiguration. Moses and Elijah appeared as representations of the Old Testament Law and Prophets that were satisfied fully in Jesus' life, miracles, coming death, burial and resurrection. He was and is the fulfillment of the law, the true bridge to relationship with God, and the ultimate means to fulfillment in life. The voice from heaven rang out, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” as a second audible stamp that He is our past redeemed, our present understood, and our future revealed. Christ's instruction gives purpose to your daily experience, his grace meeting our needs, atoning for our shortcomings, and providing direction for all that is to come.

“Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself." ― Leo Tolstoy

As always, Jesus is the consummate example of life in perfect relationship with our Creator God. He reveals His glory on the mount as a reflection of our metaphysical reality, that just as Moses would reflect the glory of God after meeting with Him in the Tent of Meeting (Exodus 34:29-35), Jesus now brings a deeper reality that we would literally be transformed by our relationship and continual interaction with God. It begins when we are born again. It continues through the process of Christ-centered, Holy Spirit empowered, fellowship encouraged sanctification. The more we seek Him, the more we become like Him. The more we stay away from the mount, the more the glory fades.

“The world does not consist of 100 percent Christians and 100 percent non-Christians. There are people (a great many of them) who are slowly ceasing to be Christians but who still call themselves by that name: some of them are clergymen. There are other people who are slowly becoming Christians though they do not yet call themselves so. ” ― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Matthew 17:9-21 (NIV)

9As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus instructed them, “Don’t tell anyone what you have seen, until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”10The disciples asked him, “Why then do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?”11Jesus replied, “To be sure, Elijah comes and will restore all things. 12But I tell you, Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but have done to him everything they wished. In the same way the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands.” 13Then the disciples understood that he was talking to them about John the Baptist.14When they came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus and knelt before him. 15“Lord, have mercy on my son,” he said. “He has seizures and is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. 16I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him.”17 “You unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me.” 18Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed at that moment.19Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”20He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you. ”

The point of the revelation of Jesus is not that we would reach some level of maturity or morality as an end unto itself, but that we'd be transformed as individuals and as a people into being the hands and feet of Christ in the world. This is His church, His body doing what He put us on mission to do.

Hope is one of the Theological virtues. This means that a continual looking forward to the eternal world is not (as some modern people think) a form of escapism or wishful thinking, but one of the things a Christian is meant to do. It does not mean that we are to leave the present world as it is. If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next. The Apostles themselves, who set on foot the conversion of the Roman Empire, the great men who built up the Middle Ages, the English Evangelicals who abolished the Slave Trade, all left their mark on Earth, precisely because their minds were occupied with Heaven. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this. Aim at Heaven and you will get earth ‘thrown in’: aim at earth and you will get neither. -C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity (1952; Harper Collins 2001) 134.

We fail to receive or bring healing at times because we've become so identified with our illness, ailment, or hurt, that we become more comfortable with it than without it (John 5). We appreciate the attention and sympathy that it affords us. We look around in the world and see that these are hard commodities to come by. Therefore, we maintain our corner on the market and settle in to what is debilitating, yet familiar, and, therefore, comfortable.

So they brought him. When the spirit saw Jesus, it immediately threw the boy into a convulsion. He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming at the mouth. Jesus asked the boy’s father, “How long has he been like this?” “From childhood,” he answered. “It has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.” “ ‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.” Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the scene, he rebuked the impure spirit. “You deaf and mute spirit,” he said, “I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.” The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, “He’s dead.” But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up. (Mark 9:20-27 NIV)

In this scenario, we have become so numb by the traumas that we experience that we can not envision life without the crippling spirit. We have resigned to thinking that it is just the way that things will always be. We pray sincerely, but need Jesus to meet us in our weakness of faith. The good news is that He does upon our renunciation of our sin.

“It is not the strength of your faith but the object of your faith that actually saves you.” ― Timothy Keller

Jesus told the spirit to come out, and never enter the boy again.

How do we ensure that the house is kept clean? When we repent, we turn away from our self-centered living, and we turn toward Jesus.

How?:

1) Filling your mind with God's word to continually reorient you to the truth.

To understand the Scripture, you should look to:

Memorize the Word (Retain it so that it is available and useful.)

Meditate upon the Word (Discover its meaning and application.)

Manifest the Word (Find a way to put it into action.)

2) Finding time for friends running hard after God to recalibrate your direction

3) Finishing and beginning each day with prayer to reorganize your priorities

Institutionalized Religion

Bad Religion: Institutionalized Religion

Bad religion is when people try to make God and His Church what they want them to be rather than the historic Jesus revealing and explaining to us exactly who they are.

We are bred in a society that despises institutionalism and formalities. Is there any value to it, and, if so, what is God's design for it in regard to the Church?

Matthew 16:13-20 (NIV)

13When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”14They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”15 “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”16Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”17Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. 18And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. 19I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” 20Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.

There is no getting past the issue of the identity of Jesus as a starting block. Otherwise, the issue of sin really has no bearing on humanity, because, who is really to define sin? Yet, if Jesus is really the Son of God that He says that He is, everything must follow out of obedience to Him.

This is why so many history channel documentaries, books (ex. Bart Ehrman's), and other commentaries are written about Christ.

A church is not the Church of Jesus Christ if the central element surrounding the Church which Jesus built is not the identity of Jesus, otherwise known as Christology. This is the issue in today's times.

The Church spends so much time focusing on trying to cut off the branches of people's sin, but none of it matters if Jesus is not who the Bible said that He is. This is the root and the way that we must introduce people to the truth of the gospel.

Chalcedonian Creed (451 A.D.)

In 451 AD, this creed was a product of the Fourth Ecumenical Council, held at Chalcedon, located in modern day Turkey. It was a response to certain heretical views concerning the nature of Christ. It ratified the orthodox view that Christ has two natures, human and divine, that are unified in one person.

We, then, following the holy Fathers, all with one consent, teach men to confess one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, the same perfect in Godhead and also perfect in manhood; truly God and truly man, of a reasonable [rational] soul and body; consubstantial [co-essential] with the Father according to the Godhead, and consubstantial with us according to the Manhood; in all things like unto us, without sin; begotten before all ages of the Father according to the Godhead, and in these latter days, for us and for our salvation, born of the Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, according to the Manhood; one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, only begotten, to be acknowledged in two natures, inconfusedly, unchangeably, indivisibly, inseparably; the distinction of natures being by no means taken away by the union, but rather the property of each nature being preserved, and concurring in one Person and one Subsistence, not parted or divided into two persons, but one and the same Son, and only begotten, God the Word, the Lord Jesus Christ; as the prophets from the beginning [have declared] concerning Him, and the Lord Jesus Christ Himself has taught us, and the Creed of the holy Fathers has handed down to us.

Timothy Keller commented that Jesus Christ is in the group of the top 10, three most influential persons, if not the most influential person, that the world has ever seen, while claiming that He is divinity. Keller notes that others have made similar claims throughout history but have been unable to convince anyone but a small group of unstable, marginalized, and disenfranchised people.

When they heard this, they were furious and wanted to put them to death. But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, who was honored by all the people, stood up in the Sanhedrin and ordered that the men be put outside for a little while. Then he addressed the Sanhedrin: “Men of Israel, consider carefully what you intend to do to these men. Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing. After him, Judas the Galilean appeared in the days of the census and led a band of people in revolt. He too was killed, and all his followers were scattered. Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.” (Acts 5:33-39 NIV)

Keller states that most influential people in the history of the world who have been great walked in humility and deflected worship. Jesus was both commanding in His influence receiving worship and humble in His approach. No thoughtful person can walk away from his life without studying it; you better know that He is not God because of the magnitude of His claim.

What makes a church?

It is the place and community where you grow in your love for the subject of all the Scripture: Jesus Christ.

Definition of ekklesia: the assembly, the gathering.

It implies not individual faith, but an active gathering of the believers.

The very definition of what Jesus said that He was building cuts against a sole focus on individualistic spirituality.

If you want to say you are a part of what Jesus is doing, it will be practically building this assembly of worshipers.

Jesus said that He would build His Church on the rock of the revelation of Jesus as the long-awaited savior of the world. Peter was also going to be a rock on whose leadership the mission of the church was advanced. What has your part been, and what does it need to be?

Timothy Keller's explanation of the Apostles' Creed ("Eating With Jesus" message): "I believe in the holy Catholic Church."

It has been said that sometimes it takes more faith to believe in the church, that it can be all that God has called it to be, than to believe in the Christ.

The Apostles' Creed was said at public baptism and was people acknowledging the accountable community of love to which God had called them. There is no sole independence in the nature of a Christian. To be a Christian means to be a part of the body of Christ. It means that you are an invaluable part of a larger whole that has been going somewhere long before you materialized and is dependent on your important contribution to move forward in health.

“The church and the whorehouse arrived in the Far West simultaneously. And each would have been horrified to think it was a different facet of the same thing. But surely they were both intended to accomplish the same thing: the singing, the devotion, the poetry of the churches took a man out of his bleakness for a time, and so did the brothels.” ― John Steinbeck, East of Eden

There are many good things that we get to enjoy and in which we get to participate as the Church:

Service to the widow, orphan, poor and disenfranchised;

The goodness of God expressed through signs, wonders, miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit;

Authentic, healing community;

That the Church is the pillar and foundation of the truth in society;

Leadership development;

And a place where people are given a reason for living, a purpose in lif,e and a sense of destiny.

Yet, none of these are enough if they miss the central cause of the gospel of Christ: that He went to the cross to die for sinful humanity's rebellion against God to reconcile a condemned world to the Father through His own life that would be sacrificed on the cross.

Matthew 16:21-28 (NIV)

21From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.22Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!”23Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”24Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. 26What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? 27For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done.28 “Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

“If you live today, you breath in nihilism ... it's the gas you breathe. If I hadn't had the Church to fight it with or to tell me the necessity of fighting it, I would be the stingiest logical positivist you ever saw right now.” ― Flannery O'Connor

The detrimental and immediate effects of our sinful choices are poignant enough. I would submit that our positive, godly choices are as well. Most people today think that they can live flippantly, apathetically, or lazily without any thought of God's recompense. It is a deception that is fostered by the numbing effects of the media and entertainment culture in which we live. In addition, we see superstars and celebrities make wrecks of their marriages and lives, but go on to their next film or contract with a fresh spouse attached and no report of residual emotional stress or smoke from their burnt relationships.

The ambition of our work life can have the same blinding effects. Jesus reiterates this point time and again, even in the Sermon on the Mount, but makes it abundantly clear that the decisions that we make today have consequences in eternity. This is the reference to the Kingdom of Heaven. (Pastor Rollan had a relevant Gladiator quote to share.) This is why we unapologetically say that our aim, focus, and goal as a Church is to win people to Jesus Christ and teach then how to live a life of fruitful worship to Him. It gives context to each of our days on the job and in school where God is using places, relationships, and opportunities to cultivate creation and usher in that said Kingdom. At its core, the gospel is not merely one of individual salvation, but that of the Kingdom, which is the rule of God brought through the daily decisions that we make. Each of these will one day be judged with either everlasting reward or unrelenting penalty.

Our Perspective:

We often perceive that we are encouraging God to do the real good when we give suggestions about how our time, relationships, careers, and money should be spent.

There is a difference between our perceived good and God's best. It is ironic that Satan offers what is seemingly good (in your romantic life, how you spend your time and money, etc.), but what saves lives is God's best. How often, with good intentions, have we been like Peter?

Often, what we are doing is trying to find the path of least resistance or the least amount of sacrifice. If we can do good with as little effort as possible, we will still feel good about ourselves and be able to say that we've contributed to the common good. However, what Jesus makes clear is that He wants nothing less than the whole of our lives. Where do we have in mind the things of men rather than the things of God?

His Perfection:

Because Jesus has made His mission plain, the clear answer is to resign to imagining, "If I were actually an avatar for Jesus in my workplace, in my friendship group, in my family, what would He do with the time, opportunities, and relationships that He's given?"

This faith is continually defined as a trust in Jesus, what He has done for you, and the subsequent life of love and obedience that follows through the power of the Holy Spirit in the Christian.

Second City Church- Bad Religion Sermon Series 2013

Cleanliness is Next to Godliness

Bad Religion: Cleanliness Is Next To Godliness

Many people think that religion is all about rules rather than relationship. When this is one's mentality, it is second nature to focus on outward appearances and practices rather than what is developing inwardly. In this way, it is easy to harbor a Pharisaical heart as we think that we have arrived simply because we have jumped through several religious hoops. Rather than continuing to become more godly, we stagnate, spending our time judging, criticizing and making trouble for those who would otherwise be on mission with Christ.

Matthew 15:1-20 (NIV)

1Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, 2“Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don’t wash their hands before they eat!” 3Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? 4For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’ 5But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is ‘devoted to God,’ 6they are not to ‘honor their father or mother’ with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition. 7You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you: 8 “ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. 9 They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules.’ ”10Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand. 11What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.” 12Then the disciples came to him and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?” 13He replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots. 14Leave them; they are blind guides. If the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” 15Peter said, “Explain the parable to us.” 16 “Are you still so dull?” Jesus asked them. 17“Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? 18But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them. 19For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. 20These are what defile a person; but eating with unwashed hands does not defile them.”

Verse 1 makes it clear that bad religion begins when you try to equate the traditions and culture of your previous church or job experience, "the way they did things when and where you were coming up," to the way that things should be done everywhere. There is a difference between the individual practices of Christian households, churches, or businesses, which vary, and the commands of God, which are universal. We are obligated to the commands of God, and we must be discerning to make sure that we have the ability to meet with Christ in any environment, without judgment, regardless of our preferences.

We project our preferences and traditions as law when they are not. This can apply to a style of worship, music, liturgy, order of services, how people dress, whether people drink socially without getting drunk or not, etc. At work, we dislike how co-workers do things and begin to develop cases against them. Jesus makes the washing of the hands a heart issue of the Pharisees who were critical rather than a correction point for the disciples who were ardently pursuing the mission of Christ.

Whether in the workplace or in the church, our first posture should be that of believing the best about others (especially Christians) and remembering love which covers over all wrongs.

Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers over all wrongs. (Proverbs 10:12 NIV)

If the situation becomes an issue in your heart or sin is involved, humility and quick, thoughtful discussion are the godly policy when we are unsure about practice (Matthew 5:23-26). Our natural proclivity is to fall into isolation and judgment like the separatist Pharisees when things are in question, but this breeds faction and sin. You must know where and to whom (what group of believers) you belong in the body of Christ that you may go to leadership when questions arise. It is always wiser to begin by going up the chain of age and experience than down the chain of zeal and pride.

Leviticus 19:17,18 (NIV)

17“ ‘Do not hate a fellow Israelite in your heart. Rebuke your neighbor frankly so you will not share in their guilt. 18“ ‘Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.

I Timothy 5:1,2 (NIV)

1Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers, 2older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity.

Hebrews 13:7,17 (NIV)

7Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.17Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account. Do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you.

These are good practices in the church and in the workplace. Remember Rehoboam's folly in I Kings 13.

These are difficult propositions in our culture, because no one knows where they belong. In our globalized, über-connected, technology saturated society, we feel that we do not have to build relationship with people locally, because we can get what we want, when we want it, extra-locally. In this scenario, people don't know their community or their leaders. The over-indulgence in Skype, G-chats, Facebook, and Twitter can have you neglect the cultivation of relationships locally to which God has called you and through which He will shape your character.

Proverbs 27:10 (NIV)

10Do not forsake your friend or a friend of your family, and do not go to your relative’s house when disaster strikes you— better a neighbor nearby than a relative far away.

“The virtuous man contents himself with dreaming that which the wicked man does in actual life.” ― Sigmund Freud, The Interpretation of Dreams

The challenge is the phenomenon of the frog boiling in the kettle. We don't think certain habits are an issue, because our standards continually shift. Sins become more and more imperceptible as wickedness increases in our environment. We lose our sensitivity to the Holy Spirit, our conscience, and the law of God written upon it. It is like a smell in a room that you no longer detect once you've been immersed in it. You no longer compare yourself to Christ to please God; you instead compare yourself to others who are fallen and are on a downward slope.

A recent Crest White Strips commercial made the claim that, "If you are not whitening, you are yellowing." This is true in our growth in God as well.

Jesus makes it very clear that we can have a good looking outward appearance but have our hearts very removed from Him. Even worse is the deception of thinking that we are in alignment with Him when our actions have missed His heart altogether.

Examples of the sins of the heart Jesus describes: murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander, which means abusive speech against someone or something: wounding one's reputation.

The Greek definition of "defiles" is to make common or unclean, pollute.

The real defilement comes when these pollutants which are of great concern to God become commonplace to us. We no longer walk in love with our families, church, or world around us, becoming an agent that tears down rather than builds up. These are the things for which the church is guilty, while we point fingers at more taboo sins.

It is always the proclivity of human beings to elevate one sin over another, but Jesus says they are equally destructive and deserving of judgement.

There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community. (Proverbs 6:16-19 NIV)

The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to the inmost parts. (Proverbs 18:8 NIV)

Without wood a fire goes out; without a gossip a quarrel dies down. As charcoal to embers and as wood to fire, so is a quarrelsome person for kindling strife. The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to the inmost parts. Like a coating of silver dross on earthenware are fervent lips with an evil heart. Enemies disguise themselves with their lips, but in their hearts they harbor deceit. Though their speech is charming, do not believe them, for seven abominations fill their hearts. Their malice may be concealed by deception, but their wickedness will be exposed in the assembly. (Proverbs 26:20-26 NIV)

How do I know if an issue is legitimate?

Is it sin? If not, it may be simply your preference, tradition, or opinion. In this case, make sure that you have not been deceived and allowed sin into your heart (Romans 14,15).

When we think we know everything and do not follow God's protocol for relationships, we end up in sin refusing to interact as Jesus Himself would. This is where patterns develop as Pharisaical Christians hop from one job or church to another never learning to deal with conflict in a godly, submissive fashion in which believers put the mission of Christ above their own opinions. What we do in one job or church is in our hearts more than the environment and will undoubtedly follow us to the next assembly. People fall prey to the divisive spirit of the enemy (Psalm 2), being irresponsible and destructive with both their words and actions. Rather than resisting the devil in the unseen world, they join into accusation and become a hindrance rather than a help to the gospel. This is where grudges begin as we gossip instead of praying for people. In such instances, we are commanded to repent.

“Our love grows soft if it is not strengthened by truth, and our truth grows hard if it is not softened by love.” ― John R.W. Stott

Bad religion is individual sin centered vs. Christ centered. The good news of the gospel is that through Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection, as we turn from outward corruption, an ongoing inward cleansing takes place as well. Our hearts are continually softened and transformed as we look to God's Word for direction, remain malleable in prayer, and humbled in our faithful interactions with one another as we pursue God's pleasure and Kingdom together.

Practical:

Find a place where a sin of the heart has taken root in your life and cut it off by bringing it to God with trusted Christian brothers or sisters.

Second City Church- Bad Religion Sermon Series 2013

If It Is Going to Be, It Is Up to Me

Bad Religion: If It's Going To Be, It's Up To Me

The mentalities of bad religion are often relegated to the terrible weight of self sufficiencies. Jesus came to overturn such mindsets to bring us into the embrace of a loving Father.

Matthew 14:1-12 (NIV)

1At that time Herod the tetrarch heard the reports about Jesus, 2and he said to his attendants, “This is John the Baptist; he has risen from the dead! That is why miraculous powers are at work in him.” 3Now Herod had arrested John and bound him and put him in prison because of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, 4for John had been saying to him: “It is not lawful for you to have her.” 5Herod wanted to kill John, but he was afraid of the people, because they considered John a prophet. 6On Herod’s birthday the daughter of Herodias danced for the guests and pleased Herod so much 7that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked. 8Prompted by her mother, she said, “Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist.” 9The king was distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he ordered that her request be granted 10and had John beheaded in the prison. 11His head was brought in on a platter and given to the girl, who carried it to her mother. 12John’s disciples came and took his body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus.

“The world does not consist of 100 percent Christians and 100 percent non-Christians. There are people (a great many of them) who are slowly ceasing to be Christians but who still call themselves by that name: some of them are clergymen. There are other people who are slowly becoming Christians though they do not yet call themselves so. ” ― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

It is not a new concept to suggest that personal spirituality is a more popular position than being subject to a higher reality.

There is a different Herod in power in this passage than the one we read about in Matthew 1 and 2. It is a title like Caesar was to Julius Caesar or Augustus Caesar.

Herod Antipas, one of the sons of Herod the Great, is now in power in the region in which Jesus is ministering. Though Jewish in religion, much of Herod's life (much like those in the book of Judges) was about him doing what is right in his own eyes, finding his own truth. It results in a phenomenon called syncretism (for which the Herodian family, familiar with Roman mythology, were known), where people begin to blend different religions, cultures, and schools of thought to present a new philosophy to which they will adhere.

This relativistic position does not work if there is a real God. The contradictions of differing doctrines preclude such a reality and results in the fact that either there is no God (the idea which Jesus obliterated), or that not everyone is right. If the latter is the case, then this Father who is making Himself known shows the way to life, because He is the designer of life and will ultimately judge everyone in the end.

The Father heart of God also reveals important lessons from Herod's life:

1) People have no right to choose who is more important to God, to have prejudice against the wealthy or the poor in the church.

Herod, to whom John ministered, received an estimated 5 million dollars annually in tax revenue alone. John also ministered to the less affluent and graduated scale classes of farmers, soldiers, and tax collectors. The issue is that the whole world is bound by sin and needs the gospel.

John's message to this Idumean ruler reiterated the fact that the whole world will be held accountable to God.

2) God wants us to be students and adherents of his Word rather than cultural Christians.

Herod's response to Jesus as a possible resurrected John the Baptist showed a blend of theology, fear, and superstition.

When we view our walk with Jesus as a personal opinion rather than a truth that sheds light on the realities of the world around us, we fall into the same errors.

Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?"

“You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. (Genesis 3:1, 4-6 NIV)

3) It is important who you marry or link with romantically. So much of Herod's latter years were marked by manipulation and intrigue instigated by Herodias.

Herod eventually lost a pivotal battle to his former father-in-law, avenging his deposed daughter. Antipas was also eventually exiled with Herodias to Gaul because at Herodias' request, Antipas came against Heordias' brother, Agrippa I, to his friend Emperor Gaius Caligula.

Why did it come to this?

It was self-sufficiency. As Herod did, we try to get rid of anyone who may tell us the truth, like John the Baptist, who came testifying to Jesus, His law and His historic work.

We, like Herod, often fall prey to a fear of correction and the fear of man.

Many times we'll make the excuse saying, "If someone I trusted, who I know and love came and spoke to me, I would listen." But we don't. Or, we say, if God were really speaking, He'd send a prophet who doesn't know me. The truth is, we always find a reason why people speaking into our lives are unqualified.

If the only input that you receive is from a pastor on the opposite side of the country, who does not know you, via podcast, you will remain isolated and blind.

Let not my heart be drawn to what is evil, to take part in wicked deeds with men who are evildoers; let me not eat of their delicacies. Let a righteous man strike me—it is a kindness; let him rebuke me—it is oil on my head. My head will not refuse it. Yet my prayer is ever against the deeds of evildoers; their rulers will be thrown down from the cliffs, and the wicked will learn that my words were well spoken. (Psalms 141:4-6 NIV)

Jesus calls us to a place of strength and safety through a community oriented life.

Matthew 14:13-21 (NIV)

13When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. 14When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick. 15As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.” 16Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.” 17“We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered. 18“Bring them here to me,” he said. 19And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. 20They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 21The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.

“It is the business of the very few to be independent; it is a privilege of the strong. And whoever attempts it, even with the best right, but without being OBLIGED to do so, proves that he is probably not only strong, but also daring beyond measure. He enters into a labyrinth, he multiplies a thousandfold the dangers which life in itself already brings with it; not the least of which is that no one can see how and where he loses his way, becomes isolated, and is torn piecemeal by some minotaur of conscience. Supposing such a one comes to grief, it is so far from the comprehension of men that they neither feel it, nor sympathize with it. And he cannot any longer go back! He cannot even go back again to the sympathy of men!” ― Friedrich Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil

God the Father wants to break the the myth of bad religion that our life in Him is individual vs. communal.

Prayerless Christianity is a perpetuation of that mentality.

Psalm 127:1-2 (NIV)

1Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain. 2In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat— for he grants sleep to those he loves.

In these moments, we are more concerned about what we don't have than what we do have. The Father's guiding principal in our work, relationships, and ministry is, if we are faithful with little, we will be given much. We need to give all that we have to Jesus as stewards, and allow Him to multiply it.

The boy who gave Jesus the fish and loaves had what was equivalent to a single meal. You think you only have enough for yourself in life, but by giving your resources to God, it can help feed the multitudes. God is a provider, a multiplier, and He enables us as a people (like the disciples working together) to do miracles.

 Second City Church- Bad Religion Sermon Series 2013

It Is All About Me

Bad Religion: It's All About Me

The saying, "It doesn't matter what I do, as long as I believe," is often heard in Christian circles. Bad religion can be equated to a lazy man's philosophy. Though we are offered peace with God through what Jesus has done for us, the daily decisions that we make determine both our present and eternal destiny. To walk in a life worthy of the calling that God has placed upon us, we must understand the way that the kingdom of heaven works and acknowledge why what we do matters.

The Way Things Work

Jesus often taught in parables which were comparisons or similitudes explaining the dynamics of life. Jesus referenced the parable of the sower as of utmost importance (Mark 4:13), because it described the realities of a growing or declining relationship with God.

Matthew 13:1-23 (NIV)

1That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. 2Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. 3Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. 8Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. 9Whoever has ears, let them hear.” 10The disciples came to him and asked, “Why do you speak to the people in parables?” 11He replied, “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. 12Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. 13This is why I speak to them in parables: “Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. 14 In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: “ ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. 15 For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’ 16 But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17 For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it. 18 “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: 19 When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. 20 The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21 But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. 22 The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. 23 But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”

Religion is often thought to be a quick fix rather than a process of growth.

The four examples of responses to the Word of God being preached are different types of heart responses that we can have. The truth is that we determine what type of heart that we will have.

Scenario 1:

When we do not understand the depths of how God's Word should transform our lives, it is because we have not studied. Bad religion has you sit in worship gatherings endlessly, yet perpetually remain the same.

One who is full loathes honey from the comb, but to the hungry even what is bitter tastes sweet. (Proverbs 27:7 NIV)

If you are humble and hungry, you will find a way to continually find nourishment from and utilize what you have been taught.

Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long. Your commands are always with me and make me wiser than my enemies. I have more insight than all my teachers, for I meditate on your statutes. I have more understanding than the elders, for I obey your precepts. (Psalm 119:97-100 NIV)

To understand the Scripture, you should look to:

Memorize the Word. (Retain it, so that it is available and useful.)

Meditate upon the Word. (Discover its meaning and application.)

Manifest the Word. (Find a way to put it into action.)

Scenario 2:

People have no root (a private life with God as an anchor), so when opposition or criticism comes because of your Christ-centered convictions, you have no strength from which you can pull.

In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evildoers and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. (2 Timothy 3:12, 13 NIV)

The Greek word used for persecution literally meant: To harm, do evil to someone, ill-treat, injure; to prejudice, to create a bias against, ill-affect, or create antipathy towards.

The gospel brings adjustment and redefinition to our identity and character. Just because someone is bringing correction to your life does not mean that it is hate speech. In fact, Proverbs 27 continues to state:

Better is open rebuke than hidden love. Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses. As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:5, 6, 17 NIV)

Scenario 3:

In the world, people are driven by the strange combination of pleasures and fears.

It is the ploy of the enemy to perpetuate a paralysis in our routines to lead us to ineffective living where we make no impact for the Kingdom of God. It is much like the lion tamer with the chair in his hand pacifying the otherwise ferocious cat by inducing a lack of focus in the beast.

"It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased." - C.S. Lewis (Weight of Glory and Other Addresses)

Scenario 4:

Jesus is clearly looking for a return on His investment in us. A life that produces a crop 100, 60, and 30 times of what is sown into it, means that, through the commands of Scripture, our life is marked by the spiritual disciplines of prayer, fellowship, tithing and offering our finances, evangelism, discipleship, and service to faithfully, steadily, advance the gospel. This brings increase to the Kingdom of God through His church, which is to be the pillar and foundation of the truth in any society.

Why What We Do Matters

Matthew 13:24-43 (NIV)

24Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. 26When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared. 27 “The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’ 28 “ ‘An enemy did this,’ he replied. “The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ 29 “ ‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’ ” 31He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.” 33He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds of flour until it worked all through the dough. 34Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. 35So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet: “I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.” 36Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.” 37He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. 38The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the evil one, 39and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. 40 “As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. 42 They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears, let them hear.

The religious life is also often seen as a "good idea" rather than an assignment as you follow Christ. First, we can see that what we do counts, because, on the day of judgment, Jesus will have His angels separate the wicked from the righteous. The wicked will be cast into eternal torment while the righteous inherit the Kingdom of God. It is only through Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection that we are made righteous, played out through the obedience that follows our trust in him.

The church is to be the quintessential combination of both wisdom for the world's ills and virtue to provide manpower towards these solutions.

"Hope is one of the theological virtues. This means that a continual looking forward to the eternal world is not (as some modern people think) a form of escapism or wishful thinking, but one of the things a Christian is meant to do. It does not mean that we are to leave the present world as it is. If you read history, you will find that the Christians who did the most for the present world were just those who thought the most of the next. The Apostles themselves, who set on foot the conversion of the Roman Empire, the great men who built up the Middle Ages, the English Evangelicals who abolished the Slave Trade, all left their mark on Earth, precisely because their minds were occupied with Heaven. It is since that Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this. Aim at Heaven and you will get earth ‘thrown in’: aim at earth, and you will get neither." - CS Lewis, Mere Christianity, Part 44 (1952; Harper Collins 2001) 134.

Jeremiah 29:4-7 speaks of the importance of cities as centers of intellectual thought, power and commerce. The formulation of ideas in these centers shape society as a whole. Metropolitan areas were the focus of Paul's missionary journeys.

Have a vision to be more than transient in this city. The habits that you develop now are the ones that you will have later under more strenuous circumstances, only exacerbated. The disciplines that you develop in the rigors of the city can mark your life.

“The local church is the hope of the world, and its future rests primarily in the hands of its leaders.” -Bill Hybels

The rule of God is presented as a far better option in which to live all areas of life.

Matthew 13:44-52 (NIV)

44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. 45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46 When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it. 47 “Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. 48 When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. 49 This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous 50 and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 51“Have you understood all these things?” Jesus asked. “Yes,” they replied. 52He said to them, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.”

Bad religion is that which is compartmentalized rather than a life-shaping revelation.

A half-hearted approach to your faith was never an option in God's mind. We are to be on mission with Jesus Christ to redeem the world through his gospel, which is the only meta-assignment that will truly satisfy.

At the crossroads of calling, when you are trying to decide what to do with your life and time, a good question to ask is: "What will I look back and say that my life has meant in God - the only thing that lasts eternally?"

"If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world. If none of my earthly pleasures satisfy it, that does not prove that the universe is a fraud. Probably earthly pleasures were never meant to satisfy it, but only to arouse it, to suggest the real thing. If that is so, I must take care, on the one hand, never to despise, or be unthankful for, these earthly blessings, and on the other, never to mistake them for the something else of which they are only a kind of copy, or echo, or mirage. I must keep alive in myself the desire for my true country, which I shall not find till after death..." - C.S. Lewis (Mere Christianity)

Practical:

- Find one way this week to throw your lot deeper into Christ's Kingdom to produce a crop 100, 60, or 30 times what has been invested in you.

Second City Church- Bad Religion Sermon Series 2013

Bondage

Bad Religion: Bondage

Bad religion presents to us the idea that to follow God is to introduce us to a life of bondage rather than freedom. Nothing could be farther from the truth. To walk in the true freedom that Jesus Christ provides, we need to expose the deception of false freedoms, embrace the price of freedom, and fill ourselves with the fuel for our freedom.

The Deception of False Freedoms

If we are to be mothered, mother must know best. . . . In every age the men who want us under their thumb, if they have any sense, will put forward the particular pretension which the hopes and fears of that age render most potent. They ‘cash in.’ It has been magic, it has been Christianity. Now it will certainly be science. . . . Let us not be deceived by phrases about ‘Man taking charge of his own destiny.’ All that can really happen is that some men will take charge of the destiny of others. . . . The more completely we are planned, the more powerful they will be...

Of all tyrannies, a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron’s cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with the approval of their own conscience. They may be more likely to go to Heaven yet at the same time likelier to make a Hell of earth. Their very kindness stings with intolerable insult. To be ‘cured’ against one’s will and cured of states which we may not regard as disease is to be put on a level of those who have not yet reached the age of reason or those who never will; to be classed with infants, imbeciles, and domestic animals. —C. S. Lewis, God in the Dock

Matthew 12:22-32 (NIV)

22Then was brought unto him one possessed with a devil, blind, and dumb: and he healed him, insomuch that the blind and dumb both spake and saw. 23And all the people were amazed, and said, Is not this the son of David? 24But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils. 25And Jesus knew their thoughts, and said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand: 26And if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself; how shall then his kingdom stand? 27And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your children cast them out? therefore they shall be your judges. 28But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you. 29Or else how can one enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man? and then he will spoil his house. 30He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad. 31Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. 32And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.

Our present culture is bent on the idea of bolstering the mentality that whatever seems best to you is what actually equates to true freedom. Religion as a whole, and Jesus in particular, have been demonized, because it is thought that they interrupt our postmodern inalienable right for each individual to decide what is best for them. The problem is, that in reality, this is not how any viable relationship, household, or society functions. A lack of constraint by individuals strips us of our true freedoms as we move further and further away from imago dei, the image of God.

"The great church father Augustine taught that true freedom is not choice or lack of constraint, but being what you are meant to be. Humans were created in the image of God. True freedom, then, is not found in moving away from that image but only in living it out. The closer we conform to the true image of God, Jesus Christ, the freer we become. The farther we drift from it, the more our freedom shrinks." -http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2012/october/bonds-of-freedom.html

What people don't realize is that by throwing off the law, they are really demonstrating their slavery. Their bondage to lust, sexual immorality, drunkenness, perversity, hatred, discord, envy, unforgiveness, selfish ambition and all types of passions they cannot contain. The man who lives without the law has become mastered by the very things he was hoping to own and enjoy (Galatians 5).

There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death. (Proverbs 14:12 NIV)

The Price of Freedom

"The price of pleasure is pain. Legit pleasure comes after the price of pain. Illegitimate pleasure causes pain afterward." -Ravi Zacharias

The perfect law of God gives freedom: freedom to love, freedom from guilt, condemnation, and shame, freedom to obey, freedom to live a life full of purpose, significance, satisfaction, and peace, freedom to be who you were created to be. It is a false notion to believe that the law solely constrains you. As it does, it constrains a man from harm and walking to his death (Romans 3:23).

The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.” (Genesis 2:15-17 NIV)

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do. (James 1:22-25 NIV)

For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. For he who said, “You shall not commit adultery,” also said, “You shall not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker. Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment. (James 2:10-13 NIV)

Only the man who lives in perfect volition, in submission to the law, as an act of continued self-control and as a fruit of the Holy Spirit of God, can truly say he is free (Luke 4).

The Fuel for Our Freedom

“In religion, as in war and everything else, comfort is the one thing you cannot get by looking for it. If you look for truth, you may find comfort in the end: if you look for comfort you will not get either comfort or truth -- only soft soap and wishful thinking to begin with and, in the end, despair.” ― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Matthew 12:33-37 (NIV)

33Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit. 34O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. 35A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. 36But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. 37For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

To properly interpret and store up the good things in the Bible (a discipline called hermeneutics), ask these four questions as you read:

1) What does the Scripture say in its context? (A good commentary can help with understanding the culture and circumstances surrounding the text.) 2) What does the Scripture say about God? (This is what forms the foundation of your relationship with God through proper theology.) 3) What does the Scripture say about me? (This is what fosters proper identity.) 4) What does the Scripture say about the world around me? (This is what creates a worldview.)

Practicals:

1) Develop a daily time of reading and meditating upon the Scripture. 2) Join a community group through which you can identify areas of bondage. 3) Within the community, find the freedom of God as you tie up the strong man together in prayer.

Second City Church- Bad Religion Sermon Series 2013

Restored Hearts

Passion of the Christ: Restored Hearts

Jesus is passionate about restoring our hearts and relationships. To truly walk with Christ we must allow Him to reorient our perspective about the image of God and allow Him to establish a depth of relationship for us within the family of God.

The Image of God

“If you look at the world, you'll be distressed. If you look within, you'll be depressed. If you look at God you'll be at rest.” ―Corrie ten Boom

Matthew 12:9-14 (NIV)

9Going on from that place, he went into their synagogue, 10and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Looking for a reason to bring charges against Jesus, they asked him, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?” 11He said to them, “If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out? 12How much more valuable is a person than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.” 13Then he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other. 14But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus.

The world as we know it is out of balance because of the sin that has entered into it. The dysfunction hits no closer to home than in our relationships. However, it has not always been this way. The original design for love, life, and happiness was found in the relationship that mankind originally maintained with God, and is the one to which He wants to restore us. Though God cares for all of His creation, humanity has a unique place within it because we were made in the image and likeness of God. The perfect model of harmonious relationship is found in the Trinity, where the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit exemplify the life of fruitfulness to which He calls us as a product of our love for one another.

Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” (Genesis 1:26-28 NIV)

The Family of God

"Love does not consist in gazing at each other, but in looking outward together in the same direction." -Antoine de Sainte-Exupery

Matthew 12:46-50 (NIV)

46While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him. 47Someone told him, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you.” 48He replied to him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” 49Pointing to his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. 50For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”

The Church is to be a spiritual family.

What does authentic spiritual family look like?

There is a difference between your nuclear family and the distant cousins that no one talks about and you only see every few years at reunions. There is a different level of familiarity, intimacy, and commitment to a common cause. Though the family at large may feel bad when a distant relative falls on hard times, it is a very different responsibility that the mother, father, brothers and sisters have to help out (I Timothy 5). It is the same spiritually. We often want to be so non-committal that we ourselves belong solely to the universal body of Christ. While this is true, it plays itself out very differently than the unattached and unaccountable mentalities with which we want to live.

The Israelite nation was subdivided into tribes, clans, families, and individuals through which they received their inheritance. The reason so many of us feel like spiritual wanderers is because there is no attachment that we have to people that we call spiritual family. We like this though, because there is no church government when we sin (I Cor. 5), no personal accountability, and really no responsibility. We are free agents who are able to live as independently and selfishly as we want while really making no lasting, sustainable impact for the Kingdom. It's the American way. All over the world, people outside of the West take great honor and shame from what is derived from their family line. We remain infants (I Cor. 13) in our character, capabilities, and calling, because we do not realize that God works all of these things out in a family context (i.e. - mom and dad telling you what you are good at, brothers and sisters provoking you to excel). We are spiritual orphans who live like illegitimate children. Much of this comes because many of us have not seen healthy family dynamics, and we perpetuate the cycle of dysfunction spiritually and relationally.

What are some of the challenges to living like a family?

Managing expectations is the key to healthy, godly relationships. No one should live with a sense of entitlement, but one of thankfulness. No one is obligated to fulfill all of your desires, only God's (Romans 14, 15). When we live with this mentality, it helps us to live free of offense, with gratitude. It is then that commitment becomes a joy, not a burden.

If you are living without authentic, transparent relationship with other believers, you are living in a delusion that can inevitably lead to destruction.

Whoever loves a quarrel loves sin; whoever builds a high gate invites destruction. (Proverbs 17:19 NIV)

I know that I've spoken to many of you about this before, but, in the church, offense so often comes from unmet expectations. People today are in a prolonged college mentality and are disappointed, because they are used to a developed campus life where relationships were handed to them. We remain lonely as we pursue solo careers rather than marriage, independence rather than sharing life decisions or the spotlight with anyone else. As you get older, you must embrace the fact that you have to fight for relationship. You are able to go where you want, when you want, to do what you want when you are a child. When you have responsibility, you must plan what is important to you. Spontaneity can be an idol. The idea of things being "organic" can create a happenstance attitude towards the relationships that you cherish.

B and I plan family time and date nights, because it is a priority to us. The church is God's family, and we schedule times together, not because they are merely contractual relationships, but because they are a priority to us. We want to live alone to have our space but then suffer the effects of isolation as we come home at night. Offense in the Christian community comes when desires for relationship aren't met, but the truth is we need to renew our minds. At no other time in history have people lived such isolated and independent lives. In no other place in society do we have the freedom to schedule our lives as we do in college, with the mentality of putting in the minimal amount of effort while getting maximized results in return. You reap what you sow, and sowing is work.

Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!” (John 21:18, 19 NIV)

For those of us who think we can do without the priority of God ordained relationships within the church, this is what the Bible has to say:

An unfriendly man pursues selfish ends; he defies all sound judgment. (Proverbs 18:1 NIV)

A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire; He rages against all wise judgment. (Proverbs 18:1 NKJV)

How much time is literally stolen in offense, wasted time talking about the time that you don't have together, rather than enjoying the time that you are staring at one another face to face. (Rollan shared insights from his and B's early dates). It produces a cycle to which we are literally blind and perpetuates a rejection mentality. It is the same in relationships in the church.

Where can I build that family?

People say that I don't have relationship with others who I only see at church activities. I say this sensitively, but we are missing the point of these family gatherings. In God's eyes, church and small groups are the place to build intentional and deep relationships with other believers that continue to spill over into everyday life. This is the very definition of biblical fellowship, a shared life. We need to reorient our thinking, which has become subversive to any type of organization, and is. at its heart, anti-institutional. One of the greatest places to build the family unit is over the organized dinner table each night. It fosters stability, love, and an expectation of unity; that though we go our separate ways during the week, there is always a place where we come to worship God together and call home.

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. (Acts 2:42-47 NIV)

It is the independent and self-centered spirit of our culture that resists groups. Jesus taught, discipled, and trained his followers to turn the world upside down in groups. Even the Sermon on the Mount was like a Sunday sermon or small group where people came to be trained. That was discipleship. Any time Jesus spoke was discipleship. It wasn't just a personal counseling session. This is an American, not a historic Christian mentality. We must recognize the difference. Relationship should build as a continuation of these corporate gatherings, not in place of them or at the exclusion of the overflow. We must renew our minds about the gathering of the brethren to fully experience God and His people once we leave those moments.

“Any religious person who says he does not really need human friends because God is his Friend is calling God a liar because He's the One Who says we also need human friends." ― Mark Driscoll, Real Marriage: The Truth about Sex, Friendship & Life Together

He has founded his city on the holy mountain. The Lord loves the gates of Zion more than all the other dwellings of Jacob. Glorious things are said of you, city of God: (Psalm 87:1-3 NIV)

See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original conviction firmly to the very end. (Hebrews 3:12-14 NIV)

As far as God is concerned, it means something when we gather together as the church. As far as B and I are concerned, when we show up at church, it is a highlight, because our life is the church. We love the people God has joined us with, and it is never simply obligatory or time wasted. It is time for us to see those that we love and for those we love to form bonds to go deeper with one another. We are to be the church.

Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.” (Mark 2:27, 28 NIV)

The truth is that life is going to get busier, not less as you grow, have different responsibilities, and transition into different seasons of life like grad school, marriage, children, job promotions, eventual empty nesting, and retirement. God's Word and priorities are to be an anchor to your soul, keeping the ship at bay and remaining consistent throughout each of these seasons.

(Rollan shared an analogy concerning the maintenance of a car in the midst of changing seasons in Chicago: You may need to winterize the car, but you never stop putting in fuel, changing the oil and filter, or balancing and rotating the tires. They are universal principles that take you through all seasons of life.)

Your word, Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens. Your faithfulness continues through all generations; you established the earth, and it endures. Your laws endure to this day, for all things serve you. (Psalm 119:89-91 NIV)

Practical: 1) Set apart time each day this week to study the nature of God so that you might emulate it in your church community. A good resource is the book, Shared Life, by Donald Macleod. 2) There are so many opportunities over the summer for us to enjoy the city together at festivals, the beach, etc. Find one person within the church with whom you will connect on a deeper level over lunch, dinner or coffee. 3) Join in Jesus' common purpose and invite a friend to next week's service so that they too may experience this shared life.

Second City Church- Passion of the Christ Sermon Series 2013

Hearts at Rest

Passion of the Christ: Hearts at Rest

(Pastor Rollan shared about the September 9, 2013 hard launch vision after Labor Day (September 2).)

Though being the eternal God, who is the source of love, hope, and happiness, Jesus was often misunderstood and His ways mistrusted. What we choose to believe about God and His heart for us in the midst of an estranged culture effects everything about who we are and what we will become.

Jesus passionately invites us into His life by exposing the source of our discontent, encouraging us to recognize the signposts for godly decisions, and leading us to the rest for which our souls so desperately yearn.

The Source of Our Discontent

Matthew 11:1-19 (NIV)

1After Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and preach in the towns of Galilee. 2When John, who was in prison, heard about the deeds of the Messiah, he sent his disciples 3to ask him, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?” 4Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: 5The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. 6Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.” 7As John’s disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swayed by the wind? 8If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings’ palaces. 9Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10This is the one about whom it is written: “ ‘I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.’ 11 Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 12 From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence, and violent people have been raiding it. 13 For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. 14 And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come. 15 Whoever has ears, let them hear. 16 “To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: 17 “ ‘We played the pipe for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’ 18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is proved right by her deeds.”

“The punishment of every disordered mind is its own disorder.” ― Saint Augustine of Hippo, Confessions

It feels like we have too many choices in life, and no choice ever becomes the right one.

The question of Jesus Christ's identity and the subsequent life decisions that follow are defining our generation. Our inability to settle the weighty matters of life affect everything from our career pursuits, to our romantic relationships, to how we use our finances and time.

How Can I Be Sure About Jesus?

"Are you the one to come or should we expect someone else?"

Jesus answered the question by giving a résumé of HIS historic fulfillment of the Messianic prophecies (Isaiah 26:18,19; 29:18,19; 35:5,6; 53:4; 61:1). In the same way, God's Word gives us a clear description of what we are truly looking for in His design for life, love, and happiness. He said to study the Scripture to see the heart of this loving God, compare it to the freedom being produced in and around us through his Word, and contend to trust Him during life's challenging moments. After demonstrating his devotion to God, showing faithfulness throughout the entirety of his life, this is exactly what John the Baptist had to do during his time of testing in prison.

"What did you go out... to see? A reed swayed by the wind?"

Commentaries note that Jesus is here broaching the subject of instability and vacillation. Just as the reeds swayed with the wind by the Jordan, so we have a proclivity to lose our Christ-centered focus and resolve with every wind of opportunity or ideological challenge that comes our way. This is often the product of coveting people, positions, and things that we think will make us happier than what we already have, or what God has prescribed, as is referenced in Jesus' mention of fine clothes and king's palaces. We are deceived into thinking that there is always someone or something better, and it is the thing that we do not presently have.

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” (Exodus 20:17 NIV)

The images of their gods you are to burn in the fire. Do not covet the silver and gold on them, and do not take it for yourselves, or you will be ensnared by it, for it is detestable to the Lord your God. Do not bring a detestable thing into your house or you, like it, will be set apart for destruction. Regard it as vile and utterly detest it, for it is set apart for destruction. (Deuteronomy 7:25, 26 NIV)

Coveting is the source of so much discontent in the world. Sociological studies have shown that people in the West deal on a whole with more unhappiness than those in less affluent nations because of the number of choices that they have. It is the psychosis intrinsic to the fear of missed opportunity that has us refuse to commit to anything because something better may come along. This is true, for example, in romantic relationships where people refuse to settle on their present options, while picking apart every viable suitor that they may have, and, in the end, miss a life of love and happiness that could have been theirs. It is also true of churches where people look to give as much criticism as they can while contributing as little as they can, and, ironically, end up doing very little to aid in Jesus' cause to heal and save a broken world. The result is that people lose the ability to be fully engaged or make a lasting impact on anything.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/10/magazine/money-changes-everything.html?_r=0

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/27/your-money/27shortcuts.html

(All the people, even the tax collectors, when they heard Jesus’ words, acknowledged that God’s way was right, because they had been baptized by John. But the Pharisees and the experts in the law rejected God’s purpose for themselves, because they had not been baptized by John. Luke 7:29, 30 NIV)

Can you imagine John the Baptist's thoughts in prison on the eve of his execution?

If it was only a matter of whether his trust in Jesus was "working for him" rather than the truth of who Jesus is, John would have abandoned His trust in God. The culture today has told us the most important thing to remember is that it is all about us and our life experiences. A recent birth control commercial artistically promotes a trip to Paris and having the freedom to indulge in extravagant getaways as far superior to a life-time commitment of parenting. We long for, yet lack, the joys that only relational and Kingdom commitments can bring: i.e. - marriage, children, seeing lives saved and transformed, beginning a movement that will transform a city.

How do we make godly decisions?

The Signposts to Godly Decisions

Matthew 11:20-24 (NIV)

20Then Jesus began to denounce the towns in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. 21“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 22But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. 23And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted to the heavens? No, you will go down to Hades. For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. 24But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”

It is evident when our life is transforming for the good, when we are experiencing encouragement based on truth, healing based on love, and hope based on God's eternal promises. Though the people of the cities where Jesus ministered were in direct contact with the author and source of life, they deliberately rejected the signposts that would lead them to eternal life. We need to be careful not to do the same.

John's questioning of Jesus' identity came at a time of trial and discouragement. This is never the time to reevaluate God's character or identity. We need to instead find a place of sobriety by following Christ's example of quantifying the many ways that He has been working miracles in your life to bring you to Himself, His people, and the positive life transformation that proceeds from these. These are the signposts that point you in the direction of trusting His goodness in its fullness, even when we don't understand His ways or circumstances that He allows.

Why does this all matter? What we resign to believe affects how we think, how we live, and to what things we give ourselves.

What Jesus is calling for is a spiritual discernment that must become a quality that is valued in our day.

The simple believe anything, but the prudent give thought to their steps. The wise fear the Lord and shun evil, but a fool is hotheaded and yet feels secure. A quick-tempered person does foolish things, and the one who devises evil schemes is hated. The simple inherit folly, but the prudent are crowned with knowledge. (Proverbs 14:15-18 NIV)

Most people express preferences about God rather than making statements of truth. People feel today that truth can be defined by their preferences. It is the "Build-a-God" mentality. Truth does have bearing on and consequences for our lives whether we like it or not (i.e. - gravity, aging). This is how we must relate to Jesus because of His audacious claims. We must ask whether there is veracity to His teaching and self-proclaimed identity.

“It is an impressively arrogant move to conclude that just because you don’t like something, it is empirically not good. I don’t like Chinese food, but I don’t write articles trying to prove it doesn’t exist.” ― Tina Fey, Bossypants

This is never more pertinent than when our wills or ideologies are crossed by the God who made us and loves us. We tend to desire to reconstruct the identity and existence of God when He does not fit into our cultural or philosophical paradigms (i.e. - issues of family, marriage, parenting, finances, and sexuality). It is here that, while reasoning with the facts, we are tested to respond to God based on our trust of His goodness, rather than our emotional reactions to His desire to reestablish our identity in the eternal Christ in lieu of lesser, changing, and degenerative things. The quality of His definitions are far superior in grand scale wisdom, for both individuals' and humanity's flourishing.

Rest for Your Souls

Matthew 11:25-30 (NIV)

25At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. 26Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do. 27 “All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

“I have read in Plato and Cicero sayings that are wise and very beautiful; but I have never read in either of them: Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden.” ― Saint Augustine of Hippo

We want to walk in the divine tension that Jesus did, having hearts that are disturbed (with a desire to grow and see His Kingdom come) while being undisturbed (by the past, present or future. Romans 8. We can relinquish control, because we don't have it anyway. What we can do is walk with God as long as it is called today with His sure promise of eternal life for those who please Him.)

Jesus is gentle and humble in heart. He longs to show you the goodness of God, which can only be fully realized through a trust walk with Him, because everything that belongs to the Father has been entrusted to Christ.

Having the ability to take Jesus' yoke of teaching, the subsequent obedience in life and activities that follow will provide rest for your souls. Because of Jesus' life, sacrifice on the cross, death, burial and resurrection, it is no longer about what we can do to work for approval or God's love. The matter is settled, and it is all about what He has done for us.

Practically: 1) Identify the sources of discontent in your life and come to repentance where you find covetous tendencies. 2) Make a decision today to do something that will contribute to the eternal Kingdom of God through our local church. 3) Find rest for your souls by coming into agreement with Jesus Christ's values and pursuing them as your own.

Second City Church- Passion of the Christ Sermon Series 2013

Compassionate Hearts

Passion of the Christ: Compassionate Hearts - Guest Speaker Cole Parleir

Revelation: God is a compassionate and good shepherd who helps His people.

Application: Have you received this help and freely given it away? (Two types of people are here today: those who have a good shepherd and those who don’t.)

Ephesians 3:14-21 (NIV)

14For this reason I kneel before the Father, 15from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. 16I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. 20Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

Matthew 9:35-37, 10:1-8 (NIV)

35Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. 36When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

1Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. 2These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; 3Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; 4Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. 5These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. 6Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. 7As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ 8Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.

God is compassionate. Some Greek dictionaries say that the Greek word for compassion means “to have the bowels yearn,” to be moved with sympathy in your inmost being. This is God’s character. He doesn’t just feel compassion for people; God IS compassionate. This deep yearning characterizes the passion we so frequently hear and read about in reference to Jesus. We see God’s compassion in four ways:

The four P’s of Godly compassion:

1) Presence—He is with us. 2) Perception—He sees our plight. 3) Power—He heals us. 4) Pursuit—He empowers others to be His healing agents.

God’s Presence

The first aspect of God’s compassion is simply His being present. As we see in Genesis 3, Exodus 34, and Matthew 9-10 God is present with His people. He’s not impersonal and aloof. He is “in the mix” with us. He is in the Kool-aid, and He knows the flavor! He knows if its sugar free! He doesn’t just sympathize; He has empathy because of His presence.

“You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.” –Psalm 16:11 (NIV)

Many times we accuse God of being distant, faceless, and out of touch, like a father who has abandoned his children and left them to fend for themselves. This just isn’t true. God has gone to great lengths to reveal Himself to us. Ultimately, in the man Jesus Christ, but even for those who haven’t heard the name Jesus Christ, the book of Romans tells us that it is evident in nature that God exists, but we have repressed His voice (and His presence) through our persistent sinful lifestyles. A divine intervention is needed.

If we go back to the account of creation in Genesis, He’s present.

In the time of Moses, God proves Himself to be a compassionate shepherd as well. In the account of God delivering the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, He gives a sermon about Himself to Moses on Mount Sinai after Moses cries out to him to see His glory. The account reads:

4So Moses chiseled out two stone tablets like the first ones and went up Mount Sinai early in the morning, as the Lord had commanded him; and he carried the two stone tablets in his hands. 5Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord. 6And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, 7maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.” Exodus 34:4-7 (NIV)

Have you recognized the ever present God described in Psalm 139:7-8:

7Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? 8If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.

Today, God is inviting you into His presence like He did Moses and the disciples so that He can reveal himself to you and begin the process of redemption. As Moses brought blank stone tablets (this was round two because Moses broke the first ones in his anger) for God to write on, have you brought an accepting heart to Jesus for Him to write His self-revelation? If not, today is the day.

God’s Perception

The second aspect of God’s compassion is His perception, or understanding, of he dire situation of His creation.

“When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” Matthew 9:36 (NIV)

When Jesus is on the scene, He is keenly aware, like a good doctor. He sees behind the scenes of the apparent distress all the way to the root of our problems. He sees the spiritual warfare in our lives like no one else does. Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil. God is moved with compassion to help us, because He sees us.

One of my favorite Old Testament accounts is of Hagar, Sarah’s maid servant whom she gave to Abraham in her frustration of bareness. After Hagar gave birth to Abraham’s first born son, Sarah harassed Hagar out of jealousy causing Hagar to flee. When Hagar fled, she took her son to the desert, but God showed up and saw her dismal situation. He had compassion on her. He went to her, and He heard her and blessed her with dignity and prophesied of the future of her child Ishmael giving her hope. She then said, “You are the God who sees me,” knowing the she was seen and understood. This caused her to dig a well that future generations would drink from and remember the compassion of God.

Today, know that God is not only present with you in your affliction, but He perceives and understands your harassment. Do you know this? If you do know this, have you shared this compassion with others, like the many who were healed by Jesus? Have you dug a metaphorical well of remembrance that future generations can drink from?

God’s Power

God, in His compassion, is not impotent today; on the contrary, He is omnipotent. God is here, God perceives, and He wants to fix what is broken.

“Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness” Matthew 9:35 (NIV)

God the Father sent Jesus Christ to seek and save the lost as well as destroy the works of the devil. What are the works of the devil? The devil has been sinning since the beginning, 1 John 3 says. His mission is to kill, steal, and destroy, but Jesus says, “I have come to bring life, abundant life. I have come to forgive sin. I have come to set the captives of Satan and sin free. I have come to protect the harassed, to help the helpless, to bind up broken hearts, to preach good news to the poor, to heal every sickness and disease, to cast out demons, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the hearts of the children to the fathers. I have not come to condemn the world, but to save the world. I make all things new. I am called the Christ, because I am His anointed one with power and authority to bring the Father's will to pass.”

God does not tease us. I will say it again, “GOD DOES NOT TEASE US”! When he says He came to do all these things, He means it.

Today, God is here in power to give you a second life. Have you received forgiveness of sins and began to live a new life lead by this Jesus? Have you received healing in your body? Have you received grace to forgive your abusers like God has forgiven you? Today is your day of freedom and healing.

God’s Pursuit

Compassion is not content with the ninety-nine in the flock if there is one who is lost. Jesus is God in the flesh, the Christ, the perfect image of the invisible God. One thing He is not, is omnipresent in His human nature. He traveled all throughout the towns and villages, but the world is so ravaged and distorted by sin and its consequences that His compassion drove him to ask those who love him to help him and delegate His authority.

37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” Matthew 9:37-38 (NIV)

1Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. 2These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; 3Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; 4Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. 5These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. 6Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. 7As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ 8Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give. Matthew 10:1-8 (NIV)

The disciples had been with Jesus and seen Him having compassion on people. Compassion is contagious. When we spend time with Jesus, not only in the secret place of our prayer closets, but also in His work place, the world, we begin to catch His heart. These disciples had been approached by Jesus and called to follow Him. God found them. Now Jesus, with the impetus of His asking for help being His compassion, asks the disciples to pray for God to send out workers to preach good news, find the lost, heal the sick, and free the demon oppressed. This is very funny to me because Jesus is essentially saying, “Ask me to send you out into my field”. The disciples left their fields, their careers, and became laborers in the Lord’s field.

We must not say to ourselves, “This authority that was delegated was only for the 12 apostles and not for me.” Luke 10:1-21 (NIV) says:

1After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. 2He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. 3Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. 4Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road. 5 “When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ 6 If someone who promotes peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to you. 7 Stay there, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house. 8 “When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is offered to you. 9 Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ 10 But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, 11 ‘Even the dust of your town we wipe from our feet as a warning to you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God has come near.’ 12 I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town. 13 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. 14 But it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you. 15 And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted to the heavens? No, you will go down to Hades. 16 “Whoever listens to you listens to me; whoever rejects you rejects me; but whoever rejects me rejects him who sent me.” 17The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.” 18He replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. 20However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” 21At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do.

God loves delegating power and authority. He will continue to do so until Jesus returns and completely realizes God’s Kingdom and all the elect are brought under the head shepherd Jesus.

Practical Application

1) Who’s your shepherd? (Because we’re all sheep.) 2) Have you freely received? (Do you need forgiveness, healing, or hope?) 3) Have you freely given? (What have you received that you can give?) 4) Who have you been sent two-by-two with? (It’s a team sport.)

Second City Church- Passion of the Christ Sermon Series 2013

Faith-Filled Hearts

Passion of the Christ: Faith-Filled Hearts

Matthew 9:18-34 (NIV)

18While he was saying this, a synagogue leader came and knelt before him and said, “My daughter has just died. But come and put your hand on her, and she will live.” 19Jesus got up and went with him, and so did his disciples. 20Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. 21She said to herself, “If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.” 22Jesus turned and saw her. “Take heart, daughter,” he said, “your faith has healed you.” And the woman was healed at that moment. 23When Jesus entered the synagogue leader’s house and saw the noisy crowd and people playing pipes, 24he said, “Go away. The girl is not dead but asleep.” But they laughed at him. 25After the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up. 26News of this spread through all that region. 27As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, calling out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!” 28When he had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he asked them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” “Yes, Lord,” they replied. 29Then he touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith let it be done to you”; 30and their sight was restored. Jesus warned them sternly, “See that no one knows about this.” 31But they went out and spread the news about him all over that region. 32While they were going out, a man who was demon-possessed and could not talk was brought to Jesus. 33And when the demon was driven out, the man who had been mute spoke. The crowd was amazed and said, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel." 34But the Pharisees said, “It is by the prince of demons that he drives out demons.”

As we've unpacked Matthew's biography of Jesus, we see that it has been organized thematically to highlight express emphases of Jesus' ministry. This segment has clearly shown that Jesus is passionate about reaching lost people who do not know Him and healing the broken through His supernatural power. As we continue with the narrative, Jesus is ministering from His base of operations in Capernaum, where we find that He takes multiple moments to emphasize His passion for faith-filled hearts. The Bible provokes us to understand that Jesus is ready to work miracles as we endeavor to understand Biblical faith, learn how to create atmospheres of faith, and position ourselves to allow Jesus to meet us according to our faith.

Understanding Faith

Because of the stresses of life, the changing economy, and the mortality of human beings, we will all hit walls in our lives where we will come to the end of ourselves. People generally turn to either despondency or faith when they reach the emotional limits of their time, talents, and reasoning.

“Life, as we find it, is too hard for us; it brings us too many pains, disappointments and impossible tasks. In order to bear it we cannot dispense with palliative measures... There are perhaps three such measures: powerful deflections, which cause us to make light of our misery; substitutive satisfactions, which diminish it; and intoxicating substances, which make us insensible to it.” ― Sigmund Freud, Civilization and Its Discontents

At any point on your journey, you may find yourself like one of the four groups of people who encountered Jesus in need of a miracle:

-You may be like the man who came on behalf of his dead daughter - "I feel like something towards life inside of my family member or friend has just died - they've lost the will to live."

-Or the woman who came to Jesus by herself on behalf of herself - "I've gone to all of the best therapists, support groups, and doctors, but instead of getting better, it seems like I've gotten worse."

-You and a co-worker may be like the two blind men, possibly friends who came together - "We have no real direction in life. We don't know where we are going or why we even do the things we do each day."

-Or you may be like the friend who brought the demon-possessed man to the assembly - "My friend is literally oppressed in life. The trauma of life, seemingly otherworldly, has stolen their ability to connect with the world around them. It seems like they've lost both their voice and the capacity to relate to people in a healthy manner."

The good news is that Jesus is the living God who can meet us before, during, and after we hit these challenging times. When we see the people approaching Jesus, these are ultimately prayers synonymous to the manner in which we can relate to Him today. Imbedded in the encounters with Jesus was a recurring expectation of faith which moved the heart of God to intervene on behalf of those who would seek Him.

What is the faith to which Jesus responds?

Biblical faith is not just wishful thinking. Though believing in yourself or having a positive attitude is a far better posture than walking around hopeless, not every fantasy that we have, or even the hard work that springs from it, can produce a miracle.

Life in God is not reduced to motivational speaking. It is only the intervention of God that can restore sight to the blind, raise the dead, and even free us from our sins. Biblical faith is defined as trust - nothing more, nothing less. It means that you have believed not only in the testimony of the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, but that you continue to entrust yourself to the person of Jesus as He works in and through your life today. This begins as we submit to obeying his commands and continues as we make relational requests as we walk with Jesus.

If you are going to pray, you have to know the disposition and character of the one to whom you are praying. In this manner, the woman with the issue of bleeding was able to take a stand of faith, and Jesus rewarded her resolve. To persist in prayer and accompanying action, we need to offer at least three answers to the troubling question:

What happens when we have faith for something and it does not happen?

1) It may be a matter of fully comprehending the big picture of God's will (Jesus at Gethsemane).

God's plan is always redemptive as we maintain the posture, "Not my will, by your will be done." i.e. - Could it be that in your years of singleness, God needed your undivided attention to form your character and have your devoted time for the greatest amount of Kingdom advance?

Atmospheres of Faith

Seeing as He Sees

“We modern people think of miracles as the suspension of the natural order, but Jesus meant them to be the restoration of the natural order. The Bible tells us that God did not originally make the world to have disease, hunger, and death in it. Jesus has come to redeem where it is wrong and heal the world where it is broken. His miracles are not just proofs that he has power but also wonderful foretastes of what he is going to do with that power. Jesus' miracles are not just a challenge to our minds, but a promise to our hearts, that the world we all want is coming.” ― Timothy Keller, The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism

Our best decisions are never our first response decisions. We need to get before the face and in the counsel of God.

Nothing creates an atmosphere of faith more than a functioning discipline of worship and prayer. It is here that you are not limited to your immediate and limited assessment of a relationship, financial state, or area of health, which more often than not is negative. Instead, prayer brings you into the counsel of Jesus by first discovering the will of God through His Word.

You will always have people around who are "professional wailers," those who are ready to mourn over why things are the way that they are. These are the people who will mock and laugh when you say that God can work a miracle in your situation. They laughed at Jesus before He raised the dead girl, but Jesus put them out of the room to create an atmosphere of faith. Whose voice do you need to sequester in your life because it does not align with God's written word of hope that He is offering you?

Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers. Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to destruction. (Psalm 1:1-6 NIV)

What happens when we have faith for something and it does not happen?

2) It may be a matter of repentance from sin so that you might not gain the desired thing but lose your soul.

The Lord detests the sacrifice of the wicked, but the prayer of the upright pleases him. (Proverbs 15:8 NIV)

We only have so much emotional energy and space, so much time in a day. The things of God take focus and investment if they are going to be a completed work. (Rollan referenced the half-completed structures throughout the city as an example.)

The sin of coveting can steal the focus necessary to have a transforming faith.

Some of us need to disassociate with those who are dragging us down in sin. If they're not willing to come now, put them out of the room for a while until you have life and strength enough to be a witness to them. This is what the parents did. They didn't get rid of the family members and wailers forever, but they did have to create an atmosphere to strengthen their trust in Jesus to see their daughter raised from the dead. Practically, bar hopping may not be the after hour activity of choice for a while.

According to Your Faith

"Prayer is not overcoming God's reluctance, but laying hold of His willingness." - Martin Luther

What happens when we have faith for something and it does not happen?

3) It may be a matter of timing (i.e. the blind men and Joseph in Genesis 37-50).

Faith can be a process, as we see with the two blind men who did not get immediate answers. The result of faith is not a determination of how spiritual or not you are, it is rather a matter of the privileged decision and intervention of a loving Father who works out all things for the good of those who love Him. Some healings come immediately. Some come gradually. Christian counseling can be a fantastic way to have the Word of God appropriately applied to wounded areas, allowing us to unravel knotted emotions, relieve trauma, and apply the balm of right thinking. God has also obviously allowed medicine to provide relief from pain, help balance body chemistry, and treat symptoms. We always want to allow God to work through the various means that He will to bring us to a place of health and peace, while avoiding addictions that will strip them from us.

We go to either one extreme or the other: We either reduce our faith to a self-help program without real relationship with Christ, or we try to make it an independent study where we forsake the process of healing which includes other relationships in the church. Make sure they are the right relationships.

There are periods when it seems that Jesus is not answering, like the blind men who had no word from Jesus until He went indoors.

During that time of perceived silence, our speech needs to come in alignment with the word of God.

Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ. (Romans 10:17 NIV)

From the fruit of their lips people are filled with good things, and the work of their hands brings them reward. (Proverbs 12:14 NIV)

You can only imagine that the two blind men were reminding each other of how Jesus had healed others as they continued to follow Him in his silence, into the house. The persistence of their faith allowed them to gain an audience with Jesus and be healed. In the case of the mute who was delivered, the religious pundits proceed to give their opinion.

And when the demon was driven out, the man who had been mute spoke. The crowd was amazed and said, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.” But the Pharisees said, “It is by the prince of demons that he drives out demons.” (Matthew 9:33, 34 NIV)

Once again, it was the religious Pharisees, with their lack of exposure to and understanding of the spiritual realm, who began to denounce Jesus and call the very work of God something as having its origins in the devil. The same happens today and we must beware.

Take note that this was the ruler coming on behalf of the dead daughter, yet Jesus chose to resurrect the daughter. There is no mention of the daughter's request, the one who actually needed the resuscitation. This is a clear picture of our intercession which is expressed through prayers and ministry of the Word of God to others. Jesus is good to respond and work with you in the midst of your faith for another person. That faith can be used by Jesus to prepare the way for God's healing when your loved one does not have faith for himself or herself. In the other instances the people had faith of their own. In either case, we need to pray with tireless faith, giving Jesus the opportunity to move, and do so with community who will hold us up until we see the goodness of God.

“The great people of the earth today are the people who pray! I do not mean those who talk about prayer; nor those who say they believe in prayer; nor those who explain prayer; but I mean those who actually take the time to pray. They have not time. It must be taken from something else. That something else is important, very important and pressing, but still, less important and pressing than prayer. There are people who put prayer first, and group the other items in life's schedule around and after prayer. These are the people today who are doing the most for God in winning souls, in solving problems, in awakening churches, in supplying both men and money for mission posts, in keeping fresh and strong their lives far off in sacrificial service on the foreign field, where the thickest fighting is going on, and in keeping the old earth sweet a little while longer.” -S.D. Gordon

Practically:

1) Identify which areas of life you need to take a stand of faith to see Jesus work a miracle on behalf of yourself or another. 2) Find a way to replace the professional wailers with a community that will create atmospheres of faith for your miracle. 3) Establish a consistent time of meditation on God's Word and prayer so that Jesus can grow and meet you according to your faith.

Second City Church- Passion of the Christ Sermon Series 2013

Hungry Hearts

The Passion of the Christ: Hungry Hearts

Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him. (Psalm 34:8 NIV)

As Jesus looked to validate the fact that He was the God incarnate Messiah, the Savior of the world, he made sure to mark His ministry with the miraculous. As he lives today, He is still in the miracle working business. Whether it be through a restored body or a transformed heart, Jesus is passionate to have us taste and see that the God of the universe is in fact good. To experience this goodness we must have a hunger for change, desire to dine with God, and determine when to eat or not to eat.

Hunger for Change

Matthew 9:1-8 (NIV)

1Jesus stepped into a boat, crossed over and came to his own town. 2Some men brought to him a paralyzed man, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.” 3At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, “This fellow is blaspheming!” 4Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts? 5Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 6But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, take your mat and go home.” 7Then the man got up and went home. 8When the crowd saw this, they were filled with awe; and they praised God, who had given such authority to man.

All of us in this life have dealt with the consequences of living in a fallen world. Different forms of struggle are a natural product of this which Jesus makes clear are not always the result of an individual's personal faults. In many cases the challenges that we face are are the product of another's sin, like infidelity, neglect, or abuse. There are also circumstances where lives have been forever altered by situations like the bombings that recently took place in Boston.

Though being upwardly mobile in your education, career or station in life, the things that challenge us can turn into things that immobilize us on deeper levels, and will take the God of miracles to change.

Sin can paralyze us in multiple ways. For example:

In relationships, having seen things like broken marriages, we fear vulnerability to develop healthy relationships ourselves.

In pursuits, when finding worth in a godless measure of success, we limit our efforts because of a fear of failure.

In devotion to Christ, having seen hypocrisy, we emulate empty religion and never really walk with God.

In giving, having seen those to whom kindness has been shown be ungrateful or take advantage of us, we want to withhold our generosity.

Our own choices and sin can also be the root of our suffering.

A person’s own folly leads to their ruin, yet their heart rages against the Lord. (Proverbs 19:3 NIV)

“As I walked out the door toward the gate that would lead to my freedom, I knew if I didn't leave my bitterness and hatred behind, I'd still be in prison.” ― Nelson Mandela

This desire for change is the type of response that Jesus commends and the one to which He responds in the case of the paralytic.

What are the obstacles to a hunger for change?

A critical attitude towards those aspiring to bring about change is one of the greatest deterrents to seeing God remain active in a person's life. It was the religious people who made it difficult for the paralytic to get to Jesus (Luke 5), the Pharisees coming to judge and criticize rather than to help. They were more concerned about trying to catch Jesus in something that He said than the man's well being.

(This was my experience with a religious man last weekend who wanted to spend more time grilling me about what I thought about the Bible than helping me pass them out to those who needed them.)

The same is many times true for the irreligious. As we discussed last week, in the midst of the Gentile community where the demoniacs were healed, the people were more concerned about the income stream that they lost in the pigs rather than the men who were placed in their right minds.

Jesus, however, was passionate when He saw the faith of the friends. We should all have friends that will help us get to the feet of Jesus. This friendship wasn't instantaneous. It had more than likely developed over the course of time to the extent that the friends were willing to go to great lengths and take great risks for the immobile man. This is what your church community is to provide.

Dining with God

Matthew 9:9-13 (NIV)

9As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him. 10While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. 11When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 12On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Jesus works physical miracles today, but the greatest miracle is that of a truly transformed heart as someone chooses to leave a life of sin to follow Jesus. Jesus showed His passion for this in His very first miracle changing water into wine (John 2). It would be a seemingly insignificant display of power, except for the fact that He was demonstrating His ability to change the very inward composition of an individual, like that of the wine.

“Ought we not to look upon our own history as being at least as full of God, as full of His goodness and of His truth, as much a proof of His faithfulness and veracity, as the lives of any of the saints who have gone before? We do our Lord an injustice when we suppose that He wrought all His mighty acts, and showed Himself strong for those in the early time, but doth not perform wonders or lay bare His arm for the saints who are now upon the earth.” ― Charles H. Spurgeon

In this case we see the doctrine of election working as Matthew does not come looking for God, but God comes looking for him. Jesus approaches the rich, influential, despised man in love, calling him to leave his life and occupation of sin. (Pastor Rollan spoke regarding tax collectors in Jesus' day.)

It can not be overlooked that Matthew here made a career choice to follow Jesus. What we can learn is that our course can change when Jesus is calling us. Dining with God today means that we can practically hear His voice through the Word, prayer, and godly counsel. To keep in step with God, we need to build our lives around the eternal thing that we see Jesus doing in our lives through the community of faith to which he's called us, not just in response to the latest, coolest opportunity that we have.

How does our change affect our relationships?

In reconciling the hated tax collector to Himself, Jesus also reconciles Matthew to the people of God. He becomes one of Jesus' prominent disciples amidst men like Peter, James, and John, who He more than likely used to exploit. Matthew also immediately recognizes that if Jesus is passionate about him, He is also passionate about those who know Matthew, so he throws a party. In essence, he begins a community group for others to meet Jesus.

Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” (Luke 5:31, 32 NIV)

At the party, Jesus validates this effort when He says, to the surprise of the religious, that the very reason He came is to call those who do not follow God and the sick to repentance and health. We have all been a part of a lifestyle separate from the life of God and know others who now are. How can we, following Matthew's example, help bring them back? Organizing parties where individuals can connect with the people of God is a fantastic way to introduce people to the life and person of Christ.

The Jewish culture was rich in celebrations that commemorated God's goodness and allowed the people to spend concentrated time with one other building community resulting in greater worship of God. Our outings, fun gatherings, and meals should do the same.

To Eat or Not To Eat

Matthew 9:14-17 (NIV)

14Then John’s disciples came and asked him, “How is it that we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?” 15Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast. 16 “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse. 17 Neither do people pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.”

As we throw these reconciling parties like Matthew, Jesus shows us that we can and should prepare the way for His work with fasting.

Fasting is not:

1) Dieting - It is not the god-ordained way to get your bikini body for the summer.

2) A Requirement for your Salvation - It does not put you in a better standing before God. Only Jesus' shed blood makes us clean before God.

3) A Command - God will at times call His people to fast, but Jesus relates to it here more like a free will offering as you desire to go deeper in God or express your desperation to see him move.

Fasting is:

1) A Manner in Which We Humble Ourselves Before God - It is here that we acknowledge our own limitations and express our need for God to move on our behalf or on behalf of others.

2) A Sanctifying Agent - Combined with prayer, the focus of this time prepares a new wine skin in our hearts that allows us to have clarity of direction and grace for greater responsibilities.

3) A Sacrifice -

“Seven Deadly Sins"

Wealth without work

Pleasure without conscience

Science without humanity

Knowledge without character

Politics without principle

Commerce without morality

Worship without sacrifice."

― Mahatma Gandhi

Sacrifice is what Jesus clearly exemplified giving us 100% of Himself. It is self-denial that breaks the strangle hold that greed and our daily felt needs have over us. It helps to put things in their proper order and place. This is from whence the practice of Lent comes, but was never meant to be limited to that season.

Jesus fasted in the desert before the start of his earthly ministry to return in the power of the Holy Spirit to be a miracle worker on behalf of the people (Luke 4). As we change the way we offer the practical sacrifices of our time, talent, and treasure to build the Kingdom of God, we will be set free in our own hearts to see Jesus release His passion and power in the same manner today.

Practically:

1) Identify the areas of paralysis in your life and develop friendships that can help bring you to the feet of Jesus to experience the miraculous. 2) Throw a Matthew party with some friends with the goal of building relationships that will introduce people to Jesus. 3) Ask how you can sacrifice to bring breakthrough in the spiritual community in which you find yourself.

Second City Church- Passion of the Christ Sermon Series 2013