Seasons: Surprising Seasons

Seasons: Surprising Seasons

Pastor Rollan Fisher

Seasons: Surprising Seasons

Pastor Rollan Fisher

Some seasons you can prepare for

While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.”

-Genesis 8:22

The winter in Chicago

*What do you do when you find yourself in a season you did not expect?

Though we may be surprised, God is not, and has a plan in the midst of it all.

• What I wouldn’t have expected

• What I wouldn’t have done

• What I couldn’t have imagined

What I wouldn’t have expected

Our surprise seasons are for the advance of God’s Kingdom and for the believer.

And Saul approved of his execution. And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. Devout men buried Stephen and made great lamentation over him. But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison. Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word. Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed to them the Christ. And the crowds with one accord paid attention to what was being said by Philip, when they heard him and saw the signs that he did. For unclean spirits, crying out with a loud voice, came out of many who had them, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed. So there was much joy in that city.

-Acts 8:1-8

What I wouldn’t have done

Surprise seasons move you to do things you would not have done if left to yourself

“When a train goes through a tunnel and it gets dark, you don’t throw away the ticket and jump off. You sit still and trust the engineer.”

-Corrie Ten Boom

What I couldn’t have imagined

In the end, with eternal perspective, as we work with God through our surprise seasons, tilted towards him to ask what he wants to do with the circumstances for Kingdom advance, it will lead to exceeding joy for the believer.

-Galatians 4:13-14

You know it was because of a bodily ailment that I preached the gospel to you at first, and though my condition was a trial to you, you did not scorn or despise me, but received me as an angel of God, as Christ Jesus.

-Romans 8:28-39

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised— who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Second City Church - Seasons - Pastor Rollan Fisher 2019

Seasons: Seasons Change, God Stays The Same

Seasons: Seasons Change, God Stays The Same

Pastor Cole Parleir

Seasons: Seasons Change, God Stays The Same

Pastor Cole Parlier

Main Scripture

“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace. What gain has the worker from his toil? I have seen the business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with. He has made everything beautiful in its time.

‭‭-Ecclesiastes‬ ‭3:1-11a‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

-‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭13:8‬ ‭ESV‬‬

The Point

1. What is a ‘season’?

a. Definition

i. Weather effects based on timing

1. “each of four divisions of the year (spring, summer, autumn, and

winter) marked by particular weather patterns and daylight hours,

resulting from the earth’s changing position with regard to the

sun.”

ii. Circumstances based on timing

1. “A proper or suitable time”

iii.

1. “An indefinite or unspecified period of time”

b. Synonyms

i. Mature, harden, toughen, period

c. Origin

i. Root is Latin “serere” meaning ‘to sow’ and ‘time of sowing’

ii. Moved to Old French then English as “season”

d. Astrological

i. Seasons occur mainly due to earth's tilt on it’s 23.4 degree ever changing

(very slowly) axis. The hypothesis goes that the earth was rotating

straight until a “Giant Impact” knocked it off its original axis resulting in it’s

bent. This axis is very, very slowly changing.

e. Conclusion

i. In the same way seasons change due to the earth's tilt toward or away

from the sun rather than the earths proximity in orbit to the sun, our lives

fluctuate not due to our inherent closeness to God (because He’s always

near us by His Spirit) but due to our hearts tilt toward or away from Him.

Our souls can prosper in every season life if we trusting God through faith

in Jesus. Though we can be rooted in the love and favor of the Lord

Jesus always, in this life we will have night and day, winter and summer,

life and death, joy and sadness. We must remember sorrow lasts for the

night. The earth is spinning and joy will come in the morning.

2. Earthly life is seasonal, Heavenly life is eternal

a. Our perception of seasons of life (though real) and our power to persevere or

lack thereof within them can change vastly based on our spiritual position

regarding the Son of God. The sun is always shining above the clouds and the

Son of God is always reigning on His throne and by His Spirit.

i. “For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not

consumed.” - ‭‭Malachi‬ ‭3:6‬ ‭ESV‬‬

b. Abiding in Jesus, obeying Jesus, and applying His wisdom makes every season

and circumstance “beautiful in its time” as we speed the coming of the eternal

beauty of the everlasting kingdom of Christ.

i. We speed the coming by sowing to the Spirit and not the flesh, forsaking

the desire of the flesh and embracing the desires of the Spirit. This is the

out working of praying “your kingdom come”.

ii. If you walk by the Spirit of God in these temporary seasons you will make

the most of every season by bringing God glory, putting treasure in

heaven, and producing the fruits of the Spirit. (Galatians 5:22)

3. Your assignment may change, but your calling stays the same

i. Because your ever-changing calling is to be formed into the image of Christ as you love and obey God, love people, and pursue the “good works he prepared in advance you” (Ephesians 2:10) we must learn to recognize a change of season (assignment). You will need to reorganize, say yes and no to opportunities, to prioritize your calling. This is called repentance (changing your mind to follow Christ rather than the circumstance changing you).

ii. Learn to number your days so that you may gain a heart of wisdom for the gifts and callings of God are irrevocable. We need faith to stand on this!

1. “For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.”- ‭‭Romans‬

‭11:29‬ ‭ESV‬‬

4. God will help you not grow weary in well doing, to sow kingdom seeds in each season

a. “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also

reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption,

but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us

not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give

up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially

to those who are of the household of faith.” - ‭‭Galatians‬ ‭6:7-10‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Truths to know in EVERY season

1. In Christ God loves me

2. In Christ, I have God’s favor

3. God is always with me

4. What I sow I reap

5. God’s wants me to be fruitful

6. Mercy is available

7. Grace is available

8. Help is available

Seeds to sow in EVERY season

1. Love

2. Faith

3. Hope

4. Obedience

5. Wisdom

6. Mercy

As we sow the seeds of the gospel and produce the fruit of the Kingdom of God in every

season, we are fulfilling the prayer “Your Kingdom come and your will be done on earth as it is

in heaven” we are asking for God’s eternity to overcome the world’s temporal.

Questions for action

- Have you entered into the eternal season of the life and favor of God by accepting

Christ?

- Can you identify what earthly season you’re in?

- Are you producing spiritual fruit that honors God?

- What seeds are you ‘sowing’ in this season, is it to the flesh (temporary seed) or to the

Spirit (eternal seed)?

Conclusion

God wants you to be fruitful in every season of earthly life. He wants you to produce fruit that lasts. Today God is calling you out of the spiritually cold and dead winter and into the eternally favorable and fruitful summer of God in Jesus Christ. He is the eternally fruitful vine of life and you can be His branch allowing Him to work in and through you each day in every season. Will you turn your eyes to Jesus and let him reset your crooked off kilter spiritual axis by letting Him change your mind and heart? Will you let Him bring you into the everlasting season of the favor of God because of the eternal impact of the gift of the perfect life, sacrificial death, resurrection, and current heavenly reign of Jesus Christ?

The Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank you for your sovereign seasons. Thank you for diversity of life through challenges, struggles, joys, and even uncertainty. We trust that you are working out your eternal plan of salvation and redemption that began on the cross as Jesus rules and reigns at your right hand at this very moment. I confess when I don’t trust you and follow you, everything does not seem beautiful. You promise for all those who are in Christ we are seated with Him at your right hand in heavenly places. Help me to see from your eternal heavenly viewpoint that I may receive your comfort and confidence today and persevere through every season honoring and loving You.

Invitation to follow Jesus

“Then Jesus told his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”- ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭16:24‬ ‭ESV‬‬

- into the eternal life of Christ that overcomes every season here

More scriptures to meditate on

“For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed.”

‭‭-Malachi‬ ‭3:6‬ ‭ESV

‬‬

“teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

-‭‭Matthew‬ ‭28:20‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.”

-‭‭Psalms‬ ‭90:12‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

‭‭-Romans‬ ‭12:1-2‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work. Do you not say, 'There are yet four months, then comes the harvest'? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest. Already the one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. For here the saying holds true, 'One sows and another reaps.' I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor."”

-‭‭John‬ ‭4:34-38‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have the opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.”

-‭‭Galatians‬ ‭6:7-10‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.”

-‭‭John‬ ‭15:4-8‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day.”

-‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭4:18‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.”

‭‭-Revelation‬ ‭22:1-5‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Maxims

- Keep your eyes on heaven to be rooted on earth

- Be heavenly minded to be earthly good

Second City Church - Seasons - Pastor Cole Parleir 2019

Back to Church Sunday 2019: Part 4 “Servant Leaders & God’s Mission”

Back to Church Sunday 2019: Part 4 “Servant Leaders & God’s Mission”

Pastor Reggie

Back to Church Sunday 2019: Part 4 “Servant Leaders & God’s Mission”

Pastor Rollan Fisher with Guest Speaker Pastor Reggie Roberson

Growing up it seemed like the lead pastor of the church was supposed to be everything and everywhere?  The pastor was supposed to be at the hospital when every church member or their kid was sick. The pastor was supposed to be at every graduation from graduate school all the way down to kindergarten. The pastor was supposed to be at every birthday party.  The pastor was supposed to do every funeral and wedding even if they were happening at the same time.  The pastor was supposed to remember every person's name and take every phone call.  The pastor should be the best greeter, children's minister, youth minister, outreach guy, teacher, consultant, and adviser.  The pastor is supposed to do all of this while somehow giving his own family love, attention, and leadership as well as living off of a meager amount of money. 

I have two questions for you:  

How many of you would sign up to be a pastor like I just described?  

How many of you think that it is pretty unreasonable to ask one person or even two to do all of this?  

What’s interesting is that God also thinks this is unreasonable to ask of one person to do all of this.  In fact, God is grieved at anyone approaching church in this way because it hinders us in fulfilling God’s mission.   

• This approach to church deprives the pastor of having a balanced life that can serve God and others well without burning out.  

• This approach also deprives followers of Christ of using their God-given gifts, strengths, and opportunities to serve each other and the world.   

What we are going to see in our passage today, Acts 6:1-7 is God’s approach to fulfilling his mission through the church through servant leaders.  

1 In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. 2 So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. 3 Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them 4 and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word. 5 This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism. 6 They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them. 7 So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.

Big Idea:  We fulfill God’s mission by accepting His calling, appointing, and anointing.   

The first thing we read in this chapter is that there is a dispute between Christian widows who are Jewish (Hebraic) and greek (Hellenistic).  

1 In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food.

This is significant because it is the first time there was a dispute within the body of Christ or the church.  

You see, in Acts 5 the church has disputer but it was the religious leaders who had crucified Jesus earlier, who were not members of the church.  Peter and John had been thrown in prison and then freed by an angel to go preach the gospel again.  

Now this a dispute among widows threatened to undermine, disrupt, and stifle God’s mission to see the world come to know him.  Think of how the church would have been branded by people if they did not deal with this dispute well: 

• They don’t really practice what they preach.

• They are no better than the world, at least the world (jews) tried to do something for us.

• This Christianity is really a religion for one type of ethnicity; in this case the Jews.  

So what did God do in response to this issue that was going to hinder His mission to see more people know him and possibly rip the church apart?

We see God doing three things: 

Calling people to His mission

God uses this circumstance to wake up the church to His voice.  They become the woke church. 

You can hear God saying through this bible passage, “Look, I am calling you through a particular need to step up and help.  Why? I don’t want my mission to be hindered. I want my mission fulfilled and it’s going to require all of us to serve in some way.  The apostles accepted the call to delegate and not try to do everything so they can fulfill God’s glorious mission. While the church accepts God’s call by being problem solvers and actually serving and not being complainers.  

As the church, we are called to be participators and not spectators.  Spectators would look at the problem and just complain, fault-find, or say somebody else will deal with that issue but not me.  

We are called to be a part of the solution and not perpetuate the problem. 

Story Lilly Ferrick -serving the shut-in isolated/widow and wants to do systematic studies through the bible vs. pastor we should have this or be doing this.  

Can you hear God’s voice calling you to serve in a particular area?  

What problems or potential issues is God highlighting with you to solve in the church?  

What gaps do you see?

This is a moment for us to see what God may ask us to do in order to fulfill his mission as servant leaders.  

The next thing we see is God...

Appointing people for His mission

In this story, we find that the apostles and people have a very important moment of clarification from God about this issue of appointment.  

First, the church leaders realize they can not do everything.  They can do something and they prioritize two things. Verse 2 and 4 tells us.  2 So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. 

4 and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”

• Prayer private yes but more so with the community of Christ-followers.  

• The second is the ministry or service of equipping people to be able to understand and share God’s word.  

Without them doing this God’s mission will be stifled.  

It becomes clear to them that in order for God’s mission to continue they must share the stewardship of God’s mission with the church; it can not just be them.  God was appointing not just the apostle but everyone to help steward God's mission and promote it.  

So then they appointed some people within the church to serve the widows using their God-given strengths and abilities. 

This shows us two important truths:  

Every task is important. (Waiting on tables was not a menial task but was a way of caring for people God cares about. 

““Do not take advantage of the widow or the fatherless. If you do and they cry out to me, I will certainly hear their cry. My anger will be aroused, and I will kill you with the sword; your wives will become widows and your children fatherless.”

-‭‭Exodus‬ ‭22:22-24‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Parking lot team and greeters seems pretty unimportant right?  

Wrong here’s a survey feedback from a guest this past week. 

Answer the questions: What did you notice first?  

“The special attention to making guests feel welcomed. The yellow designations in the parking lot, guest tent & gift bag, guest greeter. Made us feel very welcomed and at ease.”

Every task is important

Every person is valuable. 

Every person has some type of ability or strength that God has given them to help fulfill God’s mission in the church and in the world.  It talks about the seven but the people had a role in appointing the seven.

My friend Justin Thomas was trained in being a health coach. He has a passion for young professionals, especially one’s coming out of college.  He decided in the church to lead our young professional’s ministry.  

Picture of CL Thomas fellowship 

Outside of the church, he founded an organization called CL Thomas Fellowship named after is dad in which he takes young men through a 9-month program where through books and discussions they are learning to be providers.  Providers bless and protect.  

What are you passionate about?  What ability and strengths has God given you?  Are you willing to use them to steward God’s mission for second city church? 

Anointing people in His mission

These seven guys are considered by scholars to be the first deacons to be appointed in the church.  The word for deacon in its original language is “helper”. Deacons are leaders in service as servant leaders.  The passage tells us that they were chosen and presented to the apostles by the congregation and the apostles laid their hands on them and prayed for them.  The apostles through this act of laying their hands on them became conduits for God’s power to be activated in the lives of the deacons for God’s mission. The power is what we call the anointing.  

Why were they anointed and not others at the time?  What was the basis of their anointing?  

5 This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism. 

• They were known by the people and did not have a private faith.  They attended church regularly, they went to community groups, and they were faithful. FAITH.

• They were seen as being men full of faith. They were not perfect but they had noticeable confidence in God.  They lived in such a way that their confidence in God was expressed through what they said what they did.

• The were full of the Holy Spirit.  This meant that the presence of the Holy Spirit, the fruit or love of the Holy Spirit, and they power of the Holy Spirit was present in their lives.  

What would people say about you when they observe your life?  

Do you stand out enough for others to recognize you as a man or woman of God? A follower of Christ?  

Does your speech and actions show you are confident in Christ?

If you are a Believer in Christ, the good news today is that you have been given a measure of faith and the Holy Spirit lives in you!  You can be like any of these men, fulfilling God’s purpose and mission for you life as servant leaders. 

Lastly, the reason God anoints us is so we can fulfill this great mission known as the great commission in and through the church to Make disciples of Jesus Christ and all of the groups according to Matthew 28:18-20.

7 So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.

When everyone did their part the church flourished and grew and lives were changed forever.  All of this is so that the mission that God had in Christ would be fulfilled. 

God became man in Christ and died on the cross for us to pay the punishment for our sins and provide forgiveness of sins, to bring us into an everlasting relationship as sons and daughters with the Heavenly Father that starts now, and to give us eternal inheritance now and in the new heaven and new earth.  Righteousness or right standing with God, peace, joy, and fulfilling our purpose are all a part of this inheritance.

We fulfill God’s mission by accepting His calling, appointing, and anointing.   

Second City Church - Back to Church Sunday 2019 - Guest Speaker Pastor Reggie Roberson 2019

Back to Church Sunday 2019: Part 3 "Unity with Diversity"

Back to Church Sunday 2019: Part 3 ""

Pastor Rollan Fisher

Back to Church Sunday 2019: Part 3 "Unity with Diversity"

Pastor Rollan Fisher

• The Unity God Desires

• Utopic Ideals

• Unmitigated Forgiveness

People who were committed to the gatherings of the people God (despite their differences with those gathered with them):

David - Heart differences with other Israelites

Jesus - Nature and Holiness

Paul - Gentiles

Luke 1 and 4 - the first places Jesus ministered were at the Temple as a boy and in the Synagogue after returning in the power of the Spirit

Unity God Desires

Jesus builds his church with a people of diverse ethnic, socio-economic, cultural and experiential backgrounds. We must celebrate this and learn to share life together as we are being conformed into the image of Christ.

A Song of Ascents Of David:

Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! It is like the precious oil on the head, running down on the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of his robes! It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion! For there the Lord has commanded the blessing, life forevermore.

-Psalm 133:1-3

Who is spurring you on to greater faith, love and good deeds In Christ?

-Hebrews 10:19-25

“Children will play with everyone until someone tells them not to.”

Utopic Ideals

Biases and offense are the killers of unity in the Church. We must resist both in the love of Christ.

How to Pick (be planted by the Lord in) a Local Church.

Once you have prayed and discovered that it is a Bible Preaching, Jesus loving church on mission, build life together with the church community.

Spending Time with people is the only way to overcome suspicions, misunderstandings and cultural stereotypes. You begin to see that people have the same hopes, the same dreams, the same aspirations, needs from God and fears. You all breathe the same air.

Intentionally develop friendships and have people in your home (a good read - Rosario Butterfield‘s - The Gospel Comes With a House Key).

“Diversity is being invited to the party. Inclusion is being asked to dance.”

-Verna Myers, VP of Inclusion Strategy at Netflix, TED Talk Contributor, Founder of the Verna Myers Company

Don’t be afraid to ask questions to get to know another person’s experience, perspective and pain. You unite Biblically around the cross and gospel of Christ.

-(Racism and Champ Bailey’s Hall of Fame speech - listen to those experiencing something different from you.)

Immigration and how to treat the foreigner

Humility is necessary on both the side of the listener and the one who shares. Dealing with things as a porcupine. The city brings out biases and accentuates issues.

-Unknown author.

v. 47 indicates they are in exile. A community lament. Crisis after persistent unfaithfulness.

Then they despised the pleasant land, having no faith in his promise. They murmured in their tents, and did not obey the voice of the Lord. Therefore he raised his hand and swore to them that he would make them fall in the wilderness, and would make their offspring fall among the nations, scattering them among the lands.

-Psalm 106:24-27

“The person who loves their dream of community will destroy community, but the person who loves those around them will create community.”

-Dietrich Bonhoeffer in Life Together

Don’t allow offenses with brothers and sisters to hamstring the work of God.

23 So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. 25 Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison. 26 Truly, I say to you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.

-Matthew 5:23-26

“Those who love their dream of a Christian community more than they love the Christian community itself become destroyers of that Christian community even though their personal intentions may be ever so honest, earnest and sacrificial. God hates this wishful dreaming because it makes the dreamer proud and pretentious. Those who dream of this idolized community demand that it be fulfilled by God, by others and by themselves. They enter the community of Christians with their demands set up by their own law, and judge one another and God accordingly. It is not we who build. Christ builds the church. Whoever is mindful to build the church is surely well on the way to destroying it, for he will build a temple to idols without wishing or knowing it.“

-Dietrich Bonhoeffer in Life Together

Unmitigated Forgiveness

We preserve unity in diversity by continually offering the forgiveness that we were first offered at the cross of Jesus Christ.

Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times. 23 “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. 24 When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. 25 And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26 So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ 27 And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. 28 But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ 29 So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ 30 He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. 31 When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. 32 Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33 And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ 34 And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. 35 So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”

-Matthew 18:21-35

Jesus makes a way for men and women to be born again. This is the cure for the deep seeded ills such as the racism and the bigotries of this world. We need to repent of our self-centered, ethnocentric and culturally biased living (which tells us we deserve our best life now and we should have Eden on this side of redemption - an impossibility in a fallen world marred by sin). We need to put our full trust in Jesus, the crucified and risen Son of God to supernaturally be given a new heart and new spirit to empower us to live in the life of Christ.

Second City Church - Back to Church Sunday 2019 - Pastor Rollan Fisher 2019

Back to Church Sunday 2019: Part 2 "Building the House"

Back to Church Sunday 2019: Part 2 "Building the House"

Pastor Rollan Fisher

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Back to Church Sunday 2019: Part 2 "Building the House"

Pastor Rollan Fisher

• Battle

• Become Active

• Build

Battle

God places you in his church to fight battles both external and internal.

To the Choirmaster. A Psalm of David. A Song.

God shall arise, his enemies shall be scattered; and those who hate him shall flee before him! As smoke is driven away, so you shall drive them away; as wax melts before fire, so the wicked shall perish before God! But the righteous shall be glad; they shall exult before God; they shall be jubilant with joy! Sing to God, sing praises to his name; lift up a song to him who rides through the deserts; his name is the Lord; exult before him! Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation. God settles the solitary in a home; he leads out the prisoners to prosperity, but the rebellious dwell in a parched land. O God, when you went out before your people, when you marched through the wilderness, Selah the earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain, before God, the One of Sinai, before God, the God of Israel. Rain in abundance, O God, you shed abroad; you restored your inheritance as it languished; your flock found a dwelling in it; in your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy.

Psalm 68:1-10

King David knew battles both external and internal. He needed to be continually connected God and his people to overcome in the midst of these battles.

Externally (After defeating Goliath, David needed the army of Israel to defeat the Philistines. On the run from Saul at work, he needed Jonathan to survive).

Internally (After becoming a successful, victorious king, David needed the prophet Nathan to help him overcome his battles with lust, adultery, deception and murder as seen in the case with Bathsheba. He needed the wise woman of Tekoa to deal with family issues when, because of the discipline of God, his family looked like it was falling apart (reference II Samuel 11-19 for David’s failed response with Amnon and Tamar; the following judgment and being on the run from his son Absalom).

“Whether we like having alone time or not, we all need community. In fact, engaging positively with people in our social support network correlates with a number of desirable outcomes. Community involvement can be associated with mental health and cognitive resilience, reduction of chronic pain, lower blood pressure, and improved cardiovascular health. Isolation, on the other hand, can negatively affect our well being.”

-Dr. Caroline Leaf, Think Learn, Succeed: Understanding and Using Your Mind to Thrive at School, the Workplace and Life

With the proliferation and ubiquitous nature of social media, we feel like we’re connecting, but we’re still alone. The ministry of presence with God and his church is important. God sets the solitary, the lonely, in a home, in a family. Don’t voluntarily live in a parched land.

Become Active

God places you in his church to get active to remain spiritually, mentally and emotionally healthy.

One of the reasons David fell into sin is that he became inactive. Pride began to creep into his heart telling him he now deserved things that God had proclaimed forbidden.

In the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle, David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel. And they ravaged the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem. It happened, late one afternoon, when David arose from his couch and was walking on the roof of the king's house, that he saw from the roof a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful. And David sent and inquired about the woman. And one said, “Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?”

2 Samuel 11:1-3

Build

God places you in his church to become a disciple who will work his field and build for the glory of his eternal Kingdom.

“For the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2 After agreeing with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the marketplace, 4 and to them he said, ‘You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.’ 5 So they went. Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, he did the same. 6 And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing. And he said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’ 7 They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’ 8 And when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last, up to the first.’ 9 And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of them received a denarius. 10 Now when those hired first came, they thought they would receive more, but each of them also received a denarius. 11 And on receiving it they grumbled at the master of the house, 12 saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’ 13 But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? 14 Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you. 15 Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?’ 16 So the last will be first, and the first last.”

Matthew 20:1-16

No matter where you began or when you were called, God’s same saving grace is available for you today. Repent of solitary, selfish living. Be healed in reconciliation with God. Come to the cross to receive God’s forgiveness through Christ’s sacrificial death for your sins, burial and resurrection to eternal life. Be baptized and deployed with God’s people to fight your battles, become active as a disciple and build God’s Kingdom.

Second City Church - Back to Church Sunday 2019 - Pastor Rollan Fisher 2019

Back to Church Sunday 2019: Part 1 "The Church and the City"

Back to Church Sunday 2019: Part 1 "The Church and the City"

Pastor Rollan Fisher

Back to Church Sunday 2019: Part 1 "The Church and the City"

Pastor Rollan Fisher

• The City of God

• The Church in the City

• Coming to the Wellspring of Christ

The City of God

The church is where you find the grace of God in the city.

A Psalm of the Sons of Korah. A Song.

On the holy mount stands the city he founded; the Lord loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwelling places of Jacob. Glorious things of you are spoken, O city of God. Selah Among those who know me I mention Rahab and Babylon; behold, Philistia and Tyre, with Cush — “This one was born there,” they say. And of Zion it shall be said, “This one and that one were born in her”; for the Most High himself will establish her. The Lord records as he registers the peoples, “This one was born there.” Selah Singers and dancers alike say, “All my springs are in you.”

-Psalm 87:1-7

The Basis of Faith

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

-Ephesians 2:8-10

“Cheap grace means grace sold on the market like cheapjacks' wares. The sacraments, the forgiveness of sin, and the consolations of religion are thrown away at cut prices. Grace is represented as the Church's inexhaustible treasury, from which she showers blessings with generous hands, without asking questions or fixing limits. Grace without price; grace without cost! The essence of grace, we suppose, is that the account has been paid in advance; and, because it has been paid, everything can be had for nothing. Since the cost was infinite, the possibilities of using and spending it are infinite. What would grace be if it were not cheap?... Cheap grace is the grace we bestow on ourselves. Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession…Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.”

-Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Disciplship

The Church in the City

The church is God’s vehicle through which He dispense grace to the city.

• The mInistry of presence

• Psalms 139 vs. temple

“Christianity revitalized life in Greco-Roman cities by providing new norms and new kinds of social relationships able to cope with many urgent urban problems. To cities filled with the homeless and the impoverished, Christianity offered charity as well as hope. To cities filled with newcomers and strangers, Christianity offered an immediate basis for attachments. To cities filled with orphans and widows, Christianity provided a new and expanded sense of family. To cities torn by violent ethnic strife, Christianity offered a new basis for social solidarity. And to cities faced with epidemics, fires, and earthquakes, Christianity offered effective nursing services.”

-Rodney Stark

Article to Freshmen (and newcomers to a city, new season of life - applies to any time of transition).

“To quit attending church in college would be like Noah jumping out of the ark, forsaking the chief means God was using to preserve him.

"You need the church because you need to hear God’s Word. You need the church because you need wise and godly mentors. You need the church because you need accountability for your profession of faith. You need the church because you need reminders that your identity rests in Christ crucified. By his death he purchased for you all the power, energy, and motivation you need to invest your life in a local church.”

-From the article: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/college-freshman-commit-church/

Coming to the Wellspring of Christ

The church is full of grace because it is built on the wellspring of Christ.

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. 36 But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. 37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. 38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. 40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

-John 6:35-40

“Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it a man will go and sell all that he has. It is the pearl of great price to buy which the merchant will sell all his goods. It is the kingly rule of Christ, for whose sake a man will pluck out the eye which causes him to stumble; it is the call of Jesus Christ at which the disciple leaves his nets and follows him.

Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door at which a man must knock.

Such grace is costly because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner. Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: “ye were bought at a price,” and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. Above all, it is grace because God did not reckon his Son too dear a price to pay for our life, but delivered him up for us. Costly grace is the Incarnation of God.”

-Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship

Repent of sin today. Come to the cross of Christ where he, being sinless, paid the price for your forgiveness. He was crucified, but resurrected from the dead not only to give you the opportunity for new/eternal life, but has given you his church so that you might have the encouragement to stand in that new life. Be planted in Christ and his church/body today.

Second City Church - Back to Church Sunday 2019 - Pastor Rollan Fisher 2019

God Disciplines Those He Loves

God Disciplines Those He Loves

Pastor Cole Parleir

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Second City Church - God Disciplines Those He Loves - Pastor Cole Parleir 2019