 Good morning and happy Memorial Day everyone…
So what is a “memorial”?… It’s something that draws our attention to something in the past that we don’t want to forget… Joshua 4:4-7 4 Then Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the children of Israel, one man from every tribe; 5 and Joshua said to them: "Cross over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of the Jordan, and each one of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, 6 that this may be a sign among you when your children ask in time to come, saying, 'What do these stones mean to you?’ 7 Then you shall answer them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. And these stones shall be for a memorial to the children of Israel forever." There are things that we know even in the very moment are going to be significant in our lives… As they prepared to cross over the Jordan Joshua knew that they would need to remember this moment and the future generations were going to need to hear the story… One way to look at it is that they were “preparing to make memories”… They put rocks on their shoulders and said lets go do something worth remembering… In your walk with God are you prepared to make memories?… Are you bearing a load upon your shoulders in anticipation of doing something worth remembering in the kingdom?… If not I believe you can have “A New Way Forward”… Exodus 28:12 12 And you shall put the two stones on the shoulders of the ephod as memorial stones for the sons of Israel. So Aaron shall bear their names before the Lord on his two shoulders as a memorial. The High Priest had “memorial” stones on the shoulders of his vest that reminded him of the weight of the people he carries on his shoulders and brings before God… Isaiah 9:6 6 For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. The government is upon His shoulders and that is so encouraging to all who believe but listen to what Revelation 5 says that means for us… Revelation 5:9-10 9 And they sang a new song, saying: "You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, 10 And have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth." Because of Jesus we have been made kings and priests and that means the lives we live are worth remembering and the loads we bear upon our shoulders are extremely important… Today we celebrate “Memorial Day” as Americans and we remember and celebrate all of the American men and women who have died defending our country as part of our armed forces… I want to lift these men and women and their families up in prayer but I also want us to remember that we are Christians before we are Americans… Like Melchizedek is greater than Abraham there is one flag that is greater than the stars and stripes… Hebrews 11:13 is talking about believers and says… 13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. To me the stars and stripes are still the greatest when compared to every other flag on earth but I am a pilgrim and sojourner here awaiting my call to my heavenly home… 2 Timothy 2:1-4 1 You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. 3 You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. 4 No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier. John 15:11-14 11 These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. 12 This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends. 14 You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. America has gone from a nation without any structure and without any defenses to what is known as the greatest nation and democracy on earth and the nation with the greatest armed forces on earth… How does that happen?… This church was birthed without much structure or ability to defend ourselves against the attacks of the enemy but we are not who we were 10 years ago either… Most of the individual lives here have the same testimony and its okay this morning if for some of us its still true that we aren’t as strong as we’d like to be or able to fight as well as we’d like to be able to… In these two portions of scripture I think we see some key ingredients that apply to nations and churches and individual people…… 2 Timothy 2 1 be strong This aint for the weak… Jesus says His strength is made perfect in our weakness but that is in the areas of spirituality that we have no ability in like saving and regenerating but in all other areas we need to exercise and develop strength… 2 the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. To become great we have to receive knowledge AND pass it on… we have to value it so much that we seek the faithful not just anyone to commit it to… 3 endure hardship as a good soldier Don’t forget that there is a battle and we are soldiers and therefore there will be hardship… Hardship is not evidence of being out of the will of God it is actually evidence of being in His army… America and the church and your individual life is not supposed to be without trial and difficulty… 4 No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life If you as a member of the U.S. Armed Forces how they would describe themselves almost all of them would say I am “a soldier” or “a marine” or “a sailor” or “an airman”… The point is that when the affairs of this life come into conflict with what it means to be a man or woman engaged in warfare their true identity will supersede other aspects of their life… Would you describe yourself first and foremost as a Christian?… Can you say that when the affairs of this world come into conflict with what it means to be a Christian you have no problem saying “I am a Christians before I am anything else”… I think it is important to understand that what it means to be a Christian is much more broad than maybe what we think it means to be a member of the armed forces but the idea of being completely sold out is the same for both… John 15 tells us the “why” of living this type of life… 11 that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. There is a joy that goes beyond the joy you can find any other way in this life… It is the joy of God and that joy will fill us to the brim… If the founders of America could see what has come of their dream they would cry tears of joy… God calls us to love like He loves and He says if you could see what will become of this you would cry tears of joy… 13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends. The Americans that we honor this weekend literally laid down their lives and we have freedom and peace because of their sacrifice… God says there is no greater love than this but even the freedom and peace we enjoy in America is only temporary… When Jesus laid down His life He offered eternal freedom and peace… John 14:27 27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. To be Christian is to be a carrier of the Spirit of Christ and to be a reflection and imitation of Christ and therefore we too must show the greatest love which is to lay down our lives for our friends… I want to talk about 2 types of soldiers… 1. The Drafted I remember being afraid when I was small about being drafted… My dad was a Marine but he didn’t talk to me much about it and I thought if I got drafted I was going to go to fight in a war I didn’t want to be in and I would die… A lot of Christians act as if they’ve been drafted to fight in a war that they didn’t sign up for… I’m not just talking about when it comes the war the church is fight but sadly even in the battles that are being fought in their own lives and homes and relationships… Acts 13:1-13 1 Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2 As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, "Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." 3 Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away.4 So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. 5 And when they arrived in Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. They also had John as their assistant.6 Now when they had gone through the island to Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew whose name was Bar-Jesus, 7 who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. This man called for Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. 8 But Elymas the sorcerer (for so his name is translated) withstood them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. 9 Then Saul, who also is called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him 10 and said, "O full of all deceit and all fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord? 11 And now, indeed, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you shall be blind, not seeing the sun for a time." And immediately a dark mist fell on him, and he went around seeking someone to lead him by the hand. 12 Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had been done, being astonished at the teaching of the Lord. 13 Now when Paul and his party set sail from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia; and John, departing from them, returned to Jerusalem. So all of these crazy things are happening in the battle and God is prevailing although at great risk and cost the disciples and apostles… But here at the end it says that there assistant or disciple John decides to go back to Jerusalem… I see this John as a guy who had been drafted and when he saw what it was really all about he said “I didn’t sign up for this”… We have too many Christians that when they see the real drama of the church say “I didn’t sign up for this”… We have too many husbands and wives that when they see the real drama of marriage say “I didn’t sign up for this”… We have too many singles that when they realize the high calling of God to remain pure say “I didn’t sign up for this”… The Americans that laid down their lives to give us the freedom we have would not only be in awe of how great the nation has become but they would also be disappointed by what some Americans have done with the freedom they’ve been given… God says I laid down My life not only to give you freedom and peace but also POWER to overcome and win any battle… Wednesday night we read Hebrews 7:15-16 that says… there arises another priest 16 who has come, not according to the law of a fleshly commandment, but according to the power of an endless life. If we were drafted that means “we didn’t sign up for this” but if we have been called by God and actually accepted the call and gift of salvation then we need to learn that war is part of this thing… 2 Timothy 2:1-4 1 You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. 3 You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. 4 No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier. Paul struggled with the disappointment of John leaving in the middle of the battle just like churches struggle when people leave and families struggle when members leave in the middle of the battle… Acts 15:35-40 35 Paul and Barnabas also remained in Antioch, teaching and preaching the word of the Lord, with many others also. 36 Then after some days Paul said to Barnabas, "Let us now go back and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the Lord, and see how they are doing." 37 Now Barnabas was determined to take with them John called Mark. 38 But Paul insisted that they should not take with them the one who had departed from them in Pamphylia, and had not gone with them to the work. 39 Then the contention became so sharp that they parted from one another. And so Barnabas took Mark and sailed to Cyprus; 40 but Paul chose Silas and departed, being commended by the brethren to the grace of God. Paul says to Barnabas lets go do what the Lord has called us to do and when Barnabas wants to take John Mark again Paul says yeah right… It got so bad that even Paul and Barnabas parted ways… When people see themselves as drafted it is hard for them to commit and it is hard for the committed to trust them… We can convince each other of all kinds of things but eventually what we truly believe will govern our behavior… 1. The Drafted 2. The Enlisted The enlisted are those who see a battle that needs to be fought and they sign themselves up for it… They see honor in fighting so that others can be safe and they recognize that some will have to die in order for others to live… Romans 12:1 1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. Judges 6:1-24 1 Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord. So the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian for seven years,2 and the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel. Because of the Midianites, the children of Israel made for themselves the dens, the caves, and the strongholds which are in the mountains.3 So it was, whenever Israel had sown, Midianites would come up; also Amalekites and the people of the East would come up against them. 4 Then they would encamp against them and destroy the produce of the earth as far as Gaza, and leave no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep nor ox nor donkey. 5 For they would come up with their livestock and their tents, coming in as numerous as locusts; both they and their camels were without number; and they would enter the land to destroy it. 6 So Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites, and the children of Israel cried out to the Lord. 7 And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried out to the Lord because of the Midianites, 8 that the Lord sent a prophet to the children of Israel, who said to them, "Thus says the Lord God of Israel: 'I brought you up from Egypt and brought you out of the house of bondage; 9 and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out before you and gave you their land. 10 Also I said to you, "I am the Lord your God; do not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell." But you have not obeyed My voice.' "11 Now the Angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth tree which was in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon threshed wheat in the winepress, in order to hide it from the Midianites. 12 And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him, and said to him, "The Lord is with you, you mighty man of valor!" 13 Gideon said to Him, "O my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, 'Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?' But now the Lord has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites."14 Then the Lord turned to him and said, "Go in this might of yours, and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. Have I not sent you?" 15 So he said to Him, "O my Lord, how can I save Israel? Indeed my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house." 16 And the Lord said to him, "Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat the Midianites as one man." 17 Then he said to Him, "If now I have found favor in Your sight, then show me a sign that it is You who talk with me. 18 Do not depart from here, I pray, until I come to You and bring out my offering and set it before You." And He said, "I will wait until you come back." 19 So Gideon went in and prepared a young goat, and unleavened bread from an ephah of flour. The meat he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot; and he brought them out to Him under the terebinth tree and presented them. 20 The Angel of God said to him, "Take the meat and the unleavened bread and lay them on this rock, and pour out the broth." And he did so. 21 Then the Angel of the Lord put out the end of the staff that was in His hand, and touched the meat and the unleavened bread; and fire rose out of the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened bread. And the Angel of the Lord departed out of his sight. 22 Now Gideon perceived that He was the Angel of the Lord. So Gideon said, "Alas, O Lord God! For I have seen the Angel of the Lord face to face." 23 Then the Lord said to him, "Peace be with you; do not fear, you shall not die." 24 So Gideon built an altar there to the Lord, and called it The-Lord-Is-Peace. Gideon enlisted and the building of an altar or a place of “memorial” is evidence of that… When you enlist you will still come to find that what you face is more than you anticipated… You will still find the church is not what you imagined… You will still find that marriage initially is not what you imagined… You will still find that single hood with Jesus is harder than you anticipated… The difference between the “Drafted” and the “Enlisted” is that the enlisted say “I signed up for this”… They say “the One who brought me into this army is capable of preparing me for this upcoming battle”… Judges 6:33-40 33 Then all the Midianites and Amalekites, the people of the East, gathered together; and they crossed over and encamped in the Valley of Jezreel. 34 But the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon; then he blew the trumpet, and the Abiezrites gathered behind him. 35 And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh, who also gathered behind him. He also sent messengers to Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali; and they came up to meet them. 36 So Gideon said to God, "If You will save Israel by my hand as You have said-- 37 look, I shall put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor; if there is dew on the fleece only, and it is dry on all the ground, then I shall know that You will save Israel by my hand, as You have said." 38 And it was so. When he rose early the next morning and squeezed the fleece together, he wrung the dew out of the fleece, a bowlful of water. 39 Then Gideon said to God, "Do not be angry with me, but let me speak just once more: Let me test, I pray, just once more with the fleece; let it now be dry only on the fleece, but on all the ground let there be dew." 40 And God did so that night. It was dry on the fleece only, but there was dew on all the ground. The enlisted don’t magically and immediately become great warriors… They keep asking God for more training and more confirmation and more victory… I want to close this “New Way Forward” series with this… Is anyone reading this is not saved and right here right now you feel God calling you to a new life and “A New Way Forward”??? Have you been living as if we were “Drafted” and today you want to “Enlist”?… You can have “A New Way Forward”… Listen to what Paul says at the end of his life… 2 Timothy 4:8-11 8 Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing. 9 Be diligent to come to me quickly; 10 for Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world, and has departed for Thessalonica--Crescens for Galatia, Titus for Dalmatia. 11 Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for ministry. John Mark eventually enlisted and became a great man of faith and there is another named Demas who leaves in the middle of the battle for love of the world… Do you want to enlist before being drafted allows you to flee??? Maybe you have already “Enlisted” but you are feeling patriotic and today you want to “Reenlist”… See when you enlist you are given an amount of time that you must serve and then you are free to do something else with your life… Those who “reenlist” are the ones who say yes it is hard but what else would I ever want to do with my life… John 6:66-69 66 From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.67 Then Jesus said to the twelve, "Do you also want to go away?" 68 But Simon Peter answered Him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Are you ready today to ‘Reenlist” and “Relaunch Your Faith”???
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 Happy Mother’s Day!
This is week #2 of our May series titled “A New Way Forward”… Our focus is on dramatically changing the future of our individual lives and the life of this church by taking new paths and trusting God with new levels of surrender… Last week as we talked about “A New Way Forward” we focused on how God gives us mountain top experiences that change the way we live down in the valleys of this life… John 16:20-22 your sorrow will be turned into joy. 21 A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. 22 Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you. What greater mountain top experience is there than carrying a child for 9 months and then birthing them into the world and looking into the eyes of a flesh and blood miracle?… But then comes sleepless nights and then post pardon depression for some and then an inability to nurse for others and then ICU instead of coming home for some and the opportunities for valleys seem to keep on coming from there… The reality is that the dream most mothers have for their children rarely comes true… Mothers love their children but the dream of what their love would produce in the lives of their children often seems to be so far from the reality… How many mothers do you know that can honestly say “its all gone exactly according to plan”?… But how many mothers and especially Christian mothers with grown kids look back and actually say “if I could go back I’d change my dream”?… Proverbs 13:12 12 Hope deferred makes the heart sick, But when the desire comes, it is a tree of life. Maybe the dream didn’t come true and they spent so much time hoping and trying to make it come true... Maybe it came true and the successes of the child caused the mother to lose their relationship with the child... Maybe the dream was too small and they didn’t reach for the stars so they ended up living on a low plane... What about the mothers here and that we know that still have small children... how’s your dream life?… Is it going according to plan?… I asked my wife Mary this morning “what’s the best part about being a mom?”… She said on the surface its being needed and wanted… At the core its partnering with God to to help in all the areas that are ultimately under His control… To care for a life and help it develop mentally and emotionally and spiritually… I thought her answer was so profound and I wisely stopped there instead of asking her “is it all you dreamed of and is it working out according to plan?”… In Week #2 of our series “A New Way Forward” I’ve titled the message “A New Dream”… This is a Mother’s Day message but I believe its for each of us and I hope it gives us all “A New Way Forward” for our dreams… Last night I had a nightmare and I woke up and asked Mary to pray for me… The reason I asked her to pray is because I believe my nightmares can be changed… When I woke up I sent a message to the friend that was suffering in my nightmare to check on them and their family… The point is that we have to pray for a new dream and then we have to do something in the physical world to redirect our lives out from the old and in to the new… Theres a story about a woman named Hannah in the bible who dreamed of having a child and then she wept and went to the temple and the altar until her dream came true... I’m going to share 3 R’s…
Nehemiah 1:1-11 & 2:1-5 1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. It came to pass in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the citadel, 2 that Hanani one of my brethren came with men from Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews who had escaped, who had survived the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. 3 And they said to me, "The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire." 4 So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven. 5 And I said: "I pray, Lord God of heaven, O great and awesome God, You who keep Your covenant and mercy with those who love You and observe Your commandments, 6 please let Your ear be attentive and Your eyes open, that You may hear the prayer of Your servant which I pray before You now, day and night, for the children of Israel Your servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel which we have sinned against You. Both my father's house and I have sinned. 7 We have acted very corruptly against You, and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, nor the ordinances which You commanded Your servant Moses. 8 Remember, I pray, the word that You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, 'If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations; 9 but if you return to Me, and keep My commandments and do them, though some of you were cast out to the farthest part of the heavens, yet I will gather them from there, and bring them to the place which I have chosen as a dwelling for My name.' 10 Now these are Your servants and Your people, whom You have redeemed by Your great power, and by Your strong hand. 11 O Lord, I pray, please let Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant, and to the prayer of Your servants who desire to fear Your name; and let Your servant prosper this day, I pray, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man." For I was the king's cupbearer. 2:1-5 1 And it came to pass in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, that I took the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had never been sad in his presence before. 2 Therefore the king said to me, "Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing but sorrow of heart." So I became dreadfully afraid, 3 and said to the king, "May the king live forever! Why should my face not be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers' tombs, lies waste, and its gates are burned with fire?" 4 Then the king said to me, "What do you request?" So I prayed to the God of heaven. 5 And I said to the king, "If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, I ask that you send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers' tombs, that I may rebuild it."
6 please let Your ear be attentive and Your eyes open, that You may hear the prayer of Your servant which I pray before You now, day and night, for the children of Israel Your servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel which we have sinned against You. Both my father's house and I have sinned. So why “Realize”?… To Realize is to look back and consider and remember… When we look back and consider and remember we should not be afraid of the truth we should “Repent” of our sins and shortcomings… The parents repent of their sins and the sins of the children because they know they are responsible for them… We can’t move forward with “A New Dream” until we repent of the old nightmare we created… The other part of “Realizing” is considering and remembering that we have been chosen by God to be mother’s and father’s and this is a great and high calling and it means God has faith in us… 2. Request 4 Then the king said to me, "What do you request?" So I prayed to the God of heaven. 5 And I said to the king, "If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, I ask that you send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers' tombs, that I may rebuild it.” See after we pray and repent we have to make a “Request”… The request is not the same as the prayer… First we wake up and realize the nightmare so we repent and pray for “A New Dream” BUT then it’s time to phone a friend and actually do something… Nehemiah says to the king… “I want to be used in the rebuilding”... God will give you “A New Dream” but there’s work to be done… 3. Relaunch It’s great to have hopes for our children and that they would have all the amazing experiences available in this life… But I think they key this morning is remembering that even if what we hoped for isn’t what happens our dreams can still come true… We just need “A New Dream”… When our hopes become our dream life usually turns into a nightmare... I’ve waited to share this until the end here but I think the dream is so simple… My dream is that my children know and love Jesus… John 17:3 3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. See we can all hope that it would go this way or that way but if we adopt “A New Dream” even today some of us could tell our friends and family and co-workers that our dream for our children has come true… Psalm 127:1-5 1 A Song of Ascents. Of Solomon. Unless the Lord builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain. 2 It is vain for you to rise up early, To sit up late, To eat the bread of sorrows; For so He gives His beloved sleep. 3 Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, The fruit of the womb is a reward. 4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one's youth. 5 Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them; They shall not be ashamed, But shall speak with their enemies in the gate. This is the “Dream House” the Lord is building… Our children are arrows that need to be formed and released… Our joy is to say “Go out into the world with and for Jesus my child”… We need to tell our children that our dream is for them to love Jesus and if they do that we are happy… I call this a “Relaunching” because most of us have been trying to protect “fragile eggs” instead of shaping “arrows of impact”… We protect them like eggs that hatch late and then we are angry when there is a failure to launch… We need to relaunch “A New Dream”… I want to have an amazing 18 years of shaping arrows and mini-launches across the yard and then I want to pull back the bow and let them go with and for God wherever His will is for them to go… Of course its scary but God launched His Son out of heaven and changed the world and He’s not asking us to do anything He hasn’t already done… I want to close by talking about a mother named Elizabeth and her child… So Elizabeth loved the Lord and God blessed her and her husband with a little boy… She had high hopes for her boy even when he was in her womb because God told her he would be great… Then John was born and things were going according to plan… We don’t know anything really about how he grew up other than that he was faithful to the Lord and honored Him in the way he lived… It looks like he never got married and I’m sure his mother hoped he would’ve… Towards the end he lost the fruit of his life’s work and another Man took everything he had built and no mother wants to see their children suffer loss… He died a difficult death all alone after being imprisoned and I’m sure his mother hoped he would never experience anything like that… But heres the good news… John knew God in an even greater way than his mother Elizabeth did and because of that I am convinced that when we get to heaven and talk to her about her earthly motherhood she will say her dream came true… I think about the conversations about Christ that Elizabeth & her son John must have had... The Holy Spirit encounters they talked about with each other… John telling her about how He baptized people and how He felt the Holy Spirit and then she would say thats exactly how I felt when your Aunt Mary came over when we were pregnant… You don’t know a dream come true until you hear your child talking to you about their Savior and how the Spirit of God is moving within them… The relationship I have with my mother is something else now… She will always be my mother but our bond is different now as we find ourselves talking about our mutual faith and experience in Jesus… A mother never loses her influence… Even once the arrows have been shot out their trajectory can still be altered by their mother… This is part of the "all things are possible with God" phenomenon of our faith so don't neglect it... It’s not too late to have “A New Dream”…  Matthew 17:1-9
1 Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; 2 and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. 3 And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. 4 Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." 5 While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!" 6 And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid. 7 But Jesus came and touched them and said, "Arise, and do not be afraid." 8 When they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only. 9 Now as they came down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, "Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man is risen from the dead.” God gives us mountain top experiences not to make us believe that we are meant to live on the mountain top but to have us live in a new way down in the valley which is where we will live the majority of our lives… We become a people with a peace that surpasses understanding and a people that like we talked about Wednesday night that suffer well and count it all joy when we fall into various trials knowing that its not always because of our sin but actually the will of God sometimes for us to suffer… We also become a people who know how to have a good time and enjoy our freedom and liberality and love to the fullest… The one thing that has been so clear to me after a “mountain top month” is that we must come down and continue to walk in “The Way” of the Lord… But there is “A New Way Forward”… Hebrews 13:8 says… 8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Since Jesus is the same and His word is the same it must be us that have changed and since we are changing as we continue to walk in “The Way” we should experience “A New Way Forward”… Hebrews 10:19-25 19 Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, 21 and having a High Priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching. a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together This series is about “New” in the sense of obtaining something you haven’t had before like the mountaintop transfiguration experience… BUT this series is also about “New” in the sense of taking what you have already had and furthering it… They already had Jesus but after the transfiguration they had more of Him and they were given “A New Way Forward”… I want to start with 2 short stories to help lay a foundation for our series… Ezra 3:10-13 10 When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priests stood in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise the Lord, according to the ordinance of David king of Israel. 11 And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the Lord: "For He is good, For His mercy endures forever toward Israel." Then all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid.12 But many of the priests and Levites and heads of the fathers' houses, old men who had seen the first temple, wept with a loud voice when the foundation of this temple was laid before their eyes. Yet many shouted aloud for joy, 13 so that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people, for the people shouted with a loud shout, and the sound was heard afar off. A New Way Forward… Acts 4:13-21 13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus. 14And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it. 15 But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves, 16 saying, "What shall we do to these men? For, indeed, that a notable miracle has been done through them is evident to all who dwell in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. 17 But so that it spreads no further among the people, let us severely threaten them, that from now on they speak to no man in this name." 18 And they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John answered and said to them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge.20 For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard." 21 So when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way of punishing them, because of the people, since they all glorified God for what had been done. A New Way Forward… John 14:12-14 12 "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. 13 And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask anything in My name, I will do it. A New Way Forward… 1 Thessalonians 1:5 5 For our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance, as you know what kind of men we were among you for your sake. A New Way Forward… Song: New Wine - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ozGKlOzEVc Week #1 - New Wine We have been a church that was with Jesus for 10 years... We are becoming a church that has been baptized and filled with His Spirit and power... Acts 2:1-38 1 When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. 5 And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven. 6 And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language. 7 Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, "Look, are not all these who speak Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs--we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God." 12 So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, "Whatever could this mean?" 13 Others mocking said, "They are full of new wine." 14 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, "Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words. 15 For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. 16 But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 17 'And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams. 18 And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy. 19 I will show wonders in heaven above And signs in the earth beneath: Blood and fire and vapor of smoke. 20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord. 21 And it shall come to pass That whoever calls on the name of the Lord Shall be saved.' 22"Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know-- 23 Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death; 24 whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it. 25 For David says concerning Him: 'I foresaw the Lord always before my face, For He is at my right hand, that I may not be shaken. 26 Therefore my heart rejoiced, and my tongue was glad; Moreover my flesh also will rest in hope. 27 For You will not leave my soul in Hades, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption. 28 You have made known to me the ways of life; You will make me full of joy in Your presence.' 29 "Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30 Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne, 31 he, foreseeing this, spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. 32 This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. 33 Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear. 34 For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: 'The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand, 35 Till I make Your enemies Your footstool." '36 "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ." 37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" 38 Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 1. Its “New Wine” but we aint drunk A New Way Forward… Mark 2:1-22 1 And again He entered Capernaum after some days, and it was heard that He was in the house. 2 Immediately many gathered together, so that there was no longer room to receive them, not even near the door. And He preached the word to them. 3 Then they came to Him, bringing a paralytic who was carried by four men. 4 And when they could not come near Him because of the crowd, they uncovered the roof where He was. So when they had broken through, they let down the bed on which the paralytic was lying. 5 When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven you." 6 And some of the scribes were sitting there and reasoning in their hearts, 7"Why does this Man speak blasphemies like this? Who can forgive sins but God alone?" 8 But immediately, when Jesus perceived in His spirit that they reasoned thus within themselves, He said to them, "Why do you reason about these things in your hearts? 9 Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven you,' or to say, 'Arise, take up your bed and walk'? 10But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins"--He said to the paralytic, 11 I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house." 12 Immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went out in the presence of them all, so that all were amazed and glorified God, saying, "We never saw anything like this!" 13 Then He went out again by the sea; and all the multitude came to Him, and He taught them. 14 As He passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, "Follow Me." So he arose and followed Him. 15 Now it happened, as He was dining in Levi's house, that many tax collectors and sinners also sat together with Jesus and His disciples; for there were many, and they followed Him.16 And when the scribes and Pharisees saw Him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, they said to His disciples, "How is it that He eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners?" 17When Jesus heard it, He said to them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance." 18 The disciples of John and of the Pharisees were fasting. Then they came and said to Him, "Why do the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?" 19 And Jesus said to them, "Can the friends of the bridegroom fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them they cannot fast. 20 But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days. 21 No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; or else the new piece pulls away from the old, and the tear is made worse. 22 And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine bursts the wineskins, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But new wine must be put into new wineskins." 2. Mathematics Old + New = Nothing New + New = New A New Way Forward… Jesus was preparing the people for the end of an age… The time of hearing the word and trying to fulfill the requirements of the law was coming to an end… The time of having the word written in our hearts and receiving the Holy Spirit who confirms the law has been satisfied was coming in… As a church and as an individual are we and are you old or new?… Hebrews 8:10 I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. We can “do” less and “be” more when we have been baptized with the Holy Spirit and experience “A New Way Forward”… Acts 8:4-26 5 Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria and preached Christ to them. 6 And the multitudes with one accord heeded the things spoken by Philip, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. 7 For unclean spirits, crying with a loud voice, came out of many who were possessed; and many who were paralyzed and lame were healed. 8 And there was great joy in that city. 9 But there was a certain man called Simon, who previously practiced sorcery in the city and astonished the people of Samaria, claiming that he was someone great, 10 to whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, "This man is the great power of God." 11 And they heeded him because he had astonished them with his sorceries for a long time. 12 But when they believed Philip as he preached the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized. 13 Then Simon himself also believed; and when he was baptized he continued with Philip, and was amazed, seeing the miracles and signs which were done. 14 Now when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them, 15 who, when they had come down, prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit. 16 For as yet He had fallen upon none of them. They had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then they laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. 18And when Simon saw that through the laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money, 19saying, "Give me this power also, that anyone on whom I lay hands may receive the Holy Spirit." 20 But Peter said to him, "Your money perish with you, because you thought that the gift of God could be purchased with money! 21 You have neither part nor portion in this matter, for your heart is not right in the sight of God. 22 Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray God if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you.23 For I see that you are poisoned by bitterness and bound by iniquity." 24 Then Simon answered and said, "Pray to the Lord for me, that none of the things which you have spoken may come upon me." 25 So when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans. 26 Now an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, "Arise and go toward the south along the road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza." 3. Of Water and Spirit True believers baptized in water but then… Believe and then see… There is no other way to “purchase/receive” the new wine… New wine is about “A New Way Forward”… On Sunday Pastor Jason said I was always at the altar and to be honest with you its been so long since I’ve been called to the altar instead of calling others to it that it felt good to be reminded that I know the power of God to impart through the laying on of hands… Acts 10:44-48 44 While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word. 45 And those of the circumcision who believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also. 46 For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God. Then Peter answered, 47 "Can anyone forbid water, that these should not be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?" 48 And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. I believe that we are entering into a decade where we will see the work of God accelerated in the lives of new converts… AND the astonishment that those of us who already believe experience will not make us jealous… It will make us trade in our old wine skins for new ones! So in closing as we look at “A New Way Forward” I have 2 questions for you… What have you already seen that needs to be furthered???… What area of your life would you like to have “A New Way Forward” in today???… You started reading this with one way of thinking and doing something and not because of work or effort but because of the Spirit of God you finish reading it with “A New Way Forward” … Hebrews 10:19-22 19 Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, 21 and having a High Priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith |
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