Luke 19:28-38
28 After Jesus had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. 29 As he approached Bethphage and Bethany at the hill called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples, saying to them, 30 “Go to the village ahead of you, and as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. 31 If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it.’”
32 Those who were sent ahead went and found it just as he had told them. 33 As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, “Why are you untying the colt?”
34 They replied, “The Lord needs it.”
35 They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. 36 As he went along, people spread their cloaks on the road.
37 When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:
38 “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
The Bible tells us that Jesus sent two of His disciples to find a colt that had never before been ridden, and bring it to Him. After securing the animal, they saddled him with their coats, and this is the colt that Jesus rode into Jerusalem on that fateful day.
Up the narrow streets the little donkey went, clippty-clop, clippty-clop, straight to the gate of Jerusalem. Along the way was a festive crowd spreading their coats and palm branches and yelling (shouting) "Hosannah! Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord. Hosannah in the highest!"
And so it was that Jesus entered a bright, sunny, and happy Jerusalem. In the distance, however, stood Golgotha, the hill of the crosses, soon to be shrouded in darkness and tears.
But there is another part to the Biblical account that yet speaks in forceful language to us today. It is about the little colt that carried on his back Jesus. Now this little donkey is very interesting, and it seems to me that he also carries on his back some important lessons for us today.
The Donkey Was Available
The donkey was available.
He was ready to be used.
Jesus knew the colt was there when He sent his disciples to that particular place.
When the disciples told the colt's owner that the Master had need of the donkey, the owners let him go. Now Mark and Luke’s account tells us that no man had ever ridden the colt. He was unbroken, untamed, and untrained.
The colt could have balked, sat down, and refused to budge, like donkeys do, but he did not. The colt willingly went with the disciples. He was available.
How many of us are truly available to the Lord? How many of us are willing to place the cares, worries, troubles of the world on our back so that they may know Jesus?
Christ tells us in the Bible, “To pick up our crosses daily” (Luke 9:23) and do what?
Hide it under a bushel? NO!
Throw it in the closet? NO!
Put it in the trunk of the car? NO!
Jesus says in Luke 9:23 to “Pick up your cross daily – and follow Him!
Are you available to be what God calls you to be and work as God calls you to work. We must be like this colt and be available. Not pew sitting, staying home, going to events. We need to be giving God and his church His time.
Too many times we act like what a normal donkey colt would have acted like. When God tells us to do something or the church asks us to help out – we baulk, stay seated, and hee haw hee haw! Which means grumble under our breath. The price for you has been paid and now it is time to help others see this Good News and find hope in Christ. We grumble about giving one hour to the Lord each week. When if you think about it – if you give him 10% of your time in a week – you owe 16.8 hours and we complain about giving him the one hour from 11:00 to 12:00 noon. Let’s all become available to Christ and His mission in the church; to make disciples so the people of this world can see there is still hope as seen in our availability to carry the load Christ needs us to carry.
Are you available to get up or should I say, “Giddy Up for Christ.” Start doing that today. I believe you will be blessed even more in this life when you do.
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Monday, December 5, 2011
Sunday, August 28, 2011
The Team Concept
The Team Concept
David W. Ching
Sunday's Message - August 28, 2011
What do Baseball, Football, Soccer, hockey, softball, and basketball to name a few sports have in common? They have the team concept down pat. It is a shame that the church cannot learn again from what it once taught. Team is not something you can do alone. Team is plural. Team takes a lot of blood, sweat, tears, joys, failures, victories, faith, and soul to accomplish.
1.) The Team was given a God-Sized Mission:
In Jesus’ time the team concept was radical and visionary. Jesus was challenging a small group of ordinary people to change the world and bring them to Him. I wonder sometimes if the disciples talked to one another about this vision. I wonder if they asked each other, “Do Jesus know who we are? Nobody has ever won the entire world in anything!”
After Judas turned on Jesus there were only 11 disciples left at the time they were given the Great Commission. With this commission in mind they were given support. Matthew 28:18-20 tells us, “18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (NIV). Jesus empowered them and promised to be with them to the very end of the age. The 11 disciples empowered by the One created invincibility in them and the world has never been the same. That held true for them as well as Christians today.
Christ gives us (the Body of Christ) a mission so great that it requires our best, all-out effort with wholehearted dependence on Him. This is the same mission the 11 brought through the ages that we must now move forward with. The leaders today as the disciples in Jesus’ time must develop and mature spiritually as His empowerment works through us.
2.) The Team will Face Conflict:
With this task, as with any task given us by the Lord; we must expect conflict to arise. The Gospel of Christ by its nature will create conflicts; because it is always calling people to change. Change more times than not causes resistance and that resistance produces conflicts.
The gospel replaces the old person with the new and the old person struggles to move back in. The gospel replaces sin with salvation and that sin looks to gain its spot back. The gospel replaces today’s status quo and replaces it with a transformed life and the status quo doesn’t like it. The gospel brings those things out of the darkness and replaces it with light and the darkness fears for its existence. The gospel replaces broken people with wholeness and the brokenness tries to hinder this wholeness. Such radical and drastic change will not be accepted by some and that is something you can take to the bank. Therefore, we must make sure conflict is rooted in the gospel. Conflict created by the demands of the gospel should be accepted, welcomed, and resolved in a creative and useful manner and not allowed to be destructive to the Team.
Calvin Coolidge once stated, “Never go out to meet trouble. If you will just sit still, in 9 out of 10 cases, someone will intercept it before it reaches you.”
3.) The Team Concept must be in a Loving Fellowship with One Another:
Most issues in the life of the church revolve around human relations. To get His disciples ready for His coming departure Jesus showed them how to love each other and love Him better. Jesus taught the disciples that love is the main ingredient in every aspect and function of the church. It is love that connects people to God and to each other. If you want your church to be effective in a world gone mad; love is that motivating force that gets the job done. Love treats others the way we want to be treated and attracts people to Christ. The basic distinctive of the New Testament church is love.
When Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was, he replied, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments” (Matthew 22: 37-40, NIV).
Jesus’ love for us on Calvary chisels away harshness; graciously gives forgiveness; heals broken relationships; creates community, fellowship and unity; and lights the fires of our witness of Christ.
In our society today, the church needs to be the church it was created to be in its beginning. There is a cry from the wilderness of life for community, fellowship and unity. There is a cry for the Team to function as a Team. Our society today needs to reintroduce into their lives, words like: relationships, family, belonging, unity, teamwork, acceptance, home, community, fellowship and communion. For the church to be effective in the community and world around them; it must reintroduce these words through the actions they bring into the everyday language. The church must love those things that the Lord loves and that means it must love everyone without exception or exclusion. We must accept the love of Christ as our guide to how we live. We must love God, His Word, His people and His world.
God’s Word clearly, affirming, and reassuringly tells us in John 14:23, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him” (NIV).
Love can build a bridge, but the lack of it can burn that bridge down faster than it was built” (DWChing 2010). Are you building bridges for the team to travel on or are you burning them down as fast as they are built? Think about that as you go through this week and ask God to make the changes in you that need to be made to help the team function properly. Have a blessed week!
David W. Ching
Sunday's Message - August 28, 2011
What do Baseball, Football, Soccer, hockey, softball, and basketball to name a few sports have in common? They have the team concept down pat. It is a shame that the church cannot learn again from what it once taught. Team is not something you can do alone. Team is plural. Team takes a lot of blood, sweat, tears, joys, failures, victories, faith, and soul to accomplish.
1.) The Team was given a God-Sized Mission:
In Jesus’ time the team concept was radical and visionary. Jesus was challenging a small group of ordinary people to change the world and bring them to Him. I wonder sometimes if the disciples talked to one another about this vision. I wonder if they asked each other, “Do Jesus know who we are? Nobody has ever won the entire world in anything!”
After Judas turned on Jesus there were only 11 disciples left at the time they were given the Great Commission. With this commission in mind they were given support. Matthew 28:18-20 tells us, “18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (NIV). Jesus empowered them and promised to be with them to the very end of the age. The 11 disciples empowered by the One created invincibility in them and the world has never been the same. That held true for them as well as Christians today.
Christ gives us (the Body of Christ) a mission so great that it requires our best, all-out effort with wholehearted dependence on Him. This is the same mission the 11 brought through the ages that we must now move forward with. The leaders today as the disciples in Jesus’ time must develop and mature spiritually as His empowerment works through us.
2.) The Team will Face Conflict:
With this task, as with any task given us by the Lord; we must expect conflict to arise. The Gospel of Christ by its nature will create conflicts; because it is always calling people to change. Change more times than not causes resistance and that resistance produces conflicts.
The gospel replaces the old person with the new and the old person struggles to move back in. The gospel replaces sin with salvation and that sin looks to gain its spot back. The gospel replaces today’s status quo and replaces it with a transformed life and the status quo doesn’t like it. The gospel brings those things out of the darkness and replaces it with light and the darkness fears for its existence. The gospel replaces broken people with wholeness and the brokenness tries to hinder this wholeness. Such radical and drastic change will not be accepted by some and that is something you can take to the bank. Therefore, we must make sure conflict is rooted in the gospel. Conflict created by the demands of the gospel should be accepted, welcomed, and resolved in a creative and useful manner and not allowed to be destructive to the Team.
Calvin Coolidge once stated, “Never go out to meet trouble. If you will just sit still, in 9 out of 10 cases, someone will intercept it before it reaches you.”
3.) The Team Concept must be in a Loving Fellowship with One Another:
Most issues in the life of the church revolve around human relations. To get His disciples ready for His coming departure Jesus showed them how to love each other and love Him better. Jesus taught the disciples that love is the main ingredient in every aspect and function of the church. It is love that connects people to God and to each other. If you want your church to be effective in a world gone mad; love is that motivating force that gets the job done. Love treats others the way we want to be treated and attracts people to Christ. The basic distinctive of the New Testament church is love.
When Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was, he replied, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments” (Matthew 22: 37-40, NIV).
Jesus’ love for us on Calvary chisels away harshness; graciously gives forgiveness; heals broken relationships; creates community, fellowship and unity; and lights the fires of our witness of Christ.
In our society today, the church needs to be the church it was created to be in its beginning. There is a cry from the wilderness of life for community, fellowship and unity. There is a cry for the Team to function as a Team. Our society today needs to reintroduce into their lives, words like: relationships, family, belonging, unity, teamwork, acceptance, home, community, fellowship and communion. For the church to be effective in the community and world around them; it must reintroduce these words through the actions they bring into the everyday language. The church must love those things that the Lord loves and that means it must love everyone without exception or exclusion. We must accept the love of Christ as our guide to how we live. We must love God, His Word, His people and His world.
God’s Word clearly, affirming, and reassuringly tells us in John 14:23, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him” (NIV).
Love can build a bridge, but the lack of it can burn that bridge down faster than it was built” (DWChing 2010). Are you building bridges for the team to travel on or are you burning them down as fast as they are built? Think about that as you go through this week and ask God to make the changes in you that need to be made to help the team function properly. Have a blessed week!
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Support System Failure
Why has the support system of the church failed? The simple fact is that it has been under attack for years and now the attackers have fully infiltrated and set up residence. As I look around, I see no support system for pastors or any other person trying to live a Godly life. This has to change or God the Father and God the Son might be having the same discussion that God had with Jeremiah in chapter 5.
1 “Go up and down the streets of Jerusalem, look around and consider, search through her squares. If you can find but one person who deals honestly and seeks the truth, I will forgive this city” (Jeremiah 5:1, NIV).
I stopped outside a church last Sunday and watched as all the people came forth through the doors after their service. Do you know what I saw? I saw people. I saw people no different than those people I had seen minutes before at the convenience store who did not attend church. I saw no saintly people. I saw no Godly people. I just saw people whom were no more “set apart” than those claiming no God.
If you look around, you may ask yourself; where have all the saintly people gone? Where are the people Romans 8:9, speaks of? “9 You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ” (Romans 8:9, NIV). Where are those who follow the Words of God and Christ, “Be Holy because I am Holy” (I Peter 1:15-16, NIV).
There was a time when a pastor, as well as other Christians had a support system that was so solid that it was a base, which all could stand. There was a time when there were people who would come up to you and let you know they were praying for you and many who would say, “I need to pray for you” and do it on the spot. There was a time when you knew in your heart of hearts, that regardless of what came that person’s way; they were still supporting and praying for you even in their failing health. You knew just by walking up on them, seeing their smile, and seeing that Godly glow that this was someone who was truly standing in the gap for you at all times. There were those people that you hoped to one day be like that seem to be so close to God that the brightness of Godly love in their eyes was almost blinding. Where have they all gone?
I think that with the infiltration of the church, the worldly attitudes within have killed the Christian Spirit. There is no indwelling of the Spirit because the world overshadows all attempts to allow the Spirit to lead.
In his farewell address to the church elders at Ephesus, Paul warned them to be on guard because the flock was going to be attacked by “savage wolves” (v.29):
“26 Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. 27 For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. 28 Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. 29 I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. 30 Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. 31 So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears” (Acts 20:26-31, NIV).
Paul knew what was going on in the church and knew it was under attacked from within as well (infiltrated). He sent a letter to Timothy, urging him to not only preach the Gospel, but to be prepared to correct errors and to rebuke those who embraced the infiltration. His advice for the Timothy as well as pastors was:
“2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. 3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry” (II Timothy 4:2-5, NIV).
In the first century, even Jude knew the church was under attack and had been infiltrated. Secrecy is a tactic used by godless, selfish, and self absorbed people. This caused Jude to set off the sirens and sound the alarms as he urged the true believers to “contend for the faith” (v.3).
“3 Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt compelled to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to God’s holy people. 4 For certain individuals whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord” (Jude 3-4, NIV).
Paul warned the Colossians to be on guard, that they might not be taken captive by those who have abandoned the Gospel of Jesus Christ:
“8 See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ” (Colossians 2:8, NIV).
Today, too many congregations have been infiltrated and compromised; so much so that they cannot even breathe life back into itself. The words of Paul, Jude and others who warned the believers to stand firmly on God and allow the Holy Spirit to dwell in them has been quashed by our unwillingness to live in the Word of God and let it live within us. The church is under attack from within and from the outside world. When are we as believers going to say, “Enough is enough?” When are we going to rekindle the flames within us that the Saints before us had and take the torch and make a stand as they did; support as they did; love as they did; pray as they did; and show us that true outward sign of inward grace?
The time is now in repairing the Support System of the church. If we cannot repair this, then we cannot disciple others or even lead them to where God needs them to be. Preventive maintenance goes a long way. It is just too bad we did not use the tool God gave us to do it with before now – the Bible.
Who are you living for and who is living in you? If you said Christ, why can't others see it? You can claim to be Godly all day long, but if others cannot see it in you; then it is probably not there. Christ doesn't want those who talk a good game. Christ wants those that walk it, live it, and do it. You can hear the Word and speak the Word all day long; but until you do the Word - your efforts are fruitless. And that my friends is the bottom line!
1 “Go up and down the streets of Jerusalem, look around and consider, search through her squares. If you can find but one person who deals honestly and seeks the truth, I will forgive this city” (Jeremiah 5:1, NIV).
I stopped outside a church last Sunday and watched as all the people came forth through the doors after their service. Do you know what I saw? I saw people. I saw people no different than those people I had seen minutes before at the convenience store who did not attend church. I saw no saintly people. I saw no Godly people. I just saw people whom were no more “set apart” than those claiming no God.
If you look around, you may ask yourself; where have all the saintly people gone? Where are the people Romans 8:9, speaks of? “9 You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ” (Romans 8:9, NIV). Where are those who follow the Words of God and Christ, “Be Holy because I am Holy” (I Peter 1:15-16, NIV).
There was a time when a pastor, as well as other Christians had a support system that was so solid that it was a base, which all could stand. There was a time when there were people who would come up to you and let you know they were praying for you and many who would say, “I need to pray for you” and do it on the spot. There was a time when you knew in your heart of hearts, that regardless of what came that person’s way; they were still supporting and praying for you even in their failing health. You knew just by walking up on them, seeing their smile, and seeing that Godly glow that this was someone who was truly standing in the gap for you at all times. There were those people that you hoped to one day be like that seem to be so close to God that the brightness of Godly love in their eyes was almost blinding. Where have they all gone?
I think that with the infiltration of the church, the worldly attitudes within have killed the Christian Spirit. There is no indwelling of the Spirit because the world overshadows all attempts to allow the Spirit to lead.
In his farewell address to the church elders at Ephesus, Paul warned them to be on guard because the flock was going to be attacked by “savage wolves” (v.29):
“26 Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. 27 For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. 28 Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. 29 I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. 30 Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. 31 So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears” (Acts 20:26-31, NIV).
Paul knew what was going on in the church and knew it was under attacked from within as well (infiltrated). He sent a letter to Timothy, urging him to not only preach the Gospel, but to be prepared to correct errors and to rebuke those who embraced the infiltration. His advice for the Timothy as well as pastors was:
“2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. 3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry” (II Timothy 4:2-5, NIV).
In the first century, even Jude knew the church was under attack and had been infiltrated. Secrecy is a tactic used by godless, selfish, and self absorbed people. This caused Jude to set off the sirens and sound the alarms as he urged the true believers to “contend for the faith” (v.3).
“3 Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt compelled to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to God’s holy people. 4 For certain individuals whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord” (Jude 3-4, NIV).
Paul warned the Colossians to be on guard, that they might not be taken captive by those who have abandoned the Gospel of Jesus Christ:
“8 See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ” (Colossians 2:8, NIV).
Today, too many congregations have been infiltrated and compromised; so much so that they cannot even breathe life back into itself. The words of Paul, Jude and others who warned the believers to stand firmly on God and allow the Holy Spirit to dwell in them has been quashed by our unwillingness to live in the Word of God and let it live within us. The church is under attack from within and from the outside world. When are we as believers going to say, “Enough is enough?” When are we going to rekindle the flames within us that the Saints before us had and take the torch and make a stand as they did; support as they did; love as they did; pray as they did; and show us that true outward sign of inward grace?
The time is now in repairing the Support System of the church. If we cannot repair this, then we cannot disciple others or even lead them to where God needs them to be. Preventive maintenance goes a long way. It is just too bad we did not use the tool God gave us to do it with before now – the Bible.
Who are you living for and who is living in you? If you said Christ, why can't others see it? You can claim to be Godly all day long, but if others cannot see it in you; then it is probably not there. Christ doesn't want those who talk a good game. Christ wants those that walk it, live it, and do it. You can hear the Word and speak the Word all day long; but until you do the Word - your efforts are fruitless. And that my friends is the bottom line!
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Have You Ever Noticed?
Have you ever noticed that when a church begins to become purposeful and biblical when it hadn't been in years, that some people begin to grumble and groan? Why is that? Have we gotten so use to how church is and forgotten about how church is supposed to be in its origin! I am sure that in 1940 when this particular church was established; they did not come together just to have a meeting place for bingo. It was not just a place for the click to gather to snub their noses at others. The church established itself to live out a purposeful and biblical existence; taking its ques from the church of Acts. The Holy Spirit in Acts fuel the fire that ignites the church with power and wisdom. Jesus called it, "My church" in Mathew 18:16. I Timothy 3 goes a step further in saying, "The church of the living God" (v.15). The origin of the church does not rest on the back of man, but rest on the back of God.
The Day of Pentecost, the day on which the Spirit of God came as a mighty wind and as tongues of fire, the day on which fearful, weak disciples found themselves with new power and wisdom, the day on which about three thousand others were baptized and received the gift of the Spirit. It was the birthday of the church"my church"before prepared by God the Father, founded by God the Son, and empowered by God the Holy Spirit.
The church then, in origin, is entirely of God. Man neither planned it, nor founded it, nor built it, however much man may and must be a part of it. The church is the church of the living God, the church of Jesus Christ, the church of the Holy Spirit. So why then do many feel "They OWN it!"
Until later than the first century there was not a single church building. The church was not a building: it was rather the ecclesia, the assembly, of those who had believed in Jesus Christ, had been baptized in His name, and had received the Holy Spirit. They went to the Jewish temple for prayer, they met in peoples homes for worship and breaking bread, and they shared their earthly possessions. Many signs and wonders were done in Jesus name. They were a company united in praise, study, fellowship, and service.
Thus when Acts says "great fear came upon the whole church," the reference is to the believing, baptized, Spirit-receiving company of people. They were those who had called on the Lord and were "being saved" (Acts 2:47). They were people who had received new life, and in the excitement and wonder of it were witnessing to everyone of what Christ had done for them and how He could do it for all who would likewise believe in His name.
That is purposeful and biblical in a nutshell! Or can I say, "Biblically Purposeful!" :-)
One more remark about the church and a building. Nothing said has been intended to disparage church buildings. If nothing else, a building is a necessity for shelter in Christian worship and fellowship. The early Christians for all their lack of distinct buildings did meet in the temple and homes; they were not without the use of buildings. But the point here is that, building or no, the church is still wherever there is a coming together of Christians.
Therefore, let the Holy Spirit move in a mighty way and either get with the program or excuse yourself from it. You are accountable for those that you hinder in finding Christ and one day will answer for what you did or did not do; and that is the short of it. Christian's get it wrong so often, we forget what it means to get it correct. Let us not allow this to continue to happen in churches across our nation. Just my thoughts for the day...
.
The Day of Pentecost, the day on which the Spirit of God came as a mighty wind and as tongues of fire, the day on which fearful, weak disciples found themselves with new power and wisdom, the day on which about three thousand others were baptized and received the gift of the Spirit. It was the birthday of the church"my church"before prepared by God the Father, founded by God the Son, and empowered by God the Holy Spirit.
The church then, in origin, is entirely of God. Man neither planned it, nor founded it, nor built it, however much man may and must be a part of it. The church is the church of the living God, the church of Jesus Christ, the church of the Holy Spirit. So why then do many feel "They OWN it!"
Until later than the first century there was not a single church building. The church was not a building: it was rather the ecclesia, the assembly, of those who had believed in Jesus Christ, had been baptized in His name, and had received the Holy Spirit. They went to the Jewish temple for prayer, they met in peoples homes for worship and breaking bread, and they shared their earthly possessions. Many signs and wonders were done in Jesus name. They were a company united in praise, study, fellowship, and service.
Thus when Acts says "great fear came upon the whole church," the reference is to the believing, baptized, Spirit-receiving company of people. They were those who had called on the Lord and were "being saved" (Acts 2:47). They were people who had received new life, and in the excitement and wonder of it were witnessing to everyone of what Christ had done for them and how He could do it for all who would likewise believe in His name.
That is purposeful and biblical in a nutshell! Or can I say, "Biblically Purposeful!" :-)
One more remark about the church and a building. Nothing said has been intended to disparage church buildings. If nothing else, a building is a necessity for shelter in Christian worship and fellowship. The early Christians for all their lack of distinct buildings did meet in the temple and homes; they were not without the use of buildings. But the point here is that, building or no, the church is still wherever there is a coming together of Christians.
Therefore, let the Holy Spirit move in a mighty way and either get with the program or excuse yourself from it. You are accountable for those that you hinder in finding Christ and one day will answer for what you did or did not do; and that is the short of it. Christian's get it wrong so often, we forget what it means to get it correct. Let us not allow this to continue to happen in churches across our nation. Just my thoughts for the day...
.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Make His Promise Complete
HONE (MAKE PERFECT OR COMPLETE) HIS PROMISES (VV. 16-18) – January 23, 2011 – SUNDAY (The general gist of today’s message). Series Message II
16 “Now, LORD, the God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father the promises you made to him when you said, ‘You shall never fail to have a successor to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your descendants are careful in all they do to walk before me according to my law, as you have done.’ 17 And now, LORD, the God of Israel, let your word that you promised your servant David come true.”
18 “But will God really dwell on earth with humans? The heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!”
Too many times people never realize until after the fact or in some cases too late that they have drifted away from God and His promises and blessings. They drift away and then their world falls apart and they say to themselves, “I don’t know why this is happening?” When in fact, they have drifted away from God. You can come to church every Sunday and drift away. You can attend church every Wednesday and still be drifting away. You can read your Bible and pray daily and still drift away. Then God has to give you a little wake up call, by allowing you to do your own thing. That own thing that tells you I can do this. Then you realize after things fall apart, that you really didn’t know what you were doing.
How many people like their alarm clock? Not many! Why is that? Your alarm clock wakes you up when you would rather do your own thing and sleep. However, your clock was set for a reason. You had something important that required you to get up and respond. Sometimes we need God to give us a wakeup call to get us moving in the right direction instead of sleep walking our way through life.
God wants you to come to Him and allow Him to be the trash man. All that garbage inside us that is holding us back; He wants to take from us. All that clutter in our lives, He wants us to bring to Him so that He can remove the clutter so we can find the good that is underneath. Once we allow Him to remove the clutter to get to the good in us; He can take that good and make it great for the purpose He has on our lives.
Once all this clutter is removed, only then can He get the fires going in you. Only then can revival begin to take hold. Only then can we come before Him with open hearts and minds, willing to use our hands to help show others their need for revival. Revival will not happen in the corporate, if it doesn’t happen within the individual first.
Solomon has built this great altar. Solomon has come to God humbly giving himself before the assembly. Solomon has recognized God as who He is: He is God. Solomon brings everything to the Lord in front of all the assembly. Remember Thomas said, “My Lord, My God.” Acknowledging exactly who his Lord is and what place He takes in his life. Solomon is doing the same thing. Forsaken themselves and placing the Lord first in their lives; seeking Him and seeking His promises.
What the Lord offers is free. In a world that has lost all hope, and been blinded by a me, me, me way of thinking. We must show them that there is Hope in the Lord and if our thinking turns to a Him, Him, Him way of thinking; God will take care of me, me, me!
A. Remember His fulfilled promises.
1. Salvation (Rom. 10:13). “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (NIV)
2. Supply (Phi. 4:19) – “And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus” (NIV)
B. Reflect on promises yet to be fulfilled.
1. Revival
2. Return
To get the best return, you must be willing to give your best. We have been created in the imagine of the Father. This can be a good thing and a bad thing because we are humans. It is a good thing because God thought so highly of us that He created us in His image. The bad thing is, we are humans and many times we place ourselves equal to or beyond the creator. Pride is an extinguisher of the fire of revival.
Do you want the Lord to fire you up so revival can take a hold of your life and move you forward or do you want to sit back and wait on your wakeup call because you want to do your own thing?
Drifting might be a good thing if you are a race car driver or in the movie the Fast and the Furious, but drifting is not good in the life of the follower of Christ in any form. Revival is a blessing that must start with us accepting the call, the place in the order, and humbly giving God our all; not just drifting along in our own world, doing our own thing.
The devil wants to take you to hell. He wants to take everyone you are associated with to hell right along with you. He comes to destroy all that you are and all that you can be. He comes to fill your life full of garbage to cover up the good God wants to use to make great with His blessings and promises. Who are you going to allow to take hold of you today? Do you want a life that is always in question? Or do you want a life where there are actually answers? The choice is yours. Don’t let your wakeup call come to late. The Bible says, “Seek Him and you will find Him.” Seek revival in the Lord humbly, and you will find that the fire in your life has not gone out, but just covered up with clutter. “Lord, Revive us again” so that we may be the best for you and so that we may share that fire as Solomon did with the entire assembly of our community.
16 “Now, LORD, the God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father the promises you made to him when you said, ‘You shall never fail to have a successor to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your descendants are careful in all they do to walk before me according to my law, as you have done.’ 17 And now, LORD, the God of Israel, let your word that you promised your servant David come true.”
18 “But will God really dwell on earth with humans? The heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!”
Too many times people never realize until after the fact or in some cases too late that they have drifted away from God and His promises and blessings. They drift away and then their world falls apart and they say to themselves, “I don’t know why this is happening?” When in fact, they have drifted away from God. You can come to church every Sunday and drift away. You can attend church every Wednesday and still be drifting away. You can read your Bible and pray daily and still drift away. Then God has to give you a little wake up call, by allowing you to do your own thing. That own thing that tells you I can do this. Then you realize after things fall apart, that you really didn’t know what you were doing.
How many people like their alarm clock? Not many! Why is that? Your alarm clock wakes you up when you would rather do your own thing and sleep. However, your clock was set for a reason. You had something important that required you to get up and respond. Sometimes we need God to give us a wakeup call to get us moving in the right direction instead of sleep walking our way through life.
God wants you to come to Him and allow Him to be the trash man. All that garbage inside us that is holding us back; He wants to take from us. All that clutter in our lives, He wants us to bring to Him so that He can remove the clutter so we can find the good that is underneath. Once we allow Him to remove the clutter to get to the good in us; He can take that good and make it great for the purpose He has on our lives.
Once all this clutter is removed, only then can He get the fires going in you. Only then can revival begin to take hold. Only then can we come before Him with open hearts and minds, willing to use our hands to help show others their need for revival. Revival will not happen in the corporate, if it doesn’t happen within the individual first.
Solomon has built this great altar. Solomon has come to God humbly giving himself before the assembly. Solomon has recognized God as who He is: He is God. Solomon brings everything to the Lord in front of all the assembly. Remember Thomas said, “My Lord, My God.” Acknowledging exactly who his Lord is and what place He takes in his life. Solomon is doing the same thing. Forsaken themselves and placing the Lord first in their lives; seeking Him and seeking His promises.
What the Lord offers is free. In a world that has lost all hope, and been blinded by a me, me, me way of thinking. We must show them that there is Hope in the Lord and if our thinking turns to a Him, Him, Him way of thinking; God will take care of me, me, me!
A. Remember His fulfilled promises.
1. Salvation (Rom. 10:13). “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (NIV)
2. Supply (Phi. 4:19) – “And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus” (NIV)
B. Reflect on promises yet to be fulfilled.
1. Revival
2. Return
To get the best return, you must be willing to give your best. We have been created in the imagine of the Father. This can be a good thing and a bad thing because we are humans. It is a good thing because God thought so highly of us that He created us in His image. The bad thing is, we are humans and many times we place ourselves equal to or beyond the creator. Pride is an extinguisher of the fire of revival.
Do you want the Lord to fire you up so revival can take a hold of your life and move you forward or do you want to sit back and wait on your wakeup call because you want to do your own thing?
Drifting might be a good thing if you are a race car driver or in the movie the Fast and the Furious, but drifting is not good in the life of the follower of Christ in any form. Revival is a blessing that must start with us accepting the call, the place in the order, and humbly giving God our all; not just drifting along in our own world, doing our own thing.
The devil wants to take you to hell. He wants to take everyone you are associated with to hell right along with you. He comes to destroy all that you are and all that you can be. He comes to fill your life full of garbage to cover up the good God wants to use to make great with His blessings and promises. Who are you going to allow to take hold of you today? Do you want a life that is always in question? Or do you want a life where there are actually answers? The choice is yours. Don’t let your wakeup call come to late. The Bible says, “Seek Him and you will find Him.” Seek revival in the Lord humbly, and you will find that the fire in your life has not gone out, but just covered up with clutter. “Lord, Revive us again” so that we may be the best for you and so that we may share that fire as Solomon did with the entire assembly of our community.
Friday, September 24, 2010
The Silent Sermon (Worth a Repeat)
A member of a certain church, who previously had been attending services regularly, stopped going. After a few weeks, the preacher decided to visit him.
It was a chilly evening. The preacher found the man at home alone, sitting before a blazing fire. Guessing the reason for his preachers visit, the man welcomed him, led him to a comfortable chair near the fireplace and waited. The preacher made himself at home but said nothing. In the grave silence, he contemplated the dance of the flames around the burning logs. After some minutes, the preacher took the fire tongs, carefully picked up a brightly burning ember and placed it to one side of the hearth all alone then he sat back in his chair, still silent...
The host watched all this in quiet contemplation. As the one lone ember's flame flickered and diminished, there was a momentary glow and then its fire was no more. Soon it was cold and dead. Not a word had been spoken since the initial greeting.
The preacher glanced at his watch and realized it was time to leave. He slowly stood up, picked up the cold, dead ember and placed it back in the middle of the fire. Immediately it began to glow, once more with the light and warmth of the burning coals around it. As the preacher reached the door to leave, his host said with a tear running down his cheek, 'Thank you so much for your visit and especially for the fiery sermon. I shall be back in church next Sunday.
'We live in a world today, which tries to say too much with too little. Consequently, few listen. Sometimes the best sermons are the ones left unspoken.
Just thought it was something that I needed to share with you guys today. As Christians, we gather together so our flame will not go out and become dead. If you haven't been to church in a while and you feel no fire in your life. Stop by and try to rekindle that flame you once had. If you have never been to church, come join us and be warmed by the people you will meet who truly care about you. God bless you guys and have a great week.
Pastor David
It was a chilly evening. The preacher found the man at home alone, sitting before a blazing fire. Guessing the reason for his preachers visit, the man welcomed him, led him to a comfortable chair near the fireplace and waited. The preacher made himself at home but said nothing. In the grave silence, he contemplated the dance of the flames around the burning logs. After some minutes, the preacher took the fire tongs, carefully picked up a brightly burning ember and placed it to one side of the hearth all alone then he sat back in his chair, still silent...
The host watched all this in quiet contemplation. As the one lone ember's flame flickered and diminished, there was a momentary glow and then its fire was no more. Soon it was cold and dead. Not a word had been spoken since the initial greeting.
The preacher glanced at his watch and realized it was time to leave. He slowly stood up, picked up the cold, dead ember and placed it back in the middle of the fire. Immediately it began to glow, once more with the light and warmth of the burning coals around it. As the preacher reached the door to leave, his host said with a tear running down his cheek, 'Thank you so much for your visit and especially for the fiery sermon. I shall be back in church next Sunday.
'We live in a world today, which tries to say too much with too little. Consequently, few listen. Sometimes the best sermons are the ones left unspoken.
Just thought it was something that I needed to share with you guys today. As Christians, we gather together so our flame will not go out and become dead. If you haven't been to church in a while and you feel no fire in your life. Stop by and try to rekindle that flame you once had. If you have never been to church, come join us and be warmed by the people you will meet who truly care about you. God bless you guys and have a great week.
Pastor David
Friday, February 26, 2010
"Just as You Are"
An elderly Chinese woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole which she carried across her neck. One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walks from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.
For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do.
After two years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream. “I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house…”
The old woman smiled, “Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side?” “That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them.”
For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house” (Author Unknown).
We are all wired differently and have our own unique flaws, but Christ loves us anyway. Christ takes the broken, the cracked, the hurting, the needy, the depressed, the rich, the poor alike and loves them just as they are. Overlooking our brokenness, He sees so much more.
Do you remember verse 4 and 5 of the hymn, “Just as I Am?”
Just as I am, poor, wretched, blind-
Sight, riches, healing of the mind,
Yea, all I need in Thee to find-
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
Just as I am, Thou wilt receive,
Wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve,
Because Thy promise I believe,
O Lamb of God, I come! I come!
Christ is the redemption for our brokenness and all we have to do is allow Him in to our hearts. No matter how broken or afflicted we are, Scripture tells us, “9 That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved” (Romans 10:9-10, NIV).
There is no better time than this very moment to allow Christ to show you what your cracked and dysfunctional being can do for His glory. Allow Him to show you just like the cracked pot in the story was shown; there is a purpose for your life and He will make you complete.
Have a great weekend,
Pastor David
For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do.
After two years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream. “I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house…”
The old woman smiled, “Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side?” “That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them.”
For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house” (Author Unknown).
We are all wired differently and have our own unique flaws, but Christ loves us anyway. Christ takes the broken, the cracked, the hurting, the needy, the depressed, the rich, the poor alike and loves them just as they are. Overlooking our brokenness, He sees so much more.
Do you remember verse 4 and 5 of the hymn, “Just as I Am?”
Just as I am, poor, wretched, blind-
Sight, riches, healing of the mind,
Yea, all I need in Thee to find-
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
Just as I am, Thou wilt receive,
Wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve,
Because Thy promise I believe,
O Lamb of God, I come! I come!
Christ is the redemption for our brokenness and all we have to do is allow Him in to our hearts. No matter how broken or afflicted we are, Scripture tells us, “9 That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved” (Romans 10:9-10, NIV).
There is no better time than this very moment to allow Christ to show you what your cracked and dysfunctional being can do for His glory. Allow Him to show you just like the cracked pot in the story was shown; there is a purpose for your life and He will make you complete.
Have a great weekend,
Pastor David
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