Join us Sunday, January 22 as we kick of Open House Week for Life Groups!
On Sunday, browse through the lobby and visit each Life Group’s table to sample some of their homemade goodies and meet a few members of their group. During the Open House Week (February 12-20), make it a point to visit one or two groups that interest you. Each group will be having an “Open House,” so it will be easy to stop in, check things out, and feel right at home. No pressure to commit or sign-up- just have fun and make new friends!
Check out the list for the Winter 2012 Life Groups, and we hope to see you this week!
But WHY should you check out and JOIN a life group? Let me say, come out Sunday and you'll find out WHY? It's what I'm preaching about too. But let me add a few thoughts.
We were created for and NEED community. God uniquely created us (in His image) to need and want to belong and be part of community. That's why we feel disconnected and messed up if we are not in connection with people and building meaningful friendships.
Sundays Life Gatherings aren't for COMMUNITY. We gather on Sundays to worship and grow. That's why it's essential to get plugged into a group during the week. Sundays are designed to gather as many believers together to worship and gather as many unbelievers together to introduce them to the GOSPEL.
We need to BELONG and to be KNOWN and that CANNOT happen on Sundays. When you come out on Sundays to our gatherings, we know you feel a little lost in the crowds, and it's HARD to meet people and make friends. Truth is, even if Lifehouse were only 40 people, you wouldn't know everyone. It's just that you would at least see someone you do know. Plus, no matter where a person attends, Sundays really aren't meant for community. So, we need to belong and the best way to belong is to get connected to a life group.
Life groups are a "FAMILY of FRIENDS!"Joining a life group of 6-25 people allows you to meet and get to know other Jesus-followers. In groups, you'll build authentic community and meaningful friendships, and you'll know that you belong. We want to be a family, well... a church should be a family of friends!
Life groups help you GROW! The best place to develop in your personal, spiritual journey is in a group with other believers. They can pray with you, and you for them. Together you can study the Bible, encourage each other, and ask questions. Once of the key goals of a life groups is DISCIPLESHIP (or becoming more life Christ!)
Life groups are easy an easy place to invite friends. Who's intimidated to go over someone's house? How DOESN'T like to be invited to someone's house? It's easy to invite friends who don't know Jesus over to another friends house to meet people like them and to talk about God. Another key goal of life groups is to invite un-churched friends.
We look forward to seeing YOU get plugged into a life group.
Many people are afraid of commitment. Others think they'll be ready once they mature. Truth is: commitment produces maturity not vice versa. Think about marriage. It's the lifelong covenant of marriage that demands personal growth in each spouse.
Spiritual growth is similar. We grow through commitment. Here's an opportunity for YOU to grow!
If you have not YET been through Lifehouse's Life Commitments process, sign up. It's starting THIS Sunday!
Life Commitments is an exciting 8-week discipleship course that teaches commitment to God and commitment to the body of Christ (the church). We believe the church is a family; and it takes commitment to build a strong family. The course is an interactive teaching with video illustrations, gifts assessment tests, and plenty of group discussions. The process concludes with an overnight retreat, where students are given the opportunity to deepen relationships with others in the class, review the material, and allow each person to individually experience God’s presence in a life transforming way. After completion of the course, individuals are given the opportunity to become a “Ministry Partner.”
The Winter Semester begins January 15 and ends March 4. The following class times are offered weekly at Lifehouse Bethel (515 E. Wilson Blvd. Hagerstown, MD):
At the end of each year, we go through a New Year’s ritual. We evaluate the previous year, and set resolutions to change our habits and lifestyles.
Resolutions start with good intentions:
We set goals. We make commitments.
We tell our friends. We start…
Then, as quickly as the new year begins, our resolve wanes. Busyness kicks in and old habits find new life.
What was once comfortable becomes comfortable again.
And what happens to our resolutions? We want and even intend to do what we couldn’t do in the past. Yet, new resolutions require new disciplines. We get tired. We experience setbacks, delays, and unanticipated obstacles.
We get busy. Daily life distracts us. Deadlines and demands zap our energy and quiet our enthusiasm.
Therefore, I’m calling for no more resolutions. 2012 will be RESOLUTION-FREE.
Let’s NOT make any more commitments with good intentions but no execution.
Let’s NOT recycle the same guilt, failures, and regrets into yet another year of broken promises, disappointments, and inadequacies.
At Lifehouse, our goal is to provide resources that will empower you to live RELENTLESSLY for God. We want to assist you in developing a vibrant relationship with Jesus by establishing a daily prayer time and reading through the Bible. We want to challenge you to give your talents, time, and treasures to the Cause of Christ, and to join this authentic community of Jesus followers called the Church.
What do you need in order to be RELENTLESS in 2012?
Join us THIS Sunday for a powerful call to a radical commitment to live relentlessly in 2012.
What do you want to be different about your life this time next year?
Are you willing to commit? Will you give God your all this year?
Vote on what should happen to St. Patrick at the end of Season 3: Law & Order at Lifehouse FB page (I suggest writing in that "he" should be arrested by real police for impersonating a police detective).
Check out part 2 video and message and discover how the Law of God is actually FOR our justice. We don't define right and wrong, or just throw it out the window. God establishes right and wrong.
At Lifehouse, we're kicking off our next Life Commitments Course THIS Sunday!
Sign up now by emailing info@lifehousechurcheast.org.
This is an exciting 8-week discipleship course that teaches commitment to God and commitment to the body of Christ (the church).
We believe the church is a family; and it takes commitment to build a strong family.
The course is an interactive teaching with video illustrations, gifts assessment tests, and plenty of group discussions. The process concludes with an overnight retreat (called Encounter Weekend), where students are given the opportunity to deepen relationships with others in the class, review the material, and allow each person to individually experience God’s presence in a life transforming way.
If you want to go deeper with Christ, get more involved at Lifehouse, and build strong relationships with others who want to do the same, then join Life Commitments.
If you're wondering what your next step is at Lifehouse, and you have not YET gone through Life Commitments, this is the course for you!
If you haven't heard the controversy surrounding Rob Bell's (Pastor of Mars Hill Church) latest book Love Wins, then allow me to briefly bring you up to speed and offer some great recommendations. Since I have neither the time nor desire to outline a thorough review of his book, and feel that there are better authors and scholars to do such a job, I'm reposting Ed Stetzer's recent post about Bell's book. Stetzer also offers several other blogs, of which I've read a few.
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Much to my frustration, I was not able to publish a review of Rob Bell'sLove Winsfor you along with the swarm of others when it came out. I had received the book about a week or so before it was published, read it twice, and had prepared a somewhat lengthy review (not compared to Kevin DeYoung's reviewum opus). But nonetheless it shared some thoughts about several elements of the book. If you follow me on Twitter, you know that it was lost in technology world-- and I still have not figured out what happened. Sigh.
Either way, since much of the detailed reviewing has been done, I have not reproduced my original writing. The need for that has seemed to pass. Instead, I will share a few thoughts over the next few days about the concepts of love, holiness, and eternity.
It probably goes without saying that it is a well-written and engaging book. Though I don't find it particularly theologically hefty, it certainly is creative, fast-moving, and attention grabbing, as all of Rob Bell's writings tend to be. However, I think it has some fundamental premises that simply are wrong. I will try to critique them briefly (but hopefully fairly), and then present some alternative ideas in the coming days.
Martin Bashir's interview hit at a key issue of the book (though I found his interview style to be a bit abrasive). The book represents a desire, and certainly a well meaning one, to recast Christianity in a more favorable light. Coming from a non-Christian family, I find that appealing. I want it to be true. I want it to work. Yet, I think that project will ultimately fail. Actually, I think it has already failed in mainline Protestantism. It requires us to reject too much scripture to fit into our cultural sensibilities. Rob Bell's views may be more appealing in contemporary culture, but it falls short of faithfully proclaiming what the scriptures teach--just read Jesus' frequent comments about the afterlife and eternal consequences.
I think the clear and overwhelming rejection of Bell's views by orthodox Christians (with often lengthy scriptural responses) indicates that this is clearly in error on several points. I actually had originally prepared a list of those, but as others have done so aptly, there is no need to repeat that process here. There have been few defenders in orthodox Christianity of Bell's thesis--and rightly so. Even Mark Galli, tentmaster of evangelicalism's "Big Tent" (Christianity Today) believes it is a bridge too far. Galli's right.
If there has been one well-known evangelical defender who has engaged on the subject, it has been Richard Mouw. I must confess, I find his comments confusing (original comments here and elaboration here). To say that an optimistic inclusivistview (some might say a "mostly" universalist) is well within the realm of orthodox Christianity is odd. It has been present, but as a small minority. And, it would be even "smaller" in evangelicalism. Perhaps Mouw's comments point to the shift that has been experienced in segments of evangelicalism. I will be writing more on that in the days to some. Others have written about an "evangelical tipping point" represented by this moment and I think they are right.
Yet, I would agree that there has always been a minority tradition within the Christian faith that Christ saves everyone regardless of the response they give to Christ in this life. However, the position has been considered to be in error by the vast majority of orthodox Christians (and just about ALL evangelicals). For that matter, I don't think that Love Wins is the most compelling statement of that view. You would find a more compelling and better-written thesis (with some differences) in A Wideness of God's Mercy of Clark Pinnock or some of the writings by John Sanders.
Now, that is not to say that we cannot learn from our mainline friends. I read many mainline thinkers and find their scholarship strong and their thinking challenging. Yet, I think Lisa Miller of Newsweek asked the question that needed an answer. She asked Rob Bell, "Aren't you just a mainline Protestant posing as an evangelical? Aren't you just saying what Episcopalians have been saying for fifty or sixty years?" (Be sure to read the whole interview here. I don't think he answers the question she asked, but his answers and ideas are worth reading)
Bell has largely recast and tweaked the view that many mainline Protestants have held for a hundred years: that because of God's love, he saves everyone, regardless. This is not new. This is not groundbreaking. This is not revolutionary.
In many ways, Rob Bell's Love Wins is simply mainline Protestantism with better haircuts and cooler music. Similar statements could have been made at the Parliament of World Religions in 1893 or later (with some modification) in Karl Rahner's concept of the Anonymous Christian.
I do think you should read the book-- it addresses questions your friends are asking. And, it will be influential. And, you should wrestle with the scriptures for the answers and be compelled to act by what you find.
With all of that stated, I think that what Rob Bell has written is outside of the realm of the historic Christian view and more in line with the mainline Protestant view (and, yes, I am saying that the historic Christian view is not the modern mainline Protestant view). Since Bell relates to evangelicals and is read by many in the evangelical tradition, it appears that the book is geared toward (in part) persuading evangelicals. Thus, Love Wins seeks to provoke and persuade us to a new view that I (and other evangelicals) see as theologically problematic. And, as such, it is unhelpful to the church and ultimately accomplishes little of what he intended. (I will explain more in the coming posts.)
Yet, Bell appeals to the love of God. And, I love the love of God and consider it worthy of our consideration.
My exhortation (to all of us) from the Bell conversation is that we (re)learn how the scriptural truths of the love of God and the holiness of God are held simultaneously in the scriptures. Unfortunately, I think Bell comes up short in considering their partnership and instead pits them against one another. Furthermore, I think that we might consider how our view of love impacts our view of the work of God.
Now, it's probably no secret, and I should reveal my own bias early on, that I have a different view of what the love of God does and how we are to understand it.
I think the scriptures teach us that we are compelled by love in how we are to live out our faith and God's mission. In 2008, I co-authored a book on the subject with Philip Nation. Over the next week or so, I'll offer a few more blog posts reflecting on Rob Bell's view of God's love with a response to it. Along the way, I'll use excerpts from my book, Compelled By Love.
But for now, I'll simply leave you with a thought for the next installment. In 2 Corinthians 5:14-15, Paul wrote, "For Christ compels us, since we have reached this conclusion: If One died for all, then all died. And He died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for the One who died for them and was raised." I believe the best understanding of God's love is that it does not teach us that all are saved but it does teach us that God's people are sent to announce the good news of the gospel to all. We will explore that distinction and others in the coming days.
for The Unquenchable Life daily Bible reading plan, we've been reading through 2 Samuel. Here are a few leadership lessons from the reading over the last few days:
1. How to treat our "enemies".
Do you rejoice or mourn at the death (or pain) of your enemies? David grieved and mourned when Saul was killed in battle, thus the phrase from his song, "Oh, how the might have fallen!"
Do we take revenge of evil into our own hands? Do we think that harming our enemy or laughing at their pain is justified? David killed those who killed his enemies and grieved that the evil done to them. Evil is evil regardless of the server or recipient.
2. Fulfilling God's agenda or my agenda.
Do you trust God to accomplish His purposes through your life or take it into your own hands and build your own kingdom? David didn't try to secure his own throne or rule, but allow God to raise him up. David never saw the throne as "his" but as "given by God". (see 2 Sam 5:10).
3. Facing battles.
Even though David's army had defeated the Philistines once, they gathered against him again. Does that mean he didn't win the first time? Should he have become discouraged? Should David have said, "I've been here before and faced same battle?" then use same battle plan as before?
David recognized that even though you may win a battle, the enemy may fight against you again. Don't be discouraged if you're facing a similar battle as in past victories. BUT don't assume that the same strategy is required.
v. 23- David inquired of the LORD (again)...
4. Obedience to God is more important than accomplishing the task (even if it's the right thing to do).
Do we use the patterns of the world to follow God? David copied the Philistines method for handling the ark of God and it caused death and despair, when it should have brought blessing and joy.
Is it appropriate for us to "fear God" (v.9) if we engage in "irreverent acts" (v.7) toward God? We should fear God and worship Him with a holy, healthy respect.
v.11- God's blessing rests on those who treat His presence with honor and obedience.
Water Baptism is a significant step in the life of a Christ-follower, and if you or someone you know would like to participate in our upcoming ceremony, email our office and complete an Application for Water Baptism by February 17. You can also read more about the meaning and significance of this ceremony by reading our baptism brochure.
The big event happens during the adult worship services at Leitersburg Cinema, so we hope everyone will participate in this special day!
I enjoy eating as much as anyone, especially meats and sweets. But there are seasons when we must learn to NOT eat. First, you can watch this guy to learn why you shouldn't eat "ghost peppers". But I'm not writing about avoiding foods that will light your intestines on fire, but about a critical principle in life and ministry.
DON'T EAT YOUR SEED.
If a farmer started with a single seed, what would he do? Cultivate the soil. Bury the seed. Water. Fertilize. Weed around the growing seed to protect it. At harvest, the seed might produce100 or 60 or 30 fold. Then what? Does he eat the entire harvest? If so, what will he plant in the spring?
A wise farmer knows to only eat what he must, so that he can sow even more seed in spring, and expect an even greater return the next harvest.
What's the point?
In ministry and life, we have a choice: enjoy the moment, eat our "seed" of financial resources and time OR only use what we must so that we can invest our finances and time into more fruitful ministry and the Cause of Christ.
Christ called us to be "good and faithful" AND to allow the grain of wheat to fall to the ground and die. When we follow the example of Christ, and willingly give up our life and agenda for Christ, our life (seed) produces a harvest- some 100, 60, or 30 fold.
Jesus promised, "If you are faithful with little, you will be entrusted with much. But to those who are not faithful with little, even what they have will be taken and given to those are already have much."
Are you eating away the little seed you have or are you investing it into what matters for eternity?
At Lifehouse, we're kicking off a new sermon series called Unquenchable.
For everyone at Lifehouse tomorrow morning, we have a very exciting and special gift for you that we've been preparing and believe will dramatically impact your life throughout 2011!
The most critical step in growing in our relationship with Christ is studying and obeying the Bible. So, here are some FREE tools to help you:
download and listen to the Bible (load onto mp3 player or burn onto CD) here. Also available- Old Testament & KJV,
download audio NIV Bible in professional format for $23 here,
read and study the Bible with these sites full of Bible translations, commentaries (authors research on each chapter and verse of the Bible), daily devotions, as well as many other helps. In order of usefulness: 1. biblegateway.com; 2. biblestudytools.com; 3. searchgodsword.org. Many of these tools would cost $1000s if you had to buy them in hardcopy.
for smart phones, iPhones, iPads, etc: Bible resources at youversion.com.
If you'd like to download and have Bible research tools on your computer, here are a few I highly recommend and use myself:
for everybody who wants to start seriously studying the Bible- powerbible.com for PC only ($19),
for people serious about studying the Bible and building a library- logos.com for PC and Mac, as well as iPhone- packages range from those who want personal study (Home package- $120) to leaders and life group leaders (Bible Study Leader package- $212) to lay pastors and teachers (Leaders library- $260) to pastors and scholars (Scholar's library- from $504).
These resources are well worth the investment and dramatically speed up your ability to study the Bible. Honestly, what once took me 10 hours to do in college in the library, I can do on my laptop in 10 seconds. There is no excuse for not seriously studying the Bible. Plus, the Logos software is upgradeable and expandable, so you can start at a base level, and upgrade and buy books as desired. Hey LOGOS, you should give me a commission for this plug :)
We have a surprise for everyone at Lifehouse in January 2011 that will help you grow in your spiritual life through 2011. Come ready to grow and deepen your faith (not free software, but great nonetheless!).
Get them while they're available. St Patrick season 2 videos and sermons are now available at youtube and at our website, but they're only available to a limited number of people for viewing and download. So, if you want to see or hear, go NOW!
Ok, that's not true. Anybody can watch, listen, and download. And we hope you do! Pass them around, email the links to your friends, family, and neighbors who you're inviting to Lifehouse, or to those who would benefit from this sermon series. OR to those who need a good laugh at MY expense.
There are elemental laws, forces, principles of nature and universe that "operate" to meticulous perfection. Mankind, especially scientists for thousands of years, has worked to discover “how” these laws work. However, they always work, whether we know or understand them. So, our goal is to not only figure out how they work, but more importantly, to cooperate with them.
All of these forces and laws are so finely "tuned" to perfection that to the objective observer, the whole of existence can be described as nothing less than the “Elegant Universe".
The force of gravity is perfect, but it didn’t have to be that way. Newton discovered and theorized gravity (the force of attraction between any 2 atoms). Gravity is usually undetectable, but with great mass can come significant gravity, i.e. on earth, which makes apples fall from trees, but also keeps the moon in orbit (9.81m/s2 or 32ft/s2).
Gravity on earth doesn’t change because the mass of earth doesn’t change, but what if it did? Exact pull keeps not only us from being thrown form earth as it spins, it keeps certain gases in our atmosphere in and others out. It keeps sea water in the ocean, and air breathable. That’s why if you go to higher elevations, it’s harder to breathe. Atmospheric pressure (based on gravity) is lower, which means fewer O2 molecules concentrated per unit of volume of air.
Newton figured out most of the formulas that we still use to this day, and he didn’t even know WHY it worked. Einstein came along and wrote theory, discovered laws of relativity, including gravity.
If you’re thinking, “I don’t get it.” That’s okay. Remember, you don’t have to understand the laws for them to work. Sometimes things do work as we think, like a bowling ball sinking in water. We certainly try to understand, more importantly cooperate with and live in harmony with these “laws”.
Then, there are times when these laws don't work as we expect. Then what do we do?
For sake of illustration, what about this 10 lbs bowling ball that floats? Not what we expect, right?
Explanation: density is the key (mass in volume). Density of water (about 1 g/cm3, or 8lbs/gal). If the density of the bowling balls are greater than the density of water, they'll sink. If less, then they'll float.
Don’t always work as we think they should, sometimes even want to fight them. We can try to resist, and become frustrated, or fight them to own misfortune and destruction.
Similarly, there are fundamental principles in human life that are always in operation, whether we know or understand them. And like the laws of nature, it is always best to live in harmony and cooperation with these principles.
However, sin messed up natural tendencies and instincts, reversed our innate understanding, more importantly to cooperate. Sin turned everything upside-down, broken.
Our sin nature is out to destroy us. Like someone with an urge to jump from high places, which everyone agrees is contrary to nature and a destructive tendencies (Psychologists would call it Masochistic/ Self-Defeating Personality Disorder).
The Bible states that sin fractured our nature, our understanding, and even messed up the whole of nature, by inserting death and sin into a perfect world.
Here's one example of how sin messed things up. When God designed creations, it was absent of death and destruction. However, through sin, death entered into our world, death led to the basic instinct of self-preservation, which leads to all sorts of evil, especially selfishness.
We are hard-wired by our fractured nature to be selfishness. Even my "perfect" daughters say things like, “I want” and "It's mine", too often. We are constantly looking out for MY needs. We want the last cookie.
This instinctive selfishness doesn’t preserve us, however, but actually destroys us and the relationships with others that we value.
When we follow our natural tendencies, it's similar to following the urge to jump from a cliff against the force of gravity. However, instead of protecting or liberating us, it destroys us and others.
Sin is always out to destroy us, and therefore, our nature is a destructive force in our life. Read John 10:10. Were not not alone, as soon as sin entered world back in Eden, mankind has been living under it’s cruel curse. Even Jesus’ disciples show the self-protecting, self-exalting cycle with all it's selfish instincts: Read John 13:3-8, 12-17.
This is a counter-intuitive model of life, that goes against everything instinctive and selfish.
Jesus came to restore our lives back to the original design, help us re-discover the basic principles of true life so that we would not live destructive lives leading to death, but so that we could truly live in cooperation with God and in harmony with His perfect plan. Now, read the full verse from John 10:10.
So, what can we learn from Jesus teaching that will help us prosper, live in harmony with God’s absolute principles of life so that we can experience true life and blessing, as Jesus promised in John 13:17?
Here's the Big Idea: To be first, be last!
No, were not in kindergarten anymore! So, we’re not pushing and shoving to get to the front of the line, well unless you're driving down the road in rush hour traffic... But Jesus wasn’t talking about trying to get to first place in line, but about posturing for fame, greatness, recognition, and self-preservation.
His completely counter-intuitive lessons challenge us to stop following our natural, sinful tendencies that lead toward the destruction of all things, and start following His way and listening to God’s Spirit inside of us, leading us toward a new way of living and thinking.
What does it mean to “be last”?
If we want to be greatest, become the servant of all. If we strive to be in charge as a master, then we must follow His example and become a servant in the most humble of circumstances.
This isn’t about looking down on yourself, or having low self-esteem or any lack of self-worth. Jesus had great self-worth and a knowledge of His value and position with the Father, as clearly stated in John 13:3-4.
Just the opposite is the case, when we’re aware of our true value and worth to God, then we stop fighting and posturing. We stop living so cut-throat, and following the self-defeating life that leads to destruction. Then, we can willing serve others, because we’re not looking out for our interests but God’s.
By trying to be first or greatest or most recognized or to be see as important, we fall into the self-defeating, destructive trap that destroy us and leave us as the least. We become a slave to sin and in bondage to the very things we seek. Money becomes a snare, fame a curse, and power a tool for destruction.
BUT when we take on the role of a servant (counter-intuitive), we reverse the forces of sin, and embrace a whole new way of true life that Jesus offers.
TO BE LAST means to serve others, rather than ruling over them. Preferring others ahead of ourselves. Wanting the best for them, as much as for ourselves. Lift others up rather than always wanting to puff ourselves up. To be humble and bend down, while others stand proud. To wash feet while others refuse to ever do the work of the slave.
Do you want to get ahead in this life? You may achieve it, only to arrive at that end, and discover that it gave you the opposite results as you expected.
Jesus’ teaching is NOT complicated. It’s just so contrary to our instinctive way of living, that it seems wrong, weak, “it’ll never work”. But we, and our world, are the ones who are broken, not this teaching.
Jesus reveals one of the most profound, yet basic principles of life. It's even taught in MBA programs, politics, business, consultation- servant leadership. 820,000 links on Google. It’s always at work, not matter whether we understand it or not, whether we agree wit it, or expect it to work as it does.
Jesus challenged His disciples, and in turn us, to live in harmony and cooperation with God’s plan for all life.
Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them. John 13: 17, NIV.
I personally grew up having "carrots" dangled in front of me, by my parents, teachers, and spiritual leaders to keep me motivation. These "carrots" eventually consumed my attention? Most of them revolved around grasping and living the American dream.
However, I discovered that these carrots weren't worth living for, but especially worth dying for. I became discouraged, and maybe even disillusioned. what’s worth dying for. Even faith seemed led by those who had practice without passion, content without conviction. I longed for what would so inspire, grip me that I’d give my life to and for?
What in this life is worth your life? Can you live your entire life only for this life?
Meet a group of guys who were "going crazy" in Acts 4.
What has so gripped you, that you can’t help but speak of what you’ve seen and heard? What is it about you that “astonishes” people?
Big Idea: Follow JESUS!
Why give my life to Jesus? Why be crazy about Him, surrender whole life and purpose to Him? Why would Peter and John be so willing to face threats, persecution, even death for the sake of Jesus? (see Acts 4:20)
Only when the truth of Jesus takes hold of your life, will you be unable to give your life to any thing else. Only when you become so aware of his love and sacrifice for you, do you willingly give your life and all to Him?
What has He done for me? What did they see and hear? (Acts 4:12)
Well, examine the example of Jesus Christ: he gave His life as a ransom for our sin. Sacrificially died to pay the penalty for our sin. Took our place. Lived perfect sinless life, then, in his perfection, took the full weight of all our sins upon himself, and paid the full price for all those sins through his own brutal death. But sin couldn’t hold him down in death, and Jesus triumphantly rose victorious over death and the grave, and offered all who believe in Him new, eternal life.
We don’t follow religion, church, others in faith, BUT Jesus. He is our Cause, our faith.
Is our life marked by Jesus? Or are we still trying to make our way, find our carrot to chase?
What else consumes my life? Everything else will disappoint!
Once you find Jesus, and discover that He is worth living and dying for, then what?
Big Idea: FOLLOW Jesus!
When our life is centered, focused, aimed solely at Jesus, we are transformed. (see Acts 4:13)
What was their mark of greatness? What caught their persecutors off guard?
Peter and John had “been with Jesus” and it showed through them. Does your experience, your prayer life, worship, study of God’s word so impact you, that it transforms you?
Is it obvious that you’ve been with Jesus? Does it astonish anyone around you?
Following Jesus is extreme, risky, and astonishing.
When we follow Jesus, we follow His example, live boldly, walk in faith and faithfully.
When we follow Jesus, our life is not our own, but abandoned to His Cause and purpose.
Are you willing to surrender to HIS will? To decrease so that Jesus can increase in your life? Are you willing to be seen as ordinary so that Jesus is know as extraordinary?
Didn’t count their life worth anything other than to follow Jesus. (see Acts 4:29-31)
It's not ancient history, but a contemporary struggle voiced by U2. Echoed by a generation that wants to see what is worth living for? Even dying for?
Lived everyday by millions of Jesus-followers under extreme persecution, living an amazing faith, offering astonishing obedience, and extraordinary sacrifice: Karen Watson, lived from 1973-2004, and was killed as a missionary worker in Iraq by terrorists.
Dear Pastor, You should only be opening this letter in the event of my death. When God calls there are no regrets. I tried to share my heart with you as much as possible, my heart for the nations. I wasn’t called to a place, I was called to Him. To obey was my objective, to suffer was expected, His glory my reward… The Missionary Heart cares more than some think is wise, risks more than some think is safe, dreams more than some think is practical, expects more than some think is possible. I was called not to comfort or to success but to obedience. There is no joy outside of knowing Jesus and serving Him. I love you and my church family. In his care, Karen.
Imagine if we lived like this.
Does my biblical presentation seem simplistic? This big idea to basic? You ask, "Is that it?"
It’s like the egg and bacon breakfast, the chicken got involved and contributed to the meal, but the pig was totally committed and all in.
Imagine we actually lived totally consumed with the person of Jesus and committed to following Him with abandon? Imagine we discovered His love, forgiveness, peace, joy, and then shared it with the world?
Would those around us be astonished, because they know that we’re just ordinary, not-that-smart people who have BEEN with JESUS?
Here's the video footage of an amazing service at Lifehouse that we wanted to share with you. It's broken into 8 parts so that we could get it onto Youtube.com, so enjoy, be challenged, share it, and invite God into YOUR story today!
Introduction and Part 1 of Sermon: Invite God into YOUR Story.
Part 2- Testimony 1- Hunter
Part 3- Testimony 2- Stephanie
Part 4- Testimony 3- Austin
Part 5- Cardboard Testimonies of many people at Lifehouse
Part 6- Part 2 of Sermon: Invite God into YOUR story
Part 7- Challenge to respond and invite God to set us free from chains that bind
Part 8- Response time
Hope you are inspired and challenged to invite God into YOUR story. I hope that by watching other brave individuals authentically share about their faith journey, you're willing to risk inviting God into your mess so that your life can become a message of hope through Jesus.
Just like warning my girls of the dangers and evils of the "real world", I felt like a dad preaching yesterday about watching out for false teachers and avoiding deceptive teaching in the church.
In a world and culture where nothing is TRUTH and everyone is cynical, it's hard to talk about "safeguarding our lives with truth".
In case you weren't at Lifehouse or need a refresher, here's an overview:
Paul wrote from prison to warn the Philippian church to watch out for "dogs" who were teaching a pop-culture belief. They said that you had to follow the religious rules of Judaism BEFORE you could believe in Jesus. In essence, you had to earn your salvation. This was both culturally popular and politically correct, since it fit the format of most world religions of that time.
Paul challenged them to "safeguard their life with truth". Follow Jesus, bring glory to God and avoid people who teach lies.
What can we be certian of in an uncertain world? What will hold us fast when the storms of hardship rage against us? Straight from Paul's teaching, I challenged our church to safeguard our lives with TRUTH! But how?
Watch out for false teachers and teachings: those who appear mature and educated, but their teaching matches pop-culture, and they twist any uncomfortable teachings of the Bible to match culture, deny essential beliefs of following Jesus, resist authority, encourage and/or engage in sensual living full of lust and greed.
Hold to TRUTH: read and study the Bible.
Examine teachings and teachers: look at the merits of those who teach and evaluate the credibility of the books, sermons, podcasts (that goes for me too). Any teacher worth listening to will appreciate your scrutiny.
What to look for when evaluating credibility of a teacher or teaching: do they bring honor to Jesus or themselves? Do they teach the Bible as TRUTH and teach from the Bible, not just one verse but work to communicate the context of the Bible? Are they becoming more like Jesus or living in blatant contradiction to the way of Jesus?
This doesn't mean that we should be pointing fingers at every preacher and author. Honestly, we are ordinary, imperfect people who also need God's amazing grace and mercy. But it's a caution to watch out and avoid those false teachers that peddle their lies for personal gain or the destruction of ignorant believers.
While I want to express this with deep conviction in a way that the Church will listen and respond to, I assure you that no level of passion can carry the intensity of warning that burns inside of me.
One final thought: I don't call out individuals or books by name, simply because I believe my role is to teach Truth and the principles of the Bible. I want to give you the tools, then invite you to use them effectively. I'm confident that the Holy Spirit will lead His Church into all Truth and will protect you from deceptive teaching. I'm trying to prepare you for the real spiritual world out there!
At some point, nearly every parent responds to a "why" from their child with, "because I said so".
That's the moment when a parent decides that they don't want to or are not ready to explain the why's to their children, and they simply want obedience. They want immediate, unwavering obedience to their expectation or request.
For me personally, this happens rarely. I enjoy explaining life, chores, homework, whatever to my girls. They rarely ask a "why" question in protest, but usually just inquisitively. So, when their curiousity peeks, I love to help them grow.
However, on those rare occassions, when I don't want to explain, and I expect immediate obedience, they will receive the firm hand of correction if they don't comply. Usually, that's followed by, "When Dad speaks, you listen immediately regardless of your questions. Do as your told. If you have a question- obey first, ask later."
God does that to US as well! Yep, there are moments in following Jesus, that we're busy asking "why's" and not moving or obeying.
... but why should I stop sinning?
... but why is that wrong?
... but what about them? They're doing it, why can't I?
... NOW God? Are you sure? I mean, I have a lot going on, and next year would be better.
... but God, 10% is a lot of money? Are you sure? Maybe I'll just give 2%, that's better than nothing.
... but that doesn't make sense. Why should I give that up?
... but it wasn't my fault, why should I say I'm sorry?
Well, you get the idea. God's response to me is usually something like mine to my girls, "Because I said so, that's why? You may not understand it, but I do expect you to obey!"
What questions have kept you from obeying?
What is God asking you to do that you haven't because you can't figure it out?
Did you get that? That's what you type if you place your hands on the wrong keys on the keyboard, so instead of your left-hand pinky being on the "a", it's on the "s". What I was trying to type, until I realized that my hands were out of alignment, was:
Are you in alignment with God?
Just like placing my hands out of alignment, and the message gets all messed up and becomes incomprehensible, when we are out of alignment with God, we get messed up. If my attitudes, spirit, and thinking are not properly connected to God in obedience, the message of Jesus will become incomprehensible through my personal life. While we're trying to say one thing, our life will be saying another. And for those "listening", all they hear is "gobble-dee-goop". The impact of our mis-alignment is confusion, and even hypocrisy.
Let's all check our life and see how well we are living in obedience to God's Word.
Is there secret sin in my life that I need to confess? Is there an attitude that God wants to correct? Is there a wrong that I need to forgive or ask for forgiveness?
BTW, I thought of this illustration at 2:30 am while waiting in bed for the rest of the world to wake up!
Why do we pray? worship? gather as the Church? do outreach? invite friends and share Jesus with our community?
Recently, in our weekly staff prayer meeting, we began with a time of singing and worship. Since I have a lot to pray about and request of God, I wanted to challenge our team to pray boldly and really seek God on behalf of Lifehouse East. However, as we were singing, this passage came to mind,
Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. Ecclesiastes 12:13
I was reminded, "Prayer is not a means to an end. Prayer is the end (or the whole) of man. Worship isn't a means to an end. It's the end game."
We're not trying to manipulate God through worship or convince him to do something through prayer. We do everything else as a church to bring more people into a place where they can experience an intimate and loving relationship with God through prayer and worship.
We're not praying to reach more people as the end game. We are reaching more people for God, so that all people will turn and worship God!
I read a book a while ago titled Falling Forward, by John Maxwell. The premise is that failures are a chance to grow, and he gives lessons on how to learn from mistakes, and a challenge to never make the same mistake twice.
For me, the title has been more helpful than any content.
God allows "falling forward" moments, because we need to learn hard lessons. And if you are anything like me, you didn't learn when Dad told you not to do something. You had to get banged up to learn the lesson. As we mature, we should need less of these moments, and learn more from gentle rebuke, reading the Bible, or the prompting of the Holy Spirit. I wish!
I had a recent scrape-my-knees-into-the-dirt learning moment that was uncomfortable and hard to hear. But one thing I know about falling forward: BE VERY TEACHABLE! Learn the lesson quick so that you don't have to fall again.
These falling moments teach us much:
that we're human and failable. We're still inclined to mess up, sin, or say the wrong thing.
that we must always be dependent on God and never become to confident in ourselves.
that everyone, regardless of age, stature, or position, still needs a swift kick in the pants every once and a while.
that you'll fall backward if you're not heading in the right direction!
What gentle proding from God are you ignoring, that will eventually lead to a "falling forward" moment?
Join us Sunday, January 22 as we kick of Open House Week for Life Groups!
