Listen Now
THE BOTTOM LINE from Sunday, the 28th.
We continued in the teaching series "these ARE my church clothes" by focusing on the importance of doing life together. The question was asked - why do we need to do life together? Here's the 3 reasons that were suggested:
1 - disciple-making cannot happen without it. According to Jesus' life and ministry, doing life together is both required and is the evidence of making disciples. We have to do life together with one another and with our culture in order to make disciples, and a disciple made is evidenced by his or her love expressed within the context of true connection and community.
2 - we really need each other. We were designed for connection and community. We were made to speak into each other's lives. We MUST lay aside "false togetherness" (being polite acquaintances with one another) and truly walk together.
3 - our needs are taken care of when we focus on taking care of one another. We can quit asking "what about my needs" when we are focusing on taking care of the needs of one another as we do life together, because our needs will be taken care as God shows His love to us through the people we are doing life with. We read about an example of doing life together from the early church in Acts 2:42-47.
Doug shared about our DLTs which you can find on the website by clicking this link: learn more about DLTs The final question was asked - will you commit to doing life together? We can't be faithful to the mission Christ has given us - to living sent and making disciples - without it! Yall keep being the church AND doing life together!
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Monday, January 22, 2007
My Church Clothes Part 3
Weekly Teaching Series of Westpoint Fellowship Church near Orlando, FL.
January 21, 2007
My Church Clothes Part 3
Listen Now
THE BOTTOM LINE from Sunday, January 21st, 2007: Be the church in the daily by listening to God and living in every sphere. Listening to God involves 2 fundamental elements:
::PRAYER- praying constantly, ever listening for His voice among the many voices calling for our attention, seeing the stuff of life as interruptions of the ongoing conversation between you and God, interacting with people like He is always a part of the conversation.
::READING the BIBLE - the living Word, the love story of His pursuit of a relationship with us, the filter that helps us discern which voice among the many is His and which need to be ignored.
::Living in every sphere means LIVING SENT - as a letter from God to your family, to your neighbors, in the marketplace, to the world locally and globally, and on the web. If we say we follow Jesus, then we must always be listening for Him, faithfully be responding to His promptings, compassionately be loving the people He loves, and freely be giving ourselves away to the people we encounter in our spheres, just like He came to where we were and gave Himself away. We must BE the CHURCH.
January 21, 2007
My Church Clothes Part 3
Listen Now
THE BOTTOM LINE from Sunday, January 21st, 2007: Be the church in the daily by listening to God and living in every sphere. Listening to God involves 2 fundamental elements:
::PRAYER- praying constantly, ever listening for His voice among the many voices calling for our attention, seeing the stuff of life as interruptions of the ongoing conversation between you and God, interacting with people like He is always a part of the conversation.
::READING the BIBLE - the living Word, the love story of His pursuit of a relationship with us, the filter that helps us discern which voice among the many is His and which need to be ignored.
::Living in every sphere means LIVING SENT - as a letter from God to your family, to your neighbors, in the marketplace, to the world locally and globally, and on the web. If we say we follow Jesus, then we must always be listening for Him, faithfully be responding to His promptings, compassionately be loving the people He loves, and freely be giving ourselves away to the people we encounter in our spheres, just like He came to where we were and gave Himself away. We must BE the CHURCH.
Sunday, January 21, 2007
My Church Clothes Part 2
Listen Now
The essential element of living sent and living on the mission God has given me is trusting my value.
You see, Jesus declared our value at the cross. He clearly stated, “You are worth dying for.” Understand something - this is a declared value, not an appraised value. He did not go the cross because we were lovable. He went to the cross because He loves us, and it is His love for us that makes us lovable. It is His activity that makes us valuable. It is His invitation to be involved in His activity that makes our daily lives worth anything.
The most crippling issue hindering us from "being the church" is our insecurity to think we need more than what Jesus did - like good performance or a pastor to do the ministry for us – to spiritually impact the people in our lives.
Aren’t we each valuable and able to speak value into the lives of those around us. Don't we each have the Holy Spirit?
I am afraid that in North America, all we have done is created all over again one of the very things Jesus eliminated. Priesthood.
Christ-followers are not living according to purpose because for too long, they have been made to feel like all the value that exists within the body of Christ was given to the pastors. They have been made to feel that all the value given for living on purpose and all the value that enables us to speak value into the lives of others was given to the modern day priesthood. After all, let’s just get them there on Sunday and the preacher can tell them about this stuff.
Listen, I am a “preacher,” although I don’t commonly call myself that, and I know how much people remember of what I say on Sundays. Not much.
But you, on the other hand! What you say around your family. What you say around your coworkers. What you say around your friends. How you live in the daily. These are sermons much more worthy of being podcasted. These are words much more significant to the people hearing them. Yours are actions that speak so much more loudly than the polished lectures that ring within the walls of church buildings across the country on Sundays.
Why? Because you have the Holy Spirit within you. You have all you need to live this out loud, to be a priceless, life-changing value in the lives of the people you do life with everyday.
There’s this doctrine called “the priesthood of the believers” that makes it clear that each of us can hear from, relate to, and speak of the God we follow. We don’t need anyone else to do it for us or to get us to Him.
Pastors need to lay down their egos and begin to unleash ministers into the daily. Pastors need to be pouring all of their energy into providing whatever people need to bring value into the lives of others everyday. Instead, pastors tend to pour all of their energy into 30 minute monologues that most people don’t remember (not that teaching the Word is not important. It just may not be as important coming from one person on Sundays as it is coming from every follower the other 6 ½ days of the week.).
You can do this! You can trust your value and live giving God’s value away into the lives of others. You can hear God whisper to your mind and heart to say a certain word or do a certain compassionate act to someone and do it, all the while knowing that you just got to be a part of the righteousness of God as His righteousness was lived out purposefully through you!!! You and I both get to be a part of His mission and movement and love and purpose everyday.
So, the next time you are grilling out with your neighbor or eating lunch with a friend at school or on a date with your spouse or throwing a ball with your kid, be ever listening to God. Trust your value and have the courage to share that value when you sense God’s Spirit prompting you to do so. Speak love and value into the lives of the people God has blessed you to be with daily.
The essential element of living sent and living on the mission God has given me is trusting my value.
You see, Jesus declared our value at the cross. He clearly stated, “You are worth dying for.” Understand something - this is a declared value, not an appraised value. He did not go the cross because we were lovable. He went to the cross because He loves us, and it is His love for us that makes us lovable. It is His activity that makes us valuable. It is His invitation to be involved in His activity that makes our daily lives worth anything.
The most crippling issue hindering us from "being the church" is our insecurity to think we need more than what Jesus did - like good performance or a pastor to do the ministry for us – to spiritually impact the people in our lives.
Aren’t we each valuable and able to speak value into the lives of those around us. Don't we each have the Holy Spirit?
I am afraid that in North America, all we have done is created all over again one of the very things Jesus eliminated. Priesthood.
Christ-followers are not living according to purpose because for too long, they have been made to feel like all the value that exists within the body of Christ was given to the pastors. They have been made to feel that all the value given for living on purpose and all the value that enables us to speak value into the lives of others was given to the modern day priesthood. After all, let’s just get them there on Sunday and the preacher can tell them about this stuff.
Listen, I am a “preacher,” although I don’t commonly call myself that, and I know how much people remember of what I say on Sundays. Not much.
But you, on the other hand! What you say around your family. What you say around your coworkers. What you say around your friends. How you live in the daily. These are sermons much more worthy of being podcasted. These are words much more significant to the people hearing them. Yours are actions that speak so much more loudly than the polished lectures that ring within the walls of church buildings across the country on Sundays.
Why? Because you have the Holy Spirit within you. You have all you need to live this out loud, to be a priceless, life-changing value in the lives of the people you do life with everyday.
There’s this doctrine called “the priesthood of the believers” that makes it clear that each of us can hear from, relate to, and speak of the God we follow. We don’t need anyone else to do it for us or to get us to Him.
Pastors need to lay down their egos and begin to unleash ministers into the daily. Pastors need to be pouring all of their energy into providing whatever people need to bring value into the lives of others everyday. Instead, pastors tend to pour all of their energy into 30 minute monologues that most people don’t remember (not that teaching the Word is not important. It just may not be as important coming from one person on Sundays as it is coming from every follower the other 6 ½ days of the week.).
You can do this! You can trust your value and live giving God’s value away into the lives of others. You can hear God whisper to your mind and heart to say a certain word or do a certain compassionate act to someone and do it, all the while knowing that you just got to be a part of the righteousness of God as His righteousness was lived out purposefully through you!!! You and I both get to be a part of His mission and movement and love and purpose everyday.
So, the next time you are grilling out with your neighbor or eating lunch with a friend at school or on a date with your spouse or throwing a ball with your kid, be ever listening to God. Trust your value and have the courage to share that value when you sense God’s Spirit prompting you to do so. Speak love and value into the lives of the people God has blessed you to be with daily.
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
My Church Clothes Part 1
Listen Now
In your construct, is church a “what” or a “who?” The New Testament refers to “church” 140 times, the majority of them in the letters to the Corinthians. The word used for “church” in the Bible was actually a common word in Roman culture. It was then used most often to refer to people who assembled together for a reason. It is best translated from New Testament Greek as “the gathered ones” or “the called-out ones who gather.”
It is interesting to note that every use or inference of “church” in the New Testament refers to people. 100% of the time – people. The reason that is interesting is that nearly 100% of our use of the word refers to a “what” – a place, an event, Sunday morning worship, an adjective for an activity. But church is a “who.” Does this matter?
I am convinced this is more than a matter of semantics. It is evidence of a crisis. It impacts the very way we think of strategize and live as the church. Language is important. Is our language of “church” getting in the way of the mission we have been given. If your construct of “church” is a “what,” you have some deconstructing to do.
(being the church part 1 – trust your value)
The essential element of living sent and living on the mission God has given me is trusting my value.
You see, Jesus declared our value at the cross. He clearly stated, “You are worth dying for.” Understand something - this is a declared value, not an appraised value. He did not go the cross because we were lovable. He went to the cross because He loves us, and it is His love for us that makes us lovable. It is His activity that makes us valuable. It is His invitation to be involved in His activity that makes our daily lives worth anything.
The most crippling issue hindering us from "being the church" is our insecurity to think we need more than what Jesus did - like good performance or a pastor to do the ministry for us – to spiritually impact the people in our lives.
Aren’t we each valuable and able to speak value into the lives of those around us. Don't we each have the Holy Spirit?
I am afraid that in North America, all we have done is created all over again one of the very things Jesus eliminated. Priesthood.
Christ-followers are not living according to purpose because for too long, they have been made to feel like all the value that exists within the body of Christ was given to the pastors. They have been made to feel that all the value given for living on purpose and all the value that enables us to speak value into the lives of others was given to the modern day priesthood. After all, let’s just get them there on Sunday and the preacher can tell them about this stuff.
Listen, I am a “preacher,” although I don’t commonly call myself that, and I know how much people remember of what I say on Sundays. Not much.
But you, on the other hand! What you say around your family. What you say around your coworkers. What you say around your friends. How you live in the daily. These are sermons much more worthy of being podcasted. These are words much more significant to the people hearing them. Yours are actions that speak so much more loudly than the polished lectures that ring within the walls of church buildings across the country on Sundays.
Why? Because you have the Holy Spirit within you. You have all you need to live this out loud, to be a priceless, life-changing value in the lives of the people you do life with everyday.
There’s this doctrine called “the priesthood of the believers” that makes it clear that each of us can hear from, relate to, and speak of the God we follow. We don’t need anyone else to do it for us or to get us to Him.
Pastors need to lay down their egos and begin to unleash ministers into the daily. Pastors need to be pouring all of their energy into providing whatever people need to bring value into the lives of others everyday. Instead, pastors tend to pour all of their energy into 30 minute monologues that most people don’t remember (not that teaching the Word is not important. It just may not be as important coming from one person on Sundays as it is coming from every follower the other 6 ½ days of the week.).
You can do this! You can trust your value and live giving God’s value away into the lives of others. You can hear God whisper to your mind and heart to say a certain word or do a certain compassionate act to someone and do it, all the while knowing that you just got to be a part of the righteousness of God as His righteousness was lived out purposefully through you!!! You and I both get to be a part of His mission and movement and love and purpose everyday.
So, the next time you are grilling out with your neighbor or eating lunch with a friend at school or on a date with your spouse or throwing a ball with your kid, be ever listening to God. Trust your value and have the courage to share that value when you sense God’s Spirit prompting you to do so. Speak love and value into the lives of the people God has blessed you to be with daily.
In your construct, is church a “what” or a “who?” The New Testament refers to “church” 140 times, the majority of them in the letters to the Corinthians. The word used for “church” in the Bible was actually a common word in Roman culture. It was then used most often to refer to people who assembled together for a reason. It is best translated from New Testament Greek as “the gathered ones” or “the called-out ones who gather.”
It is interesting to note that every use or inference of “church” in the New Testament refers to people. 100% of the time – people. The reason that is interesting is that nearly 100% of our use of the word refers to a “what” – a place, an event, Sunday morning worship, an adjective for an activity. But church is a “who.” Does this matter?
I am convinced this is more than a matter of semantics. It is evidence of a crisis. It impacts the very way we think of strategize and live as the church. Language is important. Is our language of “church” getting in the way of the mission we have been given. If your construct of “church” is a “what,” you have some deconstructing to do.
(being the church part 1 – trust your value)
The essential element of living sent and living on the mission God has given me is trusting my value.
You see, Jesus declared our value at the cross. He clearly stated, “You are worth dying for.” Understand something - this is a declared value, not an appraised value. He did not go the cross because we were lovable. He went to the cross because He loves us, and it is His love for us that makes us lovable. It is His activity that makes us valuable. It is His invitation to be involved in His activity that makes our daily lives worth anything.
The most crippling issue hindering us from "being the church" is our insecurity to think we need more than what Jesus did - like good performance or a pastor to do the ministry for us – to spiritually impact the people in our lives.
Aren’t we each valuable and able to speak value into the lives of those around us. Don't we each have the Holy Spirit?
I am afraid that in North America, all we have done is created all over again one of the very things Jesus eliminated. Priesthood.
Christ-followers are not living according to purpose because for too long, they have been made to feel like all the value that exists within the body of Christ was given to the pastors. They have been made to feel that all the value given for living on purpose and all the value that enables us to speak value into the lives of others was given to the modern day priesthood. After all, let’s just get them there on Sunday and the preacher can tell them about this stuff.
Listen, I am a “preacher,” although I don’t commonly call myself that, and I know how much people remember of what I say on Sundays. Not much.
But you, on the other hand! What you say around your family. What you say around your coworkers. What you say around your friends. How you live in the daily. These are sermons much more worthy of being podcasted. These are words much more significant to the people hearing them. Yours are actions that speak so much more loudly than the polished lectures that ring within the walls of church buildings across the country on Sundays.
Why? Because you have the Holy Spirit within you. You have all you need to live this out loud, to be a priceless, life-changing value in the lives of the people you do life with everyday.
There’s this doctrine called “the priesthood of the believers” that makes it clear that each of us can hear from, relate to, and speak of the God we follow. We don’t need anyone else to do it for us or to get us to Him.
Pastors need to lay down their egos and begin to unleash ministers into the daily. Pastors need to be pouring all of their energy into providing whatever people need to bring value into the lives of others everyday. Instead, pastors tend to pour all of their energy into 30 minute monologues that most people don’t remember (not that teaching the Word is not important. It just may not be as important coming from one person on Sundays as it is coming from every follower the other 6 ½ days of the week.).
You can do this! You can trust your value and live giving God’s value away into the lives of others. You can hear God whisper to your mind and heart to say a certain word or do a certain compassionate act to someone and do it, all the while knowing that you just got to be a part of the righteousness of God as His righteousness was lived out purposefully through you!!! You and I both get to be a part of His mission and movement and love and purpose everyday.
So, the next time you are grilling out with your neighbor or eating lunch with a friend at school or on a date with your spouse or throwing a ball with your kid, be ever listening to God. Trust your value and have the courage to share that value when you sense God’s Spirit prompting you to do so. Speak love and value into the lives of the people God has blessed you to be with daily.
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