Main Entry: 2worship
Function: verb
Inflected Form(s): -shiped or -shipped; -ship·ing or -ship·ping
transitive senses
1 : to honor or reverence as a divine being or supernatural power
2 : to regard with great or extravagant respect, honor, or devotion
In regard to the first def. we need to know something of this supernatural power or being in order to honor or reverence.
In regard to the second we generally save that kind of respect or honor for those that have
contributed something great to our lives.
To me that makes sense. First you have to know someone, then you can honor them.
So for the rest of our time here today we will get to know the lord a little bit more.
Then we can learn about how to honor Him.
The names of God
(I am not claiming that this is all of the names just a few.)
ABBA.............................Romans 8:15
15For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship.[a] And by him we cry, "Abba, Father."
Abba literally translated into today’s slang would be “daddy”.
How cool is it that we have a heavenly daddy. Not some father that we better make happy or else.
(by the way. This is why many people raise their hands during worship. It is a sign that we need our dad.)
ADVOCATE.........................I John 2:1 (kjv)
1My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.
Jesus is our advocate. It is only through Him that we are saved. We are saved because of His advocacy. He gave Himself so we can be free from sin. And He knows temptation.
JEHOVAH-TSIDKENU......Jer. 33:16
meaning "The Lord our righteousness"
In his days Judah will be saved
and Israel will live in safety.
This is the name by which he will be called:
The LORD Our Righteousness.
We are saved from evil and from evil people. Not by anything that we have done but by His righteousness.
The Lord fights for us.
JEHOVAH-NISSI.........Exodus 17:15
meaning "The Lord our banner"
15Moses built an altar and named it "GOD My Banner."
In this chapter we find Moses being tested. In those days it was custom to build an alter out of rocks to mark where you have been. This is also called an ebeneezer. Moses built this alter and named it God my banner so all that pass there will be able to see it and know that the battle was won.
EL-ROI................Genesis 16:13
meaning "The strong one who sees"
7An angel of GOD found her beside a spring in the desert; it was the spring on the road to Shur. 8He said, "Hagar, maid of Sarai, what are you doing here?"
She said, "I'm running away from Sarai my mistress."
9The angel of GOD said, "Go back to your mistress. Put up with her abuse." 10He continued, "I'm going to give you a big family, children past counting. 11From this pregnancy, you'll get a son: Name him Ishmael; for GOD heard you, GOD answered you. 12He'll be a bucking bronco of a man, a real fighter, fighting and being fought, Always stirring up trouble, always at odds with his family."
13She answered GOD by name, praying to the God who spoke to her, "You're the God who sees me!" "Yes! He saw me; and then I saw him!"
God sees us. Even when no one else does and when we don’t want Him to. But He is faithful even when we are not.
He keeps his promises.
COMFORTER(the friend)..........................John 14:26(kjv)
26The Friend, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send at my request, will make everything plain to you. He will remind you of all the things I have told you.
When Jesus ascended into heaven He promised us that his spirit will remain. Te pourpose or this spirit is to teach us, remind us and comfort us when things go the way we do’nt want them to.
DELIVERER..............................Romans 11:26
26And so all Israel will be saved. As it is written, The Deliverer will come from Zion, He will banish ungodliness from Jacob.
When the evil in the world gets to be to much we are promised a deliverer. He will deliver us from evil.
All of these things God promises to be. And He is. In fact another name of His is I am..
What does that mean you might ask. Well ……….
God I need strength .I am. ect.
So He is being everything we need to live according to His will.
He is and has given us all that is good right and pure and it is a shame that we (myself included) are not living by that.
So how do we honor God? How do we worship God?
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Romans 12:1
Remember that all the names of God are promises to us. We have access to these promises so we can fulfill Romans !2:1
Sunday, November 27, 2005
Sunday, November 20, 2005
A Voice of HOPE
A Community of Faith, Love, and Hope PART 3
“We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. We continually remember before our God and
Father, your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Thessalonians 1:2-3
To be a Voice of HOPE
Every believer in Christ knows the meaning of Hope. Every Christ follower knows what life was like before their
encounter w/ Jesus. We can look at our lives of the past and look at our lives now in Christ and see Amazing Grace, Amazing Love - and our lives now are filled w/ hope, b/c of the gospel, the message and life of Jesus Christ.
When this gospel is born in our hearts, it gives us a picture of who we can become in Christ and what God can accomplish thru our lives. The gospel has the power to take the orphan and make her a friend of the fatherless; to take the brokenhearted, the outcast, and the lonely and make them
instruments of peace, forgiveness, and healing.
We understand that a Christless world is a hopeless world. At the same time we seem to forget that a Christ-filled world is a hope-filled world.
Somehow we’ve lost the mandate given to us by God to stand in a desperate world and offer hope.
What is the Gospel? Good News
We know that, we teach it, but we often do not communicate it as good news. When we speak the gospel of Jesus Christ, we seem to somehow get logjammed around the message of sin, damnation, and hell - no wonder so many people feel that the church has nothing but bad news to tell.
(video - "real christian of genius")
The gospel, as given to us by Jesus, is supposed to be good news. Jesus himself said, I have not come to condemn the world, but to give the world life.” John 3:17; 10:10
(world beats us up)
What would happen if people heard the message of Christ as a message of hope and not a message of judgement?
How many times have you heard Christians described as hypocritical and self-righteous? How could a message of hope cause us to be perceived in this way?
Could it be that people do not hear us acknowledging our own sinfulness, but only identifying theirs, so they call us
hypocrites.
Could it be that those receiving our message feel that we are standing as judges over them rather than servants under them?
The message of Christ and the need for repentance are inseparable, but even in that, the Bible is clear in how we are to relate to people.
The Apostle Paul reminds us that it is the loving kindness of God that brings us to repentance - we are to speak the truth in LOVE - it is a message HOPE! The best indication that we are communicating the gospel effectively is that broken,
sinful, and despairing people receive it as a word of good news.
I think it’s important to remember that the people Jesus continually offended were the religious.
Sinners seem to warm up to Him quite easily.(why)
The gospel, in it’s essence, is a message of hope to a world full of despair.
A great story in the life of Jesus is in John 8, where the
religious leaders confronted Him, wanting to condemn an adulterous woman. Look at how Jesus when others tried to force Him into meanness, would not allow it. If there was ever a perfect opportunity to bring down the wrath of God on a sinful woman, it was right then. And yet from that encounter w/ this woman caught in adultery, thrown down before Him, we have some of jesus’ famous words - watch this
“Where are they?” “Who condemns you?” She stood there almost dumbfounded, astonished, maybe almost paralyzed over what just happened, it begins to settle in on her,
“no one”
Jesus revealed the heart of God when He told her He didn’t condemn her. He simply said, “Go and sin no more”
This is an important guide for each of us.
We are God’s voice of HOPE
stats - 200 mill. m,w,c lost in Amer. today
closer to home - 7 out of 10 you know lost
Those who have known nothing but condemnation and shame will find a new beginning in Jesus Christ.
God's Message:
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD,
"plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give
you hope and a future. Jer. 29:11
The natural outcome of being connected to God is being optimistic about the future. When this permeates a biblical community, optimism and enthusiasm prevail in the church. The church of Jesus Christ is always looking forward. It
always believes in the promise of tomorrow and is never overwhelmed by the difficulty or even failure of the present.
This should be one of the markers of a New Testament community - We are to be a voice of hope b/c we are a
people of hope.
A follower of Jesus Christ has no excuse for pessimism.
God has called us to be a Voice of HOPE
Who do you know that needs to hear that?
who needs a shot of hope injected into their lives?
Faith, Love, and Hope are not just foundations or pillars; they are wellsprings - It is our identity our DNA
The deeper the church digs these wells, the more rich and resilient they become.
“But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?" They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.
But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.
At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. Jesus straightened up and asked her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?"
"No one, sir," she said. "Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go now and leave your life of sin." John 8:1-11
“We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. We continually remember before our God and
Father, your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Thessalonians 1:2-3
To be a Voice of HOPE
Every believer in Christ knows the meaning of Hope. Every Christ follower knows what life was like before their
encounter w/ Jesus. We can look at our lives of the past and look at our lives now in Christ and see Amazing Grace, Amazing Love - and our lives now are filled w/ hope, b/c of the gospel, the message and life of Jesus Christ.
When this gospel is born in our hearts, it gives us a picture of who we can become in Christ and what God can accomplish thru our lives. The gospel has the power to take the orphan and make her a friend of the fatherless; to take the brokenhearted, the outcast, and the lonely and make them
instruments of peace, forgiveness, and healing.
We understand that a Christless world is a hopeless world. At the same time we seem to forget that a Christ-filled world is a hope-filled world.
Somehow we’ve lost the mandate given to us by God to stand in a desperate world and offer hope.
What is the Gospel? Good News
We know that, we teach it, but we often do not communicate it as good news. When we speak the gospel of Jesus Christ, we seem to somehow get logjammed around the message of sin, damnation, and hell - no wonder so many people feel that the church has nothing but bad news to tell.
(video - "real christian of genius")
The gospel, as given to us by Jesus, is supposed to be good news. Jesus himself said, I have not come to condemn the world, but to give the world life.” John 3:17; 10:10
(world beats us up)
What would happen if people heard the message of Christ as a message of hope and not a message of judgement?
How many times have you heard Christians described as hypocritical and self-righteous? How could a message of hope cause us to be perceived in this way?
Could it be that people do not hear us acknowledging our own sinfulness, but only identifying theirs, so they call us
hypocrites.
Could it be that those receiving our message feel that we are standing as judges over them rather than servants under them?
The message of Christ and the need for repentance are inseparable, but even in that, the Bible is clear in how we are to relate to people.
The Apostle Paul reminds us that it is the loving kindness of God that brings us to repentance - we are to speak the truth in LOVE - it is a message HOPE! The best indication that we are communicating the gospel effectively is that broken,
sinful, and despairing people receive it as a word of good news.
I think it’s important to remember that the people Jesus continually offended were the religious.
Sinners seem to warm up to Him quite easily.(why)
The gospel, in it’s essence, is a message of hope to a world full of despair.
A great story in the life of Jesus is in John 8, where the
religious leaders confronted Him, wanting to condemn an adulterous woman. Look at how Jesus when others tried to force Him into meanness, would not allow it. If there was ever a perfect opportunity to bring down the wrath of God on a sinful woman, it was right then. And yet from that encounter w/ this woman caught in adultery, thrown down before Him, we have some of jesus’ famous words - watch this
“Where are they?” “Who condemns you?” She stood there almost dumbfounded, astonished, maybe almost paralyzed over what just happened, it begins to settle in on her,
“no one”
Jesus revealed the heart of God when He told her He didn’t condemn her. He simply said, “Go and sin no more”
This is an important guide for each of us.
We are God’s voice of HOPE
stats - 200 mill. m,w,c lost in Amer. today
closer to home - 7 out of 10 you know lost
Those who have known nothing but condemnation and shame will find a new beginning in Jesus Christ.
God's Message:
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD,
"plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give
you hope and a future. Jer. 29:11
The natural outcome of being connected to God is being optimistic about the future. When this permeates a biblical community, optimism and enthusiasm prevail in the church. The church of Jesus Christ is always looking forward. It
always believes in the promise of tomorrow and is never overwhelmed by the difficulty or even failure of the present.
This should be one of the markers of a New Testament community - We are to be a voice of hope b/c we are a
people of hope.
A follower of Jesus Christ has no excuse for pessimism.
God has called us to be a Voice of HOPE
Who do you know that needs to hear that?
who needs a shot of hope injected into their lives?
Faith, Love, and Hope are not just foundations or pillars; they are wellsprings - It is our identity our DNA
The deeper the church digs these wells, the more rich and resilient they become.
“But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?" They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.
But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.
At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. Jesus straightened up and asked her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?"
"No one, sir," she said. "Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go now and leave your life of sin." John 8:1-11
Sunday, November 13, 2005
To Be Known by LOVE
A Community of Faith, Love, & Hope PART 2
But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ
Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I
consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the
fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. Philippans 3:7-11
This is one of those passages where Paul is describing his own journey, who he was, where he’s been, how he’s
gotten here. Kinda begins w/ a strange moment of arrogance it appears - “look if anyone had it altogether w/out God it was me, if anyone earned the right to hang out with you, be loved by you, be in your presence, Paul was saying it was me.
Paul was a guy who gained political power, religious power,cultural power, this guy had really pulled together what some would say from a worldly perspective, a good life to live.
Here was this guy that had just about everything there was, then he speaks of this encounter he had w/ Jesus Christ and it changed everything he considered valuable.
The he goes off into this LOVE talk - about extra. love
This guy who was so self-righteous, a condemner of men,
begins talking about extra. love.
Love is one of those topics that is tough for us to get a
handle I think b/c it’s a word that we overuse or certainly misuse.
and it then loses it’s power
(family using words properly - HATE - dont say hate someone, you can profoundly dislike them, but dont hate people
and I can teach a whole slew of other descriptive words to use - I hate broc. and to hate evil as the bible says - well the word can lose it meaning. So we kinda reserve extreme language for extreme cases.
How about the word starving?)
We do that w/ everything and we do it w/ love - we love
everything - the brits love their tea, the french love their wine, the italians love their expresso, the swiss love their cheese, the Belgium's love their choc. the hillbillies love their nascar...
So the problem becomes we love our wives, but we love
fantasy football. could be a reason why there’s so much
divorce. we love things equally and improperly.
To be people who are known by love then we really need to know and understand exactly what that is and looks like.
Which drives us to the scriptures - if you have never read the bible, if you don’t really have a sense of what’s at the core of this story - it’s a story of love, of unconditional love, of
undeserving love, of unending, unlimited love.
What paul was saying was, “I was pursuing God in all the wrong ways, as far as legalistically i was there, i tried
everything humanly possible to connect to God and basically saying it didn’t work.
It can be a maddening thing - to try to do all the supposedly right things and left w/ this vacuum-us hole.
By the way, we can’t function well w/out love, so we look to and grasp onto any counterfeit we can find.
Back to what Paul told the Philippians,
7But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ
Jesus my Lord...
He says, this is it - just to know, just to be able to wrap my brain around the truth that Jesus walked into human history, and lived a perfect, sinless life and had flesh and blood just like us and allowed himself to be brutally crucified on this death-instrument we call a cross, to die as a perfect sacrifice for my sin and He arose so I could live - and that - to know that is enough to give up everything for.
Paul had found real love - it came in Christ - it came in the form of sacrifice and servanthood.
To be known by LOVE
“I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. I have no one else like him, who takes a genuine interest in your welfare. For everyone looks out for his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know that Timothy has proved himself, because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel. I hope, therefore, to send him as soon as I see how things go with me. And I am confident in the Lord that I myself will come soon.
But I think it is necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger, whom you sent to take care of my needs. For he longs for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill. Indeed he was ill, and almost died. But God had mercy on him, and not on him only but also on me, to spare me sorrow upon sorrow. Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you may be glad and I may have less anxiety. Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him, because he almost died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for the help you could not give me. Philippians 2:19-30
As you read thru this section of the letter, it’s like Paul is coming to a close then he picks it up again.
Have you recognized in life that you have convo. that are not always right in line with the subject you started with?
Sometimes when you’re having a convo. w/ someone a word clicks your mind and you star talking about something else
or you’re talking about one person and then they remind you of someone else, and then that person reminds you of someone else - and usually the person listening what your saying doesn't really have a connection to what you started talking about but somehow they knew how it all pieced together.
I think this is one of those moments here while paul was writing this.
b/c in the vs. before what we just read he is speaking specific instruction and then all of sudden he starts talking about Timothy, and from Tim. he starts talking about Epaph. and beginning in ch. 3 he’s moved past both of them.
What’s happening here is Paul is writing this letter about
Jesus and he’s encouraging us to live in a manner of Christ and to desire a life modeled after Jesus.
In this discourse of writing about Christ and all He is and has done for us in great sacrifice and service - I think right then Paul’s mind began dominoing. Jesus the servant and then Oh yeah Timothy the servant and Oh yeah Epaph. the
servant - although we may not instantly see the connection, but what is sooo cool is that when Paul began to think of the great servant Jesus other people came to mind.
Now when it comes to God - He stands alone, and we cant even come close to that right. I think we’re all happy letting God be God - we realize He is far more talented and qualified than we’ll ever be so just let it be.
But if there’s something about God that he is willing to share, to give to me, to pass on then man I want that - and here it is
when Paul saw the servant heart of Jesus, the servant nature of Jesus -
I don’t think he could help it - his mind went fluidly to Tim. and Epaph. -
2 close friends thru whom he experienced the servanthood of God to his life and the life of others.
non religious - say help others out - serve
Even though it may fall under the umbrella of "the religious" it is not at all natural for us to move towards serving.
Serving w/in religion, w/in the church would seem to be a natural, but it’s not, and so when we see it we know
something special is happening.
When we experience the genuine servanthood of another human being, when someone places us above them, when someone sacrifices of their time and energy to do something on our behalf - it does something inside of us - it makes us wonder if we couldn’t be different as human beings.
We begin to see that maybe what it means to be connected to Jesus is something more than just being religious.
Wouldn’t it wonderful if that when someone thought of Jesus they couldn’t help but think of you.
B/c they can’t really see Jesus serving, but they can see you and me serving, they begin to see Jesus in and thru us.
“I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. I have no one else like him, who takes a genuine interest in your welfare. For everyone looks out for his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know that Timothy has proved himself, because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel.” Phil. 2:19-22
- others above ourselves (sacrifice)
- prove ourselves (not a one and done)
- he has served
“But I think it is necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger, whom you sent to take care of my needs. For he longs for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill. Indeed he was ill, and almost died. But God had mercy on him, and not on him only but also on me, to spare me sorrow upon sorrow. Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you may be glad and I may have less anxiety. Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him, because he almost died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for the help you could not give me.” vs. 25-30
- others above himself (sacrifice)
- you don’t get better then serve, you serve to get better
It doesnt matter where you are you can serve today - “Im intersted in serving, I’m interested in helping, I’m interested in making a difference, but right now I’ve gotta focus on me, I gotta get me better 1st” - ever heard that, ever said that, ever thought that to God?
- Christlike service
To be known by love has nothing to do w/ how spiritual you are - how religious you are - how much doctrine and
theology you have stored up in your mind -
It is all about sacrifice and service
The mark of maturity and to be known by love is how willing we are to give our lives away for the sake of Christ and the sake of others - it’s being focused on eternity
So here’s Paul describing this encounter with real love - the sacrifice and servanthood of Christ - I thought of Jesus and Timothy came to mind, and Epaph. came to mind
How am I serving others?
How am I making others more important myself?
How am I giving my life away?
But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ
Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I
consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the
fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. Philippans 3:7-11
This is one of those passages where Paul is describing his own journey, who he was, where he’s been, how he’s
gotten here. Kinda begins w/ a strange moment of arrogance it appears - “look if anyone had it altogether w/out God it was me, if anyone earned the right to hang out with you, be loved by you, be in your presence, Paul was saying it was me.
Paul was a guy who gained political power, religious power,cultural power, this guy had really pulled together what some would say from a worldly perspective, a good life to live.
Here was this guy that had just about everything there was, then he speaks of this encounter he had w/ Jesus Christ and it changed everything he considered valuable.
The he goes off into this LOVE talk - about extra. love
This guy who was so self-righteous, a condemner of men,
begins talking about extra. love.
Love is one of those topics that is tough for us to get a
handle I think b/c it’s a word that we overuse or certainly misuse.
and it then loses it’s power
(family using words properly - HATE - dont say hate someone, you can profoundly dislike them, but dont hate people
and I can teach a whole slew of other descriptive words to use - I hate broc. and to hate evil as the bible says - well the word can lose it meaning. So we kinda reserve extreme language for extreme cases.
How about the word starving?)
We do that w/ everything and we do it w/ love - we love
everything - the brits love their tea, the french love their wine, the italians love their expresso, the swiss love their cheese, the Belgium's love their choc. the hillbillies love their nascar...
So the problem becomes we love our wives, but we love
fantasy football. could be a reason why there’s so much
divorce. we love things equally and improperly.
To be people who are known by love then we really need to know and understand exactly what that is and looks like.
Which drives us to the scriptures - if you have never read the bible, if you don’t really have a sense of what’s at the core of this story - it’s a story of love, of unconditional love, of
undeserving love, of unending, unlimited love.
What paul was saying was, “I was pursuing God in all the wrong ways, as far as legalistically i was there, i tried
everything humanly possible to connect to God and basically saying it didn’t work.
It can be a maddening thing - to try to do all the supposedly right things and left w/ this vacuum-us hole.
By the way, we can’t function well w/out love, so we look to and grasp onto any counterfeit we can find.
Back to what Paul told the Philippians,
7But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ
Jesus my Lord...
He says, this is it - just to know, just to be able to wrap my brain around the truth that Jesus walked into human history, and lived a perfect, sinless life and had flesh and blood just like us and allowed himself to be brutally crucified on this death-instrument we call a cross, to die as a perfect sacrifice for my sin and He arose so I could live - and that - to know that is enough to give up everything for.
Paul had found real love - it came in Christ - it came in the form of sacrifice and servanthood.
To be known by LOVE
“I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. I have no one else like him, who takes a genuine interest in your welfare. For everyone looks out for his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know that Timothy has proved himself, because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel. I hope, therefore, to send him as soon as I see how things go with me. And I am confident in the Lord that I myself will come soon.
But I think it is necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger, whom you sent to take care of my needs. For he longs for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill. Indeed he was ill, and almost died. But God had mercy on him, and not on him only but also on me, to spare me sorrow upon sorrow. Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you may be glad and I may have less anxiety. Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him, because he almost died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for the help you could not give me. Philippians 2:19-30
As you read thru this section of the letter, it’s like Paul is coming to a close then he picks it up again.
Have you recognized in life that you have convo. that are not always right in line with the subject you started with?
Sometimes when you’re having a convo. w/ someone a word clicks your mind and you star talking about something else
or you’re talking about one person and then they remind you of someone else, and then that person reminds you of someone else - and usually the person listening what your saying doesn't really have a connection to what you started talking about but somehow they knew how it all pieced together.
I think this is one of those moments here while paul was writing this.
b/c in the vs. before what we just read he is speaking specific instruction and then all of sudden he starts talking about Timothy, and from Tim. he starts talking about Epaph. and beginning in ch. 3 he’s moved past both of them.
What’s happening here is Paul is writing this letter about
Jesus and he’s encouraging us to live in a manner of Christ and to desire a life modeled after Jesus.
In this discourse of writing about Christ and all He is and has done for us in great sacrifice and service - I think right then Paul’s mind began dominoing. Jesus the servant and then Oh yeah Timothy the servant and Oh yeah Epaph. the
servant - although we may not instantly see the connection, but what is sooo cool is that when Paul began to think of the great servant Jesus other people came to mind.
Now when it comes to God - He stands alone, and we cant even come close to that right. I think we’re all happy letting God be God - we realize He is far more talented and qualified than we’ll ever be so just let it be.
But if there’s something about God that he is willing to share, to give to me, to pass on then man I want that - and here it is
when Paul saw the servant heart of Jesus, the servant nature of Jesus -
I don’t think he could help it - his mind went fluidly to Tim. and Epaph. -
2 close friends thru whom he experienced the servanthood of God to his life and the life of others.
non religious - say help others out - serve
Even though it may fall under the umbrella of "the religious" it is not at all natural for us to move towards serving.
Serving w/in religion, w/in the church would seem to be a natural, but it’s not, and so when we see it we know
something special is happening.
When we experience the genuine servanthood of another human being, when someone places us above them, when someone sacrifices of their time and energy to do something on our behalf - it does something inside of us - it makes us wonder if we couldn’t be different as human beings.
We begin to see that maybe what it means to be connected to Jesus is something more than just being religious.
Wouldn’t it wonderful if that when someone thought of Jesus they couldn’t help but think of you.
B/c they can’t really see Jesus serving, but they can see you and me serving, they begin to see Jesus in and thru us.
“I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. I have no one else like him, who takes a genuine interest in your welfare. For everyone looks out for his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know that Timothy has proved himself, because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel.” Phil. 2:19-22
- others above ourselves (sacrifice)
- prove ourselves (not a one and done)
- he has served
“But I think it is necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger, whom you sent to take care of my needs. For he longs for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill. Indeed he was ill, and almost died. But God had mercy on him, and not on him only but also on me, to spare me sorrow upon sorrow. Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you may be glad and I may have less anxiety. Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him, because he almost died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for the help you could not give me.” vs. 25-30
- others above himself (sacrifice)
- you don’t get better then serve, you serve to get better
It doesnt matter where you are you can serve today - “Im intersted in serving, I’m interested in helping, I’m interested in making a difference, but right now I’ve gotta focus on me, I gotta get me better 1st” - ever heard that, ever said that, ever thought that to God?
- Christlike service
To be known by love has nothing to do w/ how spiritual you are - how religious you are - how much doctrine and
theology you have stored up in your mind -
It is all about sacrifice and service
The mark of maturity and to be known by love is how willing we are to give our lives away for the sake of Christ and the sake of others - it’s being focused on eternity
So here’s Paul describing this encounter with real love - the sacrifice and servanthood of Christ - I thought of Jesus and Timothy came to mind, and Epaph. came to mind
How am I serving others?
How am I making others more important myself?
How am I giving my life away?
Sunday, November 06, 2005
To Live By Faith
A Community of Faith, Love, & Hope PART 1
“For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep
conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake. You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of
severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit. And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. The Lord's message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia—your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore we do not need to say anything about it, 9or they themselves
report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.”
1 Thessalonians 1:4-10
“We always thank God for all of you,
mentioning you in our prayers. We continually remember
before our God and Father, your work produced by faith,
your labor prompted by love, and your endurance
inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.”
1 Thessalonians 1:2-3
To live by FAITH, be known by LOVE, & be a voice of HOPE
1.TO LIVE BY FAITH
story: ‘contingency plan’
1 Sam. 14 (tell story)
Often we look to the Bible for comfort, assurance, and kind of a ‘how to’ guide, but not courage - we’re willing to engage in the battle if we believe that God has promised ultimate
victory. We have somehow convinced ourselves that God has signed a contract w/ us, promising that we will never fail. Implied that we will never suffer, or go thru disappointment, or even be inconvenienced in the journey. ( I am inconven. not living here, but committed) What Jonathan knew w/out any doubt was that nothing could stop God from saving, whether by many or few. But he was honest w/ his armor-bearer and said, “perhaps the Lord will act in our behalf”.
What he was saying is, “I know what God is doing - He is delivering the Phil. to the hands of Israel. It’s clear what’s on God’s heart. He has called us to engage in battle - I have no doubt that God is powerful enough to give us victory. So let’s act in line with the heart of God, and see what He is going to do in and through us, if anything at all right now.
With our church, I have no doubt that God is calling us to impact this city - it is absolutely clear that Jesus came so He could save the lost. And absolutely God is calling our church to join Him in declaring the gospel to the nations. I know that God is pleased w/ our action - now let’s see what He is going to do in and thru us.
How about in your life?
(never fail, suffer, be disapp, be inconv, not just w/ the church, but in whatever area of life - dare to dream BIG -
you must live by faith)
What does it really mean to live by faith?
________OBEDIANCE________________
A church begins to live by faith when
it's people move the things God has
clearly said into the non-optional category.
What are some of the non-optional things
God has called us to do?
______PRAY, READ, SERVE, WORSIP,
FELLOWSHIP, EVANGELIZE, ETC..._____
It is never enough to live on __YESTERDAYS FAITH_______
We are always required to move into ___FRESH FAITH____
RESOURCE: 'Fresh Faith' by Jim Cymbala
Recall Moses and Joshua how each
of them had to cross a body of water.
(Exodus 14:21-22 and Joshua 3:12-17)
What took faith yesterday is sight today.
When we live by faith, we allow God to take us into
new experiences of __WHO HE IS ____
and ___HOW HE WORKS____.
We cannot live on the faith of the past,
we are called to be the living expression of faith!
When a church lives by faith
it's people prove that God can be trusted.
I have been crucified with Christ
and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.
The life I live in the body,
I live by faith in the Son of God,
who loved me and gave himself for me.
Galatians 2:20
“For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep
conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake. You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of
severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit. And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. The Lord's message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia—your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore we do not need to say anything about it, 9or they themselves
report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.”
1 Thessalonians 1:4-10
“We always thank God for all of you,
mentioning you in our prayers. We continually remember
before our God and Father, your work produced by faith,
your labor prompted by love, and your endurance
inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.”
1 Thessalonians 1:2-3
To live by FAITH, be known by LOVE, & be a voice of HOPE
1.TO LIVE BY FAITH
story: ‘contingency plan’
1 Sam. 14 (tell story)
Often we look to the Bible for comfort, assurance, and kind of a ‘how to’ guide, but not courage - we’re willing to engage in the battle if we believe that God has promised ultimate
victory. We have somehow convinced ourselves that God has signed a contract w/ us, promising that we will never fail. Implied that we will never suffer, or go thru disappointment, or even be inconvenienced in the journey. ( I am inconven. not living here, but committed) What Jonathan knew w/out any doubt was that nothing could stop God from saving, whether by many or few. But he was honest w/ his armor-bearer and said, “perhaps the Lord will act in our behalf”.
What he was saying is, “I know what God is doing - He is delivering the Phil. to the hands of Israel. It’s clear what’s on God’s heart. He has called us to engage in battle - I have no doubt that God is powerful enough to give us victory. So let’s act in line with the heart of God, and see what He is going to do in and through us, if anything at all right now.
With our church, I have no doubt that God is calling us to impact this city - it is absolutely clear that Jesus came so He could save the lost. And absolutely God is calling our church to join Him in declaring the gospel to the nations. I know that God is pleased w/ our action - now let’s see what He is going to do in and thru us.
How about in your life?
(never fail, suffer, be disapp, be inconv, not just w/ the church, but in whatever area of life - dare to dream BIG -
you must live by faith)
What does it really mean to live by faith?
________OBEDIANCE________________
A church begins to live by faith when
it's people move the things God has
clearly said into the non-optional category.
What are some of the non-optional things
God has called us to do?
______PRAY, READ, SERVE, WORSIP,
FELLOWSHIP, EVANGELIZE, ETC..._____
It is never enough to live on __YESTERDAYS FAITH_______
We are always required to move into ___FRESH FAITH____
RESOURCE: 'Fresh Faith' by Jim Cymbala
Recall Moses and Joshua how each
of them had to cross a body of water.
(Exodus 14:21-22 and Joshua 3:12-17)
What took faith yesterday is sight today.
When we live by faith, we allow God to take us into
new experiences of __WHO HE IS ____
and ___HOW HE WORKS____.
We cannot live on the faith of the past,
we are called to be the living expression of faith!
When a church lives by faith
it's people prove that God can be trusted.
I have been crucified with Christ
and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.
The life I live in the body,
I live by faith in the Son of God,
who loved me and gave himself for me.
Galatians 2:20
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