Last night at the Hillsong United worship event, one of the leaders from Hillsong gave an amazing 10 minute message about the Kingdom of God. It was a great summary of the essence of Jesus' teaching about the Kingdom. I hope to hit the highlights.
The kingdom of God is his sovereign rule and reign. It exists fully in heaven. The kingdom of God came to earth when Jesus, the Son of God, took on human flesh. He went about preaching "Repent, for the Kingdom of God is here!" I HIGHLY recommend this article to you--in less than two easy pages, it summarizes what the author took two seminary classes to explain to me: The Kingdom of God.
After Jesus ascended into heaven, His Spirit came to be IN us. God the Father dwells in heaven, and Jesus is at his right hand, but the Spirit of God lives inside of us. In this way, heaven is here on earth. We are God's kingdom, his body, his church. Jesus taught us to pray "Our Father who is in heaven, may your name be hallowed ("your name" means "you" in this particular instance; "hallowed"--revered, honored, feared). "Your Kingdom Come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."
Here's the thing--not only are we to pray that God's kingdom would come, but we are to make it so. We are his ambassadors (2 Cor. 5:20). Because we have his Spirit in us and he works his purposes through us, we bring heaven to earth. We are to proclaim the Kingdom of God every day by our words and our actions.
This happens when you and I lay down all that we are--everything--and give it to Him, and ask Him to be our everything. Almost every song last night spoke about surrendering ourselves, and wanting nothing more than to be what God wants us to be, and do what He wants us to do. Will we not just sing it, but live it?
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Sunday Mind Dump
It's late but I'm a little juiced from watching Magic/Cavs game three. Might as well start there...
--was certainly not the most fun game to watch, there were bad calls on both sides
--Dwight needs to watch his elbow and his composure
--We've GOT to take game 4, unfortunately I won't be able to watch it as I'll be at the Hillsong United concert.
--Really enjoyed the cuteness of Aidan today. He's such a great little boy, and brings so much joy into our lives!
--Thankful for Aidan's Uncle Don who watched him last night on date night
--This morning I preached at Grace Fellowship about "The Best Investment You'll Ever Make." It was great!
--Tons of people were gone--the first sunny day in a week, plus memorial day. I hope many of you will take advantage of the podcast!
--I hope that if you are a person who serves at Grace, that you were encouraged today, that you went home with a fresh perspective on why investing in other people MATTERS, it matters to God!
--Thank you to many for the prayers and encouragement--I don't preach often, but I'm really OK with that because God has called Pastor Mike to preach and lead us. When I do, I need your prayers, and I felt them today.
--I really hope you're on board in this fasting challenge--Anne and I are fasting until dinnertime tomorrow. Looking forward to whatever God might want for us out of it!
--was certainly not the most fun game to watch, there were bad calls on both sides
--Dwight needs to watch his elbow and his composure
--We've GOT to take game 4, unfortunately I won't be able to watch it as I'll be at the Hillsong United concert.
--Really enjoyed the cuteness of Aidan today. He's such a great little boy, and brings so much joy into our lives!
--Thankful for Aidan's Uncle Don who watched him last night on date night
--This morning I preached at Grace Fellowship about "The Best Investment You'll Ever Make." It was great!
--Tons of people were gone--the first sunny day in a week, plus memorial day. I hope many of you will take advantage of the podcast!
--I hope that if you are a person who serves at Grace, that you were encouraged today, that you went home with a fresh perspective on why investing in other people MATTERS, it matters to God!
--Thank you to many for the prayers and encouragement--I don't preach often, but I'm really OK with that because God has called Pastor Mike to preach and lead us. When I do, I need your prayers, and I felt them today.
--I really hope you're on board in this fasting challenge--Anne and I are fasting until dinnertime tomorrow. Looking forward to whatever God might want for us out of it!
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
"We're in"
Part of this week's work is sifting through over 1400 emails to declutter my inbox. In doing so, I came across a forward from Pastor Mike. Someone in the church wrote this during our Generous Life series. I'm continually inspired and excited when I see our people having this kind of attitude! :
"This past Sundays sermon stirred my inner being and my spirit as did my wife's and we had great conversation around these questions. what more can we do? what can we afford? what sacrifices can we make? and I wish I could do more! Like many, we are struggling to make ends meet with the way the economy is currently.
Ultimately the conclusion to those questions was what if Christ had that same attitude? He gave it all! He didn't just have one hand nailed to the cross and say I wish I could do more. With that alone hanging over our heads and weighing heavy on our hearts we will be making some menial sacrifices.
We truly believe that Grace Fellowship is and will make a huge impact in Central Florida. God is working, living and breathing within its walls, its members, leaders and it is truly a blessing to be a part of His ultimate design and purpose. Leading others to the cross and helping them take those small yet gigantic steps. So if takes a little sacrifice we're in!
"This past Sundays sermon stirred my inner being and my spirit as did my wife's and we had great conversation around these questions. what more can we do? what can we afford? what sacrifices can we make? and I wish I could do more! Like many, we are struggling to make ends meet with the way the economy is currently.
Ultimately the conclusion to those questions was what if Christ had that same attitude? He gave it all! He didn't just have one hand nailed to the cross and say I wish I could do more. With that alone hanging over our heads and weighing heavy on our hearts we will be making some menial sacrifices.
We truly believe that Grace Fellowship is and will make a huge impact in Central Florida. God is working, living and breathing within its walls, its members, leaders and it is truly a blessing to be a part of His ultimate design and purpose. Leading others to the cross and helping them take those small yet gigantic steps. So if takes a little sacrifice we're in!
Friday, April 10, 2009
Sin is Broken
After you've read the account of Christ's suffering and death today, spend a moment worshipping Him.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Two Problems with "Pastor Do it All"
This is NOT mine, I got this from the book LifeKeys, pgs 78-79.
"Thinking that leaders can do it all has two problems. First, when leaders think tehy have to do everyhitng, the results are often less than satisfactory. Perhaps a vsionary ministry led by someone with the gift of apostleship falters because of inherent disorganization; someoen with the gift of administration may have helped bring order to chaos....Maybe an education class falls short of its goal because the materials weren't ready for the teacher; someone with the gift of helps could have solved the problem....
"Second, an unexamined belief that a minister can do everything means that the leader isn't allowed to discover which gifts he or she really has. think of all the gifts that ministers can be called on to use: teaching, administration, leading, shepherding, mercy, knowledge, wisdom, helps, giving, encouragement....Let's be honest: most leaders lack at least some of these! We can force them to do it all, a pathway to exhaustion and defeat by the endless needs of the congregation. Or we can let them use the gifts God has given them and step forward with our own gifts to fulfill the roles God meant for us to play."
"Thinking that leaders can do it all has two problems. First, when leaders think tehy have to do everyhitng, the results are often less than satisfactory. Perhaps a vsionary ministry led by someone with the gift of apostleship falters because of inherent disorganization; someoen with the gift of administration may have helped bring order to chaos....Maybe an education class falls short of its goal because the materials weren't ready for the teacher; someone with the gift of helps could have solved the problem....
"Second, an unexamined belief that a minister can do everything means that the leader isn't allowed to discover which gifts he or she really has. think of all the gifts that ministers can be called on to use: teaching, administration, leading, shepherding, mercy, knowledge, wisdom, helps, giving, encouragement....Let's be honest: most leaders lack at least some of these! We can force them to do it all, a pathway to exhaustion and defeat by the endless needs of the congregation. Or we can let them use the gifts God has given them and step forward with our own gifts to fulfill the roles God meant for us to play."
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Christianese
I did a little search for this word and came across this funny dictionary. When, by God's grace, someone who has never been to church before walks through the door into your church, it really matters what message we send! We are their first encounter with Jesus. The nature of first impressions tells us we they will probably decide in the first 7 minutes whether they will come back a second time. We don't want to speak in a foreign language. Jesus needs to be accessible!
What other Christianese terms are out there?
What other Christianese terms are out there?
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