Our Mission

The other day my son and nephew where doing science experiments in the kitchen (to my wife’s chagrin) and they put milk in a plate and dropped food coloring in randomly. The fun part came when they dropped liquid soap in the plate. The colors scattered all around like a color wheel instantly. (Do try this at home it was so cool)

It’s funny how I have noticed this same scatter reaction in church, when believers are mixed with unbelievers. When the sacred meets the sinful, the reaction is often sadly priceless. The typical reaction is that they first need to be like us in order to sense they are welcome among us. Sure we might tolerate them for some time, but we personally feel they need to be “saved” in order to “stay”. There is often an unwritten code that governs the way people treat unbelievers in most churches across America. I call it the “B” code, here it is in order:

Behave (standards a placed from men’s ideas of holiness, we try to make them like us)

Believe (sin is mis-defined and a person often accepts religion not really Jesus)

Belong (staying in the group is based on how well you can believe and behave)

In order truly belong you first need to clean up your act. We place such a high commodity on the external that we often miss the mark. (1 Samuel 16:7 “The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”) We want people to behave according to our traditional standards of human Christian existence and place that as the entrance exam to knowing Jesus.

Now once we get them to clean the outside of their lives, we offer the chance to become a believer. Jesus had a few words on how people of religion treat those that seek to belong this way. (Matthew 23:24-26) “You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel. “Woe to you, Christians of America and religious folk, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Believer! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.”

Then finally a properly behaved person that believes can then truly belong on our group (or so we think). What we don’t realize is that we messed the whole process up and it’s often because we ourselves are not really connecting with Jesus. See our problem is that we actually don’t enter the kingdom of heaven and gain the heart of the Father. (Matthew 23:13) “Woe to you, Christians of America and religious folk, you hypocrites! You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.”

Let me just say that this is messed up! First off it’s obvious that is not how Jesus wants us to embark on His mission to share His love with the world. As a matter of fact we need to flip those three “B’s” to get it right. It should be like this:

Belong (accepted no matter what a person has done or looks like or acts like)

Believe (able to see the true love of Jesus, accepts Him for who He really is)

Behave (actions are adjusted in moments of instant miracles as well as day by day)

Let us commit to share and open our arms to those that are like us and not like us. Let’s commit to letting people sense the heart of the Father through the atmosphere of belonging even though they don’t behave the way we would want.

Given enough time any person will soften to Jesus if they are accepted by men. Rejected by men the chances are they will never come to see who Jesus really is. Believing occurs when a person knows they have a place to belong. And of course if you truly become a believer then a person’s behavior will change as the Kingdom of God comes in greater measure into their lives. When spiritual, emotional and physical needs are met first, then the Kingdom of God will land deep in a person’s heart.

(Luke 10:8-9) ““When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is offered to you. Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’”

(PS I changed a few words in the Matthew texts and bolded them to update it for us so we won’t think it’s spoken to someone else, thanks for the liberty)

Vision

(Proverbs 29:18) “Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint.”

Another translation says, “where there is not vision, the people perish”.

Vision gives you what you might think, sight! Not just physical sight but also emotional and even spiritual sight. Without sight you and I are blind. For those that have not lost there sight physically it’s often hard to tell the circumstances surrounding a loss of emotional and spiritual vision. Look at these 4 circumstances;

• No vision.

Many people have this problem, they are just in the survival mode. They are not living for anything, but just want to survive each moment. How do you know if you don’t have vision? Usually you find yourself frustrated, bored, living with regrets. It’s like heading to the grocery store without a shopping list, every time you will come back with things you don’t need and forget what you need. That is life without a vision. If you don’t have a vision, life will not turn out the way you want.

Secondly,

• A low vision.

Now granted this is better than no vision, but when a person has low vision their goals are set so low that they can’t fail. What causes this? Fear! Fear of failure, fear of criticism will always diminish the sight line and keep you from doing great things.

Thirdly,

• A wrong vision.

Many climb the ladder of success, only to find out it’s leaning on the wrong building. After the luster of that which the world holds so dear fades away you will find yourself questioning the lasting value of what you are giving your life away for. Often people find they are giving first class effort to a second class cause.

Fourthly,

• A vague vision.

Out of them all this is where the majority of people fall. The idea is not foreign and they know the necessity of having and following a vision. They know what they want, but don’t know how to get there. See, how to get where you are and where you should be requires either your effort or God’s effort. Your effort will result in a vague vision, God’s powerful work in your life will result in the last option.

• A God vision.

Did you realize that God has a vision for your life that is greater than your past or your present circumstances. God wants you to connect with His vision and dream big. When you do then something amazing happens, then He takes it and does even more.

(Ephesians 3:20 Message) “God can do anything—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams!”

So what vision do you carry?

Bold Obedience

What is God is asking you to do right now? This week take your next step by boldly obeying God’s request of you. First, pray and ask God to show you exactly what your next steps should be and ask Him for clarity in what He wants you to do. Next, tell someone else about what God is calling you to do so that they can help you and hold you accountable. Finally, be prepared for opposition, but ask God and those around you to help you in facing it. The Book of Acts is full of examples of amazing boldness as the first church began the task of advancing Christ’s kingdom into all nations.

During the Bold series, read the Acts YouVersion reading plan at http://www.youversion.com/reading-plans/acts. As you read, be intentional about finding examples of bold living that you can follow in your own life.

Describe a time when you disobeyed your parents when you were younger. What were the consequences of your disobedience?

With your Bible or YouVersion, read Acts 5:12-42.

In this passage, we learn from the apostles that bold obedience often triggers opposition, releases God’s miracles, and always requires faith.

• How can you draw encouragement from the apostles’ example of bold obedience in Acts 5?

• What types of opposition have you faced when you’ve boldly obeyed God? How have you handled that opposition?

• What miracles have you seen result from bold obedience?

• What’s one thing that God is asking you to do right now? What will be your next step in boldly obeying God?

• What’s keeping you from boldly obeying God in the way the apostles did in Acts 5? How will you go about removing these barriers?

• Bold obedience always requires faith. What bold leap of faith do you need to take in your life?

• Share a time when you didn’t obey God completely and immediately. What did you learn from your disobedience?

• What can you do to prepare yourself to face the opposition that will result from your bold obedience?

• What results do you hope to see come from your bold obedience?

5-Day Micro Devotional:

• Ask God to show you exactly what He is calling you to do. Ask Him to show you the next steps you need to take.

• Thank God for the miracles that you’ve witnessed that have resulted from your bold obedience.

• Ask God to help you overcome the opposition you will face as you step out in bold obedience.

• Tell God where your faith is lacking. Ask Him to help you renew your faith in Him.

• Share with God what results you hope to see from your bold obedience. Ask Him to guide your next steps as you boldly obey Him.