Sermon Tone Analysis

“When our weakness is exposed, we can try to reject community, but we cannot escape it.

We are inevitably intertwined with others.

Healthy community will help us to walk in the way of Jesus, but rejecting it, or even trading it for something more superficial, puts us in a dangerous position.

We turn to isolation because we are afraid of sharing our lives with others, or because our selfishness has become so calcified that we do not have space for others.

In isolation we can become blind to our sins and our strategies to think the worst of others, or possibly, we see others as being everything we wish we were.

We mistakenly dehumanize others in our isolation, by believing them to be either lesser or greater than they are.

We can usually recognize the former, but the latter we rarely see.

Vanier’s words are poignant in this regard: ‘When you admire people, you put them on pedestals.

When you love people, you want to be together.’”

- The Way Of The Dragon or The Way Of The Lamb.

The Beginning

Where it began...

The way God established to be worshipped ends in Chapter 31. the sad thing is, while Moses was getting the “standards” in worshipping God; chapter 32 tells us that the people were demanding Aaron to provide a way to worship “gods” rather than the living God.

Exodus 32:27-

Remember the number 3,000.

Have everyone look up .

“There are people with hearts of stone, and stones with hearts of people.”

-Describing the “Wailing Wall”.

Where does that leave us today?

Where does that leave us today?

What does the word church mean?

Noun: ἐκκλησία (ekklēsia), GK 1711 (S 1577), 114×.

ekklēsia is derived from ekklēsia (“to call out”), so the church is the “called-out ones” of God.

In its secular use ekklēsia refers to the gathering of the competent citizens of a city-state in order to decide issues regarding laws, office appointments, and public policy.

But the prototype of the NT ekklēsia lies not in Greco-Roman history but in the assembly of God’s people in the OT (cf.

Acts 7:38), which developed into the Jewish synagogue as the gathering of the community of God.

1. LN 11.32 congregation, an individual assembly of Christians (or OT believers Ac 7:38; Heb 2:12), usually with leaders who conform to a standard, and have worship practices, with members interacting, more or less local (Mt 18:17; 1Ti 3:5; 1Co 11:16–22; Jas 5:14; Rev 1:4; 1Pe 5:13 v.r.); 2. LN 11.33 church, the totality of all congregations of Christians at all times (Mt 16:18); 3. LN 11.78 assembly, gathering of persons for a purpose, even riotous (Ac 19:32, 39, 40)

Foursquare Declaration of Faith:

We believe that having accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as personal Savior and King, and having thus been born into the family and invisible body or church of the Lord, it is the sacred duty of the believer, whenever this lieth within his power, to identify himself with, and labor most earnestly for the upbuilding of God’s kingdom with the visible church of Christ upon earth.…

Why is the Church important today?

Christ is the cornerstone and His presence is within the Church.

He told Peter He would build His church upon this Rock.

He told the people that He would destroy the Temple.

18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

The church is

House of Prayer-

Acts 2:41-47

When you pray in the Church something of great magnitude will more likely occur.

When we see this in Acts.

If you remember earlier 3000 people lost their lives.

This wasn’t because God commanded Moses to do it but rather Moses took it into his own hands.

We understand that because scripture states after Moses pleaded with God that His anger was relented.

Here we see God establishing His church on 3000 souls.

It is no accident that many were established in the assembling of themselves.

Bride of Christ

Body of Christ

All of explains the body of Christ as the Church.

It shows how many people make up of one church, and how the gifts of the Holy Spirit is for the church.

1 Corinthians

Place of Healing

This is where many people turn in the light of a death, when they are hopeless, when they’re not feeling love, and even when someone is ill they will ask for prayer.

James 5:

A place of Serving

Does God take His Church with great importance?

Yes!

It is evident by Him killing Ananias and Sapphira, which is found in .

Why are We running?

We are running for many reasons:

The love of many will grow cold

People will be offended and depart from the faith

People who get offended are those who have disagreements

People who are being told NO that they can’t do something

People who disagree with standards

Many will be focusing on the entertainments of this world

Others will be focusing on themselves

Some will have itching ears...

You can run but where since it states:

Denominations accepting LGBT:

United Church of Canada, United Church of Christ, German Lutheran and Evangelical, Protestant Church of Netherlands, United Protestant Church in Belgium, United Protestant Church in France, Church of Denmark, Church of Sweden, Church of Iceland, Church of Norway, Metropolitan Community Church, Global Alliance of Affirming Apostolic Pentecostals, Affirming Pentecostal Church International, Methodists Church.

United Church of Christ

German Lutheran and Evangelical

Denominations accepting the Coexist movement:

Now there are many people who accepting the Coexist movement, which is a call for every faith to come together and worship the same god as they see fit..

“To take an over-all view of the Church today leaves one wondering how much longer a holy God can refrain from implementing His threat to spue this Laodicean thing out of His mouth.

For if there is one thing preachers are agreed upon, it is that this is the Laodicean age in the Church.

Yet while over our heads hangs the Damoclean sword of rejection, we believers are lean, lazy, luxury-loving, loveless and lacking.

Though our merciful God will pardon ours sins, purge our iniquity, and pity our ignorance, our lukewarm hearts are an abomination to His sight.

We must be hot or cold, flaming or freezing, burning out or cast out.

Lack of heat and lack of love God hates.”

“A blazing bush drew Moses; a blazing Church will attract the world, so that from its midst they will hear the voice of the living God.” - Why Revival Tarries by Leonard Ravenhill