20/20 Vision (Week 4)
Notes
Transcript
Recap
Recap
Today, we are wrapping up our series to kick-off the New Year as we have explored God’s vision for us as individuals, as a local church, and for God’s people at large. Our series, 20/20 Vision, started the first Sunday of the year (January 5th) as we discussed what vision is and isn’t. We talked about the importance of vision, literally for everyday life in our physical world but more importantly for our spiritual life as well.
A hallmark verse when talking about vision is:
18 Where there is no prophetic vision the people cast off restraint, but blessed is he who keeps the law.
We need Holy Spirit illumination to the Word God has spoken to us. We need the Holy Spirit to bring enlightenment to our heart for the written Word, that it may become living and active in our lives.
SLIDE (skyline w/ VISION WORDS)
As a church, we have three main vision points. I have boiled them down to three words: ENCOUNTER | CONNECT | GROW.
In expounding upon these words, we like to say (and it is in your bulletin as well as online for you to look at and know as well):
We are a community of believers...
Creating an atmosphere to encounter and know God,
Connecting people to real relationships that cause us to thrive in our faith, and
Cultivating believers towards imitating Christ in pursuit of those far from God.
I encourage you to go back and listen to the podcast if you missed one of the past few weeks. Bruce does a great job editing and posting our weekly messages for you to find anywhere you listen to podcasts. Just search for Emmanuel Assembly in Knoxville, TN and you should find us.
These points are for my personal life, for our church, and for the Church as a whole.
The week we looked at ENCOUNTER we discussed God’s desire to fellowship with us since the beginning. We saw that Adam and Eve had a knowledge of “the sound of the Lord,” and were accustomed to having ‘encounters’ with their Creator.
8 And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.
9 But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?”
10 And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.”
11 He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?”
Genesis 3:
We saw the marks of sin leaving guilt, shame, and blame in its wake. That natural state of creation was changed, marred from it original intent.
God’s desire to meet with His creation, to be their God and they His people, never changed.
The coming of the Lord to Mount Sinai is also foreshadowed in this scene of the Lord God’s coming to the first disobedient couple. In and 18:16 (cf. ), when the Lord came to Sinai, the people “heard the sound of the LORD our God” (lišmōʿ ʾet-qôl yhwh ʾelōhênû). The response of Adam in the garden is much the same as Israel at the foot of Mount Sinai. When they heard the sound of the Lord at Sinai, they were afraid “and stayed at a distance and said … ‘Do not have God speak to us or we will die’ ” ().
Deuteronomy
5:25
and 18:16 (cf.
The covenant that pointed to our need for the perfect sacrifice, the once for all removal of the dividing veil between us and God’s holy presence, brought about a glory that was fading.
), when the Lord came to Sinai, the people “heard the sound of the LORD our God” (lišmōʿ ʾet-qôl yhwh ʾelōhênû). The response of Adam in the garden is much the same as Israel at the foot of Mount Sinai. When they heard the sound of the Lord at Sinai, they were afraid “and stayed at a distance and said … ‘Do not have God speak to us or we will die’ ” (
Paul compares that which came under Moses, fading as it was, to what the ministry of the Spirit brings under the glory of the New Covenant in Christ.
The former was temporary, this one is eternal
).We mentioned that “the sound of the Lord” was the phrase Moses would use to describe what the people heard as he would ascend Mount
The former was fading, this one increases from glory to glory
The former based on you, this one based on Him
The former brought death, this one leads to life
When we encounter Christ our lives are forever marked as His children. I am not getting in our eternal security or if you can walk away from His family. That will have to be for another day, but what I emphasizing here is that when we experience God’s kindness (which leads us towards repentance/change) and taste of His goodness nothing else satisfies. We find the One Thing, as David would call it, that we were created to experience and know, and that is Him.
Paul writes...
8 What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ
9 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 on the basis of faith.
10 I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,
11 and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.
12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,
14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
vs. 8-9: everything we could have accomplished on our own is like poop when compared to what Christ has done for us. So, I receive a righteousness, a right standing before God that I was intended to have all along, but this time I receive by putting my faith in what someone else, the Son of God, Jesus has done for me.
vs. 10-11 I want to know Christ, the fullness of the power of His life, even resurrection, recognizing the pathway is death (death to self and ambition)
vs. 12-14 We press on towards this…that with each glimpse of Jesus that we get (through His Word, in worship, among His people, echoed through all Creation) we would have a new revelation, one that transformed and liberates, of the completed work of Christ. Our ability to encounter God comes not from our own volition (will) or doing (because the Father draws us, we are dependent) nor of our own merit (because we couldn’t re-earn God’s good grace and appease our sin).
TRANSITION
From that original Creation Story, we see God’s vision (His original intent/purpose/design) for us.
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
We get into Genesis chapter two where a layer is peeled back on the creation of man and woman. In the details, Moses records:
18 Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.”
Gen 2:
We were not created to be alone. We were designed to have fellowship with and with one another.
John writes...
3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.
4 We write this to make our joy complete.
We are telling you about our encounter because we have fellowship within the fellowship of God (with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit). We know this fellowship is meant to extend to fellowship with you, His people…that’s why we preach, teach, and disciple, so that our fellowship may be complete and thus our design and fulfillment hitting the mark it was intended to. We will know the difference by the joy and satisfaction level in our lives because we were not created to be alone but instead are better together.
9 Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil.
10 For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up!
11 Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone?
12 And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
eccl
11 Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone?
TRANSITION
For me, a guide for our theology (about anything-vision, prosperity, salvation, relationships, etc.) goes back to what Paul writes in his doxology at the end of .
33 Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!
34 “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?”
35 “Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them?”
36 For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.
Everything flowing from God, through God, and for the purpose of going back to God is what leads us into Paul’s next chapter. ties together: ENCOUNTER | CONNECT | GROW.
-26
The New International Version Chapter 11
Doxology
33 Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable his judgments,
and his paths beyond tracing out!
34 “Who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has been his counselor?” b
35 “Who has ever given to God,
that God should repay them?” c
36 For from him and through him and for him are all things.
To him be the glory forever! Amen.
1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
vs. 1 He says in these famous verses that it is in view of God’s mercy, it because of our encounter with His goodness (remember and the kindness of God that leads to repentance) that leads to us offering our very lives as a living sacrifice as worship to God. Not conforming to the world’s way of doing things is the opposite of what God is calling us to. He is calling us to having a renewing of our mind.
vs. 2 For a long time, I assumed that the renewing of our mind was simple changing what we thought. I completely agree that we need to fill our hearts and minds with the Word of God and give ourselves ammunition to draw from for transformation and healthy thinking which leads to healthy living.
Do you get what I am saying here? The cart before the horse is that we would expect right living from someone who still has wrong thinking. Jesus is less interested in our behavior and more interested in where our behavior flows from, our hearts and minds. It is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks. We don’t have behavior issues as much as we have heart and mind issues.
BACK ON TRACK:
The beauty of the renewing of our mind is what science has revealed in neuroplasticity. This is simple science showing us that throughout our life the brain can and does change. During such changes, the brain engages in synaptic pruning, deleting the neural connections that are no longer necessary or useful, and strengthening the necessary ones.
3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.
romans 12:3
vs. 3 From our ENCOUNTER with God’s mercy we learn that we can GROW by having our mind renewed, allowing us to discern and know God’s good, please, perfect will. We can GROW by recognizing the CONNECTion we have to the Body of Christ.
CLARK translation: “Don’t think of yourself more highly than you ought. Don’t oversell or undersell yourself, but instead think of yourself with clarity and self-awareness, sober judgement according to what He has asked of you, according to what He has given you, according to how He has called you. Stay in your lane. Get out of comparison. Recognize your grace and gain strength from the grace of those around you.”
As Peter writes, I echo to us this morning:
2 Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,
2 Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,
3 now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.
I think it is our tendency to interpret these Scriptures as referring to those new in the faith or still living immaturely. Peter is emphasizing more the pathway to growth over the stage of the one growing. Like babies CRAVE, crave that which is pure, God’s Word. Be intentional about your growth. Make spiritual maturity priority. Wrestle with development. What you put in will give direct results to what you also get out in a life of faith and maturity.
3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called;
5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
7 But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it.
Ephesians 4:3-
It is important that you recognize your connection and your need for connection to the Body of Christ. We are all part of the same faith family, not competing, but serve the same Lord, the same God and Father of us all. But there is a grace that has been given to each one of us. Operate in the grace that you have been given. Glean from the grace that has been given to those around you.
1 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.
2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.
3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called;
5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
7 But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it.
8 This is why it says: “When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.”
9 (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions?
10 He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.)
11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers,
12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up
13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming.
15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.
16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
17 So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.
18 They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts.
19 Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed.
20 That, however, is not the way of life you learned
21 when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus.
22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;
23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds;
24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
25 Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body.
26 “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry,
27 and do not give the devil a foothold.
28 Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.
29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.
32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers,
12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up
13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming.
15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.
1 For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles—
2 Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me for you,
3 that is, the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written briefly.
4 In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ,
5 which was not made known to people in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s holy apostles and prophets.
6 This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.
7 I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of his power.
8 Although I am less than the least of all the Lord’s people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the boundless riches of Christ,
9 and to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things.
10 His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,
11 according to his eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.
12 In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.
13 I ask you, therefore, not to be discouraged because of my sufferings for you, which are your glory.
14 For this reason I kneel before the Father,
15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name.
16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being,
17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love,
18 may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ,
19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,
21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
Ephesians
God has given roles and offices to the Church. They vary in form and function, but they each serve the same goal. That goal is “to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.” My role is to equip and even empower you to go out and do the works of ministry that God has called you to. I am not the minister, you are. I am not the one doing works of service, you are (or we all are). These offices are called to equip with guidance, teaching, and spiritual insight the people who are to then go and perform the works of service “so that the body of Christ may be built up.”
I have said it before, but the Church is one of the few things that exist for its non-members. Don’t misunderstand that I am saying we don’t take care of one another. To the contrary, it is by our love for one another, Jesus says, that the world would know and recognize that we are His disciples.
1 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.
2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.
3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called;
5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
7 But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it.
8 This is why it says: “When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.”
9 (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions?
10 He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.)
11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers,
12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up
13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming.
15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.
16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
17 So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.
18 They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts.
19 Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed.
20 That, however, is not the way of life you learned
21 when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus.
22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;
23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds;
24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
25 Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body.
26 “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry,
27 and do not give the devil a foothold.
28 Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.
29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.
32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
We are going to GROW, yes, numerically as we see those not a part of the family of God become part of His family.
We are going to GROW also as we strive towards unity in our faith (not division or competition) and GROW in our knowledge of Jesus and mature as we GROW in the fullness of Christ in our lives.
I believe this is meant to be a year of growth for you. I believe that in your vision for 2020 you should have vision of growing personally, of challenging yourself towards what God has called you know, be, and do. He wants you to GROW in knowing Him more fully, being more like Him (walking in unity with His body), and doing the works you would see Him doing (in and through you).
Some of you are called to...
Serve in Pre-Quest/Kid’s Quest/Youth
Serve with our Hospitality Team/Outreach
Serve with our Women’s Ministry/Men’s Ministry
Serve on our Worship Team/Life Groups
Serve His local body, our community, at your job, your family
PIANO MAN
2020 is to be a year when you realize God’s vision for your life. To walk in His victory, His fullness for your life. He wants to know your more intimately. He wants to both be known by you and to know you completely. Make 2020 the year you go deeper in connecting with your faith community. Make church priority. Take those communal risks we mentioned last week because we are better together. The fruit of all of this is going to be incredible growth in your life personally, for your family, our church, and the kingdom.
PRAY