Antioch Covenant Church

Hope for Our Church – Pt. 2

Hebrews 10:19-25

“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds…” vs. 24

Name That Accent

I had something interesting happen to me this week; I was speaking to someone and didn’t realize someone was listening. During a pause in our conversation, this person leaned over and said, “I think I know where you’re from, I recognize your accent.” I didn’t realize I had an accent but I played along and said, “OK, where do you think I am from.” They said, “You’re from Iowa, right?” I didn’t know that people from Iowa had a distinct accent. I said, “No, sorry, I am from the Bay Area.” They said, “No, you’re kidding, I would swear you’re from Iowa.”

So that got me thinking about accents and I though we might have a little fun today. I am going to put a sentence on the screen.  I have 5 pieces of paper here with distinct accents.  If I hand you a piece of paper, you say the line on the screen and we will try to guess what accent you are using.

5 Accents

German, French, Scottish, English, Australian

You know we make observations of people every day and we make assumptions about them; where they are from, what they do, their background, ancestry, etc. That’s what that lady did with me thinking I was from Iowa. What about being a Christian or a member of a church. Do you think you can determine that about someone based on their language, actions, mannerisms, etc..? how does this apply to us? Let’s look at this from what the author of Hebrews says in 10:19-25. If you are able, please stand as we read God’s Word.

Read Passage – Hebrews 10:19-25

Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, ²⁰ by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, ²¹ and since we have a great priest over the house of God, ²² let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. ²³ Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. ²⁴ And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, ²⁵ not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Our ________ Mode

Did you know that we all have a default mode? We do. Our culture feeds  it, our society feeds it, we are taught it by others and in our educational system, and it works pretty well in a  lot of people. Our default mode is “Me.” It’s the mode that says I need to take care of myself first, I need to make sure I am always first and always the most important. It is stronger in some people and maybe less strong in others, but really, we all have this default.  We default back to putting our self first, our needs first, and to make sure we are the top priority.

The author of Hebrews challenges this in us.  He talks about our need to have a relationship with God and that our relationship with Him should take top priority and really, we are at our best when God is our default mode. This is true individually, but it is also true of the church as well, our church. If people were able to be identified as a member of a church, how would they identify us?

The Nature of Our Church

This really challenges us to consider who we are as a church and what people see in us when we say we are associated with Antioch Covenant Church. Form Hebrews 1-:19-25, let’s discover what the nature of our church, a church I am calling a church of hope, looks like.  This is a two part series, this week and we will continue it next week.

Now when I say the “nature” of our church, I mean the traits that others see in us. To put this in context, think about our nature, our traits and how we approach life.

Ex. Some of us are positive, some negative; some are loud, some quiet; some are always happy, some more reflective, etc. It’s not that some are right and some are wrong, it’s more about how we are created and what traits we approach life with.

Well, church has traits/nature too. God has melded us together and we bring our nature to the world and to those we serve, those we love, and those we welcome here. The thing is that God, through Hebrews 10, tells us what some of the traits we are to have in order to be an effective witness for him.

1. ____________

The first trait that we are to have is we are to be considering. Before anything else, we are to think about things, ponder, and work things out in our mind.  The author starts verse 24 this way:

“And let us consider…” vs. 24a

Life is busy, and life is full of things to do, work to be done, places to go, and in our world today, it just seems to keep getting more and more busy. But the author of Hebrews is telling us to slow down, take some time, think things out, and listen. It’s tough for us to be supportive and encouraging and to affirm others if we are moving so fast, responding so quickly, and so busy that we don’t take time to listen and consider what others are saying to us and what they’re going through.

Ex. Counseling. If you have ever been to a counselor, you’ll notice they take notes. Why would they do that? Because they are considering. They are not just listening to spout some response they learned in counseling classes, or so they can tell you their story, or so they can interject their story. They are pondering, considering.  They want to think about what is best to help you. They want to help you get past your anxiety, struggle, or difficulty.  They don’t want to miss what you are going through so they write it down so they don’t forget and so they can consider.

In a healthy Christian community, we’re all supposed to be doing that for each other. Not Taking notes, Ha! That would be weird. But it means when others are talking with us, confiding, and trying to work things through with us we take the time to listen, consider, and only when it is appropriate, we ask ourselves how we can help them grow and work through their struggles. It’s about them not you.  We do that for each other and we do that with God as well.  David says in Psalm 119:59:

“I have considered my ways and have turned my steps to your statutes.” Psalm 119:59

In this case David slowed down, considered what God is saying to us, and how we are to move into a deeper relationship with him.

So let’s approach this in two ways:

One, are we being good at considering others.  Are we taking time to listen, consider, and looking for ways to help them.

Two, do you have people in your life that will do that for you?

2. ____________

The second trait that we are to have as a church is that we are to be “spurring.” Let’s continue with verse 24:

“And let us consider how we may spur one another on…” vs. 24b

Circle the word “spur.” The word for spur here literally means “to irritate.”  So get this, we are literally supposed to, actually commanded to, irritate each other.  Some of you are thinking about someone who really irritates you, aren’t you? J This isn’t meaning we are supposed to bother each other and get others mad at us. It’s the idea that we challenge and push each other and in a good way. Solomon put it this way in Proverbs 27:17:

“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” Prov. 27:17

The way to help each other is to rub up against.

Ex. When I think about the idea of spurs I think of horses and those little things on the back of boots. Spurs are used to get a horse to move or walk or react a certain way. Here is a picture of one. Would you want to be kicked with that thing? NO! I don’t think horses like them either.  They hurt.

Sometimes when we spur each other on, it might hurt.  It might feel uncomfortable. But realize the goal.  The goal is actually two-fold and it’s to do the things that Jesus commanded us to do.

• __________

I think the author of Hebrews had first-hand knowledge about Jesus and the things he said. These two things are things Jesus commanded us to do.  The first command is to love. The author says “let us consider how we can spur each other on to love.” 1 John 3:23 says:

“And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us.” I John 3:23

So where did Jesus give us this command? In John 13:34:

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” John 13:34

The love Jesus is talking about is different than love the world gives.  You can find places that love you or accept you, places like health clubs, bars, other groups, etc. As a church, we are different than those clubs. Why? Because our source of love is different. Our source of love is God. Notice Jesus says in that verse “as I have loved you.” Our love should look different and be different because we have been loved by God and then we understand what real love looks like.  It’s not accepting everything and not having boundaries, because sometimes loving includes confronting. But we do love everyone because God loves them and Jesus loves them and he died for them too. Again, it’s a love that comes from God.

• _______ ________

Second, verse 24 of Hebrews 10 says “let us consider how we can spur each other on to love and good deeds. The natural response to the love that God give and instills in us is good deeds.

Ex. Claudia and sports

Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount in Matt. 5:16

“In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matt. 5:16

And follow that up with 1 Peter 2:12:

“Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.” 1 Peter 2:12

Notice the focus of the good deeds, the focus is to glorify God.  We want to be a church who does good things and that needs to be a trait of ours but not so that we get noticed or praised but so that God is glorified. Going back to my example of Claudia, she did those things because I love those things and because they are important to me.  We respond with good deeds, things like helping Mission School, feeding the poor, helping the homeless, etc. because those are things that are important to God.

Living Example

Jesus. He showed us the way in the way he  lived here on earth.  He did everything because of his love for us and to glorify God.  But it didn’t stop there.  He is still living it out today. He sits at the right hand of God interceding for us. He is still setting the example of love.

Communion

Hope for Our Church – Part 1

Hebrews 10:19-25

“Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart

and with the full assurance that faith brings…” vs. 22

Make-A-Wish Foundation

A great organization and one I have a lot of respect for is the Make-A-Wish-Foundation. If you go to their website it says this as their mission/vision statement:

“Granting wishes to kids with life-threatening medical conditions gives them more than an amazing experience. A wish come true has the power to make kids feel stronger, more courageous, and more determined to overcome their illnesses.”

Here is one of their stories you may be familiar with:

Miles Scott at 18 months old was diagnosed with leukemia

Miles and his parents live in Tulelake, California near the Oregon border

Miles and his parents were referred to MAW as he turned 5 years old.

He told them his dream was to be batman

The MAW foundation started about a month before the even by the local chapter sending out an email and hoping a couple hundred people would volunteer

It usually takes about $7,500 dollars to MAW dream come true (This wasn’t usual)

The estimated cost of this excursion ended up over $105,000 and was covered by John and Marcia Goldman

Estimates are somewhere between 10,000-12,000 volunteers made it happen and these volunteers transformed part of San Francisco into ‘Gotham City’ Friday.

The event was attended by over 20,000 people

Miles ended up being the sidekick of Batman and took on the name Batkid

He took part in rescuing a damsel in distress tied to the cable car tracks on Russian Hill

He also took part in subduing The Riddler who was robbing a bank

And he helped nab The Penguin who had captured the SF Giants mascot Lou Seal

The chased him to At&T park. Batman and Batkid then climbed through a series of obstacle courses, in hot pursuit of The Penguin. They slid down the park slides, finding The Penguin’s “lair”, and then chasing him down to the mini-Baseball diamond in the stands. Batkid freed Lou Seal and Batman chased The Penguin, ultimately capturing him and handing him over to officers from the S.F. Police Department.

At the end of the day Batkid was taken to SF City Hall where the largest of the crowds gathered in the thousands for a rally. He was given the key to the city by SF mayor Ed Lee.  He also received a video Tweet from President Barack Obama

Some interesting stats from the event

Batkid tweets generated (through Sunday 11/17): 545,576

Number of countries where Batkid was discussed: 117

Number of Instagram photos with #SFBatkid:16,000 reaching approx. 19.5 million

Number of hits per second to all Make-A-Wish websites during peak: 1,400

Many people ask us, “How is Miles doing?” The answer is, he’s doing great! He is now 8 years old and in third grade, he plays little league baseball, and he now has another younger brother! Miles bravely fought leukemia like so many other children do, and a wish can be an important part in their recovery.

I think it’s safe to say that people are able to accomplish a lot by working together and when there is hope. The same is true for the church. Today we are going to look at a passage from Hebrews 10:19-25 and how there is hope for our church. If you are able, please stand as we read God’s Word.

Read Passage – Hebrews 10:19-25

Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, ²⁰ by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, ²¹ and since we have a great priest over the house of God, ²² let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. ²³ Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. ²⁴ And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, ²⁵ not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Not Interested in Church

It’s pretty well documented that church attendance is in decline.  People are not interested in church. Yet…I would say that spirituality is up.  People are interested in spiritual things but the church has lost is credibility and its ability to draw new people. In fact, I would even say that we see people changing churches more often and that makes it seem like churches are growing when in fact it’s just people switching churches. Unfortunately, the church has probably earned that reputation.  We have not been loving and forgiving, we have not been understanding, and we have come across as “better than thou” to many people and have turned them off and turned them away.

Ex. Kicking people out – my grandmother because of divorce.

We have not dealt with sin well and have handled many things in the wrong way.

Brennan Manning in his book The Ragamuffin Gospel tells this story:

The story goes that a public sinner was excommunicated and forbidden entry to the church. He took his woes to God. “They won’t let me in, Lord, because I am a sinner.” “What are you complaining about?” said God. “They won’t let me in either.”

“God said, ‘They won’t let Me in either.’”  ― Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel

Brennan knew what he was talking about because many people tried to have him kicked out of the church because of his issues with alcohol.  It really drives us to consider what the church is all about and are we really being the church that God wants us to be?

Our Christian Community of Hope

Hebrews 10 gives us some great insight into what the church is all about and what we want our church to be like.  One thing comes up that we need to be aware fo before we jump into that; it’s verse 25a which says:

“(Let us)…not giving up meeting together…” vs. 25a

The word in the Greek for meeting is episynagoge which is where we get our word synagogue. It means congregation.  So the verse is saying don’t stop congregating. Many pastors and church leaders have misused this verse to guilt or coerce people into coming to church or force them to be at church every Sunday.  Let’s look at what it really implies and how it can learn to be a Christian community of hope.

• Are We_________ or ___________??

First, this passage is talking about being a congregation. A congregation is a community in which all aspects of the members’ touch lives. Another word is aggregation. An aggregation is a collection of individuals.

Ex. Let’s look at this through an illustration. Are we?

Aggregation – a bag of marbles

Congregation – a cluster of grapes

What is the difference? (Wait for people to respond)

The marbles are individuals and have no connection to each other. You can take one out with no problem.  It’s just a collection of individual things.

The grapes on the other hand are organically related to each other. They are connected to a vine. To get one, you have to pull it off the vine.

So the Bible tells us that we are more like a cluster of grapes because we are connected, and what are we connected to or by? Christ. Here are a few verses tht tell us that.

“Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior.” Eph. 5:23

“He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.  And he is the head of the body, the church…” Col. 1:17-18

We are not really a group of individuals, we are connected because of Chri. We are a congregation. We don’t just come together to hear a speaker or have an experience.  That is a club. We eat together. We pray together. We learn together. We love each other. We confess to each other and we walk with each other through the tough issues.

How? Sunday services, yes. Eating together. (Women’s tea nd men’s breakfast) Potlucks. Prayer meetings. Communion. Small groups. Working together. Playing together (golf tournament, etc.). See we are not just suppose to come and sit here on Sunday and say, “Oh, we are together.” No, we are involved in each others lives, spend time during the week together, and are community

• A Place of ______ __________ Friendships

A second implication of meeting together is that the church is to be a place of deep friendships. The Bible talks about us as being brothers and sisters. The bond of being together in Christ is supposed to drive us into deeper friendships with each other. The analogy that the bible uses is the body. In Romans 12:5 it says:

“…so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” Romans 12:5

We help each other and work together. We are intertwined and linked to form a body. Each part works with the others to accomplish things. We pick each other up when another is down, we assist each other to accomplish tasks, and support one another in the good and the bad.  We let each other into our lives. You open up about your hurts and problems, and needs.  We hold each other accountable. We celebrate together and build each other up.

Two examples:

• Graduations – attending graduations, parties, etc.
• My hurt foot – the rest of the body picks up the slack.

So what does being in deep friendships look like? 1 Peter 2:17 gives us a clue when it says:

“Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers…” 1 Peter 2:17

It means everyone belongs, everyone has a place, we respect everyone because we are bound together through Christ who loves each of us and therefore we love and respect one another. Verse 24 tells us how that happens; by spurring one another toward good deeds.

Ex. Helping Mission School with buckets for their music program

• A Place of _____________

And a third implication of meeting together is that the church should be a place of encouragement.  In the OT the worshippers could not draw near to God. In the tabernacle and in the temple there was a Holy Place. That is the place where God dwelled. Only the high priest could draw near to God and that was one day a year. The temple was a place of confession and sacrifice. The temple was not a place of encouragement but a place only of repentance for sin.  The importance of this is that Jesus changes all that. Verse 19 tells us:

“Since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus…” vs. 19

The work of Jesus allows us to enter the place where God dwells and to be in his presence. The author is saying that because of Christ’s death and resurrection we can come right into the presence of God and in his presence it is no longer about what we have done but what Christ has done. We are transformed and that transformation is we are encouraged by meeting together and we are called to encourage one another. We no longer come with fear but we come with assurance of God’s love and that love is extended to one another. Verse 22 says:

“Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance…” vs. 22

CS Lewis  says in Mere Christianity:

“Christ works on all of us in all sorts of ways, but above all he works on us through each other. We are carriers of Christ to each other.”

Ex. Our greeting time, the joy of meeting together, genuinely like and love each other

So the message of meeting together is not one of a demand to come to church but one of the hope the church can be and I believe it’s what we want to be.

A Glimpse of What’s To Come

The bottom line is that it comes down to not what we have now but what we have now being a glimpse of what is to come. This passage ends with these words:

“and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

The day being talked about here is the day that Christ returns for his church; us! Christ returns for his church and then we see that all this was just a glimplse of what is to come.

Life: Blessing or Burden?

Matthew 12:1-8

“If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice’…” vs. 7

Never Give Up

It was September 25, 2000 and  Maricel Apatan was an 11-year old girl in Zamboanga, Philippines. On that day, this little girl went with her uncle to draw water. Along the way, four men met them. They were carrying long knives. They told her uncle to face down on the ground, and they hacked him on the neck and killed him. Maricel was in total shock, especially since she recognized the men as their neighbors. She tried to escape, but the men ran after her. She cried, “Kuya, ‘wag po, ‘wag n’yo akong tagain! Maawa po kayo sa akin!” (“Don’t kill me! Have mercy on me!”) But they weren’t listening. With a long knife, a man slashed her on the neck too. Maricel fell to the ground and lost consciousness. When she woke up, she saw a lot of blood. She also saw the feet of the men around her, so she pretended to be dead. When they walked away, Maricel ran back home as best she could. But along the way, she saw that both her hands were falling off and that’s because the men hacked them too. She cried but she kept running. Sometimes she would faint and fall to the ground. But she’d regain consciousness and run again.

When she was near her home, Maricel called her mother. Upon seeing her daughter, her mother screamed in terror. She wrapped her bloodied child in a blanket and carried her to the hospital. Here was the problem: From her house to the highway, it was a 7 ½ mile walk. It took them 4 hours just to reach the highway. When they arrived in the hospital, the doctors thought Maricel was going to die. But for 5 hours, they operated on her. It took 25 stitches to stitch together the long knife wound in her neck and back. Maricel barely survived. And she lost both of her hands. Ironically, the next day was Maricel’s birthday. She was 12 years old.

But the tragedy didn’t end there. When they went home, they saw their home was gone. It was ransacked and burned down by the same men that had killed her uncle and hurt her. Being very poor, Maricel’s family also didn’t have P50,000 for their hospital bills. But God sent many angels along the way to help them. Archbishop Antonio Ledesma, a distant relative, paid for hospital bills and helped them bring the criminals to court. They were sentenced to prison.

It would seem all your dreams and goals for life were completely dashed. But this is the incredible miracle. Instead of staying down, Maricel kept running. What she became will boggle your mind. At one point, Maricel was cited as the most industrious, best in computer, and most courteous in the School for Crippled Children.  In 2008, she graduated from a course in Hotel and Restaurant Management. She even received a Gold medal for Arts and Crafts. In 2011, she finished her education and began to fulfill her dream to be a chef. Yes, a Chef without hands. Nothing can stop this young lady from reaching her dreams.

An amazing story about a young woman who pursued her dreams and was able to overcome many obstacles and yet still see her dreams fulfilled. Are you passionate about something that you would pursue it that vigorously? Well, today we are going to look at a passage of Scripture that will help us understand God’s love for us.  If you are able, please stand as we read God’s word from Matthew 12:1-8.

Read Passage – Matthew 12:1-8

At that time Jesus went through the grain fields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eat them. ² When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, “Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath.”

³ He answered, “Haven’t you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? ⁴ He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the consecrated bread—which was not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests. ⁵ Or haven’t you read in the Law that the priests on Sabbath duty in the temple desecrate the Sabbath and yet are innocent? ⁶ I tell you that something greater than the temple is here. ⁷ If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent. ⁸ For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”

S________: A Blessing or Burden?

Did you know that God designed Sunday to be a blessing? A blessing is meant to be an encouragement or something that is for your welfare. So when God created the world and set aside a day of rest, a Sabbath, it was meant to be a day of encouragement or something to benefit us. In fact, he took a day of rest and his desire is that we do the same thing. But…what happens in the passage we read today is that we see the Pharisee’s lost sight of that.  It says in verse 2:

“When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, “Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath.” vs. 2

What’s happening here is the Pharisee’s have taken what is supposed to be a blessing and made it a burden. Instead of enjoying their Sabbath, day of rest, they came up with a list of “can’t’s” that had to be observed.  Now originally they did it to preserve holiness but it developed over the years to a list of things you couldn’t do on the Sabbath. You can’t carry grain, you can’t walk more than a certain distance, you can’t eat certain things, you can’t clean, you can’ etc. The joy of the day turned to the onus of keeping the law; and they were man’s laws at that. If we are not careful, we can do the same thing, not just with the Sabbath, our Sunday, but with life. God’s desire wasn’t to create a Sabbath to be a burden but a blessing. Jesus says as much in verse 7 when he says:

“If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice’…” vs. 7

Jesus is pointing out that the Pharisee’s have missed the point and had lost their way on what God really desired for them.  Mercy is compassion. The Pharisee’s had lost their passion and were focused on following the rules or as Jesus put it, sacrifice.

The Gospel _________ the Way We Think…

Here’s what I really think Jesus was getting at and what we should take to heart as well: “I want you to think in a different way.” The Pharisee always seemed to be at odds with Jesus and I think this is one of the main reasons why, they didn’t think like God or in this case, Jesus, did. The Pharisee’s put their worth in their own holiness and their own actions and because of that, they missed the real point of why Jesus came and what the gospel is all about. The gospel changes, or should change, the way we think. Here are 3 things that the gospel should change the way we think about certain things.

• About ________

First, we need to let the gospel shape the way we think about God. We have thought that we are the ones pursuing God and yet, the reality is, that God is pursing us.  Our thinking says that we are the ones that must go and find God. God is always looking to build his relationship with us.

“For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.” 2 Chronicles 16:9

2 Chronicles is the story of Asa king of Judah.  He did not follow God’s ways and built alliances with other nations.  He wasn’t trusting God he was trusting in the strength of other nations and men.  Verse 9 tells us how God is pursuing us and looking for us, for those that want to build their relationship with God. His desire is that we trust him. But notice he is pursuing but its more than just looking for us, it’s looking and caring for us. David recognizes this in Psalm 8:4:

“What is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?” Psalm 8:4

Here’s the thing: God has a goal and it’s you! He wants you.

Ex. Ever set a goal and go after it with everything? My goal to hike 1,000 miles a year.  I go out in rain, in cold, in the early morning, if I miss a day I make it up, etc. I am goal driven and I work hard to achieve the goals I set.

How much more with God; his goal is people, it’s me, it’s you! Now, how far was God willing to go? 1 John 4:10:

“This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” 1 John 4:10

God’s goal is to have a full relationship with you and he will do everything in his power, and his power is so much more than ours, to see that happen. The pinnacle of that is that God sent his Son, a part of the Triune Godhead, to live among us, show us he is real, and to die for us. He doesn’t want anyone to perish without knowing him. He was even willing to die for the things we did. And that is the gospel story, not that we follow rules and a list of things that we can or can’t do but that we know, accept, and embrace his compassion and gift of salvation.

• About ___________

The second way the gospel shapes and changes our thinking is about ourselves. God loves us and because of that, we can love ourselves. God says we are valuable and we are worth it. In our passage the Pharisee had put the law above people. Their list of rules and laws to follow were more important than people themselves.  Right after this interaction Jesus goes into the temple and there is a man with a withered hand. The Pharisee’s try to trap Jesus by asking about healing the man’s hand. Jesus points out that in their thinking, keeping the law is more important. In God’s eyes, people are more important  but the Pharisee’s will break the law if it’s important to them, like  if one of their sheep fall into a ditch. Here’s how Jesus shows them to change their thinking, verse 12:

“How much more valuable is a person than a sheep!” Matt. 12:12

The gospel is that people are more important than any other created thing. You are more important to God than any other created thing. God loves us so much that love is expressed through our love for his son Jesus. John 16:27 says:

“The Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.” John 16:27

We should be careful not to put ourselves down, but to realize our value and worth because he loves us so much.

Ex. Many of us put ourselves and down. We look at our deficiencies and the things we don’t like about ourselves or the things we do wrong and put ourselves down. That can be another source of pride in a way.

Here’s a little test that might be a red flag that we are not thinking like God thinks. Tell me the subject of this sentence:

The dog ran around the yard.

The bridge is newly painted .

The boat sped across the lake.

Ok, I think you get it.  Now continue that with these sentences:

I am not good enough

I have sinned too much

I don’t deserve God’s love

Ok, you get it. When “I” is the subject that could be a flag your focusing too much on yourselves and you need to change that to be thinking more about God and allw  him to define who you are.

• About __________

And third, the gospel changes our thinking about others.  In our passage today the Pharisee’s only concern was themselves. Jesus is pointing out that our thinking needs to change so that we think about others. We need to be concerned about others, concerned about their lives and their salvation, concerned enough to realize that we are all sinners and that God still chooses to love all of us and that part of our thinking should be to love others. Jesus iterates this in John 13:34 where he states:

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” John 13:34

Jesus tells us to love other the way he loves us; that’s unconditionally, with open arms, with joy, and it should be the root and core of who we are. Jesus changes the extent of love by his example. He willingly gave his life for us and he raises the bar on how deep love goes. In the story of Matthew 12 the Pharisee did not love others but consider themselves the law keepers and the enforcers. Christ’s new model of love is expands the depth of love we are to have.  The Old Testament law was to love your neighbor as yourself. Now we are called to fulfill that law by loving others not as ourselves but as Christ loved. In fact, in loving people as Christ did, we are fulfilling the law, Romans 13:8:

“Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law.” Romans 13:8

Notice the call in this verse, it comes at the end and you may want to circle the word fulfill.  We are called to not keep the law of love but to fulfill the law of love.

God’s Focus

What we have learned is that God’s focus is us. Remember the words from verse 7-8:

“If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent. ⁸ For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.” Vss. 7-8

Mercy = compassion. God’s focus is us. The message of the Gospel is that God wants a relationship with you, and he wants you to change your thinking. Stop worrying about keeping the law but worry about fulfilling it.

The Good News!

Ephesians 2:8-10

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith …it is the gift of God”

Getting Into Heaven 

Mr. Jones goes to his Sunday School class and asks the children this question:

“If I sold my house and my car, had a big garage sale and gave all my money to the church, would that get me into Heaven?”

All the children yell out in unison, “NO!”

So he asks them a second question.
“If I cleaned the church every day, mowed the yard, and kept everything neat and tidy, would that get me into Heaven?”
Again, then children yell out, “NO!”

So he challenges them with a third question.
“Well, then, if I was kind to animals and gave candy to all the children, and loved my wife, would that get me into Heaven?”
Again, they all yell out, “NO!”
“Well,” he continued, “then how can I get into Heaven?”
A five-year-old raises his hand and answers, “YOU GOTTA BE DEAD!”

Only from the mouth of kids! Right? Today we are beginning a series on The Gospel and the difference it makes in our life and in our church. Today, we will start by looking at the gift of the Gospel and we will read Ephesians 2:8-10. If you are able, please stand as we read God’s Word.

Read Passage – Ephesians 2:8-10 

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” 

The World’s Misconception 

How do you get to heaven? I could tell you accept Jesus and our going to heaven and most of you will probably agree with me and probably believe that.  And that is the message of the Christian church. Even though that is our message, the world still has this misconception about going to heaven and what a right relationship with God looks like. Here are a few examples:

Muslims – 8 laws to follow, i.e. respect and obey your parent’s, don’t kill innocent people, do charity because it reduces your sin, etc.

Mormonism, everyone gets to go to Heaven, but it is divided into different neighborhoods. Only good Mormons who followed all the rules and paid all their tithes get to go to the Celestial Kingdom, the first class of Heaven. Good people from other religions and Jack Mormons go to the Terrestrial Kingdom, which is the middle class Heaven. Bad people like serial killers, smokers, atheists, and coffee drinkers go to the Telestial Kingdom, the slums of Heaven.

Jehovah Witness – teach that salvation is possible only through Christ’s ransom sacrifice and that individuals cannot be saved until they repent of their sins and call on the name of Jehovah.  Salvation is described as a free gift from God, but is said to be unattainable without good works that are prompted by faith. The works prove faith is genuine. Preaching is said to be one of the works necessary for salvation. They believe that baptism as a member of Jehovah’s Witnesses is “a vital step toward gaining salvation”, and that people can be “saved” by identifying God’s organization and serving God as a part of it. They believe in different forms of resurrection for two groups of Christians. One group, the anointed, go to heaven while the other group, “the other sheep” or “the great crowd” will live forever on earth.

General thought: If you do enough good and your good outweighs your bad, you get in.

Christian – Believe in Jesus Christ and declare him Lord.

Thought: I know that to be true but I still add stuff to it, like: read your Bible daily, go to church, pray, treat people well.

Ex. Lately I have been visiting someone who is in a convalescent hospital and dying of cancer. I have to be careful that I don’t think I am better than anyone else or even doing it because it might somehow get me in better standing with God.

Good News Not Good Advice 

See the misconception creeps into the church too even though we supposedly know better.  The reason I bring this up is because we need to realize that we are to bring the Good News of Jesus Christ to the world. Getting good advice can be helpful in getting through life. We get financial advice, relationship advice, childrearing advice, work advice, even religious advice.  But what is our real calling? We ate called to follow Jesus example which we see in Luke 8:1:

“Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God.” Luke 8:1

Here’s the point; we are called to proclaim the Good News and the Good News is to tell others what Jesus did for us and that salvation is found in him.

The Gospel’s Good News 

But what are the essential elements of Gospel’s Good News? In the Bible, the Good News is the declaration of what Jesus has done to save us.  Timothy Keller in Center Church defines the gospel in 4 chapters.  Let’s look at the 4 chapters of the Gospel.

1. Where Did We Come From?  Answer:__God____ 

Chapter 1 answers the question: Where did we come from? The answer: God. There is one God and he created us. We believe the Bible is God’s Word to us and in Genesis 1:27 it says:

“So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.” Genesis 1:27

The world is not an accident. You and I are not accidents. God, one God in three persons the trinity God, God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, created all that we see. He always has been and always will be.  We see this again in John 1:1-4:

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.”

John 1:1-4

So, where did we come from. God. He created us to share in his love and service. God is triune, therefore love, friendship, and community are intrinsic to him. He created us to share in that love, friendship and community.

Ill. Lately I have had a more real sense that I am God’s creation and that I am his child. When I sense that and feel it deeply, I realize that I am loved, God’s child, and in community with him so I feel a greater sense of self-worth and sense of purpose.

2. Why Did Things Go Wrong?  Answer:__Sin____ 

The second chapter answers the question: Where did things go wrong? The answer: Sin. We were all created with freewill and have choice.  We can choose to accept God’s love and purpose for our lives or we can reject it.  Part of that freewill is that we all at some point choose sin, something that separates us from God. We rebelled against his authority. Romans 3:23 says:

“…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…” Romans 3:23

Instead of living for God and in love, we basically choose self-centeredness. We have broken that relationship with God and the result is spiritual, psychological, social, and physical decay and breakdown. We strive to live for ourselves and instead of making God our hope and object of our love, we have put other things in his place; things like money, career, family, fame, romance, sex, power, comfort, social or political causes, or anything else we put as the object of our love. This brokenness has a result, Rom. 6:24:

“For the wages of sin is death…” Romans 6:24

The ultimate result of sin is death. We are not just suffering because of sin, we are guilty because or sin. Notice it says wages. Because we have sinned against God we have a debt.

Ex. I hurt my wife and I try to make it up by apologizing and giving her a gift. It’s like I try to buy my way out of it.

But no gift or anything we can buy or do can repay the debt we owe for our sin.

3. What Will Put things Right? Answer:_Christ____ 

The third chapter is to answer the question: What will put things right? The answer: Christ. Jesus puts things right by leaving heaven and coming to earth, showing us God in flesh, and being crucified and dying for our sins, and then raising again to show us that death is not the end of the story but the beginning of eternal life. 1 John 2:2 says:

“He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.” 1 John 2:2

Notice the verb “atoning.” Jesus takes the wrong and puts it right. The first time Jesus came to earth was to suffer for our sins. But he rose again and when he returns for the second time, it will be to judge the world and put an end to evil, suffering, decay and death. The real work of Christ is to renew and restore our souls and our bodies. And why did God put things right? Romans 5:8:

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8

Because he loves us. He loves us so much that even in our sinful state He wants to prove his love and demonstrate that by having his son pay the price for our sin. So I am transformed because of Christs’ work, not because of what I do.

Ill. The Choice: to live in God’s love and not in sin through confession and getting rid of the sin.

4. How Can I Be Put Right? Answer:_Faith_____   

The fourth answers the question; How can I be put right? The answer: Faith. (Switch verses) Galatians 2:16 says:

“…know that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ.” Gal. 2:16

What this verse is saying is that our works don’t put us right, faith does.

Faith – putting our trust or confidence in the work of Christ.

This is more than saying I’ve sinned, I’ve confessed it, and I am going to try harder.  That is still putting faith in yourself. Real faith is not about what we do or even will do, it’s about putting our trust and confidence in Jesus. See it’s not about trying harder, it’s about living in. No one lives a perfect life. Even our best is like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6)

Ex. It doesn’t matter how many times I read through the Bible, how many times I visit someone in the hospital, if I pray before each meal, etc. Those are all good things and I want to do them but not because they will save me or give me better standing with God.

This goes to the motive behind what we do.  Many people still try to earn their salvation even though they have accepted Jesus Christ as Savior.  We don’t do good works because it will somehow put us in good standing with God, we do it because of what God has done for us and in response to his love and forgiveness. Eph. 2:10:

“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” vs. 10

What’s The Difference? 

So what is the difference.  Let me explain by comparing what “religion” says compared to what Jesus proclaimed in the Good News.

Religion              Jesus

_Believe______Believe___

_Obey________Saved____

_Saved_______Obey_____

Religion, which is adherence to a set of ethics and rules says that you believe, and then you obey, and then you are saved.  Jesus says it in a different way.  He says you believe, then you are saved and then you obey in response to your salvation.

The source of this material is taken from Center Church by Timothy Keller.