I. The Source of our Faith: Jesus Christ

2 Th 3:5—May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance.

Heb 12:1-3—Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

II. The mark of Christian character

James 1:2-4—Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

James 5:11—As you know, we consider blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.

2 Peter 1:5-7—For this reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.

Rev. 2:2—I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance.

Rev. 2:19—I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did at first.

III. The Christian witness in the world: Why it matters

The world measures in terms of speed, efficiency, and dominance. Perseverance is summed up by the words: endurance, steadfastness, and being brave.
a. Counter-cultural
b. Prayer, persistence, and patience

October 17, 2010, The Way Christian Fellowship, Dcn. Kirsten Gardner, Teaching Pastor.

Gospel of Luke 16:19-31

Being a Christ-follower means a series of choices between life and death, light and darkness, others and self, accumulating or dispensing, contentment and striving. The choices you make in the course of your life will determine if you are indeed a disciple of Jesus or simply a religious person who claims to know God. Both kinds of people can look good to others, but only God knows the heart! In parable form, Jesus speaks to us about living as a Christ follower in both a secular and religious consumption for more, more, and more.

I. Understanding the Tension of Living in a Culture of More (The Big Picture)

A. The Tension of Survival, Sustaining, and Succeeding (Financial Issues)

B. The Tension of Searching, Seeking, and Striving for Significance (Psychological Issues)

C. The Tension of Sustaining Spiritual Unity with God as a Disciple of Jesus (Spiritual Issues)

“So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions. Salt is good; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; they throw it away. Let anyone with ears to hear listen!” – Luke 14:33-35

The Context of Luke 15: The Parable of the Lost Sheep, the Parable of the Lost Coin, and The Parable of the Prodigal and His Brother illustrate that we are or have been LOST, even though some may not know they are lost. (Tax collectors, sinners, Pharisees, Scribes and Disciples were in the audience)

These parables also show us the love of God always seeking to reconcile us with Him:

1. Lost Sheep: “There will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous person who need no repentance.” – Luke 15:7

2. Lost Coin: “There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” – Luke 15:10

3. Prodigal: “But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found” – Luke 15:32

The Context of Luke 16:14-15 The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all this, and they ridiculed him. So he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of others; but God knows your hearts; for what is prized by human beings is an abomination in the sight of God.

II. The Parable that Provides the Reasons to Live as a Christ Follower in a Culture of More (Luke 16:19-31) – (The Necessity of Giving Up All of Your Possessions)

A. If you don’t, you will not see what God sees

B. If you don’t, you will not hear when God speaks

C. If you don’t, you will not love whom God loves

III. The Practice of the Parable for Every Day Christians (Practical Application)

A. You are charged to be content with what God provides you (I Tim. 6:6-19).

B. You are challenged to see, then make visible, the invisible suffering of this world.

C. You are called to serve God, by serving others, particularly the invisible sufferers of this world.

TABLE TALK:

• Jesus, in this story of the rich man and Lazarus, illustrates how difficult it is to love God and your neighbor when one’s treasure is great wealth and possessions. Imagine yourself in the scene of Lazarus and the rich man. With which character do you identify more? What would you like to ask each character? Try asking Jesus how you can let go of your attachment to money, intelligence, and privilege. What would it mean to relinquish everything to God?

• Read Luke 18:18-30. Friedrich Nietzche wrote that, with the absence of God growing in Western culture, we would replace God with money. Discuss how the love of God has been replaced with the love of money in our society. Then read Luke 19:1-10. Why was Zacchaeus not asked to sell all of his possessions?

• An Attachment Test to Possessions (Am I addicted to my possessions?)

o Do I feel that the amount of money and possessions I have right now is sufficient for my security, or do I feel I’d really be better off with more?

o How do I feel if someone or something threatens to take away my possessions? In a typical, how much time, worry, and energy do I spend trying to hold on to these things?

o Do I ever find myself making excuses, denials, or playing other mind tricks to rationalize acquiring more possessions?

o Have friends or family reflected that they think I’m more attached to some of these things than I myself feel I am?

o Have there been occasions when I’ve wanted to hide some of my possessions from others because I really think I have too much?

o Have I ever made any resolutions to ease the importance I give to possessions?

o Have I resolved, for example, to contribute more to charity or to be more giving than receiving, only to find myself behaving in the same old ways?

o Have I ever gotten to the point where my feelings changed from simple desires to real compulsion, a demanding need that truly seemed out of my control?

o Where and when do my concerns about possessions kidnap my attention and eclipse my concern for: love of God? Love of others? Love of myself?

The Way Christian Fellowship, Fr. Tony Baron, Teaching Pastor, September 26, 2010. Our website is www.findtheway.org.

I don’t care how many GPS systems a car is equipped with, I still manage to get myself turned around and lost in new places. Getting lost seems to be a common experience. It is one of those things that is just part of life. Over time, we all develop mechanisms to deal with getting lost or even with losing something that is precious to us. Often these mechanisms are more reflective of the world’s system than of God’s kingdom.
I am pretty sure that Jesus knew of our penchant to get lost and our knack for losing something. He also knew that our ways of dealing with this topic are quite insufficient.

What are some of our common misconceptions?

• We value the myth of the self-made man. Akin to Bear Grylls, the star of the Discovery Channel series Man vs. Wild, we struggle, overcome odds, and ultimately are left to our own to find our way back to civilization. This is not a biblical picture.

• Religious people can’t be lost. Yet, Paul in 1 Tim 1:13-14 says the complete opposite.

“Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.”

• Just keep going. This is the proverbial “if-we-keep-going-we–will-hit-something-we-recognize-attitude.” It is also known as the way to get permanently lost. It does not work.

• And finally, we often believe the myth that talking at people will get them back on track. However, most often the avalanche of instructions serves to confuse more than to instruct.

So, what did Jesus do to help the lost sheep?

• He went after the lost sheep until he found it. There is no “Lamby vs. Wild- attitude.” The sheep is lost! It is helpless and directionless. It needs the shepherd to find it! Not vice versa.

• He joyfully put the sheep on his shoulders and went home. He did not lecture, admonish, shame. He silently picked up the frightened sheep and carried it. This is a picture that is repeated throughout the Old Testament.

“Save your people and bless your inheritance; be their shepherd and carry them forever.” Psalm 28: 9
“He tends his flock like a shepherd; He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.” Psalm 40:11

• He celebrates in the assembly; the end goal to restoration is joy shared by all! The presence of joy is one of the marks of the kingdom.

Comparing His way and our ways demands that we take another look at how the Body of Christ understands the issue of “Lost and Found.”
• Do we go looking for the lost or do we expect them to find their way to us?
• Do we gently “carry” the lost or do we drag them kicking and screaming?
• Do we talk at them, or do we love them?
• Do we rejoice together over the one that has been found?

I pray that this closer look at the Parable of the Lost Sheep informs and transforms the way in which each one of us approaches those who have been lost.

God’s peace,
Dcn. Kirsten

We all love a good party. We love inviting people, making preparations, and finally enjoying the company of our friends. Social gatherings are the hallmark of Christian life, yet, something happened in this parable that deserves a closer look.

What happened?
I. The Invitation, vv. 16-17
Cultural and historical context of social obligations in the Middle East

II. The Excuses, vv. 18-20
a. Must check on land—I have bought a house without checking out the neighborhood
b. Must check on my oxen—I have bought a used car without test driving it
c. I am newlywed—I had a better invitation

III. The Reaction, vv.21-23
a. Invite the least, the last and the lost of the town
b. Invite the least, the last and the lost of the whole world

Application
I. Missed Opportunity
a. Must act on the invitation: It requires obedience.
b. Presumptive Faith: Once and for all response; a stale commitment.
c. Busyness: The obligations in life are a gift from God, not something to be mastered before we can be with God; our Priorities.

II. Hearing God’s Invitation to us today
a. Does it check out with the written word?
b. Are we in community?
c. Do we act on the message?

Table Talk
1. Spend some time discussing a moment in time when you thought Jesus invited you into communion, fellowship, and ministry. What were the circumstances?
2. Discuss what may prevent you in your life today from heeding His invitation.
3. What would His invitation to you look like this very day? What would it take for you to act on it?

August 29th, 2010, Dcn. Kirsten H. Gardner, Teaching Pastor, The Way Christian Fellowship.

Our desires have been designed by God to love, to be loved, and to know love. Our true God-given identity is found in that desire. Everyone is capable of loving, but not everyone has developed the capacity to love, to be loved, and to know love fully, as God intended. The god of efficiency has stifled relationships, the idols of attachments leave little space for true love, and the deity of achievements have become more destructive than soul restoring. By forgetting our initial calling, we have diminished our capacity to love, to be loved, and to know love. That is why the Scriptural passages before us this morning are so significant. God wants your heart awakened so you can live out your calling as a beautiful jewel in God’s crown. Lectionary Readings: Jeremiah 1:4-10; Psalm 71:1-6; Hebrews 12:18-29; Luke 13:10-17

I. God’s Calling for Your Life was Designed by His Personal Knowledge of You (know: yada’ – “used as a covenantal term, to recognize in a special way and treat in a special manner, to choose, see Gen. 18:19, Amos 3:2)

A. God formed you
B. God sanctified you
C. God appointed you (ordained you)

Now the word of the Lord came to me saying, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” – vv. 4-5

Similar examples: Moses, Gideon, Saul, Isaiah, Ezekiel. How about me? Ephesians 1:3-14 – “He chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world . . . He destined us . . . he lavished on us.” – cf: Is. 43:15b-16 “I will not forget you. See, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands.”

His providence tells us how precious we really are! “The farthest backward you can look the farther forward you can see” – Winston Churchill – cf: Heb. 11

II. God’s Calling for Your Life is Lived Out in Dialogue with Him

Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy.” But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am only a boy’; for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and you shall speak whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.” – vv. 6-8
Practice Power
Human Perspective Our Dialogue with God Heavenly Perspective

Inexperience Deeds – Context
Inadequate > Words – Content < “I AM”
Thoughts-Comfort

FEAR FAITH FACT

Psalm 46:1-2,10 “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. There we will not fear, though the earth should change, through the mountains shake in the heart of the sea. . . Be still, and know that I am God! I am exalted among the nations, I am exalted in the earth.”

Psalm 71 “Rescue me from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of the unjust and cruel. For you, O Lord, are my hope, my trust, O Lord, from my youth. Upon you I have leaned from my birth; it was you who took me from my mother’s womb. My praise is continually of you.”

Point: GOD HAS A DRIVING PASSION TO BE ENGAGED (TO AWAKEN YOUR HEART) WITH YOU!

III. God’s Calling for Your Life has a Particular Purpose under His Rule

(God often calls unlikely people in unlikely times and circumstances to awaken our heart to love, be loved, and to know love)

Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the Lord said to me, “Now I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.” – vv. 9-10

Luke 13:10-17 “Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. And just then there appeared a woman with a spirit that had crippled her for eighteen years. She was bent over and was quite unable to stand up straight. When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said, “Woman, you have been set free from your ailment.” When he laid his hands on her, immediately she stood up straight and began praising God. But the leader of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had cured on the Sabbath, kept saying to the crowd, “There are six days on which work ought to be done; come on those days and be cured, and not on the Sabbath day.” But the Lord answered him and said, “You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger, and lead it away to give it water? And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen long years, be set free from this bondage on the Sabbath day?” When he said this, all his opponents were put to shame; and the entire crowed was rejoicing at all the wonderful things that he was doing.

A Covenant Prayer
“We are no longer our own, but yours. Put us to what you will, rank us with whom you will. Put us to doing, put us to suffering. Let us be employed by you or laid aside for you, exalted for you or brought low by you. Let us have all things, let us have nothing. We freely and heartily yield all things to your pleasure and disposal. And now, O glorious and blessed God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, you are ours, and we are yours. So be it. And the covenant which we have made on earth, let it be ratified in heaven. Amen.

(August 22, 2010, Fr. Tony Baron, Teaching Pastor, The Way Christian Fellowship.)