Following Jesus

Today was Communion Sunday

"This is the day that the Lord has made... let us rejoice and be glad in it."

Brad welcomed us warmly and our special guests Mark & Mary Lynn Rhoads, and the Hagens.

Announcement
Pray for our junior high kids who are going on a weeklong trek called M.U.U.U.C.E
Sept 13, Grand Opening / Open House here at our new church.
Seeking volunteers to help with church maintenance.
Bloodmobile next Sunday, Auguat 9.

The trio sang There Came A Man and then Heavenward Bound, another wonderful Gospel song after which we sang several songs as a congregation. During the offering we joined them in singing He's Everything To Me.

There were several prayer requests shared. After a time of prayer Brad read to us from Matthew 11:25-30.

Mark and Mary Lynn Rhoads, and Gwen led us in singing Trust and Obey before Brad introduced our guest speaker, Jeff Hagen who was visiting with his wife Sandy this morning.

Following Jesus

Pastor Hagen began by noting that he grew up a mile from Brad, and has followed our church community for some time through his friendship with the Cresman's. He spoke here a year ago across the road, and today gave a very solid message based on his own observations and life experiences. Here are some of the main points he made.

He started by saying that our new building is a new step, but what will make this new step effective begins with prayer. We need to pray for our pastor and for the church. "Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord."

The word "spirit" in Hebrew means "wind." And in essence we are wind instruments, as His wind/spirit flows through us.

Jeff shared that he considered calling this message Learnings Under the Yoke of Christ. These are some lessons he's learned along the path of life.

1. The Christian faith starts with a call to follow Jesus.
Salvation is a gift that is given to us.

2. Life is messy. We're not in control.

3. We're called to seek His kingdom first, and He will be our provider.
To get out of the boat and come after Him is a challenge. Faith is not faith unless you get out of the boat.

4. There is a price to be paid for following Jesus.
Jeff cited Bonhoffer's book The Cost of Discipleship. He ended up dying from his conviction to follow Jesus.

Following Jesus starts with a call.

Romans 8:28 states that "All things work together for good for those who are called according to His purpose." God allowed evil men to crucify His son, yet this very act undid evil.

God calls us, and deposits a seed of the word of God into our hearts. He invites us to cultivate that seed.

This call is a revelation of Jesus. When Peter professed that Jesus was Messiah, Jesus noted that flesh and blood did not reveal this to Peter, but it was revealed by God. But this call is just a start point.

Life is about a total renovation of the heart. God says, "If you want to follow Me, deny yourself, take up your cross and follow Me." From the heart come the springs of life. Life is a constant lesson of learning to pick up the cross, and letting Him take control.

Finally, there's a price to be paid for following Christ.

The spirit of a man is the lamp of the Lord and he searches the depths of our being.

Jeff shared how money made him feel secure. Our security is not going to be found in money.

We need the willingness to go where God wants us to go. Are you willing to follow Jesus?

If we follow, He will transform us from a selfish person to someone who looks like Jesus from the inside out. To reveal the glory of God, we need to be willing to submit to His yoke. He will shape our heart to the image of His son.

At this, Gwen and the Rhoads' led us in "I Have Decided To Follow Jesus."

At this we celebrated the Sacrament of Communion.

Beautiful

Pastor Brad led worship today.

This has indeed been a beautiful summer, so the theme today certainly resonates with that. Brad welcomed us with his usual "I'm grateful you're here today." The message will be based on a familiar passage from Acts 3.

Announcements
Junior High kids will be taking a special trip to the MUUUCE Retreat August 6-8.
The Bloodmobile is coming. Call Ruth Anne for details.
Gordy & Becky are having a 50th anniversary next Sunday at Gethsemane Fellowship at 2:00 p.m.

Our worship began with Come Thou Fount and 10,000 Reasons. After we spent a few minutes greeting one another we sang Jesus Messiah and closed with Cornerstone.

The offering taken, Leonard was invited forward to read Acts 3:1-10 then we moved to a time of prayer and praise.

Beautiful

Just after Pentecost Peter and John were going to the Temple and had come to the gate called Beautiful where they found a man who could not walk, a man who had been lame from birth. A miracle takes place.

Brad pointed out that the miracle is told as an event in history, but notes that the Biblical writers are writing about something bigger. In our modern era people argue about whether such miracles really happened, but the meaning of this story is not about whether miracles happen or not.

First, miracle gives us a basis for hope. This miracle took place at the Temple. The Temple was the place where heaven and earth met. And it took place at the gate called Beautiful. This gate was wonderfully awe-inspiring, a work of art. Right next to this gate is a line of broken people.

Is this the way the world is supposed to work? If God is here is this the way the world is supposed to be? Where is God in all this brokenness?

Then and now, it is the same story. Marriages on the rocks, abused children, alcoholism, self-destructive behaviors... Where are the miracles?

So it was that Peter and John were going into the Temple and this man lame from birth, after an exchange with Peter, began walking, and leaping and praising God. What's significant here is not that he got up and began walking. The language echoes an Old Testament prophesy from Isaiah 35 which states, "Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped, then the lame will leap like a deer and the mute tongue shout for joy." When God comes back to restore the brokenness of this world, Isaiah says, these are the things you will see.

In other words, this man's healing was a sign. It was the fulfillment of Scripture, an affirmation that Jesus was who He said he was and the power of God has been released into the world in a new way.

It should be noted that Jesus' miracles were not like magic tricks designed to wow people. Rather, Jesus was all about healing suffering. The Lord's miracles were used to take broken things and make them right.

Jesus' miracles are about making things the way they were supposed to be. Illness and death and hatred and hunger are unnatural. Jesus's miracles are not a suspension of the natural order; they are a restoration of the natural order.

One day every wrong will be righted, one day every lame person will walk and leap and sing for joy. There will be no more death, there will be no more tears.

The miracle gives us hope and gives us power.

This miracle is similar to one in Mark 2 by Jesus, and another in Acts 14 by Paul. In each there is a person who can't walk. And then there is a healing. And then an explanation.

In each case, the explanation diverts away from the miracle and focuses on sin. In Mark, the story of the man lowered through the roof in which Jesus states, "Your sins are forgiven." Jesus is implying, "You think you need to be able to walk, but what you really need is deeper still and that needs to be addressed."

More than what you are asking for is spiritual healing. In each of these miracles there is a call for repentance that follows. We often think we know what we need, but what we really need is spiritual healing.

Too often what we want is relief from our suffering. But as bad as our suffering is, it is not our biggest problem. What we need is a right ordering of our heart. If you have that relationship with God, you will have the power to overcome whatever you are up against.

Brad went further. These people who did miracles were not just anyone. They were themselves people who were broken that God's life might move through us. It's the way of the cross. As Paul stated, "I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I but Christ lives in me."

In the end, the purpose of life is not to our personal happiness or to achieve pleasure and avoid pain. It is to do the will of God come what may. Brad stated, "I pray for this for our church, for us to take up the cross and serve in His name... to be fishers of men, forgivers of wrongs and the lover of enemies... to care for widow and orphans, visit prisoners and minister to the poor and the hungry and the homeless... This is my hope for our church because I love Christ and you."