IN SONG

We started our service with a time of singin.  We were invited to focus our hearts, repent of sin and be again reminded of our assurance in Christ alone.  The songs were (both musically and lyrically) so helpful in doing this heart work.  We sang a new song titled "Shine into our Night" that points out what we often want to hide from - that we have turned away from our Father not just once but many times.  Then the chorus cries out:

Jesus Christ shine into our night
Drive our dark away
‘Til your glory fills our eyes
Jesus Christ shine into our night          
Bind us to Your cross, where we find life

I needed that.  We all needed that.  Thanks to Ben and the musicians for leading us not just in music but in true, gospel-shaped worship.

IN WORD

After we sang I had the privilege of opening the Word of God to Ecclesiastes 3 to consider some challenging thoughts on work.  (You can find the audio here.)  The writer of Ecclesiastes, Qohelet, tells us that the situation here on earth is tough.  He says that:

• in the places where justice and righteousness should be found, we instead find wickedness
• those who have power unfortunately use it to oppress people without power
• the primary motivation for people to work is envy/selfishness  

Those are terrible working conditions and Qohelet understandably sounds hopeless and helpless!

So what is a Christian to do? 

• We must understand that God has designed us to work.    Work is good but it is not ultimate!  It can never satisfy you.  Some become workaholics in order to find happiness.  They think that by achieving or gaining MORE they will fill their longings.  Others quit working in order to find happiness.  They think that being from the burden of work will fill their longings.  Nope.  Work (more or less) won't give you what you most need. (Eccl. 4:4-6)  Are you trying to find true happiness thru work?
• We must understand that God's design for human work is the flourishing of all people.  (Gen. 2:15)  We must use our labor to help people...to take raw materials and rearrange them to produce human flourishing.  A Christian's labor should be driven by human flourishing!  By justice, righteousness, equality, balance and wisdom - not wickedness, oppression and envy (Qohelet's observations).  Does the "work of your hands" result in human flourishing?
• We must understand that the only way we will be able to work like this is if we have hope.  Hope that this can actually be accomplished!  That justice, righteousness and equality can actually win.  However, try as you might you can't do it.  Get as much help as you can, you plus a lot of others still can't do it.  But there is ONE who can!  Jesus Christ is coming back to make all things new and the result will be perfect human flourishing!  He will provide true justice, righteousness and equality!  He started the project 2,000 years ago and ever since his people have longed for this kind of a world.  We should give our lives every day to see it happen...but, at the very same time, we know that only He can actually do it!  (Titus 2:11-3:2)

IN CLOSING

We ended by singing "Before the Throne" (which calls us to see Christ as our perfect Righteousness and to hope in Him alone) and reading Revelation 21:1-7 as our benediction.

"Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son."

BONUS

Then, as icing on the cake, we had the privilege as a church family to gather AGAIN at 6 PM for something completely different but produced from the very same gospel.  Last night was the Morris Adoption Fundraiser.  If you weren't there, I am sorry!  I wish I could communicate the impact of being there...but I can't.  Words aren't good enough.  We laughed, ate, reflected on how the gospel motivates adoption, prayed, gave and played.  The gifts of so many were on display: serving, cooking, decorating, creativity, teaching, encouraging, motivating, generosity and more.  The gym was full, the people were generous, fellowship was sweet and the gospel was clear.  I am thankful that Jack and Connie have invited us all into their journey! 

By the grace of God, may we have thousands of more Sundays like January 29, 2012!

Call to Worship, Confession, Assurance of Pardon

Psalm 55:1,16,17 - "Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not yourself from my plea for mercy! But I call to God, and the LORD will save me. Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and he hears my voice."

Song: Everlasting God by Brenton Brown & Ken Riley

Song: Be Unto Your Name by Lynn DeShazo & Gary Sadler

Song: Beautiful One by Tim Hughes

Song: Jesus, Thank You by Pat Sczebel

Preaching of the Word

This was the second week of our prayer sermon series, and Ben preached from Ephesians 1:3-23.  We sat at Paul's feet as he taught us how to pray: how to ground our prayers in the sovereign purposes of Christ, how to focus our prayers on the ultimate goal of knowing God, and how to cultivate in our prayers a continual cry for increased spiritual sight.  In the end, we realized we don't know our Father God as well as we think we do.  So we run to God through Jesus and cry out, "Father, teach us to pray - we want to know you!"

Closing Song: Be Thou My Vision by Mary Elizabeth Byrne & Eleanor Henrietta Hull

Benediction

"For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith - that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Eph. 3:14-21)"

Call to Worship

The Psalmist declares in Psalm 147: "Praise the LORD! For it is good to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting. The LORD builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the outcasts of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names. Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure.  The LORD lifts up the humble; he casts the wicked to the ground. Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving!" (Psalm 147:1-7a) This is the God that we gather to worship.  And as David reflects on who his God is, his response is to call us to sing to the LORD!  Let's lift our eyes and our hearts and our voices to our great and powerful God…

Song: All Creatures of Our God & King by St. Francis of Assisi

Confession/Repentance

Throughout Scripture, God is repeatedly on record as a God who calls all people to himself, to worship him in humbleness.  And he is also on record on this glorious truth: when people come to him, he delights in showing mercy!  Listen to these words from Scripture: "Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon. (adapted from Isa. 55:7 & Mic. 7:18)"  God promises his pardon to those who will forsake their pride and plead for his mercy. I urge you in these next moments to make such a plea your own as you confess your sin in private prayer to the God who delights to show mercy. (from "Christ-Centered Worship" by Bryan Chapell)

Song: Jesus, I Come by William Sleeper & Greg Thompson

Assurance of Pardon

Let's read together from Hebrews 4:14-16: "Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.  For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need." This is the Word of the Lord.

Song: Rock of Ages by Augustus Toplady & Thomas Hastings

Song: I Will Rise by Chris Tomlin, Louie Giglio, Jesse Reeves, & Matt Maher

Preaching of the Word

This was the first week of our prayer sermon series, and Matt preached from Genesis 1-3.  Working from the simple definition that prayer is talking with God, the case was made that we were created for prayer, but sin severed that intimate relationship with our Creator.  We need prayer, but we lost that ability when sin entered the picture.  Consequently, we long for that ability to communicate with our God, but we're not able to change anything by ourselves - we need someone outside of ourselves.  Matt ended by taking us to Hebrews 4:14-16, which was read earlier, and proclaimed to us the good news that we can pray because of what Christ has done and is doing for us.  Prayer is not a given - it was won for us by Jesus Christ.  Hallelujah!

Closing Song: Before The Throne of God Above by Charitie Lees Bancroft & Vikki Cook

Benediction

"Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!" (Rev. 5:12)

"Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you.  Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap.  For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you."

He also told them a parable: "Can a blind man lead a blind man?  Will they not both fall into a pit?  A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher.  Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?  How can you say to your brother, 'Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,' when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye?  You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother's eye."

Just a few reminders about the application of this passage:

• True biblical discernment actually tells you that there are areas you are not qualified to discern in (matters of the heart - 1 Cor. 4:3-7; matters of conscience - Rom. 14:1-4).
• God's judgment falls to those who dare to judge (vs. 37).
• Jesus' ethic of love calls us to stop judging/condemning people but to go even further…start forgiving and giving to them (vs. 37-38)!
• Ask God to show you YOU!  You don't know what you think you know (vs. 37-38), you can't see as well as you think you can see (vs. 39), you can't do better than your Teacher (vs. 40)…you are self-righteous and you don't even know it (vs. 41-42)!
• Pride blinds, self-righteousness blinds and the result of that blindness is often a judgmental spirit.

You must see that God is the ultimate judge and he has already made His declaration about you at the cross.  No one could ever say anything worse about you than what God said about you on the cross and yet, on that same cross, you see that no one could ever love you more than God does!  He offers a rescue but that rescue is not a self-rescue, it is a rescue from outside of you…Jesus Christ.

And if/when you grasp that, then you are freed from needing to perform or to appear better than others.  You are freed to truly forgive and give instead of judge and condemn.

At the end of Sunday's service we observed the Lord's Table.  What an incredible reminder of the only reason that we are accepted at God's Table.  As we held the juice in our hands I was struck by how crazy it sounded that regardless of my "works", Jesus' work on the cross is the only way that I am accepted by God.  It sounded crazy then, it sounds crazy now - actually, it is the craziest thing I have ever heard…and it is entirely true!

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