Welcome to the Illuminate Church podcast.
We hope today's message is encouraging to you.
We are in a series called Community and we are learning
about special, deep, blessed subjects under Community as new
family. It's amazing to see that God's
preparing for us a new family that we can join and feel like
family. We learn about sit at the table.
I love to sit at the table so we can eat, but it's so good to
have this time and to learn that there is room for me and for you
that God's working on this. I love to have this time with my
family and we can talk and eat and having time to get it so
good. Sit at the table.
We also learn about mission, that we can use God's calling us
to make disciples in our community.
And it was so special. And last Sunday, I need to tell
you, I was a little bit afraid because Pastor Tim came with a
knife and he said don't run, OK? I trust in you, Pastor.
I'll be here. I can see Jesus coming to
receive my life, you know, but he he was teaching us about how
we can do not give up with the challenge that we see in the
community and we can keep going and working and allowing God to
work in our lives. So it's so special.
And I need to to tell you, yes, the calling for community is for
you. The calling for community is for
you. It's easy to think, no, it's not
for for me, but it's for you. The calling for community is for
you. It's from the Lord.
Lord he loves you and he's working on this to restore our
experience with community. And you know, me and my family,
we we start attending Ilum Lake Church in January 2016, ten
years ago and we came from Brazil.
This is the why I have this wonderful accent.
I can't speak here easy Portuguese, but we came from
Brazil because my son was in need of a medical treatment and
we didn't have that in Brazil when we moved to US for that.
And we were trying to have the things done here.
And he see the healing and go back to Brazil.
This one was my goal and we came in 2013 and 2016.
We came to Illuminate Church and I need to share with you I I was
coming to church, but I was missing my community in Brazil.
They speak Portuguese. I was missing my community.
I was missing my friends, I was missing my church.
But I was here. I was at the church and
everything. Wow.
The pastor is amazing, the worship is good, So many good
people, my God, But I was missing my community.
Are you understanding me? I was missing my my friends, my
language, my jokes. I have a lot of jokes in
Portuguese. You cannot imagine.
I love jokes. I'm learning some in English and
I try nobody left so but you know, I love, but I I was
missing. I was missing this.
I want, I am extra an extroverted person.
You know, I like to be in a place and talk with everybody.
You know, I like that. I, I, I talk with people.
My wife says, why are you talking with them?
They are here. But coming to church, I was
waiting. I was enjoying the service,
receiving the message, crying when I when I was understanding
the message. But at the end of the service, I
was looking for my car, you know, So when the service was
finishing, I was like going to the car like this.
And for me, I was like afraid of someone talk with me.
I was, I was missing community, but I was afraid to have
community because it was not my people, was not my language, not
my jokes. And I remember many, many, many
times I was going to my car and someone just came and said, hey,
how was your week? And I didn't understand what
they said. I said, oh thank you, God bless
you. And I was feeling like what a
guy I am, I am not good for them.
And I, I was feeling rejected. Everybody was loving me, my
family, respecting, trying to connect.
But I was like, oh, I cannot even understand what they are
saying when they how was my week?
I was answered, thank you. So one day we were here and one
couple came to me and my wife and they said, oh, we would love
to have a coffee with you this week.
Can we can we have the time this week and have coffee?
And I was like and my wife, my wonderful wife, she said yes,
sure. How can can we have coffee with
them? I can't drink the coffee, but I
cannot talk. Then see that my wife she said
yes and you were crazy. How can we get together and talk
with them? It's going to be so terrible.
It's not work. It's you know, do are you
understand? OK, this is English for me.
So Sita said yes. And the day that we had to met
the couple, I drove to the place and I parked my car close to the
coffee shop. And when I parked my car, I told
Celia, Celia, please send them a message saying, oh, we cannot
today. Let's find another day.
You know the enemy lying and ask you to lie.
OK, so I, I was just obeying the enemy with my pain, with my
shame, with my, I was afraid to be rejected because I could not
understand anything. Not my people.
I was planning to go back to Brazil for my, my community, you
know, So when I said that to see if it just send a message to
them. And when I just finished that,
the couple knocked at the door in the car.
Hey, we're here. Terrible.
Then I said, OK, it's going to be terrible.
Then we went to the coffee shop. We ordered the coffee and we
went to the table. And when we arrived at the
table, Celia, my wonderful wife, she said to them, you know,
please forgive us. I need to ask you to speak
slowly because when you say we cannot understand, so if you
please help us, we don't speak the language so well.
So if you can speak slowly and also forgive us, maybe for sure
we will ask you to repeat 17 times the same word because we
cannot understand. It's hard.
I was feeling like, Oh my God, it's so easy to speak
Portuguese. Then she said that and they said
no, no problem. I believe they said that.
I didn't understand, but they said no, no, no problem, it's
OK. And you know what happened?
We were there at the coffee shopping for three hours sharing
life, laughing. They were laughing more than me
because every word, wrong word you know, but we were laughing,
we cried, we prayed, they go, they gave to us prophetic words.
It was amazing. 3 hours there and I, when I was leaving the
coffee shop with Celia, we just said what just happened, what
just happened here. And I need to tell you that
event just changed me and Celia and launched, launched us to be
open for community, to be open for community.
And it was so important that today we, me and my wife, we are
different just because of the community relationship developed
under God's principles. You, you, you can, you can make
some noise. So this is what God has for you
and for your family. Amen.
So the community under God's principle align our lives and
today the message is essentials for community, essentials for
community. So what essentials means?
So essentials means something absolutely necessary, something
absolutely necessary, indispensable and fundamentally
important. Something absolutely necessary,
indispensable or fundamentally important.
So when we think about community, we need to consider,
we need to find, we need to be open for what is essential.
So the birth of community belongs to God.
So he designed community. He designed that Genesis chapter
2, verse 18. If you need a Bible, please just
raise your hand. The ushers will bless you, you
give you a Bible. Just raise your hand like this.
And it's amazing for you to have the Bible to read your Bible.
Every time you read your Bible, something's going to happen.
It's amazing. It's the word of our God.
Amen. So Genesis chapter 2, verse 18
says the Lord God said it's not good for the man to be alone.
So it's a clear message even in Portuguese.
It's not good for the man to be alone.
It's not good to be alone. So God, sometimes he lead us for
quiet time with him. We go to our bedroom or we go to
a quiet a place alone and he will talk with us, He will teach
us. But His desire is not for us to
have a lifestyle alone. He designed us for community.
He said it's not good to be alone.
So this is His plan for our life.
It's essential to understand everything.
Connect with community. Start with God's plan.
So the plan for community is under, under God's designs.
Amen. Are we together on this in
English? Amen.
So many times the enemy works leading us for isolation and the
plan is just break, just steal what the what God gave to us.
So I know sometimes it's good to learn to, to listen God in a
quiet place or a quiet time, but it's not from the Lord to have a
lifestyle with isolation because of pain because you don't speak
the language or whatever. I I believe you are
understanding what God is trying to tell us.
So community means relationship with people and we have some
cultural belief or common sense that people are not easy.
Have you ever heard that you're like pointing to you the person?
Oh no, no, So people are not easy.
Maybe you heard if there are people there's problem, it's not
in the Bible. We have seen, we have seen
saying this everywhere, learning like a passage on the Bible, but
it's not in the Bible. If there are people there is
problem, It's a lie. Jesus said in Matthew 1820.
He said for where two or three gather in my name, I will be
with them. So the original plan, the
original design is the opposite. The original design is if there
are people, there is God. If there are people, there is
God. It's an opportunity for God to
show up. Can you, can you work with me in
your mind to receive this truth? Can we repeat together?
If there are people, there is God.
One. No, no, no, no, no.
You're you're speaking Portuguese.
I'm trying English. OK.
If there are people, there is God.
OK, 123 Amen. This is what the Bible says he
planned. When 2 gather, when two or three
gather in my name, there is God. So if there are people, there is
God. God's presence is with you
wherever you go. God's presence is with you
wherever you go, John 738 says Whoever believes in me, as the
Scripture has said, look at this, I like this.
Rivers of living water will flow from within them.
Again, whoever believes in me, as a scripture has said, rivers
of living water will flow from them, Rivers of living water,
rivers of living water. So when you, when you meet
people, the plan of God is rivers of living water flowing
from them. Are you not excited river?
This is the plan because when we believe in God, when we receive
Jesus, the Bible is saying reverse river is not like a drop
river. The Bible, the Bible is not me,
the Bible if was me, I was oceans or you know, but rivers
of living water rivers. This was the plan of God.
Rivers of living water flowing you have no control rivers of
living water there's no way for problems to come rivers of
living water. This is the why if there are
people, there's God rivers of living water the problems.
Look at this the problems in a community.
If you are, if you are like these rivers of living, just
believe in God, Rivers of living water will flow from you.
So Can you imagine the problem? The problem is there and the
rivers are coming. What happened with the problems?
It's easy to understand. God wants to invite us for his
community the way He designed that.
Can you say Amen for that rivers of living water?
So because of you, your community, the gathering you are
in will receive rivers of living water.
Amen. So can we imagine we have some D
groups, discipleship groups, They go for some coffee shopping
to to get together. Coffee shops, coffee shop, not
coffee shop. P this is Portuguese.
OK, thank you. So they go to these places
better and they're reading the Bible.
A group of four or five men or women, they're reading the Bible
together and you know what happens?
We have like a lot of testimonies, people were they
are eating, They are not like inspecting the restaurant, you
know, they're eating, which is amazing.
So they're just eating. But we have a group of four or
five guys praying, reading the Bible, sharing and it's common.
It's usual for people come from their tables and say what's
happened here? Rivers of living water, you
know, so there's a calling for community.
I don't know what's happening around, but rivers of living
water. So this is the calling for me
and for you. When you work with your family,
there is God. When you go home today and you
have lunch, there is God. When you go to work tomorrow,
are you working tomorrow? Say yes, please.
OK. But when you meet your
coworkers, there is God. This is the plan.
Maybe you were thinking, oh, tomorrow there is many things to
do. I have problems tomorrow to
solve. I know we have a lot of things
to do. It's amazing.
But the main thing is when you meet people tomorrow at your
job, wherever you go, there is God.
If you enter in a Uber, you know what's Uber?
He's driving, driving at I4, He needs prayer, he needs rivers
and rivers and rivers and rivers.
Are you understanding? So when we enter the Uber,
what's what's going to happen? Is rivers of living water?
Is it you? Is it you who will overflow
rivers of living water? Amen.
This is the calling. So in your family there is God,
in your with your coworkers there is God.
We have places here we call Disney and people can spend like
2 hours waiting for some attraction for 10 seconds.
And when you were two hours there?
Rivers of living water, rivers of living water.
This is the plan, this is the calling for community.
This is essential. You know when you were in the
church, with the church community there is God.
So maybe look at this, maybe we experienced gathering without
God and we saw people like issue, people like problem, but
it's not because of the people. This is because of the lack of
God's presence. Are you with me?
So maybe the lack of God's presence in them or in US.
Have you ever seen someone laughing and you don't know why,
but he's in the room and he's like and everybody's laughing.
They don't know why. This is just a picture that what
could be rivers of living water. So this is essential.
It's essential that we show up with God's presence.
It's essential it will change the community.
So how could we gather without God's presence?
How could we gather without God's presence if we carry his
name, John? Jesus said that in John one
verse 12 and 13. Yet to all who received him, to
those who believe in his name, he gave the right to become
children of God. He gave the right to become
children of God, children born not of natural descent, nor of
human decision or a husband's will, but born of God, born of
God. So no, my last name is Arnezi
because my father is Arnezi. So I am Arnezi because my father
is Arnezi. Actually, my father is Valdemir
Arnezi, so I am Vladimir Arnezi because my father is Vladimir
Arnezi. A lot of creativity in the
family. So Vladimir Arnezi, you know,
But my actual name is Vladimir, Child of God.
When we believe, when we receive and when we believe, we are
child. So how can we show up without
God's presence? Just receive that.
So this is the calling that God's giving for me and for you.
And I, I want to ask you, please, just to introduce
yourself for someone close to you.
So nice to meet you, my name and and you say your name, child of
God. Can we practice this?
Find someone, say nice to meet you.
My name is your name, child of God.
Amen. Just the name, not the weak,
just just the name. OK, so you are children of God
and every gathering, every community that you are in, God
will show up. Amen.
God will show up. So let's receive the true
embrace the calling and our God's name because it's
essential for our communities. It's essential for our
community. So what with that in mind, I
want to share with you 4 essentials things and practical
ways that we that every great community we need, you need.
The first one is health is essential.
Health is essential. Mark Chapter 11 verse 25 says
when and when you stand praying, if you hold anything against
anyone, forgive them so that your Father in heaven may
forgive you your sins. So Jesus was teaching him to
teaching everybody to teaching us today, forgive him.
If you hold anything against anyone, forgive them.
So remember that you are child of God.
So the community depends on our behavior.
Are we together? The community depends on our
behavior. So it's essential for you and
the community you are in to practice, to be open to forgive
others. So to receive health, we need to
give our angryness to God. Forgiving others and give means
give. So all the angryness, all the
pain is forgive. We need to give.
This is what God is saying. This is what Jesus was teaching.
We need to give it that. That thing cannot belong to us
anymore. You know, the person did
something and God said I will take it, give to me.
Don't carry this. So we know when we do not
forgive, it becomes heavy over our shoulders, shoulders so not
healthy and under this anointing.
I I just want to to share with you it's it's a decision.
Maybe you heard that before. It's a decision.
We cannot carry this. We need to give.
You know, English is new for me in in Portuguese, the word
forgive is perdom is is different.
But when I was reading this and talk with some some guys at the
church, the word forgive became so big for me like forgive, I
need to give. I cannot have this for me.
I need to give. I need to give if you, if again,
if you hold anything against anyone, forgive.
Forgive. We need to practice this.
We cannot carry this. It's not healthy for you.
It's not healthy for community. Are we together?
So under this anointing, let's just forgive.
If you are thinking about someone who did something
against you, that is it's in your, it's in your heart, in
your feelings, Just forgive just for can we pray now?
Just close your eyes. If if someone's coming to your
mind, let's give to the Lord. So Lord in Jesus name, you are
here, you are teaching us, it's your word.
It's hard, we feel pain, we feel sometimes unfair with the things
that happened, but we are in your house, we are listening,
your voice, your word, and we want to give to you, we want to
forgive. So Lord, that situation, what's
going to happen belongs to you. We give to you in Jesus name,
Amen. Amen.
The second essential is humility.
Humility is essential. Philippians 2 verse three and
four said do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain
conceit. Heather in humility, value
others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests,
but each of you to the interests of the others.
So what was happening here? Paul was writing a letter to for
the Philippians because they, they, they were under
persecution. And he wrote that saying, hey, a
lot of agitation were happening. A lot of things are, are, are
coming against you. So I'm, I'm giving you
instructions. So in humility, value others
above yourselves. And the word humility comes from
the Latin word humilis. Look at this humilis, which
literally means on the ground, on the ground and what Paul was
saying and he was inviting for a new perspective.
So we can see people with a new perspective from the we'll see
the the complete picture you see from the ground.
So on the ground I will see. So humiliate means a new
perspective and it's essential. It's essential to see people
with the new perspective. So humiliate is essential.
Can you say Amen for that? So a new perspective.
The third one is honor is essential.
Romans 12/10 says be devoted one another in love, honor one
another above, again above yourselves.
So the word honor is connect with the word, the word esteem.
The word esteem, which lead us to care about others, to think
not just to open the door like honoring someone, but to to pay
attention where their souls are, where their feelings are.
Can you imagine this community when we practice essentials,
where their feelings are, when their emotions are So honor
those needs. So have you ever stopped
everything just to pay attention Someone what's happening in our
family and our kids in the place that we work, what's happening
and stop and think what's going on with our friend, with our
neighbor, you know, so honor is essential.
Relationships will be completely different when we just stop and
ask someone, can I pray for you? I, I, I believe my face speaks a
lot and I like it because I don't need to speak English my
face, you know, so but it's easy to see when something is not
good with me because you are you understanding so many
situations. I have people come and say, Hey,
are you OK? Because this is saying I'm not
OK. I love this means a lot.
They're paying attention on my soul.
So owner is connect with steam and this is essential.
Can you imagine this week you're practicing this how it's going
to be the community, how we're going to be the relationship.
The last one is honesty. Honesty is essential.
Ephesians 4 verse 15 says instead speaking the truth in
love, we will grow. Look at this we will grow to
becoming every respect the mature body of him who is the
head that is Christ. So speaking the truth in law.
Pastor Tim talk about this last week a little bit and was so
special and I know it's something this is something not
so easy to speak the true in law.
Maybe we try and we receive something so a lot good
experience, but the Bible is calling us to speak the truth in
love. This ingredient change
everything. Maybe you know people who says
everything, brah, you know, can you feel love, brah, but the
ingredient is speak the truth in love.
This is what God has for me and for you and when and we have
people when practice that when they add love, the language
change the hearts open easily for that.
So when we decide to practice honesty in this way, we open the
door for a mature community for the Bible said that for a mature
community. So for essentials, we talk today
for community, health, humility, honor and honesty.
And before we we finish that message, I just want to reveal
with you something so essential. We need to be a child of God.
Reverse, reverse. This is the plan.
So I want to invite you to pray
with me because the Bible says John 112.
Look at this. Yet to all who did receive him,
to those who believe in his name, you know, next week we
will celebrate what Jesus did for us.
But you know, could be like some history, but the Bible said
Jesus said when I receive there is their history.
Now the history is my I received that reason for for me, Valdemar
Anezi, I received that for me. So we, we can go through next
Sunday. We can go through the, the
history of Jesus going to the cross and resurrecting the third
day. But the Bible says when I
received that this is for for me, for me.
I will go home. I will drive with that history,
I will receive that, and I will believe that He is alive for me.
I can be different today because He did that.
When I receive and I believe, I become a child of God.
Well, I want to pray now and I ask you to pray with me.
Just believing and receiving what Jesus did.
So let's do it together if you can close your eyes.
And I asked everybody to repeat with me.
Jesus, this morning I received what you did for me.
I believe you are alive for me. And today I give my life to you.
I want you walking with me and I decide to walk with you so I
receive you, Jesus as my Savior in Jesus name, Amen.
Amen, Amen. So I just want to give you the
opportunity to say that you did that prayer today for the first
time in your life. So I will count to 3, and I will
ask you to raise your hand after I count to 3 because we have
something for you. This is a special day.
So this is special. I received, and I believe if you
did that prayer for the very first time, I will count to
three. I just want to raise your hand.
Amen, 123, Amen. Amen, Amen.
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, I see your hand over
there. Hallelujah, Hallelujah.
I want to pray, I want to pray. Lord, thank you for this
morning. Thank you for the opportunity to
receive and believe. And I ask you, rivers of living
water coming overflowing for each one here we pray in Jesus
name, Amen. God bless you.
Thanks for joining us today. We hope God is speaking to your
heart through this message. If you'd like to connect with
us, you can text connect to 407-588-0115 or visit Illuminate
dot church. Have a great week.