1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:03,880 Welcome to the River City Church podcast and a message by our 2 00:00:03,880 --> 00:00:07,960 lead pastor Jason Powers. Our prayer is that this message 3 00:00:07,960 --> 00:00:12,240 would inspire and encourage you, build your faith and point you 4 00:00:12,280 --> 00:00:14,840 to the life changing love of Jesus. 5 00:00:15,400 --> 00:00:18,640 May you enjoy the goodness of God as you follow him today. 6 00:00:18,880 --> 00:00:21,320 We talked a couple weeks ago and we just said like church 7 00:00:21,320 --> 00:00:23,480 membership, especially if you've been around the church for a 8 00:00:23,480 --> 00:00:28,120 while, that can be kind of heavy or or if not heavy, just 9 00:00:28,120 --> 00:00:31,040 nothing, right? Like when I was at growing up to 10 00:00:31,040 --> 00:00:33,160 be a church member, literally all you had to do is get out of 11 00:00:33,160 --> 00:00:35,440 your seat and walk down to the front of the church, right? 12 00:00:35,440 --> 00:00:37,840 My Baptist Church is like shake somebody's hand and the guy 13 00:00:37,840 --> 00:00:38,920 guess. If you had a good. 14 00:00:38,920 --> 00:00:41,200 Handshakey welcome you into the church. 15 00:00:41,200 --> 00:00:43,160 There is a thing called a letter right? 16 00:00:43,160 --> 00:00:45,280 Like I had to get a letter of membership. 17 00:00:45,400 --> 00:00:48,600 My letter is still out there somewhere floating, floating 18 00:00:48,600 --> 00:00:52,280 around, right. And the problem is we choose, we 19 00:00:52,280 --> 00:00:55,440 come to associate that as church. 20 00:00:55,440 --> 00:00:58,000 Membership and So what we. Wanted to do what I wanted to do 21 00:00:58,000 --> 00:01:01,680 is we talked about this was kind of rescue this idea from church 22 00:01:01,680 --> 00:01:05,480 membership rescue it from thinking it's something like a 23 00:01:05,480 --> 00:01:10,440 list somewhere in an office and change that and and kind of 24 00:01:10,440 --> 00:01:14,320 recapture that and define it and describe it as really a vibrant 25 00:01:14,600 --> 00:01:17,120 partnership and what we've done is we've looked at that a couple 26 00:01:17,120 --> 00:01:19,360 different ways we're going to look at it the third way today. 27 00:01:19,520 --> 00:01:23,800 One thing we talked about church membership is as as belonging. 28 00:01:24,120 --> 00:01:25,680 To be a church member is to be belonging. 29 00:01:25,680 --> 00:01:28,480 And the symbol, the illustration that we used to describe that is 30 00:01:28,680 --> 00:01:30,640 baptism. The word baptized literally 31 00:01:30,640 --> 00:01:34,840 means to immerse. And so being a church member, to 32 00:01:34,840 --> 00:01:39,400 be a partner of the church, it's not just to attend, it's not 33 00:01:39,400 --> 00:01:42,400 just showing up to the things that are church things. 34 00:01:42,560 --> 00:01:46,080 It's to be immersed in the life of the congregation. 35 00:01:46,240 --> 00:01:49,840 We use the the illustration of the body and my liver is 36 00:01:49,840 --> 00:01:52,960 committed. It is part of the process. 37 00:01:53,040 --> 00:01:55,360 It doesn't get to sit out. It got doesn't get to take weeks 38 00:01:55,360 --> 00:01:57,280 off. When it starts taking weeks off, 39 00:01:57,440 --> 00:01:59,680 the whole body starts to go septic. 40 00:01:59,800 --> 00:02:02,240 And what we talked about is, and again, we're not just talking 41 00:02:02,240 --> 00:02:05,080 about membership. It's entirely possible and I've 42 00:02:05,080 --> 00:02:09,199 seen it many times to be in the church every time the door doors 43 00:02:09,199 --> 00:02:12,720 are open, but to not have your life reflect that. 44 00:02:13,040 --> 00:02:17,760 So membership is to be immersed in the body and the in what God 45 00:02:17,760 --> 00:02:21,760 is doing around. It's not just belonging, it's 46 00:02:21,760 --> 00:02:25,680 also transformation. As we hang around, as you 47 00:02:25,680 --> 00:02:29,440 immerse yourself in the body, your life will begin to be 48 00:02:29,440 --> 00:02:32,360 transformed as granular as you want to get. 49 00:02:32,680 --> 00:02:35,320 The more we follow Jesus, the longer that we follow him, the 50 00:02:35,320 --> 00:02:38,440 longer that we walk with him. Everything about us should 51 00:02:38,440 --> 00:02:40,560 change. Our desires should change, the 52 00:02:40,560 --> 00:02:44,520 things that we find satisfying should change. 53 00:02:44,640 --> 00:02:48,000 And it's, and the way that we're transformed is by the Holy 54 00:02:48,000 --> 00:02:51,600 Spirit through discipline. And this is kind of a sketchy 55 00:02:51,600 --> 00:02:54,080 and kind of a twitchy, like a relationship, right? 56 00:02:54,240 --> 00:02:58,040 And what I want to say to you is you can't change your heart. 57 00:02:58,720 --> 00:03:00,360 This is where the church often gets in trouble, right? 58 00:03:00,360 --> 00:03:02,280 Like I want to change everybody else's heart, right? 59 00:03:02,280 --> 00:03:05,120 Like somebody does something mean to me or bad or I see it. 60 00:03:05,360 --> 00:03:07,760 And I just went like, like Lord, just get him. 61 00:03:08,080 --> 00:03:10,280 And Lord's like they're not the problem. 62 00:03:10,280 --> 00:03:15,080 You're the problem. I can't even change my heart. 63 00:03:15,760 --> 00:03:18,000 I certainly can't change your heart. 64 00:03:18,800 --> 00:03:21,800 What we saw last week was the. Way that our affections are 65 00:03:21,800 --> 00:03:24,440 transformed, the way that our hearts are changed and 66 00:03:24,440 --> 00:03:26,640 transformed is when we discipline, we just say like, 67 00:03:26,640 --> 00:03:30,800 hey, I'm going to put my body in a place and I'm going to submit 68 00:03:30,800 --> 00:03:32,800 my body to this. And it's not about whether I 69 00:03:32,800 --> 00:03:35,040 want to do it. It's not whether I feel like 70 00:03:35,040 --> 00:03:36,720 doing it. It's like whether it's the thing 71 00:03:36,720 --> 00:03:39,720 that I should do or not. And what we find is when we 72 00:03:39,720 --> 00:03:43,560 begin to put our body, our hands and our feet in a certain place, 73 00:03:43,560 --> 00:03:49,920 what happens is our affections begin to be transformed today. 74 00:03:50,080 --> 00:03:51,480 See. We're going to look at kind of 75 00:03:51,480 --> 00:03:52,800 how all that comes together. See. 76 00:03:52,800 --> 00:03:55,560 Previously like, like belonging. Ultimately, that's up to you. 77 00:03:56,320 --> 00:03:59,520 You get to decide where you immerse your life and you're 78 00:03:59,520 --> 00:04:02,720 already deciding. Some of you immerse your life in 79 00:04:02,720 --> 00:04:06,600 work. Your whole entire life is lived 80 00:04:06,800 --> 00:04:10,480 either going to work, being at work, or waiting for work to 81 00:04:10,480 --> 00:04:12,320 come, and that's a choice that you've made. 82 00:04:12,400 --> 00:04:16,640 Some of you immerse your life in family or in recreation or in 83 00:04:16,640 --> 00:04:20,480 money or in power or whatever it is, but you just say that's the 84 00:04:20,480 --> 00:04:23,520 thing that I give my life to. And that's a decision that you 85 00:04:23,720 --> 00:04:25,400 have made. Some of you have made a 86 00:04:25,400 --> 00:04:27,680 decision. We make decisions how we're 87 00:04:27,680 --> 00:04:31,320 going to discipline our lives, the things that we say yes to 88 00:04:31,440 --> 00:04:33,680 and no to. And ultimately, that's a 89 00:04:33,680 --> 00:04:36,840 decision that that you get to make with God and before God. 90 00:04:36,840 --> 00:04:40,360 But today what we want to look at is what happens when all of 91 00:04:40,360 --> 00:04:45,360 these individual parts come together as you follow Jesus and 92 00:04:45,360 --> 00:04:49,120 I follow Jesus. How do How does our following 93 00:04:49,120 --> 00:04:52,440 Jesus together impact around? US. 94 00:04:53,960 --> 00:04:57,440 And one of the things that that we can identify and acknowledge 95 00:04:57,440 --> 00:05:00,600 is that it's not unusual for churches, and this church is 96 00:05:00,600 --> 00:05:04,400 included in that to do. One of those things, well, maybe 97 00:05:04,400 --> 00:05:09,320 a couple of those things, well, right, like like maybe we do 98 00:05:09,320 --> 00:05:12,640 belonging really well, right, but we're not like going 99 00:05:12,640 --> 00:05:15,120 anywhere. We're like doing anything or 100 00:05:15,120 --> 00:05:18,680 maybe we focus a lot on like the transformation and the 101 00:05:18,680 --> 00:05:21,560 discipline part of it, but we don't like belong to each other. 102 00:05:21,560 --> 00:05:23,920 So we're kind of mean and cranky to each other. 103 00:05:24,040 --> 00:05:28,240 And you've been a part of that. My sense is that when we 104 00:05:28,280 --> 00:05:33,200 misunderstand or when we live and tolerate an imbalance and 105 00:05:33,200 --> 00:05:37,640 all of these things, real hurt and damage can come. 106 00:05:37,760 --> 00:05:41,560 And my guess is some of you, if not many of you, if not most of 107 00:05:41,560 --> 00:05:45,320 you have experienced something like that in the church. 108 00:05:45,520 --> 00:05:47,160 And So what I want to do real quick, like I want to just 109 00:05:47,160 --> 00:05:49,160 describe in a little bit. The first thing I want to know 110 00:05:49,160 --> 00:05:52,440 is I want to tell you and share with you when that comes from my 111 00:05:52,440 --> 00:05:55,040 place, right? When the leadership of the 112 00:05:55,040 --> 00:05:57,520 church does damage. And there are ways that we can 113 00:05:57,520 --> 00:06:01,440 process this, that are that I can get it wrong that cause 114 00:06:01,520 --> 00:06:03,560 damage, right? So one thing that we can do is 115 00:06:03,560 --> 00:06:07,760 we can just say the body is most important over all. 116 00:06:07,840 --> 00:06:11,200 And what happens in here is what happens to everybody and what 117 00:06:11,200 --> 00:06:12,920 happens to that. And you may have been a victim 118 00:06:12,920 --> 00:06:16,960 of this is when we just say we are more important than me. 119 00:06:16,960 --> 00:06:21,280 What can happen is you get burned out and you begin to feel 120 00:06:21,280 --> 00:06:24,120 like a cog in the wheel of a church. 121 00:06:24,400 --> 00:06:27,280 Machine. That's not very fun, is it? 122 00:06:28,560 --> 00:06:32,280 When you start to go, hey, I maybe need to take a week off or 123 00:06:32,280 --> 00:06:35,440 take a break off because like my entire life is falling apart and 124 00:06:35,440 --> 00:06:37,160 nobody ever asks you how you're doing. 125 00:06:37,160 --> 00:06:39,520 Nobody ever says, hey, we value rest. 126 00:06:39,520 --> 00:06:42,280 Nobody says that to you. They just go, well, we get to 127 00:06:42,280 --> 00:06:43,880 get back on the schedule. All right. 128 00:06:46,480 --> 00:06:52,840 I want you to hear me say as much as it depends on me, we 129 00:06:52,840 --> 00:06:59,320 don't do that here. And I want to acknowledge also 130 00:06:59,320 --> 00:07:04,760 one of the thing that presents is because we are committed to 131 00:07:04,760 --> 00:07:09,600 caring for people and because we're committed to not burning 132 00:07:09,600 --> 00:07:12,960 people out, that means that sometimes it means that we won't 133 00:07:13,240 --> 00:07:17,000 rearrange the body in order to to address consumption. 134 00:07:17,000 --> 00:07:21,280 And here's what that means. Sometimes we'll close a 135 00:07:21,280 --> 00:07:25,600 children's ministry classroom rather than ask volunteers to 136 00:07:25,600 --> 00:07:31,440 serve for the 247th week in a row so that they can go to 137 00:07:31,440 --> 00:07:35,600 church and worship as well. Here's and we're right. 138 00:07:35,600 --> 00:07:38,120 Some of you just think Jesus, praise loo you, Jesus, right? 139 00:07:38,120 --> 00:07:41,480 Here's the problem. That's well and good until it's 140 00:07:41,480 --> 00:07:44,200 your two year old that gets locked out of the room. 141 00:07:45,240 --> 00:07:47,600 And trust me, I don't want your two year old in here any more 142 00:07:47,600 --> 00:07:49,480 than you want your two year old in here, right? 143 00:07:49,880 --> 00:07:53,840 I'm just kidding. I love your two year old, but 144 00:07:53,840 --> 00:07:57,800 here's the idea. Too many times the response to 145 00:07:57,800 --> 00:07:59,560 Oh my gosh, why are they closing this room? 146 00:07:59,560 --> 00:08:02,920 Too many times the response is well, I see Miss Janie right 147 00:08:02,920 --> 00:08:04,400 there. I see someone right here and 148 00:08:04,400 --> 00:08:08,640 rather than the response should be Oh my gosh, there is clearly 149 00:08:08,640 --> 00:08:11,640 a need here. How can I? 150 00:08:11,880 --> 00:08:19,320 Help so we don't put the body over the over the individual. 151 00:08:19,320 --> 00:08:22,680 I want you to know we care about you and our job is to help you 152 00:08:22,680 --> 00:08:25,520 find what God has called you to do. 153 00:08:25,640 --> 00:08:28,320 Another abuse that can go when we talk about this thing is 154 00:08:28,320 --> 00:08:31,880 like, it's like the elevation of one person and one gift above 155 00:08:32,039 --> 00:08:33,360 all others. It would be just like, well, 156 00:08:33,520 --> 00:08:36,320 Pastor Jason is the pastor and he's the preacher. 157 00:08:36,320 --> 00:08:38,120 And so whatever he wants must be right. 158 00:08:38,120 --> 00:08:41,039 What I would say to you is This is why our elder board is so 159 00:08:41,039 --> 00:08:44,640 important because it's not just what Jason wants. 160 00:08:44,640 --> 00:08:48,440 And let me tell you, anytime that you elevate one person or 161 00:08:48,440 --> 00:08:52,520 one gift set or one gift mix, and that person is not Jesus 162 00:08:52,520 --> 00:08:55,440 Christ, the Carpenter from Nazareth who is risen and 163 00:08:55,440 --> 00:08:59,200 raining at the right hand of God, Anytime one person starts 164 00:08:59,200 --> 00:09:02,560 to elevate that place, people start to get abused. 165 00:09:03,000 --> 00:09:06,800 It happens all the time when you hear about pastors going off the 166 00:09:06,800 --> 00:09:09,520 rail and doing these abusive things, when you've experienced 167 00:09:09,520 --> 00:09:13,040 it, and not just pastors, youth pastors or small group leaders, 168 00:09:13,120 --> 00:09:16,360 when it becomes about their gift, their personality, they're 169 00:09:16,360 --> 00:09:18,800 annoying. You start to say really wild and 170 00:09:18,800 --> 00:09:22,600 crazy things, like we don't touch the Lord's anointed. 171 00:09:24,600 --> 00:09:27,440 Folks, I'm submitted to a group of elders and if I start being 172 00:09:27,440 --> 00:09:31,480 abusive or crazy or arrogant, it's time for me to get fixed. 173 00:09:32,840 --> 00:09:35,080 And if I'm submitted to that, what we ask is that you would 174 00:09:35,080 --> 00:09:39,200 submit to that as well, that you would allow people in your life 175 00:09:39,200 --> 00:09:41,840 who are, who are spiritually mature, who are wise, who would 176 00:09:41,840 --> 00:09:46,120 just say, hey, I think maybe God has more for you because we're 177 00:09:46,120 --> 00:09:48,400 not committed to abuse. And so I do know that leadership 178 00:09:48,400 --> 00:09:51,040 structures on the church can cause problems, right? 179 00:09:51,040 --> 00:09:54,720 We elevate one person or one gift or we minimize you and you 180 00:09:54,720 --> 00:09:57,040 just become a part of this thing. 181 00:09:57,040 --> 00:09:58,320 That's that, you know, that's all of that. 182 00:09:59,000 --> 00:10:02,160 But I also want to say part of it is on you as well, not you 183 00:10:02,160 --> 00:10:03,640 specifically. Most of them were in first 184 00:10:03,640 --> 00:10:05,120 service. You, you guys are looking 185 00:10:05,120 --> 00:10:06,800 around. You guys are are are good, 186 00:10:06,800 --> 00:10:10,800 right? But there can be a sense in the 187 00:10:10,800 --> 00:10:13,600 church with believers are just like as, as and as much as we 188 00:10:13,600 --> 00:10:16,040 have rightly talked about spiritual gifts, right? 189 00:10:16,160 --> 00:10:19,720 There can be this kind of gift protectiveness, right? 190 00:10:19,720 --> 00:10:22,120 Like where we walk around, we walk around the church and we 191 00:10:22,120 --> 00:10:23,320 see a need and they're responsible. 192 00:10:23,320 --> 00:10:26,560 That's just not my gift. Well, I don't, I don't, I don't 193 00:10:26,560 --> 00:10:29,080 have that gift and listen, so I have teenagers and every once in 194 00:10:29,080 --> 00:10:31,880 a while in my house, a teenager rarely, I'm sure this like 195 00:10:31,880 --> 00:10:35,680 rarely, though, they'll like leave a dish out sometimes and 196 00:10:35,680 --> 00:10:38,200 just forget to do it right. And my response is always like, 197 00:10:38,360 --> 00:10:40,800 if you don't want to clean your dish, why do you think I want to 198 00:10:40,800 --> 00:10:44,040 clean your dish, right. And so sometimes we've now who 199 00:10:44,040 --> 00:10:45,400 does it. Right. 200 00:10:45,400 --> 00:10:49,560 Like we do it because it's important for the household to 201 00:10:49,560 --> 00:10:52,880 run. And so sometimes we just go, oh, 202 00:10:52,880 --> 00:10:56,040 well, I see that need, but I can't meet that need, right? 203 00:10:56,120 --> 00:10:59,040 I'll serve where I can, but I, I really don't want to serve in 204 00:10:59,040 --> 00:11:01,560 that place because I can't really shine in that place. 205 00:11:01,560 --> 00:11:05,160 And they're going to ask me to do it often, more often than I 206 00:11:05,160 --> 00:11:06,680 want to. Or they're going to put me on a 207 00:11:06,680 --> 00:11:07,920 schedule. And I don't really want to 208 00:11:07,920 --> 00:11:11,440 submit my schedule because what if something comes up? 209 00:11:11,440 --> 00:11:13,320 Or what if it's uncomfortable for me? 210 00:11:13,320 --> 00:11:16,160 And what if they asked me to do something that makes me feel? 211 00:11:16,160 --> 00:11:19,280 Weird or unusual or uncomfortable, right? 212 00:11:19,280 --> 00:11:21,480 And So what happens is we have this dance, right? 213 00:11:21,680 --> 00:11:24,280 And again, like this is one of those chicken or egg things, 214 00:11:24,280 --> 00:11:26,160 right? Like you have maybe some leaders 215 00:11:26,240 --> 00:11:28,720 who asked too much of you. And so you get gun shy and you 216 00:11:28,720 --> 00:11:30,560 say, well, I'll never do that again. 217 00:11:30,560 --> 00:11:33,240 And so we get very kind of particular about where where we 218 00:11:33,240 --> 00:11:34,960 are. And So what happens then is the 219 00:11:34,960 --> 00:11:40,960 church gets lopsided, it gets imbalanced and damage can start 220 00:11:40,960 --> 00:11:43,280 to do damage can start to happen. 221 00:11:43,280 --> 00:11:46,000 And what I want to say is the church isn't supposed to be like 222 00:11:46,000 --> 00:11:49,160 this. That's not how it's supposed to 223 00:11:49,160 --> 00:11:53,360 look, but often it is. And what I want to submit to you 224 00:11:53,360 --> 00:11:56,760 is that Paul, the apostle Paul in the letter to the Ephesians, 225 00:11:56,760 --> 00:11:59,760 what Tony read today invites us into a different way. 226 00:12:00,440 --> 00:12:02,200 And the way that Paul describes, I'm just going to give you kind 227 00:12:02,200 --> 00:12:04,400 of the big idea and we're going to unpack it a little bit, 228 00:12:04,400 --> 00:12:05,560 right? The big idea is this. 229 00:12:05,800 --> 00:12:10,120 The body of Christ is best when every part does its part. 230 00:12:11,480 --> 00:12:15,480 Every part does its part, right? The engine in my car has lots of 231 00:12:15,480 --> 00:12:20,240 parts and relatively speaking, they all usually work and do and 232 00:12:20,240 --> 00:12:23,480 do their part and when they don't, something goes terribly 233 00:12:23,480 --> 00:12:26,160 wrong. There are no small parts in your 234 00:12:26,160 --> 00:12:28,880 body. Hang your pinky toe on a door 235 00:12:28,880 --> 00:12:31,480 jamb ruins the rest of your day, right? 236 00:12:31,720 --> 00:12:35,200 Your liver gets sick, your whole body begins to shut down. 237 00:12:35,320 --> 00:12:36,680 So what does Paul say? Right. 238 00:12:37,000 --> 00:12:39,560 So Paul says in Ephesians chapter 4, starting in verse 7. 239 00:12:39,720 --> 00:12:41,880 Now grace was given to each one. I'm going to stop. 240 00:12:41,920 --> 00:12:44,880 You're like if you stop every 4 words we'll never get through 241 00:12:44,880 --> 00:12:48,280 the thing. But I want to acknowledge and 242 00:12:48,280 --> 00:12:50,600 pull up front what we're talking about, what we're about to 243 00:12:50,600 --> 00:12:54,360 unpack and uncover, is grace. Grace. 244 00:12:55,160 --> 00:12:57,560 Now, you've probably heard of grace talking about as the free 245 00:12:57,560 --> 00:12:59,760 gift of forgiveness for your sins. 246 00:12:59,760 --> 00:13:01,600 And it is that. But what I want to say, I want 247 00:13:01,600 --> 00:13:04,840 to hold up is Paul's not talking about specifically the gift of 248 00:13:04,880 --> 00:13:08,400 salvation right now in this. It is a manner of our salvation. 249 00:13:08,400 --> 00:13:10,800 It is a form, it is an outworking, it is an overflow. 250 00:13:10,800 --> 00:13:12,520 It is the fruit of our salvation. 251 00:13:12,640 --> 00:13:17,040 But he's not talking about that initial gift of forgiveness that 252 00:13:17,040 --> 00:13:20,840 changes us, that moves us from the Kingdom of darkness into the 253 00:13:20,840 --> 00:13:22,600 Kingdom of light. He's talking about something 254 00:13:22,600 --> 00:13:24,160 else. But it's grace. 255 00:13:24,240 --> 00:13:27,280 And what I want to hold on to is when we get this wrong, when we 256 00:13:27,280 --> 00:13:30,600 get the whole way that we all work together wrong, what we're 257 00:13:30,600 --> 00:13:34,120 missing is grace. And when we do the hard, 258 00:13:34,320 --> 00:13:37,960 difficult sacrificial work of getting in line with all this, 259 00:13:38,080 --> 00:13:40,920 sure, it's costly. Sure, it takes something from 260 00:13:40,920 --> 00:13:43,800 us. But the result not only will be 261 00:13:43,800 --> 00:13:45,800 grace, but it'll. Feel like grace? 262 00:13:46,040 --> 00:13:49,720 Grace, and we'll experience it as grace. 263 00:13:49,800 --> 00:13:53,680 So he says grace was given to each one of us according to the 264 00:13:53,680 --> 00:13:56,800 measure of Christ's gift. So here's the thing. 265 00:13:56,920 --> 00:14:03,440 If you're following Jesus, grace has been given to you, stop to 266 00:14:03,440 --> 00:14:09,080 you. Grace has been given, and what 267 00:14:09,080 --> 00:14:11,800 we're told is it's given according to the measure of 268 00:14:11,800 --> 00:14:13,840 Christ's fullness. And so listen, there's some 269 00:14:13,840 --> 00:14:16,280 people that you know. And you know, if they invite you 270 00:14:16,280 --> 00:14:18,280 to dinner, you better eat something before because they 271 00:14:18,280 --> 00:14:20,600 have skimpy portions, right? Because they're stingy. 272 00:14:20,680 --> 00:14:22,880 And you just know, right? Like I'm not getting a second 273 00:14:22,880 --> 00:14:25,080 Taco and there are other people at your. 274 00:14:25,080 --> 00:14:27,480 House that that you when they invite. 275 00:14:27,480 --> 00:14:31,200 You. It is so decadent that it's like 276 00:14:31,200 --> 00:14:34,320 borderline sinful, right? And you're just like, I want to 277 00:14:34,320 --> 00:14:37,400 go to that house because I will be so full all the time. 278 00:14:37,480 --> 00:14:40,200 Some people are wired like that. What I want to tell you is 279 00:14:40,600 --> 00:14:43,280 Jesus's table. It is always a feast. 280 00:14:43,480 --> 00:14:45,680 There is more than you could possibly consume. 281 00:14:45,760 --> 00:14:49,120 There's more grace than you could ever experience or taste. 282 00:14:49,200 --> 00:14:53,040 You will have new flavors and shades and nuance of grace every 283 00:14:53,040 --> 00:14:55,680 moment of every day that you live and that you walk with him. 284 00:14:55,880 --> 00:14:58,920 Christ is not skimpy. He is not stingy. 285 00:14:59,000 --> 00:15:02,760 He does not withhold, and that is the measure of grace that He 286 00:15:02,760 --> 00:15:04,640 gives to you. Wouldn't. 287 00:15:06,040 --> 00:15:10,840 It be awesome to walk in that, to know that, to experience 288 00:15:10,920 --> 00:15:13,120 that. So he says a measure of grace 289 00:15:13,120 --> 00:15:15,240 has been given to each one. For it says when he ascended on 290 00:15:15,240 --> 00:15:17,960 high, he took the cactus captive, he gave gifts to 291 00:15:17,960 --> 00:15:19,640 people. So this is a picture of an 292 00:15:19,640 --> 00:15:22,920 ancient kingdoms, right? When a conquering king would go 293 00:15:22,920 --> 00:15:25,880 conquer another Kingdom, he would bring their prisoners of 294 00:15:25,880 --> 00:15:28,760 war, he would bring all their soldiers, and he would March 295 00:15:28,760 --> 00:15:32,040 them through town as an example, as a spectacle. 296 00:15:32,200 --> 00:15:36,000 Look how much mightier we are than they are. 297 00:15:36,040 --> 00:15:39,360 And this victorious king would take all the plunder and all the 298 00:15:39,360 --> 00:15:42,840 spoils of war and he would distribute it to the citizens as 299 00:15:42,840 --> 00:15:46,240 an example and an evidence of his kindness and his goodness. 300 00:15:46,280 --> 00:15:50,520 And what we're told is that's what Jesus does for his people. 301 00:15:50,640 --> 00:15:53,160 That's what Jesus does for his followers. 302 00:15:53,280 --> 00:15:59,680 He gives them grace, abundant grace and it's and their gifts, 303 00:15:59,720 --> 00:16:03,360 they are purely spiritual gifts of grace. 304 00:16:03,360 --> 00:16:06,080 And So what I want to say is when Jesus asks you to follow 305 00:16:06,080 --> 00:16:08,240 him, when I stand here and say, listen, I want you to follow 306 00:16:08,240 --> 00:16:09,280 him. I want you to give your whole 307 00:16:09,280 --> 00:16:10,880 life to him. I want you to organize your 308 00:16:10,880 --> 00:16:13,360 relationships around him. I want you to organize your 309 00:16:13,360 --> 00:16:14,960 finances around him, your free time. 310 00:16:15,160 --> 00:16:18,240 I'm not asking you to do something that is a drag, even 311 00:16:18,240 --> 00:16:20,160 though it may hurt and be costly at first. 312 00:16:20,240 --> 00:16:24,680 I'm asking you to and inviting you to align your lives around 313 00:16:24,840 --> 00:16:27,680 grace. And something happens in this 314 00:16:27,680 --> 00:16:31,880 place when. We gather as a people of grace. 315 00:16:32,040 --> 00:16:34,200 That's why our mission is what it is. 316 00:16:34,880 --> 00:16:37,720 We talked about membership, about participation in this body 317 00:16:37,720 --> 00:16:41,760 and our mission as His body is we are a church for New 318 00:16:41,760 --> 00:16:43,440 Braunfels. You see right out of the front. 319 00:16:43,440 --> 00:16:47,120 We don't exist for ourselves. Our job isn't. 320 00:16:47,200 --> 00:16:50,480 Here to be the biggest or the best or the flashiest or the 321 00:16:50,480 --> 00:16:54,080 most well known. Our responsibility and our 322 00:16:54,080 --> 00:16:58,600 mission is to be for New Braunfels to be so much so that 323 00:16:58,600 --> 00:17:01,680 if River City were for some reason wiped out of New 324 00:17:01,680 --> 00:17:04,040 Braunfels that no longer hear that there would be outcry in 325 00:17:04,040 --> 00:17:05,240 the streets. Who's going to? 326 00:17:05,440 --> 00:17:08,960 Feed all the people. Who's going to take care of all 327 00:17:10,040 --> 00:17:12,280 the foster kids if River City is gone? 328 00:17:12,280 --> 00:17:14,960 If God's people of his church is gone? 329 00:17:15,160 --> 00:17:17,240 River City is a church for New Braunfels. 330 00:17:17,240 --> 00:17:21,119 And here's how we're for New Braunfels, by authentically 331 00:17:21,160 --> 00:17:26,160 experiencing and expressing God's love in our lives and our 332 00:17:26,160 --> 00:17:29,280 community. The way that we are for New 333 00:17:29,280 --> 00:17:34,480 Braunfels is by experiencing and then expressing God's love. 334 00:17:34,640 --> 00:17:37,880 And it has to happen in that order, and it has to happen that 335 00:17:37,880 --> 00:17:39,280 way. A couple weeks ago, we got up 336 00:17:39,280 --> 00:17:42,680 and we told you about our outreach to provide shoes for 337 00:17:42,680 --> 00:17:44,440 foster kids, right? You remember that? 338 00:17:45,640 --> 00:17:48,760 The reason that we give shoes to foster kids is because the 339 00:17:48,760 --> 00:17:51,640 reason I, my family bought a pair of shoes for foster kids. 340 00:17:51,760 --> 00:17:55,360 It is our way of saying the Lord has been so faithful and 341 00:17:55,360 --> 00:17:58,720 abundant to me. I am now able to get now I got 342 00:17:58,720 --> 00:18:03,120 kids at home and they need, they need man, right? 343 00:18:03,320 --> 00:18:06,480 And so, but what we have decided was we believe that our God is 344 00:18:06,480 --> 00:18:08,760 abundant. And so as much as we love to 345 00:18:08,760 --> 00:18:12,360 give to our kids, right, we give to others because we have 346 00:18:12,360 --> 00:18:15,480 received His abundance, the grace that He has given us. 347 00:18:15,640 --> 00:18:18,800 We give away the reason. We pray at the end. 348 00:18:18,800 --> 00:18:20,160 Of the service, we're going to have people to pray. 349 00:18:20,160 --> 00:18:21,400 I see Mitch and Marshall right over there. 350 00:18:21,400 --> 00:18:24,360 They love to pray, right? Do you know why we pray for you? 351 00:18:24,960 --> 00:18:27,640 Because we've experienced answers to prayer and we believe 352 00:18:27,640 --> 00:18:31,320 that it's real. The grace that we have received, 353 00:18:31,560 --> 00:18:35,000 we give. The reason that we volunteer 354 00:18:35,000 --> 00:18:38,640 here is because this church has made an impact on our lives. 355 00:18:39,400 --> 00:18:42,720 The reason my kids follow Jesus isn't because Dad's so awesome. 356 00:18:42,720 --> 00:18:46,240 I'm just dad to them. You have not met a more clueless 357 00:18:46,240 --> 00:18:48,080 person in my home than me, right? 358 00:18:48,080 --> 00:18:49,520 According to my kids, And that's fine. 359 00:18:49,520 --> 00:18:51,320 You know why my kids follow Jesus? 360 00:18:51,920 --> 00:18:54,000 Because they've watched you follow Jesus. 361 00:18:55,480 --> 00:18:58,360 They believe the church works because they have seen the 362 00:18:58,360 --> 00:19:00,760 church work. That's what sets this place 363 00:19:00,760 --> 00:19:03,800 apart from Costco. I walk into Costco and I walk 364 00:19:03,800 --> 00:19:06,920 through the doors. And this is all the bounty that 365 00:19:06,920 --> 00:19:09,080 America has to offer for my consumption. 366 00:19:09,160 --> 00:19:12,920 I get to choose what do I want? What brand of battery do I want 367 00:19:12,920 --> 00:19:15,880 today? Let me decide, honey, right? 368 00:19:16,320 --> 00:19:18,760 Do we want tacos tonight or shellfish? 369 00:19:18,760 --> 00:19:24,080 It's all there and we approach church. 370 00:19:24,160 --> 00:19:27,520 That way. I've given my hour this. 371 00:19:27,520 --> 00:19:30,440 Week. Please me with the musical. 372 00:19:30,440 --> 00:19:37,240 Offering right, I get it. The difference is instead, as 373 00:19:37,240 --> 00:19:41,040 the body of Christ, we take care of the of each other. 374 00:19:41,320 --> 00:19:44,960 When my head hurts, my hand puts the medicine in my mouth and my 375 00:19:44,960 --> 00:19:48,880 stomach digests it so that my headache will go away. 376 00:19:48,880 --> 00:19:52,720 And what I'm inviting us to do in membership is to move from 377 00:19:52,720 --> 00:19:54,080 being. There's a difference between an 378 00:19:54,080 --> 00:19:57,240 owner and an employee, right? Some of you are business owners. 379 00:19:57,320 --> 00:19:59,800 When we were starting this church and we were about to do 380 00:19:59,800 --> 00:20:02,120 it on our own, somebody said the great thing about being your own 381 00:20:02,120 --> 00:20:03,920 boss, the great thing about being a small business owner is 382 00:20:03,920 --> 00:20:06,240 you get to work whatever 18 hours a day you want. 383 00:20:06,600 --> 00:20:09,240 To work, right? Like, because like, who else is 384 00:20:09,240 --> 00:20:11,120 going to do it? But when I'm an employee, I'm 385 00:20:11,120 --> 00:20:14,720 just like, peace out. It is 5:00 and I'm done for this 386 00:20:14,720 --> 00:20:17,800 today, right? So the invitation when we are 387 00:20:17,800 --> 00:20:20,680 immersed is not to show up shopping for a religious 388 00:20:20,680 --> 00:20:26,720 experience, but to own the ministry that happens here. 389 00:20:27,600 --> 00:20:32,360 And what I would say is I can't own that for you and you can't 390 00:20:32,600 --> 00:20:36,760 own that for me. But that whole idea of gifts and 391 00:20:36,760 --> 00:20:40,640 grace and in distributing his word, See, that's right. 392 00:20:40,640 --> 00:20:43,240 We believe that God wants grace for the whole world. 393 00:20:43,240 --> 00:20:45,640 You know how God gives grace to the world? 394 00:20:46,440 --> 00:20:51,600 He gives it to you and tells you to go and Genesis, right? 395 00:20:51,600 --> 00:20:53,200 What did he tell? Abraham said I'm going to bless 396 00:20:53,200 --> 00:20:54,760 you. I'm going to make you a 397 00:20:54,760 --> 00:20:57,160 blessing. So many times I'm just like, oh, 398 00:20:57,160 --> 00:20:58,280 I've got grace. That's for me. 399 00:20:58,280 --> 00:21:00,080 Now I'm resting and I'm going to sit and I'm going to like, once 400 00:21:00,080 --> 00:21:01,920 this grace is gone, then I'll go look for more grace. 401 00:21:02,040 --> 00:21:05,480 But the point of grace is to take it and to multiply it, and 402 00:21:05,480 --> 00:21:10,280 to expand it so that wherever you go, grace is there. 403 00:21:10,400 --> 00:21:13,800 That's why we make such a big deal out of Back to School 404 00:21:13,800 --> 00:21:18,160 Sunday from wherever you may come and whatever you may 405 00:21:18,160 --> 00:21:21,880 believe about the schools and the country or the state or the 406 00:21:21,880 --> 00:21:25,960 city or the world or whatever, if you're a follower of Jesus, 407 00:21:25,960 --> 00:21:28,640 you're sending a grace ball there. 408 00:21:30,320 --> 00:21:32,280 Remind them that they are grace balls. 409 00:21:32,280 --> 00:21:36,120 They're not adjutants. They they like, they go in the 410 00:21:36,120 --> 00:21:41,000 name of Jesus with grace and gifts for them. 411 00:21:41,280 --> 00:21:43,960 So that's the interpretive key to understanding the grace that 412 00:21:43,960 --> 00:21:47,400 Jesus gives his church. It's this spiritual gifts are 413 00:21:47,720 --> 00:21:52,880 for you to offer the body, not to keep for yourself. 414 00:21:54,040 --> 00:21:56,800 God has given you grace. And there's more grace 415 00:21:56,800 --> 00:21:59,920 surrounding your life than you can fathom or consume. 416 00:22:00,040 --> 00:22:03,880 And the way to experience it is to begin giving it away. 417 00:22:04,080 --> 00:22:07,280 And the more that you practice giving it away, the more aware 418 00:22:07,280 --> 00:22:09,640 of it you are. The more you begin to experience 419 00:22:09,640 --> 00:22:13,400 it, the more you become, the more likely you are to live a 420 00:22:13,400 --> 00:22:16,560 life marked by grace. And Paul describes it this way, 421 00:22:16,560 --> 00:22:19,200 verse 11. He himself gave some to be 422 00:22:19,200 --> 00:22:23,560 apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and 423 00:22:23,560 --> 00:22:27,760 teachers to equip the Saints for the work of ministry to build up 424 00:22:27,760 --> 00:22:30,640 the body of Christ. Now we see this list and we 425 00:22:30,640 --> 00:22:32,240 think like, oh, these are spiritual gifts. 426 00:22:32,360 --> 00:22:37,000 These are not spiritual gifts. There is not the spiritual gift 427 00:22:37,000 --> 00:22:39,520 of apostle. There is not the spiritual gift 428 00:22:39,720 --> 00:22:42,640 of prophet. These are roles. 429 00:22:42,800 --> 00:22:45,800 These are offices played not with a title. 430 00:22:45,880 --> 00:22:48,000 Not so that I can get it on my name tag. 431 00:22:48,240 --> 00:22:50,680 Right? So he said he gave some to be 432 00:22:50,680 --> 00:22:52,920 apostles. The apostles are starters. 433 00:22:53,320 --> 00:22:54,880 They're the ones that are The Pioneers. 434 00:22:54,920 --> 00:22:56,720 They are the ones who begin and listen. 435 00:22:56,720 --> 00:22:58,600 It happens all the time. People will come to me and 436 00:22:58,600 --> 00:23:00,720 they'll just be like, hey, there's not a small group in my 437 00:23:00,720 --> 00:23:02,800 house. Can I like get people together? 438 00:23:02,880 --> 00:23:05,920 You know what? You, my friend, are being an 439 00:23:05,920 --> 00:23:09,640 apostle into your neighborhood. You are taking the message and 440 00:23:09,640 --> 00:23:13,080 the mission and the ministry of Jesus into the place where you 441 00:23:13,080 --> 00:23:16,680 are in the same way that Paul took it all around the world. 442 00:23:16,760 --> 00:23:21,320 You take as an apostle, you take it where you go. 443 00:23:21,560 --> 00:23:24,040 The prophets. Prophets are not. 444 00:23:24,040 --> 00:23:26,360 Fortune tellers. They are not future seers. 445 00:23:26,360 --> 00:23:30,320 They are the ones who see and declare God's Word and His 446 00:23:30,320 --> 00:23:32,760 purpose and His mission in this world. 447 00:23:32,760 --> 00:23:37,000 It is often wrapped up in messages like Justice. 448 00:23:37,520 --> 00:23:42,240 Like like on in this apostle, prophet, evangelist, shepherd, 449 00:23:42,240 --> 00:23:45,200 teacher kind of framework. This is the place that I walk in 450 00:23:45,280 --> 00:23:47,720 the prophetic. But listen, so I walk in the 451 00:23:47,720 --> 00:23:49,920 prophetic, right? So that's when I get loud. 452 00:23:49,960 --> 00:23:53,200 That's what that is, right? But listen, my gift, my 453 00:23:53,200 --> 00:23:56,880 spiritual gift is encouragement. So what I'm going to tell you 454 00:23:56,880 --> 00:23:59,120 when I'm going to look at you and then just go like, hey, 455 00:23:59,680 --> 00:24:03,640 you've got too much to offer to sit on your Duff like you're 456 00:24:03,640 --> 00:24:07,160 doing. It's no problem for me to be 457 00:24:07,160 --> 00:24:09,840 like you should care about this more than you do. 458 00:24:10,680 --> 00:24:13,200 You should be involved in this more than you do. 459 00:24:13,280 --> 00:24:15,600 But you know when I say that to you, do you know why I say it to 460 00:24:15,600 --> 00:24:16,400 you? It's because I. 461 00:24:16,400 --> 00:24:20,120 Actually think you're capable of more than you do you think 462 00:24:20,120 --> 00:24:24,920 you're just a guy or a lady with a mortgage and a headache and 463 00:24:24,920 --> 00:24:29,240 kids and a broken husband. And I'm here to tell you, you 464 00:24:29,520 --> 00:24:35,600 that resonated with someone. I don't want to know who, right? 465 00:24:35,600 --> 00:24:38,480 I don't. You can come talk to me 466 00:24:38,480 --> 00:24:46,380 afterwards, all right? Deeply loved. 467 00:24:46,900 --> 00:24:49,820 We are badly broken and deeply loved indeed. 468 00:24:51,760 --> 00:24:54,240 So you see, so the idea is like I have a gift and my gift 469 00:24:54,240 --> 00:24:58,080 enables me to walk out this office that that that I play 470 00:24:58,080 --> 00:24:59,840 here. When I stand here and I preach 471 00:24:59,840 --> 00:25:02,400 and I preach with the thing, it's like it's like it's not all 472 00:25:02,400 --> 00:25:05,120 of it and it takes all of us. And I look at so I think about 473 00:25:05,560 --> 00:25:07,920 Alyssa our. Our sweet little worship leader, 474 00:25:07,920 --> 00:25:09,440 right? And she loves it when I call her 475 00:25:09,440 --> 00:25:12,600 that, right? When Alyssa leads worship, she 476 00:25:12,600 --> 00:25:15,200 leads as an evangelist. When you listen to Alyssa, what 477 00:25:15,200 --> 00:25:17,800 does Alyssa say? She says things like taste and 478 00:25:17,800 --> 00:25:20,360 see that the Lord is good. There's this inviting tone. 479 00:25:20,440 --> 00:25:22,800 She is a worship leader, but she leads. 480 00:25:22,880 --> 00:25:24,560 She leads in this evangelistic role. 481 00:25:24,640 --> 00:25:26,600 My wife Natalie will often lead worship. 482 00:25:26,800 --> 00:25:30,400 Natalie leads prophetically. Alyssa will read a Psalm and 483 00:25:30,400 --> 00:25:33,600 she's the 23rd Psalm and she's like, oh, taste and see that the 484 00:25:33,600 --> 00:25:36,160 Lord is good and she's right and it's true. 485 00:25:36,200 --> 00:25:38,360 My wife will get up and she'll go put your hands up. 486 00:25:40,840 --> 00:25:42,600 Yeah, right. Yes, ma'am. 487 00:25:42,600 --> 00:25:44,400 Right. And guess what? 488 00:25:45,160 --> 00:25:48,880 She's true too. It takes both. 489 00:25:49,960 --> 00:25:55,120 But the problem is we have elevated this aspect in the 490 00:25:55,120 --> 00:25:57,560 church. What I do, the prophetic, the 491 00:25:57,560 --> 00:26:00,360 teaching part, Right. But the problem is if we don't 492 00:26:00,360 --> 00:26:02,560 have all, we are in balance. If we have. 493 00:26:02,560 --> 00:26:05,120 Shepherds without, without profits. 494 00:26:05,360 --> 00:26:08,480 Like if we have what we have, then it's like holy huddles and 495 00:26:08,480 --> 00:26:12,960 it's nice for a minute, but it doesn't change anything. 496 00:26:12,960 --> 00:26:15,360 It doesn't do anything. It feels good for now because 497 00:26:15,360 --> 00:26:18,160 nobody ever challenges me or takes except for me. 498 00:26:18,240 --> 00:26:21,360 But if we have profits without shepherds, we have people 499 00:26:21,360 --> 00:26:24,760 crushed under the weight of an example that they can never live 500 00:26:24,760 --> 00:26:27,240 up. To it takes both. 501 00:26:27,240 --> 00:26:30,920 If we have evangelists without teachers, we have shallow 502 00:26:30,920 --> 00:26:36,440 crowds. Wide is the day, but shallow, 503 00:26:36,600 --> 00:26:38,920 nothing substantial. On the other hand, if we have 504 00:26:38,920 --> 00:26:42,880 teachers without shepherds, without evangelists, we become 505 00:26:43,000 --> 00:26:46,600 small and insulated. We get legalistic. 506 00:26:46,760 --> 00:26:49,920 We begin to believe that we are morally superior because we have 507 00:26:50,160 --> 00:26:53,120 truth. For every shepherd, we need a 508 00:26:53,120 --> 00:26:58,600 prophet and an evangelist and an apostle and a teacher because 509 00:26:58,600 --> 00:27:01,320 there's no gift of guest services. 510 00:27:01,920 --> 00:27:05,040 There's no spiritual gift of holding open the door. 511 00:27:05,320 --> 00:27:08,640 But my guess is you smiled when somebody greeted you today. 512 00:27:09,280 --> 00:27:12,000 The thing about this is like you come in and I and I, some of you 513 00:27:12,000 --> 00:27:13,600 are, you're so kind of me and you talk about this. 514 00:27:13,600 --> 00:27:17,320 But listen, before you ever hear me preach a word, you have 515 00:27:17,320 --> 00:27:21,600 encountered the body of Christ as you engage in our parking 516 00:27:21,600 --> 00:27:25,080 situation. Maybe you rode on the golf cart 517 00:27:25,080 --> 00:27:27,720 with Bob. You're experiencing the body of 518 00:27:27,720 --> 00:27:31,200 Christ as you walk through the door and you get a fresh cup of 519 00:27:31,200 --> 00:27:33,160 coffee that somebody has made for you. 520 00:27:33,160 --> 00:27:36,880 You're experiencing the body of Christ when you hear the worship 521 00:27:36,880 --> 00:27:40,080 team sing songs and your heart is moved or you think some of 522 00:27:40,080 --> 00:27:42,280 you're experiencing the body of Christ. 523 00:27:42,400 --> 00:27:45,240 And it takes everybody doing their part, standing in their 524 00:27:45,240 --> 00:27:49,200 role to make all of it work. So we there's no such thing as 525 00:27:49,920 --> 00:27:53,000 the spiritual gift of children's ministry. 526 00:27:54,440 --> 00:27:56,720 But what there is is an opportunity for all of these 527 00:27:56,720 --> 00:27:59,560 apes expressions. There's an opportunity for all 528 00:27:59,560 --> 00:28:03,720 of the the apostles to love and to care for kids. 529 00:28:04,560 --> 00:28:08,200 There's an example for the prophets to talk to our young 530 00:28:08,200 --> 00:28:14,200 people about justice and righteousness and holiness. 531 00:28:14,960 --> 00:28:19,360 But they won't get it if you won't go there and because we. 532 00:28:19,360 --> 00:28:23,120 Care about the body. I am not going to send the 20% 533 00:28:23,640 --> 00:28:27,720 to do what the 80% won't. What we're going to ask the 20% 534 00:28:27,720 --> 00:28:31,320 to do is to do what God has called them to do, and then 535 00:28:31,320 --> 00:28:34,720 we'll be fine with the rest. We have seen God be abundantly 536 00:28:34,840 --> 00:28:39,120 faithful, but we're committed to doing whatever the body is able 537 00:28:39,120 --> 00:28:41,360 to and the gifts. The grace that you. 538 00:28:41,360 --> 00:28:42,520 Receive. It's for the good of all. 539 00:28:42,520 --> 00:28:44,440 Listen to what Paul says in First Corinthians. 540 00:28:45,360 --> 00:28:47,400 We're going to start in First Corinthians chapter 12, verse 541 00:28:47,400 --> 00:28:50,760 30, and Paul asks some rhetorical questions, right? 542 00:28:50,880 --> 00:28:53,200 Do all have the spiritual gift of healing? 543 00:28:53,280 --> 00:28:55,760 No is the rhetorical answer. No, they don't. 544 00:28:55,880 --> 00:28:59,000 Here's a good one. Do all speak in tongues? 545 00:28:59,520 --> 00:29:03,280 Tongues isn't the sign. It's a sign, but it just says 546 00:29:03,280 --> 00:29:06,680 the rhetorical answer is no, not all will speak in tongues. 547 00:29:06,840 --> 00:29:08,480 And some of you are super nervous right now. 548 00:29:09,160 --> 00:29:11,880 And some of you are. Super excited right now and 549 00:29:11,880 --> 00:29:14,800 you're ready to go. But the idea is we all have a 550 00:29:14,800 --> 00:29:17,080 part. Not everybody does this and not 551 00:29:17,080 --> 00:29:19,400 everybody does that to all interpret. 552 00:29:19,640 --> 00:29:23,560 But listen, desire the greater gifts and I will show you a 553 00:29:23,560 --> 00:29:25,440 better way. See, the problem is we just 554 00:29:25,440 --> 00:29:27,280 know. I want to know what my gift is. 555 00:29:27,360 --> 00:29:30,680 I want to know my specific special thing to do and what 556 00:29:30,680 --> 00:29:32,560 Paul's saying. Like, look, it's good to know 557 00:29:32,560 --> 00:29:34,160 that. It's good to know what you do 558 00:29:34,200 --> 00:29:36,880 says, but if you want to know something, I'm going to show you 559 00:29:36,880 --> 00:29:38,920 the best thing that you can know. 560 00:29:39,160 --> 00:29:42,600 If I speak in human or angelic tongues, but I don't have love, 561 00:29:43,760 --> 00:29:48,360 I'm a gong or clinging cymbal. If I had to get to prophecy and 562 00:29:48,360 --> 00:29:50,720 I understand all mysteries and all knowledge and if I have all 563 00:29:50,720 --> 00:29:53,040 faith so that I can move mountains, but I don't have 564 00:29:53,040 --> 00:29:58,600 love, I am nothing. And if I give away all my 565 00:29:58,600 --> 00:30:01,080 possessions and if I give over my body in order to boast, but I 566 00:30:01,080 --> 00:30:03,800 do not have love, I gain nothing. 567 00:30:03,960 --> 00:30:08,320 See, when Paul ties giftedness to love, what he's saying. 568 00:30:08,360 --> 00:30:11,360 See, here's the thing for love, there is no defining, there's no 569 00:30:11,360 --> 00:30:14,640 context for love apart from someone else. 570 00:30:14,840 --> 00:30:18,760 I'm so good at being like Jesus when there's nobody within 571 00:30:18,760 --> 00:30:21,520 earshot or eye shot and I don't have to contend with another 572 00:30:21,520 --> 00:30:24,840 human being. I'm a perfectly fine driver 573 00:30:24,840 --> 00:30:27,920 until there's another car on the road, right? 574 00:30:28,560 --> 00:30:36,000 Love demands another. Your gift, in order for it to be 575 00:30:36,000 --> 00:30:40,960 the grace that God has for you, your gift requires another. 576 00:30:41,680 --> 00:30:46,120 It requires A recipient. And So what Paul is saying is 577 00:30:46,240 --> 00:30:49,240 the best way to find your place in the body, the best way to 578 00:30:49,240 --> 00:30:53,120 participate, this isn't by knowing your gift, it's by 579 00:30:53,120 --> 00:30:57,120 loving. It's by choosing and finding a 580 00:30:57,120 --> 00:31:02,200 way and a place to love people and going there and paying 581 00:31:02,200 --> 00:31:04,960 attention. And what I would say is that is 582 00:31:04,960 --> 00:31:09,960 what this is about. That is why we do this. 583 00:31:10,840 --> 00:31:15,240 Practicing your role in the body is the actual pathway to 584 00:31:15,240 --> 00:31:18,240 spiritual maturity. And here I want to apologize 585 00:31:18,360 --> 00:31:22,520 because some of you learned that the secret to spiritual maturity 586 00:31:22,560 --> 00:31:27,400 was a long quiet time. And as much as I think that 587 00:31:27,400 --> 00:31:30,600 spiritual maturity may enable and allow some people to do 588 00:31:30,600 --> 00:31:35,560 really long quiet times, I also know people who spend great deal 589 00:31:35,560 --> 00:31:39,400 of time with the Lord and they are mean and cranky and 590 00:31:39,400 --> 00:31:44,560 exceedingly UN Jesus like. And that's not the call, that's 591 00:31:44,560 --> 00:31:49,760 not the invitation. Spiritual maturity is only 592 00:31:49,760 --> 00:31:54,880 achieved when the whole body is growing together. 593 00:31:55,000 --> 00:31:58,040 And in order for that happened to happen, we need you listen 594 00:32:00,280 --> 00:32:06,480 verse 13 in Ephesians chapter 4, until we all reach unity in the 595 00:32:06,480 --> 00:32:08,040 faith and in the knowledge of God. 596 00:32:08,040 --> 00:32:10,200 Son, let me say just real quick on point on this, right? 597 00:32:10,200 --> 00:32:12,480 We're going to teach on Ephesians coming up real quick. 598 00:32:12,840 --> 00:32:15,720 When we say unity in the faith, it does not mean that we all 599 00:32:15,720 --> 00:32:21,280 believe exactly the same thing. In fact, it means that we 600 00:32:21,280 --> 00:32:23,160 specifically and deliberately don't. 601 00:32:23,480 --> 00:32:26,680 Within our elder board, we have an elder who grew up in Baptist 602 00:32:26,680 --> 00:32:30,520 churches in South Alabama and we have elders who grew up in 603 00:32:30,680 --> 00:32:34,080 Baptist churches in West TX. We have people that have been 604 00:32:34,080 --> 00:32:37,880 formed by Assemblies of God churches and all kinds of 605 00:32:37,880 --> 00:32:39,600 things. And we've agreed that we did. 606 00:32:39,600 --> 00:32:43,480 We agree on the on the creeds I believe in God the Father 607 00:32:43,480 --> 00:32:46,960 Almighty maker of heaven earth Jesus Christ is only begotten 608 00:32:46,960 --> 00:32:48,880 son. All of these things that we 609 00:32:48,880 --> 00:32:52,960 agree on these, right, a lot of other stuff we love each other 610 00:32:53,560 --> 00:32:57,000 because. Unity in the faith says we 611 00:32:57,000 --> 00:32:59,000 follow. Jesus. 612 00:32:59,840 --> 00:33:01,440 He's the one. So we go. 613 00:33:01,440 --> 00:33:06,240 Oh, Revelation, right? Like Rapture. 614 00:33:06,240 --> 00:33:07,800 Not rapture. I don't know. 615 00:33:08,080 --> 00:33:10,480 We'll know someday. Let's go. 616 00:33:10,920 --> 00:33:13,240 Once saved, always saved. I don't know. 617 00:33:13,560 --> 00:33:15,880 We'll know someday. Jesus is king. 618 00:33:15,920 --> 00:33:17,760 He's coming back. Let's go. 619 00:33:17,920 --> 00:33:21,320 And we walk together, unity in the faith till we all reach 620 00:33:21,320 --> 00:33:24,000 unity in the faith and in the knowledge of God's Son, growing 621 00:33:24,000 --> 00:33:28,640 into maturity with a stature measured by Christ's fullness, 622 00:33:28,720 --> 00:33:30,480 the. Goal of River City Church is to 623 00:33:30,480 --> 00:33:33,960 be mature followers and believers of Jesus. 624 00:33:34,040 --> 00:33:38,080 Not just believers who don't follow, not just followers who 625 00:33:38,080 --> 00:33:40,760 aren't growing in our understanding, but believing 626 00:33:40,840 --> 00:33:44,520 fevers who are following Jesus. And he goes on to now tell us 627 00:33:44,560 --> 00:33:46,720 what immaturity looks like, right? 628 00:33:47,760 --> 00:33:49,600 Then we will no longer be like little children. 629 00:33:49,600 --> 00:33:51,440 Little children are the immature ones, right? 630 00:33:51,520 --> 00:33:54,560 We won't be like little children tossed by the waves and blown 631 00:33:54,560 --> 00:33:57,560 around by every wind of teaching, by human cunning with 632 00:33:57,560 --> 00:33:59,680 cleverness in the techniques of deceit. 633 00:33:59,800 --> 00:34:03,600 Listen, one of the great critiques of the church is that 634 00:34:03,600 --> 00:34:08,040 the church has been gullible. We've bought into every, every, 635 00:34:08,239 --> 00:34:10,760 what are they called conspiracy theory out there. 636 00:34:10,840 --> 00:34:12,600 We get hooked. We believe, right? 637 00:34:12,719 --> 00:34:15,880 Several years ago, long time ago, a book called The Da Vinci 638 00:34:15,880 --> 00:34:20,040 Code and the church just lost its ever loving mind because it 639 00:34:20,040 --> 00:34:22,080 says it's a novel on the front right? 640 00:34:22,080 --> 00:34:24,320 And people are like, what if Jesus was married and made 641 00:34:24,320 --> 00:34:29,080 Magdalene? Problem problem. 642 00:34:30,480 --> 00:34:34,480 When we Co-op the mechanisms of the Church to any outside body 643 00:34:34,480 --> 00:34:38,800 or entity or force. We're being children, spiritual 644 00:34:38,800 --> 00:34:41,440 children. We have one father in our job. 645 00:34:41,440 --> 00:34:42,760 And listen. Do you know how we. 646 00:34:42,920 --> 00:34:48,000 We go against that. Teachers, prophets, shepherds, 647 00:34:48,280 --> 00:34:52,159 apostles, evangelists doing their role right. 648 00:34:52,320 --> 00:34:55,159 Then we won't. Be like that when we're mature. 649 00:34:55,960 --> 00:34:58,960 But so instead of that, here's what maturity looks like. 650 00:34:59,560 --> 00:35:04,440 Speaking the truth in love. Let us grow in every way into 651 00:35:04,440 --> 00:35:11,200 Him who is the head. Maturity isn't being righteous 652 00:35:11,200 --> 00:35:15,840 in your prayer closet and then a jerk at the table at the 653 00:35:15,840 --> 00:35:20,800 restaurant to the waitress. It's not having faith in your 654 00:35:20,800 --> 00:35:25,640 home and being cutthroat and manipulative at work. 655 00:35:26,320 --> 00:35:32,640 It is being who you are before the Lord and growing, speaking 656 00:35:32,640 --> 00:35:36,240 the truth in love. And we tend to go one way or the 657 00:35:36,240 --> 00:35:38,240 other, don't we? You're probably wired to either 658 00:35:38,240 --> 00:35:40,640 speak the truth or to be to be loving. 659 00:35:41,120 --> 00:35:43,880 We need both. Because if you are truth teller, 660 00:35:43,880 --> 00:35:48,680 you can destroy people and you can hurt people and that's not 661 00:35:48,680 --> 00:35:51,400 what the body is for. You don't like it when I do it 662 00:35:51,400 --> 00:35:52,600 right? Like I know the truth you want 663 00:35:52,600 --> 00:35:55,120 me to like it's not a sword to be wielded. 664 00:35:56,080 --> 00:35:58,720 But we can also get so squishy in the love part that we stopped 665 00:35:58,720 --> 00:36:01,360 telling people like, hey, do you see how your life isn't working? 666 00:36:02,320 --> 00:36:05,680 What if you just brought your relationships under the lordship 667 00:36:05,680 --> 00:36:09,040 of Jesus and just submitted to his plan for your marriage? 668 00:36:09,720 --> 00:36:13,320 What if you just tried that for a minute and see, and I'll walk 669 00:36:13,320 --> 00:36:17,440 with you and I'll help. What if you just like bring your 670 00:36:17,440 --> 00:36:19,240 kids to church? Oh, they don't. 671 00:36:19,240 --> 00:36:22,680 They don't want to make them brush their teeth. 672 00:36:24,360 --> 00:36:27,400 You make them eat vegetables, of course, because some things are 673 00:36:27,400 --> 00:36:30,120 important, right? So what if we just say, hey, 674 00:36:30,120 --> 00:36:32,480 we're going to raise our household, we're going to do 675 00:36:32,480 --> 00:36:35,360 things, we're going to teach our kids to know and to follow 676 00:36:35,360 --> 00:36:38,560 Jesus, right? And So what that looks like then 677 00:36:38,560 --> 00:36:42,120 is health in verse 16 from him, from Jesus, the whole body 678 00:36:42,840 --> 00:36:45,920 fitted and knit together by every supporting ligament. 679 00:36:45,920 --> 00:36:47,240 He's pinning a picture of a body. 680 00:36:47,360 --> 00:36:49,560 You don't grow up, right? My arms sticking out of my 681 00:36:49,560 --> 00:36:52,200 chest, right? Everything's in its place. 682 00:36:52,320 --> 00:36:54,840 My spleen knows where to go, my liver knows where to go. 683 00:36:54,960 --> 00:36:58,000 All my parts know what to do because Jesus put it together 684 00:36:58,080 --> 00:37:00,200 and all the parts that are there hold it together. 685 00:37:00,200 --> 00:37:02,840 In the same way. This church is like that. 686 00:37:02,960 --> 00:37:05,880 Within the context of this room that God has put together, there 687 00:37:05,880 --> 00:37:09,480 are apostles and prophets and evangelists and shepherds and 688 00:37:09,480 --> 00:37:11,360 teachers. Some of you know it and are 689 00:37:11,360 --> 00:37:13,240 doing it. Some of you don't don't know it 690 00:37:13,240 --> 00:37:15,360 and aren't doing it. But some of you know it and 691 00:37:15,360 --> 00:37:17,480 aren't doing it. And listen, I'm not guilting 692 00:37:17,480 --> 00:37:18,560 you. I'm not shaming you. 693 00:37:18,560 --> 00:37:24,800 I'm telling you, there is grace waiting for you, and there is 694 00:37:24,800 --> 00:37:28,800 grace for this community as this church becomes not what I want. 695 00:37:28,800 --> 00:37:31,640 You can't believe how small my visions and dreams for the 696 00:37:31,640 --> 00:37:34,240 church are. And you can't imagine how great 697 00:37:34,240 --> 00:37:36,480 God's visions and dreams for this church are. 698 00:37:36,560 --> 00:37:39,040 And when we begin to go, yeah, I guess I got to reorder my life 699 00:37:39,040 --> 00:37:41,600 around that. What you're saying is I will 700 00:37:41,600 --> 00:37:44,680 choose to put an opportunity for grace before. 701 00:37:44,680 --> 00:37:50,800 Everything for everything. Did I finish that? 702 00:37:51,480 --> 00:37:55,040 Oh yeah, ligaments that promotes the growth of the body for 703 00:37:55,040 --> 00:37:58,280 building itself up in love by the proper working of each 704 00:37:58,280 --> 00:38:00,040 individual part. Here's what that means. 705 00:38:00,160 --> 00:38:05,440 I'm not the church. The staff is not the church. 706 00:38:06,200 --> 00:38:09,960 You are the church. And you go to places that will 707 00:38:09,960 --> 00:38:13,880 never invite me, and you go to places that Alyssa will never 708 00:38:13,880 --> 00:38:18,360 get into. And that's God's design. 709 00:38:19,080 --> 00:38:22,600 That's the plan. The way that he gets Grace into 710 00:38:22,600 --> 00:38:26,840 places is he puts it in people and then he sends them there. 711 00:38:27,720 --> 00:38:32,640 So when we talk about volunteering or serving or 712 00:38:32,640 --> 00:38:36,400 getting involved or connection, I think we don't probably say 713 00:38:36,400 --> 00:38:39,160 this often enough, but I want to say it now. 714 00:38:40,720 --> 00:38:45,080 We're not asking you to do that so that you can help us out. 715 00:38:46,080 --> 00:38:49,080 When we talk about financial generosity, about you giving, 716 00:38:50,200 --> 00:38:53,000 we're not asking that because I go, oh, we need to go. 717 00:38:53,640 --> 00:38:58,040 Listen, we've decided as elders we are going to live within what 718 00:38:58,040 --> 00:39:01,880 God provides, full stop, more or less. 719 00:39:02,440 --> 00:39:06,040 But what I'm saying is you have dreams and visions for your 720 00:39:06,040 --> 00:39:08,920 family, maybe for your community, for your job, for 721 00:39:08,920 --> 00:39:10,760 your work. And what I'm saying is we want 722 00:39:10,760 --> 00:39:14,840 to go be part of that as well. So when we talked about 723 00:39:15,000 --> 00:39:16,960 children's ministry, do you know why we talked about children's 724 00:39:16,960 --> 00:39:19,000 ministry? It's not so that it's quieter in 725 00:39:19,000 --> 00:39:25,120 this room, it's so that those kids will grow up and know that 726 00:39:25,120 --> 00:39:26,920 the church is a place where they can be loved. 727 00:39:26,920 --> 00:39:29,600 And you know what I want in children's ministry? 728 00:39:29,840 --> 00:39:32,520 I want prophets to be in the children's ministry talking to 729 00:39:32,520 --> 00:39:36,120 my children about justice. I want the shepherds to be there 730 00:39:36,120 --> 00:39:38,800 so that my kids know that they are loved in community. 731 00:39:38,920 --> 00:39:41,560 I want the teachers to be in children's ministry because I 732 00:39:41,560 --> 00:39:43,600 want. I want them to know the word of 733 00:39:43,600 --> 00:39:45,280 God. I want them to be familiar with 734 00:39:45,280 --> 00:39:48,000 what it says in this book. But I got a gig on Sunday 735 00:39:48,000 --> 00:39:49,480 morning. I can't go up there. 736 00:39:50,320 --> 00:39:53,520 I need. You like oh, but it's awful. 737 00:39:55,440 --> 00:40:00,680 Yeah, maybe. If you go to the children's 738 00:40:00,680 --> 00:40:03,600 ministry and for five weeks, it's just awful. 739 00:40:03,600 --> 00:40:07,080 That's not your place. Listen, my first job in ministry 740 00:40:07,080 --> 00:40:09,800 was youth ministry. Teenagers, Do you know what 741 00:40:09,800 --> 00:40:11,880 confirmed my calling to youth ministry? 742 00:40:12,360 --> 00:40:15,440 I did children's ministry for five weeks and I knew that is 743 00:40:15,440 --> 00:40:20,200 not the place. But I didn't give up. 744 00:40:21,480 --> 00:40:25,160 I went somewhere else. And I've seen a lot of new faces 745 00:40:25,160 --> 00:40:27,040 serving over the last couple weeks, and it makes me awesome. 746 00:40:27,040 --> 00:40:30,920 But my encouragement to you is. Go find grace. 747 00:40:31,480 --> 00:40:34,240 It's not about helping us out. It's not about doing me a solid. 748 00:40:34,240 --> 00:40:38,400 It's about you experiencing God and then going into your world 749 00:40:38,680 --> 00:40:41,160 and expressing him. So here's how we do that, right? 750 00:40:41,160 --> 00:40:42,520 Three kind of ways, Three quick ways. 751 00:40:42,520 --> 00:40:45,400 Here's what we do. Number one, we show up. 752 00:40:47,560 --> 00:40:52,280 We show up for our family. We go to things for our kids. 753 00:40:52,720 --> 00:40:56,160 We take our kids to things for their brothers and sisters. 754 00:40:56,560 --> 00:41:01,480 And So what I would say is show up to worship, show up to serve, 755 00:41:01,920 --> 00:41:03,960 show up to your small group, you're like. 756 00:41:04,400 --> 00:41:07,080 So busy, I got so much things. Yeah, listen, I get it. 757 00:41:07,080 --> 00:41:09,360 I know. Here's simply what I'm asking 758 00:41:09,360 --> 00:41:13,080 you to do is restructure your entire life. 759 00:41:14,480 --> 00:41:16,040 That wasn't clear. I should have made that clear up 760 00:41:16,040 --> 00:41:18,360 front. I'm asking you to reorganize 761 00:41:18,360 --> 00:41:23,240 your entire life around grace. And So what that would mean will 762 00:41:23,240 --> 00:41:26,320 be doing some things less than you used to do and doing other 763 00:41:26,320 --> 00:41:30,240 things more than you used to. And the hope is that by showing 764 00:41:30,240 --> 00:41:32,640 up, you'll encounter grace. You will hear the stories of 765 00:41:32,640 --> 00:41:36,720 people who are encountering and living in and walking in grace. 766 00:41:36,800 --> 00:41:39,640 Showing up is first. The second thing is to step in, 767 00:41:39,800 --> 00:41:43,120 bring what you've got. Some of you have been studying 768 00:41:43,120 --> 00:41:45,920 the word for your entire lives and you are a treasure trove 769 00:41:46,040 --> 00:41:47,720 that you are keeping to yourself. 770 00:41:47,720 --> 00:41:51,320 Please share that. Please go be a teacher in 771 00:41:51,320 --> 00:41:54,120 children's ministry or in youth ministry or teach a class. 772 00:41:54,120 --> 00:41:57,360 Go talk to Brian or join a small group and share what you have. 773 00:41:57,480 --> 00:41:59,520 And some of you and like some of you have been following Jesus 774 00:41:59,520 --> 00:42:01,680 for so long and you're just crusty. 775 00:42:01,800 --> 00:42:04,200 Like you got to get going and you're like, you know too much 776 00:42:04,360 --> 00:42:05,680 to be good. Stop it. 777 00:42:05,760 --> 00:42:08,440 Go share with someone else. And now I want to talk to you to 778 00:42:08,440 --> 00:42:11,000 like some of you have been following Jesus for 8 minutes 779 00:42:11,040 --> 00:42:13,840 and you're just like right. Like you're plugged in, you're 780 00:42:13,840 --> 00:42:15,440 wired for sound, you're ready to go. 781 00:42:15,600 --> 00:42:18,840 We need you too. You guys go and listen. 782 00:42:18,920 --> 00:42:20,520 I don't need you to be what you're not. 783 00:42:20,600 --> 00:42:22,240 I need you to be exactly what you are. 784 00:42:22,360 --> 00:42:24,880 I need you to go find one of those crusty old people and 785 00:42:24,960 --> 00:42:27,480 listen the crust where they are. Just attach yourself to them, 786 00:42:27,480 --> 00:42:28,640 right? And just ask them all the 787 00:42:28,640 --> 00:42:29,920 questions. Why does this work? 788 00:42:29,920 --> 00:42:31,480 Why does that happen? Why did Jesus say that? 789 00:42:31,480 --> 00:42:32,640 Where's that? What's that book? 790 00:42:32,640 --> 00:42:35,520 Where does that go? Make them tell you because you 791 00:42:35,520 --> 00:42:38,800 know what? We need your energy and we need 792 00:42:38,800 --> 00:42:41,720 to remember. Listen, every every often people 793 00:42:41,720 --> 00:42:44,240 come to me and say, Oh man, I was reading this book and God 794 00:42:44,240 --> 00:42:46,960 spoke to me. That's so huge. 795 00:42:47,240 --> 00:42:49,920 I need to remember. So that happens. 796 00:42:50,400 --> 00:42:51,600 So you got to show up and you just. 797 00:42:51,600 --> 00:42:55,560 Got to bring exactly what you have, excitement, passion, 798 00:42:55,560 --> 00:42:59,320 enthusiasm, because what I know on the authority of this is you 799 00:42:59,320 --> 00:43:02,560 have grace and you have a gift and you have something to give. 800 00:43:02,680 --> 00:43:05,680 So find a place and be shaped by that. 801 00:43:06,200 --> 00:43:08,800 And so here's like that mean you you old heads that know all the 802 00:43:08,800 --> 00:43:10,800 stuff. You're you're going to be 803 00:43:10,800 --> 00:43:12,880 changed. That's why it's simple. 804 00:43:12,880 --> 00:43:14,360 We don't show up with a teenager. 805 00:43:14,360 --> 00:43:17,480 Just be like, OK, teens. Now I've got something to tell 806 00:43:17,480 --> 00:43:19,160 you. Listen, I'm relatively close to 807 00:43:19,160 --> 00:43:20,560 him, right? I'm a good solid Gen. 808 00:43:20,560 --> 00:43:22,840 XI was born in the 70s. All that the world is different. 809 00:43:24,320 --> 00:43:28,040 It's a different world. I need them to tell me. 810 00:43:28,720 --> 00:43:32,120 But you know what? I have stability, wisdom and 811 00:43:32,440 --> 00:43:36,920 encouragement, which for those kids, Grace, I believe in you 812 00:43:37,240 --> 00:43:43,520 change the world, right show up, step in thirdly, share freely, 813 00:43:45,400 --> 00:43:49,480 live generously towards the people of God. 814 00:43:51,480 --> 00:43:53,360 And like we talked about it last week, like we talked about 815 00:43:53,360 --> 00:43:56,200 giving and I didn't say 10% right like that because for some 816 00:43:56,200 --> 00:44:00,240 of you, 10% is an astronomically unreasonable number for you 817 00:44:00,240 --> 00:44:02,280 right now. You've been consuming 100% for 818 00:44:02,280 --> 00:44:05,320 the rest of for your, for your entire life and for you to 819 00:44:05,320 --> 00:44:09,240 restructure so that there's some is a huge step of faith. 820 00:44:09,240 --> 00:44:11,280 And what I would say is the Lord rewards your faith. 821 00:44:11,600 --> 00:44:14,720 Some of you have been giving 10% for so long that it has ceased 822 00:44:14,720 --> 00:44:18,200 to be any kind of sacrifice or anything for you at all. 823 00:44:18,200 --> 00:44:22,960 And what I would ask is how is your calendar and your finances 824 00:44:23,080 --> 00:44:26,600 indicating your allegiance and following to Jesus? 825 00:44:27,680 --> 00:44:30,920 When we asked you to share in and invest in River City, what 826 00:44:30,920 --> 00:44:38,120 we're talking about is investing in foster kids, homeless kids, 827 00:44:39,080 --> 00:44:44,840 abused people, right? Justice, hospitality, mercy. 828 00:44:45,080 --> 00:44:47,960 That's what we're about. That's what his church is. 829 00:44:48,320 --> 00:44:51,680 And this is how God uses His church to be for New Braunfels. 830 00:44:51,880 --> 00:44:55,280 Not through me. Not through me Do you? 831 00:44:56,040 --> 00:44:57,680 You go to places that I'll never be. 832 00:44:58,160 --> 00:45:00,160 You see people I'll never encounter with. 833 00:45:00,160 --> 00:45:04,320 And so He sends you with a message of grace and love and 834 00:45:04,320 --> 00:45:06,880 giftedness. First thing that happens is we 835 00:45:06,880 --> 00:45:09,560 experience His love through belonging and through 836 00:45:09,560 --> 00:45:12,080 transformation. He begins to change who we are 837 00:45:12,080 --> 00:45:17,160 and how we see ourselves. And then He sends us saturated 838 00:45:17,280 --> 00:45:22,200 in love and grace and mercy, out into the world, giving gifts, 839 00:45:22,320 --> 00:45:24,640 spreading grace everywhere that we go. 840 00:45:25,440 --> 00:45:28,360 And that brings us back to where we started with our discussion 841 00:45:28,360 --> 00:45:31,560 of membership. So what I'm going to do right 842 00:45:31,560 --> 00:45:36,720 now is not ask you to sign on the dotted line, but what I am 843 00:45:36,720 --> 00:45:39,000 going to do is ask you to consider for the next several 844 00:45:39,000 --> 00:45:43,200 days of this week, is this the congregation where you believe 845 00:45:43,200 --> 00:45:49,040 God is placing you to grow and to contribute, to be fed and to 846 00:45:49,040 --> 00:45:51,360 take responsibility to feed others? 847 00:45:51,400 --> 00:45:53,600 And let me just say this. If the answer to that question 848 00:45:53,600 --> 00:45:56,480 is no, you're still welcome here. 849 00:45:57,280 --> 00:45:59,240 We haven't had a process. We haven't had a membership 850 00:45:59,240 --> 00:46:01,600 process for the last seven years. 851 00:46:02,280 --> 00:46:05,000 I'm not asking you to go away, but here's what I am saying. 852 00:46:05,480 --> 00:46:07,760 These steps, these things that we've talked about, right, 853 00:46:07,760 --> 00:46:11,400 belonging and transformation and participation, they are as near 854 00:46:11,400 --> 00:46:14,080 as we can get in our understanding of the Scripture. 855 00:46:14,240 --> 00:46:17,200 They are what we believe healthy, mature Christianity 856 00:46:17,200 --> 00:46:19,720 looks like. What I'm asking of you and 857 00:46:19,720 --> 00:46:24,160 inviting you to do is practice healthy, mature Christianity. 858 00:46:26,080 --> 00:46:28,080 And So what I hope you'll do is go home and pray about it. 859 00:46:28,800 --> 00:46:33,720 I am not asking you whether you like me or like my speaking. 860 00:46:34,520 --> 00:46:37,880 I am not asking you whether you like the worship team or the 861 00:46:37,880 --> 00:46:40,240 songs that they sing. What I'm asking you, do you 862 00:46:40,240 --> 00:46:43,480 sense God at work in this congregation and Are you ready 863 00:46:43,480 --> 00:46:47,000 to step into your part and be shaped by it? 864 00:46:47,920 --> 00:46:49,840 I'm not going to ask you to do anything right now. 865 00:46:49,840 --> 00:46:55,120 Not one thing except pray and talk to your family this week, 866 00:46:55,120 --> 00:46:58,480 probably Wednesday or Thursday I'm going to send an e-mail with 867 00:46:58,480 --> 00:47:00,600 a questionnaire and a questionnaire is just going to 868 00:47:00,600 --> 00:47:03,200 explain what is belonging. Few key principles right? 869 00:47:03,320 --> 00:47:04,800 Have you been baptized and you're going to? 870 00:47:04,800 --> 00:47:08,360 Have like a choice, right? I'm a baptized follower of 871 00:47:08,440 --> 00:47:11,000 Jesus. I am a follower of Jesus, but 872 00:47:11,000 --> 00:47:13,680 I've never been baptized. I don't know if I'm a follower 873 00:47:13,680 --> 00:47:15,320 of Jesus, but I want to be baptized. 874 00:47:15,480 --> 00:47:17,200 And you check that and guess what? 875 00:47:17,360 --> 00:47:19,680 If you feel like you're down on the end, that's great. 876 00:47:19,800 --> 00:47:21,960 Do you know what what the big thing is? 877 00:47:22,120 --> 00:47:25,080 If you were just saying just go, I haven't been baptized and 878 00:47:25,080 --> 00:47:28,760 thanks, I'm not interested. Listen, you're still welcome to 879 00:47:28,760 --> 00:47:30,800 come here, but we're going to acknowledge that that's not 880 00:47:30,800 --> 00:47:33,280 participation, right? Like that's not what being a 881 00:47:33,280 --> 00:47:36,080 member of the body is. So when that e-mail comes. 882 00:47:36,200 --> 00:47:41,000 This week, pray about it. Talk about it, fill it out and 883 00:47:41,000 --> 00:47:42,520 return it. And at the bottom, after these 884 00:47:42,520 --> 00:47:45,000 three things, right, I'm going to belong, I'm going to be 885 00:47:45,000 --> 00:47:46,560 transformed. I'm going to participate in all 886 00:47:46,560 --> 00:47:47,280 that. There's going to be an 887 00:47:47,280 --> 00:47:49,000 opportunity for you to check or to not check. 888 00:47:49,640 --> 00:47:54,400 I believe that God is calling me to be a member, a participant, a 889 00:47:54,400 --> 00:47:58,760 partner at River City Church. And if you do that, we'll send 890 00:47:58,760 --> 00:47:59,360 it in. We'll take it. 891 00:47:59,360 --> 00:48:00,960 We'll look at, maybe we'll contact you about something, but 892 00:48:00,960 --> 00:48:03,760 we're not screening you. We're inviting you. 893 00:48:04,760 --> 00:48:06,280 We're inviting you into something that I believe that 894 00:48:06,280 --> 00:48:09,560 God is doing here and wants to include you in. 895 00:48:12,240 --> 00:48:14,800 If we don't have your e-mail, you should give it to us if you 896 00:48:14,800 --> 00:48:16,200 want it. There are little cards out at 897 00:48:16,200 --> 00:48:17,960 the end of your row. You can go on to your church 898 00:48:18,120 --> 00:48:20,960 center app. But I want us to just pray for a 899 00:48:20,960 --> 00:48:25,160 second for River City. Lord, thank you for what you're 900 00:48:25,160 --> 00:48:26,920 doing here. I thank you that this is a place 901 00:48:26,920 --> 00:48:29,360 where children stand and worship you. 902 00:48:30,800 --> 00:48:33,000 I think that this is a place where the congregation will 903 00:48:33,000 --> 00:48:35,760 receive and celebrate children worshiping you. 904 00:48:35,760 --> 00:48:39,000 And Lord, I'm just so overwhelmed by the heart and the 905 00:48:39,000 --> 00:48:41,720 culture at River City, and I'm grateful. 906 00:48:43,360 --> 00:48:45,960 And so now as we go from here, Lord, I pray that we'll continue 907 00:48:45,960 --> 00:48:47,920 to do some business with you. I pray that you'll put it on our 908 00:48:47,920 --> 00:48:50,120 heart, whether this is the place or not the place. 909 00:48:51,440 --> 00:48:54,360 And that we will, as we walk with you and as we follow you, 910 00:48:54,360 --> 00:48:59,560 that we will hear your voice. So Father, our desire is to 911 00:48:59,560 --> 00:49:03,800 continue to honor you to be a place that just absolutely fire 912 00:49:03,800 --> 00:49:06,240 hose washes this city in your grace. 913 00:49:06,240 --> 00:49:09,400 And you've given up, given us gifts to do it. 914 00:49:10,080 --> 00:49:12,320 And so I pray that you would just send us and that we would 915 00:49:12,320 --> 00:49:15,320 say, yes, Jesus, we love you and we thank you and we ask all 916 00:49:15,320 --> 00:49:17,320 these things in your name. Amen. 917 00:49:17,440 --> 00:49:20,480 Thank you for joining us today. River City Church is all about 918 00:49:20,480 --> 00:49:23,200 experiencing and expressing God's love in our lives and 919 00:49:23,200 --> 00:49:25,040 community. And we hope that you've been 920 00:49:25,040 --> 00:49:28,560 able to experience that today. As grateful as I am that you've 921 00:49:28,560 --> 00:49:31,840 spent this time listening in this morning, this podcast is no 922 00:49:31,840 --> 00:49:34,880 substitute for full participation in a local church. 923 00:49:35,320 --> 00:49:38,480 I love it when River City people listen to other pastors, but it 924 00:49:38,480 --> 00:49:41,520 is those who show up week after week, faithfully giving their 925 00:49:41,520 --> 00:49:44,440 support and time and resources that make all of this possible. 926 00:49:44,960 --> 00:49:48,280 If we can help you get connected to a local church, pray for you, 927 00:49:48,440 --> 00:49:51,560 or support you in any way, click the link in the description and 928 00:49:51,560 --> 00:49:53,680 let us know. If you'd like to financially 929 00:49:53,680 --> 00:49:56,480 support the ministry of River City, click the give link on our 930 00:49:56,480 --> 00:49:59,680 website in the description. Don't forget to subscribe and 931 00:49:59,680 --> 00:50:01,400 don't forget to share this with your friends. 932 00:50:01,600 --> 00:50:04,400 Thanks so much for listening. May the Lord bless and keep you 933 00:50:04,480 --> 00:50:06,000 in all grace and peace.