PODCAST AVAILABLE HERE
PRAYER
ME
In
about 3 weeks, our family will head out on our annual trip to the beach…
vacation always feels so good to go on. We are planning and prepping for an
amazing time as a family. This year will be fun as some of our extended family
will be going with us… and what’s amazing about it is that we will all end up
in the same beach house within about 24 hours of one another. Some will leave
from St. Louis, some from Champaign, and some from Bloomington… BUT in the end all
13 of us will get to the same place… through the use of modern technology, we
will leave at different times, take differing routes and drive in different
cars… but we will all head off and arrive within a few hours of each other at
a place we’ve never been… it will be amazing.
Now,
if I’m being honest, pastors would love it if faith worked this way! We would
love it if we could just have you pull out your smart phones and get to the
right destination. We would love it if we could just give step by step and turn
by turn navigation and get you into a relationship with Jesus. We would love it
if no matter what background you came from or what your experiences if you just
did these “Five Key Steps” then faith would be the conclusion that you would come
to! BUT we are not a GPS. It
doesn’t work that way.
As
much as we want to be a GPS, we are more like Will Smith’s character HITCH… the
date doctor…
Despite
the fact that we think there is a formula for relationships… it never works the
way we think it should… and sometimes people fall in love and sometimes they
don’t. Why?
Because Jesus isn’t a destination… He’s a person. and not everyone who we
introduce to Him are going to fall in love. To clarify: Jesus loves every man
and woman who ever walked the earth… but He loves us so much that He gives us
the option to say “yes” OR to say “no” to friendship with Him… to believe in
Him… to loving Him back.
We are all on a journey either towards or
away from Jesus.
For
me, I wasn’t looking for a relationship with Jesus. In fact, you could probably
say that I was running from Him. My parents had drug me to church as a kid… the
pastors at my church had taught me all of the navigational steps… but until I
had a realization of His love for me… I wanted nothing to do with Jesus. I
didn’t need steps or a Bible lesson… What I needed was a realization of the
relationship that I could have with Jesus.
But here’s the crazy
truth: That may not
be what you need today. Your journey is not my journey… your story is not my
story… your personality is not my personality.
We are all on a journey either towards or
away from Jesus.
What
I hope to accomplish with you all today is to show this to you… to show you
that though each is different… Jesus’ love remains constant for you… and
ultimately it to Faith or to a “no.”
STORY & THE WORD à I absolutely LOVE that NO
journey is the same.
Conversations…
Acts
8 – Introduce the Ethiopian official who had visited Jerusalem
28 and was returning, seated in his
chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah. 29 And the Spirit said to
Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.” 30 So Philip ran to him and heard him
reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?”
31 And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to
come up and sit with him.
God
knew that what this man needed was simply someone to talk to him.
”35 Then Philip opened his mouth and
beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus. 36 And as
they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said,
“See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?”
MARK…needed
someone to talk to him.
·
Neighbor has faith… Asks a lot of questions
·
Comes to church… Asks a lot more questions
·
Has 1-2 really important face to face conversations …Makes a
decision
I know that two of the
women getting baptized today… needed
someone to talk to.
But
that’s not everyone’s process…. my retelling is probably an oversimplification
of the process that Mark went through. Some need something different than
conversations. Some of us have too much “life” happening to see and experience
God’s love.
Crisis
Acts
16 – some of us are like the Jailer
·
Paul and Silas – praying and singing
·
An earthquake happens… doors destroyed… chains broken
·
We think COOL… Jailer thinks “I’m gonna die!”
27 When the jailer woke and saw that
the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself,
supposing that the prisoners had escaped.
In the midst of the crisis in his life, the jailer reached up to
Jesus and suddenly desired a relationship with Him. Before this crisis, Jesus was
an afterthought.
30 Then he brought them out and said,
“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 And they said, “Believe in the Lord
Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” 32 And they spoke the
word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. 33 And he took them the
same hour of the night and washed their wounds; and he was baptized at once, he
and all his family.
Jeff’s
(picture)…needed
to realize the importance of Jesus.
Some
of us have a pretty normal life. No one is pushing us to have conversations
about church. Your life isn’t falling apart. You went to church as a kid… and
think I’ve got this. Your journey has felt fine… up to a point
Deeper Relationship
Acts
19 – Paul comes to Ephesus and meets 12 believers
2 And he said to them, “Did you receive
the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard
that there is a Holy Spirit.”
What these men needed were the simple words “There is More!” More of
God you can experience. More of his love and power. More of his grace and
acceptance. What you have is good, but it could be soooo much better! There
journey needed a push to keep going.
5 On hearing this, they were baptized in the
name of the Lord Jesus. 6 And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy
Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying.
Scott’s
…he
needed to hear “There is More!”
·
Grew up going to church… became a leader… VineYard changed
things
·
Experiencing new community… truth…new power…“Saved for (from)something”
·
Took a big leap of faith… said yes again… baptized.
Some
of us here don’t want a conversation… we don’t want to allow God
into our crisis… we don’t want to know more than we already do… we don’t
need Jesus… we don’t want Jesus… we think all of
this is just stupid…
Hostility
Acts
9 – like Saul (apostle Paul), we actually hate the idea of Christianity
·
Job to persecute… to kill… to put in jail
·
Paul didn’t just want to not talk with anyone about Jesus… he
was actively pursuing a life that was working to hinder the spread of
Christianity in his world… and it was in that moment that Jesus found him
3 Now as he went on his way, he
approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. 4 And
falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you
persecuting me?” 5 And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus,
whom you are persecuting. 6 But rise and enter the city, and you will be told
what you are to do.”
Jesus’ love pursues everyone. He doesn’t care how much we hate
Him, He loves us!When Saul realized this… his life was transformed and he
entered friendship with Jesus.
17b …Ananias said, “Brother Saul, the
Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so
that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 And
immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his
sight. Then he rose and was baptized.
Corrie’s…she
wanted NOTHING to do with Jesus
·
Running away from Parent’s faith… from Past
·
Angry at God …Burying her life in her own problems, addictions,
anger.
·
Invited to a worship that she didn’t want to go to. Singing
songs she didn’t want to
·
God’s love became real to her… faith… freedom… life!
YOU à Isn’t that how relationships work!
·
Some
of us fall in love through having conversation with someone.
·
Some
of us fall in love when someone cares for us during crisis in our lives.
·
Some
of us fall in love… fall out … and then we discover a deeper love later on.
·
And
some of us want nothing to do with love… we are angry and bitter and
disappointed with relationships… and then we meet someone who shows us what
love can really be like.
The
same is true in our journey with Jesus… our relationship with Jesus.
·
Some
need a miracle like me… or a friend to talk to…
·
Some
need a crisis… or some need nothing…
·
Some
need something else to deepen their heart towards Jesus.
ACTION à Today, we are celebrating
baptisms.
Today,
we have a chance to show the world that we’ve been changed by friendship with
the King of the Universe. But it begs an important question for all of us who
are here. I don’t believe anyone is in this room by accident. I believe that
Jesus loves us so much that He’s brought us here… no matter our current
relationship OR lack thereof with him.
If you catch a glimpse of the Father’s Love
for you, will you say Yes to Jesus today?
You
don’t have to know everything… you definitely don’t have to be perfect… you
just have to believe. To believe the gospel story! (detail here)
As
Christians we show our belief of these truths through faith (confessing Jesus
as Lord) and through baptism… Romans 6 –
demonstrate death & resurrection to new life
I
don’t have 5 Steps to Jesus for you today… I don’t have a GPS turn by turn.
All
I have is an invitation… an invitation to friendship with Jesus.
Acts
22:16 (NLT) What are you waiting for? Get up and be
baptized. Have your sins washed away by calling on the name of the Lord.”
About 3 years ago, there was a group of people “planned”… 33
extras came forward... they ignored the POPULAR EXCUSES...
1) I still have lots of questions.
2) I was baptized as a baby
3) I want my family to see this
4) I don’t have a towel
5) I don’t have dry clothes
Don’t let an
excuse stand in your way. We are about to enter into a time of offering and
worship… a time where the “planned” people will be getting ready… if you want
to be baptized today… just do it.
Acts 22:16
(NLT) What are you waiting
for? Get up and be baptized. Have your sins washed away by calling on the name
of the Lord.”
