09.06.2015 You Ought to be Committed!

9-06-2015 from Grace Summit on Vimeo.

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Adult Bible Study starts next Sunday – It will be a series on heaven – it is a lot of material – and I was amazed as I read this book – we have a lot of right ideas and a lot of wrong ideas about heaven. As an ongoing study, don’t feel like if you miss a time that you can’t catch up – just show up when you can.

Lord Jesus – help me to focus on what You’ve given me to speak. Open our ears as You challenge us through Your word. In Jesus’ name – amen.

Mike and I were talking – we did those surveys in the spring – and one of the things that came out of it was about commitment – where are you in your life today?

Today, we’ll have a little fun looking at ourselves – and you know the saying – it is all fun until someone gets hurt. And that is the serious side of it – we do get hurt. Many of us are hurting.

This is also test day. There are four subjects – and this is a time of testing – some will say – no one knows if I take the test – but God requires it – and He knows your response – and no response is a response! So be honest with yourself – ask your friends or your spouse – How am I doing in these areas.

We have some tools to help us – the first we have is the Commit-O-Meter –

Spiritually – how well are you connected to God?

Rev. 3:14-16 - 14 “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write the following:

“This is the solemn pronouncement of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the originator of God’s creation: 15 ‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either cold or hot! 16 So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I am going to vomit you out of my mouth!

Why does God want us to be hot? And why would God rather we be cold than lukewarm? When you are lukewarm – you have deluded yourself into something you are not – you play the right things – and it is dangerous – because you think you are okay but you are not – you are in danger of losing your soul. God says He will spit you out of his mouth – I don’t know what that means exactly – but I know it is not good.

How can we evaluate ourselves?

Rev. 3: 19 All those I love, I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent!

Are you feeling any conviction about anything? Rebuke and discipline are fine-tuning. I don’t think this applies to those who are cold – because they need to recognize their need for Christ more than fine-tuning.

Those who are hot for God have a closer relationship with Him and often repent even before God disciplines – so they don’t need as much fine tuning – but those who are lukewarm – are the ones who really need it.

If you are not feeling conviction about anything – you are lukewarm. Either stay the same and be spit out – or repent and change and be earnest about it. What is the result if you do this?

Rev. 3: 21 I will grant the one who conquers permission to sit with me on my throne, just as I too conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22 The one who has an ear had better hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’”

Where is your meter pointing – if it is cold – talk to me or one of the other leaders – and we’ll be glad to talk to you about Christ and God and how much He loves you.

If it is lukewarm – you need to repent.

Prov. 4: My child, pay attention to my words;

listen attentively to my sayings.

21 Do not let them depart from your sight,

guard them within your heart;

22 for they are life to those who find them

and healing to one’s entire body.

23 Guard your heart with all vigilance,

for from it are the sources of life.

24 Remove perverse speech from your mouth;

keep devious talk far from your lips.

25 Let your eyes look directly in front of you

and let your gaze look straight before you.

26 Make the path for your feet level,

so that all your ways may be established.

27 Do not turn to the right or to the left;

turn yourself away from evil.

Living the Chrisitan life is not easy – it takes work – being earnest in our desire for God.

Personal growth – Where are you in your personal growth?

Either Homer Simpson on one side – couch potato – or Duane “The Rock” Johnson on the other side. I saw him in SanAndreas – and it is obvious that he puts a lot of work into that – and spiritually – in our growth with God – where are we? Like a couch potato?

Our spiritual life is like paddling a kayak upstream – you have to work just to stay where you are because the river is trying to push you back downstream. We have to work at our spiritual growth every day.

A great illustration – in our physical body – you can work out every day for months – but when you stop – you lose it fast.

You have to work at personal growth.

Philippians 2: 12 So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; 13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

As Mike has shared – this does not mean that we work to obtain our salvation – but we have to work at it daily – how? With fear and trembling – and while some may say those words are a metaphor for something else – I think we need to take them literally.

How much do you fear and tremble in your daily life? God has expectations for us and holds us accountable – we need a good dose of it regularly in our lives.

2 Tim. 2:15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.

Second test – personal growth – where do you fall – working hard or hardly working? If you are not woreking hard – you are missing out on one of the most wonderful relationships in life. It is important.

Relationships.

Have you ever been to a training seminar at a hotel? What do you do at break time? There are donuts and danishes – what do you do? For me – I grab some stuff and find a corner. I am an introvert.

I work with a gal who is an extravert – and she had several new best friends found on those break times!

You and them – are there valid excuses for running away? Or are they running away from you? If you are committed in relationships– you will run toward each other.

Philippians 2: 3 Instead of being motivated by selfish ambition or vanity, each of you should, in humility, be moved to treat one another as more important than yourself. 4 Each of you should be concerned not only about your own interests, but about the interests of others as well.

Mike talks a lot about relationships - - key points – we are salt and light – what God has made us to be – we need to proclaim and perform he gospel daily. If you are like me, you find it hard to say the right thing at the right time. I think we over think things.

I work in a small team of 4 in a small office – and one day last week – the subject of HYMNS came up – one coworker –whom I don’t think is a Christian – said – Amazing Grace is my favorite hymn – and I thought I missed a chance there – instead of giving advice – I should have asked questions – what do you like about it? Get them talking about themselves and it will open up the conversation – and how God can use that to say the right things to them.

We miss opportunities. Carol had a similar situation – it is easy and natural.

Romans 12: 10 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; [j]give preference to one another in honor;

Romans 12: 16 Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but [n]associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation.

Romans 13: 8 Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves [e]his neighbor has fulfilled the law.

God has given us commands – love one another – take care of one another – we can’t be best friends with everyone – but we can step out of the corner and reach a middle ground. We need to learn to reach a balance in our lives.

What is our commitment to our body of believers? It is a continuation of the earlier things.

We have pew warmers – and on the other end – we have those who are full-time.

Have you ever wondered about God’s will for your life? Like in college, that was the big question – as an older adult – if we take care of the day-to day things – God will take care of the rest.

1 Thess. 5: 18 in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

For this is God’s will for You in Christ Jesus

1 Thess 5: Live in peace with one another. 14 We urge you, brethren, admonish the [k]unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone. 15 See that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all people. 16 Rejoice always; 17 pray without ceasing; 18 in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

I know for certain that it is not God’s will for you to simply be a pew warmer. I am also pretty certain that he doesn’t want every one of us to be in full-time ministry.

Ephesians 4:16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

We are all part of Grace Summit – and we are one body – building each other up – each part does its work. We don’t all have to take turns preaching or doing the nursery – each has something to do.

We all have something – no matter how minor – We all have jobs – who is in control when you go to work – the boss – and he expects a dollar’s worth of work for a dollar’s pay –

Has anyone ever been hired to be a desk warmer? You are expected to do your share of the work.

Here at church – who is the boss? God is. He has a job for you – and there is stuff to do – it might being encouraging to others – or filling shoe-boxes – or doing the nursery –

God has given you skills to further His kingdom.

God has a job for you – if you are nothing more than a pew-warmer – that sounds – like being lukewarm –

Final test – are you using the skills and talents God has given you?

Where is the needle pointing in your spiritual meter?

Cold/Lukewarm/Hot? There is only one good place for that one.

Personal growth – does your spiritual body look more like Homer Simpson or the Rock?

Relationships – are you out of the corner? Sometimes we come to church to be encouraged – and we need that – and we need to be honest with one another.

Lastly – are you just warming a seat this morning – or are you here to grow and learn and be an integral part?