A Risen Christ Prepares His Church

What we're just saying about a man of sorrows and all that Jesus did as that man of sorrows to produce a people for himself.

!

And what purpose or mission does that drive them to accomplish?

Well, that's where we're kind of working our way through the book of Acts, just getting started.

And we're going to get an up-close look at what the man of sorrows produces.

What does his death and resurrection accomplish for a people?

And what mission does he put them on?

What changes in their life?

What fundamentally is different about them?

And one of the ways we want to try to do that through the next several weeks, we started last week,

and we're going to continue this week and the next couple of weeks,

is not just put the word in front of you, but sometimes I benefit from practical life examples.

And we'd like to put some practical life examples in front of you.

Last week, we saw the story of the Manuelers, a family in our church.

Andy is a deacon in our church.

Angela, of course, is his wife and they're children.

And they shared with us a little bit of the beginning of that journey.

And we're going to see this continuing journey over the next several weeks.

And today, we're going to see how a praying family becomes a family who builds relationships.

So let's see that this morning, and we'll pick it up from there.

As a family, our mission is to know him and make him known.

After much deliberation and prayer, we decided to homeschool our children through fourth grade

and then send them to public school.

One reason was to give us opportunities to build relationships and point people to Christ.

Whatever schooling method is chosen, the key piece is staying highly involved.

When we stay involved in our kids' schooling, even at a public school, lots of opportunities arise to build relationships.

As I attend my children's sports practices and games, I've been able to build relationships with parents and even several of the players.

We've often been able to build relationships with some of the teachers,

even through asking questions about assignments that we're not comfortable with and asking for alternate assignments.

We've gotten good feedback that they appreciate that, and we have been able to share why these things are important to us.

So I can't be a room mom. I need to find other ways to connect.

It was a difficult season for connecting with teachers and parents because God decided it was also time to give us two more gifts of Nathan and Joanna.

But I have been able to meet teachers at open house, band concerts, and other school events.

I have met some other parents at sports games, concerts, and events that parents are invited to,

such as parents' night and classroom debate competitions.

We had quickly developed a good relationship with one of Caleb's teachers,

and she allowed him to bring his new baby brother to class shortly after Nathan was born.

That was a special connection moment, and now that teacher has her own newborn son.

Two years ago, the Lord allowed me the opportunity to fill a need and accompany high school band students who perform instrumental solos.

This has been a special connection point for me as I now have accompanied some of the same students two years in a row,

and will get a third chance this school year.

When I first went to a public school in fifth grade, I slowly started to get to know the kids in my class

and was able to keep relationships with them all the way through high school.

This gave me relationships and friendships that I was able to build into over the years.

I also attempted to host a Bible study with a few friends, invited many of them to youth events and Sunday services,

and was once even called different by a friend and took it as a compliment,

since I am called to be in the world but not of it.

I also was in two bands and played on a soccer team, so that gave me opportunities to connect with a wider demographic.

While I don't have connection with many of my school friends anymore,

I can pray that God is continuing to grow and work with the seeds that I was able to plant throughout those years.

I've played four different sports, been in two bands, two choirs, and a couple more extracurricular activities throughout my public school career.

And through those, I've been able to meet and get to know a lot of kids that I've been able to make connections with,

and a few deep friendships.

And in everything that I'm doing, I'm striving to be different for Jesus.

And many have recognized the unique friendliness to kindness and joy that points to Jesus and has allowed for conversations to start.

Even though we're not in public school yet to make new friends and point them to Jesus,

we've been able to play sports and make friends to that.

So why do we put these in front of you?

Well, we put these videos in front of you not to say, well, this is how you should do it.

This is the way it goes.

This is the formula that works.

But to give you some examples,

these are just a few examples of how God has done that in the lives of the Manwellers,

how God has used their receptive hearts to work in the flow of the community that he has put them into,

and to try to maximize those relationships in order to have gospel opportunities.

This is what God wants all of us to be involved in.

And the other one of the goals of putting this in front of you is to show how easy it can be.

You don't have to have the gift of evangelism.

You don't have to be gifted in terms of apologetics.

You just have to be a person who is willing to be available,

praying for opportunities, building relationships,

and seeking for God to open up doors so that you can walk through them and have a gospel witness.

So I trust that as we work through these,

that you see this as an example out of many that God can use to stimulate your hearts

and to lead you to very good things.

I love this book of Acts for a lot of reasons.

Maybe one of the biggest reasons why I appreciate the book of Acts

is because it is a story about how Jesus takes a group of nobodies,

a group of misfits,

and he's able to use them in a way that changes the world.

As a matter of fact, the Apostle Paul, in his ministry,

the indictment against him is,

hey, these are the guys that are turning the world upside down.

Well, how did God do that?

And that's why we're moving through this book of Acts to see

how does God use a dysfunctional people?

How does God use a group of misfits to turn the world upside down?

Do you realize that God will build his church?

As a matter of fact, we find that in the Scripture

where Jesus says,

I will build my church,

and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.

God is in the church building business.

And the incredible part about all of this

is that God wants to use you,

and he wants to use me

to accomplish this objective.

And we're going to look

and begin to look

in the Word of God today

to see how God will do that.

How will God do that for you?

How will God do that for me?

How will God use us

to turn the world upside down?

Because God is building his church.

It is an unstoppable church.

It is an unrivaled,

unrivaled work

that God is doing

through his Spirit

and through his people.

He wants to use you.

He wants to use me.

So we're going to see

how God will turn this world upside down

using a group of misfits

as we turn in our Bibles to Acts chapter 1.

Acts 1 · chapter mention

Begin this journey with me.

Acts chapter 1,

Acts 1 · chapter mention

beginning in verse 1.

I'm going to read the first three verses,

and we're going to begin to see

this mission strategy

of how Christ, the risen Lord,

is preparing a people for himself,

preparing a church for himself.

And here we are in this series,

Becoming the Church.

Well, what does the church look like,

and how does the church become?

Well, the church will become,

and we'll see this morning,

the church becomes,

as the church will follow,

the directives of the church builder,

Jesus Christ himself.

If you're using the Pew Bible,

you can find it on page 909,

and follow along with me

as I read Acts chapter 1,

Acts 1:1–3

verses 1 to 3.

It says,

In the first book, O Theophilus,

I have dealt with all that Jesus

began to do and to teach

until the day when he was taken up

after he had given commands

through the Holy Spirit

to the apostles whom he had chosen.

He presented himself alive to them

after his suffering by many proofs,

appearing to them during 40 days,

and speaking about the kingdom of God.

We're going to see

four different characteristics,

four different qualities

of these individuals

who God will use

to build this church.

And the first is this,

recognizing that you have

a trustworthy witness.

You have a trustworthy witness.

I love how Luke puts this here

in verse 3,

speaking about this life

and ministry of Christ.

And notice this word here,

this phrase in verse 3,

and Jesus presented him alive,

excuse me,

he presented himself to them

after his sufferings

by many proofs.

By many proofs.

As we begin this series,

I'm blown away by the mercy of God

to set before us proofs,

evidences,

things that you can substantiate,

ways in which you can bolster

your confidence

and know that what you believe

about Jesus

and about his life

and about his teaching

has backing.

You can substantiate it.

It's been given to us

in a way that has been validated

and demonstrates its integrity.

Right here at the start,

there are these three verses.

We get a sense of the wonder

of God's amazing grace.

You have a gracious God.

A gracious God.

He's given you

a trustworthy witness.

And maybe it's not

abundantly obvious

because of how much

we've taken this witness

for granted.

But God has given his witness

to us through his word.

Notice this in verse 1.

It says,

In the first book,

O Theophilus,

I have dealt with all the things

that Jesus began to do

and to,

what church?

To teach.

You see,

we have a God

who has revealed himself.

He's revealed himself

through his son

whom he sent

as the very word of God.

The word of God

became flesh.

He dwelt among us.

He did not have to.

He did not have to come.

He did not have to

dwell with us.

Broken humanity.

Who does that?

What deity do you know

that wants to mix it up

with corruption?

And God sent his son Jesus

to come in human flesh,

to robe himself in limitation,

in humanity,

and to speak,

and to teach,

and to reveal.

The word of God

came to us.

We just need to pause

for a moment

and marvel

at the grace of God

in this trustworthy witness.

God did not just

present himself in words.

He could have just

sent a message,

which he did

through the prophets,

but he sent himself.

God came

in the flesh

to speak

and to do

and to love

and to show compassion

and to demonstrate example

and to put up

with very

wayward

and foolish

disciples.

How many times

does Jesus

confront the disciples

by confronting

their,

oh foolish ones

and slow

in heart

to believe.

That's not just

the disciples,

by the way.

That's you and me.

The fact is

that Jesus,

he didn't just

come into time

and space

and speak words

to people

in a first century,

but by God's grace,

he communicated

those words

and those words

are captured

for us.

Those words

of Jesus

captured

for you

and for me.

Gracious words.

Life-giving words.

Words that

you can read.

You don't have to

hear about.

Not just this

verbal testimony.

Oh, there was

some God

in the first century

who happened

to say some things.

No, we have

those words

captured.

They're for you.

You can read them.

You can enjoy them.

You can test them

for yourself.

The gracious

word of God,

the testimony

that he's given,

the witness

that's confirmed.

You can have it.

It's in your possession.

We have access

to it.

And so,

we enjoy

this trustworthy,

accessible word.

And notice

what Luke says here

in verse 1.

It says,

In the first book,

O Theophilus,

I have dealt

with all the things

that Jesus began

to do and to teach.

And so,

what we're reading

in the book of Acts

is just volume 2

of a two-volume set.

And so,

if we want to

just briefly

go back

to volume 1,

the gospel of Luke,

we can see something

about the credibility

of this witness.

I would just

invite you

to just turn back

for a moment

to Luke chapter 1.

Luke 1 · chapter mention

Luke 1,

1 to 4.

And I just want to

spend a couple

of moments here

to help you understand

the significance

of this trustworthy word.

It says,

Inasmuch as many

have undertaken

to compile a narrative

of the things

that have been accomplished

among us,

just as those

who from the beginning

were eyewitnesses

and ministers

of the word

have delivered them

to us,

it seemed good

to me also,

having followed

all things closely

for some time past,

to write

an orderly

account for you.

most excellent

Theophilus,

that you may have

certainty

concerning the things

that you have been taught.

I want to draw attention

to the trustworthiness

of this word.

Notice how he puts

that in verse 4.

I want you to understand

that the things

that you may have

certainty

concerning the things

you've been taught.

The purpose

for this writing

is certainty.

It's a trustworthy word.

That God cares about

you being able

to evaluate

and examine

this word for yourself

to evaluate

its trustworthiness,

to see its credibility.

What a gracious God

you have.

Gracious God.

And he's come

and he's allowed

this orderly account

to be written.

And so he compiles

this narrative,

this life story

of Jesus.

And this account

that we've been given

helps us to understand

it's not just

some fictitious story

that's been written down,

but the fact that he uses

this word account

helps us to understand

that whatever Luke

is writing

is captured in history.

It's verifiable.

It's anchored.

It's subject to scrutiny.

Notice all the times,

just briefly here,

where Luke is not afraid

for you to fact check

his work.

Luke chapter 1,

Luke 1:5

verse 5.

In the days of Herod,

king of Judah.

Luke 1, 26.

In the sixth month,

the angel Gabriel

was sent from God

to a city of Galilee

named Nazareth.

Luke chapter 2,

Luke 2:1

verses 1 and 2.

In those days,

a decree went out

from Caesar Augustus

that all the world

should be registered.

This was the first registration

when Quirinius

was governor over Syria.

And we could go on.

Luke is not afraid

of fact checking.

Luke is not afraid

for you to go to the source

and to see whether or not

what he's writing

is credible

and verifiable.

Because Luke

and our Savior

cares about bolstering

and supporting

your faith.

He wants to lead you to faith.

He wants you to lead you

to confidence.

He wants you to know

that you have

a trustworthy witness.

What a gracious God.

So we have

not just an accurate,

well-ordered account,

but we have

these eyewitnesses.

Eyewitnesses

that we find

throughout the testimony

of Scripture.

We don't have time

this morning

to talk about them all,

but at least a couple

of them

are Matthew

and Mark

who Luke

and the Apostle Paul

and others

spent time with.

And Matthew

was one of the

twelve apostles.

He was there

through the whole duration

of Jesus' life

and ministry.

Mark,

who had been learning

from the Apostle Peter,

was capturing this story

from Peter's perspective.

and you have

this witness,

these eyewitnesses.

Mary,

who treasured

and pondered

all of these things

in her heart.

She's certainly

one of these witnesses.

We find her

in Acts chapter 1.

Acts 1 · chapter mention

She's there

with the 120 believers

and her testimony

is certainly part

of this narrative

that's being recorded

for us.

God cares about

witnesses.

He cares about

credibility.

Why did God

do it this way?

Well, God did it

this way because

He wanted you

to have a trustworthy

witness

so that you could

believe it.

It wasn't just

to know it.

It wasn't just

to affirm it.

It was to believe it.

It was to read it

for yourself

and treasure it

for yourself

so that you could

fundamentally believe

the words

that God has given

to you.

God is after faith.

He's after your heart.

He's after your

allegiance.

He wants your

devotion.

He wants you

not just to believe.

He wants that

belief to lead

to action.

He wants it to lead

to confident,

bold testimony.

You have a trustworthy

Savior,

a trustworthy witness.

You can believe it.

Second,

we have a risen Savior.

We see that in

verse 3.

It says,

He was presented

or He presented

Himself alive

to them

after His suffering

by many proofs,

appearing to them

during 40 days.

Now,

the truth

of the resurrection

of Jesus Christ,

I want you

and I think you

already understand,

this is fundamental

for your faith.

You cannot be

a believer,

you cannot be

a follower

of Jesus Christ

unless you not only

know about the resurrection,

but you believe it

in your heart.

Romans 10,

9 and 10

says this,

because if you

confess with your mouth

that Jesus is Lord

and believe in your heart

that God raised Him

from the dead,

you will be saved.

For with the heart

one believes

and is justified

and with the mouth

one confesses

and is saved.

If you're going to

have a relationship

with Jesus,

if you're going to be

part of this group

of believers

who's going to

change the world

someday,

this is fundamental

to your life.

This is fundamental

to your association

with Him.

your faith

is contingent

upon believing

the right things

and believing

especially

in this risen Lord.

He is alive.

And so what does

God graciously do

for us?

He not only

raises Jesus

from the dead,

but He gives

this undeniable

confirmation

of His resurrection.

We have these

proofs

that God

graciously gives

to the disciples

and then subsequently

every single one

of us

to confirm

the reality

of that work.

He does this

in order to move

a people

or to make

a people

for Himself.

He wants

your heart.

He wants

your allegiance.

He wants you

to believe

and worship Him.

and that believing

is not

ambiguous.

That believing

is very specific.

You have to believe

the right things

about Jesus.

And so God

gives this proof,

this confirmation,

this unmistakable

testimony of Himself,

this period of time

between the resurrection

and between His ascension.

And we find here

40 days.

40 days

of this

interaction.

It wasn't

continuous

time with Jesus

but this

interactive time

where Jesus

seems to be

coming in

and out

of the vicinity

where these

disciples are.

And initially

we see

these resurrection

appearances

there in Jerusalem

that Jesus

appears to Mary Magdalene

in the Garden

of Gethsemane.

He appears

to the women

who were also

there in that area.

He appears

to two disciples

on the road

to Emmaus

in Luke chapter 24.

Luke 24 · chapter mention

He appears

to Simon Peter

individually

in Luke 24, 34.

He appears

to gathered

disciples

without Thomas

being present.

And then He appears

to the 11

with Thomas

present.

He appears

then

to 500.

He appears

to Paul

who says

this untimely

follower of His,

Jesus

unmistakably

appeared

for the

whole point

of bolstering

faith

in resurrection.

You see

the disciples

and the women

that they will

initially make

their way

out of Jerusalem

and Christ

will command

them to go

to Galilee.

And you're like

why Galilee

of all places?

What's in Galilee?

Why wouldn't

they have just

stayed in Jerusalem?

And while we

don't really have

the full answer

to that

there is this

time

that's

transpiring

and so

God

allows them

to go back

to Galilee

which was

kind of

their home

turf

as it were.

This was

kind of

where the

mission

was all

born.

And Jesus

through

this time

this interactive

time

He's helping

to establish

a group

of individuals

a group

of disciples

who are going

to be committed

to Him

in every way.

It was in Galilee

that Jesus

would meet

them.

He meets

them by

the Sea

of Galilee

as they're

fishing.

You remember

the story?

They're out

fishing and

they've been

fishing all

night and

they haven't

caught a

thing.

And then all

of a sudden

someone shouts

hey cast

your nets

on the other

side.

In this

massive

hall.

This

towards the

end of

Jesus'

ministry

to them

during this

ascension

or this

resurrection

period of

40 days

and they'd

had a

previous

witness

that Jesus

did very

early on

in the

ministry

where the

exact same

thing

happened.

And Jesus

confirming

once again

I've called

you to be

disciples of

mine.

I've called

you to be

fishers of

men.

And now

it's time

to do it.

And Jesus

has mentioned

to them

He's mentioned

them on the

mountain

that He

was there

and yet

even in

His appearance

in His

speaking

to them

there was

some doubt

that was

happening in

their hearts.

Through all

of this

period of

time

these 40

days

so many

things that

Christ was

reinforcing

for this

group of

misfit

disciples

it helped

them understand

this uncontested

proof that

Jesus was

in fact

resurrected

from the

grave.

It also

helped to

transform

this

devastated

group of

disciples

into

eyewitnesses.

We see

this account

throughout

the book

of Acts

where in

Acts 1

Acts 1:8

verse 8

we're going

to get

to there

in a week

or two

what does

Jesus say

to these

disciples

and you

will be

witnesses

in Jerusalem

in Judea

in Samaria

his goal

was to

turn them

into those

who would

witness

the very

things that

he had

done.

Of course

Jesus is

interested in

helping to

restore

broken

disciples.

He does

that there

in Galilee

as he's

beating with

Peter by

the sea of

Galilee.

Peter who

had denied

Jesus on

three occasions

now Jesus

asks this

question

Peter do

you love

me?

Peter says

Lord I

love you.

He says

again Peter

do you

love me?

And Peter's

beginning to

wonder did

you not hear

my first

reply?

Yes I

love you.

And then

one more

time Peter

do you

love me?

Lord you

know I

love you.

Just reaffirming

and reestablishing

in this

process of

restoring Peter

back to

functionality.

Back to

a place

of usefulness.

God desires

to do that

for us.

You know

you have a

risen Savior.

You have a

risen Savior.

Are you

living like

it?

Do you

see the

life of

your Savior?

Is that

life resident

in you?

I'm reminded

of the hymn

that some of

you may know.

It says I

serve a

risen Savior.

He's in the

world today.

I know that

he's living

whatever men

may say.

I see

his hand

of mercy.

I hear

his voice

of cheer.

And just

the time

I need

him

he's always

near.

He lives.

He lives.

Christ

Jesus

lives today.

He walks

with me.

He talks

with me.

A long

life's

narrow way.

He lives.

He lives.

Salvation

to impart.

You ask

me how

I know

he lives.

He lives

within my

heart.

Is the

living

Savior

resident

in your

heart today?

Are you

walking with

him?

Talking

with him?

Is it

clear in

your

expressions

of life

that you

are living

for the

living

Savior?

Third,

you have a

kingdom

message.

You have a

kingdom

message.

message.

Notice

!

Jesus

speaking

after

essentially

all the

programmatic

things that

are essential

to usher

in this

kingdom

life

has

happened.

And here

is Jesus

and we

see now

this

emergence

of a

church

that will

be taking

place at

the beginning

of Acts

Acts 1 · chapter mention

chapter 1

and we ask

ourselves the

question,

wait a

second,

I thought

we were

having a

program

with the

Jews.

What

happened

here?

What is

this new

body,

this new

group of

individuals?

What's the

deal with

this church?

Has God

changed his

mind?

And the

answer is

no,

he hasn't

changed his

mind.

There's still

a kingdom

message.

It's been

reinforced.

The use of

the kingdom

in the

gospels

is prolific.

57 times

the gospel

of Matthew

uses the

word

kingdom.

21 times

in Mark,

46 times

in Luke.

It's obvious

that we

don't have

time to

address all

the breadth

of the

use of

the kingdom

of God

that is

talked about

through the

gospels.

And you

might wonder,

has God

changed his

mind?

And the

answer is

no,

because in

40 days

of his

ministry

to the

disciples

after the

resurrection,

what is he

talking about?

He's still

talking about

the kingdom.

Why?

Because that

program hasn't

changed.

That message

has not

changed.

Just a

couple of

examples.

Luke 4

42,

and when

it was day,

he departed

and went into

a desolate

place,

speaking of

Jesus,

and the

people sought

him and

came to

him and

would have

kept him

from leaving

them,

but he

said to

them,

I must

preach the

good news

of the

kingdom of

God to

the others,

to the

other towns

as well,

for I

was sent

for this

purpose,

and he

was preaching

in the

synagogues

of Judea.

This was

the heart

and soul

of Jesus'

ministry,

to teach

and preach

about the

kingdom.

Well,

what does

that kingdom

message entail?

What is that

kingdom message

about?

Well,

it's a message

about how

Jesus is

the authority,

Jesus is

sovereign,

Jesus is

in charge.

It's a message

that we all

need,

and how

did that

come about?

Well,

it came about

because of

the work

that Jesus

accomplished

on the

cross,

his death,

his resurrection,

in claiming

victory over

sin once

and for all.

He put

sin to

death.

He allowed

us to

enjoy the

benefits of

forgiveness

and life

with him

through his

son,

Jesus Christ.

And so

the bondage

that Adam

and Eve

welcomed us

into because

of their

sin,

because of

them rejecting

the authority

of God

by saying,

no,

we're going

to become

gods of

our own,

making,

we're going

to do

what we

want to

do,

we're going

to step

outside the

bounds of

what we've

been told

to do

in terms

of this

delegated

authority

that had

been handed

to them,

let us make

man in

our own

image.

That's what

God built

into the

design that

God had

made

humanity

was to

exercise

this dominion.

Let them

have

dominion

over the

fish of

the sea,

the birds

of the air,

and all

the creeping

things that

creep on

the earth.

That's what

we were

designed to

do,

but what

Adam and

Eve decide

instead is

we're going

to push

against this

one directive,

don't eat

of the tree

in the midst

of the garden,

on the day

you eat of

it you will

surely die,

and they

say,

no,

we're going

to be

like gods

and we're

going to

do this

anyway.

And so

Jesus came

to fundamentally

change that.

He came

to reestablish

His authority,

reestablish what

that righteous

delegated authority

looks like,

that Jesus

submitted to

the Father,

not my will

but yours

be done,

He becomes

this second

Adam so

that now we

as a humanity

can enjoy the

benefits of

being in this

new Adam

through faith

and forgiveness

of sins.

I love

how Abraham

Kuyper

so famously

puts this,

he says,

there is not

a square inch

in the whole

domain of

our human

existence over

which Christ

who is sovereign

over all does

not cry,

mine.

Christ is

king.

we preach

His

message.

Have you

submitted

your life

to the

kingship

of Christ?

You see,

because

we have

a kingdom

message,

we have the

joy of

proclaiming

that message.

What a

privilege.

And finally,

finally we have

a promised

power.

we have a

promised

power,

we see

that in

verses 4

and 5.

It says,

and while

staying with

them,

He ordered

them not

to depart

from Jerusalem

but to

wait for

the promise

of the

Father,

which He

said,

you heard

from me,

for John

baptized with

water,

but you

will be

baptized with

the Holy

Spirit not

many days

from now.

We're going

to be

developing

this strain

of thought

for the

next several

weeks.

There's a

lot to

understand,

but the

joy of

this message

that the

disciples are

receiving is

that they're

not going to

be working

to carry out

this unstoppable

mission on

their own

power.

Not their

power,

God's

power,

promised

power,

Holy Spirit

power.

And so what

do they need

to do?

Well,

they need to

go and

wait.

Wait for

God to

allow them

to enjoy

the benefits

of that

power.

power.

And how

does

benefits of

that power

happen?

Well,

it happens

one way.

It happens

as you

wait and

pray.

You're

praying for

God to

produce power

in your

life through

His Holy

Spirit.

And those

who have

bent the

knee to

Jesus Christ,

bowed the

knee in

faith to

Him,

asking for

forgiveness

of sin,

and believing

in the

resurrection,

His death,

His

resurrection,

there is

a promised

power.

The Holy

Spirit is

guaranteed for

those who

believe.

What's

really

interesting is

we have

access to

all this

power.

And yet,

the Apostle

Paul wants,

he wants

the church

especially to

understand how

little they

access the

power that

God has

given to

them.

How many

times have

you heard

yourself say,

or heard

others say,

I just

can't help

myself.

I've said

it.

You feel

in bondage

to your

sin?

You feel

like you

just can't

get out

of the

rut?

You feel

like all

the things

that are

happening

around you

are inescapable?

You feel

bound by

certain

patterns in

your life?

You haven't

accessed the

power of the

Spirit to

set yourself

free and

enjoy the

benefits of

a life with

God that

is full of

power?

Look at how

the Apostle

Paul prays

in Ephesians.

Ephesians

Ephesians 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3.

And I'll

close with

this before

we move to

our time of

communion.

This is

amazing.

What a

promise.

Paul says,

for this

reason I

bow my

knees before

the Father

from whom

every family

in heaven

and on

earth is

named.

That according

to the riches

of his glory

he may grant

you to be

strengthened

with power

through his

spirit in

your inner

being.

Now just

pause for a

moment.

Paul is

praying for

the church

because they

have power

available but

they're not

using it.

They're not

enjoying it.

They're not

experiencing it.

And my

guess is that

everyone in

this room has

struggled with

that at some

point or the

other and may be

struggling with

that even

now.

You feel

powerless.

Well God

has granted

power through

his spirit that

we can enjoy.

And not just

any kind of

power.

Strengthened

with power.

This is

dynamite kind

of power.

This is

unstoppable

power.

And it goes

on.

So that

Christ may

dwell in

your hearts

through faith

that you

being rooted

and grounded

in love

may have

strength to

comprehend

with all the

saints what

is the

breadth and

length and

height and

depth and

to know the

love of Christ

that surpasses

knowledge that

you may be

filled with

the fullness

of God.

Now that's

power.

Power to be

absolutely transformed

from the inside

out from all

of the stuff

in your life

that you're

embarrassed about

ashamed about

and rightly

so.

But the power

of the spirit

wants to come

and to resolve

that in you.

He wants to

fundamentally

transform us.

And here's

what happens

when we pray

that prayer.

Ephesians

Ephesians 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3

this is the

next few

verses

verse 20

says

now

to him

who is

able

to do

exceedingly

abundantly

above

all

that we

ask or

think.

I'm going to

read that

again because

my guess is

we don't

believe this.

To him

who is

able

to do

exceedingly

abundantly

above all

that we

ask or

think

according to

the power

that works

in us.

Holy Spirit

power

working in

your life

to accomplish

purposes.

To him

be the glory

in the church

by Christ

Jesus

to all

generations

forever

and ever.

Amen.

Holy Spirit

power

you and I

both have

access to.

It happens

as we submit

to God's

program

and pray

for him

to do

his work.

Oh may

God help

us to

enjoy the

benefits

of his

power.

Let me

pray.

Lord thank

you for

your program.

This

unstoppable

program.

This very

simple

program as

it relates

to

understanding

at least

how it's

supposed to

work.

Oh Father

I pray that

you'd forgive

us.

Not only

for getting

in the way

of your

pattern

your design

for how

things are

supposed to

happen

but

Lord

I dare

say

we not

just

get in

the way

but we

absolutely

oppose

your plan

because we

want something

different.