Mission Vineyard Live Church Service

Come on through. Come on down to the

Price is Right.

Have you ever seen The Price is Right?

>> Oh my goodness.

>> I know what that is.

>> Yeah. So they they they call people from

the audience on stage to like be

contestants. And so they're always like

bl you're this person. Come on down so

the price is right.

>> Good morning.

Welcome Mission Vineyard. I'm excited to

be with you this morning.

Let's come together and praise the Lord.

>> Come on down. Feels appropriate right

now.

>> All right. So, um

this week of Advent, the theme is joy.

So, we are going to start with joy to

the world.

And joy to the world is a proclamation

song. Joy to the world is our chance to

proclaim to the world that Jesus has

come and that this is good news.

Um before we start singing and uh

bringing songs of worship to the Lord,

let's read our um morning declaration,

our in statement of intent of what we're

here to do.

Great.

You can say this with me. We are here to

encounter the love of the living God.

Worshiping father, son, and holy spirit.

We reject chasing all other competing

spirits and idols including reputation,

status, and control. Completely forgiven

and totally accepted in Christ. We

welcome Jesus to be Lord of all life.

>> Come Holy Spirit.

>> Yes. Come Holy Spirit. We welcome you

here today. We are here to worship the

Lord and to proclaim the good news that

Jesus has come. Proclaim to the world

that there is joy in him.

Joy to the world, the Lord is come. Let

earth receive her king.

Let every heart prepare him room. And

heaven and nature sing. And heaven and

nature sing. And heaven and heaven and

nature sing.

Joy to the world, the Savior reigns. Let

men their songs employ.

While fields and floods, rocks, hills,

and plains repeat the sounding joy.

Repeat the sounding joy. Repeat, repeat

the sounding joy.

He rules the world with truth and grace

and makes the nations true.

the glories of his rightousness

and wonders of his love and wonders of

his love and wonders and wonders of his

love.

Joy to the world, the Lord is

receive her king.

Let every heart prepare him room. And

heaven and nature sing. And heaven and

nature sing. And heaven and heaven and

nature sing.

Joy to the world, the Savior reigns. Let

men their songs and glory.

Rocks, hills, and

rocks, hills, and plains repeat the

sounding joy. Repeat the sounding joy.

Repeat, repeat the sounding joy.

Joy to the world, the Lord is come. Let

earth receive her king.

Let every heart prepare him ru. And

heaven and nature sing. And heaven and

nature sing.

And heaven and heaven and nature and

heaven

and heaven and heaven and nature

sing.

Amen.

Think we're going to have an advent

reading about joy.

You can all sit down while we have the

advent reading.

Jesus is the source of our joy. God's

answer to a hurting empty world has

never been more stuff. He didn't send

bigger barns, better gifts, or brighter

lights. He gave the only thing that

could truly heal us, himself. A tiny

baby wrapped in love, placed in the arms

of a young mother, quiet carpenter.

The most priceless, most personal gift

ever given. That's why real joy this

Christmas isn't found in what's under

the tree. It's found in who's around it.

It's found laughter that spills late

into the night. The quiet conversations

over coffee. The forgiveness

offered in presence chosen over

presents.

Luke Luke 2 10 through 11. But the Lord

But the angel said to them, "Do not be

afraid. I bring you good news. It will

bring great joy for all the people.

Today in the town of David, a savior has

been born to you. He is the Messiah, the

Lord.

John 1:14.

John 1:14

So the word became human and made his

home among us. He He was full of

unfailing love and faithfulness.

And he

have seen and we have seen his glory,

the glory of the father's one and only

son.

This third candle is a candle of joy. It

reminds us

the savior who filled heaven with joy

has come to fill our ordinary days with

the same Jesus has come. Jesus is here.

Jesus is coming again. Come Lord Jesus.

Awaken joy in us today and every day. We

light the joy candle. We focus on the

people God has placed in our lives and

the

blessing

they are. We thank you for these

priceless gifts and the joyful memories

you have for us. Amen.

>> Amen.

>> Thank you. I invite in invite you to

stand if you're able. Worship some more.

Heat.

There's joy in the house of the Lord.

There's joy in the house of the Lord

today.

And we won't be quiet.

We'll shout out your praise. There's joy

in the house of the Lord. Our God is

surely in this place. And we won't be

quiet.

We shout out your praise.

We'll shout out your praise.

>> We worship the God who was.

>> We worship the God who was. We worship

the God who is. We worship the God who

ever more will be.

>> He parted the prison doors. He parted

the raging seas. My God, he holds the

victory.

There's joy.

>> There's joy in the house of the Lord.

Sorry y'all. In the house of the Lord

today. And we won't be quiet.

We shout out your praise. There's joy in

the house of the Lord. Our God is surely

in this place. And we won't be quiet.

We shout out joy.

>> There's joy. There's joy in the house of

the Lord. There's joy in the house of

the Lord today. And we won't be quiet.

We shout out your praise. There's joy in

the house of the Lord. Our God is surely

in this place. And we won't be quiet.

We'll shout out your praise.

>> We sing to the God who heals. We sing to

the God who heals. We sing to the God

who saves. We sing to the God who always

makes a way.

>> Cuz he hung up on that cross and he rose

up from that grave. My God still rolling

stones away.

There's joy in the house of the Lord.

There's joy in the house of the Lord

today. And we won't be quiet.

We'll shout out your praise. There's joy

in the house of the Lord. Our God is

surely in this place and we won't be

quiet.

We shout out your praise.

>> We were the beggars. We were the

beggars.

Now we're royalty.

We were the prisoners.

Now we're running free. We are forgi,

accepted, redeemed by his grace. Let the

house of the Lord sing praise.

>> We were the beggars.

>> We were the beggars,

now we're royalty.

We were the prisoners,

now we're running free. We are forgiven,

accepted, redeemed by his grace. Let the

house of the Lord sing praise.

There's joy in the house of the Lord.

There's joy in the house of the Lord

today. And we won't be quiet.

We shout out your praise. There's joy in

the house of the Lord. Our God is surely

in this place and we won't be quiet.

We'll shout out your praise.

>> We'll shout out your praise,

oh God.

>> We'll shout out your praise. We praise

you, Lord.

Praise you, Jesus.

The Lord is listening to our praises.

He's listening to our songs to him this

morning. So, I invite you to sing songs

of praise that come from your heart or

maybe even just the lyrics.

Sing to the Lord right now. There's joy.

Oh, there's joy in you, God. We praise

your name, Jesus.

Thank you, Lord, for all you've done.

Thank you for your spirit here with us.

Thank you, Lord, for sending Jesus.

Oh, we rejoice in you.

Yes, we rejoice in you, Jesus.

We rejoice in your goodness.

Thank you, Lord. Thank you for listening

to us every morning, for bending your

ear to hear us. We thank you, Jesus. We

love you.

and you've come. For you've come

to bring peace,

to be loved,

to be nearer to us. And you've come

to bring light,

to be light,

to shine brighter in us. Though we met,

you are

God with us.

Our deliverer,

you are savior.

In your presence we find our strength

over everything.

Our redemption

are with us.

You are God

with us.

And you've come

to behold

to this world

for your honor and name. You come

to take sin,

to bear shame,

and to coner the grave. Oh man, you

are.

>> Sing that verse again. You've come.

You've come

to behold

to this world

for your honor and name. And you've come

to take sin,

to bear shame,

and to coner the grave. Oh, we

are.

You are God.

with us. Our deliverer,

our deliverer.

You are savior.

In your presence we find our strength

over everything.

Our redemption

with us.

You are God with our deliverer.

Our

deliverer,

you are savior.

In your presence we find our strength

over everything.

Our redemption

are with us.

You are God with us.

You are here.

You are holy.

We are standing

in your glory.

You are here.

You are holy.

We are standing

in your glory.

You are here.

You are holy.

We are standing

in your glory.

You are here.

You are holy.

We are standing

in your glory Lord,

our deliverer,

our deliverer.

You are savior.

In your presence we find our strength

over everything. Our redemption

God with us.

You are God

with us.

Oh God with us.

You are God

with.

Amen. Thank you Lord.

So every week we get to come together to

the table of the Lord Jesus. It's a

table of hope. It's a table of peace.

It's a table of joy.

This doesn't come as a place of

negotiation.

We don't come to the table and say,

"I've got this much, God."

Jesus died for us. And so, the covenant

is offered to us, a covenant of peace.

And the exchange we make is that of

repentance.

We say, "Lord, I surrender. I surrender

everything I've done. I surrender

everything even that I want to do except

to be with you." It's a step of faith

that says, "I believe, God, that you are

everything that I need and that

everything that you want will be

accomplished.

And so begin with me."

Through Christ's blood on the cross, God

reconciled everything to himself.

everything in heaven, everything on

earth, and that includes you. Once far

away, once his enemy, once separated by

evil thoughts and actions, but now

through the death of Christ in his

physical body, we have been reconciled.

We cannot make this peace. Jesus is

peace and he offers us himself.

We come repenting. We come turning from

our negotiated truses, from our secret

sins that exhaust us, from the

compromises of our witness. We come

receiving reconciliation

and joy

because Jesus sits at the table with us,

seeing us face to face as we truly are,

nothing hidden anymore, and embraces us

fully in peace. So, as you come eating

this bread and drinking this cup, we get

to proclaim at the table, face to face

with Jesus, that he is God in all of his

fullness. And he is pleased in joy to

dwell with us, face to face.

And through him, we have peace with

everything by means of his blood on the

cross. It was on the night that he was

betrayed that he took bread and he broke

it and he said, "This is my body broken

for you." It was the night he was

betrayed that he poured out the cup and

he said, "This is my blood, the blood of

the new covenant. You get to re be

renewed again. You get to come a new

again." And so today, come to this table

as people are offering you the hope and

the peace and the joy of Jesus and take

him in. Receive him fully. Be renewed.

Come to the table.

You are here.

You are holy.

We are standing

in your glory.

You are here.

You are holy.

We are standing

in your glory.

You are here.

You are holy.

We are standing

in your glory.

You are here.

You are holy.

We are standing

in your glory.

You are here.

You are holy.

We are standing

in your glory.

You are here.

You are holy.

We are standing

in your glory.

You are here.

You are holy.

We are standing

in your glory. Lord

our deliverer.

You are savior.

In your presence we find our strength

over everything.

Our redemption

God

with our deliverance. You are God

with us.

Our deliverer.

You are savior.

In your presence we find our strength

over everything.

Our redemption.

God

with us.

You are God with us.

Together

we join together with churches all over

the world celebrating this table

acknowledging Jesus blood and body for

our sin

and also praying the prayer that Jesus

taught us to pray. And so in your own

language, in your heart language, would

you pray this prayer with me? Our

Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be

thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be

done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give

us this day our daily bread. Forgive us

of our trespasses as we forgive those

who trespass against us. And lead us not

into temptation, but deliver us from

evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the

power, and the glory forever.

>> Amen. Amen.

>> Amen. Take a minute. We're going to take

a break. Say hi to somebody. And uh

we'll be back in just a minute with some

announcements.

>> Your face.

Don't look I in me the

I me

the bear.

the

mech.

What can I step be

on

my little

Check tests.

Oh, no more.

I see.

Good morning. Good morning. If we can

start making our way back to our seats,

please.

>> Good morning.

>> Good morning everyone.

Welcome. Welcome on this cool, blustery

December day. That was hot yesterday.

Good morning.

Well, just in case I didn't get to meet

you this morning, if you are visiting

for the first time, my name is Arita and

we welcome you this morning. I do have a

couple of quick announcements for you

all. Um, if this is your first Sunday

worshiping with us, we do have a welcome

bag for you. There's information about

the vineyard, our church, Jesus, the

most important person in this bag, as

well as something we call a mana bag.

So, as you're driving about the city and

you encounter someone who's in need, we

have these bags. We actually have extras

under the back table because all the

ones we had out were taken already, but

we do have more under the table. But

these mana bags are our gift to you for

you to give away to somebody else. So,

please feel free to grab one as you're

going. Um, also if you are new or if you

have been here for forever but you've

moved or your email address has changed

and you want to give us updated info,

feel free to fill this card out or you

may go to uh connect.mission.org and

fill it out online if you have horrible

handwriting. That is preferable. Um, and

then on the back side we have a prayer

request card. Um, every Tuesday we have

a team of people that pray for the needs

of our community and they love praying

for um, real requests. Otherwise, they

just trust the Holy Spirit to guide them

in their prayers. But feel free to put

the card either side in the giving

baskets in just a few moments. I do have

a couple of quick announcements. Uh

first, tonight is Christmas carolling,

our annual Christmas caroling event. It

is super fun. We are going to be

partnering with our campus Vignia. Um

they'll be well, they'll be bringing the

trucks and trailers and then we also

have a handicap accessible trolley. So,

if you see the trolleys driving around

downtown San Antonio, I actually saw one

this morning as I was driving here. Um,

we have a trolley approved route and

then a truck approved route. Uh, the

trolley can't make it on the low tree

hanging streets, but we'll meet here in

the lower duam parking lot, kind of like

the main entrance that you drive in.

We'll meet park there and load up on the

trucks and trolleys, meet here at by

5:45 so we can head out by 6 and we'll

drive around for just about an hour and

have some fun. So, all these little

invitations on your chairs are

invitations to our Christmas Eve

service.

Tonight, we'll be handing these out to

people that we encounter through the

neighborhood. We will have candy cans

attached to these. This is a

kid-friendly event tonight. And then our

Christmas Eve service on the 24th is at

5:00 p.m. here at the museum. We will

have child care for K children three and

under. And then we'll have activities

here in the service for kids who are

four and up to participate in during the

service. But about Christmas Eve, I am

intentionally wearing my very bright red

and white shirt because it says peace,

love, joy, and cookies. Every year on

Christmas Eve, we bring cookies to the

service and then we make plates for as

people leave Christmas Eve, they can go

out into the community with their plate

of cookies to bless somebody who has to

work on Christmas Eve. It's our way of

saying thank you. We see you. We

appreciate your service to our community

and merry Christmas. So, if you want to

participate in that or if you're not

even going to be here for Christmas Eve,

but you still want to bring cookies,

feel free to bring them next Sunday in a

container that I can take them home in

and bring them back on Christmas Eve.

But we'll make plates, hand them out as

we go out after Christmas Eve service,

but that will be a candlelight service

at 5:00 p.m. here on the 24th.

Oh, yes. Those are the last three years

of Christmas carolling. It's lots of

fun. You can wear sometimes it's warm,

sometimes it's cold. Feel free to wear

your ugly Christmas sweaters, Santa

hats, but we just have a great time of

sharing uh Christmas joy and cheer with

our community here together and also in

the neighborhood. I'm going to ask the

people who are passing the giving

baskets to come forward. I'm going to

pray for our giving and for the rest of

our service.

Heavenly Father, I thank you so much for

every good gift you give. I thank you

Lord for hope, peace, joy, and cookies.

I thank you Lord for uh Stephen Finikaro

as he's about ready to share the word

with us this morning. And Lord I pray

that we would um come to know you more

through this uh message and the

remainder of our service in Jesus name.

Amen.

Hey, good morning.

Pray with me real quick.

Lord, I pray that you might push me out

of the way and bring a word to your

people. Not one that pleases the ear,

but one that speaks to the soul, a word

from you. Lord, in your holy and

precious name, I pray. Amen.

Hey, good morning. Uh my name is Stephen

and I love being a member of this

church. It is my third time preaching

here. Um and for those of you who are

there previously, this will also be my

third time preaching uh partially

through the story of King David, which

is all incidental.

But this is week three of Advent. Uh

it's the joy candle we saw lit and read

so beautifully earlier.

It's a recurring theme in Christmas,

right? We sing joy to the world, the

Lord has come. And it's this

paradigmatic shift that changed the

score of eternity forever. And I've

heard a lot of preachers, right, when

you preach about joy, they want to uh

talk about, well, happiness and and joy.

And I I just I don't know if that's

really all that helpful or sometimes

incorrect. So, it's not what I want to

address today.

I want to talk about where this story

comes from. Jesus's birth is a chapter

in a long running story. Jesus came to

live, to teach, to suffer, and to die

among us. The long-awaited savior came

after 400

years of silence.

The people of God waiting on a savior.

They need good news. They're waiting to

be freed. They're waiting on a savior.

And Jesus comes as the savior. He's the

good news. He's come to set the captives

free. He tells us this later in Luke

Luke 4:18

4:18.

and he's invited each one of you to be a

part of that good news, the story of the

kingdom of God. So about 540 years

before Luke's gospel is written, and

that's we're going to be reading today.

We heard some of the children read from

it. Uh the Israelites returned from

exile. They'd been in diaspora in

Babylon, uh modern day Baghdad,

right? Some chose to remain in the

diaspora partially because they have

established lives there. Some of them

are too old. They're not healthy enough

to travel back across the globe and and

restart life. But if you'll remember,

they come back and the temple is gone.

Their security is gone. We have the

story of Nehemiah, right? Building these

walls, building the temple. You've got

the guards, right? They're they're

working half the time and they're

standing arm guard half the time.

Well, they start to rebuild. And by the

time we get to the end of Malachi, which

is the end of our New Testament, or in

the Jewish um test, sorry, Old

Testament, or in the Jewish tradition, 2

Chronicles would be the last thing.

At the end of this gap, there's this

400-year silence.

The people of Israel are in a terrible

situation. So, they find themselves in

between two massive empires, right?

You've got the Roman Empire and you've

got the Parththeians to the east. And

I've got some of my professors nodding.

Yeah,

these two empires, they hate each other.

So, you've got Mark Anthony in the

Parthion Empire and Herod Antipass who

are just constantly engaging in war.

Well, does anyone know what happens when

both of your neighbors are at war and

they hate each other?

Well, you're right in the middle.

Especially when you don't have walls,

when you don't have a temple.

In fact, there's strong reason to

believe the magi when they come to

celebrate Jesus, they do this as an act

of war against Herod,

right? Because at this time, the Roman

Empire in Herod has uh Israel under its

dominion.

So the magi, they come from the Parthion

Empire.

Now, because the Jewish folks had lived

again in Baghdad and Babylon as part of

the Parthan kingdom, they're really

familiar with the kingdom prophecies.

They know all the Jewish stories because

they've lived among them, right? Daniel

is one of their chief people for a very

long time. So they see the star and they

hear its alignments with the Jewish

prophesi prophecies and they set out 900

miles on foot.

Uh for those who are curious cuz I I had

to do the math. Um if you walked 95

miles from this church, you would be in

Tallahassee, Florida.

If you planned on walking 15 miles a

day, that would be two months.

They set out on foot

carrying frankincense, myrrh, and gold,

valuables.

So, not only are they walking for 2

months into the desert, they're doing so

with armed guards, probably a lot of

them, because they don't want to be

raided carrying all these valuable

things.

So you've got these wise men at the head

of the Parthion Empire marching into

Roman territory with soldiers to declare

a new king within the Roman Empire.

That's an act of war.

So this isn't an isolated undertaking of

three wise men, which by the way, uh the

number three doesn't appear in

scripture. We just attribute that

because it's frankincense golden myrr.

This is a proclamation by significant

earthly power that new power has come.

The people were desperate for God to

deliver them from these two waring

empires. And the silence gets

interrupted in in really just the most

Jesus way possible. So, let me read the

scripture for you. This is Luke 28-12.

And I'll be reading from the NIV.

There were shepherds living out in the

fields nearby, keeping watch over their

flocks at night. An angel of the Lord

appeared to them, and the glory of the

Lord shone around them. And they were

terrified.

But the angel said to them, "Do not be

afraid. I bring you good news that will

cause great joy for all the people.

Today in the town of David, a savior has

been born to you. He is the Messiah, the

Lord. This will be a sign to you. You

will find a baby wrapped in cloths and

lying in a manger." That's the word of

the Lord. Thanks be to God.

So this good news that will cause great

joy for all the people. This is the next

chapter. The long- aaited deliverance of

the people of God. The story of the

people of God is filled with sadness,

with exile, genocide, war, murder,

abuse, demons, slavery,

but it's also filled with miracles,

deliverance, an enduring message of hope

and love. But the story don't miss it is

one story that moves all throughout

scripture. Right? The reason the gospel

according to Matthew appears first in

your New Testament is not because it was

written first, but because it's the most

Jewish in those Jewish audience of the

Gospels. So when we got together and put

together the New Testament, right, part

of the rationale was we're going to put

Matthew first. So you know that this

whole Jewish story that you've gotten,

it's it's still the same story. It may

be a new covenant, but the story

continues.

The rest of the gospels appear in order

that they're written, at least by date

of the earliest manuscripts that we can

find. So, this is God's story and

Jesus's moment becomes the biggest

moment of the story so far. So, the

shepherds were living out in fields,

right? They're keeping watch over their

flocks. They're living outside in the

Middle East. And no matter what time of

year it is, that's miserable.

These men are overlooked. They're low in

the social structure.

They are suffering and they're

unimportant to society.

But the Lord chooses these people to

break his silence. And let me remind you

Jesus comes as a descendant of David.

Earlier in this passage is Luke 2:4 or

Luke 2:4

2:4. So Joseph went up to the town of

Nazareth in Galilee to Judea that to

Bethlehem, the town of David because he

belonged to the house and line of David.

So, these shepherds are living life

exactly as David did as a boy. Right?

For those who don't remember, um I don't

think I have the passage up here, but in

1st Samuel 16, the prophet Samuel comes

to David's dad, to Jesse, and says, "I'm

going to anoint one of your sons as

king."

Jesse has eight sons, and he says, "All

right, bring me the seven oldest."

So, the seven oldest stand up and and

Samuel kind of goes through and says,

"No, the Lord's not telling it's not

this one. No, no, it's not this one. No,

no, it's not this one. And he gets to

the end and he looks at uh Jesse,

David's dad, and he says, "Do you have

any more sons?" Oh, we just got the one

shepherd out in the field. So, they

bring him in, and surely enough, right,

this becomes the only man attributed

after God's own heart, the one who

establishes the lineage of Jesus.

He was so overlooked, he was overlooked

by his own father.

When the world was desperate to hear

from God and needed a savior, God

continued the story and included those

who are not considered.

And that's good for you. That's good for

me

because God is inviting us into his

story to receive joy and to proclaim the

good news.

So, just up the road from here at uh

Baylor's Institute for of Studies for

Religion, they're conducting this global

flourishing study that I've just been

fascinated with. Um and we could do a

whole sermon on the findings of this

study. I think we could do a whole

series, but they illuminate things and

truths about following God in today's

world and in today's America.

Uh they they're studying 22 countries.

They're identifying six different

categories of human flourishing.

And in this they identified these two

major barriers to flourishing in the

United States.

Close social relationships

and meaning and purpose. They found that

across America, people are not thriving.

They're not flourishing because they

don't have close social relationships

and meaning and purpose.

And what I believe and what I want to

present to you today that being a part

of God's kingdom story answers both

these issues. So let's return back to

the biblical story. So the angel appears

and he gives this proclamation. Do not

be afraid. I bring you good news that

will cause great joy for all the people.

Today in the town of David, a savior has

been born to you. He is the Messiah, the

Lord. Today in the town of David, right?

The angel brings us back to the town of

David. It draws this clear parallel in

hindsight. But this proclamation comes

from God to God's people.

The news that causes great joy isn't for

the farmers. It isn't for the priests or

the royalty, for Mary and Joseph. It is

for all the people. As Paul would say

later, there is neither Jew nor Gentile,

male nor free, female, slave nor free.

Just to reiterate, Ray, an angel appears

to the shepherds forgotten in the field

with good news that will cause great joy

for all the people.

This is part of our transition, right?

We've come from the God of Israel to

good news that will be great joy for all

the people.

This connects to the Davidic history

prefacing Jesus's ministry. We've been

given the gospel, the eangelon, uh, as

it's said in Greek, right? That is a

translation of good news.

What a cause for joy. The angels, even

as they bring something new, even as

they proclaim the good news, the gospel

is for all people are connecting back to

God's great story.

They're in the middle of a census,

right? That's why David's gone back. So

when this baby is born in the city of

David, what can the shepherds assume?

Well, one, this is someone born in the

lineage of David. But two, this is a

season

where immigrants and exiles have been

gathered back to their ancestral homes

to measure military might and to collect

tax income.

So who does God send? Well, God sends a

baby. A baby with no military might and

who does not make or spend money to be

taxed.

The sign that God delivers is a baby

wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.

God's power doesn't need state power.

When God brings deliverance, he sends a

baby. When the people of God are

oppressed and they needed a leader, he

sends an utterly dependent newborn.

When the people of Israel needed a king,

he sent a shepherd who wasn't even

considered by his own father.

The most important news the world has

ever heard comes, he gives it to

shepherds. When the resurrection comes,

the messages were laid by women with so

low social status. And this is just this

is what God does all throughout history,

right? When he needs someone to speak to

Pharaoh and set his people free, who

does he choose? Well, the murderer with

the speech impediment, just like you and

I would choose, right?

At one point he spoke through a donkey.

Abraham was a hundred years old and

notably a coward

when God tells him, "You will be the

father of many nations."

Rahab, all we get about her is that she

is an inkeeper slaying for maybe maybe

slaying for prostitute.

She frees or she uh rescues the search

party of the Israelites and becomes a

part of Jesus Jesus's lineage.

God's chosen people

are a part of his story and they're ones

that no one would select.

The unlikely, the immoral, the broken,

the useless, the outsider, the me and

the you.

And God has given us an opportunity to

be a part of that story. That's good

news. You see, because we're a part of

this story, we have some people that we

belong with, some things that we need to

do because the son of man didn't come

for you to be forgiven, work, just to

sustain yourself, and then die. The son

of man comes to bring you into his

kingdom in his kingdom story.

Does anyone remember the last charge we

get from Jesus? It's the end of John

John 21 · chapter mention

chapter 21 and and it should be on the

screen in just a moment.

The the Jesus who's revealed to a bunch

of shepherds. He's the great great great

great grandson of the shepherd turned

king. This is John 21:15 to17.

John 21:15–17

When they finished eating, Jesus said to

Simon Peter, "Son of Simon, son of John,

do you love me more than these?" "Yes,

Lord." He said, "You know that I love

you?" Jesus said, "Feed my lambs."

And again Jesus said,"Simon, son of

John, do you love me?" He answered,

"Yes, Lord, you know that I love you."

Jesus said, 'Take care of my sheep.' The

third time he said to him,"Simon, son of

John, do you love me?" Peter was hurt

because Jesus asked him the third time,

"Do you love me?" He said, "Lord, you

know all things. You know I love you."

And Jesus said, "Feed my sheep." That's

the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

So Jesus ends his earthly ministry and

resurrection telling us to feed his

sheep and lambs to take care of his

sheep. The king in his kingdom story

tells us to be shepherds

to live amongst his people to serve them

to love them. And he does it in this

redemptive way. Right? Peter, if you'll

remember about a week before he denied

Jesus three times.

So Jesus comes back to him and gives him

a chance. He asks him three times,

"Peter, do you love me?"

And he gives him three opportunities to

say yes. And the scriptures, right, they

even tell us Peter's feelings were hurt.

We don't get that a lot in scripture.

Like, hey, there's hurt feelings here

because he's reminded even in his

resurrection, Jesus knew of his

feelings. But this redemptive call is

Jesus's commission to us, to all of us.

The mission isn't for those called

overseas. The mission isn't just for

those living comfortably and have margin

to help others.

The mission isn't for grown adults. The

mission of the kingdom of God is for all

of us who call Jesus Lord and Savior.

What a joy, right? The term Christian,

it means little Christ.

So Jesus who tells us he is the good

shepherd tells us to do shepherd things.

to he says if you love him to take care

of his sheep to feed his lambs

to love his people

in a world filled with nihilism with

self-indulgence isolationism and

individualism the God who created

everything has given you a mission.

He's given you a purpose. He's imbued

you with distinct talents, gifts, and

context that no one else in the world

can do.

And when I think of joy, I believe that

joy is found in us living into our

mission, into our part of God's kingdom

story. So the question I would ask you

is, who or what do you shepherd? Where

has God placed you in this season? And

who does that give you the unique

opportunity to love and care for? Where

is the Lord waiting to bless you with

community and purpose in his mission?

What do does the good news that will

bring great joy to all the people do for

you? See, here at Mission Vineyard, we

have a tagline for this. Everyone gets

to play.

There is no shortage of opportunities

for you to be part of God's story by

engaging with life here and among his

people. There are people upstairs right

now who are blessing the children of

this church. There is worship ministry

who comes every week

and puts their hearts, efforts, and

talents into bringing us closer to God.

I've been here about a year and a half

now, and I think every single Sunday

I've been here, I've been greeted at the

door by Greg, right? Doing one thing to

make this place a little better.

There are small groups that create

places for people to belong. There are

greeters and coffee makers, those

putting up the signs out front, serving

communion, running audiovisisual,

right? Every single one is playing a

part of God's kingdom establishment and

ongoing story.

The foster parents we heard from last

week, the foster parents, I think we're

going to hear from again this week if I

don't run too long next week,

are telling us about different ways

they've said yes to God.

When you make or give away mana bags,

you are writing some portion of God's

story to someone who needs to hear it.

There are countless real ways to follow

this call,

to engage in God's story and experience

the joy of service.

Whether that be in time, whether that be

in talent, whether that be in treasure,

God has invited you in to participate.

All I would ask is that you

pray first. You sit at the feet of the

father and be sure that you're

transformed by the renewing of your

mind, knowing his will. Please pray with

me.

God, we thank you

for a story

that we get to be a part of.

for choosing the unlikely, the

unmmerited,

the ills suited.

Because that's us,

Lord, for deliverance that doesn't look

like anyone would have chosen, but God

is perfect because we know your ways are

perfect.

>> Thank you for a chance to be among your

people today to have purpose.

I pray that you might help us to know

you better. One in precious name we

pray. Amen.

Thanks, Stephen, so much. Isn't it fun

to have people in our community sharing

through this Christmas season?

We are going to have um Ken and Arlene

share next week about their foster and

adoption story. And uh I'm going to

continue to remind you that this is a

season where Mission Vineyard typically

flips the script about Christmas where

instead of thinking about everything

that we have to buy and the anxiety

about spending, we think about what it

might mean to invest in people

differently. instead of giving them a

gift card or something like that to

invest in them more intentionally and

taking the price of that gift card and

giving it to One Hope for Kids that

helps uh encourage churches to raise up

new foster families for I think it's

3,000 children in the San Antonio area

that are currently orphans today. So,

what would it look like for the church

to adopt them all? I think that'd be

super super fun. Um so, uh continue to

have that in mind. You can go to

giving.mmission.org

org and uh give there or you can go

straight to the one hope for kids

website and give there. We're going to

end our service like we typically do

with Santa giving us words from the

Lord.

Uh this is Steve Meechum. Steve joins

with uh a bunch of people that pray at

9:00 right in the morning at 8:30.

They've gotten earlier since the service

has gotten earlier. Would you raise your

hand if you've ever been a part of that

pre-ervice prayer group? There are

people that meet before service to

listen to Jesus about what he might want

to do in the church service and reach

out to because sometimes we don't come

for prayer until God calls our number.

Uh and so these are just ways that we

risk for that. This is not the only time

of prayer that our church has. By the

way, if you've ever been at the Tuesday

uh midweek intercessory prayer meeting,

raise your hand. Anybody? Yeah, we've

got some as well. There are people

praying for you through the week. We

make sure that every single person at

Mission Vineyard has prayed for at some

point. So, Steve, would you lead us

through what God might want to be uh

praying for us this week?

Yeah, we didn't have as many this week,

but they're all good. So, the first one,

his name brings victory.

Do if if you are facing a situation

where you need some victory, come and u

receive some prayer,

let his name bring joy to you.

Joy

and uh peace and love in holiday family

gatherings.

Yes, we need that.

And clarity in our thinking.

Clarity in our thinking.

So, if one of these things uh one of

these items speaks to you, we would love

to pray for you. If you have another

need or um a need for healing, any any

other type of need, please, we would

love to pray with you today

right over here in the corner. Thank

you.

>> Um we're going to sing another worship

song. If you would stand with me if

you're able, we'll sing to the Lord

again.

Dwell in the midst of us.

Come and dwell in this place.

Dwell in the midst of us.

Come and have your way.

Dwell in the midst of us.

Wipe all the tears from our faces.

Dwell in the midst of us.

You can have your way.

Come have your way here, Lord.

Not

our will, but yours be done.

Come and change us not

our will but yours be done.

Come sustain

us not

our will but yours be done.

Come and shame us not.

How will by yours be done?

Come sustain

us.

You are

dwell in the midst of life.

Come and dwell in this place.

Dwell in the midst of us.

Come and have your way.

Dwell in the midst of us.

Wipe all the tears from our faces.

dwell in the midst of us.

And you can have your way,

Jesus.

You can have your way.

You can have your way here with us.

You can have your way.

you

not our will but yours be done.

Come and change us not

our will but yours be done.

Come sustain

us not.

How will but what yours be done?

Come and shame us not.

How will but yours be done?

Sustain

us.

Dwell in the midst of us. We invite you

here, oh God. Come and dwell in this.

Dwell in the midst of us.

Come and have your way. We invite you

here.

Come and have your way.

God

to have your way.

Come and have your way. We invite you.

Come and have your way.

It's all yours. It's all yours. It's all

yours. It's all yours. It's all yours.

Come have your weigh in us.

Come have your way in us.

Dwell in the midst of us.

Home and dwell in this place.

Dwell in the midst of us.

Come and have your way. Dwell in the

midst of us. Dwell in the midst of us.

Wipe all the tears from our faces.

Dwell in the midst of us.

>> You can have your way.

You can have your way.

Sometimes we see ourselves as unworthy.

Sometimes we see the road ahead too

difficult. Sometimes we don't feel like

we have the capacity, that we're too

busy. And yet God calls us to be

shepherds in our own context. And uh I I

often think that God does more sometimes

in our silence than in our activity. So

I'm going to allow just for a moment, a

full minute, we're going to be in

silence. And and I would ask you to pray

with me. Lord Jesus, would you show me

where you're asking me to shepherd?

Come, Holy Spirit.

Show us Lord as people getting prayed

for.

Lord, who is it that you have us to

serve?

Who is it that you're leading us to

share the good news with?

Who is it that you're already speaking

to? They just need a human to relate to

to show them the way.

Where are you asking me to serve God?

What do I need to give up to have more

capacity

to do what you're doing, Lord? To be a

part of what you're doing?

What's the step of faith that you have

for me, God?

Would you extend your hands to receive a

blessing to go out?

I bless you in the name of the father

and the son and the holy spirit to be a

part of god's mission in the world just

as you are to receive your choseness

from the king of kings and the lord of

lords to be a part of his good work in

the world especially in the season of

Christmas

you'd be filled with strength by the

power of the holy spirit and courage to

do that work I bless you in Jesus name

amen

would you please join us as we sing

through Mankey Park tonight. We're going

to have a blast. It's going to be so

fun. And then uh would you let us know

if you're going to be here for Christmas

Eve? I know a lot of people are

traveling, but we want to make sure that

we're hosting the best Christmas Eve

that we can. So before you leave, let us

know if you'll be here for Christmas

Eve. And uh have a great great day of

joy in Advent. God bless you. Amen.

Mhm.

Hallelujah.