One at a Time - Zoom Lens, Part 1

Have you ever felt like down deep, you really not doing enough for God like your life really isn't making much of a difference over to start a brand-new series today with my friend Kyle. I don't and he's going to share how Jesus made a difference in a way that's available for ordinary people just like you and me you don't want to miss.

Welcome to this Edition of Living on the Edge with tripping the mission of these daily programs is to intentionally disciple Christians the Bible to capture thanks for joining us as we begin a new series called time taught by her friends and just teacher Carlisle.

As society drifts from God's realize it's vitally important to turn around voices like Kyle sure different viewpoint for what were experiencing, we believe that through his insight and the wisdom of our entire teaching team we can better encourage and support Christians to really live like Christians over those don't know Kyle's a best-selling author, speaker, Emily Pastor at Southeast Christian Church Kentucky we've invited Kyle back again to share this meaningful series is adapted from his popular book titled one of the time for the next several programs will describe how we can genuinely engage in low people the way Jesus did get a little gave him a Bible turned out to Luke chapter 15 we begin by hearing Kyle's video introduction of the series is I recently googled the phrase most impactful person in history wasn't too surprised to find that time magazines already put together a list of the top 100 most influential people to ever live start scrolling through the list, wondering where Jesus would be on it and turn off right there at the top number one Jesus, I'm not too surprised by that I mean even if you don't believe Jesus is the son of God.

It's hard to deny the impact he's had on this world.

Think about it this way you can even write down today's date without acknowledging that all of history is divided into the time leading up to his birth and the time since back on it now and his impact seems obvious that when Jesus was born didn't seem like he was put in a position to have that kind of in fact, it didn't seem like things were in his favor to be a person with that kind of influence. Something to think about Jesus was born, the child of poor peasants grew up in this remote Podunk town lived in obscurity for 30 years to work as a carpenter never ventured more than a few hundred miles away from where he was born never went to college. He was never voted into office never had a title or position that would have looks good on a resume I Jesus didn't have no thousands of Facebook friends are millions of Instagram followers.

He wasn't tick-tock famous didn't have a YouTube channel.

He never tweeted thinking. Did he never even had his own podcast. He was a homeless preacher spent a few years traveling around preaching. He was arrested. He was sentenced to die common criminals death and here we are a couple of millennium later and he is time magazines most impactful person in the history of the world. So the question process to the conclusion I came one at a time when at a time like that said Jesus did life with zoom lens. Someone stood in front of him. Time stopped everything else in his life. All of concerns in his agenda and his plans. His goals is scheduled for the days put on pause. Everything seemed to blur into the background. The only thing that mattered was the person ending in front of him and Jesus change the way you seen these before is a coin viewer and it was created to help people focus in on things in the midst of a vast landscape. They are billed for the purpose of zooming in and staying focused on something that you wouldn't see if you're not looking through one time living starts with zoom lens is starts with learning how to focus this is where Jesus lived his life even when surrounded by crowds, he had a way of zooming in and seeing one person at a time. If you study the Gospels. It's really quite surprising how many stories there are just individual seemingly random people that interact with Jesus like a lot of the gospel real estate is committed to telling one at a time. Stories I would argue that that should be true of our life as well that if someone was going to tell our story, someone is going to put together a biography of our lives we would want our lives to be marked by our one at a time. Opportunities the one at a time. Moments that God gives us begins with living life with zoom lens that were able to focus in NC. Someone like really see them. Maybe you had a person do this for you in your life and you know the power of being seen and being noticed being cared for at a certain time, but it's hard for us to live life with zoom lenses is counterintuitive. We tend to live life with. Maybe you might call it a selfie lens that we we focus on ourselves more than we focus on others. There's a psychologist Martin Seligman, who is considered to be like the world's expert and happiness, which feels like a lot of pressure, but he lets the field of study. That's what he spent his life studying is what makes us happy. Humans and he writes a lot about the happiness paradox or the irony of happiness that we think what will make us happy is focusing on ourselves. Intuitively we just assume I'm not happy because I don't have enough of acts is that more of that is that more you fill in the blank more money, time, more chocolate, more pleasure, more whatever it is more of this. Then I'd be happy that we tend to think of it that he said it turns out that that more is always a moving target. We we always think will be happy we have more more is always a 10% away from whatever we have in the moment happiness paradox as he explains it is that not by putting ourselves at the center by focusing on ourselves that we find happiness is actually by focusing on other people see this as he did this experiment we had people in the study go out into one selfish act. One thing they knew they would personally bring them pleasure that I don't know what that would be for you but maybe identify like going to get ice cream at the sword on the road something like that. Some simple but something that would give you this momentary temporary pleasure that many had the same people go out into one purely altruistic act.

Something focus on other people and they did these tests and compared how those those people responded after doing these two different things and here's what he writes. He says the results were life-changing. The after go after glow of the pleasurable or selfish activity. Buying something at a store ordering something online, watching a movie, eating a hot fudge sundae.

Whatever it was paled in comparison with the effects of one selfless act for someone else. That's the happiness paradox.

Most people would say what's the purpose of life. They set out to be happy they think the way they're happy by focusing on themselves, but instead what we find is that it's zoom lens focusing on other people one at a time.

It's not just counterintuitive to live this way.

It's also countercultural digital marketing experts say that we are exposed to like 5000 ads a day not always aware of it but about 5000 that in every single lab begins with this assumption. The assumption is that you are missing something in your life and if you had it you would be happier. That's what every ad focuses on and so we have this idea in our consumer culture made through all of us if I just keep clicking and scrolling if I just keep ordering and subscribing.

If I if I just keep dating and it identified for schematics, then I'm I'm going to eventually find what will make me happy but but again it's always consumption. I just I need more in our culture would tend to look at relationships as commodities like I will do for you because I think you'll do for me like I'm in this because I think I can get something out of it. We tend to look at relationships that what this is and how Jesus lived his life and instead he had this way of seeing people one at a time, recognizing their need, having compassion on them, and doing something about it. Turn to Luke chapter 15 Luke 15 record first three different paragraphs prodigal son is the last and the most well-known of the three I want us to talk about the very first parable in Luke 15 was known as the parable of the lost sheep connect all three parables have a rhythm to them and they have this similar theme that Jesus sees Jesus saves and Jesus celebrates one at a time.

That's who he is. That's who he's called us to be. That's the mission he's invited us to be part of. He sees he saves. He celebrates and so Luke 15 we begin with this parable of the lost in the lost sheep, but that I want to say really focus in on who he's speaking into. So let's look at the audience. Luke 15 this is now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathered around to hear Jesus so this isn't your typical church crowd tax collectors and sinners would not even have been allowed in religious circles. The typical rabbi wouldn't have accepted them into the audience and yet what we find is that when Jesus is teaching there there the tax collectors and sinners. Here's what I want to see Jesus had a way of zooming in on the very people the religious community cropped out Jesus had a way of zooming in on the very people the religious community would crop out the tax collectors were the liars and cheats they had sold out their friends and family work for the Roman occupation getting money by stealing. Essentially, from their own people, so they were despised by the Jews first century. This is the sinners.

If you're thinking will isn't that everybody your writes like this that's true.

However, that's not how the religious community would categorize people they would would see sinners and couple different ways. People who send for a living so like a prostitute. As an example, or people who were known for his sin thing in terms of the Scarlet letter like their identity as a person was very much connected to something they did is connected to the same of their past and the religious community looks around and they see people that they categorize this way, tax collectors and and sinners verse two says the Pharisees and teachers of the loss of the these are the religious leaders muttered complaints whispered in critical tones amongst themselves.

This man Jesus. He welcomes sinners and eats with them.

Yet he does like they meant this as a criticism, but this is why Jesus came to seek and save that will which was lost. Jesus is not the healthy who need a doctor. It's the sick and so he does two things. He welcomes and he eats with them. Do you do that I will have to stop and ask myself to do I do that I guess I can make a case for welcoming how often I sit down and eat with them by then and I mean people led the religious community would often I want have anything to do with his role sinners were welcomes an interesting word is it doesn't mean like a reluctant acceptance it's it's a is an open armed embrace. Really, the word would be used in a family context is like to welcome someone as family is the does a close friends and so these religious leaders watch as Jesus welcomes the tax collectors and sinners like a father would welcome a son or daughter coming back home and they're not sure what to do with how to Jesus and Jesus have that kind of vision for people. I think it's because he zoomed in and he he saw them as a son and daughter right like he doesn't just see a tax collector.

He sees the sun and he knows the story of his son and he knows that he was a younger man. He just got off track and he didn't have much, and he thought his life would be so much easier if he just had a little bit more money to set some more stuff. And so, in this moment that he wishes he could take back as he walked away, turned his back on his family and his friends that he went to work for the Romans as a as a tax collector. Now that's that's who you he wishes he could do things differently, but he can but there's no path back to the man that he knows God wants him to be until he sees Jesus. Jesus sees him doesn't just see tax collector. He zooms in and he sees a son he doesn't just eat a prostitute he sees a daughter, and he knows he knows that this isn't really what she chose. He knows about the abuse he knows about the objectification eight he knows the way that she's been treated and he looks and he sees something in her that nobody else can. He sees a daughter.

Some of my favorite moments in the Gospels when Jesus unexpectedly refers to someone as a son or daughter as a father I understand I do anything earlier this week dropped off my youngest daughter at the airport she been home for the holidays, but she was flying to Brazil to dismiss and work with organization there for the next few months and and she flew into this city when the largest cities in the world. I didn't know exactly that she be in this huge city. And then I on the way there. She's telling me that there has been some time in the Amazon next month going to these different tribes and handing out Bibles and has a datum listening to this and you in my mind, and since then on paper I'm collecting all the contacts I have in Brazil right like putting them on speed dial and I have insurance where if something goes wrong, like the plane can go in and just to corrupt like I will get her. How is some goes on to get her home and then you know I downloaded a Portuguese at so I could learn to say the phrase in what I do have is a very special set of skills and Portuguese phone bill say that Portuguese some working on that last thing I did before she got made sure that her location services were on my phone so I can so I can track her. I slipped a little Apple tag into her backpack without telling her. So she's going through the Amazon I'm like okay I see you and if you see me on my phone and PC on his phone. What's he doing on his phone.

That's what I'm doing.

I'm just seeing where sees that there's just 5031 miles away from me right now. I know where she is and I know how I can get to her why she's my she's my daughter right and this is how God sees you that there are billions of people in the world, but he he sees you as his son as his daughter St. Augustine says he loves each of us as if there were only one of us. That's how he loves you.

The religious leaders didn't understand this is and how they saw people so Jesus wants them to better understand his perspective and how he sees people on our unleased magazine as one of our long-time ministry partners. His name is loyal Thurman and loyal started a ministry I think a couple of decades ago where he reaches people who are part of the underground subculture so atheists, agnostics, neopagans, witches, Satanists and and in that article I love what he said.

He said we go to groups who don't like Christians specific events of a target, God opens doors for us to be good friends with these people.

We live life with them. They are far from church and far from God that he put a love in our hearts for them. They are our friends and some people think they are unreachable. That is not true.

Nothing is lost if God says it's not lost. He always goes after the one wow is a really powerful words from my friend and teacher Kyle Adelman you not about you, but there's people in my life that I've so long to impact in. I so often is felt like I need to do something greater or no more or saying more that son or daughter to its wayward right now this not walking with the Lord that you know they were raised in your home may be Vincennes or Christian school and and now their behavior, their life, their attitude toward God. It just so breaks your heart and you just think you know what I do wrong, or what can I do now.

You know, I was listening to this and I thought of a time when one of my kids went through a real season of rebellion, and I remember just crying in my car as one of my kids said that I just don't believe in your God, and I really like you as a dad. I just wish you weren't a Christian and I mean it was like a knife in my heart and what I realize was only God could move in the life of my son. What he needed from me was someone that kept taking them out to breakfast.

What he needed was for me to not reject him, not try to convince him not be pushy but to stay in his life and in this series. What I want to encourage you were to learn is how to address people one at a time. It's building real relationships. It's listening and and encouraging in it without compromising what we believe is true or right or moral. It's really getting under the skin of the people that we love and identifying with them, asking them questions I getting close to them figuring out ways regardless of what the responses right now to keep the communication open as I read Kyle's book and as I have listened to this series. It brought just a new dynamic in my mind and my heart about how to remove all the noise and just address the person in front of you in a way that lets them know that they matter if they don't know the Lord God sees them as one. He's made in one he loves and he wants us to treat them the way he feels about them as we do that little by little reading to learn together God's at work and he can use us great worship. While I hope you'll join us for each message in this new series and if you'd like more information about Kyle's book one at a time, go to LivingontheEdge.org or call us at AAA 333-6003. This resource will challenge you to better love people and reveal how God can use each and every one of us to change this world to order your copy of one at a time. Call AAA 333-6003 or go to LivingontheEdge.org hapless nurse Special offers will chip as you mentioned a minute ago. This series is focused on how we can engage people one on one, because it's really the best way to talk to them about Jesus. The fact is, there's a lot of hostility out there against Christians in the Bible. So before we wrap up to give us some insight into how believers should respond to the aggression were facing. I'd be glad to Dave. I think as Christians we see to responses neither of which is going to bring about long-term positive change and one is a combativeness and anger, a sort of the culture is the enemy and the other is what I call and set up in combat. We capitulate and so go with the flow unit whom I to judge. Let's just all be loving, and so the one has truth with no grace and the other has grace with no truth and so it Living on the Edge. We spent the last 20 years developing resources whether the audio or books are teaching your CDs or or my favorite small group material to help people live out truth and grace. And we've had very generous people. Partner with us to create all those resources to pay for air time to hire staff. We are living in a day where if Christians do not live like Christians, we will see America go right down the tubes and so there's never been a day when we need to do more and we can't do more without the prayers and the financial support of our Living on the Edge, partners, and so if you've never given to Living on the Edge it let me tell you now is a wonderful wonderful time will be true to Scripture we truly equip people to live out both grace and truth in the power of the Holy Spirit. So thank you for those of you that support us. Please continue to do so. And for those of you that have not. I would highly encourage you get on board today we can make a difference together. Thanks to close you prayerfully consider your role with this ministry I will remind you that every gift is significant when you partner with Living on the Edge you multiply our efforts and resources in ways that only God can do. Make your donation it LivingontheEdge.org or through the chipping roadmap or if it's easier you can text the word donate to 741 41 that's donate to 741 41. We appreciate your help. As we close are you looking to get even more plugged in with Living on the Edge of our resources will and let me encourage you to check out the chipping roadmap. There you can listen to our most recent series sign up for daily discipleship and so much more. We want to help you grow in your walk with Jesus and the chipping roadmap is a great way to immerse yourself in godly enriching content will join us again next time as our guest teacher Kyle Adelman continues his series one at a time.

Until then, this is Dave Drury saying thanks for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge