Vision Weekend

13 Greer cure for cancer, but you will know what to go public with it because all these legal battles of the fame of is about so I just be quiet about it. How rule and heartless. You have to be know that not sure but is literally dying because they don't know.

I don't think it's a problem that you motivated is a police problem. MetLife is studying the book of acts JD is unpacking the birth and spread of the early church don't worry this isn't just a history lesson. JD is challenging us to reframe how we think about the church and it's not just a place that we attend. Once the world were called to be part of.

So are you ready grab your Bible and turn to the book of acts, and let's get started, but I'm pretty sure that good ways all how church was understood by the first people usually determine how they sold church of the first century in the Greek New Testament.

The word translated church is the word Equus word Equus. He literally means an assembly means a group of or gathering a group of people gather, or assemble around an idea that you will learn record you say it recklessly. Everybody Equus Leah Equus see you right now if you break the word down � she comes from two Greek words, Mac and Colegio Acme's out politely called out so Equus see literally means a group of people who were called out around an idea. The church was a movement of people. It was a movement of people who assembled around a common conviction.

That's how the church started, but over the years a terrible thing happened. People began to think of the church as a place that you went to religious services or English word church comes not from the Greek word Equus. See but from the German word.

You pronounce it you can hear that you did similar to church care and cure in German met a sacred place where you gathered for religious purposes near the subtle distinction that shift in thinking changed the fundamental way the people related to the church throughout the Middle Ages. People went to church.

Church was a place you attended or an event you sat through rather than a movement that you are part of the church became an institution that essentially provided services for people and was controlled by powerful people who used it to serve their own interests by then something awesome happens, God raised up in the 16th century, a group of people known as the reformers and one of the main ones for the English-speaking world was a guy named William Tyndale.

Tyndale came to the conviction that Christianity was essentially a movement and that if people were to be devoted to the movement and understand the message as her Tyndale's life work was to translate the first copy of the Bible into readable English common English and every time Tyndale came to this word Equus CF translated as congregation and set up church because he was trying to emphasize that the church is a place you went to. It was a movement you belong to. I got a page on somebody gave me a gift, pay to have it framed in my office, of a page out of Tyndale's of the Bible that he produced in the 16th century, every time you see the word church in his Bible. You see the word congregation that infuriated church leaders undercut their authority.

So eventually Tyndale was tried as a heretic paying and burned at the stake, which seem to be likable, but on during his trial, right before he died.

Tyndale said to these religious leaders that had him on trial.

He said if God spares my life or protect my ministry for many years I will cause the boy that drives the plow to know more the Scriptures than you do.

His last words as he was being burned at the stake on someone heard him say his last words were Lord open the king of England's eyes never held a copy in your hands the King James Bible you will see the God answered his prayer in a very literal way by having the most famous English version of the Bible, named after the King of the indebted to Andy Stanley help me understand what historical context. But here's the point.

The danger of the church in every age the danger the church in every age is to cease being a movement of people moving in and become instead a ministry that provides religious services to people or even worse a place that people began to attend the most important thing about movements is that well they move right so if you're not moving you're not part of the movement matter how many times you come to the place right of access over the years. I told you the church is a lot like a football game 22 guys in desperate need of rest 22,000 people in desperate need of exercise right when I said that last night. Pastor Todd Reichert said that's 2000. Such ACC got an SEC 92,000 people and I said, who cares okay we live in North Carolina so I really think about that that is the question for us as a church. Are we as a church just doing ministry we run an institution or report of a movement for you personally. The question is, is the church, a place that you intend is a place where you have religious services provided to you or is it a movement that you personally are part of movements movement. If you're not moving you're not part of the movement let's go to the Scripture, see all this started. Ask one question about to verse six will start their Jesus had just resurrected and now he standing from on a hillside with his disciples any ghostly. This verse actually asked him, Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel. In other words, what your next move. What you do for seven he said to them, it's not for you know the times or seasons that the father is fixed by his own authority. If you years I will raise my servant him lay by the left behind books that you have all your questions answered per se, but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you will be my witnesses now word witness meant essentially the same thing and that it does today witness was somebody in a court of law, who testified about what they had seen and heard. The primary purpose of the witness is not to do anything. The primary purpose of the witness is to tell you about what's already been done to be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth. After he said these things as they were looking on, he was lifted off in a cloud took him out of their sight. Verse 10, when while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes get 12 guys, 11 guys looking up into heaven, and also these two other guys are standing with them, but they got a white robes and white men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking into heaven because there's a guy floating up in the atmosphere and they say will this Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go. Now this is going to be one of the strangest things doesn't mean he gives these people the largest assignment that you can possibly comprehend every people on every continent you know about all the continents. All of them, you're going to make disciples of it as a group of fishermen, carpenters, tax collectors have never been more than 50 miles outside of their hometown right and never has a more important assignment given to a less capable never ending without any explanation with no plan of action with no marching orders, beliefs, each way of knowing what will what the whole world is all you know big like I can see of Mirabella's big world is a big world is this where it all began 2000 years later, we are several thousand miles away completely different language, still reveling in the movement that was started on a hillside with 11 fishermen, carpenters, tax collectors and is still reverberating two important things about that movement that made it move but I want to commend to you because they are to be true about you. This is the secret of the secret sauce of all these two things is its recent okay was writing down what you think about because this is going to come out of this actual UMC that supplies the one the message capture the hearts and minds. The message absolutely capture the hearts and minds. So my question for you is as a captured yours. Their conviction was that Jesus had died as a substitute for centers wants another religious prophet with another religious message he was God himself. Their creator who would, rescue operation to save them. We humanity had greeted his appearance on earth by murdering him because we are rebellious trader race of people who would rather run our own lives, then submit to God our Creator. So we murdered, but in the universe is greatest irony. Our murder of him, his sacrificial death was the payment God accepted for our sins if we would acknowledge it and repent of our sins and receive the gift that he gave to our murder of him. They believe that Jesus had risen from the dead and they believe that many of them. By the way, against their wills because they had no room in their theology for a Messiah who would come and suffer and die disrepute as a criminal and political figure and never heard somebody come and raise him from the dead, yet they believe that against their wills because they seen them. Many of them hardly believe that out of the thing. They continue to doubt Matthew 28, but eventually got the place where they said we can't deny saw with my eyes and I touch them with my hands. The apostles understood that if this were true.

He was resurrected from the dead. Jesus really was reset he was that this were true, this was the greatest act of grace ever imagine God, the creator dying his rebellious creation: a bunch of slaves and men and rebels, servants or seeming sons and daughters.

They knew that if this were true, it was the most important message ever given. Because it was our only hope of salvation that Jesus really had died as a sacrificial death for sinners in the report multiple ways to get to God because if there were multiple ways God.

Jesus would never die like that right why God sent his son to go through that if there are multiple ways to get the God. When Jesus was in the garden of Gethsemane and he looks at God. His father and he says daddy if there's any way you let this cup pass from me. How cool would God the father have to be well after there is much other ways has always been more sincere and what they think is right and share their lunch.

They're going to get in but you as you go through this because on the widest want to do. The fact that Jesus went through that shows you that there is no other way of salvation he had said on the way the truth and the life no man comes to the father but by me and the apostles believed him because they understood that was who God said it was the night was God saving us in doing for us what we could never do for ourselves that many done everything he could to save himself and ended up worse and he started so God said what you can do I'll do because beside me there is no savior and you will glorify me forever because you can't will yourself up by your bootstraps you can be a good person. You can't what you like that together so I'm to do it for you and your to receive it as a gift. They knew that if all this was true that this Jesus that they saw Sam like the angel told to come back and not subtly help them see that everything in life is temporary. Nothing else they build on earth is really the last no house they built a business they built a nation established but things are all temporary and is not losing a long way with participating those were having a nice version of those it's just that they understood in its temporary only thing that last for the souls of men and women because Jesus Christ was a sacrifice that determine whether or not somebody went to heaven or hell, and suddenly their priorities came in the line because they said this is the message that has to be heard by every person on earth is Jesus makes the difference. They knew that if all this were true, this was a God so beautiful and so glorious that he was worth giving away their whole lives for a God whose glory deserved. They believed to be spread among all peoples of the earth. They'd seen this Jesus command hurricanes they'd seen him converse with angels they had seen him control demons walk on water. The lepers and raise the dead, given the hour he needed access to those powers, the most he turned his back on them willingly. We can offer his life as a sacrifice for their sins and they said that is a God who needs to be glorified and known about all the world and so when I drag these apostles in front of the Sanhedrin and they told that if you don't shut up about Jesus were to tell you the apostle Peter speaking problems as well. You gotta do what you gotta do it. As for us, we cannot help but speak what we have seen and heard and because of what God has done for us in Jesus. We will never close her mouth about him when you see what Jesus had done, you begin to see that he's worth nothing less that all right. I told you before that a friend have a friend from from Egypt, who a few years ago told me the story about how he became a Christian he was Islamic Imam and in Egypt in a relatively small village and I he said that he be a sort of penpal thing with I got here United States make a long story short, gunny Ice Age, leading to Christ through reading the Gospel of John, my friend didn't know what to do with that said begin to record his faith in Jesus and prayers to Jesus in his journal. You still go to the mosque where he would pray.

But he would pray to Jesus to God through Jesus. When they came home from work was a Thursday afternoon. He said when I got home was a mob of about 200 people stayed outside of my my house and there standing on my doorstep with my mother and she had a copy of my journal in her hand on that I did not fought with it's open to the page wide confess my faith in a lot for Jesus is that my mother walked up to me. She asked me if I wrote these things and if I believe them. I said yes she spit in my face in front of these 200 people. She took off her shoe. She slapped me in the face, which was a symbol he said in my culture of you are dead to me. You are no longer my side and she said you shame me and I do not consider my yourself to be my son. A longer, she said she went back in the house and that crowd of 200. He said beat me until they thought I was dead. They broke several of my ribs is in my face was all swollen. He said I passed out. So they thought I was dead. Five. Six hours later I came to the middle of the night is that I came to Lisa and I drag myself to Abbas Rose able to to go to another city where I found a Christian missionary was from the United States and I asked them if he could help me find asylum in the United States.

He said he did and that's how I got to where I am. As he told me the story I asked him I said you mentioned several times in the story siblings.

He had three or four younger siblings and I asked to be easier seem especially affectionate about his younger sister and I said, have you seen her since you became a believer and this is been like five years and never he had many emotional disappointment, stopping to swallow many, he said he said on said no he says I will never see her again. I don't think he said and he looked at me right in my eyes and he said that was the price that was the price is about what I know is as much as I love my family is much as I love my community. He said that if Jesus did what Jesus said he did for me than there is nowhere that I cannot go to be with him or nor I will not go enough and I will not do nothing, I will not endure.

It is impossible for you to understand the glory of Jesus and not have your heart rise up to say what he has given Josh is not worth nothing less than all Russia. Here's my question for you is very simple. You actually believe this testimony you believe it hasn't captured your heart until you can't shut up about it. Are you willing to go anywhere with it to give up anything for him, not you, not part of the movement and sleep if you been captured by this message.

You probably don't need a vision we can to motivate you see the apostle need a vision. We can all hear Diane is 40 and oh yeah, thanks Peter remind me what were directly. No. They'd seen this they felt they knew the waiting is the gospel.

They know it's a urgency they knew his value in his work and they would never shut up about it. You just listen. If you're not the kind of person was radically devoted to the gospel and if you're not the kind who was always talking about. It was in the business of the Lord, you probably believe it that you do believe in your heart is so cold and hard and calloused. How could you believe what you believe about Jesus and not urgently be telling people about it. Once you discover the cure for cancer with you knew the cure for cancer, but you will like you know what I just went to to go public with it because it would end up in all these legal battles with the fame of it and I just agencies of the house so I just go to be quiet about it. How cruel and heartless.

Would you have to be to know that and did not share with the world that is literally dying because they don't know it is my question really is this I don't think it's a problem that you motivated this belief problem is impossible for us to really understand and believe the gospel, and not become radical devotees, the seamen go out there. I just don't understand how you could be so the question is has captured your heart and mind like a catcher. There's there's number two.

The apostles yielded themselves to the leadership of the spirit. Have you yielded your self the leadership of the spirit in the assignment.

They were given was extraordinary. Never had one port assignment given to less capable group of people how they accomplish it. The clue very important was given universe one always overlook this word in the first book X11 Luke writer was the first book he's referring to the gospel of Luke.

Luke acted like two-volume conveniens on the first book Luke gospel of Luke, Theophilus is Theophilus the skeptic that Luke is writing about for I dealt with all that Jesus is Lord began as a very important word began to do and the teach began implies continuation wasn't that Alexis subtle but huge. It wasn't that in the gospel of Luke you see Jesus teaching and now enacts you see the church teaching.

What you see is Jesus began to do and to teach in the gospel of Luke through his fleshly body and now he continues to do with the teach through his church weight body. That's why Jesus after giving them the great commission in acts 18 tells them to wait, which I told you before, had to be the hardest assignment for some of them when you get that kind of sound that way we don't want to wait and we got most the right. We got preaching, organize both going to missionary don't really know him yes you murder him Peter.

Peter got a breach of guy with you John to write a book. Several of us can write a book while we wait wait wait for an indefinite amount of time because I need you sit on your in and understand that is not something you do for me. This is something I want to do through you an estimate be a huge distinction is on every chapter of acts. As you read it you get the sense of the church is just following spirit spirit is the real mover is working people over here is moving believers from one place to another just yielding themselves to him as he goes about building his church. So the question is have you yielded yourself to him to be used by him and I pointed out to before the book of acts.

If you read it has no real ending Paul in prison, which is bad but he wouldn't say which is good to get the gospel to the world and bring is to be successful is again a word and looks like that's it. It's a cliffhanger you click on areas that solely begins the book of acts. You just don't know why did he ended that way because the movement had just begun one in the end of anything at the beginning of the movement continues to move the spirit of God is moving you into people's lives to complete the great commission, encouraging the rear to share this message with a friend visit us online.

Jeannie Greer.com fidgety like everything in the message today is a greater plan and purpose for our lives. That's one of the subjects of our new Bible study that we've been talking about over the past few weeks, something better something greater. The study of Elijah and Elisha a lot of times looking for answers to what we what we ought to do in life and what we ought to be looking for to God is what you should do comes out of your understanding of God great hope in this study is that by coming to know God and knowing the agenda that he's up to on earth you can understand better God's purposes for your life have always found that when you want to know more about your life. Start with God and not with you this eight part study will help you do that will take you into the lives of two prophets who were very eccentric, very enigmatic but very important in the biblical narrative and show you how they not only set up the coming of Jesus. They also give a demonstration of what it's like to preach truth and live with the power of truth and age much like our own is amazing. As I've said this multiple times that the series it's amazing how similar Elijah and Elisha's contacts were to RM. I think this study will help you know some Bible characters but also think about God and the you in some some really unique ways. If you reach out to us@jdwhere.com would love to get your copy this I think of it I think will be helped to thank you, JD, we'd like to get you a copy of this resource.

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