Jesus Has a Family - Sermon Recap

This week's sermon recap is:
Jesus Has a Family
Acts 10:30 – 11:18

Jesus has a family! And Jesus still adopts people into the family of God -- the church -- and together, as a family, they grow to be more like him. So, who is the family of God? How can I be part of that family?

Note: We began this sermon with baby dedications. 

Sunday's Big Question: How do I become a part of the family of God?
Acts 10:30-33

1. The Call of God
A running theme through the book of acts is that this is God's story and he is leading, guiding, and directing from all sides. In this specific story God is very sovereignly lining things up to bring the Gentiles in. We have seen him do this already with the Ethiopian Eunuch and Saul. God initiates.

2. The Message of God
If you remember from last week Cornelius needed to hear the message of God to be saved (cf. Romans 1:16). So what is it? Peter shares the good news!

Acts 10:34-343
a. Jesus, bringer of peace (36)
b. Jesus, Lord of all (36)
c. Jesus, a man among us (37)
d. Jesus, anointed with the Holy Spirit and Power (38)
e. Jesus, stronger than Satan and sin’s effects (38)
f. Jesus, killed on the tree (39)
g. Jesus, raised to life forevermore (40-41)
h. Jesus, the head of the church (42)
i. Jesus, the final judge of all people (42)
j. Jesus, the one the prophets foretold (43)

3. The Response of Man
a. Supernaturally driven
b. Empty Handed, but willing

Acts 11:18
Two empty hands...
i. Repentance – to see your need
Screen Acts 10:43
ii. Faith – to cling to the only one who can help

4. The New Family of God
Acts 10:44-48
c. All who are in Jesus Christ
This is quite a moment as Gentiles and Jews have never been allowed together unless a Gentile converted into the family of Judaism first.

Early in the Bible in texts such as Leviticus 20:22-26, God himself put separation into practice to keep Israel free from sin and from being tempted to follow after their false gods. But now, this family has new cousins, but because of long history and Roman occupation, this is going to feel strange. God needs to communicate.

Acts 10 is described as another Pentecost type event. This description is not typical for every experience. The speaking in tongues here happens to show that the Gentiles received the same Gospel, the same spirit, in the same way as the Jews. This whole thing is very divine and God-driven. It shows beyond a doubt that the gentiles will be included in the family of God.

Acts 11:1-18

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. (John 1:12-13, ESV)

See also Ephesians 2:11-22, Galatians 3:28

You may be thinking, but you don't know me and my family. You don't know my past! I can't possibly be adopted into the family of God?

Does your family include incest? Does it include adultery? Does it include prostitution? Does it include murder? Jesus' family does. The Bible is honest about it and invites you to be honest as well, so that you can see the sins of your family and know that you all need a Savior. Jesus welcomes you to be adopted into the family of God -- the church -- and together, as a family, grow to be more like him.

The Ladies in Jesus’ Family Tree from Matthew
• Tamar – Slept with her father-in-law
• Rahab – A Canaanite prostitute famous for lying
• Ruth – Her entire race of people was the result of incest
• Bathsheba – Committed adultery with King David
• Mary – others questioned her reputation

Some of the Men
Abraham - Pimped out his wife twice
Judah - Thought he slept with a prostitute, turned out to be daughter-in-law
David - Committed adultery and murder; son tried to murder him
Solomon - Wisest man ever made dumb choices due to sexual deviancy

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. (1 Corinthians 6:9-11, ESV)

Two empty hands by which you grab the gospel
1. Repentance- to see your need.
a. The way I have been living my life has not been working
2. Faith - to cling to the only one who can give you what you need
a. I need more than better thinking. I have real sin. I need a real savior

Listen to past sermons at http://www.bridgepodcast.com Watch past sermons at http://www.bridgechurchonline.tv

The Gospel > Moralism & Racism - Sermon Recap

I am often asked two questions by those peering in or hanging out around our faith community. They are:

1. "Do people who are sincere and do good go to heaven?" 
2. "Why does The Bridge invest resources and send people to take the gospel to the nations?"

This past Sunday I sought to answer both of these questions straight from our text in Acts 10. Below is an overview of the teaching. To listen to it in its entirety visit http://www.bridgelife360.com and grab the podcast  or video on Tuesday. 

Question 1: Do sincere people who do good go to heaven?

I contend that the default religion being taught by our society today is that good people who are sincere in their efforts are those who go to heaven. We are taught this at funerals, on television, on radio, in sports culture, and via social media.What does the Bible say in regards to this teaching? It is important for us to see what Cornelius was as well as what he was not to answer this question.

Text: Acts 10:1-23a
And they said, “Cornelius, a centurion, an upright and God-fearing man, who is well spoken of by the whole Jewish nation, was directed by holy angel to send for you to come to his house and to hear what you have to say.” - Acts 10:22 (ESV)

Cornelius was:

• A military man
• A virtuous man
• A generous man
• A spiritual man
• A respected man

Note: He was a god-fearer. He was sympathetic to the Jewish faith but not a proselyte. He had a positive experience with the Jewish faith and respected what he knew. All the Jewish people in turn loved him even though he wasn't a convert. But...

Cornelius was not:

• A saved man

While he had all these admirable qualities, he was still a lost man in need of being found.

Four Passages That Bring Clarity
A. Acts 11:14 - Cornelius needed the Gospel message to be saved.
B. Acts 10:43 - Forgiveness of sins comes via belief in Jesus
C. Acts 2:5,37-38 - Peter didn't tell these devout men to just keep doing what they were doing, but to repent.
D. Acts 11:18 - It takes repentance to have life (salvation)

Answer to #1 = No, our good and sincere work alone does not save us.
Implication = If Cornelius needs salvation via the Gospel, so do you.

However, there will be non-Christians that are very like-able, who do virtuous things, that we should show love and gratitude for. This is due to God's common grace. I prefer to call it God's restraining grace. While humanity is totally affected by sin, we are not as bad as we could be because of God's restraining or common grace. If we do not see this as a possibility, we can become hyper-conservative and very unloving people. We can become very unlike Jesus.

Two types of non-Christians in need of Jesus:

1. There are bad and nasty people who need Jesus. 
2. There are honest, spiritual, and compassionate people who are not Christians and need Jesus.

While we need to see what Cornelius was to guard against hyper-conservatism. We also need to see what Cornelius was not to guard against liberalism. He was not a saved man. And while the default religion in America says if you are sincere and do your best you get in. The Gospel proclaims you must repent and have faith in Jesus to receive salvation. To leave this out is to miss the gospel. We must not miss the GOSPEL.

Question 2: Why do we invest resources & send people to take the gospel to the nations?

Text: Acts 10:23b-29
And he said to them, “You yourselves know how unlawful it is for a Jew to associate with or to visit anyone of another nation, but God has shown me that I should not call any person common or unclean. – Acts 10:28 (ESV)

• Peter’s vision in the text is about food, but his interpretation is about people
• There is no one on the basis of their skin color, ethnic heritage, language, or nationality that is untouchable by God
• Therefore, they must not be untouchable by us.

Answer to #2 = There are people being prepared by God in every ethnic people group to
hear the Gospel message
Implication #1 = Christians must have no part in renewed racism
Implication #2 = Christians must never think any race or ethnic group are unfit to hear the
gospel message from them

May we never think that someone is too unclean for us to go into their house and share the gospel with. May we never think to ourselves, or mumble to others, that "they" are not worth evangelizing. And may we never declare because "they" have offensive habits we will never go near them.

Truth: God has always planned for the nations.

Also see Genesis 22:18 and Psalm 67. 

For from the rising of the sun to its setting my name will be great among the nations, and in every place incense will be offered to my name, and a pure offering. For my name will be great among the nations, says the LORD of hosts. – Malachi 1:11

And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.” - Revelation 5:9-10

God declared persons clean. There is no room for racism in heaven.

Our non-white,  middle eastern looking, Jewish Jesus went to the cross and purchased a people from every race, nation, tribe, and language.

God is saving people from all over the world via the gospel. Maybe it is you today? Maybe you have been like Cornelius and open to God and sympathetic to the faith, but today it makes sense. It makes sense that it wasn't good enough for Cornelius to be decent, compassionate, and generous because you can see the dark places of your own heart that others cannot.   And although you can still pull off "good" work,  you know your sin. You know you cannot merit God's salvation. You know that sin must be cleansed. Repent and turn to Jesus in faith.

But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3:4-7, ESV)

Listen to past sermons at http://www.bridgepodcast.com

Watch past sermons at http://www.bridgechurchonline.tv

May It Be Said of Us - Sermon Recap

Sermon Recap - "May it be said of us" 

Have you ever thought about the reputation that you are leaving behind? What do others think and say about you? What do others think and say about our faith community? Can they see Jesus clearly?

I know that not all perceptions are true, but what should be true of us?

It is time to start thinking about legacy!
Teenagers – Set the course. You won't hit the bulls eye if you don't aim the arrow!
Young Adults – You are making your mark right now.
Middle Age Adults – You still have time to fix yours.
Older Adults – It is time to impart wisdom to others.

The Big Question: What will those who come after us say about us? What story will we tell?

Key Verse
So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied. - Acts 9:31 (ESV)

Sermon Text: Acts 9:26-43

May it be said of us that:

1. We helped new believers (27)
2. We were bold (27)
3. We matured ourselves (31)
4. We feared The Lord (31) 
5. We were comforted by the Holy Spirit (31)
6. We continued the ministry of Jesus Christ (34)
7. We were used to lead others to belief (35)
8. We were known for good works and charity (36)
9. We prayed (40)
10. Our prayers were effective (42)
11. We built our Identity in Christ (43)

May it not be said that:

1. We discouraged new believers
2. We were cowards
3. We never grew spiritually
4. We feared man
5. We were always on the edge
6. We tried to build a ministry for ourselves
7. We failed at evangelism
8. We were selfish
9. We never prayed
10.  There was no fruit from our prayers
11.  We built our identity on cultural status

We are formed in the Legacy of Christ
Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name,  so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. - Philippians 2:4-11

We are free to give of ourselves and bring glory to God with our lives because we know what is coming in the season finale! Will you be a part of the legacy that Jesus began, was carried on by the early church, and then passed down to us?

Legacy Project

• Ask others how they would describe your reputation as it currently is.
• Write out what you would like your future reputation to be.
• In what areas of your life will you need to rely on the grace of God?
• In what areas of your life do you need to apply grace-driven effort right now?
• Spend time thanking Jesus for redeeming your life!

Listen to past sermons at http://www.bridgepodcast.com

Watch past sermons at http://www.bridgechurchonline.tv

Radical Grace - Sermon Review

I have decided to start posting weekly sermon overviews for our faith community. You can listen back to this past week's sermon here. You can watch it here.

Sermon Overview for "Radical Grace" 

Have you ever heard the saying, "God helps those who help themselves?" It is amazing how many people believe this saying to be true. It is even more amazing to realize the countless number of people who think the saying is found in the Bible.

When did we start expecting grace, rather than being amazed by it?

Let’s raise our eyes from ourselves to God and rediscover the radical grace found in God’s Holy Word.

We will learn this truth!

“God helps those who cannot help themselves.” - Charles Spurgeon

But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. 3 Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. 4 And falling to the ground he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” 5 And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. 6 But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.” Acts 9:1-6(ESV)

The Big Idea: Saul's conversion is proof of the power of God's radical grace

Lessons from Saul's Conversion

1. Hold out hope for everyone
      a) Even those who are hostile to the gospel  message
      b) Do not count out brilliant, highly educated, leaders
      c) God interrupts Saul’s rebellion

Radical grace initiates before we do!
but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. - Romans 5:8(ESV)

No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. - John 6:44 (ESV)

We love because he first loved us. - 1 John 4:19 (ESV)

2. See the real problem clearly
      a) Our problem is not just that we are failing God, but we are fighting God

Putting the amazing back in grace. It is God's mercy that is the center of grace.

And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, - Colossians 1:21 (ESV)

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. - Ephesians 2:1-3, ESV

The self-centered gospel says, “I am valuable, and that’s why God loves me.” The biblical gospel says, “I am valuable because God loves me!”

The self-centered gospel makes grace expected, but the biblical gospel makes grace amazing because God is the center of all grace.

Let me be clear. When the spirit draws you and you come to Christ, you do not come as the giver, you come as the receiver. You do not come to try, you come to trust. You do not come to cover a scratch, but to be rescued from certain death. You do not come to simply be made better, you come to be made alive!

Augustus Toplady had it right in the hymn "Rock of Ages":

Nothing in my hands I bring,
Simply to Thy cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress,
Helpless, look to Thee for grace;
Foul, I to the fountain fly;
Wash me, Savior, or I die!

Is he drawing you? Then shout it from the rooftop.
Oh wretched man that I am.  Raise this corpse from the dead! I am tired of dancing with this cadaver.  Wash me savior, make me whole, bring me to life!

3. Stop messing around with Jesus' bride
      a) When you persecute the church, you persecute Jesus.

For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body. - Ephesians 5:29-30

Grace is shown in Jesus’ sacrificial death for sinners. He laid down his life for those who he loved while they were taking his life.

Let’s make it personal. While we took his life, He took our sins! What radical grace. And it wasn’t an after thought.

I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me,just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.” (John 10:14-18, ESV)

God made plans for you, and Jesus willingly went to the cross for God's glory and your joy!.

Come take a piece of the bread – his body we broke
Come drink freely of the cup – his blood shed for our salvation

COMMUNION.
I broke up this sermon with communion in the middle. Our fellowship sang "Rock of Ages" and "All I Have is Christ" together. 

Results of Saul's Conversion

The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one. Saul rose from the ground, and although his eyes were opened, he saw nothing. So they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank. – Acts 9:7-9 ESV

1. A new relationship with God.

2. A new relationship to the church.

Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” And the Lord said to him, “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying, and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight." But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name.” But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.” So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized; and taking food, he was strengthened. Acts 9:10-19

a) Ananias had an ear open and courageous obedience.

Question: Who will go to the hostile in our society?

b) Saul responded in baptism and connection.

“‎There is no such thing as secret discipleship. Either your secrecy will destroy your discipleship, or your discipleship will destroy your secrecy.” – Alistair Begg

3. A new relationship to the world.

And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.” - Acts 9:20

a) Saul proclaimed Jesus as savior.

b) Saul goes from persecutor to persecuted.

And all who heard him were amazed and said, “Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon this name? And has he not come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief priests?” But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ. When many days had passed, the Jews plotted to kill him, but their plot became known to Saul. They were watching the gates day and night in order to kill him, but his disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a basket - Acts 9:21-25

Truth: The radical grace of God saves and transforms the hardest of hearts.

Visit The Bridge Community Church for information on meeting times as well as ways to connect in cell family, baptism, and mission.

Four Reasons to Get to Church Early

To The Bridge Community,

I am very encouraged by the spiritual growth in our fellowship! I see members on mission, more people participating in cell family, and more people responding to the good news of Jesus Christ! Gospel in. Gospel out. Thank you all and to God be the Glory!!

As we head deeper into spring and the summer months, I want to remind you why it is important to continue arriving to our church gatherings early. This could also be re-packaged for our cell family gatherings as well.

Four reasons to not be late:

Reason #1 - It has a negative impact on visitors. When a lot of people arrive late it gives visitors more reason to feel uncomfortable and isolated. Additionally, if everyone arrives late (along with many visitors) there are much longer check-in lines to BK.

Reason #2 - It has a negative impact on our relational community. Many of us only see each other once a week, or at best twice a week. Come early and connect with the family! Laugh with one another. Pray for one another. Love on one another. Spend more time with one another!

Reason #3 - It has a negative impact on your ability to worship. The beginning of our celebrations are thoughtfully put together to direct your mind and heart towards God. Frequently being late, or just simply feeling rushed, can hinder your focus on the main thing--worshiping JESUS.

Reason #4 - It has a negative impact on our volunteers. For instance, the worship team has to lead the song while people are scrambling to their seats and talking aloud. The first impressions teams end up missing more and more of the worship time as they filter regulars to their seats (guests are always welcome to arrive late or anytime for that matter). It simply makes planning celebrations hard. If we wanted to start off celebrations with scripture reading and prayer, it is next to impossible if everyone arrives late. Additionally, it makes children's ministry tough as kids filter in late.

I love you all. This is not heavy-handed church discipline. I promise! In fact, every church goes through seasons where people arrive late and every member of a church will be late at some point. But, let's do our best to think through a practical theology of arriving early to church for the glory of God and our joy! Then, do your part to put it into practice!

-pastor ben
For celebrations times visit: http://www.bridgelife360.com 

Much of this post was inspired by Joe Thorn's reflections this week.

Parallax View Videos

I thought I would share a few more Parallax View video memories. If you missed the ones from yesterday and the announcement, check it out here. You may need flash to watch them all. I am sure I'll find a few more later.

Parallax View - 2009 Promo Video from Seth Durbin on Vimeo.

The ride has been more than good

Parallax View fans past and present: 

This weekend will be my last with Parallax View. It is with joy in my heart that I share the news. I have many fond memories of leading worship at retreats and rocking out at concerts, but I enjoyed most of all spending time with my brother and the friends (Andy, Josh, Randall, Mark, Matt, Kaleb, John) that I have made along the way. The ride has been more than good. But, it is time to exit the ride and begin a new one. And the closing of one chapter means the beginning of the next. 

When we started Parallax View (Seth, Mark, and I), I was a single dude working for Youth For Christ and struggling to live out my faith. I picked up a guitar my senior year of high school and shortly thereafter started writing songs as a way to cry out to God. Since that time I got married, had three kids, grew in my faith and planted a church. While I still love singing, God has led me to a higher calling in life.

I am now the Lead Pastor for The Bridge Community Church in Leadington, MO. We are a part of the Acts29 church planting network. These days I find myself preaching weekly, leading a staff, training church leaders, and shepherding a growing faith community. I may continue writing songs with the music community that has been born out of our fellowship, but I feel that the Lord has asked me to focus in on preaching and lay down outside ventures. I believe for three reasons.

Reason #1: I love preaching and desire to preach a lot more and grow in my calling.

Reason #2: I love the local church and messy community. While events are fun, purposeful, and have valid meaning--I am finding that life on life as a faith community is where I thrive. To put it simply, I love the simple-messy-broken-local church community and think it is the hope of the world. I desire and long for true community.

Reason #3: It is Seth and Josh's time to shine in music. They are the future of music in our faith community along with Tisa Ayers. It is their day. And my brother Seth is a better musician than I will ever be.

These reasons motivate my decision to lay down my musical pursuit with joy, give it all to God, and let Him lead the next moves.

What is next for me: I desire to passionately pursue Jesus Christ. To be a good husband, father,and pastor. Then when I die, live forever.

Listen to Music:
http://www.myspace.com/parallaxviewband -newer stuff plus a few old. "I Cry Out - my first written song is there).

http://www.shoutlife.com/parallaxview -- some old stuff

Some Memories of the Past:






















You can watch and find more videos here.

 Chapter 2 Begins...