We Will be Hated, but Jesus Calls Us Friends

Pastor Phil

October 30, 2011

John 15:14-16:4

Jesus calls us friends in verses 14, 15

The world will hate us. Why? 

15:18-16:4 uses the word hate several times

word means: intense or passionate dislike

v 18 because the world hated Jesus. Having a Lord challenges the worlds pride, ideas, traditions. Asks the question who is number 1? Me or God?

v 19,20 because we are chosen and set apart. Believers stand out, they don’t go along with the world

v 21-23 because the world does not know Jesus, so it does not know God the Father either. I think this is key in looking at other faiths. Jesus clearly says that if they worship “God” but do not acknowledge him they do not really know the God of the Bible. Even the Jews who worship the God of the Bible do not really know him if they missed Jesus as Messiah.

You can often talk about God, Jesus is far more offensive to the world.

Jesus explained the hatred the world would have for us so that we could be prepared, not discouraged.

v 26,27 truth comes from God and we are called to testify to that truth

Being warned of danger or hard things allows us to prepare. Think of storm warnings, the purpose isn’t so everyone can be scared and miserable that a storm is coming. The purpose is so you can be prepared for yourself, your family, maybe even strangers. You can have peace if you have food, water, and a safe place. You can even share that peace with others.

Jesus warning of hardships is to prepare us in the same way. We know it is coming. We can be ready and have peace and resources to share with others.

We can’t walk away from God when it’s hard because there is nowhere else to go.

Christian and Christianity face challenges in the United State, mainly in free speech and discrimination.

Around the world Christians face far more.

www.persecution.com run by Voice of the Martyrs has much quality and disturbing information. It's sometimes hard to learn about because how can we know of others suffering and do nothing? We must all do something they are our body, our brothers and sisters.

So what can we do?

1.       Pray for strength for those being persecuted2.       Ask “Am I willing to be Jesus disciple?”3.       Be grounded in God, his word and his body.

Love like Jesus

Pastor Paul

John 15:1-13

October 16, 2011

Just a thought - Look for what God is doing and thank him for it. There is always something to be thankful for.

“Jesus talking is good medicine.” John 15:1-13 is Jesus talking.

v12 “love one another as I have loved you” raises the bar from comparing how we love to any other person. Jesus himself is the standard.

John 3:16 shows how God extravagantly loves the world

Church should be a place where people experience God’s extravagant love.

Keep dreaming of doing great things with God. “Nobody gets to stop dreamin’.” God still has big plans.

v13 love puts others first – live in unconditional commitment to others

This brings up the question/fear “Who’s going to take care of me?”

Jesus is the answer. He is the vine. Stay connected and you are taken care of. Jesus modeled how it worked he says “like I do with the Father.”

God’s love stays consistent regardless of the response. When he calls us to love all that matters is that we obey, not the persons response to our love.

Loving like God, loving the unlovable, the different ruins your reputation with religion and culture. It builds your reputation with God, it builds the Kingdom. ( examples - Jesus loving the woman who washed his feet with her tears and the Samaritan woman)

Love may not be culturally correct, even in your family or church.

Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. changed a culture by calling people to love. “Love is higher than like.” MLK Jr. Agape is redemptive

Love is not a feel good environment. There must be hate for sin, evil, and fear in order for there to be love.

Fear can keep us from truly loving. We fear pain. Pain is an opportunity for God to reveal his goodness.

When we fear change we often stay passive which leads to anger which leads to being toxic to ourselves and those round us.

We sometimes fear success, the responsibility it may bring, the expectations.

Everywhere there is fear is an area not fully connected to the vine.

Romans 8:31 Anti-victim passage – there are no victims in the Kingdom of God – More on this in Danny Silk’s message.

Romans 8:32 God graciously gives us all things

Romans 8:34 Jesus is praying for me

Romans 8:37 I am more than a conqueror

Hard times, difficult things are training for future assignments. What have you been trained for? What might you be in training for now?

Enjoy the seasons of difficulty. God turns every disadvantage to an advantage and opportunity for blessing.

My thoughts from worship: 

The fact that nothing can stand against us does not mean that nothing will try.

I when I am discouraged I need longer vision, eternal perspective. Looking at me is discouraging. It is empowering to look at God as he truly is.

Be Encouraged by Pruning

Pastor Paul October 9, 2011

John 15:1-13

Getting to know Jesus is the joy, not the results or circumstances.

We will never totally know him so there will always be joy in getting to know him.

Focusing on actions or requirements kills relationship.

Marriage is a shadow of the intimacy God wants to have with us.

Phil 1:6 – It is God doing the work. He is the initiator, the source, the caretaker.

Stay in the vine – submit to the sovereignty of God.

Pruning is for branches that are producing fruit. It increases productivity.

The pruning process gives us an opportunity to examine things.

1)      Look Back – Pruning gives perspective to the past.

                Who is God? What was he doing?

2)      Look In – Pruning gives us insight into ourselves.

                Who am I? Why did I do this or that? Do I see through God’s eyes? Do I act like Jesus?

3)      Look Up – Pruning causes us to evaluate how we see God.

                How do I see God? Do I choose to let God’s word trump my experiences? Why do I sin?

4)      Look Forward – Pruning is a great place to ask God for his plans for your future.

                All promotion starts with demotion – look at Joseph, King David, Apostle Paul, even Jesus – death is a pretty big demotion, but then look at where he was promoted to for eternity!

 Understanding God and who I am cuts pruning time – Being in what feels like a prolonged time of pruning – this hurts. 

v 3 “You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.”

Holiness is a response to God’s love – never because I have found the right spiritual discipline.

We come to church to remember things we know are true.

Luke 18:9-14

I give him worship. He gives me truth.

Be humble before him. It makes the pruning easier.

Religion misses the heart of God and teaches others to miss it as well.

“Don’t make sandwiches Jesus didn’t order.” (What Martha was doing while Mary was listening to Jesus)

Putting your orders on others does not bring life.

Abide in Christ – humility, friendship

Other people’s opinions should not matter much.

What emotional state do you find yourself in when crisis strikes? – This one hurts, too.

Abiding shifts the emotional state to peace, hope, and courage.

Stop trying to live a Christian life and connect with Jesus.

Pastor Dennis “Joy – Fruit of Righteousness”

From John 15:1-15

v11 Jesus joy in us

Jesus was very joyful – Hebrews 1:8b, 9 oil of gladness above all others

We may have to smile by faith.

Psalm 16 say sin the presence of the Lord is fullness of joy

Kingdom is Love, joy and righteousness

John 14 ended with Jesus saying it was time to leave the upper room. Likely the group was walking toward Gethsemane during the conversation in John 15.

 Points from v 1 -8, 16

1)   Jesus is the Vine – source of everything good2)   The Father is the vinedresser, the fruit inspector
          Vinedressers prune for more productivity, pruning redirects the energy of the plant toward bearing fruit.3)   Believers are branches4)   We are chosen to bear eternal fruit
          What is eternal fruit?Righteousness (Phil 1:9-11 & Heb 12:11), Fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22, 23) Influencing the world for good to God's glory.

We are to imitate the Father and inspect fruit as well.

How we respond to discipline will determine how much fruit we produce.

Leaves are impressive and showy, but they are not fruit, not eternal. Even if the leaves are serving your whole life, healing the sick and raising the dead, if it is not done for the glory of God it is not righteous and not eternal.

How do I become more fruitful?

Abide in the Word of God, words and person – connected to the Vine

          Meditate on, take in, act on, and speak

The Father is speaking and directing, we must listen and obey.

Abide in his love

          Meditate on, take in, act on, and speak

God wants to talk to me about me, not only things to do, things to change or work on, but me. I am a child and he wants a Father/child relationship not a master/servant relationship. God speaks good things, life giving words.

An abiding relationship with the Father equips us to advance the Kingdom.

Pastor Dennis September 25, 2011

The Helper – John 14:16-18

The one who strengthens, comes alongside

*Challenge to read John 13 on Mondays, 14 on Tuesdays, 15 on Wednesdays, 16 on Thursdays, and 17 on Fridays for the next 5 weeks

God’s commands are not a burden when we love him. Obeying brings blessings.

We need a greater revelation of God’s love (meditate on John 14:21, 15:10)

What was Jesus last command to his disciples? Wait in Jerusalem for power from Holy Spirit. (Acts 1:8)

          Be led by the Spirit with the Word. (Rom 8:14)

          The Holy Spirit baptized us into God’s family (1 Cor 14:12)

          We are sealed by the Holy Spirit (Eph 1:13)

          John the Baptist said we would be baptized with Spirit and fire (Matt 3:11)

          Holy Spirit to teach us all things (John 14:26)

Is the boldness of the Lord upon me? Can people look at my works and see the Father, see Holy Spirit working?

The Spirit is in me to bear fruit to the glory of the Father. (John 14:11-13)

My name is in the Book of Life. What am I risking to help others get their name in the Book of Life?

Am I available to use for his purposes?

What has gotten in the way of saying “yes” to God in any way?

In Old Testament times the priests were responsible to keep the fire always burning in the temple. As a Christian I am responsible to keep my fire burning.

Danny Silk September 18, 2011

I love to sit under Danny’s teaching! So many powerful questions to ponder this week….
Culture is everything – Luke 6:45
Jesus said if you have seen me you have seen the Father. The same is true of us. What we believe of the Father will show to the people we encounter. – Wow.
Productivity requires cultivation – cultivate your heart and mind because that is where your life flows from.
Creating who we are – Attitude “What are you doing on purpose?”
Do you control yourself or do things control you?
Knowing your true identity is vital – True Idenity is Free & Powerful, think of how you want your children to be, your slave? your servant? Or a free and powerful individual completing their destiny? How much more our Father God?
It is vital to be courageous to give courage to others. Do I give or take courage?
As a Christian I am to be famous for my love for others
Give courage directly and indirectly
Bring life with my words
Set people up for success by

- stirring up faith, share what God is doing and has done
- Kill the fear of man Am I risking enough to lead others to success?
- Practice – Practice – Practice

Remember it’s not all about me:) I am only a very small part of something much bigger. Individual relationships matter to the whole. Dishonor is the biggest threat to having a Kingdom of Heaven culture.

Cycle of Dishonor requires a “victim”, having a victim requires a “bad guy”, victims are rescued so there are “rescuers” who go after the bad guys.
There are no victim is Heaven. Victims are powerless and not responsible for anything. Jesus was not a victim, he chose to lay his life down. We are to empower not rescue. Partnering with the lie of powerlessness is the biggest mistake a Christian makes. Helping someone else partner with a lie of their powerlessness is devastating.
Ask “What are you going to do?” It implies they have power and responsibility.
When someone comes with a problem (gossip, looking for sympathy) with another person ask, “Are you going to tell them or do you want me to tell them about your problem with them?” – I’m thinking most readily of using this with tattling children 
Do not wallow in offense Danny had just been on a moose hunt and learned about wallows first hand. Amazing what a truly accurate analogy it is. A moose urinates in the dirt and then paws it into mud, then rolls in it and amazingly it attracts moose for mating…. So do not take the waste of your past relationships and mix it with the dirt of your feelings and cover yourself in it trying to attract partners in your offense.
Offense is a decision point if you partner with offense you sacrifice your freedom, you are no longer free around the person you allowed yourself to be offended with or you can seek relationship.
John 8:15 tells us Jesus did not come to judge – He didn’t leave us here to judge either!
Withdrawing love from a relationship is always a mistake.
Revival – bring life to something that is dying

Learn more about Danny Silk and his minisrty at Loving on Purpose