Jesus Stories Week 1 | The Pursuit | 02.07.21

glad to have you in the house of god this morning as many of you know starting in january we launched three services here at the pursuit 9 a.m 10 30 and noon we're seeing god doing incredible work here so thank you for helping us build thank you for being a bringer a giver a sower into the house of god for vision for this season this is a year of increase and advancement for the people of god and the house of god scripture tells us that he has made us the head not the tail it says to the increase of his kingdom and his government there is no end and i'm telling you if we will attach ourselves to his kingdom in this season to your increase there will be no end as either and so for us we celebrate and we recognize the reality of a jesus who has taken hold of our heart in such a way that in him we live and move and have our being paul writes this he says even as your poets say we are his offspring and so we recognize the sons and daughters of the most high we have began access to his authority to his kingdom and to his resource and i think it's my concern this morning that so many of us live below the level of our invitation and when you understand what you've been invited into it changes everything fred for me and you we have been invited into spirit-filled living we have been invited into a game-changing kingdom reality we have been invited into spiritual conflict by which jesus wins every hour of the day and every day of the week we have been invited in to a compelling kingdom that is advancing and to his increase there is no end as scripture says the kingdoms of this world are becoming the kingdoms of our god and of our king and to the increase of his government and his peace there will be no end and for you and for me when we have a big picture of god's kingdom it motivates us to be something more than boilerplate observers of the christian story and that's why it's easier for you to hide in a dead church that doesn't prophesy to dead bones it's easier for you to sit on the sidelines and the margins of your faith it's easier to believe in a jesus in theory but never allow him to sit upon the throne of your heart because when you allow the hiking of heaven to take residence inside of you it comes with a mandate on your life to be something and to do something in the earth there has never been a better time to be alive i believe what we will see in our lifetime is the largest increase in gathering into the kingdom of god that it will eclipse what we have seen over 2 000 years of church history that we would live in a generation where we see a billion souls come into the kingdom where we see revival and reformation sweep from coast to coast we live in a season of great awakening and great harvest and if your eyes are only on the turmoil you will miss the divine window of opportunity we have in this season the increase of his kingdom and his government there is no end we're beginning a sermon series this morning called jesus stories jesus is the most compelling figure in all of human history the road to heaven is not broad it is narrow and jesus is the door no man comes to the father except by the son jesus reveals to whom he will the heart and the desire of the father if you are here today it is reflective of the holy spirit calling and wooing you unto the family of god jesus is the point he is the purpose he is the central figure he is the character anywhere you cut scripture it bleeds the atoning blood of a crucified yet risen savior the point is jesus and so in the month of february we're going to tell the story of jesus and we're going to look at the stories he tells the parables he tells the analogies that he analogies that he uses to draw your attention to the paramount message of the life of christ the most talked about thing that jesus mentions in the synoptic gospels is the kingdom of god he uses the term kingdom of god and kingdom of heaven interchangeably they mean the exact same thing the rule the rain the atmosphere the domain of the king coming to earth manifest through the witness of god's people it'd be easier to believe in a god who was so ultimately sovereign that he would just do whatever he wants to do without the petition the participation of people but that's not the god we serve we serve a god who has made us in his image given us free will and volition the capacity to choose and he desires community he desires friends in fact jesus tells his disciples i no longer call you servants i call you friends because friends know the master's business we have been invited into the business of heaven and in doing so we bring his kingdom to earth and jesus in the synoptics especially the book of matthew 23 times he tells stories with a central theme the kingdom of heaven oftentimes he'll begin these stories by saying the kingdom of heaven is like and then he'll make some sort of parallel analogy to the culture of that day he's helping his listeners understand in graphic terms what it looks like to be a part of the kingdom of god and i want to help you understand this morning what the kingdom of god is like for when you understand the king his domain and his will you can function as his ambassador here on earth we're not here to build our kingdom we're here to build hiss in matthew 13 jesus speaking to the disciples says this again the kingdom of heaven again the kingdom of heaven is like a net or a dragnet that was cast into the sea and it gathered fish of every kind which when it was full they drew it to shore and they sat down and they gathered the good into vessels but they threw the bat away and so it will be at the end of the age the angels will come forth to separate the wicked from among the just cast it into the furnace of fire where there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth again the kingdom of heaven is like a net when you think about kingdom think about rule reign authority of jesus demonstrated in a tangible way through your sphere of influence the king has a domain and anyone who finds themselves within this domain has access to the inheritance and the authority of the king this morning i want you to think about the kingdom of god like you would think about this umbrella and pretend for a moment this morning that it's raining here in this sanctuary yet everywhere that you carry this umbrella not only are you sheltered from the storm but you're kept dry and as a christian you've got permission to invite anybody you want under this umbrella whether or not you do is the decision you'll have to make but everywhere you go you carry the canopy of heaven under this canopy flows god's resource under this canopy flows god's healing under this canopy flows god's provision under this canopy flows god's peace in fact david says it this way in my time of trouble you will hide me under your pavilion everywhere i go the soul of my foot treads god has given me the land because wherever i go i carry the canopy of heaven and now as believers as co-laborers co-heirs of god in christ jesus we are given a mandate to invite people under our umbrella and when people come and they stand next to the provision that is on your life it gets on them when people come and they stand near to the faith that god has put on your life it gets on them this is why jesus says hey pray for the sick raise the dead cast out demons jesus says when those things happen it will be as if the kingdom of god has come upon a person so when we pray for people in this environment they receive healing when somebody's led to christ for the first time or rededicated when somebody follows the lord through the waters of baptism receives communion when somebody acts as an active living participant in the work of god and the will of god it is the result of receiving an invitation to stand under somebody else's canopy and see you're here this morning as a result of somebody else's faithfulness you're here this morning is the result of somebody else's witness a praying grandma a loving friend a next-door neighbor an outdoor crusade somebody somewhere interrupted your story with the canopy of heaven you stood close to what they carried and your life was forever transformed your life was fundamentally changed you have stood under the overflow of somebody else's kingdom mandate and see what god has given each and every one of us in this room and watching online is an umbrella by which we hold in this community and wherever i go it goes with me oh i think sometimes it's easier to see the miracles of god and the work of god in an environment where you're surrounded with people who are all going in the same direction as you but can i tell you the light shines best in the most darkest places meaning this an umbrella works okay when it's lightly misting but it really works great when it's pouring down rain when your light shines in the midst of this dark region it doesn't compete with the dark it doesn't argue with the dark it doesn't debate the dark as soon as the light is on the dark vanishes i want you to know that you are a part of a kingdom that is in conflict it is diametrically opposed to the kingdom of darkness there is no syncretism here for what fellowship does light have with darkness how can two walk together unless they agree if you're a believer in 2021 in the northwest i promise you if you have ears to hear and eyes to see you are sensing some of the spiritual conflict and abrasion that we are facing in this region and what is it it's a principality in power it's a strong man in a high place but the good news for you and i is that we have been equipped to do spiritual violence in the northwest hear me we have been equipped to do spiritual violence in the northwest and i think for some of us this type of language offends people because we have been so pacified in our faith we have been only observers of other people's faith never participants ourself and in this environment what you'll hear from this pulpit is a constant call why because the harvest is great and what because the laborers are few so therefore prey the lord of the harvest to thrust out laborers into his harvest field the northwest needs laborers not just a pastor on a stage but friends working in the field why because the lamb is worthy to receive the reward of this suffering well we've got an umbrella and the world is raining we've got a mandate and the world is waiting will we be god's people in this season to extend his pavilion and his canopy in this region the apostle paul writing timothy a pastor in the city of ephesus says this in ephesians 6. he says our battle is not against flesh and blood but against principalities and powers against the rulers of the darkness of this world against spiritual wickedness in high places the apostle john telling us the mandate for christ's life says this for this reason the son of god was made manifest to dismantle or destroy the works of darkness we are not here to play nice with the enemy we are not here to negotiate away our spiritual authority we are not here to dialogue with darkness we are here to be god's people and in such a way bring his kingdom to earth and in such a way see the dead rays the blind sea the lame walk the poor resource powerless christianity is not the kingdom a dead lifeless faith is not the kingdom just following the rules for the sake of rules is not the kingdom just playing it safe is not the kingdom just attending church is not the kingdom no it's when a people grab a hold of the hem of his garment and pull heaven to earth that lives are transformed and families are saved that's the kingdom and it's what we're going after for you and me we ought to live at the level of our invitation never live below the inheritance on your life jesus says this in matthew 11 the kingdom of heaven it suffers violence and the violent take it by force we don't negotiate with darkness we don't compromise with darkness we don't debate with darkness we destroy it and for you and for me we operate as people in this environment who actually have the authority to see things shift and when god's people get a revelation of their authority all of a sudden what you see is regional principalities and powers lose their grip see what we're sensing in the northwest is all of a sudden a disruption and a dismantling of chains of bondage that have held people back for generations what we're seeing is a breaking of agreement with the kingdom of darkness a brief breaking of oaths made in secret a breaking of witchcraft a breaking of black magic a breaking of new age a breaking of syncretism a breaking of atheism a breaking of agnosticism and a breaking of humanism as the church gathers in her authority we are coming against the agreements of darkness and in doing so the canopy of his kingdom is expanding see that's why this church is a no sickness zone not because you can't come in sick but because when you do you're going to leave healed that's why this church is a no depression zone not because you can't be depressed but because when you come in you're going to leave different after you come out and so for us as we think about the kingdom of god we think about it as a net that's cast into the sea and like jesus says it catches fish of every kind on all stages of their developmental journey on all parts of their faith and as people who are faithful to pull the net into shore what we realize is that we caught more than we could ever ask think or imagine the obsession of christ was the kingdom of heaven and it is at hand in luke 11 the disciples asked jesus teach us to pray they didn't say teach us to do miracles they didn't say teach us to preach they didn't say teach us to hold crusades they said teach us to pray and jesus turns to his disciples and teach them he does he says when you pray do it like this our father who art in heaven holy is your name why because you don't get anywhere without honor because you don't have authority until you're under authority because until you honor the presence of god in your life you'll never have eyes open to see it expand into the life of somebody else our father who are in heaven you're more holy than i ever imagined and then immediately he goes into this and let your kingdom come and your will be done in this place exactly as it's being done in that place and what we see in heaven is no more tears no more sickness no more fears no more anxiety no more stress we see people at perfect peace and in perfect rest with their creator and so what we fight for on this side of heaven is for that canopy to now cover this region the kingdom of god is at hand in matthew 16 jesus says i'll give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven never live below your god-given authority it's like watching a parent debate with their child never live below your authority i got a six-year-old he never wants to go to bed but he's not the parent i am why does he have to do it because i'm the dad never live below your level of authority and see the enemy has convinced us that we're powerless sometimes the enemy convinces people through bad theology that the gifts don't operate today sometimes the enemy convinces people through twisted theology that if god wants to do it he'll do it anyway so don't even worry about participating but that's not the jesus we read that's not the story the gospel tells he has invited you into dynamic participation in this gospel narrative and that's why the scripture says that many are called yet few are chosen and so he who would have an ear to hear answer the call that's why scripture says knock and it will be opened unto you ask and you will receive seek and you will find these things jesus spoke concerning the holy spirit all of heaven partners with a participatory faith here on earth by which we invite his presence his kingship and his domain to do its best work through us jesus says seek first the kingdom of god and its righteousness and all of these things will be added unto you jesus answered and said truly i say to you unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of god in mark 1 jesus says the time is now fulfilled the kingdom of god is at hand repent and believe in the gospel in fact it says of jesus after he was baptized in the jordan river that from that day forward he preached this message repent and believe why the kingdom is here and the entire old covenant the prophets and the forefathers looked forward to a time where somebody could make this claim the kingdom is here it was so hard for some of the pharisees and sadducees and religious leaders to understand that context because jesus is speaking during a political time where the political kingdom of israel does not exist and yet jesus is bringing this narrative that oftentimes would sound offensive to the scholars of that day essentially he's telling him this even though you don't have a homeland you've got an authority that comes from heaven to conduct the business of the father long after the nations of this earth dissolve the kingdom of god remains unshaken isaiah it says it this way the nations are a drop in the bucket to god that he elevates those whom he will he puts low those whom he will when the nation's rage he laughs he holds them all in his hand and sometimes we are so wrapped up in our national identity we miss out on our spiritual identity we're not americans first we're christians first we're kingdom people first our citizenship is on heaven that we're living here on earth and i think we got a mandate to be good citizens i think that's part of what the gospel looks like but can we live from heaven to earth instead of earth to heaven can we have a spiritual identity sealed on us first could we really understand today that what we have been called to is something higher than national allegiance it's spiritual allegiance where we pledge our lives to a lamb to the jewish carpenter to the one who is dead and has risen again that jesus is worthy of all of our praise and all of our adoration the kingdom is here and for us as believers we understand that these kingdoms are diametrically opposed one to another the kingdom of god is unlike the kingdom of this world the kingdom of light is unlike the kingdom of darkness and when you get bored again for the first time in your life you begin to spiritually swim upstream and when you begin to swim upstream all of a sudden you notice friction and abrasion that you didn't ever even know was there and here's the good news god hasn't promised you an easy life he's promised you a worthwhile life that at the end of your life you would still count him worthy and for us i think it's high time as believers in this gospel that we decide that the enemy has already taken enough from our families the enemy has already taken enough from our communities the enemy has already taken enough from our generation and when you begin to rise up with a god-given authority what you begin to intercede for is not just you but everywhere the sphere of your influence would touch and fred for you and for me when we begin to live at the level of our invitation all of a sudden what you begin to see is god repay everything the enemy is taking and so areas in your life where you've received injury from the enemy areas in your life that the enemy has designed for evil that god in fact himself would use for good that's why i think god's interested in the northwest and it's been such a tough spot spiritually for so many years i really sincerely believe that we are going to see an awakening in this region that historians will write about in 100 years why because what the enemy meant for evil god would use for good that's true for your life it's true for me it's true for this church and jesus says this that the kingdom of heaven is like a net but not just an ordinary net a dragnet got a picture for you this morning on what that would look like it was a common form of fishing on the sea of galilee it's where teams of people standing on opposing sides would cast out an enormous size net 50 or 100 yards into the water and then all together they would pull in the same direction now they can't see what's under the water they don't know what they're picking up it might be an old boot or an old tv or an old computer or maybe a fish that they can't even eat but they're trusting that if they will cast their net god himself will fill it and so they're casting into the deep they're pulling it up on shore and every step they get closer to the shore they get a clearer and clearer picture of what they have caught now jesus is using an example or an illustration that everybody in that society would be familiar with the kingdom of god is like a man who casts out a dragnet and brings it into shore fry we're casting a net here in snohomish and this won't be the last city that we cast the net and together we're going to see a harvest unlike anything that we've seen before exceedingly abundantly more than we could ask or think and friend today in this room i believe that there are some people who are going to help carry this net in we've cast it out into the water one man plant another man water god brings the increase we've done our part god himself will do his part and together we'll partner to bring in the harvest the kingdom of god is is is is like a net thrown into the water jesus says this that it gathers some of of every kind you'll catch big fish and little fish and you'll catch black fish and white fish rich fish and poor fish sound like dr seuss up here you'll catch fish you have families and fish who swam alone hear me it's our job to cast the net it's his job to fill it the kingdom of god is like a net you don't even have to be skilled you just need the courage to cast it some of you've been complaining on the sidelines of your faith i just wish god would have made me something else i just wish he would have given me another gift i wish i could just be talented like somebody else but the problem is is that we're all standing on different ends of the looking glass because somebody's looking at you wishing they had your talents and so instead of living our entire lives insecure about the way that god has gifted us let's together use our talents to bring in the harvest the kingdom of god is like a net everybody has a part to play and fred for you and i playing our part is exactly what god has asked us to do the kingdom of god is like a net you never know what you're going to catch the kingdom of god is like a net if you want to catch more than one fish you're going to need some help from your friends the kingdom of god is like a net even fish that weren't planning on getting caught get swept up by the waves into the net of the fishermen come on do you understand the gospel imperative in this region even though people aren't looking for jesus he's looking for them even though people aren't pursuing him he's pursuing them and what he uses is the influence of the believer and the cooperation of the church to cast the net into the sea and then he by his spirit draws people unto the father because the jesus reveals to whom he will the heart of the father that i i think often times god is just waiting on a couple people with simple obedience to cast their net he said you can't imagine how many fish i've got in this sea you can't imagine how many people almost steer in your direction you can't imagine how many lost souls i want to bring home you can't imagine how many families i want to heal you just can't imagine the things that i want to do so if you'll partner with me in simple obedience trust me i'll fill the net to overflowing fred you never know what you're going to catch oh this church is full of different types of fish from different types of backgrounds from different seasons of life from different political backgrounds from different socioeconomic backgrounds from different family systems and the good news of the gospel is that when you're here in this environment the spirit makes us one but if all we do in our life is make it one person's responsibility to bring in the net we are minimizing our impact and maximizing our effort but if together we believe that we all got a part to play we could see exponential increase in this region for one puts a thousand to flight but two put ten thousand and a threefold cord scripture says is not easily broken and there's a reason when god plants a dream in your heart it seems so much bigger than you're able to accomplish under your own power because if you could accomplish it under your own power it's not a dream from him it's a dream from you a dream from god requires teamwork a dream from god requires brothers and sisters to add their strength and their gift and their resource one to another why because jesus is worth it and fred i'm telling you in this region we're casting a net and i'm standing on this side of the whole mission i believe by god's grace we're gonna have other campuses in other cities and we're gonna drag a net all over this region and god himself is going to fill it do you remember when jesus is calling disciples for the first time he's speaking to peter and james and john and they're fishing on this same sea of galilee and they say master we have toiled all night and we have caught nothing and jesus says well have you tried throwing your net on the other side of the boat and they're like that sounds insane however at your word we will do it and they go from catching nothing to catching everything and on their way back to shore the net is breaking because there are so many fish and jesus prophesies to them and says now i will make you fishers of men can i tell you what happens when you operate as a partner with god in the harvest field he does exceedingly abundantly more than you could ask or think god i was trying to work by myself i was trying to work for your favor instead of from your favor i was trying to work for your love instead of from your love god i was trying to do these things under my own power but at your word and with the partnership of god's people let's try try again let's cast our net into the water and just see what god will provide there's all type of fish in this water here god is just looking for partners and together you and i are casting a net in the northwest the bible says this when it was full they drew it to shore they sat down and they gathered the good into vessels but threw the bad away so it will be at the end of the age i want you to see something it's our job to catch the fish it's his job to clean them it's hard to clean a fish until you've already caught them that's why we invite people in this region regardless of where they're at on their developmental journey to find a home here at the pursuit aren't you glad there wasn't a pre-requirement outside of faith for you to come to jesus aren't you glad that god didn't make you 30 days sober before you could be invited to jesus aren't you glad that god wasn't trying to clean you up until he first brought you near see that's why we invite the way that we do because i just trust if we can get people in this environment the spirit of god will do what he does best the bible says the spirit will convict the world of sin and let's just let the holy spirit be the holy spirit how about you just manage you if we'll catch him he'll clean him that's an essential building block of an invitational community the bible says that they caught some good and they caught some bad watch but they couldn't tell the difference until they brought it to shore jesus talking about the kingdom of heaven in a different part of the book of matthew uses the illustration of what he calls the wheat and the tariffs or the wheat and the weeds he says a good farmer plants wheat knowing that eventually there's going to be some weeds that grow in that same field but if he tries to pick the weeds too early he'll also damage the wheat and so he lets both grow together until the end of the age he lets both grow together until it's time for harvest and when it's time for a harvest the wheat bows low because of the weight of its fruit while the tares stand tall and proud lacking any substance in their life and at that time the farmer knows what are the weeds that i pick up and cast away and what is the wheat that i take up for harvest i want you to know that not everybody coming to this revival has yet to be revived themselves different people are in different stages of their developmental journey sometimes we have taken it upon ourselves to become professional judges or fruit inspectors of other people's lives sometimes people will say well pastor yo you prayed for that person and they were cried at the altar or they were lifting their hands up or they're real excited you know i just don't know if that's fake or not well yeah but you smiled at somebody on the way into church and i don't know if that's fake or not either you gave him the offering but i don't know if you got a generous heart so that might be fake too come on the process of living life sometimes is even questioning your own motives god am i even doing this from a pure heart i mean i think i am and and i trust that i am but there are other times where i feel torn between two opinions but i'm gonna do what i know to do is right until you work on my heart god i'm just going to be planted in the house of the lord but sometimes we have made it our responsibility to try to determine too quickly the good or the bad and friend you can't see until it pulls into shore see that's why i'm not interested in getting excited about the casting of the net because it's going to catch a lot of good it's going to catch some bad as well what i'm excited about is when the master brings it to shore and when we allow the holy spirit to do what he does best when we allow god the father to do what he does best he himself will judge both the living and the dead come on there is coming a day where our redeemer will stand on the earth and he himself will balance the books of eternity you don't need to worry about somebody else faking their way through life god sees and god knows friend that's why you have to guard yourself against a spirit of offense in this environment because sometimes you're gonna interact with unregenerated parts of people who are sitting next to you if you're married you interact with unregenerated parts of people you're married to and can i tell you church in theory works a lot better than church and practice i just want to find a church that never hurts me good luck sounds like you gonna be a church of one on your couch at home i want to just be a church at a church that never disappoints me in a church that never offends me and a church that always checks in on me every single day every hour of the day that's really the church i'm looking for no fred what you need is a savior what you need is a jesus that sits upon the throne of your heart what you need is a church where you ask not what am i receiving but what am i giving you need a community of people around you who are going to encourage you and you need the grace for when you get hurt to not react but instead understand that this is what it looks like for god to bring the net into shore and he himself will judge between the living and the dead come on take off that burden of judgment today take off that need to determine whether or not people are true or false or people have real fruit or fake fruit just go ahead and unload that today because god's got it he don't need your help on that he's got it under control but what he's inviting you into is to be a partner in the harvest field i'm telling you what i can't cast this net alone it's too big i can't bring in the harvest alone it's too great i can't carry the entire burden for the church it's too much but together if we will partner with god in this season we will see families transform we will see people saved we will see the dead rage we'll see demons cast out we'll see blind eyes open we will see revival in our day and reformation in our lifetime together if you grab a hold of the net [Applause] oh pastor what can i do i just feel useless you can grab a hold of the net well pastor i don't know a lot about fish and i don't really know a lot about the waves or the water and i couldn't even row a boat yet but can you grab a hold of the neck bastard i don't feel like i can preach or sing on stage or write a song or inspire a nation yeah but can you grab ahold of the net that pastor i don't even got the right clothes and i don't even know how to differentiate it sometimes i've been hurt in church before yeah but can you grab a hold of the net could your simple obedience be the canopy that's extended over somebody else's could your simple obedience change history together let's grab the net why for the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet cast into the sea it catches fish of every kind come on would you stay with me as we close the sporty come on fred let me pray for you let me bless you on your way out let me encourage you today in your faith do not give up do not sit on the sidelines do not give your worship your attention your affection to any other god or any other idol be a part of the harvest grab a hold of the net

Channel: The Pursuit NW

Views: 180

Rating: 5 out of 5

Keywords: the pursuit, the pursuit nw, pursuit snohomish, russell johnson, pursuit church, pursuit seattle, pursuit, pursuit worship, bethel, bethel music, bill johnson, kris vallotton, pentecostal, steven furtick, elevation church, elevation worship, zoe church, chad veach, view church, kyle veach, vous church, rick wilkerson, upperroom, upperroom worship, mercy culture, landon schott, jesus is king, creative churches, churchhome, judah smith, jake hamilton

Id: m7H7fgSCcd8

Length: 37min 24sec (2244 seconds)

Published: Wed Feb 10 2021