New Life Church Live // Sunday @ 9am

[Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Music] so [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] i don't care what you've done how far you've fallen how much you've messed up how much you've missed it god is madly in love with you he loves you in spite of you in spite of your mess your mistakes he loves you in spite of what you've done what you think where you've gone he loves you i've made so many mistakes in my life i didn't think anybody would want me that god couldn't get anything out of me have you ever been there where you've been so lost and so confused and so hurting that you don't think there's any hope for you at all and lo and behold jesus comes and nudges you on the shoulder and says i still have a plan for you [Music] praise the lord everybody good morning good morning good morning this is the day that the lord has made and we're going to rejoice and be glad in it we're excited about being in worship this morning excited about being alive today about about seeing another day god is so good i'm excited about being with you i know you're in your homes and in your living rooms and wherever you're watching this morning or worshiping with us but i am with you and you are here with us because wherever we are that's where the presence of the lord jesus is so right now this morning i want you to turn your living room your bedroom your home into a sanctuary and i want you to worship god honor god to celebrate him with a spirit of abandonment i know it seems strange to worship right in your living room but why not try it there's nobody there but you and your family so you ain't got to work what other folks say all you got to do is concentrate on the goodness the mercy the grace and glory of an amazing god for our god is an amazing god he's done some amazing things and so we give him praise i want to read to you what it says in psalm 134 here's what the scripture says behold bless ye the lord all ye servants of the lord which by night stand in the house of the lord lift up your hands in the sanctuary and bless the lord the lord that made heaven and earth bless you out of zion's kill lift up your hands in the sanctuary and bless the lord that's exactly what we've come to do we've come to lift up our hands as a sign of our worship as a sign of our surrender as a sign of our praise as a sign of our adoration to god because no matter what's gone wrong in your life this week the good news is that our god still sits on the throne and all is well so shake off the sadness knock off the sorrow come in the presence of god delight yourself in the lord your god and he will give you the desires of your heart father i thank you and praise you that your name is great your name is mighty you are mighty to save you are a strong god we've come now in your presence we've come to celebrate your goodness your grace your glory your mercy we come to bask in the presence of our god knowing that our god sits on the throne that our god is a sovereign god and that all is well so we declare the enemy is defeated we declare satan is a liar jesus is exalted the throne of god reigns forever in jesus name a man a man and a man come on saints of god let's worship him good morning new life how many know that there is nothing nothing better than our father greatest gift we could ever have i've searched the world [Music] but it couldn't fill me a man's empty praise [Music] and you came along [Music] and putting me back together and every desire is now satisfied hearing your love [Music] there's nothing better than you there's nothing better nothing is better than you [Music] and yes i know it's true [Music] that i'm not afraid to show you my weaknesses [Music] [Music] hey [Music] mercy and praise [Music] nothing is [Music] [Applause] [Music] is [Music] [Music] okay [Music] oh [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] better than you lord [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] nothing is better than you [Music] is please [Music] me [Applause] [Music] lord you're the only one who can there's no one like you you you turn graves into gardens do you do you all understand what that means that he turns death into new life that he brings life out of things that have died many of you are struggling with life you're struggling with your dreams you're struggling with the visions that god's given to you and you don't even understand that god has turned death into life that whenever the enemy says it's over it's died there's no hope that god is able to resurrect it from the dead to bring life out of that which has died he is the only one who can nobody but god nobody but our father nobody but our savior is able to bring death out of life to bring seas and turn them into highways to do the impossible that when the enemy says it won't happen that's exactly when god says it is going to happen that our god can do exceedingly abundantly above all that we could ever ask or think hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah father we bless your name and honor you we give you glory right now in jesus name we thank you god that there's nothing too hard for you that there is no impossibility that you cannot solve there is no sickness you cannot heal there is no joy you cannot supply there is no grief you cannot move to the side of our life there is no pain you cannot remedy father i thank you that there is nothing too hard for you so we turn our lives over to you we turn our cares over to you we turn our fears over to you and we declare that you are a great god a matchless god a holy god you are the master of the seas you're the god who brings peace in the storm you're the god who settles our fears you are our great king we give you praise in jesus name a man a man and a man again hallelujah do me a favor right in your house come on and give god praise right where you are right in your living room right in your bedroom come on give him praise honor his name he's worthy of it he deserves the glory he deserves the honor hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah bless you god bless you god do not ever allow circumstances to dictate how you worship god or allow your challenges in life to determine the praise and adoration you give to him there is beauty in praising god there is a beauty in giving god praise as a matter of fact the bible says that the lord inhabits the praises of his people that as the people tell of the works of god the greatness of god as they repeat and recite all that god has done throughout their history throughout their past throughout their life as they say the greatness of god and say it out loud to themselves and others that it brings the presence of god closer to those who are praising him and when the presence of god comes in your room in your life in your mind and your thoughts when the presence of god comes the bible says there is the fullness of joy fullness of it that simply means that everything joy is everything joy brings everything joy means is fulfilled in your life at that moment in time when you become aware of god's presence worship praise adoration glory thanksgiving all of that ushers and invites god into your space so i pray that you will not neglect that opportunity that moment to give him praise so one more time one more time right where you are lift your hands in his presence would you would you just thank him for how he has brought you through dangers that you knew and dangers that you didn't over the seasons of your life over the frustrations of your heart over the sins of your youth how god saved you through them and saved you in the midst of them and given thanks hallelujah well i am super excited to be with you in worship and to share this moment of worship with our family many of you are joining us from the city and many others are joining us outside of our city outside of our state and i just want to welcome you and to thank you for being a part of worship today do me a favor if you are not from the city of atlanta or if you're not here now would you just put that in the chat space in whatever venue that you're watching us on and let us know where you're worshiping and watching from and if you're a first timer if you've never been or never participated in a worship service at new life before and this is your first time would you please put that in the chat space we'd love to get a chance to see you to greet you and to meet you and to know who you are and to let you know how happy we are that god allowed you to be with us many of you been watching us for a while and if you've been watching us for a while and you've never stepped across the line to connect with our church in a more personal and deeper way where you can call new life your church home at the end of services today at the end of the message don't miss the opportunity there is a special zoom room a zoom call that we have live leaders waiting to meet you and to speak with you about how to develop a relationship with christ as well as a relationship with this local church and i pray that you will step across that line that you'll make that decision to get plugged in and get connected deeper you don't even have to share your video or share your camera you can leave it off and just talk to that leader right over zoom it is live and it's personal and it's our way of connecting with you in the midst of this pandemic so don't don't neglect the opportunity to do that a few things i want to make certain that you guys are aware of i am very excited about our financial literacy program sponsored by empower you that's the program of our community center and church where we seek to empower you in areas of practical living and one of those areas is through financial literacy we have a wonderful and amazing teacher that is here to share and coach us through what it means to be a part of a stewardship lifestyle where we are managing our finances and managing our resources we make money but we're struggling to make ends meet with the money that we make we're struggling to get out of debt we're struggling with bad credit or get our credit score up higher than it is now we're struggling with these foundational areas of life and i want to challenge you to be a part of the financial literacy program empower you be a part of that the next class is going to start this coming tuesday night this coming tuesday night starts at seven o'clock this tuesday night do not miss it classes are every tuesday and every thursday it is engaging it is enriching for your life and it's going to be a blessing to your family so i pray that you will get involved jump right in don't forsake this opportunity to get your money straight this opportunity to get your money straight so financial literacy program starts on tuesday sign up today sign up today we've got a couple of announcements that i want to share with you about our life groups and life classes uh program we are right in the middle of it today is the last day you can register for life for life class life groups continues but i want you to meet two very special people that are going to talk with you a little bit more about our life groups and our life classes and our discipleship ministry here is minister matt watson who is going to share a bit more info with you good morning new life we are so excited to have you all here today so this morning i'm actually going to be sharing with you guys about our life groups now many of you guys have already signed up for life groups and the sign up has been going amazing so this is going to be our last sunday this is our final push to get all of you guys who have not yet signed up to get you guys to sign up so with these uh life groups what you can expect from these life groups is to be a joined with other individuals who are at similar stages and at similar places in their lives because as pastor harris has been preaching about and as he has been teaching us about with community and understanding community it is important for us to get ourselves attached to other believers who are like-minded with us who keep us on the lord's straight and narrow and having those people in our lives having those people that we're able to share with really helps us and it keeps us engaged what we're going to have next is we're actually going to have another individual come to share with you all about a life class so for the life class she's uh tyrande freeman she's gonna be sharing uh discern about discerning the voice of god here is tyrande freeman to share about her class good morning new life my name is tyronda freeman and i am a lead teacher for one of our life classes that is starting this week we are studying doing an eight-week study through discerning the voice of god discerning the voice of god is the resource that we're using that has been written by priscilla shower so we all know that both you and i have an enemy an enemy who wants to convince us that hearing from god has been reserved for special people people like pastors and spiritual leaders and bible study leaders and you know the people on facebook who always seem to have a word from the lord people who are more anointed than you people who have a bigger vocabulary than you people who have more bible knowledge than you people who have more influence or more prestige people who have not made the same mistakes as you but that can be so far from the truth jesus tells us in john 10 and 27 that my sheep hear my voice i know them and they follow me four things that we're going to be studying through discerning the voice of god first is your initial commitment we're going to talk about how we can take a proactive stance of obedience so we can hear from god the second thing we're going to learn is about god's listening equipment we're going to talk about how the holy spirit's voice is persistent and consistent and also very very personal thirdly we're going to talk about god's personal announcement that is reflective of his heart and revealing of his plans for your life and mine the last thing we're going to study about is how you can have an ongoing alignment with god and that is how you take a posture that is positioned to hear exactly what god is saying for you listen we're going to dig deep into the word of god and we're gonna pull out treasures that you'll be feasting on long after this class is over i hope you'll join me for discerning the voice of god god bless you all right i hope that you get connected that you get plugged in that is going to be an amazing class i am so intrigued about this class i hope that you are it's going to be classes like this one that we are sponsoring for this session and i'd love to see you sign up i'd love to see you to be a part of those classes so listen today is the final day that you can register for one of our life classes like the one that tyrande just spoke about now of course you can sign up for life groups at any time you're able to sign up for those throughout our entire season today and forever you can sign up on any sunday or any day that you choose for life classes for this session this is the last sunday so please go to your laptops to your smartphones and get registered and sign up to do it today we spoke with you on last week about our desire to postpone our reopening uh for our church campus we intended to reopen in october we're going to be postponing that reopening and we told you that there are many ways you can stay connected with our church even though the reopening is postponing and life groups and life classes is one of those ways that you're able to stay connected so i pray that you'll take advantage of it and stay plugged in to what god is doing not only in the life of your church but in your life in the life of brothers and sisters that are around you who are doing life with you well it's time to give it's time to honor god with our gifts we take this opportunity to celebrate the privilege we have to give we don't count it a thing to be ignored giving is significant giving is how we open the doors of the lord's blessings in our life it is how we invite god's best into our life and our home than our families god's best is not just something financial god's best is his best health his best peace his best experience of love it is the quality of life that is lifted and raised when you honor god with your substance it's an interesting thing that doing something practical physical and even financial nets back into my life something spiritual and something powerful that's life-changing god wants to see your life change but many of us are not faithful over the few over the little we're not faithful over what we have now many of us don't put god first we put self first we put our needs first we are more concerned about the things that happen in our home and family than we are about the things that are happening in the kingdom of god jesus was very very clear about this he said seek first the kingdom of god and his righteousness and if you would set your eyes on the kingdom if you would pursue god's kingdom in your life his rule over your life if you would pursue the kingdom things first he said all these other things will be added under you and i'm praying that you would receive all these other things but these other things are added as you and i are seeking the kingdom building the kingdom growing the kingdom one way you do that is by sharing the tithe and the offering the tithe is the first tenth that comes into your home it's ten percent of everything that my home and your home benefits from all of our income and all that comes into our family the tithe is also the best of our talents the best of our skills and the best of our time so i'm praying that you'll make a commitment to tithe today and that you'll honor god with your gifts there are three ways you can give and the first is by going to our website and simply giving online you can go to our website newlifeatl.org and click on the giving tab that's at the top navigational bar just click that tab and it'll give you the opportunity to give you can also give through your smartphones just take out your smartphones and text the word new life atl no spaces to the number you 77977 give finally by sending in your gifts to 3592 flat shows road decatur georgia there are so many ways that you can give and support ministry and when you do that here at new life you know you are supporting people that are hungry and homeless and hurting those are in need and families and children you're supporting those who are sleeping under bridges and those who are at risk of being evicted you're supporting people who have substance abuse and folks who have not received many of the conveniences and privileges that you and i have received you are supporting them they are our brothers and sisters just as much as those who sit in rows beside us sunday after sunday in church you are supporting those whom jesus loves so i pray that you'll be diligent and faithful in your giving father i thank you that you have given us the ability to give you've given us the freedom and the heart and the passion to sow into ministry and so i ask now that as we are giving that you lord would return back gifts to these who are who are making those sacrifices today return those gifts back to them in their homes their families their relationships their marriages in their careers in their jobs in their hopes and dreams i pray god that you would be all for them that they could never be for themselves and will give your name praise in jesus name amen and man again all right grab your smartphones take them out let's take a moment to give it is very very simple it only takes about 30 seconds to give your first time and then 10 seconds literally to give each time after that so let's take a moment to give [Music] just that simple i'm giving your giving thank you so much for participating in this ministry of giving now let's worship god set your hearts to hear from god i know that all of us are struggling with so much in this season going through so much at work at home dealing with a pandemic health crisis that are all around us if i could get you to take your eyes off of the storms you're in and focus your attention on the god who is stronger and bigger than the storm he wants to be the center of your world let's take this moment and worship him [Music] you together me with a melody you surround me with a song of deliverance till all my fears [Music] i'm no longer [Music] this morning [Music] you have chosen me [Music] your blood flows through this morning [Music] again sing i'm no longer [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] oh [Music] [Music] [Music] perfectly is [Music] [Music] of god my fears is [Music] [Applause] i am [Music] [Music] to god slave [Music] i am a child of god one more time [Music] is [Music] i am [Music] [Music] so father i pray that you would impress that thought on our hearts that we're not slaves to fear we're not slaves to doubt we're not slaves to worry we're not slaves to other people's opinions we're not slaves to our own insecurities [Music] we're only a slave [Music] to the mastery of jesus christ we're only a slave to the plan and purposes of god remind us of that especially in those moments and seasons when that reality becomes difficult for us to embrace remind us that we belong ultimately and finally to jesus christ may this moment of preaching bring truth to your people may we hear your voice in the midst of all the other voices speaking to us would you minister your word in clarity in jesus name amen and a man again [Music] i want to um begin our message before we get started with the message today i want to share with you that i am very very excited about the opportunity to minister to our children one of the clearest ways that the family stays fortified in the faith is whenever that faith gets passed down to our little ones to our children and admittedly we've struggled with how to do that during this pandemic it's been difficult for us to decipher the ways in which we can provide quality ministry to children and though the church is not open and we've given a lot of thought to what that looks like the kind of team that we'll need and the staffing that we'll need to minister specifically to kids and i'm excited about what our team and our staff has developed we are launching and this is going to start on next sunday october the 5th so don't miss it next sunday october the 3rd excuse me we are launching our kids life page relaunch i should say it's going to have on this page all of the activities and videos and all of the efforts and energy that goes into doing children's ministry there's going to be a lot of excitement a lot of fun a lot of movement i can't wait for you to be a part of it i can't wait for your family and your child to log in listen guys listen carefully we're going to be going doing zoom going live every single sunday for our children every sunday for our children these are elementary school age children going live on zoom every sunday you can find that live link on the website kidslife is the name of that page so it's new life dash atl slash kids life k-i-d-z l-i-f-e kids life you can go there right now and there are some videos there there are some fun things that are on that page but each sunday we want to minister to your children so here's what the challenge will be and that is while we are going to be in worship together on sundays you want to get your child ready to get them in front of their screen and their computer between our services between the nine and the eleven thirty between these two services we'll be live with kids ministry children's ministry for elementary school children every single sunday so go on go to the page now and check it out it'll be a blessing to you also want to mention that our amped and and high schoolers middle schoolers and high schoolers will continue their ministry each sunday intermittently for middle schoolers on one set of sundays and for high schoolers on another set of sundays and we're looking at revamping and relaunching those experiences as well so our children's elementary environment is set it has started so don't miss it go there right now take a look at it and get ready to worship god the live experience won't happen until next sunday october the 3rd first sunday in the month of october but we just want to tell you about it so you can get ready for it all right love you guys let's get into the word of god today let's get ready for the word of god we are in this series entitled community this is where you belong community this is where you belong and this is our final message in the series and i pray that it's been a blessing to you and an eye-opener for you so that you will get plugged in to what it means to be connected with other believers in the faith and so this is not just something that this church is deciding to do or the church is deciding to do this is something that the scriptures bear out repetitively that we are to get involved in community that the whole notion of biblical community is how discipleship was done in the early church it's the way that they discipled each other it's how they grew in their faith it's how they grew in their walk with god they discipled each other in every instance of discipleship every parable every narrative every story and every doctrinal expression in the new testament and every single instance of discipleship it is always done in the context of relationship period relationship that you are called to be in a relationship with other believers that's the bottom line i want you to understand this here's our definition that we've been giving you and this is my last sunday in this message so the last time you'll hear this definition so i want to make sure that you capture it and that you swallow what it means all right so here is the definition for biblical community here's what it is here's what it means here's the way it should look like in your life and mine biblical community is when spiritual transformation occurs i just want to pause there spiritual transformation it's when spiritual transformation occurs as a result of deep relational bonds that are formed with each other through our union with jesus christ it is the dynamic that is created when deep relational bonds form between believers and it results in nets in the transformation the spiritual transformation of a believer simply put spiritual community is meant to change who you are as a follower of jesus christ it is meant to literally produce measurable actionable growth in your walk with god it is meant to produce measurable and actionable growth in your walk with god that's the purpose of spiritual biblical community that other people come alongside my life and they strengthen and fortify my life and so this final message is entitled doing life together doing life together i want you to notice that for a moment doing life together that's what it means to be in community that's what it means to be connected with each other we literally do life together we said that this whole notion this whole idea is framed around five concepts one is the concept that says community is rooted in the nature of god two community is personified in the incarnation of christ three community is signatured in the ministry of christ and then fourthly and we've been on this one now for the past two sundays because it is just that critical community is lived out in the new testament church it is lived out in the new testament church and then fifthly community is immortalized in the worship of heaven from the origins of our faith in god to the consummation of our faith in heaven community is the thread that is woven throughout the entire fabric fabric of human history that every aspect of our experience with christ our experience with god has within it a community framework and so we've been saying this fourth one community is lived out in the new testament church i want you to grab your bibles and open them to the book of acts chapter 4 the book of acts chapter number 4. in acts chapter 4 and verse number 32 we have this almost a repeat of the idea in acts chapter number two but it's given to us again in acts chapter four and in acts chapter four it is given to us in the context of oneness and unity and singularity if you remember last week we shared that there is the beauty of a single heart that in the midst of community in the midst of all of us together that we are to have one heart one single heart our passions our love our affections are to be so intertwined together that it's almost as if there is one heartbeat among the among the group among those that are a part of this particular body that's the body of christ here it says in acts chapter 4 this is something that happens when our hearts have been unified and knit together as one we share in a commonality in acts 4 and verse number 32 it says now the multitude of those who believe were of one heart and one soul neither did anyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own but they had all things in common but they had all things in common underline that highlight that do something to it in your bible and with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the lord jesus and great grace was upon them all now here you have a recap a restatement of the experience of community that is expressed and given in acts chapter 2. in acts 4 is this overview of that expression and it is given to us in one central idea in these two verses 32 and 33. in these two verses that one central idea is that they had all things in common there was a commonality among the entire group a commonality among the entire community that the new community of faith the new community of believers was built around this common sharing of life this common sharing of life experiences literally doing life together this is what's called the common union of the saints it is the common union of the saints this is not an idea that was lost after the early church as a matter of fact this idea persisted throughout the hundreds and centuries of the church's life from the first century church in the book of acts the idea that all the saints together all the believers together were to be unified in one that there is a common union connectivity of all the saints and here's what it's called it's called the communion of saints the communion of saints and i want to share with you what that means here is what the communion of saints means it is the common sharing of life the common sharing of life and oneness in christ in which each member contributes and shares in the spiritual growth and maturity of the entire body of christ the communion of saints is this doctrine it is a part of our church's faith system a part of the affirmation of our faith it is a part of the creed of the church that there is to be a common union of the believers a common a communion of the saints and when you hear that term communion of the saints it means that there is the common sharing of life the common sharing of life all of life whatever your life is defined by whether it is your your practical life your home life your your marital life your political life your career life your work life whether it is your relationship life your friendship life your financial life it is a common sharing of life that i am to open my life up to other believers and other believers opening up their life to me and we are literally doing life together we're growing with each other we're growing in concert with each other that there is a wisdom that is shared among the group there is an information that is given among the group there is this sense of sharing among the group i grow from you my marriage grows from you my ideas in a practical conscience of business grows from you my ideas in a practical context of my education grows from you from you i inform my political ideologies i inform my educational aspirations i inform my concepts of family and concepts of love i learn from you and you learn from me my weaknesses are exposed your strengths compensate for them your weaknesses are exposed and my strengths compensate for them there is this common sharing of life that's the communion of the saints that's what the scriptures are speaking about it is whenever there is a oneness in christ in which each member contributes and shares in the spiritual growth and maturity of the body of christ as a whole that the whole body is built up because i am making my contribution to the body that i'm making my contribution you've got to hear this you've got to understand what this means that you and i are called into this dynamic experience of the communion of the saints now i find this to be very interesting that this idea of the communion of the saints is not just something that is uh that is unique to just the early church it was blended into the context of our faith that our doctrine had this concept blended in it and in the 300 ads there was a creed that was written and this creed that was written speaks about what we believe and what we confess as our doctrinal faiths and this one is called the apostles creed and the apostles creed i used to recite this every sunday when i was a young kid growing up in the united methodist church under my grandmother she was united methodist and i recited this every single sunday uh before leaving before her death and after her death and moving to our church our baptist church but in our methodist church we recited the apostles creed every sunday i believe in god the father almighty maker of heaven and earth and in jesus christ his only son our lord conceived by the holy spirit born of the virgin mary suffered was dead buried and suffered under pontius pilate and then it speaks about how he was dead buried and rose again and ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of god the father almighty from whence he shall come the judge the quick and the dead that's our faith that's the gospel that's our faith then the very next phrase goes into the practice of our faith it says i believe in the holy spirit in the universal church in the communion of the saints in the life everlasting i believe in the communion of the saints that it connects this commune of the saints in the forgiveness of sins and in life everlasting it connects the communion of the saints right after talking about the doctrines of our faith two things we don't do anymore two things that don't happen in the church anymore is one we don't know what we believe we don't recite those creeds i just recited something many of you've never heard especially those that are younger you've never heard of that or you've heard of it in some distant context but our faith and the truth of our faith we don't even speak on it anymore it's not even relevant in our worship services preachers don't preach about it anymore doctrine truth is no longer in our biblical conversations we're talking about stuff that doesn't have any doctrinal weight to it so we don't know what we believe we we get this we get this watered-down cosmopolitan gospel but not the biblical truth but then the second thing that we're not doing anymore it's not just the doctrines of our faith but we are no longer practicing that idea of community practicing that doctrine to others sharing it in the context of a community coming together so that we can live out the context of our faith live out what our faith teaches that's what it means when it says the communion of the saints these two aspects are critical the first one it speaks to the intellect the second one speaks to the relational slash emotional aspects of our lives the intellectual aspects of our lives and the emotional relational aspects of our lives those are two critical aspects that are included in our spirituality that you cannot have genuine spirituality if you do not touch those two critical areas of life intellect and emotion relation with our brother and sister that's why the church is losing so many unbelievers i mean you've got so many people that are unchurched d-churched ex-churched they're leaving the church they're leaving the church because it is irrelevant to their lives they are finding a struggle with connecting their life to the church they're finding a difficulty doing that and there's so many other competing voices out there i mean you've got it used to be oprah was the primary competing voice but now you've got tons of voices self-help gurus motivational speakers you've got a youtube channel that will tell you anything you want to know i mean wisdom on demand or the lack of wisdom on demand and you've got all these areas and venues and avenues you can walk down to learn about anything anything in your life so when you come to church and the church is not connected to life to life to life i find it irrelevant i find it boring i find it to be inconsistent with my expectations and many of them have simply left the hymns and the songs are beautiful but they no longer speak about my life i don't know how i can relate that kim to my life i don't know how i can relate a mighty fortress is our god to my life i'm struggling with how i am supposed to relate crown him with many crowns and lamb upon the throne to my life and because i can't relate this high doctrinal content to my life i'll go somewhere else where life relatability is far more possible and that's what's happening millennials are leaving the church in groves 30-somethings are leaving the church in groves people that are in this new cosmo era are leaving the church in groves they leave the church for one of three reasons either they have an intellectual reason why they leave they have an emotional reason why they leave or they have a relational reason why they leave they either leave because it's not stimulating to their minds or they leave because it is not satisfying to their emotions or they leave because it is not gratifying to their relational experiences and because these three areas form voids in the life of people they find the church irrelevant period they find the church irrelevant here's the reality the sad reality the church is deeply relevant to your life to your life your family your marriage your home your business your career your dreams your goals your purpose in life the church is deeply relevant to these things the doctrines of our faith the teachings about god about christ about kevin about the throne the sovereignty of god the providence of god these deep themes they relate to your life how is the sovereignty of god related to your marriage where does the sovereignty of god play when there is a diagnosis and a sickness in your home how does the providence of god factor in to that divorce or factor in into that to that addiction or factor in to that failure or factor in to that job loss how do you find your your faith and how do you keep your heart and keep your confidence in god when you find the world is crumbling around you the money is gone politics is crazy no one can be trusted how do you say how do you stand in the midst of a storm when the waters around you are swelling high and you're drowning you're drowning in debt you're drowning in sorrow you're drowning in agony all that i've mentioned everything i've said and everything i have not yet said it's all in the word of god it's all in the scriptures the bible was written to address every area of your life your job life your career life every area of your life the problem is we are disconnected from others who are putting into practice what the scriptures are teaching they're putting it into practice they're having it as a part of their daily dialogue their daily diet their daily conversation and when that doesn't happen i find it irrelevant coming and listening to to me or any other preacher sitting in rows or even watching on the screen by doing it virtually is not enough to grow you in your experience with god it is not enough to attach the truth of this word to your everyday life you have to have a connector you have to have a discipler you have to have someone that is engaged in your experience to connect you to the truths of the word of god and this is what doing life together means this is what it means to do life together ephesians chapter 4 and verse 7 through 16 it's a rather lengthy section i want us to read this passage and capture its heart ephesians chapter 4 verse number 7 but unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of christ wherefore he says when he ascended up on high he led captivity captive and gave gifts unto men now that he ascended what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth he that descended is the same also that ascended far above all heavens that he might fill all things this is speaking of this supremacy of jesus over all things he is supreme over all education over all knowledge he is supreme over all ideas over all disciplines he is supreme over all artistic expressions he is supreme over all challenges burdens and problems he is supreme over all demons over all spiritual powers he is supreme over all worries and old fears he is supreme then it speaks here and says and the supreme christ gave and he gave some apostles and some prophets and some evangelists and some pastors and teachers who did he give these apostles pastors evangelists teachers who did he give these prophets to he gave them to the body to the church to the body not the organized religion not the organized church not the building but to the body the body of christ the people of god he gave to the people these these gifts these talents these gifts these abilities the ability of an apostle the ability of a prophet the ability of an evangelist the ability of a pastor a shepherd the ability of a teacher an instructor he gave those gifts to the church the body of christ to people to you to me to john mary sue sally he gave these gifts to them and why did he do this verse 12 for the perfecting of the saints for the work of the ministry for the edifying cultivating building up of the body of christ he did this so that the saints could be perfected made whole complete that i would be perfected in my experience with god perfected complete in my walk of faith perfected and complete in my desire to honor god with my daily living complete in the way i love my wife complete in how i raise my children how i understand my money the way i view my business how i look at my own career my own expressions of success i want to be complete so to be complete god gave me somebody else to complete me god gave me somebody else to perfect me to fulfill me this is why it says in the scriptures it is not good for man to be alone it wasn't jerry maguire it wasn't him that first developed the phrase you complete me it was it was god who gave that phrase to adam and eve that you are completed in the other it is god who gave that phrase the nation of israel that they are completed in each other it is god who gave that phrase to the disciples that they are completed around each other it is god who gave that phrase to the church that we are completed with one another there is an imperfection and incompletion there is a lack of fulfillment in your life and mind when we are not in community with other people and it goes on to say in verse 13 till we all come in the unity of the faith the why is so we can be completed and fulfilled perfected how long will this happen until there is a unity of the faith until there is a common knowledge of the son of god until we all come to a perfect fulfilled whole man unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of christ that we be henceforth no more children tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine by the slate of men and cunning craftiness whereby they lie in way to deceive but all things but speaking the truth in love it says that we're going to do this until we all come under the stature of the fullness of christ until we come to being a perfected complete man there is a continuation of our community community exists so that it may bring us to this place of completion this place of maturity this place of development without community brothers and sisters together i am not developed and neither are you i am not fulfilled and neither are you i am not complete and neither are you we need each other to be completed in the things of god i'll never look like the fullness of the stature of christ until i can see that modeled in front of me in someone else's life and here's what it says how is this done how do we get this maturity i know the why i know the how long now how is it done it says in verse number 15 speaking the truth in love may grow up into him in all things which is the haiti in christ from whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that whichever joint supplies according to the effectual working in the measure of every part making increase of the body under the edifying of itself in love a whole lot of words here's what it means speaking the truth in love that is correction that is accountability that the way i am to grow in my experience with god it says is to be held accountable for the things i'm doing in the life of my body the life of my my my heart the things i'm doing in the life of my family and the life of my friendships in the life of my conversations i am to be held accountable i need to ask you this question who in your life holds you accountable accountability is not ratifying what you already think it's not ratifying what you already believe but accountability is whenever you are being challenged in what you believe in the way you think and how you feel challenged that your challenge is measuring what you think feel and believe up to the standard of christ that's accountability that you're being challenged that i am speaking the truth in love paul says love rejoices in the truth that there is a truth that's hard to bear hard to receive it is this mirror that i am to look at myself in i am to see myself in the mirror and somebody has to speak the truth to me to tell me when that doesn't make sense to tell me when i'm wrong to tell me that my mindset is off somebody has to speak the truth to me how am i loving my wife how am i living my life how am i handling my weaknesses how am i dealing with my sins someone has to hold me accountable and that's what it means and the people who love me are the best ones to hold me accountable the people who love me are the best ones to hold me accountable but for many of us nobody's holding us accountable we have gathered and surrounded ourselves with people who will only affirm what we already want what we already think we get offended i mean mad when someone calls us out on our stuff when someone calls us out on our thinking or our reasoning or our behavior or our conduct or our belief systems and here's the way you grow you grow by inviting this into your life by welcoming it into your life it says speaking the truth in love may grow up into him in all things which is the hate even christ that as i had welcomed this into my life i am developed in all things from whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplies the whole body is joined together and it is held together compacted it is sustained by what every member of the body is supplying to the body by that which every joint supplies by that which every person every person in the body is supplying to the body the contributions each of us make right now i'm making the contribution of teaching i'm sowing this contribution into your life that you may grow by it there's a contribution that you need to make in my life there's there's a contribution that you need to make into your brother's life into your friend's life into your sister's life that as i am being benefited and edified you are to be benefited and edified as i am receiving i am to give it out to someone else who needs to receive this is what keeps the body compacted this is what sustains the body this is what holds the body together the ligaments and tendons is what keeps my bones and muscles together i'm a ligament you're a tendon i'm a muscle you're a bone we all are connected together and as we are connected together our responsibility is to grow together by supplying what you need and supplying what they need and they supply what i need so a story that i've got i share it a narrative in my life that i've got i give it an experience that i've gone through i tell you about it something i've wrestled with i give it to you and share it with you some weakness i have i expose it something i've learned i teach it and you do the same thing for me we do it in community this is the way the scripture says that discipleship is done it says that when this happens it is effectually working in the measure of every part me you all of us making increase of the body the body just grows develops matures strengthens i get a stronger home a stronger marriage i learn how to be a better dad how to be a better husband how to be a better pastor i learn how to be a better christian a better brother a better believer a better man a better person that i am growing there is increase in the body because the body is developing and edifying itself in love how does this happen in love in love how does it happen because we love each other because we are connected to each other by a bond that is stronger than our address or our political leanings or where we work our race or our skin color it is connected by the bonds of the love of jesus christ that i have in my heart and the love of christ that you have in yours it's kind of like redwood trees redwood trees is a powerful tree there's a image and a picture that i would love for you to capture a redwood tree you would think that a redwood tree that grows to be over 300 feet tall it sometimes grows higher than 10 story buildings a redwood tree grows 300 to even 350 feet high but you'll never find a tree that reaches its maximum potential you'll never find a redwood that reaches its maximum height by itself if it's only one tree in the forest and it's a redwood it's not going to get any higher than about 50 feet but whenever that one tree is connected to another tree which is connected to another tree these trees together grow to be 300 feet high how because of the root system the root system the redwood trees have roots that are intertwined together that are meshed in with each other and these root systems they grow together they mesh together they are embracing each other and getting strength from each other they share water supplies they share the strength against the wind against the elements against the beating of the sun and when the roots blend together the tree gets stronger and when the roots blend together the tree gets taller and it gets bigger it reaches its potential because the roots are connected that's what i need you to hear that's what i need you to hear you and i must we have to be connected together we have to grow together we have to be messed and combined together like a redwood because i need what's in your roots and you need what's in my roots i need your experiences you need mine i need your failures you need to hear mine i need the stuff you struggle with you need to hear what i struggle with knowing that i struggle makes somehow you have faith for yours knowing god brought me out of it somehow gives you confidence god will bring you out of it whenever i am humanized and you are humanized together on the same plane amazing things happen when our roots grow together here's what i read in a traveler's blog about the redwood trees redwood trees do not survive alone ever they form tribes and communities sometimes they grow so close to each other they merge at the base into one tree the first thing they provide each other is strength and support intertwining roots not deep but wide living in an embrace of each other wow god put it in nature so that we can learn how to do it in life god expressed it in nature so we would learn how to how to mimic it in life hey hey hey husband wife you need another husband and wife mom mom you need another mom dad you need another dad businessman you need another businessman preacher minister you need another minister teacher you need other teachers friend you need other friends because you'll never know all god has positioned your life to know and experience until you get somebody whose roots are rooted in the same soil that yours are rooted in going the same way want the same things driving in the same direction wanting the same goals you need to know people who have roots in the same soil that you have roots in don't miss this please understand don't miss this everybody in your life is in your life on purpose nobody in your life is in your life accidentally they're either in your life to try and test you or they're in your life to better and bless you but everybody in your life is in your life for a reason god hooked you up with who you're hooked up with for a reason your marriage is on purpose your friend is on purpose there's some people that are in your life so they will teach you who not to have in your life there's some folks in your life that subtract from your life they're toxic and they drain you so you learn that those people are not the people you need to invite in your life there are other people in your life who craft you and they sharpen you and they challenge you so you would learn what you need to grow and develop in and get better in there are other people in your life who look you square in the eye and they tell you what you don't want to hear so you can learn how to grow from that criticism and become better the people in your life god put them in your life for a reason when you live your life without people you never get a chance to see who you really are yourself because the way i see me is through the eyes of others i understand people have said you know what you don't need to care about what anybody else thinks of you know what they think of you doesn't matter and and they're right what they think of you ultimately doesn't matter but you i've never found anyone who have received any any degree of self-affirmation that they did not get from somebody else i never met a person never met a person at all who did not receive some degree of self-affirmation from somebody else somebody else affirms the good in you somebody else challenges the bad in you somebody else teaches what is unknowledgeable in you somebody else strengthens the weakness in you here's what two verses in ephesians chapter 4 verse 15 and 16 says again i want you to see it speaking the truth in love may grow up into christ in all things which is the head even jesus from whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted held together by that which every joint ligaments tendons every member supplies according to the effectual working and the measure of every part makes increase of the body until the edifying of itself in love fitly join together sustained together effectively contributing every joint to the whole growth of the body at large this is the way groups are meant to be done the way that a group is meant to be done in church this is the meaning of the church and how the groups are meant to be structured in them we structure them around life we structure them around life it's almost as if you have this circle this this large circle and on the outside fringes of the circle are all the things connected in my life that you have in my life you've got my business life it's it's it's on the fringe you've got my creative life it's on the fringe my social life my love life my purpose life all of that's on the outside it's all on the fringe then deep inside you've got my money and finance my career you've got my health the environment my individual culture and community the black community the white community the hispanic community it's all individual my family my friends people i know people i confide in you've got the things i've learned my concept of spirituality all of these are little sub areas and they're all around this circle of life this circle of life in my individual area it's how i come into the group i come into the group through the through the lens through the avenue the portal of one of those areas business or social or education or finance or i come into the group through one of those areas i connect with other people who are at the same place of life that i am and that's how i come into the group but what holds the group together is not those things on the fringe on the side not my business my community my social life my race my gender none of that that's all on the side what holds us together is what's at the center and core of our group and that is christ at the core of our church and that is christ at the core of our gathering and that is christ he holds us together i came to this church because i was connected because of some business or because of some racial or cultural experience because of my friends or somebody invited me my family that's how i got to this church but what holds me together is christ now what is christ holding he's holding me in the context of my life in the context of my social life and the context of my business life and the context of my purpose life in the context of my family love life he's holding me together in the context of my life people are leaving the church because the church is not addressing the context of their life it's only affirming what they already believe or ignoring what they don't want to confront and when that happens when you do not when you do not address the context of a person's life they never reach christ in the church because to get to him you have got to go through that entire concentric circle together you've got to go through that circle together you'll never get to the center of it until you come through the circles of life people are leaving the church and they're never reaching christ because the church is not living life together on the fringe and here's what i need for you to capture in our church here at new life our desire our heart our passion what is beating in our blood is that we would not just be surfaced for you we would not just be casual for you but what is beating in our blood what pumps at the very core of our heart is that we can share life with one another together and together in sharing of life we're meeting christ at the core so we practice the one another commands in the church then my time is up we practice the one another commands in the church here's what they look like this is how the scripture says you and i are to relate to each other here's how much we are to be interconnected like redwood tree roots here's what it says romans 12 10 be kindly affection one to another in honor give preference to one another romans 12 16 be of the same mind toward one another you keep saying it over and over and over again one another one another one another one another one another first corinthians 12 25 have the same care for one another galatians 5 13 through love serve one another galatians six and two bear here it is one another's burdens ephesians 4 and 25 for we are members of one another colossians 3 and 9 do not lie to one another romans 14 and 13 let us not judge one another galatians 5 16 a confess your faults to one another james 5 16 b pray for one another one another one another one another down the line you see it repeated over and over and over and over and over again one another you can't do the one another commands if you don't have another in your life to do the commands with you need another person you you can't make it without them i know you're not happy with who god placed in your life i know it's not what you want i know it's not a thing that you would have chosen yourself but it's there and i promise you he or she or they are there for a reason the job you have is for a reason the church you go to is for reason the group in your church it's for reason the people you're connected to it's for reason whether you like them or not you gotta do life with them whether they're your kind of folks or not you gotta do life with them because god put you in that place for a reason i'm done but here's why i want you to capture it because this is what heaven is going to be like heaven is not going to be the reaffirmation of your own kind heaven is not going to be a relational connection with people that are only like you heaven is not going to be silent or isolated by yourself that's not the picture of heaven that we have said very clearly that community is immortalized in the worship of heaven it is immortalized in the worship of heaven revelations chapter 7 verse 9 here's here's what is going to happen in the community of heaven you never get to escape community here's what happens it says in verse 9 after this i beheld and lo a great multitude which no man could number look at the community of all nations and kindreds and people and tongues they stood before the throne and before the lamb clothed with white robes and palms in their hands and cried with a loud voice saying salvation to our god which sits upon the throne and unto the lamb and all the angels stood round about the throne not just nations and tongues and tribes and people in the heavenly community but now angels are in the heavenly community and it says they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped god saying blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be unto our god forever and ever amen you don't escape it you do community here so it won't be strange for you doing it there you do community in the context of the church so that you can have practice on how to do it in the context of heaven so i am clearly asking you join a community today join a community right now here's my call here's my invitation here's what i am requesting of you to do i am inviting you right now to get out your smartphones grab your phones get your phones out go to your laptop if you're watching this on a television screen if you're watching it on your laptop then tab over one tab in your browser go to our website and i want you to join a life group or a life class right now no excuses everything you need is on the screen for you you're watching it take out your phones there's a qr code go to your camera and scan that qr code and it will pop up our our our page where all of our life groups and life classes are mentioned scroll down through them scroll down through them and join one right now new life dash atl dot o r g forward slash life groups life classes scan the qr code go to our home page scroll down to the what's happening now at new life section click on the banner because here's what i want you to know you'll never grow in your walk with christ until you grow in your work with christ in the context of another person you'll never flourish in all that god's called you to until you do it in the context of another person so right now look at me right now i want you to grow i want you to grow i want you to flourish so you need a community to be in you need a community to be in if you don't live in the city these are offered virtually if none of these address any of the needs that you have right now or doesn't connect with where you are in life then i invite you to find others in another church in some other context in a different ministry altogether i'm okay with that i'm fully okay with that as long as it's a bible teaching god-fearing church you need to be in community come alongside help us grow it help us figure out how to do it but don't neglect it there is no excuse there is no reason there is nothing that you could say that will invalidate what the word of god is teaching you need to be involved in a community of disciples father i thank you that you have called us to this season this moment this space in our life that we might grow in our experience with christ help us to do that in the context of other people to do that loving people to do that serving other people to do that giving and sharing our life with others teach us that we are to be one [Music] that we are to experience life as one so that no man is able to be alone you created us that way so father now i pray that you would inspire the hearts of your people to get connected to a community and do life in it and i'll give your name praise in jesus name we pray amen [Music] well if you're still on the outs i want to invite you to talk to somebody who can help right now in the chat space there is a link that is given for a special zoom room click on that link and speak with one of our leaders and ministers about how can i connect with this church i want to know how and they're waiting there live right now live to talk with you if you're not prepared for to show your screen or to show your camera you don't have to just don't don't show your camera don't show your video you can talk to them and they will speak back to you and they'll be able to help guide you through how to get connected here at new life how to get plugged in to ministry here if you've never given your life to christ you're not a believer may i invite you to accept jesus today don't leave this broadcast without giving your heart and your life to jesus christ it's as simple as clicking on that link going to that zoom room and there's a minister that's waiting to teach you and share with you how you can come in to a saving relationship and a saving knowledge of jesus christ i love you so much thank you for being a part of our experience in worship today i pray that everything god has destined for you happens to you that your family is blessed that your home is blessed that your career is blessed that your relationships are blessed your marriage is blessed that your future is blessed that everything you touch that god touches it through you and that you will know the favor of god over every area of your life so the lord bless you and keep you and make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you and grant you his peace in jesus name amen and amen again i love you so much i praise and thank god for you be blessed today and i can't wait to see you wednesday night as we talk about ruth and what that story means to our spiritual lives love you guys bye-bye [Music] you

Channel: New Life Decatur

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Length: 100min 34sec (6034 seconds)

Published: Sun Sep 26 2021