Ephesians 3:14-21

Another inspiring meet tonight as we open up a prayer of Paul's about how to take in all he's been talking about in the letter to the Ephesians so far. As you know he has said allot, but this prayer helps us understand how to make it a real part of our lives, so it should be inspiring to us all.

Just click on the link below at 7 pm central time tonight, or you can visit early to get used to the site, but we'll get started at 7. Cain't wait to see you all again, I look forward to it each time, Tony.

The Mind Of Christ!

⁵ You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. ⁶ Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. ⁷ Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, ⁸ he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. ⁹ Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, ¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, ¹¹ and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Love is only seen in the Passion of Christ! We must have it!
If you have problems with anyone, family, church, or other, this is the answer.
The gap between God and us; who can span it? Only Love could do it! Love is willing to come down to our level since we can’t go up to His.
Our minds are the same as Christ’s, where we let go of any position no matter how high, or how deserving, we let go and get vulnerable with each other.
Jesus left a place where all was working perfect and came to where nothing was perfect, He was always absolutely right and chose to come where we at best are rarely right.
Everything is disintegrating all around you; falling apart and you do all that has to be done to make it right, no matter how far that is. You know going in, you’re going to get hurt, but do it anyway.
We are so afraid we’re going to get hurt, we recoil instantly when wronged and want to run from those who hurt us. Jesus showed us the answer is to get in there and root for the other one and work with them until the end, no matter what the cost to you.
Be like Jesus and risk hurt for the sake of others, follow the example, don’t just think it, do it! God had to take the first step to make it right with us, it’s huge step to take the first step, but do it.
Knowing Jesus is knowing that he loves those who are hard to get along with, or you don’t know Him. Separating from each other is not the way of the cross, drawing all men through the cross is the way.
This is the path to greatness says God. He made Jesus the greatest name because of what he did, putting us all first before His own rights and privileges. One day all will bow before him and give glory to God, because of who Jesus is.

Hey Group and those new to the group,

Tonight we are going to talk about a secret God kept from us for centuries, but in our time has revealed it to us. The amazing thing to me is, if we know God had such a secret and kept it from us for so long; you could acurately say thousands of years, why don't we talk about it more, why aren't we making a bigger deal about it more today? Well we're going to do our part by talking about it tonight and prayerfully we will not stop shouting this good news to the world. Just click on the link below at 7 pm central standard time tonight and let's share the secret!

The Challenge of Life

The Challenge Of Life

Luke 7:11-23, 11 Soon afterwards He went to a city called Nain; and His disciples were going along with Him, accompanied by a large crowd.12 Now as He approached the gate of the city, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow; and a sizeable crowd from the city was with her.13 When the Lord saw her, He felt compassion for her, and said to her, “Do not weep.”14  And He came up and touched the coffin; and the bearers came to a halt. And He said, “Young man, I say to you, arise!”15  The dead man sat up and began to speak. And Jesus gave him back to his mother.16  Fear gripped them all, and they began glorifying God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and, “God has visited His people!” 17  This report concerning Him went out all over Judea and in all the surrounding district. 18  The disciples of John reported to him about all these things.19  Summoning two of his disciples, John sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are You the Expected One, or do we look for someone else?”20  When the men came to Him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to You, to ask, ‘Are You the Expected One, or do we look for someone else?’”21  At that very time He cured many people of diseases and afflictions and evil spirits; and He gave sight to many who were blind.22  And He answered and said to them, “Go and report to John what you have seen and heard: the BLIND RECEIVE SIGHT , the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the POOR HAVE THE GOSPEL PREACHED TO THEM . 23  “Blessed is he who does not take offense at Me.”

I want you to know, whatever you’re facing, there is plenty to be truly encouraged about. This reading has some dynamic encouragement for us all, so let’s look close.

He had just left Capernaum after he had healed the Centurion’s servant. 18 miles south of there, up a hill in a little notch is a town called Nain and it is still there today. It’s a little rinky dink town hardly even worth taking notice, but Jesus puts it on the map, because of what he does here.

When he goes from Capernaum to Nain, get the scene, this huge crowd is following him and then we see vs. 12, Now as He approached the gate of the city, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow; and a sizeable crowd from the city was with her. So here comes one big crowd led by the Prince of life and here comes this other big crowd that’s following a victim of death. You just know this is going to be some good meeting; you just know it!

When the Lord saw her, He felt compassion for her, and said to her, “Do not weep.” He sees the woman and others and says to the woman, weep no more. Really? Isn’t that at least an interesting thing to say? He says to a mother who’s only boy, he’s a young boy on his way to be buried; her husband has died probably not that long ago, since this boy is young; He says stop crying. Really?

And He came up and touched the coffin; and the bearers came to a halt. The coffins back then were really just flat platforms with raised sides so the body wouldn’t fall off and they would just cover the body with garments. Well, he walks right up to the coffin and touches it and everything stops. Why? Because no one is supposed to do that, it’s just not done, all kind of rules about handling the dead, makes you unclean and all that, but listen if Jesus had paid attention to what everybody thought shouldn’t be done; allot of things would be different today wouldn’t they?

He goes over and says, young man, not old man, young; can you just imagine this? Can you imagine any of us doing something like this even today? Not to mention what He’s about to do, which would be a little disappointing, if we couldn’t raise soemone from their coffin, but just going up to the coffin and start speaking to the dead, wow!

And He said, “Young man, I say to you, arise!”15  The dead man sat up and began to speak. And Jesus gave him back to his mother. Now, that’s a nice touch to the story, don’t you think? I like that! Who else would He have given him to? Well, we see the response from the crowds vs. 16, Fear gripped them all, and they began glorifying God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and, “God has visited His people!”

Fear led to giving glory to God for sending a great prophet, but that’s only the half of it, what’s really true is God has come to visit His people!

Then Luke takes us to a different scene alongside of this scene and brings the two together, which I just love. This report concerning Him went out all over Judea and in all the surrounding district.18  The disciples of John reported to him about all these things.19  Summoning two of his disciples, John sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are You the Expected One, or do we look for someone else?” So, Luke brings these two scenes together and when John the Baptist hears of what Jesus is doing in Nain, John sends some friends to ask Jesus an all important question.

Now, understand John has been put in prison, you remember the whole Herod, being married to his sister and his daughter tricks her father into putting John in prison and ultimately he will be beheaded, as these two ladies conspire to put John to death. Herod didn’t have the guts, but because John was so vocal in speaking out against the sin of incest and Herods’ sin, it all ends with John being in a dungeon for quite a while and eventually killed.

All John wants to know is, has it all been worth it? He’s a little down by being treated like this and he just wants to know, are you the one I prepared the way for or not? Just reassure me a little will ya? I’m in prison and I hear you have all this power, aren’t you going to come get me out of this jail I’m stuck in, or something like that? Surely, you’re going to do something for me Jesus?

So, John’s friends, his disciples and loyal followers, go to Jesus back in Nain while He’s doing all this amazing stuff and ask Him for John, are you the one we’ve been expecting, or do we look for another? Now, Jesus’ response is very interesting to say the least. How does Jesus respond to the question? Basically, He says, hold on a minute, I’ve got some things I need to be doing and He turns back to the folks and heals everybody right, left, and center and these guys just watch Him do it, waiting to hear an answer to the question John asked.

After He heals all these people, He then turns back to these men and says go tell John all you have seen, At that very time He cured many people of diseases and afflictions and evil spirits; and He gave sight to many who were blind.22  And He answered and said to them, “Go and report to John what you have seen and heard: the BLIND RECEIVE SIGHT , the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the POOR HAVE THE GOSPEL PREACHED TO THEM .

23    “Blessed is he who does not take offense at Me.” Tell John this, that’s my answer. I see in this text, Jesus knows John is hurting and wants help with his pain, but Jesus is making known to everyone what He is really like compared to what everyone including John thought He was like. Everyone, even John, believed the Messiah would be this great military leader and king and would deliver all His people from Roman domination and free them from the bad leaders of Israel as well.

I see in this text one of the top major challenges of life to you and me. I don’t think Luke wrote this for the widow of Nain, or for John, or any of those people of the day. This was written for you and me; this event has your name written all over it! Scripture challenges us over and over to accept the challenge life brings you.

You see, life doesn’t come to us and ask our permission and say, excuse me, would it be all right with you if I did this or brought that into your life? No! Life just comes barreling right on into your life with no warnings or seeking permission. Many times, when you don’t want it, it will bring you things you don’t want anywhere near you.

You can see the woman’s pain. Her boy is dead! We read these stories off of pieces of print and, we can’t help it, we don’t feel the intensity for these folks. We can’t feel deeply for everyone, or guilty about it, we don’t know them, so we often miss what’s happening. If  it were happening to us then our emotions would be there wouldn’t they? Don’t feel bad about that, that’s how we’re built, thank God for it! If you felt intense about every pain, you would be overwhelmed.

But, when they’re close; husband, or wife, son or daughter, then the pressure gets racheted up, we feel the pressure and that’s how it works. This is her boy who’s dead. Now, if he were 98 and she asked us to pray for 20 more years, the pressure wouldn’t be as great would it? I’d pray, but I’d probably be inclined to say in some way, he’s lived a long good life, why not give a break and let him go home.

But, we all know there’s something sadder when the young fall, it’s the way we’re built folks. The pressure is more intense for lots of reasons. In this day, having no husband and now no son, life gets tough on mom, it’s the way it is.

But, even in our day, when someone dies at 17, or 19, they are just wiped out for some reason, we all get a little more disappointed. He’s not just her boy, he’s her only boy! Oh dear! There’s a special link if he’s the only child. She had lost her husband sometime ago and that just puts more special link to her only boy. If her husband was still alive they would lean on each other and cry their way through it together, but she’s got nobody. That’s her pain!

Then we can see John’s pain. John is in prison, not because he’s an idiot who broke some law, or a villain; he hasn’t done some ungodly sin, nor was he unfaithful in some way and now he’s being punished, no! “Now,  wait a minute God; here I am because I stood by You, I spoke the words You gave me to speak, how come I’m here?”

“Here, I am, on my own, and listen Lord, I don’t mind being here a while, but good night Lord,” and here comes his question. What I see John asking here is more than the words themselves say, I’m sorry I see it. I don’t believe what he’s really asking is what they words say. I don’t believe he’s asking, are you the Christ? John knows who Jesus is, what he’s asking Jesus is, what’s keeping you from me, why are you letting these people do this to me? How much longer do I have to stay here? Why don’t you listen to me. How much longer does this injustice go on and you do knowing to stop it? When can I get out of here?

I’ve been a great servant of yours for a long time and I still have much I can do to help you, how much longer before you come get me? The answer he gets is a very hard answer!

Listen folks, there’s no period in your life so hard to take, there’s no stress, temptation, or trial in your life so hard to take as this one right here. When God makes it crystal clear, He has given multiplied evidences of His allmighty power and He doesn’t use it to ease your burden. Oh dear!

John’s disciples report back to John and say, you know what He’s doing? He’s raising the dead, giving sight to the blind, cripples are walking, lepers are being cleansed, He is banishing illness and disease from Israel! John hears all this and says, quietly, did He say anything to you about getting me out of here? No, not a word.

It’s amazing isn’t it? We hear sermons over and over, we study our Bibles often, and I come to you and talk and others do to and we talk some more and we tell each other over and over again, He has great power, all power, beyond our imagination and we continue reading and hearing it. Yet, very often in my life and yours, he doesn’t use it on my behailf to ease my burdens.

Now, in the case of the widow he does ease her pain immediately and we see clearly He has the power. But, John, what about him? The only relief John is going to get is when the men come with the ax and take his head and send him home where he belongs. It doesn’t always end with cheers of joy at a marvelous deliverance from the pain. In fact, in my life there is seldom a dramatic deliverance and in the life of most of the people I have known. Most of the time we suffer!

What does my Master say to John? John, I do have all the power to deliver and more, I could get you out very easily, but I want you to trust Me instead. John here’s my answer, trust me and don’t stumble over me! I know you will struggle to understand this and see how this makes sense, how I operate and do things, but trust me and don’t stumble over me.

We struggle with sin, you and I and someone comes to us and says, oh you could stop it, if you really wanted to. I’m telling you that just insenses me folks. I am a sinner, so don’t you dare tell me I don’t want it out of my life! I want out of it right now, at this moment, don’t tell me I don’t want freedom from ungoliness, I do!

Don’t tell people you can just shrug it off, it’s easy to do if you just want to. That’s an insult to good people who are bent up by their sin and all the ungodliness around them and they want freedom from it. It’s an insult to Jesus  to suggest beating sin is easy! It took a cross and all that ugliness that went with to beat sin, nothing easy about it! If someone suggests it’s easy, there not living in reality. We beg God, when am I going to free from all this, would tell me please?

I’m asking John’s question, are You the one we’re looking for or do we have to go somewhere else? Jesus answers us the same, trust me and don’t stumble over me. Big answer; trust me!

There’s a whole lot more to this trusting thing than we’re telling folks, or ourselves. Let me try to illustrate it for you. A guy says to a girl after knowing her for only 5 minutes, will you marry me? Her answer, are you mad man? Question, does she trust him? Does she?

So, she says, let me thinkit over, I want check you out, so she checks his family out, everybody he knows, work, school, etc.; does she trust him? She wants all the answers before she is going to make such a big committment, right?

Okay, put this one alongside of that one; she has a sister who meets a guy and 5 minutes in he asks her to marry him and she responds by saying yes, lets do it! What do we think about it; she’s nuts right? Hey, I’m not asking if you think she’s an idiot or not, I’m not asking about her sesibility, that’s no what I’m asking. I’m asking, does she trust him? You say she shouldn’t trust him, I say, I’m not asking should she or not, I’m asking does she trust him? She trusts him, the other sister does not.

Let me give another one. Someone you know, not close, but you know them comes and says, join me in business, give me a half million dollars to put into this business and we’ll do it. Now, he’s not a crazy person, he sounds good and right, but you say, I gotta check this out and you begin looking into every source you can find, right? I don’t remember the last time I put a half million into business, but you check it out right?

It only makes sense to check it out. Do you trust him? It only makes sense to check, I’m not asking do you think it’s sensible, I’m asking do you trust him?

Now, lets bring it back to God. What do we do with God? Doesn’t it seem we spend a great deal of our time asking God to make it crystal clear to us that He is who He says He is? That He can do what He says He can do. Every 30 seconds we beg God to prove to us that He is able to change my life, delver us from whatever we face. I want it all worked out before I’m going to committ my life to You God. Don’t you see what we are all guilty of often? Do we trust Him?

One skeptic put it this way, “You Christians won’t make a move until you get Gods’ title on an affidavit.” But the truth is, we will never get it no matter how much we seek it, because God calls us to take the risk with Him. My Master said to John, Just trust Me John, that’s it, trust me. So, what are we going to do about it right now?

You say, Tony, you don’t know my struggles and pain and problems and it’s true I don’t, but I’ve got my own and we all struggle with something, so what are we going to do about it? Are we going to take our stand with God? Will we say to Him, the next time I start whinning or begging, please Lord listen cause I need You to listen, but I’m telling you right here and right now, I chose You no matter what?

This is what Christ is calling us to, you and me! He gives us dignity in calling us to trust Him. He says, I know you’re hurting real bad, but trust me anyway. I know you feel the pressure and I have all the power to change all your circumstances, but trust me whether I do or don’t change anything. This is what His call to us is.Away with whinning and let you and me accept the challenge of life He brings to us.

Let me address friendship a little here too. She comes with a crowd of people into the streets to bury her son and not one of them can do anything to stop the crying. They can’t because no one can bear this burden for her, she has to carry it alone; not one of them can raise her boy and that’s what is needed to relieve the burden.

Now, they all would have if they could; I believe that. I believe that about you and my friends too. Those who care for others would take away all pain and death from others if they could. Wouldn’t you? If you could help all those who come your way, you had the power, wouldn’t you? Sure you would. They were doing all they could for her, they went as far as they could go with her, tried to help her bear up under it all.

We all need friends; I don’t care who we are.I need friends, I need people and so do you; so does everybody. Scientists tell us babies would die if they weren’t touched and handled as new borns. I’m convinced the number one sickness of our society is not of the body, it’s not cancer, lukemia, blindness, deafness, stuck in a wheelchair, aids, etc. It’s being friendless and no one to care for you!

Oh we say, I care, but I just don’t tell them. How can they know you care, if you don’t tell them? How can people know you care if you don’t reach out to them? We need get on the phone, write those emails, do those audio visual chats on the internet, go to them in person wherever they are, because they need you. We all need each other!

Did you know that even My Master needed friends? Remember He begged his own to be with Him and pray when He was in the garden and the pressure was really on? He prayed and said I need you with me and he went and prayed again and came back and said my heart is breaking, I need you; my master needed His friends to stand with Him and we need them too.

Friends can really help, I know it and so do you, but they can only do so much! They can’t pay your bills for you, they can’t be sick for you, nor can they bear the burden of a loved one dying for you, but they can be there for you and bring joy to you of a kind that you can endure whatever you’re going through. They can encourage you to take your stand with God no matter what and even bring a smile to you in it.

If you’re crying, they try to get you to cry a little less. They hang around you when you need that and they stay away when you need that. Friends know how to read that when it’s written all over you that just need a little time. Friends are a great gift to you, you need them; they are a true source of help to you.

They all have limits though, they can’t cry for you, with you, but not for you. They can’t live your life for you and you shouldn’t expect then too. They do all they can, but they can’t do more than that. Also, don’t promote friendships where you are the only one who gives, you must let others give to you, as well. It’s worng to be the only giver, you’ve got to let them have some dignity, by being able to share with you.

I didn’t used to believe in funerals, but I do now. I’ve personally seen the good they can do. We all know of scenes like the one in the text didn’t end up like this one and the one dead doesn’t come up living. It does help to get loved ones and friends together and share the pain and grief; it does help. I can’t say anything deeper than this, I just know it helps. Friends do help in time of loss.

Friends also helped John in this text. He needed strength and understanding, someone to try to get answers for him and return with encouragement and he got all that. Hard circumstances call for friends to do all they can. They couldn’t go to jail for him, or die for him; they can’t take his place, but they did all they could do and gave him real help and strength to see it through to the end.

Conclusion:

You’ve all had loved ones die among you and the truth is, we will have more. The thing is, even if you could raise someone from the dead, they are still going to face it again one day. Even though Jesus healed so many, they would still get sick again one day. These painful desperate circumstances happen, there happening in some of our lives right now. Life is challenging us everyday with these things we don’t want or ask for.

John was wise; he went to Jesus for his answers and he got answers. It may not have been the one he was looking for or hoping for, he certainly didn’t want this answer, but it did bring him help and comfort in the end. Jesus confirmed to John He was the one with power to more than anyone could fathom, even get John out if He chose to. But, Jesus chose to say to John, trust me.

It will turn out for the good of all, if you just trust me! This is what I can do for you too. I don’t have the power to stop any of the things that are happening to you, or will happen to you, but what I can do and am doing is encouraging you to trust Him no matter what!

I can say, I ‘ll hang on to Him and if you hang on to me and you hang on to someone else and so on, then we’ll all make it together. This is the greatest power of all and what Jesus wants us to learn from all this. Let’s accept the challenge in Jesus and see each other through to the end, that’s why he brings us all together.

Good Monday to All My Fellow Group Members

It is good to think of each other in terms of family and building a family, because that is what God is doing in us; bringing us together in a way the world knows little about. Tonight we will look at this building He is creating and showing some things that the Cross removes so that it makes it possible for us to be ONE. Yes, some things must be taken out of the way, so that the heart of Jesus is our focus and family is real and not just an ideal we talk about; but that is the power of the Cross. It is exciting to see what God is building, come and join in the conversation at 7 pm central standard time tonight. Hope to see you all there.

Tony