Vision Sunday Theme: Place

Introduction - Brandon Morrow

It is such a joy to be with you all this morning! What a joy to be together on Vision Sunday. If you have a Bible, I want you to open up your Bible to Psalm 34. We’re going to be spending the majority of our time there this morning as we talk about the next season of life at Good News.

As we get started this morning I wanted to settle us in on a thought… God has called us to superintend over a place.

Scripture is obsessed with the concept of place. As we’ve been preaching through Ezra-Nehemiah we see that they’re totally hopeful on the presence of God inhabiting their place. In fact, a lot of disputes have happened historically, on the nature of a place… just think about the disputes over the Gaza Strip in the Middle East. The reason why the Bible is so hard set on the idea of “place” is that in this “place” — wherever that may be, we experience the blessing of God’s presence.

This is something that is very near and dear to the heart of scripture. The Bible actually begins and ends with God’s presence celebrated in a place. In Genesis, it is God’s presence celebrated in the Garden of Eden. In the Book of Revelation it is God’s presence celebrated in the New Heavens and New Earth.

This is the first blessing in all of scripture.

God’s first blessing for His people is in giving them a place to exercise their shared life. In Genesis, God gives the blessing of a beautiful garden to enjoy with His creation. While it is a place of work and dominion, it is also a place of experiencing the presence of the Lord. Think about the moment when God discovers Adam and Eve in their nakedness. They heard Him walking around, He was looking for them. He was scoping out where they were so He could be with them. — God’s people are never without a place.

We have a place, two in fact: Okoboji and Estherville, Dickinson and Emmet Counties.

In Genesis, not only do we see the very first blessing of place, enjoying the presence of God with God, but in Genesis 3 we see the very first curse of God: which is placelessness. Placelessness is the first curse, which is the result of missing out on the blessing that God has given His people. Sin and rebellion has moved us away from God’s presence, and so we’ve lost the place that He gave us for us to enjoy with Him.

The totality of scripture reminds us that God is bent towards providing His people with a place by which He shares His presence with them.

As I’ve said, we have that place: Okoboji and Estherville, Dickinson and Emmet Counties.

In scripture God has reminded His people of His unwavering presence and favor. This year we are setting our sights on the favor of God’s presence over a place. If you have your Bibles open, take a look at Psalm 34.

Historically this Psalm was attributed to David when he pretended he went insane before Abimelech, who drove him away, and he departed. David was on the run from Saul and went to the Philistine city of Gath but found no refuge there and narrowly escaped. All of this was recorded in 1 Samuel 21:10-22:1. When David realized that he didn’t have any refuge he went to the cave at Adullam where many desperate men joined him. Psalm 34 is recorded as a joyful and wise psalm, and it seems to have been written from that cave, and sung in the presence of those men.

Please stand and join us together as we read Psalm 34.

Scripture Reading — Jesse Orttel

Psalm 34 ESV

Of David, when he changed his behavior before Abimelech, so that he drove him out, and he went away. I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul makes its boast in the Lord; let the humble hear and be glad. Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together! I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to him are radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed. This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them. Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him! Oh, fear the Lord, you his saints, for those who fear him have no lack! The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. Come, O children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. What man is there who desires life and loves many days, that he may see good? Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit. Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it. The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and his ears toward their cry. The face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth. When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all. He keeps all his bones; not one of them is broken. Affliction will slay the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will be condemned. The Lord redeems the life of his servants; none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.

Message Exposition — Jesse Orttel & Brandon Morrow

BM — As we are called to superintend over a place with the presence of God, that means that God has called us to stability over a place, a kind of faithfulness that is rooted in the everlasting message of the gospel. It means that we have an ownership over not only the flourishing over the places that we live, work, and play, but also that we have an ownership over the lostness of the places that we live, work, and play. God is calling Good News towards that faithfulness. That we might experience His refuge and grace.

JO — We want to hone in on verse 14 as a kind of Guiding Theme for us over the next year, as we focus on our faithfulness to an always-faithful God. Read Psalm 34:14

Psalm 34:14 ESV

Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.

JO til End — Every church is being called to being a church that is rooted in God’s faithfulness. Daily we are learning to walk that path of being faithful as Jesus has been faithful… luckily, faithfulness is rooted in Him! Not us!

Conclusion - Jesse Orttel

We are recovering our sense of “place” — God has immense blessings for the future of this church, and it’s all for the sake of the gospel and the Kingdom of God.

God has called us to superintend over a place. How will you plan to join Him?