HT Chapter 1-2 (Tuesday Evening)
Notes
Transcript
HOW TO PLAY THE GAME
Say: The phrase "all in" means you are fully committed. You give everything you have, and nobody can talk you out of doing it or finishing whatever you are committed to doing.
We want to find out today which group has more people who are "all in": the boys or the girls.
I'm going to read through a series of statements.
If the statement is true for at least one person on your team, add a tally mark to your board.
These statements only apply to the people present in your team today and only if they have done these things in the last 12 months.
The team with the most points at the end wins.
Who has, in the last 12 months…
1. Read an entire book (reading the actual book, not just listening to an audio book.) No skimming or shortcut resources. This means starting and reading all the way through one entire book.
2. Ran or walked a 5K.
3. Eaten all your fruit and vegetables at every meal - no exceptions.
4. Played a game of Monopoly and finished the game with no quitting or shortcuts.
5. Tried a new sport and stuck with it the entire season, even if you didn't like it or weren't good at it.
6. Watched an entire season of a TV show or YouTube.
7. Started a Bible reading plan of 30 days or more and completed it.
8. Spent an entire gift card, down to the last cent, on one transaction.
9. Gone 24 hours without using your phone, tablet, game system or any type of similar technology.
10. Started and completed a DIY project you saw online.
11. Completed every single homework assignment and project by the due date - no extensions, late work or missing assignments.
It doesn’t matter what grade you received.
12. Watched every single game - home and away - of a professional sports team.
13. Conquered a fear (ex. being afraid of heights but zip-lining at camp anyway.)
14. Not only told someone about church or youth group and invited them, but even brought him or her with you (or made sure the person made it there even though he or she doesn’t usually go to church anywhere.)
15. Completed a coding project to make a game, app, etc.
*Bonus tip: To make this more difficult, make it a contest to see who can get the most, but each only counts if everyone on the team meets the criteria.
**Tiebreaker: If you end up with a tie, the first team that can find something not already listed that everyone on that team has completed in the last twelve months is the winner.
1. What's something you tried or started, but didn't stick with or finish?
Explain.
2. What's something you've tried or started in the last year and stuck with and finished?
Explain.
3. If we asked your friends and family, what would they say are the things that you love to do most, the things that you give a lot of time, attention, and maybe even money (even if it's your parents' money!) to doing?
Now as we have already talked about the phrase “Burn the Ships” is same thing as saying I’m all in Iam not turning back. But how does one get such determination?
Well the scriptures give us a command that is meant to help us know how we can be “all In”
Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.
When we hear those words, if you are like me, you start to make a mental checklist:
How well do I do at loving God with my heart?
How well do I do with loving Him with my soul?
How well do I love do with loving him with my mind?
And how well with my strength?
However, that's not how that command was given.We aren’t meant to check off one item and not the others.
All these terms were used together to emphasize a person's total commitment in trusting and obeying God.
Can anyone or anything keep you from following Jesus?
So, even though we are talking about total commitment of all that you are to Jesus, we are going to break this idea down into four parts for this series to show how this should look and to challenge you to honestly and accurately evaluate how you are doing.
Think about this: What could it look like if you were to start being "all in" with Jesus?
Today, we start with the heart.
Let's look at a something Jesus said to help us figure out how we can start the process of being "all in" when it comes to our hearts.
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Now When Hudson Taylor was a 5 yr old young boy he had decided that he wanted to be a missionary.
But by the time Hudson was 13 he had stopped reading his bible. He had stopped caring about God. He even got irritated when his dad would try to talk with him about Jesus. Do you all remember this from last night.
So Hudson Taylor went from being determined to be a missionary to not even caring about God. Something or someone had talked him out of his desire to be all in.
Does anyone know who that was?
It was his himself. It was his own heart. Now Hudson Taylor was no longer all in. We read in the story that he didn’t even want to pray anymore.
you see Hudson Taylor although he had wanted to do good things. He had never given God his heart.
Then one day while his mother was praying for him. He picked up a Bible booklet and began to read it.
He read these simple words that Jesus spoke “ It is finished....”. Now the story doesn’t tell us exactly what passage Hudson read or what the rest of the booklet had in it but I Imagine it was something like this.
But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
You know we will never treasure Christ until we realize what he has done for us. This was Hudson’s problem. At one point he had wanted to do good things but his heart didn’t yet understand or treasure Christ. Hudson’s treasure was something else. The story tells us that Hudson Taylor had begin to treasure other things. Like having lots of money and owning a big house.
But when Hudson realized that even when He was a sinner that Christ had died to for him. Hudson realized that the real treasure wasn’t found in earthly things it was found in Christ.
What are some things that people treasure today that might keep them from treasuring Christ? ( allow a few to answer)
That’s right some people are not all in because they treasure other things.
and its been that way even in Jesus day.
Just then someone came up and asked him, “Teacher, what good must I do to have eternal life?”
“Why do you ask me about what is good?” he said to him. “There is only one who is good. If you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”
“Which ones?” he asked him. Jesus answered: Do not murder; do not commit adultery; do not steal; do not bear false witness;
honor your father and your mother; and love your neighbor as yourself.
“I have kept all these,” the young man told him. “What do I still lack?”
“If you want to be perfect,” Jesus said to him, “go, sell your belongings and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
When the young man heard that, he went away grieving, because he had many possessions.
You see this young man was sad because he chose not to treasure Jesus over his riches.
But when Hudson Taylor recognized that he was a sinner. That even as a sinner Jesus loved him enough to He traded one treasure for a greater one.
Jesus said it like this....
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure, buried in a field, that a man found and reburied. Then in his joy he goes and sells everything he has and buys that field.
Hudson Taylor realized that there was no greater treasure than knowing that Jesus Christ love him, died for him, forgave his sins. Hudson was willing to lay down all that he treasured for the treasure that is in Christ.
The rest of the week we are going to see just how much of a difference it made in Hudson Taylor’s life to repent of His sins and trust Jesus Christ as his lord and savior.
Maybe your here this week and the only reason you came is because you know how awesome this camp is. I mean you get swim, waterslide, blob, throw axes, shoot guns, and bows. Play crazy games eat whatever you want too. But you know Jesus helped to bring you here this week. He wanted you to know how much he treasures you and how He is worth treasuring.
So maybe some you that here tonight would say Pastor Brett, I know that I have never really given Jesus my heart. Just like Hudson Taylor, I know about Jesus but I have never chosen to treasure Him.
The Bible Says
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God;
Admit that you are a sinner.
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Understand that God is so serious about sin that he rewards it with death. That is why we all will die someday. But God’s gift is eternal life.
“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”
To repent means to give up your sins and to give your life to Jesus Christ.
He escorted them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”
And trust In Jesus as your payment for your sin. Believe on Him.
If you are here today and you have decided to follow Jesus for the first time. Come tell one of your leaders about it. They’d love to hear about your decision or if you have any questions about it they or myself would love to answer them for you. But either way talk to someone about it, so they can be happy with you.