Show Up: Wherever God Calls You

Manuscript Template

Title:  Show Up: Wherever God Calls You

Elevator Summary:  

Next time you’re with someone who doesn’t know the Lord, start by showing up. Mentally remind yourself to focus on listening well and be deliberately intentional in your interactions, showing unconditional love and extending grace. Be curiously engaged in what is being said, caring about what the person is going through. Look for needs and listen, expecting the Holy Spirit to lead you how to respond. Only then, relentlessly invite them to come and see God’s love on display.

Focus Statement:  

We need to show up to places we typically wouldn’t go, talk to people we typically wouldn’t talk to, and serve in ways that reflect God’s love and grace, if we’re going to join Jesus in His mission to seek and save the lost.

Function Statement:  

Live a life that demands an explanation.

Tweetable Phrase:  

A simple act of kindness opens a door to a kingdom conversation.

Scripture:  John 4:1-42

Main Text:  John 4:1-42

Supporting Text:  Romans 10:13, 1 Peter 2:12, 1 Peter 2:4-7, John 7:37

Redemptive Closure (point to Jesus):  1 Peter 2:4-7, Romans 5:8

Benediction:  1 Peter 2:12

WELCOME

Good morning!!! My name is Ryan Hanson and I have the honor of serving here at The Light KC as the lead pastor. I’m so glad you’re here with us.

‌Welcome to those joining us online. We hope your doing well and hope to see you in person in the coming weeks.

And a special welcome to those joining us for the first time. We’re so glad you chose to be here.

ME/INTRO - Tension

I want to start by asking a question.

Have you ever felt like God was calling you to go somewhere, or do something, where you did not feel comfortable going? Where you felt like you did not belong?

Back when I was in college, I was single and had quite a bit of free time.

I felt God calling me to volunteer and when I heard about the Big Brother / Big Sister organization, I felt God drawing me to sign up. I found out there was a chapter in Grand Rapids, where I lived, and reached out to see if they needed anyone. They very eagerly helped me through the process of signing up, matched with with an elementary school aged boy who did not have a father figure in his life. I was in. I was ready to obediently follow God’s prompting and do whatever I could to serve as a friend, mentor, role-model, whatever he needed.

When the big day arrived to meet the boy, the contact from Big Brother / Big Sister called me. He was very kind, and went over the details.

He said that he was going to meet me at their house to facilitate the introduction. This seemed unnecessary, but I brushed it off as probably being procedure.

He then gave me the address to the house. I didn’t recognize any of the streets, but wasn’t surprised the boy lived in an area of town I wasn’t familiar with.

He then gave me very clear instructions on parking. He said I needed to approach the house from the south, driving north. He explained that they lived on the east side of the road and I needed to park in front of their house and that I was not to park anywhere else on the street. He said the neighborhood does not appreciate “outsiders” and that if an unrecognized car is seen it will be vandalized and my wheels will most likely be stolen.

I was a little caught off guard by this, but tried my best to brush it off.

When I drove to the address, I got off the expressway at an exit I have never gotten off at. Immediately I started to understand all the warnings. Every stop sign had gang signs painted on them, to which was later explained to me as their method of marking territory. As I approached the house there were tons of people in the street, all staring very intently upon me as I pulled up.

I have to admit, I was very uncomfortable. I was quite nervous. If I am 100% honestly I was a little scared.

I was definitely somewhere, I felt I did not belong? And it seemed like everyone who lived on that road agreed with me.

WE - Tension

Have you ever been somewhere you didn’t feel like you belong?

Have you ever felt the eyes of everyone around you looking at you, judging you, wondering what you’re doing?

The thing about the Christian life, is that if you have been in a place where everyone is wondering what you’re doing, you are exactly where God wants you to be.

Joshua 4:5–7 NIV

5 and said to them, “Go over before the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, 6 to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’ 7 tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever.”

Massevot

Memorial stone pillar serving as a memorial

What happened here?

God calls all of us to live lives that demand an explanation.

God wants us to obediently GO where He call us to GO, SHOWING UP for the people that He is calling us to serve.

Are you living a life, right now, that demands an explanation?

This week we’re continuing our series called Living An Invitational Life where we’re exploring what it means to be the people that God is calling us to be.

2 weeks ago we talked about how we’re called to LIVE the life of a disciple, obediently taking the next step that God is calling us to take.

If you missed some of the previous messages, please feel free to catch up. They’re easy to find on our new and improved website!!!

TheLightKC.org

This week, we’re going to see what God wants us to learn about who and where we are called to SHOW UP.

To do that we’re going to look at a story in John 4, where Jesus SHOWS UP to talk to a women no one would have expected Him to talk to.

As as we begin, please turn with me to [John 4:1-42] as we look at the story of the Woman at the Well.

We’ll have the scripture on the screen, but if you have a Bible with you, or Bible app on your phone, I’d encourage you to turn to the passage and follow along. There is nothing that replaces having God’s word in your hand.

AND...if you don’t have a Bible, we have Bibles under the seats. If you don’t have a bible and would like one, please come see me after the service and I’ll get you one you can keep.

Lets dive in.

GOD - Text

Let’s start in verse 1

John 4:1–5 NIV

Now Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that he was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John—although in fact it was not Jesus who baptized, but his disciples. So he left Judea and went back once more to Galilee. Now he had to go through Samaria. So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph.

Let’s stop here for one moment.  I think before we get into the meat of the story we need some context.  There are two things that stand out to me.

First, in V4 Jesus went through Samaria.  The Jews and Samaritans hated each other.  Their hatred for each other started when Israel was conquered by Assyria in 721.  The King of Assyria’s strategy for keeping people loyal to Assyria was to destroy the culture of the people groups he conquered by getting them to intermarry with other cultures that he would force to move into the conquered people’s land.  The Samaritans were the product of the Northern Israelites intermarrying with people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath and Sepharvaim.  The Southern Israelites did not intermarry because God commands them not to in Deuteronomy 7:3.  It says…

Deuteronomy 7:3 NIV

Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons,

The hatred between the Jewish people and the Samaritans was so deep that the Jews considered Samaritans unclean.  They actually used the same word to describe the Samaritans as they did to describe the unclean condition of the leppers.

The second thing that stands out to me is that in V4 Jesus “HAD” to go through Samaria.

John 4:4 NIV

Now he had to go through Samaria.

The reality was, that the Jewish people didn’t have to go through Samaria.

This wasn’t really the case. In Matthew 10:5, when Jesus sent out the 12 he specifically tells them to avoid Samaria.

Matthew 10:5 NIV

5 These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans.

In fact, nearly all Jews would walk around Samaria when they went between Galilee and Jerusalem. Here’s a map of path Jesus took, vs the route most Jewish people would take.

[Map - John 4 - Routes]

The word used for HAD is dei, which means divine necessity or religious obligation

Had (dei) Devine necessity; religious obligation

Jesus HAD to go to Samaria because this was a divine mission from God.  God had a plan for what was about to happen in Samaria.

This is one of my favorite examples of Jesus living out Luke 19:10

Luke 19:10 NIV

For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

Because of God’s love for everyone, He called Jesus to SHOW UP to a place he was not supposed to go as a Jew, to speak with a person he was not supposed to interact with, because God has not given up on her.

Before we go any further...

I just want you to know, God hasn’t given up on you either.  He will, and is, seeking you out just like he sought out this woman by the well.

And God is not only seeking you out, He wants to partner with all of us to seek out the lost in our communities by doing three things.

Show unconditional LOVE and GRACE

Look for NEEDS

Introduce them to JESUS

Show unconditional LOVE and GRACE

To see how we do that...

Let’s continue reading in V6.

John 4:6–10 NIV

6 Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon. 7 When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” 8 (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.) 9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.) 10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”

Just by talking to her and asking her for water, Jesus shows this woman unconditional LOVE and GRACE.

Back in the first century Men didn’t speak to woman in public. In fact, they didn’t even speak to their wives in public. It was not socially acceptable. By Jesus speaking to this woman, He is acknowledging her worth as a person. By asking for water, Jesus is demonstrating His acceptance and LOVE for all people, even Samaritans.

It is also worth noting that she is drawing water from the well at noon, which was never done.  Noon was the hottest time of day, and it was typical to draw water in the morning or evening.  It is pretty clear she was trying to avoid the other women in the town.  She probably had no friends and was treated pretty poorly by others. There was a story to this woman’s life that caused her to be excluded from the normal workings of society. Yet, Jesus looked past that, and showed her GRACE by not judging her actions, but treating her as a person.

That’s what we’re called to do. No matter who it is, or what you’e done, we’re called to follow Jesus’s example and how unconditional love.

Look for NEEDS

Continuing in John 4:11-18

John 4:11–18 NIV

11 “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? 12 Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?” 13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” 15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.” 16 He told her, “Go, call your husband and come back.” 17 “I have no husband,” she replied. Jesus said to her, “You are right when you say you have no husband. 18 The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.”

It is here that Jesus figured out what is going on. He starts to identify her NEED.

This woman has had (5) husbands.  Her life is a mess, but I think it is worth noting that the passage never mentions that she sinned.  Her husbands could have died naturally.  This could be a real life example similar to Matthew 22 when the Sadducees asked Jesus about a woman who had been married to 7 brothers, seeking to know who they would be married to in heaven.  This woman may have been the victim of many tragic events throughout her life, none being her fault.  We really don’t know, and John doesn’t think we need to.

But...whatever happened, the events of her life, have excluded her from society and forced her to live in isolation, outside of the community we were created for.

Introduce them to Jesus

Jesus doesn’t stop there. He doesn’t just show here GRACE AND LOVE and discover her NEED, Jesus bring RESTORATION.

John 4:19–26 NIV

19 “Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. 20 Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.” 21 “Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” 25 The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” 26 Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he.”

Jesus bring restoration to this woman’s life by introducing her to the only one who can heal her hurts. She may not have any community left in her town, but Jesus introduces her into a relationship with Himself, the only one who can heal us of our past NOW and save us for ETERNITY.

Show Up

Whereas so far this story serves as a great example of Jesus obediently going where God told Him to go, SHOWING UP to restore a hurting woman to spiritual health, the next section shows us why it is so hard for us to follow Jesus’ example.

John 4:27-38 reads

John 4:27–38 NIV

27 Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no one asked, “What do you want?” or “Why are you talking with her?” 28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” 30 They came out of the town and made their way toward him. 31 Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.” 32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.” 33 Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?” 34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. 35 Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. 36 Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. 37 Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. 38 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”

In defense of the disciples, they were right to be surprised when they saw Jesus talking to this woman.  They were very aware of the cultural tension between Jews and Samaritans.  They were also aware that it was considered inappropriate for women and men to talk in public. 

How many of us fail to follow the promptings of God because we’re afraid of how others will react?

Yet...the reality was, Jesus entered into a situation He had no business being in to engage with this woman because God called Him to do so. Jesus didn’t care what others would think. He LOVED this woman, saw a NEED, and introduced her into a relationship with Himself as the only person who can heal her hurts.

YOU - Takeaway

So...

How many of you have felt promptings from God to start a conversation with someone at the store or in line somewhere, but don’t because you know it is not considered culturally appropriate to talk to strangers?

How many of you have felt prompting from God to share your faith story with co-workers, acquaintances, or friends and invite them to church to introduce them to Jesus, but haven’t because you’re concerned about the relationship changing?

How many of you took Easter invite cards, and haven’t given them out yet?

How many of you didn’t even take any because you know you probably won’t invite anyone?

WE / JESUS - Redemptive Close - Call to Action

The truth of this story is, that no matter where you’re at, God is willing to SHOW UP in your life.

If you

Don’t believe in God, God will meet you there

Believe in God, but haven’t accepted Jesus into your heart as your LORD and SAVIOR, God will meet you there

Are stuck in habitual pattern of sin and can’t get out by your own strength, God will meet you there

Are living a Godly life, but not sharing that life with the lost of this world, God will meet you there

Romans 5:8 NIV

8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Christ died for everyone. The...

Good

Bad

Sinners

Saints

You fill in the blank and Christ died for them. No matter how hard it is for us to believe it.

Jesus is calling each of us to follow in His footsteps and SHOW UP for the people that we know, showing them LOVE AND GRACE, discovering their NEEDS, and introducing them to a relationship with the only person that can clean their mess up, Jesus.

My story with the Little Brother ends positively.

I was quite scared that first day, but I continued to show up. It turned out the mother wasn’t able to afford three meals a day so most weeks I’d come and take him out to dinner. We’d eat, we’d talk, then we’d go do something he wanted to do. We played at parks, I taught him tennis, then he found out I played and coached hockey.

One week, I brought a Little Caesars pizza, some street hockey sticks, and a hockey ball. We ate the pizza on the tailgate of my truck and played hockey in the street with some cones setup as goals.

The neighbors who were all on their porches staring at us started to come toward us. I thought that I was in trouble, or worse (given the number of gang signs in the neighborhood).

It turned out they came over to ask me what I was doing and wanted to know if I had any more sticks so their kids could play. From that week forward we had Little Caesar tailgate dinners and street hockey in the road with all the neighbor kids. I had some great conversations with the little brother’s mom over the years and many of the neighbors.

I don’t have the perfect pastoral ending where the neighborhood gave their life to Jesus and we had a cleanup Saturday where all the gang symbols were cleaned off the stop signs, but I was able to plan seeds, which sometimes is all we’re called to.

Yet...I tell this story because sometimes this is all God is calling us to do. Remember 1 Corinthians 3:6-7

1 Corinthians 3:6–7 NIV

6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. 7 So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.

God called me to plant seeds for that season of my life.

I still keep up with this child (no longer a child) on FaceBook and see how he’s doing.

I can’t imagine what I would have missed over those years if I let the fear of that first day stop me from following God’s call to become a Big Brother.

I want to end with a questions

Are you living a life, right now, that demands an explanation?

PRAYER 

Will you join me in prayer...

SONG 

As we enter into our final song, I want to open the steps up front as an altar to anyone who needs God this week. The steps are open for you to pray to the God who is with you, who loves you, you wants to give you His peace.

‌

You may feel a hand on your shoulder as I or one of the elders join you in prayer.

BENEDICTION 

1 Peter 2:12 NIV

12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

This week… let’s show up to places we typically wouldn’t go, talk to people we typically wouldn’t talk to, and serving in ways that reflect God’s LOVE and GRACE to everyone we meet. Let’s seek our their NEEDS, and when the Holy Spirit prompts us, let’s obediently introduce them into a relationship with Jesus, the only one who can truly save.

Quick reminder...

Potluck and packing party immediately after church in the cafe

Mission / Vision / Values meetings will continue next Sunday at 9 AM. Open to everyone, even if you missed today.

If you’re new, please stop by our info desk, or see me. We’d love to say “hi” and get you know you a bit better.

I hope you have a great week.

Go in peace.

You are dismissed.

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