Making Room - A Spiritual Fall Cleanup

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Title:  Making Room - A Spiritual Fall Cleanup

Focus Statement:  What could God do this fall if we simply made room for Him?

Function Statement:  What would it look like to rearrange your fall around Jesus rather than trying to fit Jesus into whatever space is left?

Tweetable Phrase:  You can't make room for everything, so make room for what matters most.

Main Text:  Luke 5:1-11

Supporting Text:  

Redemptive Closure (point to Jesus):  Luke 10:38-42

Benediction:  Hebrews 12:1-2 / Colossians 3:17

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 you're 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

Well...Summer is unofficially over.

Fall actually starts in a few weeks on the 22nd of September, but for me, summer is done the day after Labor Day.

But that means, that it is now time to do all the things that need to be done that I have neglected all summer.

The reality is that fall brings very welcomed cooler temperatures, but it also brings more demands on our schedules.

Within the next month or so, I have to...

Close the pool

Clean and put away the lawn furniture

Winterize the sprinkler

Trim and clean up the landscaping

Replace the furnace filter

Replace the smoke detector batteries

And rake leaves every weekend from now until January or until they all fall off

And...if you’re family is anything like mine, you have to do all that in the middle of a much more packed schedule

Kids are in school, which means nightly homework help

Ellie has soccer, scouts, youth group, and 1/2 marathon training

Grace has dance

Wyatt has soccer

Our Discipleship group starts this Wednesday (hope you all come)

etc., etc., etc.

WE - Tension

Anyone else feel the pressure of fall and the tsunami of backlogged tasks that now need to get done?

Anyone find that they check the calendar just to find that all the free time is gone?

The reality of FALL is that it is a time to reset, to re-evaluate, and to prepare for the season to come.

To make sure we keep the plates all spinning this school year, Andrea did something we’ve never done before...

...WE HAVE A SHARED CALENDAR

But the challenge we’re running into is MAKING ROOM for everything.

All the while making sure that as we put our schedule together, we are MAKING ROOM for Jesus to be involved in every aspect of the process

Guiding what we say YES to

Guiding what we say NO to

Directing how we prioritize everything as it gets scheduled

If the process of FALL CLEANUP is meant to prepare us for what is to come...

...the question I want to try to answer today is...

...are we MAKING ROOM for Jesus to guide and direct what we choose not to do, what we agree to do, and how we prioritize what we have agreed to do?

Are we MAKING ROOM for Jesus in our lives?

Today, we’re going to try to answer that question by looking at the story in Luke 5 when Jesus called Peter (then named Simon) to follow Him.

If you missed the previous messages, please feel free go to our website, TheLightKC.org, to catch up.

As we begin, please turn with me to [Luke 5:1-11: Sanctuary Bible Page # 835]

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.

Let's dive in.

GOD - Text - HEAD

Luke 5 tells the story of Jesus calling His first disciples.

The video we watched was a clip of this passage from The Chosen TV series.

The first thing we need to acknowledge is that the way Jesus called His disciples was not in line with how Rabbis in the 1st Century got their disciples.

If you noticed, Simon Peter and the other boys were fishing, they were not in school, and they were helping with the family business.

Remember from the other week when we talked about discipleship.

In the 1st Century boys were in school, learning / memorizing scripture, learning to ask questions, and developing a curiosity for God’s word.

At age 15, only the best of the best of the best were allowed to approach a Rabbi and ask to be his disciple.

They still had to answer a bunch of questions from the Rabbi and prove that they had what it takes to become like that Rabbi.

Simon Peter, James, and John didn’t measure up.

They had already been sent home to work in their families businesses.

We don’t know at what point in their education they fell short, but we do know that they were not accepted by another Rabbi to be a disciple.

That is what makes this story unique.

Jesus didn’t wait for kids to approach Him to seek permission to become His Rabbi.

Jesus sought out and approached the kids that were already rejected.

Jesus took those who the world said wasn’t good enough, and invited them to “Follow Him”.

So before we start, I think we need to recognize that...

Even if you feel rejected by the world, Jesus is seeking you out, and loves you just as you are.

Even if you feel like you have nothing to offer, Jesus calls you to be His disciple and with the help of the Holy Spirit learn to be more and more like Him.

Before we start, please know that Jesus is calling you to be His disciple, just like He called Simon Peter, James, and John.

But you have to choose if you want to accept the invitation

Jesus wants to be part of your ORDINARY MOMENTS

So this is the context that we enter into this story.

Simon Peter, James, and John failed out of 1st Century discipleship school

They were sent home to work in their family business of fishing

Jesus finds them while they’re cleaning up from a long yet unsuccessful night’s work

Let’s start in Luke 5:1–2, which reads:

“1 One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God. 2 He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets.”

Jesus approached Simon Peter while he was washing his fishing nets.

The first truth I want to highlight from this passage is that...

Jesus wants to be part of our everyday / ordinary moments.

There was a French Monk named Brother Lawrence. He wrote a book called “The Practice of the Presence of God”

[Image: Brother Lawrence Book]

In it, he emphasizes God’s desire to be part of every aspect of your life.

He taught that we should practice maintaining awareness of God’s presence throughout our day regardless of the task, because God is always with us, even in the simplest of activities.

He writes:

“Think often on God, by day, by night, in your business and even in your diversions. He is always near you and with you; leave him not alone.” ― Brother Lawrence

Brother Lawrence says that we need to acknowledge God’s presence in everything we do, throughout the day through what he called FLASH PRAYERS - short, spontaneous, acknowledgements of God’s presence in all aspects of your life.

walking

cooking

eating

driving

waiting

etc.

No matter what you’re doing, Jesus wants to be a part of it.

Do you look for God’s presence throughout the mondain activities throughout your day?

Do you pray continually, acknowledging that God is always with you?

Do you live a life that you want God to be 100% a part of?

Are there areas of your life you currently would prefer that God stay away from?

What would it look like to not only acknowledge that God is always with you, no matter how ordinary the moment may seem, but live the type of life that you would be proud to have God be a part of?

We have to choose to LET JESUS INTO OUR LIVES

But Jesus doesn’t just want to be part of every aspect of your lives, He wants to be invited in.

Luke 5:3

“3 He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.”

The second truth I want to highlight from this passage is that...

We have to choose to let Jesus into our lives.

In the book of Revelation, John writes down the apocalyptic vision that God showed him. In it there are messages to the 7 churches.

To the church in Laodicea, John writes that they are lukewarm, thinking that they can do everything themselves, and don’t need God.

Jesus tells them in Revelation 3:20

“20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.”

Jesus is waiting.

Jesus is waiting for us to let Him into our lives.

He loves us enough not to force His way in, but He is lovingly waiting for us to open the door and invite Him in.

Simon Peter let Jesus onto his fishing boat, into the everyday activities of his life.

The church of Laodicea was challenged to stop trying to do everything themselves and let Jesus into their lives.

Jesus wants the same from us.

Jesus wants us to humbly acknowledge that we can’t live the life we were created to live without Him.

Jesus wants us to open the door to our lives and let Him into every detail.

The question we have to ask is...

Will you?

Will you let Jesus speak into every aspect of your life?

Will you hold nothing back, but fully open the door of your life to the Power and Presence of God?

All the hurt, all the pain, all the brokenness? Everything?

We need to OBEY Jesus before we understand

But the risk in allowing Jesus into your life, is that He loves you too much to leave you in the state that you’re in.

Luke 5:4–5

“4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.” 5 Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.””

Once we let Jesus into our lives, He will ask us to do the things that He knows is best for us.

The third truth I want to highlight from this passage is that...

We need to obey Jesus, even before we understand

Simon Peter had fished all night and caught nothing.

He just finished cleaning, repairing, and putting away his nets.

The last thing he wanted to do was to put them back into the lake, catch nothing (AGAIN), and have to clean them all over again.

But Simon Peter humbly obeys.

Because obedience isn’t blind compliance.

Obedience is trust in action.

Obedience is the action of showing God that we trust Him and His wisdom, more than our own perspectives.

And this is nothing new in Scripture.

God consistently calls people to obey without giving them any explanation.

God called Abraham to leave his family and go to a new place he would receive as an inheritance, but God never told Abraham where that was

God called Moses to build an ark because of a flood that would come in 50-75 years, in a time in the Earth’s history when it hadn’t even rained yet

God called Joshua to march around Jericho for 7 days, until the end of day 7 when the army let out a shout to knock the city walls down

God called Gideon to send home all but 300 of his 32,000 soldiers to fight a Midianite army of over 135,000 soldiers

And the list could go on and on.

When we obey God’s commands, we show Him that we trust and love Him.

So...How do you obey the commands of God on your life?

Do you ignore any command that you don’t fully understand?

Do you listen, but wait until you understand fully to obey?

Or, do you obey without question, before you understand why God is asking?

Jesus has a MISSION for us all

But Jesus calls us to more than just obeying individual commands.

Luke 5:6–10

“6 When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. 7 So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink. 8 When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” 9 For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, 10 and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.””

The forth truth I want to highlight from this passage is that...

Jesus has a mission for each of us

And that mission is to join Him in His mission

Luke 4:18-19 - Jesus came to proclaim “good news to the poor”

Luke 19:10 - Jesus came to earth to “seek and save the lost”

Mark 10:45 - Jesus came “to serve, not to be served”

Matthew 9:13 - Jesus came to “call sinners to repentance”

John 6:38 - Jesus came to do “the will of the Father”

And Jesus calls each of us to join Him in that mission

John 20:21

“21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.””

So, what mission has Jesus called you to?

What mission field is Jesus calling you to engage

at your home?

at your work?

with your family?

in your neighborhood?

What name has Jesus put on your heart to pray for, serve, and witness to?

Making Room for Jesus means RE-ARRANGING OUR ENTIRE LIVES around the mission Jesus gave us

But, accepting Jesus mission for your life means that you have to make some changes.

Luke 5:11

“11 So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.”

This is where we get back to our Fall Cleaning analogy.

Accepting Jesus mission for your lives means that you need to MAKE ROOM for Jesus.

You need to abandon your deepest desires for your life, trusting that Jesus path is the better option.

You need to restructure the way you use you time, resources, relationships

You need to reprioritize where you put your attention

Jesus is clear

Luke 9:23

“23 Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.”

Luke 9:24

“24 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.”

The final truth I want to highlight from this passage is that...

Making Room for Jesus means RE-ARRANGING OUR ENTIRE LIVES around the mission Jesus gave us

And notice what Simon Peter was asked to walk away from.

He had just caught the largest catch he may have ever caught.

Two boats full of fish.

It’s harder to leave the life you have when your nets are full; when life is going well.

But Jesus calls us to follow Him, trusting that the life He calls us to will be better than any life we could live without Him.

So how do we make S.P.A.C.E. for Jesus in our lives?

Proverbs 3:9–10

“9 Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; 10 then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.”

The first thing I believe we need to do is give God our first and best.

We’ve talked about the importance of having a daily devotional, a set time you spend every day with God.

In the past we said that your devotional should consist of 4R’s - we even made it into a bookmark

[Image: Bible Reading Plan Bookmark]

Reading God’s Word

Reflecting on what God is saying to you

Respond by committing to do what you hear God calling you to do

Review how you’re doing on implementing what God has

I stand by that as a great way to have a daily devotional, but I came across another acronym I want to present to you that I had never seen before but I think may help us structure our time with Jesus a little better.

I’ve made a bookmark of this one as well. They’re available on the info desk if you want one.

[Image: Making SPACE for Jesus bookmark]

Giving God your First and Best means MAKING SPACE for Jesus through a scheduled time with Him.

Start by Reading God’s word and then Pray through this SPACE acronym.

Ask yourself if there are any:

Sins you need to confess

Promises I need to claim

Actions I need to take

Commands I need to follow

Examples I need to emulate

My prayer is that, as a church, we can all commit to MAKING ROOM (or SPACE) for Jesus ever day.

And that through that time, Jesus can transform...

our calendars?

our relationships?

our finances?

our families?

our work?

To honor Him, and better reflect His love and character to the world.

YOU - Takeaway - HEART

The story of Jesus calling Simon Peter, James, and John is one example of how Jesus met people where they were

Luke 5 - Jesus talked about fishing to professional fisherman

John 4 - Jesus spoke about living water to the woman at the well

Luke 8 - Jesus talked about soil to farmers

John 6 - Jesus spoke about bread to a hungry crowd

What is Jesus saying to you?

What could God do in and through you this year if you choose to MAKE ROOM for Him?

WE / JESUS - Redemptive Close - Call to Action - HANDS

Mary and Martha

We see this in action in Luke 10 with the story of Jesus visiting the house of Mary and Martha.

Luke 10:38–42

“38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. 40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” 41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.””

Martha got consumed with

the social expectations of hosting guests

preparing the meal

keeping up with the house work

Martha didn’t make room for Jesus, she was slave to her to-do list.

Mary on the other hand

dropped everything

put Jesus at the top of her priority list

knew what was truly important

Mary MADE ROOM for Jesus.

CLOSING

Jesus calls us to MAKE ROOM for Him in our lives like Mary made room for Him in her life.

What would it look like to rearrange your fall around Jesus rather than trying to fit Jesus into whatever space is left?

What could God do this fall if we simply MADE ROOM for Him by

Spending time with Him daily, reading His word, and praying through the SPACE acronym

Gathering with His people weekly here at church

Using our gifts to Serve, living out the mission Jesus gives us

This week, answer for yourself if you...

Will MAKE ROOM for Jesus in your life?

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 feels God calling them to respond to today’s message.

Maybe as you think about ...Jesus wanting to be a part of every aspect of your life, you need to come up and, like Simon Peter did, invite Jesus in.

Maybe as you think about ...Jesus asking you to join Him in the mission God the Father gave Him, you need to come up and commit to obeying even before you understand.

Maybe as you think about ...your schedule, you need to come up and be honest with God about your priorities and commit to MAKING ROOM for Jesus in your schedule and start the habit of a daily devotional

Or maybe, you heard this message and you haven’t yet put your faith in Jesus as your LORD and SAVIOR. Maybe you need to pray to God

Admitting that you are a sinner and need forgiveness

Verbalizing your Belief in Jesus as the Son of God, who died on the cross paying the penalty for your sins, and rose from the dead on the third day giving your hope of an eternal life with God in Heaven.

Confessing that Jesus is your LORD and SAVIOR

If today is the day that you put your faith in Jesus, please come see me afterword. I’d love to walk with you as you start your new life in Christ.

‌

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

BENEDICTION 

Hebrews 12:1–2

“1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Colossians 3:17

“17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

This week...

Let’s not follow the example of Martha,

making our To-Do list the priority

and missing the opportunity to FOLLOW Jesus’ plan for our lives

Let’s instead, follow the example of Mary,

MAKING ROOM for Jesus,

putting our plans to the side

sitting at our Rabbi’s feet

accepting the mission Jesus gives us

and learning to OBEY every command, even when they don’t make sense.

Quick reminder...

Digging Deeper Bible Study - Wednesday at 6:30 PM - Programming for all ages

Fall Launch Lunch

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

If you’d like to get more information about taking your next step of faith, fill out the card in the seat back and give it to me or turn it in to the info desk.

I hope you have a great week.

Go in peace.

You are dismissed.

DISCIPLESHIP QUESTIONS (download into APP)

How can we make room for Jesus in our daily activities this fall?

What is one area of your life where you could invite Jesus in more fully?

What specific changes can you make to prioritize Jesus over worldly distractions?

How does your schedule reflect your commitment to Jesus?

In what ways can you serve others as a way of living out Jesus' mission for your life?