Sermon Tone Analysis

Not too long ago my daughter was in a musical production of Alice in Wonderland.

Now Alice in Wonderland is one of the craziest stories ever written.

As many have presumed he was on a trip when he wrote it.

Literally he was in a boat in Oxford rowing with his friends daughters.

there're a handful very engaging conversations in the book.

One that stands out for me not he one between the Cheshire Cat and Alice.

“Alice: Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?

The Cheshire Cat: That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.

Alice: I don't much care where.

The Cheshire Cat: Then it doesn't much matter which way you go.

Alice: ...So long as I get somewhere.

The Cheshire Cat: Oh, you're sure to do that, if only you walk long enough.”

Often from that exchange we get a paraphrase

“If you do not now where you are going, any road will get you there”.

What I want to do this morning is paint a picture for you.

A picture of what a church can be.

And rather than a slap on the wrist it is an invitation.

To a church that is more than just a gathering place.

A church that impacts its community, where the gospel has a real effect on our lives and our families.

Now every week, I hit you with our Mission; our reason for existence.

MISSION: Helping seekers and believers become devoted followers of Jesus Christ.

What is the first word?

Helping!!!!!

I cannot make you a fully devoted follower of Jesus.

I cannot read your bible for you, pray in your place, pursue Jesus for you.

I can do my best to pain a picture of Jesus as a better king than you are, the greatest investment of your life, I can point out lives in your midst that have been changed by the forgiveness and purpose that ONLY Jesus can give.

That you cannot find in our cultures narrative of sex and money, but it is on you to respond to the Spirit of God.

Man what a relief for me!!

But the reason our mission is to help seekers and believer become fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ is because we believe that true life, living fully as a human being can only be found in Jesus.

WHY: True life is only found in Jesus

In , Jesus has been giving some difficult teaching to his disciples; so difficult, that many are packing up and moving on.

in vs 60 they

They had a certain idea of what Jesus ought to be and what he ought to require of them and as they were seeing that he was calling them to something different; a deeper commitment; a complete sacrifice of themselves and acceptance of him as their end all and be all.

And it says in that many respond to Jesus by saying “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?”

And in it says this...

Where else are we going to go??

What we ned you got!

What we are searching for you provide.

Imagine what a church would look like that gets that.

Imagine if that was the motivating narrative of our lives.

What would that look like?

How would it effect our attendance on Sunday mornings.

How would it affect the amount we serve?

How would it affect where and when our money was spent?

How would it affect how we engage with our culture; even if it means we will stick out.

Would we see HIS Glory and HIS mission as greater and more important than ANY OTHER PURSUIT WE CAN COME UP WITH OR CONVINCE OURSELVES OF??

This is a hard teaching?

“many of his disciples turned aback and no longer walked with him”

“Will you leave me as well?”

HOW CAN WE!!????

To Whom shall we go?

Oh to be a church where we say and live out a proclamation that Jesus has all we need; where it over takes us over.

Do we trust him enough?

Are we willing to give it all up for something better than what we can create?

And you might say…yeah but what does that look like?

Our values of a

It sounds good.

There is more to life than the daily grind, and I’m invited to be a part of it.

Something bigger than myself, how do I play a part, how do become a part of what God is doing?

Our values here at CAChurch are simple we want to see people experience and express Grace.

Values:

Grace

If ou

That starts with understanding that you are loved by God and that his greatest expression of his love is n the cross, where Jesus took on the penalty of our sin before a Holy God; so that before God we are clean; we can repent and have our sins forgiven and be seen by God as clean and untainted by sin.

But from there we become people who show grace- kindness to each other.

Gifts

We don’t simply experience grace and sit on it.

We respond by offering ourselves to His Mission- we serve God and each other with our gifts.

So that when people look at our lives they see something in us that is more than just a self-serving faith.

Growth

we do not want to live stagnant lives.

We want to desire a move closer to Jesus; as individuals and as a church; if we don’t -by definition we are not the church.

So we want to be known as a people of grace, gifts and growth.

How do we hit on all these things, how do we live out grace, our gifts, growth at CAChurch: The Port

This is our strategy---and I’ll tell you i like it because here are some handles to grab onto.

The leadership of CAChurch has come up with 5 Go’s that we would like to call all active CAChurch attendees to.

they are all goes.

because as we have said before---the church is now and always has been a movement, and movements move.

So how do we get from where we are to where we want to be?

How to get from here to there?

In

In

-21

He says Go, make disciples, baptize, teach and observe; all understanding that the presence of Jesus is with us in this.

Matthew 18:19

With that in mind I want to invite you into the life of the church with 5 Go- 5 calls to action.

OUR STRATEGY

Go.....

Go.....

to church

get into a Life Group

deeper in your faith

grab a friend

on mission

Go to church

Weekend ministries - We believe that the most effective discipleship takes place during a weekend service.

Therefore, we gather joyfully and expectantly as we worship Jesus.

Go get in a small group

Small Groups - We believe that community is vital to spiritual vitality.

Therefore, we want to gather in groups of 10-15 people who can love, serve, grow and be on mission together.

Go deeper in your faith