What Happens Here

Intro

Who knows what Los Vegas is?

Ever heard “What Happens in Vegas...”

-Land of Casinos, gambling, promiscuity

-Excuse to do bad things that people are ashamed of

-Excuse to ignore your conscience

-Vegas has another name: “Sin City.”

For all the bad rap that Vegas gets, we tend tot do the same things here in Mississippi, but on the reverse side.

Tension

Instead of doing bad things in Vegas, we do good things at church, and “What happens at church/camp stays at church/camp. Why?

-People might think we are weird

-People don’t care

-People have their own churches

-Maybe I don’t really care

-It’s not that special

In working so hard to be what we want in our various areas of life, that we forget who we are at the core.

-Danger of becoming compartmentalized and fragmented

-Danger of God becoming a fragment of our lives instead of the reason for our lives.

How do we get from God being a fragment of our live to Him intersecting every part?

Truth

Set this up: The Pharisees have brought this adulterer in front of Jesus

John 8:7–11 ESV

And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.”

John 8:7-11

Whats this about? It’s about Jesus not coming to be the judge. Its about Jesus not being trapped. But its also about Jesus not willing to base everything on a fragmented piece of this woman’s life.

Whats this about? It’s about Jesus not coming to be the judge. Its about Jesus not being trapped. But its also about

Lets look at another text:

John 9:2–3 ESV

And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.

John 9:3

John 9:3 ESV

Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.

John 9:1–3 ESV

As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.

The Jewish leaders question him. Here is his answer:

John 9:11 ESV

He answered, “The man called Jesus made mud and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed and received my sight.”

John 9:24–25 ESV

So for the second time they called the man who had been blind and said to him, “Give glory to God. We know that this man is a sinner.” He answered, “Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.”

john 9:24

This man didn’t know all the answers. He didn’t know why things happened like they did. But, he knew who he had been, and who he now was.

Application

What happens at church/camp, was never meant to stay at church/camp.

God doesn’t want fragmented followers. He doesn’t want to be part of your story, he wants to be the whole story.

This year we have watched 5 of you make a profession of faith(claim to be a Christian) for the first time.

We’ve served the community around us

We’ve mentored each other in the Bible

We’ve grown deeper in our understanding about who God is.

That’s not meant to stay here.

As we begin the Advent season, lets keep that in mind.

Celebrating the greatest gift ever

Lets invite people into this part of our lives. Share it. Tell people. Invite them.

Because what happens here, was never meant to stay here.