Our Mission to BLESS

Todd Spieker

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I - Seminairy Basketball - What am I shooting for?

I love pick up basket ball, because everyone thinks they are lebron.

Everyone else had there own mission - Goal - Most of us thought we were Lebron James.

Jon - always shoots from wherever.

Greg - Always drives and layup.

Justin - Backs people down.

Stefan and Mike - Pick and roll.

Sten - Full court run and layup.

My Mission : DONT SCREW UP!

Pass

stay away from the action.

A few times we played as a team.

Totally different. We didnt always win, but its amazing the difference it makes when we are all working towards the same goal

Me - Stand under the hoop

When we stopped shooting towards our own success. Stopped playing different games and started playing basketball together it was amazing.

Things changed when we all started shooting for the same thing.

When we started shooting for the right thing, actual points instead of style points the game changed dramatically. And unless the other team started playing together too, we were unstoppable.

I miss the point of things like this all the time...

Whats the goal, whats the point? What am i shooting for here?

W - What are you shooting for? What are we shooting for?

I think we do this in more than just basketball.

We see it in the parent fighting with their 3rd grader’s basketball ref.

I think in the church we mis

I think often we do life like this too.

In life sometimes we forget the main things, and instead get caught trying to run up our stats in stuff that really doesn't matter.

We run up our stats on Worldly measures

car house, family, education, success, wealth, experiences, culture

Or busyness

pursuing pleasure

We get caught up pursuing entertainment

Or overly focused on sports, acedemic success.

WINNING

or perhaps we are just struggling to keep up with ohters

playing the comparison game, looking on facebook ect.

Sometimes in the church; We run up our stats on Personal Holiness

Read

Worship

Pray!

We give

we serve

We hope that others will see just how hard we are working

Withdraw from the world and from others

we avoid non-christians, and non-christian activitiesm and non-christian entertainment

We talk bad about others who don’t live their lives like us.

We condemn, compare, and criticize, keeping our eyes wide open towards the shortcomings of others, while neglecting the planks in our own eyes.

On both sides its like we are playing the game for our own stats. In both cases we are shooting for recognition of our success or sacrifice.

car house, family, education, success, wealth, experiences, culture

Or busyness

or we are just struggling to keep up

Jesus says mission is BOTH, together, just like Jesus was

We play the game for our own stats, sure if we are nice while we score its a plus, but that's not really the point is it...

But What if we were all shooting for the same thing?

Ven diagram Slide

I think sometimes we aren't sure what we are shooting for in life too. We are easily led off track. We forget what the main things are, and get off track. And sometimes amid all the other goals of life we can lose the thread. We can forget what matters most, what we ought to be shooting for.

G - OUR MISSION - Be IN him, Be IN the world

Towards the end of the book of John Jesus prays for his disciples. He prays on their behalf and on behalf of all who would believe after him. He prays for us.

In this prayer Jesus tips his hand a little bit, he gives us a peek at what his hopes were for his disciples and all those who would follow.

backstory - J about to die, given them the last teaching before Crucifixion.

Jesus is PRAYING FOR YOU. Lets listen.

This is what Jesus wants for you.

13 “I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world,

so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them.

13 “I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. 14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. 19 For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.

He prays this, so his disciples have a FULL CUP of JOY.

14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.

States who they are.

Jesus came into the world from the outside, and those who followed him. The disciples, have become outsiders. They are no longer “of the world” b/c of what Jesus did.

15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.

Jesus is saying his disiples no longer belong in the world. Becasue they are in CHRIST, because of their connection to him they no longer “fit.”

16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.

They are no longer safe, because “the world” has rejected Christ, it will also reject them (mostly.)

17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.

18 As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. 19 For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.

Sanctified, consecrated, prepared for a purpose. SET ASIDE for a purpose.

Like steralizing brewing equipment. Set aside for a purpose, steralized and ready to do a job. Like my Oil Filter wrench.

Grace with a goal.

20 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.

This is the meat. Jesus main prayer for us, those who would belive because of the Disciples.

That we be one, set aside for a purpose.

That we be in Jesus and the Father

That we be in the world

That the world would believe.

All these things come togetehr for a purpose, like the end of signs.

God’s gameplan. His mission, his goal is that the world would belive. That the world would accept GOd’s offer of grace, the same offer his disciples accepted.

But we often fall off the path

When I was a kid, people used to say we had to choose weather we were going to be in Christ or in the world.

Every activity, passion, pursuit, idea. Worldly or Godly.

Secular music - worldly

so we listened to Christian music.

Secular movies - worldly

so we watched Christian movies. And felt bad about watching secular ones :)

Playing cards - worldly

So we played rook

Public Schools - worldly

The goal was to live as much as possible in the Godly bubble and stay away from things and people that might lead us astray, in that worldly bubble.

We run up our stats on Peronal HOliness

Read

Worship

Pray!

Not doing “world stuff”

Whatever our thing is

Withdraw from the world and from others

We run up our stats on Worldly measures

car house,

family,

education,

Sports

success, wealth, experiences, culture

Jesus says mission is being both in the world and IN CHRIST

Ven diagram Slide

We cant afford to hope people come to us, thats not the mission

We arent called to give ourselves fully to the world either.

BOTH AND.

Y - Blessed to BLESS

A much as we know we have a mission a purpose. We struggle with the excecution.

CANT SOMEONE ELSE DO IT! I know the feeling!

We think if we do this good, people will come to us.

not happening.

We have to go be in the world

We think its someone else’s job

We think we arent capable

But, “Im not gifted in that way.”

We DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO! Or where to start.

YEP!

Can i get an AMEN!

Start on the mission, get a little better. Take baby steps

Look for and sieze oppertunities

Who is on your list?

But i dont know anyone!

B- Begin with Prayer every day for thsoe 5 people.

LESS - Take one step each month, and tell somoene about it.

Listen

Eat together

Serve Someone

Share your Story

I am NOT

asking you to be billy grahmn

asking you to pass out tracts or do evangelisim with strangers

asking you to argue people into CHRIST.

The call is to live in Christ and in the World

Our Challenge

Write your list.

I want you to write the names of 3-5 people down who are unchurched or dechurched.

Who aren't connected to a church today or don’t know Jesus (as far as you know). Perhaps its people who have wandered away from faith, or never met Jesus.

DONT WRITE MORE than 5

if you have more than five, choose five

Here is why...

I want us to focus on five because if you have 25 you wont pray for them every day.

If you are having trouble

Think F R A N C

Consider connecting to a 3rd place

Voulenteer at school

Join a club

Take a community ed class

Get to know your neighbors

Get around people who dont know Jesus

Pray.

For each person every day, individual. SEE SHEET

That God would use you to bless someone in your world that day.

Take the opportunities that God presents. LESS - Don’t worry about who it is, who knows it may be someone on someone else’s list!

Listen to the experiences of others

pray for people

help others with problems

eat with people

Share your positive stories about faith, what is God teaching you, what does faith mean to you, why do you believe ect.

Our challenge, is to do a little more.

each of us

as God calls

Take a chance

W - GO BLESS - Craig

The church doesnt exist for you.

Benediction/Response

if you are hearing his voice, now is the time to respond.

Our challenge, is to do a little more.

each of us

as God calls

Take a chance

NonChurched - Accept the Gospel

Maybe you have been with us today and thought, I am not sure I am “in christ” like that. I think I might want to put my own name on my list....