Rushing to the Sacred

Order of Service

Welcome:

Scripture:

Prayer

Joke: Mom: Your great-aunt just passed away. LOL.

Son: Why is that funny?

Mom: It’s not funny, David! What do you mean?

Son: Mom, LOL means Laughing Out Loud.

Mom: I thought it meant Lots 
of Love. I have to call everyone back.

Greeting

Worship

Prayer

Sermon

ME:

Popsicle Story

WE:

We have these moments where we cry out that things aren’t fair

Usually it is because we are focused on us, not the others involved

If we were more concerned about them, we wouldn’t feel things were so unfair

GOD:

A Few Stories:

Uzzah — Touched the Ark

King Saul’s Sacrifice

Moses Struck the Rock

Ananias & Sapphira — lied

These stories all strike as unfair and God is the one being unfair

But I think there are two reasons

we are too focused on the people

we focus on what people deserve because we are people, we forget to consider what God deserves

we don’t consider the Sacred

God is Holy and Some things are set apart by God as Holy and Sacred

These people didn’t consider the sacred either:

Uzzah — That was God’s Ark

King Saul—That was God’s Sacrifice

Moses—The glory was God’s

A&S — That was God’s Church

Instead, they all took the sacred for Granted and Rushed into it without thinking, and they all paid the price

Ecclesiastes

Ecclesiastes 5:1–3 ESV

Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. To draw near to listen is better than to offer the sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they are doing evil. Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few. For a dream comes with much business, and a fool’s voice with many words.

What are some of the sacred things we take for granted?

The Word

We jump in and out of the Word of God…once a week at church…when we want something…when it feels good to us to read it…when we have to...

W

2 Timothy 3:15 ESV

and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

Do we actually believe this?

If we did, wouldn’t we treat the word of God differently?

Who believes that they have access to the actual words of the creator of the universe and says, “i’ll get to that later”

Hebrews 4:12 ESV

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

Do we actually believe this?

Prayer

Isaiah 6:1–5 ESV

In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”

Isaiah 6:1

When we pray we enter the presence of God and speak with him...

the saraphim couldn’t even look upon Him

Isaiah had no choice but to immediately recognize his sin in the presence of a Holy God.

Yet we stroll in and out of prayers with little reverence. We use prayer to transition into different parts of our services or to close a meeting

The Church

ephesians 5:

Ephesians 5:29–30 ESV

For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body.

Christ is the Head, we are the members

This Church Does not belong to you

This Church does not belong to me

This Church belongs to Christ

Yet, we treat the church as if it is ours to do with as we please

we argue over how to run things

we bicker over what a service should look like

over how to spend the money

over who we should allow in

We spend little time asking Christ what He wants for His church

We have to stop trying to figure out what the best plan is to grow His Church and just start seeking His direction.

YOU:

Have you forgotten the Sacred?

Have you taken it for Granted?

Let’s open Gods word with the expectation that it will change us...

Let’s Come before the Lord with reverence and think in silence before we speak...

Let’s Seek the direction of Christ for our Church this week...

no more complaints or changes until we know where God is leading us.

Communion:

Evaluate the Cost

close your eyes

The first century church looked like...

This was a time when both the cost for them and for Christ was remembered

What has following Christ cost you?