Untitled Sermon (2)

Good Evening, Everyone!

How is everybody enjoying UIndy so far?

My name is Aaron Taylor, and I graduated from here a little over two years ago now, but man it feels like it has been way longer than that. This campus is where I met my wife, Emily, and in fact, I think this is the first time that we’ve been here together since we graduated. I also worked here in the chapel in various ways for a couple of years, so needless to say this place is very near and dear to my heart. So I love any opportunity I have to come back, and especially when it is for Student Leadership Academy, because I know this is such a wonderful program.

I have spent most of the last year preparing to become a Dad, and my daughter, the sweetest little thing in the world, Adeline Grace, was born a little over a month ago.

I was so excited for her to arrive, that as soon as I found out that I was becoming a Dad I started doing all this research on sleep training, what her first months of life were going to be like, how to create healthy attachments, and all of this junk. I even created a huge binder which I called Coach Taylor’s Playbook (one because I love sports and always wanted to be a coach but was never any good at yelling at people, so instead I treat everything I do whether it be my family or my ministry like I’m helping to lead a team, but also because I love the show Friday Night Lights and Coach Eric Taylor in that show is my spirit animal.)

Perhaps more ridiculous than my binder filled with countless information about how I planned to become the best dad that I could be, I started following all sorts of dads on social media, hoping to glean whatever fatherhood magic that I could from them. Of course, I walked away with 9 months of adorable Instagram stories, and so I had believed that being a good dad was mostly about daily cuddle sessions and lots of cute photos for Instagram.

Needless to say, I was surprised when I held this wonderful ball of joy in my arms, and discovered all of the various, uh, bodily functions she was capable of.

I don’t know if you have any experience of what we in the dad-o-sphere like to call a blowout, but I just want to say that you don’t know what real fatherhood is until you’ve had to clean up one of those. If you don’t know what that is, ask your parents and discover just how much they loved you!

Anyway, I guess you could say that I had this wonderful book knowledge of what becoming a Dad would mean, but until I really experienced the real thing, and held her in my arms for the first time, I did not truly get the whole picture.

Anyway, I guess you could say that I had this wonderful book knowledge of what becoming a Dad would mean, but until I really experienced the real thing, and held her in my arms for the first time, I could not truly understand what being a Dad was all about.

Anyway, I guess you could say that I had these huge aspirations of being an amazing father, and so I developed a picture in my mind of what that looked like, but until I really experienced what this little human was like, until I held her in my arms for the first time, any sort of dreaming that I had been doing lacked a touch of reality.

As a bit of a lifelong learner, I can’t tell you how many different areas of my life have made me feel this same way. I learn and I learn about something, and the big picture view of things comes very naturally to me, I’m naturally a big-picture person, but the boots on the ground experience of something is something that I have always had to work very hard for, but every time I find myself putting in the work to actually experience that which I have developed this broad scope of, it has never let me down.

This isn’t the only time that I’ve been surprised by the big-picture outlook compared to the real-life experience. Over the past couple of years, I have visited Guatemala on a number of occasions, and as I fly into Guatemala City I find myself enamored every time with how beautiful it looks from up above.

This isn’t the only time that I’ve noticed a difference between the big picture view of something measured against the reality of the situation.

A little over a week ago, I was given a copy of Kent Annan’s book, Slow Kingdom Coming, and finally all that I had known about my struggles as a big-picture person in a complicated world began to make sense.

As we are descending in the plane, I see the top of buildings, and the colorful expressions of the Guatemala people. It looks absolutely beautiful, and if I didn’t know it was Guatemala, you could have convinced me we were landing someplace like Denver, Colorado.

For example, over the past couple of years I have visited Guatemala on a number of occasions, and as I fly into Guatemala City I find myself enamored every time with how beautiful it looks from up above.

Kent talks about a process called “Truthing,” which he takes from the concept of ground truthing. If you are unaware, ground truthing is when someone takes the aerial view of something and matches with the data that they actually find on the ground. For example, you might be able to see grass and weeds from an aerial view, but until you go through the process of “truthing,” you never really know if those weeds are helpful or harmful to the environment until you know all of the details that you gather from actually having an experience with them on the ground.

But as soon as you step off the plane, that all changes. The roofs that I had seen from above are attached to makeshift shacks. As we drive through Guatemala City in a van, I witness various buildings like Burger King, Walmart, and more that otherwise look like your typical run-of-the-mill places. But if you look a little closer you see armed guards in the parking lot to ward off the cartels. It’s amazing the difference that can take place between the beautiful overhead view of a place, and the inherent brokenness when you truly get close.

As we are descending in the plane, I see the roofs of homes, and the tops of buildings, and what looks like beautiful architecture. It looks absolutely beautiful, and if I didn’t know it was Guatemala, you could have convinced me we were landing someplace like Denver, Colorado.

So, tonight we’re going to talk about some of the ways that we can apply the practice of truthing to our lives, and how that might change our relationship with God and the world that God loves.

Over the past week, you have been learning about some practices that can help you as you are pursuing the Kingdom of God in your everyday life, and tonight we are going to talk about the practice of “Truthing.”

But as soon as you step off the plane, that all changes. The roofs that I had seen from above are attached to makeshift shacks. As we drive through Guatemala City in a van, I witness various buildings like Burger King, Walmart, and more that otherwise look like your typical run-of-the-mill places. But if you look a little closer you see armed guards in the parking lot to ward off the cartels. It’s amazing the difference that can take place between the beautiful overhead view of a place, and don’t get me wrong, Guatemala as a whole is a gorgeous, culture-filled place, but sometimes when you truly get close, you also get a glimpse of the inherent brokenness that exists there.

When Jesus was in the midst of telling His disciples about the Kingdom, He told them that they would know where to find Him. To which the troublesome one, Thomas, says, “how are we supposed to know where you are?” In other words, how do we find this Kingdom that you have promised us?

Truthing is about seeing the big-picture play out in small everyday ways. It is taking what we see in the broad sense, and taking a closer look to discover the truth that lies behind what we see.

Over the past week, you have been learning about some practices that can help you as you are pursuing the Kingdom of God in your everyday life, and tonight we are going to talk about the practice of “Truthing.”

Jesus answered, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.” ()

Jesus answered, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.” ()

This is an important practice in the Christian life, because each and every one of us wants to make a difference in our world, but we often don’t see how anything that we could contribute can really bring about the desired change we wish to see.

As I see it, truthing is about seeing the big-picture play out in small everyday ways. It is taking what we see in the broad sense, and taking a closer look to discover the truth that lies behind what we see.

I find it interesting that Jesus claims that He is the truth, because when we think of the process of truthing, of taking that overarching view and combining with the experience of being present in a tangible way, that has Jesus written all over it!

Ultimately, we all desire the Kingdom of God in a big-picture sense, but are unsure of how to make it happen in our everyday lives.

In the Church, we might call this living a life on mission, taking our big picture aspirations of the Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven, and making that possible through what we do in our day to day lives.

Jesus had all of the knowledge and understanding that He needed as God, yet was willing to come and explore and interact with us as Man. The very notion of an incarnate God – Emmanuel – “God with Us” is the practice of truthing taken to it’s furthest extent.

Jesus has quite a bit to say about how these small moments can add up, and so tonight, we’re going to be turning to the Gospel of .

Everyone wants to make a difference in the world, a recent survey asked high school students to take a list of possible goals and choose which three were the most important to them. Only 18 percent said “achieving fame or public recognition,” and only 12 percent said “working in a high paying job.”

Luke 13:18–19 CSB

He said, therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like, and what can I compare it to? It’s like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds of the sky nested in its branches.”

Jesus also says that “if you really know me, you will know my Father as well,” and if we are to obedient to Jesus and pursue His Kingdom here on earth, we have to be able and willing to interact with others in the same way that He did, which means that when others interact with us, we should be showing them what Jesus, and in turn, the Father, is like.

“What is the Kingdom of God like, and what can I compare it to? It’s like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds of the sky nested in its branches.”

Luke 13:18–19 CSB

He said, therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like, and what can I compare it to? It’s like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds of the sky nested in its branches.”

You want to know what scored highest on the list?

This isn’t the only thing that Jesus had to say about knowing the truth, however, not by a long shot—

Let’s start unpacking this by first taking a look at the end-goal. If we’re honest, we all tend to focus on the end result of whatever it is that we’re doing.

96% said they want to make a difference in the world, and second to that was having a clear purpose for living at 77%.

Earlier in the gospel of John, Jesus tells those who choose to believe in Him that:

The tree is the ancient symbol of a great kingdom. Throughout the Old Testament, authors often refer to strong nations like mighty trees, and therefore it is of no surprise that Jesus would refer to the Kingdom of God like a tree.

This goes to show that we all want to make a difference in our world, but so often we don’t see how anything that we could contribute can really bring about the desired change that we wish to see.

“If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” ()

Perhaps more importantly, however, Jesus claims that the birds of the sky nested in the branches of this tree. Jesus is trying to tell us that the Kingdom of God is a place of refuge.

We tend to think that only big, dramatic movements are enough to change the world, and that we just aren’t cut for that. However, the truth of the matter is that it is a collection of small moments, or might I say movements, that collectively add up to changing the world.

Those who listened to Jesus say this had the same reaction that most of us probably have, they asked Him “free from what?”

This makes sense when you consider that the portrait of the Kingdom of God that we find in the book of Revelation claims that the New Jerusalem will be a place where the tears are wiped from our eyes and there will be no more pain or suffering.

Jesus has quite a bit to say about how these small moments can add up, and so tonight, we’re going to be turning to the Gospel of .

But look at what it says, “If you abide in my word—” If you believe what I say, if you believe that the Kingdom is near, if you believe that you have a role to play in the coming of that Kingdom, if you pray that God’s will would be done here on earth as it is in heaven, then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.

Starting there, we begin to understand that the Kingdom of God that we are pursuing is a refuge for those who seek to live with God in His coming Kingdom.

“What is the Kingdom of God like, and what can I compare it to? It’s like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds of the sky nested in its branches.”

Free from the power of sin and brokenness, sure, but also free to do something about the truth in which you find by loving Jesus and loving your neighbor.

We often get so focused on the big-picture goal that we can’t see any possible way for us to get there from the world that we are living in right now.

Let’s start unpacking this by first taking a look at the end-goal. If we’re honest, we all tend to focus on the end result of whatever it is that we’re doing.

Passages like this are what enable the Apostle Paul to be able to write things like this, found in :

But Jesus is very clear here that the Kingdom of God grows from small seeds.

The end result in this parable is the growth of a tree. Except, it’s not really a tree, the tree is representative of the Kingdom of God. The tree is the ancient symbol of a great kingdom. Throughout the Old Testament, authors often refer to strong nations like mighty trees, and therefore it is of no surprise that Jesus would refer to the Kingdom of God like a tree.

“Test yourselves to make sure you are solid in the faith. Don’t drift along taking everything for granted. Give yourselves regular checkups. You need firsthand evidence, not mere hearsay, that Jesus Christ is in you. Test it out. If you fail the test, do something about it.” ()

We have a tendency to believe that the only thing that we can do to build the Kingdom of God is to go on some preaching tour and become the next Billy Graham, or by starting up a non-profit to battle injustice, or by selling everything we own and moving to a foreign country, but in reality it is the small ways in which we interact with our world every day that either influences the building of the Kingdom of God or reinforces the structures of the kingdom of this world.

Perhaps more importantly, however, Jesus claims that in this tree the birds of the sky found a place to rest. Jesus is trying to tell us that the Kingdom of God is a place of refuge.

For Paul, the very center of what it means to be a Christian is that the signs of the Messiah’s life are present in believers. When you look at yourself, do you see that Jesus is living and active in you?

I think what Jesus is trying to tell us here is that the small ways in which we interact with our neighbors is one of the best ways in which we can build His Kingdom here on earth.

This makes sense when you consider that the portrait of the Kingdom of God that we find in the book of Revelation claims that the New Jerusalem will be a place where the tears are wiped from our eyes and there will be no more pain or suffering.

We could have all of the knowledge of God to fill several thousand books, but we have completely and utterly missed the point if we do not have love for our neighbors, our communities, and our world.

Finally, I think it is important that Jesus tells us that the man sowed the seeds in his own garden. In his own backyard. In other words, the small things that we do in our own homes, our neighborhoods, our communities are what will ultimately grow to reveal the Kingdom of God here on earth as it is in heaven.

Starting there, we begin to understand that the Kingdom of God that we are pursuing is a refuge for those who seek to live with God in His coming Kingdom.

So, the practice of truthing ultimately means that you need to measure your own life by the truth, and since Jesus is the truth . . .

What I really want you to understand from our time together here tonight is this—

We often get so focused on the big-picture goal that we can’t see any possible way for us to get there from the world that we are living in right now.

Measuring yourself by the truth means measuring yourself to Jesus.

The small seeds planted today will someday reveal the Kingdom of God.

But Jesus is very clear here that the Kingdom of God grows from small seeds.

Here’s a few ways we can do that:

How do we plant seeds of the Kingdom?

We have a tendency to believe that the only thing that we can do to build the Kingdom of God is to go on some preaching tour and become the next Billy Graham, or by starting up a non-profit to battle injustice, or by selling everything we own and moving to a foreign country, but in reality it is the small ways in which we interact with our world every day that either influences the building of the Kingdom of God or reinforces the structures of the kingdom of this world.

1. Go Where Jesus Goes

I think what Jesus is trying to tell us here is that the small ways in which we interact with our neighbors is one of the best ways in which we can build His Kingdom here on earth.

First, we can practice truthing by going to the sort of places where Jesus loved to hang out. The problem that we face in doing this, though, is that the places where Jesus loved to hang out weren’t always pretty.

In the parable, Jesus said that the man planted the seed in his own garden, and we have already concluded that it means that we should first focus on building the Kingdom in our own communities—but here’s the kicker . . .

Finally, I think it is important that Jesus tells us that the man sowed the seeds in his own garden. In his own backyard. In other words, the small things that we do in our own homes, our neighborhoods, our communities are what will ultimately grow to reveal the Kingdom of God here on earth as it is in heaven.

2. Never Stop Asking Why

I don’t know where all of you are from, but every city and every town has what is known as the “bad” part of town. For whatever reason, it is the part of town that people tell you that you ought to never go to.

There are places within your community that are desperately in need of the love of God, and that is precisely where Jesus would be . . .

What I really want you to understand from our time together here tonight is this—

3. Find Your Place & Do Something

However, from what we know about Jesus, we know that the “bad part of town” is precisely where Jesus would be if He were in your city. That’s because God knows that wherever there are people struggling, that is where His love is often needed the most.

Jesus went wherever there were marginalized people, and believe it or not, every community has those who are marginalized. By using some of the other practices you have learned this week, by paying attention, and respectfully partnering with others you can share the love of God with the people who need it most.

The small seeds planted today will someday reveal the Kingdom of God.

I’m not saying you should necessarily go to the “bad part of town” all by yourself or anything, but find where it is that you can go that absolutely needs the love of God. For some of you, that might be your school, it might be a certain mall, whatever it, find out from others where the love of God is needed, and go there.

Whenever you find that place, here’s the next thing you can do . . .

How do we plant seeds of the Kingdom?

2. Never Stop Asking Why

1. Go Where Jesus Goes

When you start going to the places where Jesus would go, you are going to find pain and brokenness, but when you go to be the love of Jesus in a particular place, one of the greatest pieces of advice that I could give you is to never stop asking why.

Listen, I grew up amongst the marginalized, and therefore I know that the closer you get to those who are struggling the more you will peel back the layers of brokenness that exist in that place.

In the parable, Jesus said that the man planted the seed in his own garden, and we have already concluded that it means that we should first focus on building the Kingdom in our own communities—but here’s the kicker . . .

I grew up in a town in Southern Indiana, one of those places where others would tell you that you should never, under any circumstances, go to.

When you asked someone from the town I grew up in what their greatest problem was, they might say that the problem is rampant homelessness. To which I would say, keep asking Why? People are losing their jobs. Why? They were coming to work high or not at all. Why? There is an opioid epidemic going on. Why? A doctor has been overprescribing pain medications for years. Why?

There are places within your community that are desperately in need of the love of God, and that is precisely where Jesus would be . . .

I can tell you first hand that when you get close, you begin to understand why those “bad” parts of town are really bad.

You get the point . . . the more that you dig, the more layers of brokenness that you begin to uncover, and you can let those layers break you down, understanding that there is no way that you can fix all of that, or you can find one of those things that you know you can help with and get to work, because that is what Jesus would do.

Jesus went wherever there were marginalized people, and believe it or not, every community has those who are marginalized. By using some of the other practices you have learned this week, by paying attention, and respectfully partnering with others you can share the love of God with the people who need it most.

When you asked someone from the town I grew up in they might say that the problem is rampant homelessness. So, I want you to ask Why? People are losing their jobs. Why? They were coming to work high or not at all. Why? There is an opioid epidemic going on. Why? A doctor has been overprescribing pain medications for years. Why?

This leads us to the final way that you can practice truthing, and that is by finding your place and doing something.

Whenever you find that place, here’s the next thing you can do . . .

You get the point . . . the more that you dig, the more layers of brokenness that you begin to uncover, and you can let those layers break you down, understanding that there is no way that you can fix all of that, or you can find one of those things that you know you can help with and get to work, because that is what Jesus would do.

3. Find Your Place & Do Something

2. Never Stop Asking Why

3. Find Your Place & Do Something

If you go where Jesus goes and never stop asking “why,” then you will no doubt feel overwhelmed by all that needs to be done to bring about the Kingdom in this place.

Listen, I grew up amongst the marginalized, and therefore I know that the closer you get to those who are struggling the more you will peel back the layers of brokenness that exist in that place.

This leads us to the final way that you can practice truthing, and that is by finding your place and doing something.

But you don’t have to feel overwhelmed, because you should remember the parable of the mustard seed, which teaches us that the small seeds planted today will someday reveal the Kingdom of God.

When you asked someone from the town I grew up in what their greatest problem was, they might say that the problem is rampant homelessness. To which I would say, keep asking Why? People are losing their jobs. Why? They were coming to work high or not at all. Why? There is an opioid epidemic going on. Why? A doctor has been overprescribing pain medications for years. Why?

There is no way that you can do it all on your own, but if the church were to truly be the body of Christ in that community then everyone could use their gifts, and time, and talents in order to change and transform that community for good. And when you change a community for good, and you point them towards the truth that you have found in Jesus Christ, then no one can deny that Christ is within you.

You do not have to do everything, in fact, you can’t do everything. But you can do something. And it’s up to you to find out what God has gifted you to do in that place and time in order that you might show the love of Jesus in that place.

You get the point . . . the more that you dig, the more layers of brokenness that you begin to uncover, and you can let those layers break you down, understanding that there is no way that you can fix all of that, or you can find one of those things that you know you can help with and get to work, because that is what Jesus would do.

When I went to Guatemala for the first time, I found out that the indigenous Mayan people that lived there had been marginalized by the Guatemalan government for nearly five decades. As I began to ask more questions about what had happened there, I learned about the history of violence and oppression that the government had taken against them, to the point of enacting genocide over a 36-year period. Nowadays, it takes the form of institutionalized racism, in which the Mayan people are forced to leave their cultural garb at home in favor of modern clothes in order to get jobs, because society at-large views Mayan people as second-class citizens.

This leads us to the final way that you can practice truthing, and that is by finding your place and doing something.

Knowing all of this broke my heart, and I know that there is nothing that I could possibly do to reverse the damage caused by the years of violence against their people, and there is no way for me to solve the institutional racism that seeks to kill of their culture. But I could do something. My something took the form of joining a work crew and helping to aid in the construction of an educational building, in which the Mayan people could keep their heritage alive by teaching in their own language and allowing children to run free in their cultural clothing.

3. Find Your Place & Do Something

Now, I didn’t say that I myself built the educational center, I wasn’t even there when it was finished, but I helped in some small way to construct, and that small seed was enough.

If you go where Jesus goes and never stop asking “why,” then you will no doubt feel overwhelmed by all that needs to be done to bring about the Kingdom in this place.

Nowadays, in my everyday life, the small seeds that I plant are the moments that I spend with my daughter, teaching her about the love of Jesus, and trying to raise her to live her life on mission to those that Jesus loves, both globally and those in her own backyard.

But you don’t have to feel overwhelmed, because you should remember the parable of the mustard seed, which teaches us that the small seeds planted today will someday reveal the Kingdom of God.

I pray that you might feel empowered to do the same, to take a closer look and discover how Jesus might use you, in ever-small ways, to build His Kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven.

You do not have to do everything, in fact, you can’t do everything. But you can do something. And it’s up to you to find out what God has gifted you to do in that place and time in order that you might show the love of Jesus in that place.

Let’s Pray.

When I went to Guatemala for the first time, I found out that the indigenous Mayan people that lived there had been marginalized by the Guatemalan government for nearly five decades. As I began to ask more questions about what had happened there, I learned about the history of violence and oppression that the government had taken against them, to the point of enacting genocide over a 36-year period. Nowadays, it takes the form of institutionalized racism, in which the Mayan people are forced to leave their cultural garb at home in favor of modern clothes in order to get jobs, because society at-large views Mayan people as second-class citizens.

Knowing all of this broke my heart, and I know that there is nothing that I could possibly do to reverse the damage caused by the years of violence against their people, and there is no way for me to solve the institutional racism that seeks to kill of their culture. But I could do something. My something took the form of joining a work crew and helping to aid in the construction of an educational building, in which the Mayan people could keep their heritage alive by teaching in their own language and allowing children to run free in their cultural clothing.

Now, I didn’t say that I myself built the educational center, I wasn’t even there when it was finished, but I helped in some small way to construct, and that small seed was enough.

Nowadays, in my everyday life, the small seeds that I plant are the moments that I spend with my daughter, teaching her about the love of Jesus, and trying to raise her to live her life on mission to those that Jesus loves, both globally and those in her own backyard.

I pray that you might feel empowered to do the same, to take a closer look and discover how Jesus might use you, in ever-small ways, to build His Kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven.

Let’s Pray.