Forgotten God CH 7
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INTRO
I. Where We’ve Been
A. We’ve talked at length about our personal rel. w/God through the H.S.
a. We’ve talked about what the H.S. role in our life is as our helper
B. The end Goal
a. But God’s end goal isn’t that Christ-followers all be individually filled w/the H.S.
b. God’s end goal is that, as individual Christ Followers, we’d be spirit filled & come together 2b the church.
c. The end Goal isn’t supernatural individuals;
1. It’s a supernatural Church
2. A Church that is unstoppable
II. Where We’re Headed
A. Would u describe the American Church as stoppable / unstoppable?
a. Unfortunately, 1 of the most striking similarities that most churchgoers share with the non-Christian world is their ability to complain about the way the church operates.
1. We all do it from time to time. But think positively for a minute:
B. Dream w/me 4 a min:
a. If you could create the perfect church, what would it look like?
1. How would it be run?
2. How would people
i. act;
ii. reach out;
iii. worship;
iv. pray?
b. Now consider this question: Could that perfect church be accomplished through human talent & strength...
1. Or would it require the power of the H.S.; Why?
2. Let’s be honest: We could duplicate most of our successful churches by assembling the right group of talented, winsome people.
i. If a church has the right worship leader, an exciting children’s program, and an entertaining speaker, it will grow.
-But is that really the secret to life-changing ministry?
-Is that how God designed the church to operate?
-Where does the H.S. fit in that model?
c. As much as I believe in using our natural abilities for God’s glory, I simply cannot reconcile that model with the Lord’s statement:
6 Then he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts.
1. All of our natural talents come from God, & I’m not trying to downplay using your unique gifts & abilities.
i. but consider Francis Chan’s words in his book… “Forgotten God”
But if our lives and churches make perfect sense in light of human talent and strength, then something is missing: “I don’t want my life to be explainable without the Holy Spirit. I want people to look at my life and know that I couldn’t be doing this by my own power. I want to live in such a way that I am desperate for Him to come through”.
2. Consider your involvement with church life. In what ways do we tend to rely on natural talent as we strive to fulfill the church’s mission?
III. Video
A. As we ponder if our reliance is on the H.S. or natural ability
a. Let’s listen to a msg from Francis Chan on the topic:
B. Play video
C. Response
a. What stuck out to u about the video?
b. Illust. The cartoon in the video
1. Pastor Francis gives a powerful illustration of the church today: We get excited about the tractor, then wear ourselves out pushing it inch by inch through the field.
2. At the end of the harvest, we’ve barely managed to finish the job and end up with just enough food to go around.
3. Tragically, this is how many churches operate—they are built on the sweat and effort of a few talented (but exhausted) leaders.
4. When we consult the owner’s manual, however, we find that the tractor is actually designed to run and plow the field on its own.
5. So we fix the tractor, plow the field in a single night, and then share the overabundance of food with everyone in need.
c. When we discover that the church was designed to function through the power of the Holy Spirit, it changes everything.
1. Think about the tractor illust.
i. Do you see yourself & our church pushing and pulling the “tractor” an inch at a time? If so, in what ways?
BODY
I. Digging in
A. When Paul wrote his first letter to the church in Corinth, he had to address factions that were dividing the church.
a. Groups were forming around attractive personalities like Paul, Apollos, (Cephas probably Peter).
b. In order to address their preoccupation with human personalities and wisdom, Paul brought their focus back to the power of God, rather than the brilliance of men.
c. take a look:
26 For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth.
27 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;
28 God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are,
29 so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.
30 And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption,
31 so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”
1 And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom.
2 For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.
3 And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling,
4 and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,
5 so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
1. How does Paul describe human effort as compared to the power of God?
27 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;
28 God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are,
29 so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.
i. the weak, foolish, & despised empowered by God is far more effective that the strong, wise, and admired on their own!!
-Which would u rather b?
-Paul says...
5 so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
2. According to this passage, why is it so important to rely on the power of the Spirit?
4 and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,
5 so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
i. wisdom comes to nothing & is ineffective next to the pwr o the H.S.
d. Illust. A great ex. o weak words w/ a strong God is Elijah vs Prophets o Baal
1. describe
26 And they took the bull that was given them, and they prepared it and called upon the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, “O Baal, answer us!” But there was no voice, and no one answered. And they limped around the altar that they had made.
27 And at noon Elijah mocked them, saying, “Cry aloud, for he is a god. Either he is musing, or he is relieving himself, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.”
28 And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them.
29 And as midday passed, they raved on until the time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice. No one answered; no one paid attention.
2. Prophets o Baal were worshiping, dancing, singing & crying out…but what response did they rec?
3. Take a look at Elijah:
36 And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Elijah the prophet came near and said, “O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word.
37 Answer me, O Lord, answer me, that this people may know that you, O Lord, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back.”
38 Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.
4. & the people marveled at the work God did
II. Bringing it Home
A. I wonder if, sometimes the American Church services can look a little more like the prophets o Baal
a. lots o frenzied singing, dancing calling out, but a the end we are asked…where is ur God?
1. maybe we had a good time…but what’s changed?
b. When what we need is a little more faith like Elijah who simply asked God to show up…& God sent fire from heaven.
B. Sometimes we like to look at folks like Moses, Kind David, & Elijah & we think, “wow, they sure had an advantage on me…I wish I was a little more like...”
a. Consider Jesus brother in his letter...
17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth.
1. Elijah was just a guy who trusted God; he had no advantage on u
2. Did u ever think that maybe we have the advantage over Elijah & the others?
i. Who has the Covenant ushered in by Jesus?
ii. Who has the H.S. dwell in side them?
iii. King David prophesied looking forward to our day; knowing that our covenant is the superior covenant…that our relationship w/God is much greater!
C. Think about the way you minister to the people around you.
a. Can we say along with Paul:
1. “Our message is not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit & of power, that our faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God”?
i. Why, or why not?
b. I’m not necessarily talking about walking around raising the dead & speaking foreign languages all the time.
1. Remember the fruit of the Spirit in...
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
2. The fruit mentioned there is not all that shocking.
i. Many non-Christians are actually happy, peaceful people.
3. But as Christians, we have the Source of both joy & peace living inside of us.
i. So while anyone can show love @ times & 2 certain extents...
-The difference becomes apparent when tragedy strikes.
*When we find ourselves in the midst of overwhelming circumstances, the Spirit has a chance to show His incredible power.
-we who have the H.S. ought 2 love the people around us 2 a supernatural degree in any & every circumstance.
-How might Bennington be changed for the better if the gathered Church were filled w/folks who engaged Bennington w/love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, & self-control?
*The Spirit wants to do more than just help us out a bit.
*He wants 2 transform us, patiently but steadily, into a people who transform our corners of the world.
4. We sometimes get so caught up in everything God wants us to do that we lose sight of who God wants us to be.
i. The difference is significant.
ii. God wants us to be a people who love Him wholeheartedly, who depend on the Holy Spirit, who by faith reach out to the people around us.
III. Who’s Fruit
A. This isn’t a call to try harder, but to fellowship w/the Spirit to greater depths
a. remember that it’s the fruit of the spirit not the fruit of our effort to engage ea. other & Bennington w/...
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
1. Francis Chan Writes in his book Forgotten God...
We won’t be transformed by simply trying harder. “Grunting and saying through clenched teeth, ‘I will be patient!’ hasn’t worked yet, and that isn’t likely to change. But what does effect change is when we begin to ask God to make these fruit manifest in our lives, by the power of His Spirit, and when we spend time in communion with our God” .
b. Remember, it’s never been about you doing it on your own.
1. It’s about the power of the Spirit in your life.
c. As we spend time pursuing God and enjoying fellowship with the Spirit, we will begin to see our lives changing from the inside out.
1. It’s been brought up in previous chapters, but perhaps we don’t recognize the Spirit’s power in our lives because we’re not stepping out and doing anything where we desperately need God to show up.
i. Anyone can show up to a Sunday meeting, sing a few songs, sit still for forty-five minutes, shake a few hands, and then drive home.
ii. But when we start talking to the hurting people around us, digging deeper to learn how we can love and serve them...
- that’s when we need the H.S. and that’s precisely when HE shows up!
-God works in the most desperate situations so that no one can mistake it for anything other than His power.
*Maybe He will grant you boldness to speak in a frightening situation.
*Maybe He will give you a divine compassion for the lost and destitute.
*Maybe He will give you the wisdom to say exactly what a person needs to hear at a crucial moment in his or her life.
-You won’t know what God will do until you get out there and follow His leading.
CONCLUSION
I. The Point
A. The question is, do you trust Him enough to follow Him into the unknown, confident that He will work powerfully in that situation?
a. We absolutely need to step beyond our own abilities.
1. It’s much safer to stay where we’re comfortable, but our lack of confidence in God’s power does not bring Him any glory.
i. You get praised for using your natural talents well.
ii. God gets praised when His power accomplishes the humanly impossible.
b. Have you ever walked away from a ministry opportunity because it would take you beyond your natural talents?
1. In what areas would you need the Spirit to empower you in a situation like that?
i. Do you believe that the Spirit would “come through” for you in that type of situation? Why, or why not?
2. Illust. Mel; she didn’t walk away
i. Now she coordinates Super Church
B. Throughout these seven sessions you’ve thought through the importance of the Holy Spirit from a number of different angles.
a. We could always study more, but it’s time to act (if you haven’t already).
1. This is by far the most difficult part.
2. It’s time to follow the Spirit’s leading, even if you’re not sure where He’s taking you or how you’ll get through it.
i. The world desperately needs to see a united church that is absolutely submitted to and filled with the Holy Spirit.
b. It all comes down to one important question:
1. Will you rely on your natural abilities, / will you allow the Holy Spirit to use you in incredible ways?
2. The way you proceed will determine if you as an individual and our church as a group of individuals will be stoppable / unstoppable.
i. If we rely on our own talents, we can be stopped so easily.
ii. we could get tired, distracted, overwhelmed.
-But if the Holy Spirit moves through His church, nothing can stand in the way.
iii. Rather than the weak, this-worldly churches we’re so familiar with,
-the church would actually look like Jesus said it would:
18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
c. I believe that God will empower His church in this way, but the question is, do we want Him to start with us?
II. HOMEWORK
A. Allow yourself to dream for a minute.
a. What would it look like if every Christian in our community fully submitted themselves to the Spirit’s leading?
b. What practical steps can you take right now 2 pursue the Spirit and live in dependence on Him?
B. As we end this study, spend more time than usual in prayer.
a. Pray that the Spirit of God would radically transform your life from the inside out.
b. Pray that your life will never be the same.