Untitled Sermon (15)

WE ARE #4

Aug. 22, 2021

10 AM at OGE

Jamey Mills

We are… about people

My name is Jamey Mills and I am the lead pastor here at Northside Church. Excited to be here with you all this morning…

We are are in the 4th week of a sermon series we are calling “We Are”

We are Church planters

We are on Mission

We are about people

And this week I wanted to start off by talking about the overall vision and strategy at Northside… I think it’s important from time to time to talk over what it is we are all about.

That whole process started with a group of people around a table answering this question… What are the things that God has used in your life that not only that caused you to come and know Jesus, but also to really grow in your relationship with Him…

What things had God used to help you come to know Him and grow in your relationship with Him?

Such a healthy thing to do from time to time… actually giving that time and answering that question has a refocusing sort of impact on our lives I think.

And it’s interesting… because after reading about it… and talking it over with I’m guessing hundreds of people at this point…

one of the things we find is that our answers aren’t really all that different. Those things that God has used powerfully in your life… are often very similar to the things that God has used in the lives of others… and they’re often the things he will use you to encourage in the lives of others you're walking with.

It’s incredibly interesting… because even though there are a lot of similarities in terms of the tools God uses… their impact on us is often different… Your experience often contains similar elements… but is also… 100% unique. Meaning… you have a story to tell when it comes to the goodness of God and what He’s done in your life that is incredibly important… unique… powerful… and that someone needs to hear.

The heart of Northside is simple… and I am crazy passionate about this. We deeply desire to see people to come to know the truth about Jesus and to experience His love and grace in their lives. We want them to know what it means to live inside of a life altering… eternity changing relationship with Him.

We desire people to come to know the truth about Jesus and experience

Our deepest desire is that people would come to know and experience the full and free life that God designed and desires for each and every one of us.

FULL… of things like Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Gentleness, Faithfulness, and Self-Control… IT IS… a better way to live.

And Free of those things that would rob us of that life… like dishonesty, hate, gossip, addiction, selfishness… and that really is what sin does… SIN robs us of the full life God desires… that God wants for you… and it creates distance in your relationship with God.

And over the years that I’ve been in ministry this is what I have learned… investing in three important relationships is huge. It's always been that way… it's biblical… and people are constantly looking for the next big thing… but I am telling you it doesn’t change.

We call them the 3C’s.

Your relationship with Christ

You relationship with His Church

And your relationship with your Community (and beyond).

I’ve found that sometimes it’s easy to almost exclusively focus on one of these areas at the expense of the others… but the truth is… each of them play an important role in our lives and in our spiritual development.

I know of folks who are involved with 8 different small groups… but are totally unconnected when it comes to serving and caring for the community. God works powerfully through all of these different relationships… and there are many… who I would say… the last thing they need is one more bible study… but what they do need to do is begin applying what it is they’ve heard in deeper ways… not just hearing… but talking about it… and allowing it to change us from the inside out.

We have two areas of emphasis for each of these areas… and it looks something like this.

__ SLIDE

Your relationship with Christ

Spiritual Disciplines (Time in the Word, Prayer, SG, and Serving others)

Commitment to attend Church

You relationship with His Church

Smaller group opportunity

Volunteering on a service team of some sort

And your relationship with your Community (and beyond).

Serving

Sharing

__ SLIDE

My fear in this is always how incredibly easy it is to make this about doing…

What we do matters… But

It is possible to fill your life so full of doing, that the doing sort of becomes the goal

l, what drives us, where we get our value… it's the exact trap the religious leaders of the OT fell into. Jesus’ harshest words ended up being aimed at them because of it. They “did”... but their hearts were far from God. He called them “White washed tombs” They looked good on the outside… but wreaked of death on the inside. Not full life… but oppressive captivity… if we becoming about doing… the same will happen to us too.

Doing… is not the same as relationship… Doing is informed by, motivated by, and even impassioned by… authentic relationship… when it’s done right…

I don't do to earn… I don't do to find favor… I don’t to do belong... I do, because of who you are to me and who I am to you. It’s a response to the goodness and grace of God… to Him first loving you… and to realize he doesn't just call you acceptable… he calls you His very own.

Your relationship with Christ

Spiritual Disciplines (Time in the Word, Prayer, SG, and Serving others)

Commitment to attend Church.

Both my experience and the stats I can find suggest that consistency in these things matter.

We have daily reading for you in the bulletin/online each week that can help you personally invest in what we talk about on Sundays…

We have something called 30 days… a one month devo that is an overview of the entire bible…

There is no substitute for spending time… seeking the Lord through His word.

Prayer is such an important aspect in our connection with the Lord… not praying just when you need something or when life hurts… but taking time to connect with the Lord intentionally through prayer is huge.

Over and over again… I have seen this. Attending Church regularly is such a healthy and life giving thing. Something powerful happens when God’s people come together… and sing out… talking about His word… encouraging each other… connecting in a larger group…

Your relationship with His Church

Smaller group opportunity

Volunteering on a service team of some sort

Smaller groups matter… and we are working toward launching those this fall. Whether it's a men’s group, a ladies group, or a small group…. Small groups are designed to be places where we can encourage, pray for, and actually discuss what it is we talk about on Sunday mornings…

Being on a service team is also so good… kids, youth, set up, small group leadership… stuff like that really matters. It's not just volunteering… lets call it what it is… it is ministry. It is you… ministering to those around you and impacting the church.

Volunteering… Being on a serving team like Kids, Youth, set up… is a great way to not only help, but also to get to know people and walk with them too.

Church planting… actually… Church in general takes a lot of volunteers… and I know we ask a lot… and I wanted to take a moment to say thank you. I hope you know that

EVERY guest… every event… every baptism… every missionary we support… every sunday service… every person and every family is impacted by you and what you do. We wouldn’t be able to do what we do without it. And I am so incredibly thankful.

The % of people who volunteer at Northside is way over the national average… but DO NOT GIVE UP… It makes a huge difference. It is important that it becomes a part of Northside’s DNA…

If you’re not volunteering and want to have a no strings attached convo, you can text me right now if you want at 541-497-7885

And your relationship with your Community (and beyond).

Serving

Sharing

This is actually what I want to dive into a little deeper today.

WE are… ABOUT SERVING.

Lots of people refer to some of what the Bible teaches as upside down… meaning… it’s just so different from the way the world thinks. It's what Jesus meant in John 18:36 when He said that His Kingdom is not of this world… it’s different… and if we cannot look around at everything that is happening in the world and realize it needs something “different” I don’t even know what to say to that.

WHAT IF… what really nurtures the full and free life that God desires for and in us… is actually different than what we see all around us?

Things like this…

Jesus said that in his kingdom the first will be last and the last will be first (Matt. 20:16).

John the baptist taught about our need for LESS of ourselves and more of Jesus.

God chooses the foolish things of the world to bring humility to the wise.

He chose the weak things of the world to bring humility to the strong (1 Cor. 1:27).

Jesus Himself... emptied Himself and made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant (Phil. 2:6-11).

Jesus was rich, yet for our sake He became poor, so that through His poverty we would become rich (2 Cor. 8:9).

He said that whoever wanted to be great would have to be a servant (Matt. 20: 26).

Greatness is found in who can shout the loudest… by who has the most clever social media posts… or the most followers… in what you make… in where you live… in what you have…

God says… if you really wanna be first… if you really want to be great… if you really want to know what life is about and now to make it count… the BIble says… BE LESS.

Serve… take on the mindset of a servant… that you actually find the full life God desires… by giving of yourself… not taking for yourself.

I think its what Jesus had in mind when He said…

Matthew 5:13–16 NLT

“You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless. “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.

Matthew 5:13–16 (NLT)

13 “You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.

14 “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. 15 No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.

Jesus said we are the salt of the earth and light of the world.

And we do that through serving and sharing… through the good things that we do.

That we have a purpose… and that if we decide not to allow God to use us… both in the moment but also in the ways that He’s gifted you.

YOU… as a BELIEVER… are the salt of the earth. You play a role NO ONE ELSE CAN PLAY!

What does it mean to be the salt of the earth?

What does it mean to be the light of the world?

We give flavor… we season the world around us with God’s truth, grace, and love. Through serving and sharing… our passion for God and compassion for people… people can sort of taste and see… even experience that God is good. God often uses people… in fact even calls us… ambassadors… representatives… about His official business… and serving is part.

It preserves His truth… In a world where morality and truth are becoming more and more blurred, as believers living out or faith in Jesus… God’s love and grace is on display and is moving forward… from generation to generation.

John 13:35 says that it's one way people who know we are Christians…

Matthew 25 teaches us that when we serve and care for those in deep need… the hurting, lost, and alone… God loves it so much He says that it’s like serving Jesus Himself.

James 1:27 talks about how pure religion… is helping to serve and take care of those who cannot take care of themselves…

Jesus says YOU are… the LIGHT of the world…

Let that sink in. IT”S HUGE.

We reflect the light of Jesus that is within us to the world around us…

WE allow them to see Him… through us.

It illuminates the path to Him…

It reveals things… truth… grace… peace… and even sin to the world around us. It shows how things really are.

As believers… we are the SALT of THE Earth… and the LIGHT of the WORLD… man I cannot get around that. Giving off the flavor of the kingdom everywhere we go… the attitude we have… the way we speak… and revealing Gods truth and love and grace.

And Jesus says the results of that… is that people will see the good you do… come to know where it comes from… and praise God because of it.

We are… servants.

I think of Val our missionary in Uganda and the roll they’ve played… starting churches, being used by God to free people from the oppression of hate, war, prostitution and hopelessness.

I think of missionaries still in Afghanistan

I think of organizations like love inc… and options

And… I think of Northside Church…

And the team that came and served at the school Sunday evening… pulling weeds and blessing the school.

The family that's walking with a young North Albany single mom who is facing incredibly hard times.

The gentleman that's been mowing the lawn right out here…

The meals that have been provided… i