God hears us when we pray! And He ALWAYS answers EVERY prayer. But not always (or not usually) how we might think or want. 

Our church is going through the book of Acts on Sunday mornings. One thing that stands out is that the early church prayed, believed in prayer, and God answered their prayers! HERE’S the video of my sermon from Acts 12 Sunday May 5th, with my notes below. My hope is that many will take a deeper dive with God and that we will pray as never before in the next 40+ days. And through this experience see God answer prayers in miraculous ways!

Three Ways God Answers Every Prayer

1. No
2. Not now
3. Yes

1. No

We don’t always know what or how to pray, do we?!

While God hears us, He’s not a genie who just gives us what WE want! Like a wise, loving parent, He often says no

For example… Parents, we like to give our kids things when they ask, don’t we! It’s often hard to say no. When they ask for the right kind of things, it’s easy to say yes. But candy before bed… NO!

In Acts 12 the Apostle James died! Why did God allow Herod to kill James but not Peter? The sovereign will of God! Sometimes God mysteriously takes someone home who is young and vibrant for no good reason, at least that we can see! There are others we might wish God would take but He leaves them for His own reasons. If God asked me, from my viewpoint as a pastor, I might say that He took the wrong one and He left the wrong one! But life and death are in the hands of a sovereign God. . . . This is God’s universe, not ours.

Sometimes we pray and pray and pray and people die; don’t get better; they don’t get healed; the relationship ends; they don’t get that job; their kids don’t stay out of trouble; on and on.

God is no less good or in control, but because He’s able to see the big picture, He often says NO!

The second way God answers our prayers can be frustrating…

2. Not Now

Isa 55:8-9 says

“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. 9 For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.”

We don’t like to wait for anything, do we… not food, service, or even maturity! Even though it’s through waiting, exercising faithfulness and discipline, and yes, even pain, in which we grow. Think about sports, health, your career, or marriage… it all takes time and work to develop and grow. 

If God hasn’t said no, but hasn’t said yes, maybe it’s just not the right timing. Stay faithful where are you. FAITHFULNESS before FRUITFULNESS!

The third and usually favorite way God answers our prayers…

3. Yes

Remember 1 John 5:14-15

This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.

If the timing of our prayers is in line with His timing, then His answer is always YES!

Parents love to say YES, don’t we! We love to make our kids happy… at least most parents, most of the time.

God LOVES to give good gifts to His kids too… but He’s concerned about much more important things than our happiness… His ultimate plan is bringing RESTORATION to all things, for His glory. So when we pray committing to His will and surrendered to His timing, we’ll be a lot more aware of all the YES answers we get!

For example… Peter in Acts 12… the church prayed for Peter’s release and safety. He was eventually killed as a martyr, but God still had work to do for Peter! It was His will for Peter to be safely released, the church prayed, God said YES!  

God always answers every prayer: NO, NOT NOW, or YES

CONCLUSION

I am not trying to guilt you into anything. But I do want to motivate you to take action. Those who take action in life usually succeed. The same is true of prayer. Those who develop a strong prayer life usually have a strong walk with God… they’re usually less given to temptations, more self-controlled, and have a greater awareness of God in their life.

I want those things… less giving into temptations, more self-control, and a greater awareness of God in my life! And I’m sure you do too!

Unfortunately, there is no magic pill or silver bullet.

Fortunately, we can all succeed when it comes to prayer. Don’t have to have a bible degree, be a pastor, sing on the stage, or have it all together. In fact, those who are most aware of all the thing that aren’t together usually find it easier to draw close to God… they are the desperate ones!

There are a LOT of things we can and should pray for (laborers, love, the needs of our community, on and on). But there is ONE THING we see in Acts 12 that I believe God wants us to be praying over for the next couple months…

Acts 12:24 “But the word of God continued to spread and flourish.”

NOTHING could stop what God wanted to do… not the corruption and contention we see in Acts 5-6. Not the church’s enemies, as seen in chapters 4, 8, and 11. And here in Acts 12, obviously the Roman officials couldn’t control what God was doing! From here on out in the book of Acts we see the church explode into Asia Minor. God’s purposes will prevail as His people stand upon His Word! Amen!

Note what the Apostle Paul wrote to the church in Thessalonica, 2 Thess 3:1: “Finally, dear brothers and sisters, we ask you to pray for us. Pray that the Lord’s message will spread rapidly and be honored wherever it goes, just as when it came to you.”

One more Scripture encourages us here, from the Isa 55 passage I shared earlier…

ISA 55:10-11

“The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry. 11 It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it.”

Pray with me for God’s Word to SPREAD (WIDE) and be FRUITFUL (DEEP

There’s something about 40 days and God (Moses/Jesus), so I want to invite you to pray with me for 40 days starting next Mon, May 13th. There’s a great 40 day prayer devotional that I’m going to use and invite you all to join me (Draw The Circle).  

Pray with me for God’s Word to spread and be fruitful, FIRST in your life/home (pick up the DEVO, AND/OR use this daily bible reading plan.

Pray that God’s Word would spread and be honored in your workplace, in your neighborhood, and throughout our community

BE READY TO BE THE ANSWER TO YOUR OWN PRAYER!

The resurrection of Jesus, as described in the NT of the Bible, is the foundation upon which the Christian faith is built. So you might say that Easter is a kindof a big deal for all Christians around the world!

We don’t even need to assume that the NT is inspired by God or even trustworthy. While I do believe these things, this post (notes from the sermon I preached on Easter Sunday April 21 2019, VIDEO HERE) is going to focus on three truths that even critical scholars admit. In other words, these three truths are so strong that they are accepted by serious historians, those who believe and accept the historicity of the Bible, and those who don’t.

OK, here we go, three pieces of evidence that Jesus really was raised from the dead:

1. The Empty Tomb of Jesus. Four things to consider…

First, the resurrection was preached in the same city where Jesus had been buried shortly before… not in some obscure place where no one had heard of Jesus. No one would have believed them if Jesus was still in his tomb! As Paul Althaus put it, preaching the resurrection of Jesus “could not have been maintained in Jerusalem for a single day, for a single hour, if the emptiness of the tomb had not been established as a fact for all concerned.”

Second, the earliest Jewish arguments against Christianity admit an empty tomb. In Matthew 28:11-15, there is a reference made to the Jew’s attempt to refute Christianity be saying that the disciples stole the body. The Jews did not deny an empty tomb.

This is important because the Jewish leaders were staunchly opposed to Christianity. Admitting the reality of an empty tomb was not in their favor. Harvard historian Dr. Paul Maier calls this “positive evidence from a hostile source. In essence, if a source admits a fact that is decidedly not in its favor, the fact is genuine.”

Third, Jesus’ tomb wasn’t made into a shrine. This is significant because it was the 1st century custom to set up a shrine at the site of a holy man’s bones. There were at least 50 such sites in Jesus’ day. No shrine for Jesus means his bones were nowhere to be found!

Fourth, the empty tomb was discovered by women. Significant because the testimony of women in 1st century Jewish culture was not taken seriously.

The resurrection of Jesus really is the best explanation for the empty tomb!

2. Jesus’ Closest Followers Believed They Encountered Jesus After He Was Raised From The Dead.

Three possible options explain this…

1. They were lying

This view says they knew Jesus had not been raised from the dead, but made up the story and most of them willingly died as a result of sharing it. People will often die for a lie that they believe is the truth. But no one dies for something they know to be a lie! And it’s hard to imagine a 2000 year long cover up!

2. They hallucinated

The lying disciples theory is close to absurd, which is why almost all scholars today admit that, if nothing else, the disciples at least believed that Jesus appeared to them. So, maybe they were all hallucinating?

• Doesn’t explain them eating and drinking with Jesus
• Nearly impossible for groups of people to have the exact same hallucination.
• Imagine if I came in here and said to you, “wasn’t that a great dream I had last night?” Hallucinations, like dreams, generally don’t transfer like that.
• On top of all of that, the hallucination theory doesn’t deal with the evidence for the empty tomb.

OR… it could be that they really saw Jesus after He was raised from the dead

Since the disciples could not have been lying or hallucinating, we have one possible explanation left: the disciples believed that they had seen the risen Jesus because they really had seen the risen Jesus.

3. The Christian Church Was Immediately Established…

Jesus’ followers preached that He was raised from the dead immediately after claiming they saw Him ascend to heaven. Thousands of people immediately responded and the Christian church was established and grew quickly and significantly. For 2000 years this message has been shared around the world and literally changed the course of history!

There you go, three reasons everyone should believe that Jesus was raised from the dead!

1. The Empty Tomb
2. The Disciples Believed They Encountered Jesus After He Was Raised From The Dead
3. The Christian Church Was Immediately Established & Grew Significantly

RESPONSE

It’s interesting that so many people didn’t believe in Jesus before He was raised. Even His closest friends, who saw Him perform great miracles didn’t believe.

After He was raised several women went to His tomb, and an angel appeared, saying,

“Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’” (Mark 16:6-7)

But Mark 16:11-12 says that when the women reported back they did not believe them!

It took Jesus appearing to them. Mark 16:14 says,

“Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen.”

It wasn’t until they encountered the risen Jesus that they believed. But when they did they went and turned the world upside down. The gospel of Mark ends these words,

“After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God. 20 Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.” (Mark 16:19-20)

There is great evidence that Jesus died, was burried, and rose again. But no set of evidence is enough for most people to put their faith and trust in Jesus. Like the disciples, and the Apostle Paul, we need to encounter Him personally.

The Apostle Paul was as highly educated as any Jew of his time, a Jew of Jews, and a deeply committed  persecutor of the first Christians. After Jesus was raised from the dead He appeared to Paul, suddenly, and revealed Himself, calling Paul to follow Him. You can read about that in the book of Acts chapter 9.

After Paul put his faith and trust in Jesus he gave his life to follow Him, eventually wrote most of the NT. He wrote some of the most important verses about the resurrection, that I want to leave you with…   

For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8 and last of all he appeared to me also. (1 Cor 15:3-8)

Jesus lived the only perfect, sinless life ever lived and He died on a cross to bear the sins of the world. But Jesus didn’t just die… every human being dies eventually. On the third day Jesus was raised from the dead, back to life, so all people everywhere, from every nation, tribe, and tongue could have the chance to be RESTORED back to Him.

This story is being told all around the world with people who claim to have an encounter with the Risen Jesus!

Murders/haters like the Apostle Paul have been turned inexplicably into lovers of the people they once killed and hated…  thieves changed into generous givers… self-centered hypocrites turned into humble authentic servants of others.

If you have never put your trust in Jesus to save you from your sin, to forgive you and give you new life, I invite you to do just that… right now, where you are! Just talk to Him, confess that you have fallen short of perfection and sinned against Him… that you believe that Jesus died and rose again to take the penalty for your sin, and that you accept the free gift of GRACE and ETERNAL LIFE that He is offering you through His Son Jesus!

OR, maybe you just need to come back to Him. Pray and tell Him how you feel and that you are returning home!

If you’ve read this and made any decision about your relationship with Jesus I’d love to hear from you. Comment here or through the contact page.  

Christ is RISEN… He is RISEN indeed!

Incredible things happen when people step OUT of their comfort zone. We ask a future spouse out on a first date. We enter a career because of a class that stretched us in college. We start a business based on a crazy idea. Churches get planted and people get changed!

A little willingness to step out of our comfort zones and God will do MIRACLES IN and THROUGH us!
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The book of Acts is the amazing story about how God was doing just that in the early church.

Yesterday I preached the second part of Called Out Of Our Comfort Zone. HERE‘s the link to part one. And if you subscribe to our YouTube page you’ll get the sermons as soon as they’re up.

Below are the sermon notes:

Let’s pick up the story in Acts 10, and listen to what God has to say to us about getting out of our comfort zones…

Acts 10:23-33 Peter Arrives To Visit Cornelius

Uncomfortable way to start the visit! But Peter was firm, not allowing himself to be praised, but just an equal man.

It was an uncomfortable visit for Peter. Everything he had grown up believing about Gentiles was being questioned.

Of this passage one commentator said, “There is nothing more binding on the average person than social custom.” Social customs are actions, behaviors, and standards that are shared and expected of a particular culture.

Think about how strong social customs are…

• The way we dress, view love, dating and success
• Happy hour after work, bar scene for young professionals
• Ultra-sexualized culture
• Image for young people… and adults
• On and on and on

It was the social, or religious custom of food that was the problem for Peter. Gentiles ate food that was unclean to the Jews and didn’t clean their utensils as the Jews did, therefore, to the Jews the Gentiles were themselves unclean.

But God appeared to Peter in that strange vision with the sheet (10:9ff)… telling him that all food is clean! It’s not food that makes a person unclean. it’s not the social or religious customs that really matter to God… it’s the heart of people! And our willingness or unwillingness to get outsize our comfort zone for the sake of others says a lot about our hearts!

When Peter took that first step he had no idea what was going to happen. But seeing miracles happen and people restored takes a first step!  

This happens all the time… ever hear or read just what you needed when you needed it… from a book (Ex. “don’t need to be perfect parent, just a good parents to raise a great kid”)… sermon, or even something random on Facebook or IG. God uses all kinds of channels to speak to people, we just need to be willing to step out of our comfort zone and let God use us.

Peter and Cornelius did just that, and the impact has rippled throughout the last 2000 years. Check out what Peter had to say…

Acts 10:34-43 Peter To Cornelius

Since God deals with ALL PEOPLE equally, we also ought to treat ALL PEOPLE equally… there is no room in God’s Kingdom for prejudice or discrimination based on ethnicity or any other reason for that matter.

Peter kept the message simple and Jesus-centered, something we can all do…

“We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem.They killed him by hanging him on a cross, 40 but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. 41 He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen—by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42 He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. 43 All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

This is Good News! There might be someone here this morning that needed to hear this, especially the part about forgiveness! Yes, ALL your sin can be forgiven through the name of Jesus!!!

Acts 10:44-48 The Holy Spirit & The Next Step

This was important validation that the wall between Jews and Gentiles was torn down! God was accepting the Gentiles as equal children in His family with all the rights and privileges that his other children have.  

God was not done calling Peter out of his comfort zone. This story spread quickly…

Acts 11:1-3 Peter’s Explanation

When we do things outside our comfort zone it usually makes other people uncomfortable too. Start talking about Jesus in places people don’t talk about Him… make changes in your life that don’t make sense, cause others to feel convicted… CRITICISM may come!

Acts 11:4-17 Peter Told The Whole Story

Peter told them the whole story about his comfortable call to Cornelius’ house.

God uses people who are willing to step outside their comfort zone… willing to be a witness and share the Good News of Jesus in word and deed. Only God knows the impact, and at times we won’t see the fruit, we’ll be mocked for following Jesus. But when we speak and act with GRACE and TRUTH the impact is often significant! Notice how this story ends…

11:18 The Verdict

When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, “So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life.”

God is calling us out of our comfort zone…

• Not to make our lives harder… although it’s easier to stay comfortable
• Not to frustrate and keep us from enjoying the “good life!”
• He calls us OUT for the sake of others… Ed’s paraphrase of Romans 10… “How can they hear if someone doesn’t GO OUT!”
• God is not calling us all OUT to the same people… we have different SHAPE’s… we have different and unique neighborhoods and networks
• But we are ALL SENT OUT

Peter was willing to take a step… each time he stepped OUT, God used him and then called him to take another step… and the world was turned upside down!

We might not turn the world upside down, but God is calling us OUT, to join Him and the RESTORATION He is bringing to Gaithersburg, MoCo, and all the neighborhoods and networks we represent.

I love all kinds of music… (with 1 or 2 acceptions), but there is something about the ability of Hip Hop to tell stories with great detail in a short amount of time. One of my current favorite artists is Andy Mineo, and there’s a song that literally gets me teared up every time I hear it. It might make you a bit uncomfortable, but that’s OK, God is calling us OUT of our COMFORT ZONES! Listen/Read to the lyrics of Andy’s song “Wild Things” on his Heroes for Sale album…

CONCLUSION

What step OUTside your Comfort Zone is God calling you to take?

It’s going to be different for all of us, but remember,

The church is not FOR Christians… the church IS Christians FOR the world.
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 Let’s live FOR our community and world, doing what we do as means to and end… so that others can be RESTORED for the glory of God!

Take a moment right now and ask God to give you COURAGE and willingness to step outside your comfort zone for the sake of others THIS WEEK …

I gave THREE steps for our church to take… apply this as it fits to your context…

1. PRAY

• Begin with prayer: ask God to open doors to personally invite 3 people our Easter Brunch and service THIS WEEK! [or to your Easter Service]

2. INVITE

• As God gives you opportunities, simply INVITE people.
• I’m praying for every person here to personally invite 3 people to join us for Easter, and for 25+ first time guests to be here for Easter!
• For those on FB the RC page has the Easter event, invite others & share the event on your page if possible

3. REPEAT

God is at work bringing RESTORATION to and through us! He’s simply calling us to be His witnesses, willing to TAKE A STEP outside our comfort zones for the sake of others who need RESTORATION!

QUESTION: What step OUTside your comfort zone could you take TODAY to make a difference in someone else’s life?

Yesterday I preached, “Jesus, Broken And Poured Out For Us,” from Mark 14:12-26 at Restoration Church. I hope it’s a blessing to you, especially if you’re struggling with challenges in your life and uncertain where Jesus is in the midst of it all. HERE is the audio.

Unfortunately I forgot to set my phone to airplane mode and got a call 20 minutes in, which stopped the recording! Yikes! So I’m pasting my full sermon manuscript below.

I’d love to hear from you, comment below or send me a message.

Behavioral scientists have discovered that we usually see things that we are prepared to see. It’s a network of nerve cells called the “Reticular Activating System,” which is KINDA LIKE a BRAIN FILTER. There are millions of data points floating in our brain at any one point. This “BRAIN FILTER” signals what’s IMPORTANT!

How does it know what’s important? By what we FOCUS on most!

Buy a new car, focused on it, prepared to see it, see it everywhere.

The Hyundai Sonatas were always there, but as my BRAIN FILTER kicked in, my brain thinks Sonatas are important… now I see them everywhere!

I’m sure many, if not all of you can relate, right!

Our BRAIN FILTER can prepare us to see the worst or the best. If you’re in a difficult relationship and every time you’re about to see that person you think, “Oh man, this is going to be rough!” How does it usually go? Pretty rough, right!

Likewise, when we think the best about people…

• like anticipating the presence of someone we admire or love…
• when we’re about to be with people who support us, we usually see a lot of good things, almost automatically. Why? We FOCUSED on what was important, triggering our BRAIN FILTER that we expected to have a good experience.

Let’s apply this to the way we think about God. The way we envision or picture Him deeply affects our experience with Him.

• FOCUS, TELL OUR BRAIN that GOD is Good, Gracious, Merciful = life-giving

• FOCUS, TELL OUR BRAIN that GOD is Angry, Disappointed, Judging = bad, probably avoid God, the church, the bible, and Christians!

Jesus was well aware of our BRAIN FILTER… He created it! So as He neared the end of His earthly life, He spent a LOT of time preparing His friends for what was about to happen. He was helping them FOCUS ON WHAT WAS REALLY IMPORTANT, rewiring their BRAIN FILTERS if you will.

The magnitude of what Jesus did for humanity is beyond our wildest imaginations. Knowing we would struggle to “get it,” Jesus passed on a simple way for people to apply our BRAIN FILTER in relationship to how we think about God… specifically how we think about what Jesus did for US!

Now let’s listen to God’s Word as we join Jesus and His friends at the Passover meal… one in which He Challenged All The Norms of how they celebrated that 1500 year old tradition…

MARK 14:12-16… follow along with me…

12 On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, when it was customary to sacrifice the Passover lamb, Jesus’ disciples asked him, “Where do you want us to go and make preparations for you to eat the Passover?”

13 So he sent two of his disciples, telling them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him. 14 Say to the owner of the house he enters, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is my guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ 15 He will show you a large room upstairs, furnished and ready. Make preparations for us there.”

• Jesus knew everything that was happening and about to happen.

16 The disciples left, went into the city and found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover.

MARK 14:17-20

17 When evening came, Jesus arrived with the Twelve. 18 While they were reclining at the table eating, he said, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me—one who is eating with me.”

19 They were saddened, and one by one they said to him, “Surely you don’t mean me?”

20 “It is one of the Twelve,” he replied, “one who dips bread into the bowl with me. 21 The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born.”

Jesus betrayal was part of God’s purpose, as predicted in the OT. But notice that although God was and is always in control, man is also always accountable for his actions.

God is bringing RESTORATION, He is the one doing the real work here at RC! But Pastor Rod, Pastor B, and I will be held accountable for our leadership.

Whatever part we play, whatever God is calling us to, He will do it, He will be faithful, but we will be held accountable to Him for our part.

Now notice how Jesus refocuses their BRAIN FILTERS by emphasizing that He was Broken and Poured Out For Them…

22 While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take it; this is my body.” ~MARK 14:22

The bread represented Jesus’ body, which was about to be “broken” on an old wooden cross! “Broken in the sense that He was about to take the sins of the entire world on His body!

Isa 53:4-6

Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering,

yet we considered him punished by God,

stricken by him, and afflicted.

5 But he was pierced for our transgressions,

he was crushed for our iniquities;

the punishment that brought us peace was on him,

and by his wounds we are healed.

6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,

each of us has turned to our own way;

and the Lord has laid on him

the iniquity of us all.

1 Pet 2:24

“He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed (RESTORED).”

The significance of Jesus’ body being “broken” is that He could then be shared! He literally shared the bread in the meal, but more importantly He was sharing Himself! All who put their faith/trust in Him can have immediate access to His presence… ALL THE TIME!

Jesus was broken so that WE could have HIM in the midst of OUR brokenness!
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Not only was Jesus BROKEN, but notice, He was also POURED OUT for US…

MARK 14:23-25

23 Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and they all drank from it.

They drank from a common cup, further symbolising Jesus’ desire to share Himself with His followers.

24 “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many,” he said to them. 25 “Truly I tell you, I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”

“blood of the covenant”

• This covenant does not refer to an agreement between two equals. God has no equal! This refers to an arrangement established by one party, in this case God. The other party (humanity), cannot alter it; we can only accept or reject it.

• This New Covenant is God’s new arrangement in dealing with people, based on Jesus’ death. God promised this New Covenant through the OT Prophet Jeremiah. And while the physical blessings for Israel are yet to be fulfilled when Jesus comes back, the spiritual blessings are extended to us (the church, Jews and Gentiles together)… to all who put their trust in Jesus.

“many”

• As in Mark 10:45

For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many

• “many” – this is a common Jewish way of saying “all”. Lit. all who are many.

• This is one of the clearest moments in which Jesus brings everyone together, Jew and Gentile, near and far. There is ONE LOAF given (one broken body) and ONE CUP poured (one person’s blood)… “for many = for ALL!”

• It was the death of Jesus that founded and now sustains the new community… the church!

“I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the Kingdom of God.”

The Passover meal includes 4 cups of wine, representing the four-fold promise of redemption God made to His people in Exodus 6:

• ‘I will bring you out . . .
• I will rid you of their bondage . . .
• I will redeem you . . .
• I will TAKE you for my people and I will be your God’

Jesus said that He will drink that 4th cup with US… in “that day… when we drink it new together in the Kingdom of God.” Jesus was FOCUSING their BRAIN FILTERS with something new here, something of the utmost importance! = Jesus will RESTORE EVERYTHING when He comes again!

EVERY time we eat together, every time we gather together, we have the opportunity to remind each other of what is truly important… JESUS was Broken & Poured Out For US, giving us His presence for today and sure hope for the future… He is coming again!

It’s incredible to see how this part of the story ends…

26 When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. ~MARK 14:26

Imagine being one of those disciples… the uncertainty, the doubt, the struggle!

We don’t know for sure, but Psalm 118 was likely on Jesus’ mind that night. I’m going to read portions of it, but I encourage you to read it all on your own. Let’s marinate in God’s promises for a few minutes before we close…

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;

   his love endures forever.

5 When hard pressed, I cried to the Lord;

   he brought me into a spacious place.

6 The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid.

   What can mere mortals do to me?

7 The Lord is with me; he is my helper.

   I look in triumph on my enemies.

8 It is better to take refuge in the Lord

   than to trust in humans.

9 It is better to take refuge in the Lord

   than to trust in princes.

13 I was pushed back and about to fall,

   but the Lord helped me.

14 The Lord is my strength and my defense;

   he has become my salvation.

17 I will not die but live,

   and will proclaim what the Lord has done.

21 I will give you thanks, for you answered me;

   you have become my salvation.

22 The stone the builders rejected

   has become the cornerstone;

23 the Lord has done this,

   and it is marvelous in our eyes.

24 The Lord has done it this very day;

   let us rejoice today and be glad.

29 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;

   his love endures forever.

APPLICATION

Jesus has given us amazing FILTERS FOR OUR BRAINS. As we FOCUS them on what’s IMPORTANT, we begin to respond to life much differently.

Like seeing Hyundai Sonatas everywhere, when our BRAIN FILTERS work properly we begin to see Jesus everywhere!  

YBH? (Yes, But How?)

Think about the challenge you’re facing right now? 3 main categories I think of…

• PHYSICAL: pain, health, weight, insecurity

• RELATIONSHIPS: family, friend, neighbors, work, team, classmate
  • broken, disappointed, unmet expectations, and on and on and on!

• WORK: not enough, too much, uncertain, stress

Here’s the YBH…  when you feel the physical, relational, or work related pain, STOP & REFOCUS your BRAIN FILTER by… REMEMBERING JESUS! “Do this in remembrance of Me!”

• PHYSICAL pain/health/insecurity = “Ok Jesus, the pain is real, but I remember, You were broken and poured out for US!”

• RELATIONSHIP: Harsh word spoken/unmet expectation = “Ok Jesus, this hurts, but I remember You were broken and poured out for US!”

• WORK: Pressure = “Ok Jesus, I don’t know how to bear it, but I remember that You were broken and poured out for US!”

IMAGINE THIS… no longer seeing life as full of brokenness and challenges (although it is), but seeing Jesus everywhere, in every circumstance, in all our pain, in every relationship, and as a vital part of our work!

IMAGINE how different our day to day experience would be THIS week, if we lived in light of Jesus being broken and poured out for us!

I’ve always been intrigued by things that seem IMPOSSIBLE, like sneezing with your eyes open, eating just one potato chip (especially Doritos), or a Washington D.C. Sports team winning in the 21st century! (come on Wizards and NATS, this is the year!)

Have you ever felt like you were in an IMPOSSIBLE situation?

• Parents, ever feel like making it through the day is IMPOSSIBLE!
• Maybe you’re in a relationship that feels IMPOSSIBLE to reconcile!
• Or like me, your bills are piled up and it feels IMPOSSIBLE to get ahead!
• Or like many, you’re struggling with the same vice, addiction, or bad habit that seems IMPOSSIBLE to get rid of!

Let me encourage you… God loves to turn OUR impossibilities into HIS possibilities.

Yesterday I preached from Mark 10 at Restoration Church, our new church plant in Gaithersburg, MD. HERE is the audio, I hope it’s a blessing to you, especially if you’re facing what feels like an IMPOSSIBLE situation!

Below are my sermon notes. I’d love to hear from you, comment below or send me a message.

*In my research for this sermon, I used Pastor Brian Bill’s (of Edgewood Baptist Church) outline from his sermon called “Why It’s Hard To Get To Heaven.”

There was a wealthy first-century celebrity whose story is recorded in Mark 10. The problem wasn’t that he had great wealth… great wealth had him! 

Mark 10:17-22 NIV

17 As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

18 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother.’”

20 “Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.”

21 Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

22 At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.

This man was sincere, moral and upright, he highly valued relationships, and was a man of respect! But in the end he loved himself and his wealth more than God… TRAGIC! 

Let’s  be clear, Jesus is NOT against people having money, even great wealth. There are many examples in both OT and NT of wealthy people who loved the Lord and were used greatly by God.

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The problem is when money/our things have us!
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As the disciples watched and listened to this interaction, they were in a dilemma. They saw wealth as a sign of God’s blessing. It blew their minds that this wealthy celebrity was allowed to just walk away from Jesus. Maybe they thought Jesus was making a mistake!

There are a few key principles Jesus unpacked showing that God loves turning our impossibilities into His possibilities…  

Salvation Is Nearly Impossible For The Rich (MARK 10:23)

23 Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”

What is it about wealth that makes it so difficult to follow Jesus… to enter His Kingdom?

Pastor and Author Randy Alcorn posted an interesting article recently entitled: “Lottery Winner Says Winning ‘Has Ruined My Life.’” This is what he wrote:

“One of the great ironies of gambling is that the vast majority of people lose money, while the few who win discover money doesn’t make them happy—and often it actually ruins their lives! One study reported that, ‘six months after winning the lottery, you are likely to be no happier than if you had been paralyzed in a car crash.’”

In 2013, Jane Park, then 17, won $1.2 million in the EuroMillions lottery. Now 21, Jane was recently considering taking legal action for what she calls negligence, claiming that a person her age shouldn’t have been allowed to win. (She has since dropped her plans for a lawsuit.)

“At times it feels like winning the lottery has ruined my life…I thought it would make it 10 times better but it’s made it 10 times worse…I have material things but apart from that my life is empty. What is my purpose in life?”

~Jane Park

Yet when asked if she’s ever considered ridding herself of the money that has brought such misery, her answer was an incredulous, “What?”

Did you know that there are more verses in the Bible about money than about Heaven and Hell combined? The Bible has fewer than 300 verses on prayer, less than 500 on faith, yet over 2,000 verses that deal with wealth and possessions! Of the 38 parables Jesus told, 16 of them are about money.

The inescapable conclusion is that our relationship with our STUFF is a big deal to God. There really is no way to separate faith and finances.

Randy Alcorn wrote one of the best (and shortest) books on how to generate generosity (one of our core values) called The Treasure Principle. Here are two of his main points:

1. God owns everything and I am his money manager. When I honor God with my wealth I am declaring that He owns me, and everything that I have.

2. My heart always goes where I put God’s money. We tend to think that our money follows our heart but Jesus said it’s the other way around in Matt 6:21 – “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Money leads; hearts follow.

When our treasures, our money and our stuff, have us, it’s nearly IMPOSSIBLE to see our need. But oh how God loves to turn our impossibilities into His possibilities!

Notice what happens next in Mark 10…  

It’s Nearly Impossible For Anyone To Be Saved (MARK 10:24-27 )

24 The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

26 The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?”

27 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”

The disciples “… were amazed at his words…” Jesus was messing with their theology. He used an unforgettable illustration to make His point that salvation is impossible on our own. It’s easier for a camel to walk through the eye of a needle!

Talk about impossible! Jesus wanted us to think of a literal camel, the largest animal in Israel at that time, and a sewing needle, w/a small opening at the top for thread. The picture is absurd, right? There’s no way a huge camel could fit through the eye of a needle! And that’s his point.

God loves to turn our impossibility into His possibility. 

The disciples were dumbfounded by this description. v. 26: “And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, ‘Then who can be saved?’” There minds were blown! The assumption was that the rich were the ones blessed by God… so if they were out, who is left to be saved?

BUT JESUS… ‘With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.’ 

God loves to turn our impossibility into His possibility.

Check out how our story today ends… probably not how you think it would…

The Incredible Rewards Of Following Jesus (MARK 10:28-29)

Then Peter spoke up, “We have left everything to follow you!”

29 “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel 30 will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”

Peter, Andrew, James and John left their fishing franchise to follow Jesus. Matthew bolted from this tax booth. Simon the Zealot gave up his revolutionary ways. Everyone left something.

Jesus calls us to leave much behind to follow Him. There’s a cross to carry and much to sacrifice. But notice how Jesus #ChallengedTheNorm and presented some incredible benefits of following Him…

1. New relationships. The church… locally and globally! Can’t be connected to Jesus and disconnected to His bride, the Church He loved so much that He gave Himself for her.

Some are disowned by family and friends because we follow Jesus. At times it can feel lonely. But check this out… the church is your new family (father and mother and brother and sister)! Anywhere in the world there is a church, we have family there too!

2. New rejections. Blessings come, but battles come too…  v. 30: “…with persecutions.” Properly understood, persecution is also a blessing as Jesus said in Matt 5:10-12: “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

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Following Jesus ALWAYS involves a cross before a crown.
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We’re so far from this sometimes aren’t we? I saw a post on Facebook recently that captures a common sentiment: “You’re ruining my day, Starbucks! Out of chai!”

3. New rewards. We receive new relationships and rejection in the here and now, BUT there are also rewards that are not yet: “…in the age to come eternal life.” This is a promise you can count on.

Jesus ended with a strong #ChallengeToTheNorm… “But many who are first will be last, and the last first.” Jesus rules an upside-down Kingdom … The humble are exalted, mourners are comforted and losers are keepers!

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God loves to turn our impossibilities into His possibilities!
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Let’s make this personal, so we’re not just hearers, but we’re doers of the Word…

Let’s confess the IMPOSSIBILITIES of our lives and claim the promises of God, who loves to turn them into HIS POSSIBILITIES…

• Are you faced with something right now that seems impossible? Remember what Abraham was asked in Gen 18:14: “Is anything too hard for the LORD?”

• Is there an impossible relationship, friend, significant other, spouse, child… Jer 32:27: “Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh. Is anything too hard for me?”

• Do you have an impossible situation going on at school or at work? Rom 8:31: “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?”

• Have you, or a loved one, received some bad health news recently? In Mark 9:23 Jesus tells the father of the young man who was demon possessed: “All things are possible for one who believes.”

• Are your finances unraveling? Jer 32:17: “Ah, Lord GOD! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.”

God wants to turn your IMPOSSIBILITY into HIS POSSIBILITY… His arms are open wide, wherever you are, run into His gracious, merciful, and good arms, allowing Him to do what only He can do.

This is GOOD NEWS!