There Is Freedom and then there is Freedom.
We have an incredible amount of freedom. We have freedom of choice. We can pursue what we want. We can buy what we want; now with one-click and same-day delivery.
We are also the most obese nation in the world. We consume the most opioids than any other country. We have 4 percent of the world's population but the greatest number of deaths by drug overdose by far. We are addicted to our smartphones. The average number of times a person in the US checks their smartphone is 80 times a day, that's once every 12 minutes. Sociologist Brene Brown observes through her research that: "We are the most in debt, obese, addicted, medicated adult cohort in history."
You can be in the land of the free and be in bondage. There's freedom. And THEN there's freedom.
We have an incredible amount of freedom. We have freedom of choice. We can pursue what we want. We can buy what we want; now with one-click and same-day delivery.
We are also the most obese nation in the world. We consume the most opioids than any other country. We have 4 percent of the world's population but the greatest number of deaths by drug overdose by far. We are addicted to our smartphones. The average number of times a person in the US checks their smartphone is 80 times a day, that's once every 12 minutes. Sociologist Brene Brown observes through her research that: "We are the most in debt, obese, addicted, medicated adult cohort in history."
You can be in the land of the free and be in bondage. There's freedom. And THEN there's freedom.
Christian Adulting
Most of the time it isn't walking on water...it's watering the garden, it's paying the water bill on time, it's advocating for clean water...and even that work--which may seem like exciting justice work--when you get down to it, but it mainly involves sending emails and calling people and setting up meetings...mundane but necessary tasks...doing these tasks as Christ would do them, with integrity and honesty and selflessness, that's Christian adulting.
Christian Adulting:
The practice of behaving in a way characteristic of a responsible follower of Jesus, especially the accomplishment of mundane but necessary tasks.
Following Jesus isn't all about performing signs and wonders. Sure, there may be some of that but most of the time it isn't walking on water...it's watering the garden, it's paying the water bill on time, it's advocating for clean water...and even that work--which may seem like exciting justice work--when you get down to it, but it mainly involves sending emails and calling people and setting up meetings...mundane but necessary tasks...doing these tasks as Christ would do them, with integrity and honesty and selflessness, that's Christian adulting.
Most of the time following Jesus isn't performing miracles surrounded by crowds, it's putting a band-aid on your grandson's booboo; it's walking for a cause like curing breast cancer; it's sitting by your friend as she receives chemotherapy treatment. Not exciting, not glamorous, but necessary...doing these tasks as Christ would do them, with integrity and honesty and selflessness, that's Christian adulting.
Holy Boldness
The people who stand in the gap between where we are and where God wants us to be are resisters. They are disciples who have prayed for and received the power of the Holy Spirit...and the Holy Spirit leads them to speak and to act in the name of Jesus...what these first disciples understood, what their witness has taught generations of followers of Jesus since, is that not speaking the truth and standing up for what is right is not an option. You simply cannot be a faithful Christian and sit in silence on the sidelines while atrocities occur.
Holy Boldness
The people who stand in the gap between where we are and where God wants us to be are resisters. They are disciples who have prayed for and received the power of the Holy Spirit...and the Holy Spirit leads them to speak and to act in the name of Jesus...what these first disciples understood, what their witness has taught generations of followers of Jesus since, is that not speaking the truth and standing up for what is right is not an option. You simply cannot be a faithful Christian and sit in silence on the sidelines while atrocities occur.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a pastor in Germany when the Nazi regime took over and he was one of the few faithful leaders who used his voice to speak out and organize against the Nazi movement. At the time most church leaders in Germany refused to openly oppose the Nazi regime, they remained silent about the Nazis and criticized Bonhoeffer for speaking out, so he had it coming at him from all sides, but he continue to speak with boldness. He said: “Silence in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.”
The Permission And The Power
You may say: cure the sick? But I'm not a doctor. Raise the dead? Cleanse the lepers? That sounds a little out of my league. Well maybe your marriage is sick. You have the power to work on healing your marriage right now. Maybe your friend is depressed. You have the power to reach out to her right now. Maybe some dream you have has died and you feel like the life has just been kicked out of you. You have the power to start again, to make something new. You are the committee. You have what you need within you already to cure the sick, to raise the dead.
You may say: cure the sick? But I'm not a doctor. Raise the dead? Cleanse the lepers? That sounds a little out of my league. Well maybe your marriage is sick. You have the power to work on healing your marriage right now. Maybe your friend is depressed. You have the power to reach out to her right now. Maybe some dream you have has died and you feel like the life has just been kicked out of you. You have the power to start again, to make something new. You are the committee. You have what you need within you already to cure the sick, to raise the dead.
You may hear that phrase 'cast out demons' and think shoot that is for some Pentecostal church or something and sure maybe so, but also this: Racism is a demon that needs to be cast out of our society for good. Sexism needs to be cast out. Homophobia needs to be cast out.
And we can sit around, literally sit around, and scroll and troll on Facebook and say: oh things should be different, and if only the powers that be would change things...No. You have the power to change things.
Becoming Deeply Devoted Disciples of Jesus Christ
I wonder if we pulled out our calendars right now and looked at this past week or this past month, or if we were to keep a running log of the hours in the day and what we did in each hour, it would be a good insight into our devotion...
Now if you have a group of people like those members of the early church whose calendars are for the most part synched, who all live in the same rhythm of life, who all give their time and energy to the same things, oh my the power of that!
Becoming Deeply Devoted Disciples of Jesus Christ
I wonder if we pulled out our calendars right now and looked at this past week or this past month, or if we were to keep a running log of the hours in the day and what we did in each hour, it would be a good insight into our devotion...
Now if you have a group of people like those members of the early church whose calendars are for the most part synched, who all live in the same rhythm of life, who all give their time and energy to the same things, oh my the power of that!
Sermon Notes:
Download "A Rule Of Life"