Deeper Wk 6- Community

if you're in this church today and you believe that God has come here and ordained one church to make a change in the world here in High Point, here and here for county, Forsyth County, Davidson County, I don't care where it is, North Carolina, all the way around the world.

I want you to come forward this morning and I want you to come stand in agreement with me right here at this altar. This is how I fight my battles because I want you all to come. If you're a member of one church, if you're not a member of one church, if you want to declare him over your life right now, if you are declaring that he is your champion, if you stand in agreement that the victory is yours.

Hey, man. Yes, I will ask Pastor Ryan to pray over here in a minute. But God just said on our birthday, we need to be together as a family. I mean, he did something nobody ever thought could be done like you saw on that video. The world has been in complete turmoil and, you know, first Wesley and had a building and we didn't have a pastor, but we had some people and see for not even a year old was in Smith High School and COVID hit and Satan said, oh, I'm a shut you down.

Do you think they stop? Nope. So guess what? They had a preacher and they had some people. So we put the building and the people and the pastor and the people together. Amen. And God just took all of that, and he made us all one. And we are representing so many different backgrounds, so many different ethnicities, socioeconomic groups, so many different places.

That we all come from that a man under him. We are one I in and that's just a little bit of our story. So when you see one church, you see, you see, just don't you don't just see a first line or see four or those who've been like, who is this church that's on social media now? Looks like the kingdom of heaven.

Yes. Our desire is to reflect heaven here on earth. And so when we begin to talk about one that the world may believe, we believe that we want to become united at the world. We believe that we can overcome division and we can overcome depression, that we can overcome a Republican or a Democratic or a bipartisan party, and we can overcome everything that the schemes of the enemy has put out there before us.

Because truth be told, that one church, we're not supposed to be existing right now. If you only knew our story about the attack that this church has had over this past year, we were supposed to be shut down any and everything that the enemy has tried to do to create division to smear the name of one church but he didn't know who was surrounding us.

He didn't know that we had another in the fire. He didn't know that if God is for me, who could be against me if we are more than conquerors, if God has called us to be united because that truth be told that we are better together this is Father in heaven. We thank God for who you are God.

We thank you for the vision to be one God. I pray for each family unit that's here today. God, even though a different baby from different backgrounds, from different cultures, got from different countries, from different socio economic backgrounds, so that we have the same desire. God, that we have the desire to be united as one as the Father.

Today we ask that you will protect each family the guy that you would do only what you can do because as I read the prayer of John Chapter 17, which is the last word that Jesus read with his disciples, he says, God, my prayer is now for them alone. I pray also for those who believe in me through their message that all of them may be one Father Jesus, you are in me and I am, and you may also be one in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me there.

I have given them the glory that you have given me, that they may be one as we are one father we think you got for celebrating one year today. And God, we anticipate many more in God. We don't know where you have us to go, but God, we're trusting you. Trusting is what has got us this far. So trusting is what is going to get us further father.

Pray for our protection over this church. God, I pray for blessings. I pray for favor. God pray that we will walk in the authority that you have given us God. Give us wisdom, give us discernment.

But most of all, God give us the capacity to love even when it's too hard to give us the capacity to love when it's different. Give us the capacity to love to when we don't understand the father. Through that love, we're able to forgive father. I think you got for so many people have decided, God, just a party with what you called us to do.

The God, we're excited which is actually blessings and favors increasing that we say amen, amen. Or see if you can just read that. Just sing that last chorus of victories by just having seen we've got to have church in 25 seconds I'm a part of this is how I find my of this is how I find my idols this is my this is my my my idols.

This is how my my battles this is how far my bad off this is how I sing on time this is how far my part of the south side my battles. This is how often my bout of this is how I You need an anthem song to kind of help carry through because I know it's just now my testimony.

I'm sure there's other testimonies that's out there today. That is saying that God, if it hadn't been for you, right? Come on. Church maybe I'm by myself. Maybe there's this four or five. But if it had not been for the Lord on my side, I don't know where I would be today. Because I place my hope in my trust in him.

And then let's just look back at 20, 21, and I want you to think about some things that just didn't go favorably in your in your way and the guy sort of fit to bring you through as Cruz has been talking about this, this year, God has given our church or whatever your God give us one word to kind of really just give us a direction last year.

2021 was the year to move forward and now was thinking, okay, God, you know what, we're going to move forward after coronavirus. You know, things just been popping off, you know, this church shutting down, people acting crazy and all this stuff. You know, we need to be progressive in some state. Not that I know little did I know the obstacles that we had to overcome as a church, as individuals, The 20, 22 comes in.

I was praying like, God, can I just get the word for 20, 22? I was praying there for it back in like maybe September or October because like, I'm about tired of 20, 21. The guy said, No, I'm not going to give it to you just yet because you forfeit everything else. I had you to complete in 20, 21 the word that God gave our church for 20, 22 was the year to go deeper.

And as Chris has been saying over the past month or so, we've been working on just a series of self and we talked about to go deeper into the Holy Spirit because the Holy Spirit is the advocate is two entities, a person the guy sits as the aged to accomplish the work of the New Testament Church. And if you don't know we are the New Testament church so we need the Holy Spirit not only for ourselves but for the Church itself to be successful.

Then we also talked about how spiritual gifts are received, the talents are inherited, and that our gifting that we read in Scripture are for service and not for status Scripture talks about nine gifting that He gives us the gift of wisdom to give the prophecy the gift of, you know, there's so many years to get things that I forgot what they were just a quick, hey, man.

Oh, but look at there's not gifting is the first great things I think is chapter 13 or so, but there's nine gifting that scripture talks about and oftentimes churches we elevate like the speaking in tongues, which is a gift and prophecy which is a gift and we elevate those for status. But let me remind you that our gift things are not for status.

They're for service service of the church service of his kingdom. In the last week we talked about we had to go deeper in our prayer life. You know, God is good, God is great. Let us thank you for all you know, we got to go deeper than that. A man church now lay me down to sleep. I pray the Lord my soul to keep the we we have to get away from there.

Those those are elementary prayers that we need to level up in our prayer life.

Is if we're going to be going deeper as a church, if we're going deeper as individuals, we have to go deeper within the Holy Spirit. We have to go deeper in our prayer life.

Because we know that prayer will get you in. Things will get you out of things, and it would get you through some things so we have to go deeper in our prayer life. And I got to watch my clock. I'm trying to watch it, but I know we got a time schedule so today do you have your Bibles?

Let's turn to Hebrews chapter two versus 24 through 25, and I'll be reading from the Navy version Hebrews chapter two versus 24 through 25. It read as follows Exodus is new King James my apologies and let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.

Not forsaking the assembly of ourselves together, as in the manner of some, but exhorting one another and so much more as you see the day approaching, the new live in translation puts us this way Let us not waste our modus let's not waste our motives or the ways that we are gathering. It says this Let us not think of ways to motivate.

Let us think of ways to motivate each other, to act, to love and good works, and let us not neglect our meeting together, our gathering our assembly, as some people do. But let us encourage one another, especially now that the day of the Lord's drawing near. Let me just give you some back story about the book of Hebrews two.

The book of Hebrews is written to Christians like new Christians in, in this this new Christianity world. And what we see here is that they begin to endure some struggles. Struggle is real for the Apostle Paul and the other disciples, and they begin to think about the reproach and affliction that they begin to have. And we see this because we read it in Hebrews Chapter Ten verses 33, and we even go back and verse 25, it talks about verse 30 to talk about the struggles and the, the enduring of the sufferings that they had to take.

Simply put, there are new Christians, the new converts and then they begin to receive this affliction and they begin to think about, Man, I had a better when I was back in the world. So they had one toe in and went so well and so would they begin to think about this. Their wavering said, I can see you in this, this new faith called Christianity let me bring in modern day church politics so people will begin to think about, you know, let me just go back into the world because the world has operated even more effective than what the church is doing.

What about the pandemic you know, Bonnaroo talks about, which is a certain group and it talks about one third of Christians. post-COVID would not return back to the church one third, 33.3339%, whatever that may be. One third of believers would not return to the church. And that's a problem. That's a problem for the church. So when we talk about we read in scriptures and we hear about the great fall in a way many people think that it's going to become and when the end of time is going to be.

But is it possible that the great fall away is the pandemic of the results of the pandemic? How we're talking about believers now?

One third of the church is not going to return so there's nothing like community. So they had to give a title to my lesson today. Is this deeper in community? So we're going deeper in the Holy Spirit. We went deeper into our prayer life, but now we need deeper in the gathering of believers deeper a community. What is community communities?

Friends, right? Many of us can say that we have ten phrase or 20 phrase, but what about those those real close knit friends you know, those refrains, my homies, right? Another way we have it, we call our right to die for is right. I got a couple of phrases right now if I call them up and I'm like, Yo, look, I'm going to pull up right now.

I just need you to jump in the car. And we just got to roll out. Don't ask any questions. And I know my homies Morata Die folks will ask any questions like, Yeah, we ready females to be taken off the air is like what we about to go do, right? Like, what are we about to do? Those are very few they don't ask questions.

You know, those real friends, when you get in an argument with your spouse and they come to your house and the argument continues and you don't change, of course. But those fake friends, you know, you kind of you dress it up a little bit, right? You clean it up in such a way that, you know, they they come in like, okay, we'll finish this to be continued.

We go finish this off when we get back, when they leave. Right y'all know what I'm talking about. Well, let me just I'm a go in kind of just in the words of Bishop Garth Brooks, blame it on my roots, showed up in my boots and and ruined the Black Fire affair. Whatever. Yes. Somebody know the last one to know.

The last one to show one was. Yes. And I saw surprise looking at four eyes when I took the glass man.

Toasted, you said, honey, we may be through, but you never come with me. You can play. And I got friends in low places in. Okay. Okay, okay. See? Yeah, please. I need some letting some singing lessons shortly after this. I just see that all of my kids and my family, they can sing. I don't know what happened. God, we wanted to have a talk when I get to heaven, but let me do this.

So those are not friends, you know, fans of Bishop Garth Brooks. I have a paso Houdini if I don't know who that is, listen to this.

And how many of them must be my friends? One we to find. Oh, yeah. There you go. How many of us there you go. So we have from Bishop Garth Brooks and Apostle Houdini. They're not really in the Bible. But listen, my point is this friends. How do many of us truly have friends? Before we go any further, let's be friends.

So your friends are your community friends is your community see community as something that God created from the very beginning of time? See, we see what God created. Adam because he said is not good, that you may be alone. So he created Eve for Community. We see now Isaiah Chapter 41 that God calls Abraham a friend. Jesus Morrow.

The friendship by even just in his is walking his life with the disciples. Everywhere that Jesus went, it was always two by two there was always community in the Scriptures is always community with Christ Jesus teaches that there's no greater love, that a person would have to lay down their life for a friend. So how do we begin to go deeper in community so my prayers this God prepare me for what I'm paying, what I'm praying for, God prepare me for what I am praying for.

How often do we pray for things? And God He knows that we are not even prepared to receive the blessing that He wants to have us. So as we begin to look at community and what community looks like as we go deeper in our community, God prepare me right now, prepare our church, prepare you for what we are praying for.

Because truth be told, your community may not look like you. Your community may not talk like you your community may be in a completely different environment from what you believe that you've been praying for.

Because we may we may know what we want, but God knows what we need. We know what we want. But God knows exactly what we need in the assignment that He has for our lives.

And so to go deeper, a community, what what must I do? You have to be intentional. Why is it this? Think about it. Many of us when we look for housing, right? We're intentional. We choose the houses and neighborhoods that we we live in for a couple of different reasons. Right.

Okay. You break it off. Right. And we choose houses and communities, especially if we have kids to do what school system you like.

Early on, people chose housing because of redlining. I'm going there today. What is redlining? Redlining is a systemic thing that basically separates people and cultures from one from another. That's intentionality. So we have to be intentional in everything that we do, even in going deeper in our communities. What is intentional means is purpose is delivery is calculated. It's a conscious decision is planned out.

It is measured. See, we have to determine that my growth in Christ is purpose is calculated, is deliberate, is planned out. See, my kids don't ask us, are we going to church today?

That's a non-negotiable in a select household and their friends. If you stay at my house, guess what? Everybody going to church because this purpose is planned. It's intentional.

And it's calculated for us to go deeper in our community. We have to be purpose, intentional, planned and calculated we have to be intentional about the community that we're seeking out. We have to be intentional about the community that we want to develop So when we talk about community communities, this there's a trifecta that I want you to be to begin to understand is only about our church community, but it's about your own personal community, your community with God, what are you doing?

That's purpose, that's calculated, that is deliberate, and that is measured. How do you go deeper into a community for yourself, for your church, and with God Scripture says Irish Open, Ayers, we are not created to do life by ourselves.

We're not we're not created through life ourselves. And I believe this our programing and everything that we do, even for our church, for one church, everything is intentional. We intentionally sing in to different languages, hopefully three at one point. We intentionally make sure that our leadership team reflects the community that we're serving. Better yet, it reflects heaven right yeah.

We're intentional to make sure that our Elders board is cross-generational. We're attention to everything that we do within his church. Is measured, and not everybody doesn't like it. Everybody is like what we're doing. Then they may not even understand the reason why we do it. But more and more conversations that talk with people in our members and like, you know, Orion, when I first got here, you know, some things I like, but the certain things I didn't like.

But you know what? I believe this is where God has placed me to be because they want community. Not only that, they want community, but they know that God is doing something so not only be intentional, you have to be a bridge. You have to be a bridge in your community. What I mean by that you have to build bridges in that borders Well, Pastor, right.

You always see that. You're right, because this was what gets repeated, gets replicated the more that we repeat it, the more often times it would be reproduced. So we as a church we as individuals, as we begin to go deeper and our to our communities, as you go deeper into a God is called us to do that. We are called to build bridges and our borders.

We're called to build bridges that unite people together and that set of walls that create division. So as we go into the communities that we serve and we begin to feed and begin to connect with other people, other cross generation, cross cross-culturally, God is called us to be bridge makers and as believers, we are called to live among others, even if they don't look like us and worship like us.

Because Jesus, he stood in the gap for those who wouldn't stand. Jesus went places for many people that they wouldn't go. Jesus said things that many people that wouldn't say Jesus did, things that many people did not want to do.

A reminder here to tell you today that your community, our community, these your story, our community needs your testimony. Our community needs your hurts, your habits and your hang-Ups our community needs you to be present to go and deeper. And the community means this means that you have to be the bridge that bridges to people, to things together in such a way that we can reflect heaven so Jesus did that.

We see that all throughout Scripture. What about the story? The Samaritan woman, when Jesus went against racial boundaries, when Jesus crossed socioeconomic boundaries with Jesus cross cultural boundaries, when Jesus cross popular boundaries, when Jesus even cross the boundaries that he across it cost him. And there's a cross. When you do that, there's a cross for you being a bridge here today.

And there's one thing that I've always said you I continue to say that as a church, as a people, that we should forego our preference to mobilize the gospel that you don't you have to let go of what you prefer sometimes. So that way my brother or sister who may be from a different a different street corner or a different area of your neighborhood are different.

Just a different ethnicity is not always what I want. But if I'm able to let go some of my preferences so that my brother, sister and Christ gets what they need and gets what they want, then so be because greater is the gospel, the gospel that we serve, the gospel that we read, the gospel that we live by is so great, is greater than I feel, is that the gospel that that we have is greater than my fear.

The gospel that we serve is greater than my ten year plan.

Because the gospel has purpose. The gospel is the bridge that unites heaven to earth.

And what we have to begin to do is to live out the gospel. And as we celebrate this one year anniversary, you guys kind of saw our story where we brought two churches together to become one. And that's not the reason why we call it a one church the reason why we call it one church because the giant chapter 17 verse 21, and Jesus prayed his last prayer.

Think about it. If that was one of Jesus's last prayer with his disciples before he begin to walk the road of Calvary. Why is that so important?

And the yes. See my wife right Thank you.

The gospel is so important. Is the gospel is what unites us.

It's what unites our differences.

And there's a beauty in being different. And as big as I get to look out in the Saints world today, I see different nations and different cultures and different different age groups.

Come on and appreciate you. Oh, you threw me off All right, let's cool she still does it to me, right? Hey, man, the gospel the one matters the one child, that one family that one senior citizen, the 11 young adult. The one matters because building bridges, meaning that you're willing to expose yourself, that you're that you're willing to be vulnerable in a moment where many are now vulnerable, that you're willing to go across the street, that you're willing to go across town, that you're willing to learn a second language, that you're willing to sing in a second language, building community means building bridges, which means that you're gonna become vulnerable.

And the best place to do that is not only in the church, but it's in what we call community groups. It's in what we call C groups. Yes. Our means and our women's in our marriage groups, in our youth, in our in our kids programing. It's those opportunities where you get the pull away from the crowd, think about it, and often wonder why did Jesus withdrew himself?

The crowd from the crowd. We see it all through our scriptures when Jesus begin to withdraw himself from the crowd. Now, often times he would bring two or three disciples with them. And it's because of this because God was developing him in private while he's getting ready to do publicly so oftentimes that we have to do is to go deeper into our communities.

It's okay for a public setting like this, but what God desires do you withdraw yourself from the public setting and begin to come into a with a night program and with our women? Go into wins in our program and with our men so that we could begin to speak to you privately, so that we transformation can take place with you publicly.

The God wants to use your voice for someone else.

Exposing yourself simply means that you're not in control. And I believe this is a permissive will. There's a providential will. That God really wants for us, a permissive will. This that we decide what we do, that we can go left or right, we can go up or down, that we can make that we're free to do whatever decisions that we desire.

The guy that we desire to do but the providential will of God is this is the Jeremiah 29 11 that I know the thoughts and prayers that I have for you right The blessings that I have for you, the things that I want to give you. The door is out. I want to open up for you. But he doesn't forces on us uh, God is God, Jesus in the Holy Spirit.

The gentleman God allows us to make this is He allows us to make decisions in such a way that is its permissive, providential will. Why is it because God wants us to be the church God wants you and I as we go deeper into our communities, that we will be the church and take the church with us and as our worship team make their way a front.

Because I am running over already I believe this going deeper in our communities means that you have to be the hands and feet of Christ. The Church we get to live missionary, which has to be on fire for God in such a way that you're willing to go places and many people won't go that you willing to do things that many people desire to do.

Because you have been called to be the light of the world.

You are light in a word that's so dark to go and deeper. And our community needs us to be intentional. It needs us to be a bridge maker. Then it also needs us to be the church as you guys stand and I just cut my lesson off I'm reminded of this a reminder of a guy has called us to do and we can't do any of it without the Holy Spirit.

It says we get to begin to worship and close out. This last song, I believe is Amazing Grace Amazing Grace. How sweet that sound.

That saved a wretch like me.

As we go deeper into our communities, I just want to remind everybody today that you are that one you have that one voice, that one purpose, and that one calling my prayer for you today is we leave this service that you give us. We get to change the world in such a way that you will go after that one because your voice matters that you go to seek after the lost seat, be the influence in your communities, be the influence that your dinner take was at home.

You might be the only voice. You might be the only voice that people may see, that you might be the only Christ that people see.

It says, we celebrate our one year anniversary I'm curse. You see where it's going to take us this next year?

I'm excited to see what God is going to do next year. So my prayer is if you desire to go deeper in your community, you get a desire to go deeper with the Holy Spirit. You go desire to go deeper, richer prayer life. You can't do without God so if you don't know God today as your Lord and Savior, to free to come up before the altar of one of our pastors or our elders, we pray with you.

And we begin just to allow God to do the work that He has started in. Because He who started to do work was see through completion, they met the Father in heaven we thank you, God, for who you are. God, have you wait today God touched your hearts. Minds in our souls got pray God that this word falls in fertile ground.

God that it would be transformed from this day forward. I think we have a desire to live as one as you are, one with the Holy Spirit heavyweight. If we thank you for the grace and the mercy that you've extended to us today, this is your name that we pray. Amen.