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As I’ve shared in recent
episodes, I’m doing something

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very different.
Instead of bringing in guests,

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I’m sharing sermons that I’ve
had the privilege to give to my

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spiritual family at Easton
Fellowship.

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And today’s sermon actually
closed out our Do the Bible

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sermon series.
The last episode was one of the

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early sermons in that series
where we explored what it means

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to not just be the church, but
be the church for all the

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believers.
And this sermon is entitled If

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Then, Now.
As people, we typically seek

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clear structures and guaranteed
outcomes for God’s assignments,

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like an if then formula.
If we do this, then God will do

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that, which leads to
disappointment if our metrics

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for success aren’t achieved.
Doing the Bible is not about

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fixing this fading world or
securing desired results.

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Our true motivation must be the
glory of God.

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We are incapable of doing this
alone, so we must rely on the

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Spirit to move, choosing to walk
forward together, knowing that

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having the privilege to do the
Bible is reward enough.

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As people, it is so common for
us to lean heavily into these if

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then statements.
But what if?

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What if our if then statements
became more about God than about

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us?
You’re listening to episode 206

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of the Where Did You See God
podcast.

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We’re starting to wrap up this
Do the Bible sermon series where

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we have explored how to live out
the call to be the church using

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passages like Acts 242 through
47.

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We engaged teaching from Pastor
Nathan, Derek, and Emily on

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fellowship.
Abigail and Olson shared about

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worship and Sharika explored
testimonies, and Pastor Nathan

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preached on sharing resources
and Sabbath rest.

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We practice breaking bread and
praying together, and many of us

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did so beyond large, gathering
in homes around the community.

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We are trying to do the Bible,
but why are we doing this?

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What do we expect to happen?
Last week at our mid size

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gathering, I was struck by how
we can understand an assignment

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from God.
Typically, our understanding of

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an assignment is centered around
structure and outcomes.

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For example, a school assignment
has clear instructions, a set

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timeline, and defined
expectations for the end

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product.
We like this because we know

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what to do and feel like we have
significant control over the

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results.
When God gives us an assignment,

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we tend to understand it through
this framework.

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Meanwhile, Scripture is filled
with assignments from God that

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seemed profoundly unstructured
and whose outcomes appeared

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unclear or even foolish.
Hebrews 1139 is blunt.

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These were all commended for
their faith, yet none of them

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received what had been promised.
What if these assignments from

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God we have been exploring to do
the Bible, be the church lack

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the structure and outcomes we so
desire?

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What if we are forcing structure
and outcomes to maintain comfort

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and control?
What if we are rejecting God’s

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structures and outcomes because
it appears unclear, foolish, or

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too costly?
And what if we do everything

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right and yet seem to not
receive what was promised?

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So before we go any further,
let’s take a moment to seek the

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Spirit on these questions.
Holy Spirit, we invite you to

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move right now, in our minds,
individually and collectively,

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on this topic.
Amen.

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Nearly 16 years ago, I entered
an animal clinic, ready to see

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if the young cat I found after
hefty online searching would

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work as a surprise gift to
Becca, who longed to add a cat

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to our family.
Waiting for me on the vet table

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with wide eyes was a thin orange
tabby.

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I barely approached the table
when she reached up with her

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front paws toward my shoulder.
And that was it.

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I was bringing her home.
The timing was tricky, as I had

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to get to work and Becca would
get off hours before me.

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So I put the young cat in our
guest room and texted an excuse

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for Becca not to enter.
I was surprised to get a frantic

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call from her that afternoon.
Paul, I’m hearing a strange

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sound.
I think it’s outside.

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It sounds like a weird baby.
My mom sent me an e-mail about

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people who play a baby sound
outside your door and then

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kidnap you when you open it.
I don’t know what to do.

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So it’s a real thing.
So I tried to reassure her, and

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when it was clear that was not
happening, I tossed out my

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plans, told her to go to the
guest room and listen to the

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giddy squeals as our life with
Chloe officially started.

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Chloe was a core part of our
family for the next.

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I’m about to cry.
Chloe was a core part of our

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family for the next 16 years.
She would nap with Becca, talk

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with Bella, pray with the boy,
play with the boys, and ride on

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my shoulder every chance she
got.

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And then on November 14th, a
door was left open.

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She got curious, and that was
it.

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Now I was flooded with
instructions on what a good pet

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owner is supposed to do in that
situation, the chief of which is

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to walk around the neighborhood
extensively.

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That first week, I walked the
blocks and alleys three to five

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times a day, one to two miles a
walk, shifting the timing and

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routes based on prayers and
leads and instinct.

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I walked over 30 miles that
week, and every one of those

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walks had one thing in common.
I never found Chloe.

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Now here’s the reality that
weighed on me each time I set

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out.
We had no idea if she was near

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or far, outdoors or taken in,
safe or scared, alive or dead.

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Many people told us she was so
old that she likely went off to

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die in solitude.
Many others told us no, she’s

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likely alive and could run solo
for weeks, even months, before

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returning, and that she was
probably in survival mode and

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became invisible.
For those who have heard of

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Schrodinger’s cat, that thought
experience, merriment is more

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real to me than ever before.
I exist in a reality in which

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Chloe is simultaneously alive
and dead, and I’ve no solid

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ground on which to stand.
There’s been no clarity on where

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to walk, or if walking will ever
lead us to even a sighting.

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I’ve had to wrestle with this
question.

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If I never found Chloe on what’s
been now probably 60 miles of

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walking, if she may be
invisible, not even in the

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neighborhood, we’re no longer
alive.

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What is the point of walking?
Those who have had a beloved pet

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immediately know that if the
pets lost, you are going to

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search.
No matter how unclear the path

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or impossible the odds.
The most fruitless search is not

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wasted because what brings those
searches value is not that the

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pet is found, but that you were
faithful to walk or to get.

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More to the point, I walk not
because it guarantees an

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outcome, it doesn’t, but because
of love.

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Love for our sweet cat and love
for my family who miss her

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dearly.
Love drives my steps, leading me

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to walk further and more often
than I would otherwise in places

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I normally don’t step.
Even when I’m physically,

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mentally, emotionally, and
spiritually fatigued.

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Love equips and guides me for
the assignment to search for

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Chloe.
Do I hope to find her each time

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I set out?
Absolutely.

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Am I heartbroken each time I
come home with an empty

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shoulder?
Deeply do I set out again, even

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though every walk before seemed
unclear and fruitless.

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Yep, I know the logic, I know
the odds, I know the mixed

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messages.
And I also know I can still put

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on a coat and walk the alleys
because love for Chloe and my

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family invites me to step
forward sometimes.

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As I walked, I thought of this
spiritual family, how we for

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nearly 20 years have wanted to
do the Bible and be the church,

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how we’ve tried to understand
the structure and outcomes of

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God’s assignments, and how,
despite decades of trying to

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live out Acts, two things have
often been unclear and

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unfruitful, confusing and
painful.

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Do we hope for full life for our
community?

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Absolutely.
Are we heartbroken when they’re

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still suffering deeply?
Do we set out again, even though

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ministry can at times seem
unclear and fruitless?

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Yep, we know the logic, we know
the odds of miracles, we hear

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the mixed messages, and we also
know we can choose to keep

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walking because love for God and
others invites us to step

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forward.
Yet, just like Chloe, never

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appearing can make searching
feel futile.

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There may be some of us who
wonder if doing the Bible really

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makes a difference when the
results frequently fail to meet

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our expectations.
In school you learn about if

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then statements.
It’s a basic formula that says

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if this happens, then that will
happen.

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For example, if I talk into a
microphone then my voice will be

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louder.
Or if someone says something

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theologically profound, then Don
will yell come on and pump his

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fist.
Deep down we love the comfort

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and control of this formula.
How might we be applying it to

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the sermon series?
Let’s look again at Acts 242

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through 47.
Stand as you are able for the

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reading of God’s Word.
They devoted themselves to the

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apostles teaching and to
fellowship, to the breaking of

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bread and to prayer.
Everyone was filled with all at

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the many wonders and signs
performed by the apostles.

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All the believers were together
and had everything in common.

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They sold property and
possessions to give to anyone

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who had need.
Every day they continued to meet

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together in the temple courts.
They broke bread in their homes

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and ate together with glad and
sincere hearts, praising God and

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enjoying the favor of all the
people.

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And the Lord added to their
number daily.

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Those who are being saved,
thanks be to God, you may be

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seated.
So how do we apply this if then

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formula to this invitation to be
the church?

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Many churches I’ve known have
jumped to verse 47 as an obvious

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answer.
If we do these things, then the

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Lord will add to our number
daily.

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This has always been a big one
for churches.

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Empty seats are bad and multiple
services and buildings are good,

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right?
That verse also seems to apply.

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If we do these things, then we
will enjoy the favor of all the

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people.
In a time of deep disunity.

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This sounds fantastic.
There’s so much we can imply

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from this passage.
If we do these things, then all

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needs will be met, everyone will
be filled with joy, and we will

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make a true impact on the world.
If then now God absolutely can

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do these things.
However, this passage is about

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the early Acts church, not a
prescriptive promise.

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If we enter 2026 doing the Bible
and being the church, we might

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find this building filled, every
need met, and a spiritual family

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exuding joy.
But what if that doesn’t happen?

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What if people leave?
What if our needs increase?

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And what if it’s a season of a
lament?

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Does that mean God lied?
Does that mean we failed?

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If our willingness to do the
Bible and be the church is based

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on the results, if our drive is
fueled by forward movement and

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success determined by clear
metrics, we, like so many before

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us, we’ll hit a wall.
Here’s our dilemma.

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We exist in physical bodies, in
a physical world, impacted daily

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by cause and effect and
motivated by robust self

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preservation.
We avoid what seems bad and

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pursue what seems good.
God’s ways are not our ways.

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His thoughts are not our
thoughts.

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Reality is God created.
It is immeasurably more than we

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understand.
This is why Jesus was able to

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take on a physical body and come
into our physical world.

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Not for the structure and
outcomes that bind us, but

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something greater.
He knew all these things that we

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protect and build will fade.
As he says in Matthew 2435.

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Heaven and earth will pass away,
but my words will never pass

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away.
Scripture goes on, for this

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world in its present form is
passing away.

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First Corinthians 731.
The world and its desires pass

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away, but whoever does the will
of God lives forever first.

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John 217 and then Isaiah 46
through 8 doesn’t mince words.

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All people are like grass, and
all their faithfulness is like

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the flowers of the field.
The grass Withers and the

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flowers fall because the breath
of the Lord blows on them.

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Surely the people are grass.
The grass Withers and the

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flowers fall, but the Word of
God endures forever.

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Counter to what our logic says,
doing the Bible and being the

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church are not about fixing this
world.

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This world will fade.
Our faithfulness is like falling

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00:14:30,920 –> 00:14:34,040
flowers.
If this was only about needs

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00:14:34,040 –> 00:14:37,000
being met and people being
happy, Jesus would have healed

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00:14:37,000 –> 00:14:39,840
every single purpose and with a
snap of his finger and not let

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himself be led to a fate that
caused deep sorrow.

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When Jesus took the form of a
helpless baby, He was doing so

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for something far greater than
fixing this fading world.

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Jesus being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with

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God something to be used to His
own advantage.

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Rather, He made himself nothing.
By taking the very nature of a

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servant being made in human
likeness, and being found into

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the appearance as a man, He
humbled himself by becoming

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obedient to death.
Even death went a cross.

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Therefore God exalted him to the
highest place, and gave him the

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name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every

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knee should bow in heaven, and
on earth, and under the earth,

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and every tongue acknowledged
that Jesus Christ is Lord.

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To the glory of God the Father.
Philippians 2, six through 11 To

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00:15:40,640 –> 00:15:45,720
the glory of God the Father.
If we want to know why we are

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00:15:45,720 –> 00:15:49,520
invited to do the Bible and be
the church, it is not for large

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00:15:49,520 –> 00:15:51,320
numbers.
It’s not for great ministries

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00:15:51,520 –> 00:15:56,080
and better quality of life.
It is for God’s glory. 1st

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Corinthians 1031 names it
plainly.

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So whether you eat or drink or
whatever you do, do it all for

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the glory of God.
Whatever we do, whether teaching

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00:16:08,360 –> 00:16:11,680
or fellowship, breaking a bread
or prayer signs or sharing

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00:16:11,680 –> 00:16:16,280
resources, worship or praise,
whatever we do, it is meant to

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00:16:16,280 –> 00:16:22,720
be all for the glory of God.
That is our IF, then if we do

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00:16:22,720 –> 00:16:25,760
the Bible, then God will be
glorified.

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00:16:28,360 –> 00:16:33,880
All else is bonus.
If every person in the East End

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00:16:33,880 –> 00:16:37,120
becomes a disciple of Jesus and
lives in the joy and justice of

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00:16:37,120 –> 00:16:41,960
God’s Kingdom, fantastic.
If not one of us has an unmet

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00:16:41,960 –> 00:16:47,360
need, amazing.
But if we do the Bible and be

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00:16:47,360 –> 00:16:52,160
the church and come to ruin.
Yet God is glorified.

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00:16:53,760 –> 00:16:57,880
Praise be to God.
Many thought Jesus’s earthly

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ministry came to ruin as they
watched him be humiliated,

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00:17:00,680 –> 00:17:03,360
tortured and killed.
Many thought the same of the

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00:17:03,360 –> 00:17:07,280
apostles as they were martyred.
In fact, even this thriving

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church we’ve explored in Acts 2
seemed to come to ruin, torn

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00:17:11,119 –> 00:17:13,319
apart and driven throughout the
known world due to brutal

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00:17:13,319 –> 00:17:18,040
persecution.
Despite the evidence, those

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00:17:18,040 –> 00:17:22,400
stories did not end in ruin, but
God’s glory and full life.

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Our challenge is to get to the
place where we hold to nothing

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00:17:28,119 –> 00:17:33,200
but Him, giving up even the good
things we hope He will do.

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As Jesus puts it, those of you
who do not give up everything

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you have cannot be my disciples.
Luke 1428.

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He said this to a group of
people who look like they had

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00:17:51,280 –> 00:17:56,680
given up everything homes, land,
families, livelihoods, and

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00:17:56,680 –> 00:17:59,600
followed him on a path that
seemed wildly unstructured and

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00:17:59,600 –> 00:18:03,080
unclear outcomes.
Why would Jesus say this to

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00:18:03,080 –> 00:18:08,360
followers who are living it?
What He knew that they did not

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00:18:08,440 –> 00:18:11,760
is what He said to His closest
friends who could not even stay

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00:18:11,760 –> 00:18:14,480
awake as He experienced His
deepest lament and Gethsemane

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00:18:14,480 –> 00:18:19,600
the night of His arrest.
The Spirit is willing, but the

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00:18:19,600 –> 00:18:23,040
flesh is weak.
Matthew 2641.

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This was not about them being
sleepy and their desire to serve

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00:18:27,760 –> 00:18:29,960
God and follow Jesus.
They had their own.

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00:18:29,960 –> 00:18:35,640
IF then, if we serve God, then
we will be safe and prosper.

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00:18:36,360 –> 00:18:40,480
If we follow Jesus, then we will
see Israel restored.

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00:18:41,120 –> 00:18:44,920
If we stay close to Jesus, then
we will sit in power with Him.

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00:18:46,320 –> 00:18:50,440
They walked with Jesus for
years, doing everything he told

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00:18:50,440 –> 00:18:53,920
them to.
Then in the garden, those men

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00:18:53,920 –> 00:18:56,040
saw their expectations
crumbling.

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00:18:56,040 –> 00:19:00,840
As threats increased, Jesus
resigned himself to death and

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00:19:00,840 –> 00:19:02,840
the dream of Israel became more
lost than ever.

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00:19:03,840 –> 00:19:06,240
Their fatigue was more than
physical, it was emotional and

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00:19:06,240 –> 00:19:10,280
spiritual, and were it not for
the spirit at work within them,

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00:19:11,040 –> 00:19:14,440
they, like so many before them,
would have stopped walking.

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00:19:17,120 –> 00:19:22,080
Our spirits may be fully
willing, but our flesh will

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00:19:22,080 –> 00:19:25,800
always be weak.
If we approach this do the Bible

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00:19:25,800 –> 00:19:29,200
series as mere humans, we might
become a nice group of people

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00:19:29,200 –> 00:19:33,040
that does nice things in so far
as we have the resources and

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00:19:33,040 –> 00:19:35,200
energy and aren’t drawn away by
other opportunities.

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00:19:37,360 –> 00:19:42,160
We can do biblical things or we
can do the Bible.

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00:19:43,080 –> 00:19:46,720
We can be a good church
organization or we can be the

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00:19:46,720 –> 00:19:51,200
church.
We can’t do those on our own,

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00:19:51,960 –> 00:19:56,240
and that is good news.
As a past sermon series taught

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00:19:56,240 –> 00:19:57,800
us.
We were not meant to be on our

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00:19:57,800 –> 00:19:59,880
own, but to invite the Spirit to
move.

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00:20:01,840 –> 00:20:04,640
The Acts church lived these
practices out, not because they

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00:20:04,640 –> 00:20:07,800
were spectacular, but because
Jesus instructed them to seek

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00:20:07,800 –> 00:20:10,880
the Spirit and it was through
the Spirit that the spectacular

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00:20:10,920 –> 00:20:14,000
happened.
That Spirit Helper and Advocate

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00:20:14,000 –> 00:20:19,040
is with us today.
So why are we trying to do the

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00:20:19,040 –> 00:20:22,440
Bible?
What are we expecting to happen

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00:20:22,440 –> 00:20:25,160
if we as a church faithfully
walk toward God?

311
00:20:26,280 –> 00:20:29,120
If we embody these spiritual
practices perfectly?

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00:20:29,880 –> 00:20:31,840
Would we feel God owed us
results?

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00:20:33,360 –> 00:20:36,720
If so, our why?
Maybe more about ourselves than

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00:20:36,720 –> 00:20:40,440
Him.
If God is who we say He is, an

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00:20:40,440 –> 00:20:43,840
almighty, perfect, powerful
Creator, then He owes us

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00:20:43,840 –> 00:20:47,720
nothing.
Jesus captured this dynamic in

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00:20:47,720 –> 00:20:51,720
Luke 1710.
So you also, when you have done

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00:20:51,720 –> 00:20:54,840
everything you were told to do,
should say we are unworthy

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00:20:54,840 –> 00:20:56,640
servants, we have only done our
duty.

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00:20:58,120 –> 00:21:01,400
In this passage, the apostles
the apostles asked to increase

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00:21:01,400 –> 00:21:05,000
their faith, and Jesus frames a
promise of the power of mustard

322
00:21:05,000 –> 00:21:07,680
seed faith with a right
understanding of what it means

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00:21:07,680 –> 00:21:12,080
to serve God.
As those committed to serving

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00:21:12,080 –> 00:21:14,680
God, we should confront our
tendency to expect special

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00:21:14,680 –> 00:21:19,920
treatment, as realistically we
are but sinners struggling to

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00:21:19,920 –> 00:21:22,440
live out even the simplest of
God’s instructions.

327
00:21:23,440 –> 00:21:27,200
Having the privilege to do the
Bible is itself more reward than

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00:21:27,200 –> 00:21:37,000
we deserve now.
Now God could leave it at that.

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00:21:37,960 –> 00:21:41,720
Our loving God does not.
Instead, Jesus says this in John

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00:21:41,720 –> 00:21:45,640
1515 through 17.
I no longer call you servants

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00:21:46,600 –> 00:21:49,080
because a servant does not know
his master’s business.

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00:21:49,240 –> 00:21:52,080
Instead, I have called you
friends.

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00:21:52,520 –> 00:21:55,160
For everything that I learned
from my father, I have made

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00:21:55,160 –> 00:22:00,960
known to you.
You did not choose me, but I

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00:22:01,000 –> 00:22:06,080
chose you and appointed you so
that you might go and bear

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00:22:06,080 –> 00:22:09,680
fruit, fruit that will last, and
so that whatever you ask in my

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00:22:09,680 –> 00:22:12,760
name, the Father will give you.
This is my command.

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00:22:13,480 –> 00:22:17,600
Love each other, Church.
We didn’t choose to be the

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00:22:17,600 –> 00:22:22,080
church, Jesus chose us.
There are many things the Bible

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00:22:22,080 –> 00:22:24,760
invites us to do, but in
appointing us, this is Jesus’s

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00:22:24,760 –> 00:22:27,240
command.
Love each other.

342
00:22:29,040 –> 00:22:33,880
Not love as we understand it,
but biblical, sacrificial, agape

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00:22:33,880 –> 00:22:37,240
love.
Why are we doing the Bible?

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00:22:37,960 –> 00:22:41,520
To love God and love others.
What can we expect as a result?

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00:22:41,760 –> 00:22:44,400
Love to flow in, through, and
around us.

346
00:22:45,200 –> 00:22:49,400
That love can drive our steps,
leading us to walk farther and

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00:22:49,400 –> 00:22:52,480
longer than we could otherwise
in places we normally don’t

348
00:22:52,480 –> 00:22:54,480
step.
Even when we are physically,

349
00:22:54,480 –> 00:22:57,880
mentally, emotionally, and
spiritually fatigued, Love

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00:22:57,880 –> 00:23:00,520
equips and guides us for the
assignment to be His image

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00:23:00,520 –> 00:23:03,840
bearers and ambassadors in a
world longing for His Creator,

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00:23:03,840 –> 00:23:11,200
yet unaware.
Let us not do biblical things,

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00:23:11,200 –> 00:23:15,240
but do the Bible.
Let us not be a good church

354
00:23:15,240 –> 00:23:19,440
organization, but be the church.
Let us own that we cannot do

355
00:23:19,440 –> 00:23:22,720
either, but God can do
immeasurably more than we ask or

356
00:23:22,720 –> 00:23:24,880
imagine because of the power at
work within us.

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00:23:25,960 –> 00:23:29,880
And when we have implemented all
these spiritual practices and

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00:23:29,880 –> 00:23:33,800
brokenness remains, if we give
sacrificially of ourselves and

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00:23:33,800 –> 00:23:38,240
seem to come to ruin if we hold
to hope, yet not one of the

360
00:23:38,240 –> 00:23:42,960
promises seems fulfilled, Let us
rejoice that God is glorified,

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00:23:43,440 –> 00:23:47,240
and that the brokenness,
heartache, and pain will all

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00:23:47,240 –> 00:23:51,560
fade away as Revelation 21
promises about what’s to come.

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00:23:52,480 –> 00:23:56,840
And I heard a loud voice from
the throne saying, Look, God’s

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00:23:56,840 –> 00:24:00,960
dwelling place is now among the
people, and he will dwell with

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00:24:00,960 –> 00:24:04,760
them.
They will be his people, and God

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00:24:04,760 –> 00:24:07,680
Himself will be with them and be
their God.

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He will wipe every tear from
their eyes.

368
00:24:11,960 –> 00:24:16,560
There will be no more death or
mourning or crying or pain, for

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00:24:16,560 –> 00:24:19,800
the old order of things has
passed away.

370
00:24:21,400 –> 00:24:24,600
He who is seated on the throne
said, I am making everything

371
00:24:24,600 –> 00:24:27,640
new.
Then he said, write this down,

372
00:24:28,080 –> 00:24:34,120
for these words are trustworthy
and true church.

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00:24:35,560 –> 00:24:38,520
We have the privilege of being
invited to do the Bible for

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00:24:38,520 –> 00:24:41,360
something greater than
ourselves, greater than being an

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00:24:41,360 –> 00:24:44,000
effective church, greater than
this fading world.

376
00:24:45,120 –> 00:24:49,080
Jesus came into this world as a
child to reveal this invitation,

377
00:24:49,520 –> 00:24:53,240
lived in a physical body to show
us how to walk, and endured

378
00:24:53,240 –> 00:24:55,800
human brokenness to make it
clear we need the Spirit to do

379
00:24:55,800 –> 00:25:00,160
any of it.
The path ahead could seem

380
00:25:00,160 –> 00:25:06,080
unclear and unfruitful, yet
today we can choose to walk with

381
00:25:06,080 –> 00:25:10,240
him together.
I want to invite the band back

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00:25:10,240 –> 00:25:14,880
up and I invite us to remain in
a posture of seeking the Spirit.

383
00:25:16,480 –> 00:25:18,800
The name of this sermon series
is a blunt command.

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00:25:18,880 –> 00:25:22,600
Do the Bible, which means our
response to the series is either

385
00:25:22,600 –> 00:25:27,360
yes or no.
If the answer is yes, let’s

386
00:25:27,360 –> 00:25:33,960
invite the Spirit now, today to
reveal what our why is what we

387
00:25:33,960 –> 00:25:38,360
expect to happen.
If there are things you feel led

388
00:25:38,360 –> 00:25:42,800
to confess or fears you feel
called to confront, get prayer

389
00:25:42,800 –> 00:25:47,000
along the walls or at the stage.
If you sense the Spirit inviting

390
00:25:47,000 –> 00:25:51,200
you to encourage someone or
speak a word to the body, do it.

391
00:25:52,880 –> 00:25:57,000
This sermon is not one for
individuals, but for this whole

392
00:25:57,000 –> 00:26:02,440
spiritual family.
We together are invited to do

393
00:26:02,440 –> 00:26:05,920
the Bible and be the church, and
just as we cannot do it without

394
00:26:05,920 –> 00:26:07,720
the Spirit, we cannot do it
without each other.

395
00:26:09,400 –> 00:26:10,720
So let’s invite the Spirit to
move.

396
00:26:15,160 –> 00:26:18,280
Father God again, we thank you
that you are God and you are

397
00:26:18,280 –> 00:26:23,080
good, and we are not God.
We are often not good, and you

398
00:26:23,080 –> 00:26:26,080
love us so deeply and are so
patient with us.

399
00:26:26,360 –> 00:26:29,720
And so we are before you now.
We have spent the last several

400
00:26:29,720 –> 00:26:33,720
months desiring to know what it
means to do the Bible and to be

401
00:26:33,720 –> 00:26:37,120
the church.
Holy Spirit, we invite you to

402
00:26:37,120 –> 00:26:40,000
move within our minds,
individually and collectively,

403
00:26:40,680 –> 00:26:43,360
to understand what it is we are
expecting, what it is we are

404
00:26:43,360 –> 00:26:45,880
holding to.
Holy Spirit, If you need to

405
00:26:45,880 –> 00:26:49,320
convict us or encourage us,
challenge us or uplift us,

406
00:26:49,320 –> 00:26:51,880
whatever it is you need to do in
this space, we want to be open

407
00:26:51,880 –> 00:26:53,760
to it.
So, Holy Spirit, move.

408
00:26:55,000 –> 00:26:59,280
This time is yours, not ours.
We give it up and we invite you

409
00:26:59,280 –> 00:27:01,240
again.
Holy Spirit, move.

410
00:27:02,400 –> 00:27:02,760
Amen.