WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.800 Today we are going to take a posture of peace by not partnering with fear to prove our point. 2 00:00:08.000 --> 00:00:12.720 Posture is a short audible fist bump to remind you God is with you in everything. 3 00:00:13.280 --> 00:00:17.520 Together we're going to be emboldened to take a daily posture of perfect peace. 4 00:00:21.840 --> 00:00:27.840 Okay I am reading a chunk of scripture today that will absolutely embolden you, 5 00:00:27.840 --> 00:00:35.120 and so just sit back for a second and soak this in. Romans chapter 6 verses 3 through 11. 6 00:00:36.320 --> 00:00:45.040 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into 7 00:00:45.040 --> 00:00:54.880 his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death in order that just as Christ 8 00:00:54.880 --> 00:01:03.440 was raised from the dead by the glory of the father, we too might walk in newness of life. 9 00:01:04.400 --> 00:01:13.680 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him 10 00:01:13.680 --> 00:01:23.600 in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that 11 00:01:23.600 --> 00:01:31.840 the body of sin might be brought to nothing so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin, 12 00:01:32.400 --> 00:01:38.880 for one who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, 13 00:01:39.520 --> 00:01:47.360 we believe that we also will live with him. We know that Christ being raised from the dead 14 00:01:47.920 --> 00:01:55.200 will never die again. Death no longer has dominion over him, for the death he died, 15 00:01:55.200 --> 00:02:04.960 he died to sin once for all, but the life he lives, he lives to God. So you must also consider 16 00:02:04.960 --> 00:02:11.840 yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. Now before I share the story I'm going to 17 00:02:11.840 --> 00:02:18.000 share, I want you to know this. I love the church. I am the church and when I talk about the church, 18 00:02:18.000 --> 00:02:23.760 the body of Christ, I do not separate myself from it. I always include myself in the collective. 19 00:02:23.760 --> 00:02:27.920 So if I point out something about the church that I think needs to be fixed, I'm not saying 20 00:02:28.480 --> 00:02:35.600 you the church needs to go fix this. I'm saying we the church need to fix this. I really think 21 00:02:35.600 --> 00:02:43.120 it's immature thinking to be a follower of Jesus and think of yourself above or beyond his body. 22 00:02:43.120 --> 00:02:49.360 So with that being said, I recently passed a church sign. You know those marquee signs 23 00:02:49.360 --> 00:02:54.080 outside of churches. Okay honestly the message on this church sign that I passed, it just broke my 24 00:02:54.080 --> 00:03:02.800 heart. First of all, personal opinion, those church signs do us no favors because about 99% 25 00:03:02.800 --> 00:03:09.120 of those marquee church signs are just an attempt to be cleverly convicting to a world that has very 26 00:03:09.120 --> 00:03:15.520 little, maybe zero context for what the message on the sign even means. Okay but this sign, it hit 27 00:03:15.520 --> 00:03:22.320 me harder than usual because of the kind of year the world is experiencing in 2020. The sign said 28 00:03:22.320 --> 00:03:31.280 this, if tomorrow never comes dot dot dot, are you ready? Now that kind of message has been a popular 29 00:03:31.280 --> 00:03:35.280 one among Christian churches for a long time. You know, are you ready for heaven? Are you 30 00:03:35.280 --> 00:03:42.240 prepared for eternity? Yada yada yada. I think why it hit me so hard, I'll say this, I think I saw it 31 00:03:42.240 --> 00:03:49.680 with fresh eyes because so many people right now are truly terrorized by the thought of tomorrow 32 00:03:49.680 --> 00:03:58.400 never coming. So many people are hopeless and afraid about the future. So why do we the church, 33 00:03:59.280 --> 00:04:05.280 Jesus followers, people belonging to the kingdom of God, why do we feel like we have to partner 34 00:04:05.280 --> 00:04:12.560 with fear to get our point across? I think there's a better way. You know who partners with fear to 35 00:04:12.560 --> 00:04:21.040 get people to buy into an idea? Sleazy marketers. Let's not be sleazy marketers. Jesus didn't come 36 00:04:21.040 --> 00:04:29.360 to exploit our fears. He came to cast them out. He put the perfect love that cast out all fears 37 00:04:29.360 --> 00:04:36.240 on display. And as his people, we are displays of his splendor. We are light bearers, not 38 00:04:36.240 --> 00:04:43.600 fear mongers. Now is eternity real? Yes. Is hell real? Yes. Should we talk about those things? 39 00:04:43.600 --> 00:04:50.400 Absolutely. But preferably in an actual dialogue where some relational bridge has been built, 40 00:04:50.400 --> 00:04:55.680 not on some sign on the side of the road that holds a question but offers no real answer. 41 00:04:56.640 --> 00:04:59.760 The message of the kingdom to a lost and broken 42 00:05:00.000 --> 00:05:05.480 world is not, hey remember, you're gonna die someday so you better get right with God before 43 00:05:05.480 --> 00:05:10.460 it's too late and tomorrow it might be too late, no no no. 44 00:05:10.460 --> 00:05:15.400 The message of the kingdom is come and die now. 45 00:05:15.400 --> 00:05:21.840 Die to sin, die to bondage, die to the emptiness and loneliness of living for yourself and 46 00:05:21.840 --> 00:05:26.440 come be alive to God. 47 00:05:26.440 --> 00:05:27.920 Don't you want to live a life? 48 00:05:27.920 --> 00:05:31.700 Don't you want to live an abundant, victorious life? 49 00:05:31.700 --> 00:05:37.120 We don't have to wait until heaven to do that. 50 00:05:37.120 --> 00:05:43.160 You and I, as people belonging to the kingdom of God, as Jesus followers, as the church, 51 00:05:43.160 --> 00:05:48.600 we have good news to share with this world and what we are inviting people into is so 52 00:05:48.600 --> 00:05:52.920 superior to what we are inviting people out of. 53 00:05:52.920 --> 00:05:59.160 If our speech, if our stories, if our social media posts are solely focused on the muck 54 00:05:59.160 --> 00:06:03.200 people are stuck in, if we are partnering with people's fears in order to try to get 55 00:06:03.200 --> 00:06:09.120 our point across, if we are so consumed by the messages and opinions of others that we 56 00:06:09.120 --> 00:06:14.420 don't even have room in our headspace or our hearts to tune in to all that God is doing 57 00:06:14.420 --> 00:06:18.920 right now, how are we any different than the world? 58 00:06:18.920 --> 00:06:21.840 You are so different from the world. 59 00:06:21.840 --> 00:06:22.840 I'm sure you know this. 60 00:06:22.840 --> 00:06:24.280 I'm sure you feel it. 61 00:06:24.280 --> 00:06:27.880 Maybe that's why you might be feeling some pressure or some angst or some tension right 62 00:06:27.880 --> 00:06:29.520 now. 63 00:06:29.520 --> 00:06:32.400 With all that's going on, it's obvious. 64 00:06:32.400 --> 00:06:33.400 We are different. 65 00:06:33.400 --> 00:06:34.400 It's in our kingdom DNA. 66 00:06:34.400 --> 00:06:40.880 It is in your kingdom DNA to deeply desire to be different and to change the world. 67 00:06:40.880 --> 00:06:44.580 But you won't change the world by acting like this world. 68 00:06:44.580 --> 00:06:50.160 You won't change the world by using the world's tactics and strategies to try to prove a point. 69 00:06:50.480 --> 00:06:55.680 We are all called to different spheres of influence in our culture and society. 70 00:06:55.680 --> 00:07:01.520 Some of you are called to business, others are education, government, media entertainment. 71 00:07:01.520 --> 00:07:04.760 All of us have been placed in different families and communities. 72 00:07:04.760 --> 00:07:10.920 We're all going to be having different, very specific conversations and social and screen 73 00:07:10.920 --> 00:07:12.360 engagements. 74 00:07:12.360 --> 00:07:18.760 There really is no one size fits all framework or roadmap to how to handle every interaction, 75 00:07:18.760 --> 00:07:23.000 but there is always wisdom from heaven. 76 00:07:23.000 --> 00:07:28.320 And the good news is you have a helper and it's not me. 77 00:07:28.320 --> 00:07:32.400 It's the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit is a genius. 78 00:07:32.400 --> 00:07:34.980 Lean into the Holy Spirit's wisdom today. 79 00:07:34.980 --> 00:07:37.480 He will lead you and guide you in all truth. 80 00:07:37.480 --> 00:07:41.440 Expect him to help you in conversations and in your interactions. 81 00:07:41.440 --> 00:07:45.440 Expect him to be there and to help you in the small engagements and the big cultural 82 00:07:45.440 --> 00:07:47.840 conversations that are going on right now. 83 00:07:47.840 --> 00:07:52.520 Let him guide your thoughts, your words, your feelings, and your actions. 84 00:07:52.520 --> 00:07:54.240 He knows what to do. 85 00:07:54.240 --> 00:07:55.720 He knows what to say. 86 00:07:55.720 --> 00:08:01.120 And when we partner with the Holy Spirit, not fear, not worldly tactics, when we partner 87 00:08:01.120 --> 00:08:08.760 with the Holy Spirit, we start living abundantly and we put on display an abundant and a victorious 88 00:08:08.760 --> 00:08:09.760 life. 89 00:08:09.760 --> 00:08:15.080 And when you partner with the Holy Spirit, a life under the guidance of the Holy Spirit 90 00:08:15.080 --> 00:08:21.560 will be proof enough to others of the kingdom of God. 91 00:08:21.560 --> 00:08:26.160 The promise of perfect peace is found in Isaiah 26, 3. 92 00:08:26.160 --> 00:08:35.039 In Hebrew, it is shalom, shalom, meaning complete wholeness, nothing missing, nothing broken. 93 00:08:35.039 --> 00:08:39.720 This is who you are in Jesus because of Jesus. 94 00:08:39.720 --> 00:08:43.679 You are a living testimony of Jesus's ultimate win. 95 00:08:43.679 --> 00:08:49.000 With every step you take today, you're putting Jesus's victory on display and Satan's 96 00:08:49.000 --> 00:08:50.240 defeat on replay.