June 10, 2018 Communion Thoughts

Welcome visitors   We are now getting ready for communion.  A time when we remember Jesus’ body that was broken or sacrificed on the cross for us.  We remember his blood that was shed and. We take communion as a way to remember this sacrifice and his resurrection which is the foundation of our faith.   We also confess our sins and remember our forgiveness.

The song we just sang is title, “No longer Slaves.”  Of what fear are we no longer slaves? The first verse states “you unravel me with a melody.  You surround me with a song of deliverance from my enemies.” I think about David. The David who beat Goliath with a slingshot.  David, still battled fear. In Psalm 25:20-22 he states. “Guard my life and rescue me. Do not let me be put to shame for I take refuge in you.  My hope Lord is in you.” David battled the same day to day fears we battle. He had spiritual highs and lows. Times when he was super confident and times when he was very afraid.  I think of the playground as a kid...bullies that may have been around, but when my Dad would be near, all of my fear would be gone.

The song continues:  “In my mother’s wound, you have chosen me.  Love has called my name. I’ve been born again, into a family. Your blood blows through my veins.”  1John 4:7-8 God is Love- The kind of love that seeks the best for us.

John 4:18 States that perfect love casts out fear.  That there is no fear in love. In verse 17, he states, “This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgement; In this world we are like Jesus.”

Two fears.  Fear of judgment and fear of day to day life events.    

“We are surrounded by the arms of our father and surrounded by songs of deliverance.  We’ve been liberated from our bondage. You split the sea so I could walk right through it.  You drowned by fears in perfect love. You rescued me! We are no longer a slave to fear. We are children of God.

Helpful videos from Dr. Newman-Toker

https://novel.utah.edu/Newman-Toker/collection.php

Imitation or Innovation: What to do When There is Nothing Else to Do

Introduction:

Good Morning!  For those of you who do not know me, my name is Andy Beltz and I am a member here at LCC.  If you are visiting, we are thrilled to have you here.  We are excited about what is happening here.  Rick asked me about six months ago if I would like to speak and I appreciate the opportunity to share one of the most important lessons I have learned about being a Christian.  If you are visiting, Rick will be back and he is awesome. I appreciate him even more now that I have prepared this sermon.  I can’t understand how he brings it the way he does every single week!  While I will do my best this morning, I know imitating him will be impossible,  Imitation is part of what I will be talking about.   Please find your handouts, grab a pen/follow along on the powerpoint.  

Imitation actually became a learned habit for me at a very young age.  I imitated so many people!  At age four I imitated Superman by putting on my superman cape and climbing a tree and trying to fly.  I remember my bus driver having a tape deck in his bus.  He would play the Footloose soundtrack and I loved that song and Let’s Hear it for the Boy.  I remember thinking, “I am going to have a tape player in every car I own when I am older!”   My neighbor would imitate the Iron Sheik on me! Because I imitated shows like that, my Mom would get me bracelets like this: WWJD.  Of course I wanted to imitate Jesus!  There was Karate Kid (save the princess/the crane), Who didn’t want to be Like Mike!  Nolan Ryan, and then Orel Hershiser (one finger curve Breakaway magazine).  One of my big goals as a teenager was to play Division I baseball.  I walked on in the fall of my Freshman year at Bowling Green State University, but was given a speech that put things into perspective.  The head coach explained to me that my situation was basically like Rudy.  I admired Rudy, but with the primary goal to be a physical therapist, I did not care to imitate Rudy.

That was a turning point.  As an 18 year old boy, I could handle disappointment.  However,  school was crazy hard.  Competition to get into PT school was high.  They were admitting 20 out of 200 applicants.  I got a C on my first biology test which was basically unacceptable.   But after making the sacrifice to quit baseball and focus on school, I expected things to get better.  Unfortunately, it was within a very short time that I received a C on an English paper and that took me to my breaking point.  I couldn’t take it anymore.  So, I did what any other 18 year old. boy in the mid 90s at BGSU would have done.  I went back to my dorm room and watched Tommy Boy!  Usually the scene at the beginning where he looks for his grade on the wall  with all of his classmates to see if he is going to graduate, you know, “...D+  I’m going to graduate.  It’s not a grade they like to give out I will tell you that,”  would make me feel better.  But this time, it didn’t help.  I felt so much like a failure.  I felt like there was nothing else I could do.   I fell to the ground crying pounding my fists to the floor.  That is when my straight A roommate walked in.  I will never forget the look on his face.  Talk about awkward!  

You see, when we feel lost, trapped, or that we cannot win, it is then that handling the normal temptations of life can become even more tough.  What do we do when there is nothing else we can do?  We all have appetites that lead to feelings that lead to thoughts that lead to behaviors that make habits.  These appetites, when fed, will release dopamine that makes you feel good.  The more you feed them, the bigger they get. We have appetites for love, meaning, success, money, acceptance.  We can become addicted to not just substances, but we can become addicted to gossip, worry, grumbling, doubt, envy, anger and self-criticism!   In other words, these behaviors become habits-  unconscious events that our bodies seem to do naturally!! 

Indeed, as John Ortberg recently stated, "when appetites go untrained, they become our gods."   For example, what do you tend to think when you are: bored, sad, disappointed, frustrated, scared, lacking confidence, feeling attacked?  We like habits!  Habits are efficient and easy.  Will power is not the best way to train our habits.  When you are 18, will power works great when you come home from a weekend retreat or a week of camp. However, that usually only lasts a few days.  How well does willpower work when you are given bad news?  How well does WWJD work when you are exhausted, feel lost, not sure how things will work out?

Here is the main point of this morning.  This is what I really need you all to know!     

I. Imitation doesn’t work because we cannot manufacture the character of Christ.

A.                  Asking WWJD isn’t bad in itself, but it doesn’t change appetites or feelings.

a.                   Can you relate?

B.                  Did you ever fall prey to the “as soon as myth?”

 .                     I remember being 10 and thinking, “as soon as I am baptized, all these less desired thoughts, feelings, and behaviors will go away.”  

a.                   Did you ever think all your old temptations, behaviors, and habits would all get washed down the drain of the baptismal and you would be a perfect Christian...you just needed to add water?  Perhaps just like instant mashed potatoes...just add water! 

C.                  When we become Christians, there is good news and bad news.  The good news is , our identity is renewed, but our mind is not renewed.  

 .                     So what do you do when there is nothing else you can do? (Liam said, “I go fishing.”)

a.                   Perhaps, you can relate with the Israelites- Cycle of sin?

b.                  Perhaps you never dreamed life would end up like this.  Thought life would be better.  You have tried hard, joined the group, joined the plan, had some highs and lows, but you feel like you are pretty much right where you left off.

c.                   Maybe you hoped you would have more money by now, a bigger house, a better marriage, a marriage period, didn’t get into school you hoped, never imagined you would be alone, didn’t think you would have to put up with a certain illness, or maybe you imagined being “a better Christian” by now.

d.                  I mean, instead of “like Mike” it looks like you are being given the chance to be “like Rudy” and that is not the future you have always hoped for?

e.                   If you are real honest, you are sad, disillusioned, frustrated, sometimes you may not know what to do.  You may even think of giving up.

f.                    What do you do when there is nothing else you can do?  

II.  (Why we need to know) Instead of imitating,  Jesus has a better way- to remain.- John 15:5 (3 translations)

A.                  Remain means abide, stay joined, stay close,        persevere, be faithful.

a.                   Jesus knew life would be different for us.  He knew we could not manufacture his character in ourselves.  

b.                  As we remain, Christ’s character is produced in us through Him.  

B.                  Remaining changes the way you think.  Remaining is not imitating.

 .                     What is the difference between remaining and imitating? Two slides.

a.                   Jesus says, “I know you keep losing to that appetite, but stay close.  I know you lost a loved one, but persevere, I know you think your dreams aren’t going to come true, but just hang on!  If you are faithful, if you know me, if you really stick with me through thick and thin, you will bear fruit.  If you don’t give up when things are hard, if you don’t lose focus on me when you are distracted, you will bear fruit.   In other words, just think about hanging on.  Think about persevering in me.  Don’t think about imitating me.  Think about staying close.  In the old testament it was about following commands. Back in the day, we wanted you to imitate.  Now we want you to keep it relational. 

C.                  Big question: Are you trying to be like Jesus (WWJD) or are you trying to associate with Jesus (remaining)  Are you an imitator or an associator?  I want to be clear, trying to imitate Jesus is ok as long as you do it for the purpose of association.

III. (What need to do)  Focus on growing your relationship with Jesus- on association not imitation.  

A.                  Repent and be baptized (Acts 2:38)

a.                  Repent= Change the way you think

i.Steven Covey subway story.

b.                  Right thinking over time with God’s help- Changed life

c.                   Be transformed by renewing your mind (Roman 12:1-2)

B.                  Clothe self with Christ (Romans 13:14) and have faith He can do immeasurably more than we could ever ask or imagine. (Ephesians 3:20)

C.                  Hold to His teaching (John 8:31)

D.                 Go and make disciples of all nations. (Matt 28:19) (Faith without deeds is dead)

E.                  Find right cocktail of spiritual disciplines (praying, memorizing, mantras- He can do immeasurably more, to know your love that surpasses knowledge, I can’t, but He can, open the eyes of my heart, with God all things are possible, etc, praise/worship, small group time, counseling, sermons/podcasts, serving, listening to inspirational music, memorization, etc.   

 .                     Use these tools to train spiritually.  Ask, are you trying or training?

a.                   Feelings lie.  Don’t wait until you feel like it.  Think the way you want to feel and eventually you will feel the way you think.

b.                  Check your daily routines.  May help to combine physical training.

 .Untrained appetites become our Gods.

F.                  We must become innovators instead of imitators.  

G.                  Jesus will manufacture His character through us.

 .                     He is the vine and we are the branch.  Jesus knew the branch did not produce fruit.  It was the vine that produced the fruit through the branch.  We can’t produce fruit apart from him. 

a.                   We cannot manufacture the character of Christ.  We must let Christ produce His character through us.  We can’t copy the vine.  Focus not on becoming, but on abiding.  Learn to stay close. 

b.                  Production of His character in us will be unconscious.

 .Share unconscious vs. conscious walking/balance.

IV. (Why we need to do it?) He will do greater things through his Holy Spirit (John 14:12)

A.                  Our church is a launchpad.  We are innovators for our changing world.

a.                   If our church were to cease to exist, would anyone other than us notice? (Faith without deeds is dead).

b.                  Community needs us

i.CNN, Washington Post, and USA Today

c.                   We get distracted (Zoo story)- Little boy was told to stay close, but got distracted and got lost.  

d.                  Imagine if we stay close! (pictures of dog owners)

B.                  We are the glove and He is the hand.

 .                     What if I could somehow put Michael Jordan on?  If I could clothe myself with Michael Jordan?  What if Michael Jordan could come live inside you and somehow transform you into him?  

a.                   Exchanged life is when we say, “less of me and more of you.  I can’t, but He can.”   Not by might, nor by power, but by your spirits (Zech 4:6).

b.                  Romans 13:4.  We clothe ourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ.

 .Instead of being jealous, I was happy for them

i.Instead of wanting the newest I actually gave more

ii.Instead of getting mad, I understood

iii.Instead of being anxious, I was at peace.

C.                  Imitation is something we do.  Innovation is something He does through us.

 .                     In summary, as long as the branch remains on the vine, the branch doesn’t have to think about producing fruit.  It just does.  Imitation is something we do.  Association allows Him to do immeasurably more than we could ever ask or imagine through us.  We can’t, but He can.  Instead of imitators, He makes us innovators.

a.                  Today, if you are kicking the tires of Christianity, we invite you to take the first step of association.  Perhaps you haven’t been sure whether or not you could do all the right things.  You are worried you will never be good enough to be a Christian.  Good news, it was never about you imitating anyone.  It is about you hanging with Jesus.  Staying close.  Knowing Him.  Then, don’t worry, he will produce His character inside you with time.

Open Our Eyes

February 2018 Communion Thoughts

Perspective changes everything.  Have you ever had an “aha moment?”  You know...an epiphany, an attitude adjustment, or an eye opening experience?

Liam, when he was four years old, attended a play put on by kids at the Alliance Firehouse Theater.  In the play, a young lady and young man, who had slowly been falling in love with one another came to that moment when the young lady asked, "have you ever kissed a girl before?"  Silence filled the theater. The young couple leaned in and Liam courageously yells (with all his might) "NO!!!" The auditorium abruptly filled with laughter. Also, a few Sundays ago.  After baptism, Tony said, “and all God’s people said?” Everybody said, “Amen” and Liam loudly asked, “and all dogs and people said?” With time, Liam’s perspective about girls and common phrases will change.

Some of my favorite stories in the bible include perspective change.  Balaam is trying to get his donkey to take him where God does not want him to go.  The donkey won’t budge. Balaam starts beating the donkey. God allows the donkey to speak and the donkey states, "What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?" 29Then Balaam said to the donkey, "Because you have made a mockery of me!” They proceed to have a brief discussion, but then the LORD opened Balaam's eyes, and he saw the angel of the LORD standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell facedown.”  The donkey was able to see something Balaam could not see. The donkey had a better perspective than Balaam.

Another favorite story includes Elisha and his servant.  They are both surrounded by the enemy on horses and chariots.  Elisha’s servant is terrified. Elisha, not fearful at all, wants his servant to see what Elisha sees.  So he prays, “O Lord, open his eyes that he may see. And the LORD opened the servant's eyes and he saw; and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.”

How do we find the right perspective?  Once we find it, how do we not forget it?  Communion allows us to remember Christ’s body and blood that was the greatest sacrifice for us.  His resurrection allows us to see and live differently. Imagine what life was like before Christ.  Imagine being an Israelite.

The old way emphasized, “don’t sin because God will punish you,” The new way states, “don’t sin because you love others and you love Jesus.”  The old way would say, live your life in a way that pleases God so that you can get to the promised land. The new way would say, live your life in a way that shows Christ’s love to others so that they can get to the promised land.  The old way, was about me. The new way is not about me.

Father, thank you for fresh perspectives.  Father, we confess, sometimes we don’t understand. Sometimes we sin because we don’t see the way we should.  Sometimes we struggle for perspective. Forgive us when we sin. We thank you for giving us Jesus. Jesus, we thank you for being a game changer.  Thank you for the new way. Thank you for opening our eyes. Help us know your love that surpasses knowledge.

Open Our Eyes!

Perspective changes everything.  Have you ever had an “aha moment?”  You know...an epiphany, an attitude adjustment, or an eye opening experience?

Liam, when he was four years old, attended a play put on by kids at the Alliance Firehouse
Theater.  In the play, a young lady and young man, who had slowly been falling in love with
one another came to that moment when the young lady asked, "have you ever kissed a girl
before?"  Silence filled the theater.  The young couple leaned in and Liam courageously yells
(with all his might) "NO!!!"  The auditorium abruptly filled with laughter.   Also, a few Sundays
ago.  After baptism, Tony said, “and all God’s people said?” Everybody said, “Amen” and Liam
loudly asked, “and all dogs and people said?”   With time, Liam’s perspective about girls and
common phrases will change.

Some of my favorite stories in the bible include perspective change.  Balaam is trying to get
his donkey to take him where God does not want him to go.  The donkey won’t budge.  
Balaam starts beating the donkey.  God allows the donkey to speak and the donkey states,
"What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?" 29Then Balaam said
to the donkey, "Because you have made a mockery of me!” They proceed to have a brief
discussion, but then the LORD opened Balaam's eyes, and he saw the angel of the LORD
standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell facedown.”  The donkey
was able to see something Balaam could not see.  The donkey had a better perspective than
Balaam.  

Another favorite story includes Elisha and his servant.  They are both surrounded by the
enemy on horses and chariots.  Elisha’s servant is terrified.  Elisha, not fearful at all, wants
his servant to see what Elisha sees.  So he prays, “O Lord, open his eyes that he may see.  
And the LORD opened the servant's eyes and he saw; and behold, the mountain was full of
horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.”

How do we find the right perspective?  Once we find it, how do we not forget it?  Communion
allows us to remember Christ’s body and blood that was the greatest sacrifice for us.  His
resurrection allows us to see and live differently.  Imagine what life was like before Christ.  
Imagine being an Israelite.  

The old way emphasized, “don’t sin because God will punish you,” The new way states,
“don’t sin because you love others and you love Jesus.”  The old way would say, live your
life in a way that pleases God so that you can get to the promised land.  The new way would
say, live your life in a way that shows Christ’s love to others so that they can get to the
promised land.  The old way, was about me.  The new way is not about me.  

Father, thank you for fresh perspectives.  Father, we confess, sometimes we don’t
understand. Sometimes we sin because we don’t see the way we should.  Sometimes we
struggle for perspective.  Forgive us when we sin.  We thank you for giving us Jesus.  Jesus,
we thank you for being a game changer.  Thank you for the new way. Thank you for opening
our eyes.   Help us know your love that surpasses knowledge.

From barking dogs to falling on your knees

The older I get the more I love this song (O Holy Night played before communion) and the more I appreciate communion. I hate to admit it, but as a kid, I can clearly remember dreading when songs like this came on the radio.  They put me to sleep!  I wanted the dogs barking jingle bells, Rudolph, or better yet, I loved the 12 Pains of Christmas!  “What do you mean if one light goes out they all go out?”  “Five months of bills!”  Similar with communion, my very first memory is just wanting to be able to get a drink in the middle of church.  For some reason, I thought that tiny little cup would quench my thirst to make it through the rest of the service and grape juice just never looked so good!  

My next memory about communion revolves around guilt.  Communion was my time to take inventory and see how I failed at being a “good Christian”  It was a focus on whether or not I had been “naughty or nice.”  It was a reminder of my failure with guilt stacked on...I did appreciate Jesus and remember his salvation, but the majority of my focus or my emphasis was on failure and guilt.  

Now, as I am older, I can’t wait to sing this song.  I feel like it tells my story!  I love the story line, the build up, and the passionate drama.  This song speaks to my heart and reminds me how Jesus has changed me from guilt to hope. This song reminds me that while I was/am stuck in sin...pining in error (worsening/declining) yearning because of my sin... My emphasis or focus can shift from my deeds to His power and love.  His law is love- a love that surpasses knowledge, a love so wide, high, and deep.

Now I really feel I have a thrill of hope because I am experiencing spiritual transformation.  After 40 years, I am noticing a change in who I am. I believe Jesus is transforming me.  We all can have the thrill of hope.  We have the thrill of hope that our sadness will go away.  The thrill of hope that our anger will be calmed.  The thrill of hope that our anxiety will be changed to peace as His gospel is peace. The thrill of hope that we will be transformed and made knew.

Here in communion, we remember our need for a night that was set apart, when the God of the galaxies that is way bigger than anything we can fathom, who created us, became a baby through a virgin birth.  We remember our need for a savior who died and came back to life. Let’s pray:   Father we fall to our knees.  We rejoice in our salvation. We are sorry for our sins, we thank you Jesus for saving us.  Thank you for your love that surpasses knowledge.  

Sin and error pining- declining in sin.  Worsening in sin..  Or longing for help because of sin

When is forgiveness fun and...not so fun?

Have you ever had fun forgiving someone?  I know, weird question.  

My fun forgiveness memory was when someone I ended up knowing ran into the back of my car on Tuscarawas st. in Canton.  I got out of the car, saw it was a past patient, we hugged, I looked at the car...looked at her, and said. “eh don’t worry about it.” She put her bumper in her trunk and we got out of there.  Forgiving her wasn’t that hard for me because my monte had 195000 miles on it and the extra cracks and dents didn’t really change the appearance that much. That time, forgiving was fun and easy.

Paul tells us to “examine ourselves” during this time.  In other words, look into our hearts and see if anything needs dealt with.  Perhaps one of your issues today is forgiveness.  Maybe the pain, betrayal, and sadness are just too great and feelings are too raw making forgiveness seem impossible.  If so, I want to remind you that Matthew 19:26 states, “With God All Things are Possible” and we are told in 2 Timothy 1:7 that the spirit God gave us gives us power, love, and self discipline.  We have the perfect example of Christ forgiving others when He was being crucified and he cried out in prayer, “Father forgive them for they don’t know what they are doing”

Another example can be taken from a modern day hero named Victor Marx.  Victor Marx goes after the source of sex traffickers in the US, has befriended juveniles who are at highest risk of crime, and now lives in Iraq where he runs an organization that rescues kids who have been orphaned and kidnapped.  Victor Marx attributes being able to be who he is today because he forgave two of the men who would do beyond terrible things to him as a kid.  His forgiveness of them allowed him to move on.  His terrible experiences; being able to endure different methods of torture, toughened him and have given him the ability to go places most would not even think of going.  Those experiences have made him better instead of bitter.  This is a very good representation of Romans 8:28- “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”

Communion is the perfect time to deal with the impossible feelings in your heart.  We are reminded that Christ makes the impossible possible. Sometimes learning to forgive is a process and takes time.  Hang on!  Keep coming to the cross.  Keep praying for help.   

Prayer:  Father, thank you for making the impossible possible through Christ.  Open our eyes and help us see how forgiving others will help us and those around us heel.  Give us the strength and courage to forgive and help those around us become better.