God is the expert in creating something so small and simple, but with tremendous and unimaginably exponential potential. 

Close your eyes right now and think of an acorn.  OK.  Most of us pictured this tiny nut with a cool hat-looking cap, right?

Within this small and fragile nut is contained everything necessary to grow an oak tree 100′ tall and 4′ wide producing 10,000 more acorns every year creating an entire forest of oak trees that keep reproducing from now until Jesus returns.

I bet that not many of us, if any, pictured a dense forest of mighty oak trees when we thought of an acorn, right?  However, given the right conditions, that’s exactly what I’m holding in the palm of my hand right now.

If I consider this nothing more than a nut with a cool hat-looking cap and leave it sitting on my table as a fall decoration, it will never become anything more.  It will never reach its full potential, but will eventually dry up and die becoming nothing more.

God’s word says about us that:

Isaiah 61:3b

3 …They will be called oaks of righteousness,

    a planting of the Lord

    for the display of his splendor.

However, if we never see ourselves as God sees us, if we never believe that we are who God says that we are, then we will die an acorn.  Not only will we never become all that we were created to be, but we will also fail to leave behind a fruitful legacy.

This morning, God is looking to stretch our minds and expand our understanding of another simple subject.  This very simple subject possesses tremendous transforming power if we would just allow ourselves to understand it for what God created it to be.  If we could just tear down the box that we’ve placed it tightly and neatly inside of, it would radically transform us and how we view everything!

Alright, so close your eyes again and clear your mind.  Now, what comes to mind when I say the simple word: worship?  OK.  Now erase from your mind that very idea of what worship is! 

That thought was a tiny, silly-hatted acorn.  God sees a dense and mighty oak forest to explore by generations behind us and one that endures for all eternity when He sees worship!  He sees a conduit wide open for His very power and Presence to be unleashed in and through our lives when He sees worship! 

It’s an open Heaven!  We have to break the barriers within our mindset of what worship is.  We have to stop boxing it into a church service or an emotional feeling or a music genre.  We need to uncage worship and see it as God sees it.

So, what is worship?  It’s so much bigger than any definition, but as a starting point, Merriam-Webster  defines it as:

Worship – extravagant respect or admiration for or devotion to an object of esteem

We were made to worship.

We were created to worship the Creator.

We can’t help but worship.

Every person is worshipping someone or something at this very moment.

Right now, worship is being expressed all across the earth.

The question is, “What or who are we worshipping?”

What or who is receiving our extravagant respect or admiration or devotion?

If we’re honest, it might be a little embarrassing; kind of like this confrontation…

* Spongebob/Patrick Goofy Goober worship *

To be honest, we worship a lot of silly things in a lot of silly ways.  However, as the elders in Heaven cry out in worship before the throne of Christ day and night:

Revelation 4:11

“You are worthy, our Lord and God,

    to receive glory and honor and power,

for you created all things,

    and by your will they were created

    and have their being.”

God is the only one worthy of our worship.  In fact, He’s worthy of so much more than any act of worship that we could ever express.  What is worship, though?

The Hebrew word that the Bible primarily uses (175 times) for our word English is the word Šāḥâ which simply means to bow down.  To worship is to bow down our lives in order to exalt something or someo

This morning, we’re continuing our series entitled, “Unexpected” where we are going to recall the truly unexpected ways in which God worked in the past and some of the unexpected places and times where He showed up. 

These reminders of God’s faithfulness and miraculous power and authority will serve to encourage us in our present and give us hope toward our future.

We’re going to dive into the topic of God’s unexpected generosity.  However, we’re going to barely scratch the surface of this unexpected way in which God works!  Honestly, generous isn’t even a generous enough word to begin understanding how generous the generosity of God truly is!

Generosity is one of God’s attributes that is most in contrast to those of our own.  He is selfless and we are so selfish.  It is one of the greatest tests of our character and of our faith and of our trust in God.  Do we really believe that:

Psalm 24:1

The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it

Or is it maybe that we believe this to be true, but don’t trust in His ability to steward it well enough or to faithfully provide for our needs?

This morning, we’re not starting where I was originally going to start.  I’ll explain later, but I never connected this encounter with Jesus to the parable that He shares afterwards. 

Matthew 19:16-30

16 Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?”

17 “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.”

18 “Which ones?” he inquired.

Jesus replied, “‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, 19 honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’”

20 “All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”

He knew in his heart that he was missing something, lacking something, or he wouldn’t have pressed Jesus in this way.

21 Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

22 When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.

23 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

25 When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished

In their mindset, worldly wealth was an indication of blessing and therefore of a right standing with God.  This simply isn’t true, though!

They asked, “Who then can be saved?”

26 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

OK, this verse is a whole life motto, decade-long sermon series, correct-your-thinking kind of a simple statement!

27 Peter answered him, “We have left everything to follow you! What then will there be for us?”

28 Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. 30 But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.

So, I read this and I get so excited that whatever we leave behind in this lifetime as we commit to following Jesus will be rewarded 100x over!  Then, it’s like a big ‘ole alley-oop.  It’s way up with “you’re going to get rewarded 100x”, then way down with “but the first will be last and the last will be first.”

It’s verses like this one that always stumped me:

Matthew 11:11

Truly I tell you, among those born of w

The post Audience Of One appeared first on New Hope Assembly of God in NuMine, PA.

This morning, we’re continuing our series entitled, “Unexpected” where we are going to recall the truly unexpected ways in which God worked in the past and some of the unexpected places and times where He showed up. 

These reminders of God’s faithfulness and miraculous power and authority will serve to encourage us in our present and give us hope toward our future.

This morning, we’re going to continue building from a previous message in this series when God unexpectedly stepped aside as King of Israel and allowed His people to replace him with a man named Saul. 

As King, Saul tried to keep a balance of obeying God, but also pleasing people.  He also did not accept responsibility for his own actions, but always excused them away.  A very unexpected sentence came from God’s mouth.  He said, “I regret that I have made Saul king.”  God regretted a decision that He had made even though He knew what the outcome would be when He made it.

Saul rejected God’s clear word to him, so God rejected Saul as king.  Relationships just don’t work one way. 

Now God may have rejected Saul as king, but His eye was on another man to take this position.  One whose heart was after His own and who would faithfully follow Him and represent Him as king.  This may be a familiar account to most of us, but let God speak a fresh word through it and do a new thing in your life this morning.

Many of us don’t think much of ourselves and of our daily chores and routines.  Our lives are mostly full of things that seem small and insignificant that most others don’t even notice.  Rest assured, though, that God notices it all.

David was a young man out serving his family by shepherding his father’s flock.  When God sent Samuel to Jesse’s household  to anoint one of his sons as the next king of Israel, David wasn’t even a consideration.  Yet another unexpected way for God to work!

1 Samuel 16:6-13

6 When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here before the Lord.”

7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

8 Then Jesse called Abinadab and had him pass in front of Samuel. But Samuel said, “The Lord has not chosen this one either.” 9 Jesse then had Shammah pass by, but Samuel said, “Nor has the Lord chosen this one.” 10 Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, “The Lord has not chosen these.” 11 So he asked Jesse, “Are these all the sons you have?”

“There is still the youngest,” Jesse answered. “He is tending the sheep.”

Samuel said, “Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives.”

12 So he sent for him and had him brought in. He was glowing with health and had a fine appearance and handsome features.

Then the Lord said, “Rise and anoint him; this is the one.”

13 So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David. Samuel then went to Ramah.

When everyone else counts you out, even your own family, don’t let it get you down.  Be the person who God called you to be and you can never go wrong.  Live a life of integrity, loving God and others with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.  Do it whether alone or whether in front of others.  Integrity catches God’s attention, especially in this ever-deceitful world!

Whatever you do, do it with all of your heart because it is ultimately Jesus that you are doing it for. 

God took note of the dedication of David to carry out this household chore of tending the sheep.  God took note of the warrior that he was when it came to protecting his father’s sheep.  God took note of the care that he showed toward each and every one of those sheep in providing for them and leading them.  David’s shepherd heart was exactly w

This morning, we’re continuing our series entitled, “Unexpected” where we are going to recall the truly unexpected ways in which God worked in the past and some of the unexpected places and times where He showed up. 

These reminders of God’s faithfulness and miraculous power and authority will serve to encourage us in our present and give us hope toward our future.

This morning, we’re going to pick up where we left off last week remembering how we are stronger together.  We learned how we are all parts of the body of Christ and how we all need each other to be whole and complete and to reach the full measure of Christ.  Before Paul teaches about this reality, he says:

Romans 12:3

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.

Proverbs also teaches us that:

Proverbs 11:2 (The Passion Translation)

When you act with presumption,

    convinced that you’re right, (pride in other translations)

    don’t be surprised if you fall flat on your face!

    But humility leads to wisdom.

And also:

Proverbs 16:18 (CSB)

Pride comes before destruction, and an arrogant spirit before a fall.

Some people think more highly of themselves than they ought to and are setting themselves up for failure. 

Proverbs 16:18 (The Passion Translation)

Your boast becomes a prophecy of a future failure.

    The higher you lift yourself up in pride,

    the harder you’ll fall in disgrace.

We all know that, “Hold my beer.” guy who always think they can do things that they just can’t.  Although it makes for some good stories, it’s also a really good way to get hurt.

There’s also that arrogant guy who one-ups your every story, has the solution to your every problem, and is the hero in every one of their stories.

The thing about strength is that there’s really no way to know how strong someone or something is until it is tested.  Action speaks louder than words!

Anyone here ever been let down by someone?  You had full trust and confidence in a relationship and found out that it wasn’t as strong as you thought?

Maybe you’ve had a situation like this.  This looks like a nice sturdy chair that could fully support you, but as soon as you put your full weight on it, it collapses underneath you…

That’s why most people prefer products that have been around for a while and were manufactured by reputable companies who have been tested and tried.

We would trust a coffee from Starbucks before one from Buckstars, the taste of Froot Loops before Fruity Hoops, listening on our Airpods before Comfopods, bathing with soap from Olay before Okay.  We trust brands that have been tried and tested before we trust their knockoff counterparts.

However, we still can’t be sure of how strong someone or something is until it is put to the test.

Sure, some people are prideful and think that they are stronger or better than they really are.  Most people, however, don’t realize how strong they truly are!  It’s not until they are put to the test that it is proven to them the strength that they possess.

Although we know this to be true, it almost always is unexpected by us when God puts us to the test.  God takes us through these testing seasons not to break us or to harm us, but to prove to us just how strong we are and to show our genuine faith off to others.

1 Peter 1:6-7

6 In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith – of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire – may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

Now to pick up where we left off last week:

Matthew 3:16-17

16 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that mome

This morning, we’re continuing our series entitled, “Unexpected” where we are going to recall the truly unexpected ways in which God worked in the past and some of the unexpected places and times where He showed up. 

These reminders of God’s faithfulness and miraculous power and authority will serve to encourage us in our present and give us hope toward our future.

Last week, we were challenged with the reality that bad things happen to good people most often because others have not yet surrendered God’s gift of free will back to Him.  God’s will is accomplished through us as we surrender our will to God’s.  Even Jesus struggled with this in the garden the night that He was betrayed praying three times, “Not my will, but yours be done.”

The struggle for us to surrender our will becomes very real and obvious when we choose to work together with others.  Anyone know what I mean?  If you’re not sure about this, I’ve heard that you should try to work together with me in an escape room…    It wasn’t exactly God’s will be shouted and demanded.

Now we were created with the need for relationships.  In fact, we were made in the image of God and God exists in relationship.  He is three-in-one, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

We need each other and we are stronger together!

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

9 Two are better than one,

    because they have a good return for their labor:

10 If either of them falls down,

    one can help the other up.

But pity anyone who falls

    and has no one to help them up.

11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.

    But how can one keep warm alone?

12 Though one may be overpowered,

    two can defend themselves.

A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

You, me, and God – an unbreakable and unstoppable bond!

God created this unexpected thing that we call church.  It’s described in God’s word as the body of Christ.  Each of us has a unique role to fulfill from each other, but only together can we fully function and fulfill our purpose.  We’re not going to go into details this morning, but this is what the church looked like at its beginning shortly after the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.

Acts 2:42-47

42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

God’s plan for church was togetherness, unity, and growth.

Our unity comes not from conformity to some man-made mold, but by maintaining our God-created diversity unified by the Holy Spirit within us.  We are all uniquely created by God on purpose and for a purpose.  God doesn’t take that uniqueness away from us when we are saved, but rather uses it for its intended purpose.

A heart can beat on its own, but what good is that all by itself?  It needs veins running to and from it, blood flowing through them, and other organs connected to them for it to fulfill its purpose.  The heart needs the rest of the body just as much as the rest of the body needs it.

My weaknesses hurt your feelings and your weaknesses annoy me, but your strengths are my weaknesses and my strengths are your weaknesses.  When we intentionally join together, covering and complimenting each other’s weaknesses with our own strengths, we become stronger together!

It’s an unexpected way in which God works, but He intentionally created me incomplete and also you incomplete so that only when we join together pursuing after Him do we become whole.  Only together ca

This morning, we’re continuing our series entitled, “Unexpected” where we are going to recall the truly unexpected ways in which God worked in the past and some of the unexpected places and times where He showed up. 

These reminders of God’s faithfulness and miraculous power and authority will serve to encourage us in our present and give us hope toward our future.

One of the unexpected ways in which God works is a commonly asked question about Him.  Through the years, it has caused many to stumble in their faith and even cause many to never begin their faith journey.  It is the question of, “How can a good God allow bad things to happen?”  In fact, this morning’s message title is, “Wicked good.”

This morning, we’re going to primarily focus on the “bad things” that happen at the hands of people.  After all, much of what we consider to be the world’s greatest sufferings are the direct result of people’s choices.

Ultimately, all bad things happen because of the choice of one man and woman; Adam and Eve right at the beginning of our existence.  Even the bad things that happen now that are not the direct result of a person’s choices are ultimately the result of a world broken and corrupted by sin.

Hunger, poverty, disease, access to fresh water, shelter, safety, and many other global injustices often exist as the result of human choice.  Despite the ever-increasing population of earth, God created this planet in such a way that it possesses all of the resources necessary to meet the demands of these needs if it is stewarded well.

Often the very overseeing governments that should be providing the infrastructure and opportunities for all of their citizens to have access to these basic human needs serve as the hindrance to them.  Many governmental structures serve to make the rich richer and the poor poorer.  Intentional oppression is often what results in this human suffering.

Without a doubt, this is one of the very unexpected ways in which God works.  God created everything on this earth and then entrusted it to humans created in His image to steward and to manage it.  The Bible records a few times when He regretted handing off this stewardship, too (Gen. 6, 1 Sam. 15).

Similar to what we learned last week, God reigns sovereign over all; possesses all power and authority over all things, but chooses not to use it to override our free will.  God created everything perfectly and then handed it over to us.  Oh and what have we done with it?

This thought crossed my mind Monday we visited Kennywood.  Here stands a huge steel structure with powerful hydraulics that could accomplish all sorts of amazing tasks.  What do we use it for?  We spin thousands of people round and round in circles for hours every day for their entertainment…

It’s like that meme floating around social media about milk.  An angel approaches Jesus to let Him know that we’re making milk out of almonds and soy.  Jesus says, “What? I gave them like eight animals to get milk from and they’re doing what?” 

God entrusts us to steward His creation.

Abel was the first to experience firsthand just how badly people can be at stewarding God’s creation.  The violence leading to his murder wasn’t a gun problem, it was a heart problem.  God stepped in and tried to stop it, but ultimately refused to override Cain and Abel’s free will.

Genesis 4:6-8

6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”

8 Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.” While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.

Why did God allow bad things to happen to a righteous person at the hand of an unrighteous one?  God knew what Cain was planning to do, so why didn’t He step in and forcibly prevent it from happening?

This morning, we’re continuing our series entitled, “Unexpected” where we are going to recall the truly unexpected ways in which God worked in the past and some of the unexpected places and times where He showed up. 

These reminders of God’s faithfulness and miraculous power and authority will serve to encourage us in our present and give us hope toward our future.

Today, we celebrate the birth of American Independence!  On this day in 1776, the Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence officially breaking the political ties between the 13 colonies of America and Great Britain.

We are truly blessed to dwell in a nation that grants us such incredible freedom, one that acknowledged from the beginning the true source of our rights, our Creator, God.

Within that Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson penned in a few simple words a powerful reality.  “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed…”

Unlike most legal documents of today, the founding document that this new government would be formed upon was a simple four pages in length.  Although several amendments have been made to it, our nation still exists as a constitutional republic to this day with those simple pages as our foundation. 

Jacob Shallus wrote in a single sentence the entire purpose and function of our government.  “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”

A union of people establishing a government to ensure justice, peace, safety, welfare, and freedom for themselves and the generations to follow them.

Now before we start setting off fireworks, yelling “‘Merica”, waving our flags, and singing patriotic songs together, let’s get back to what all of this has to do with God working in unexpected ways.

Governments are instituted among men by deriving their powers from the consent of the governed. 

A government only exists because individuals choose to subject themselves under the authority of other people.  The only reason that any government can exist and function is a result of the people being governed submitting to the overseeing government.

God is a god of order and not of chaos.  Both in Heaven and on earth, there is a hierarchy of authority.  We are always both under the authority of others and also in authority over others in some way.  This is by God’s design.  In fact, Heaven, itself, is a kingdom and has a form of government.  God’s word even teaches us to:

Romans 13:1-7

1 Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 2 Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 3 For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. 4 For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. 5 Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience.

6 This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full t

This morning, we’re starting a new message series entitled, “Unexpected” where we are going to recall the truly unexpected ways in which God worked in the past and some of the unexpected places and times where He showed up.  These reminders of God’s faithfulness and miraculous power and authority will serve to encourage us in our present and give us hope toward our future.

God almost always begins working with His word.  It’s sort of like us guys created in His image.  We talk about how something needs done, we plan it out, we run it past a few others, then we do it.  That’s right, if we say we’re going to get it done, we’re going to get it done.  We don’t need reminded every month that it still needs taken care of.   

The very start of all of creation began with God’s word.  He spoke and it all came to be. 

Amos 3:7

Surely the Sovereign Lord does nothing

    without revealing his plan

    to his servants the prophets.

Our journey starts with an unexpected prophetic word from God.  When God speaks, our lives are often in for some sudden and unexpected changes. However, when it’s God leading, it’s going to be an awesome adventure that ends well so long as we hold onto Him throughout the journey.

Genesis 12:1-4

1 The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.

2 “I will make you into a great nation,

    and I will bless you;

I will make your name great,

    and you will be a blessing.

3 I will bless those who bless you,

    and whoever curses you I will curse;

and all peoples on earth

    will be blessed through you.”

4 So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran.

Now initially, this word of God isn’t entirely unexpected.  Abram’s dad was initially on his way moving his family from the Ur of the Chaldeans to Canaan.  When they arrived at Harran, he decided to settle down there.  God was asking  Abram to continue on this journey.  Also, 75 wasn’t that old in this point of history as his dad lived to be 205, his grandad to 119, and his great-grandad to 200 years old.

However, the unexpected part was that God was going to make Abram into a great nation that would bless all the people on earth.  That’s a pretty huge and unexpected promise to make! 

Just as God had chosen one man, Noah, through whom to redeem mankind, God again chose one man, Abram, through whom to ultimately and completely redeem mankind.  This time, instead of killing off everyone else, God chose to set apart Abram and his descendants as His own chosen people.

Also, the previous chapter informs us that Sarai, his wife, was barren and unable to have children.  How could God grow Abram into a great nation?  For Abram to have even a single child was an impossibility!

In any case, Abram obeys the Lord and begins travelling to this unknown land that God was going to show him.  This is how we ought to live as well.  We don’t have to have it all figured out, we don’t even need to know exactly where we are going.  We just need to know the next step that God has called us to make and to start walking in obedience.

God began to richly bless Abram with gold, silver, and livestock as he travelled to the point where he had to separate ways with this nephew Lot because the land couldn’t support the both of them.  He allowed Lot to choose the land that each would move off to.  Abram moved on to, you guessed it, Canaan.

Quite a few years have passed since God first gave His promise to Abram, so He gave Abram a reminder of it.

Genesis 13:14-17

14 The Lord said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, “Look around from where you are, to the north and south, to the east and west. 15 All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. 16 I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, the

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