More Than Bread

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At Calvary this last weekend, we dove deep into the subject of worry and we celebrated communion. You might be surprised how much those two are woven together. You know as I was working on this message, something occured to me. As we look at the whole of Jesus' mountain top message, the beatitudes take up 8 verses. Reconciliation and forgiveness gets 7 verses' adultery and divorce 6 verses. Prayer is really important, it shows up twice and in total gets 14 verses. Giving gets 7 and judging 6.  Worry gets 10 verses and they aren't short!

As Jesus lays out his vision for a new Kingdom...one which gets a lot of his time is worry. Basically he's saying, "In my Kingdom, life can be lived...worry-free." Do you believe that? 

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There is a booklet which has been used by God to lead many people to believe in Jesus. It's called the "The Four Spiritual Laws." Maybe you've read it. The first law is this, "God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life." I believe that law is true, especially looking back. But what if the flip-side is also true? God loves you and has a difficult plan for your life.

Not too many Xtian best-sellers incorporate that into their title.  Not too many songs about the God who plans to make our lives difficult; and if he really loves us and is really pleased by us...well get ready for really difficult. But perhaps that's what Jesus meant when he said, "Blessed are those who are persecuted..." Don't skip this one...just because you don't like the title. :)

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As we come to the last of eight beatitudes we arrive at what I call the “Thanks-No-Thanks” beatitude. And listen I’m not saying that Jesus saved the best for last, I even hesitate to say that it’s the most important blessing, because they are all so important. Remember it’s a process, and as a journey, all the steps are necessary. But this one, #8, in our world today, it’s so key that understand it's a step to becoming the light of the world. We cannot shrink back from this last step, if we want to be part of Jesus' Kingdom-Story. 

And as you listen, listen for the challenge that will help us persevere in persecution. It will come in the form of a prayer. "God cross out the "I" in my life." 

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Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Blessed are the peacemakers for they will resemble their Father in heaven. Blessed are the peacemakers for they will remind people of their big brother Jesus. Are you a peacemaker? Is the family resemblance growing? Take a moment and think of a hard relationship; someone who has hurt you, disappointed you. Do you look like Jesus to them? Will a point come when they can say to you...this is what I want to hear people say to me: "I see Father God's face in you. I see Jesus' heart in you. I see the fullness of the Spirit in you."

I mean, is there anything the world needs more than peacemakers in this moment?

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What do we need more in our world right now, than peace? We are so quick to draw lines, so easily prodded into conflict. We need peace. I think everyone is seeking it, but few attain it, and keeping it is all too rare. But here's the problem; we have difficulty finding peace, because we are looking for peace in the absence.  That's how we define peace, right? Peace comes from absence; the absence of noise or the absence of storms, or conflict. 

But when Jesus talked about peace, he had in mind the Hebrew word shalom. Shalom is well-being in the widest sense of the word. Shalom is the blessing of God whch sums up all other blessings. Shalom is more about fullness than emptiness. Let's stop looking for peace in the absence and start seeking His fullness. Peace doesn't come from absence...

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Perhaps the first step to purity is seeking God. As we seek God, we come near to Him, and discover how much He loves us and our hearts  begin to burn for Him. In fact to be pure in heart Soren Kierkegaard said is to want one thing, to be undivided.  Or we have said it this way, "To be pure in heart is to have an unrestrained affection for God.  

So let me ask you what is restraining your affection for God? When God comes close, He begins to burn away the junk that is restraining our affection for Him. But don't expect the burning to be entirely comfortable. He is a refiner's fire. It has to happen to prepare the way, prepare our hearts. It's not optional so, so we have to decide, when God comes close, will I let the fire burn?

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So let me ask you, when it comes to purity, what images come to your mind? What images, what thoughts, what emotions come to mind and heart when I say that we are diving again into purity?  There is a call to purity woven throughout scripture. It's all over the place. 

Let me tell you upfront. The primary issue of purity is where am i seeking life? If I primarily seek life in my job, or in friends, or in the adrenaline rush of adventure, or in my marriage, or in the weekend, or in success, or in accumulating all the stuff my hands can hold, sooner or later my quest will lead to an impure heart. Where am I seeking life?

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Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. I want to see God. I believe that our world today desperately needs people who seek and see God.  Jesus said that the pure in heart will see God. The purity of heart that He is seeking is both a quality of heart and a quantity of heart. In this episode, we will dive a bit into the idea of a quantity of heart. In the Greek the word for purity in Matthew 5:8 is the Greek word Katharsos. It literally means "unmixed." For example 100% pure gold is unmixed gold. A pure heart is not only sinless. It is also single; it desires one thing.
Pure hearts are 100% all-in for Christ. It is not just obedience, it is passion. 

At the end of episode, I'll ask you to fill in the blank of the sentence, "I am devoted to God and _________. What goes in the blank for you? How much of your heart's passion is preoccupied with the blank?

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Mercy is what Erika Kirk showed last weekend at the memorial for her husband  Charlie. The choice to forgive is mercy in action. And in so many ways from my  perspective it was the highlight, the most holy moment of the memorial. I closed  the last episode with the question, "Does our mercy show?" And I challenged you  to take a survey, find out people’s perceptions of Xtians?" If you haven’t done that yet, you should. Some labels will be unfair. 

But listen carefully to how rarely our pictures are painted with the brushstrokes of grace and mercy. I wonder if the Spirit might be saying in this moment; "Let your mercy show?" So in this episode, we will look at a mercy-story of Jesus that leaves me with the question, "Am I a mercy-giver?"

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I am so in need of mercy. Have you ever felt that way? I think that's why..actually I know that's why I love this next step in the blessed life. It's the mercy blessing. Blessed are those who are merciful for they will be shown mercy. In some ways I think this is the first "blessed are" that really reveals the heart of God. The Mercy-Blessing describes the heart of Father God. Christ is what mercy does. I mean God's not really poor in spirit. He's not broken or desperate. God doesn't mourn, or if He does it's a temporary response to the brokenness of the world, but it's not who he is. The meek are meek because they have no strength but God is omnipotent. God doesn't hunger for righteousness. He is righteousness. 

But mercy? Oh my goodness, that's who God is. Mercy in one of God's most fundatmental attributes. In this episode we will dive into the Mercy-Blessing!