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Matthew 26:36-44 “36 Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, ‘sit here, while I go over there and pray.’ 37 And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled. 38 then he said to them, ‘ My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.’ 39 And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, ‘My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.’ 40 And he came to his disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, ‘So, could you not watch with me one hour? 41 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak,’42 Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, ‘My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.’43 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy.44 So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words again.”WHY DO WE HAVE UNANSWERED PRAYERS?[a pic i need to still send][side by side pic.see attachment]The Greek word for agony used here means “to be engaged in combat.”If what is possible? If salvation for man is possible by anything other than the cross, let this cup pass.”-Chuck SmithThe cross declares that there is only one way by which man can have forgiveness of sins and approach God, and that is through the death of Jesus Christ.”- Chuck SmithSome prayers would never be offered if people would only think. A little reflection would show us that some things that we desire were better left alone. We may moreover, have a motive at the bottom of our desires that is not Christ like; a selfish nature that forgets God’s glory and caters to our own ease and comfort…there must be mingled with acceptable prayer, the holy salt of submission to the divine will.”-Charles Spurgeon.“You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures” James 4:3.Prayer is not really intended to get my will done on earth. Prayer is intended to get God’s will done on earth.”- Chuck Smith.And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him.”"Christ was not delivered from his sufferings, yet he was strengthened and supported under them. And that was equivalent”-Matthew Henry."trading of the heart with God”-Charles Spurgeon#1 prayed persistently.
#2 prayed submittedly.“Do you not know friends, that we often impute to the Lord conduct we would be ashamed of in ourselves. When God tells you to call upon Him, He does not mock you. He means that He will deal kindly with you”-Charles Spurgeon.1. We will assume the role of prayer answerer.2. We will believe God to be different than he is.3. We will see prayer as self-servingWhen the question of unanswered prayer comes up we should do what Jesus did:
#1 Persist “He went away and prayed for the third time saying the same words again” Matthew 26:44“Guard against persistence of unbelief-repeating prayer with attitude that God never heard us the first time”-David Guzik “The delays of prayer are not needed to change God, but to change us.”- David Guzik#2 Submit “Nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will” Matthew 26:39 “And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross” Philippians 2:8.

15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. 17 And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.
1 John 2:15-17Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”
2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; 3 but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ”
4 Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was [a]pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves [b]coverings.
8 And they heard the [c]sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the [d]cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.
9 Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?”
10 So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.”
Genesis 3:1-10Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. 3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”
4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”
5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written:
‘He shall give His angels charge over you,’
and,
‘In their hands they shall bear you up,
Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’ ”
Matthew 4:1-613 Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful. 14 For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. 15 For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. 16 If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. 17 But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. 18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. 19 For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. 20 Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
21 I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good.
Romans 7:13-21 14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.
James 1:14

Philippians 2:3-16“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility, value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross! Therefore, God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. Do everything without grumbling or arguing so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain.”Vision - Help People Know GodMission - Practicing The Way of JesusPursuing the Presence
Transformational Discipleship
Kingdom Community
Sacrificial MissionKingdom Community doesn’t stand alone, and the house doesn’t stand without it!
“Between the death of Christ and the Last Day, it is only by a gracious anticipation of the last things that Christians are privileged to live in visible fellowship with other Christians. It is by the grace of God that a congregation is permitted to gather visibly in this world to share God’s Word and sacrament. Not all Christians receive this blessing. The imprisoned, the sick, the scattered lonely, the proclaimers of the Gospel in heathen lands stand alone. They know that visible fellowship is a blessing. They remember, as the Psalmist did, how they “walked among the crowds of worshipers, leading a great procession to the house of God, singing for joy and giving thanks amid the sound of a great celebration!” (Ps. 42:4). - Bonhoeffer

1. It is how we started

Our triune God created all life to exist in communal order to work toward Kingdom Community.2. It is how we are testedWithout community, we are incapable of Practicing the Way of Jesus.We were created for the life of Jesus to live inside of us.3. It is how we are to be foundCommunity is found where Faith is found, and Faith is found where Community is found.“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. Hebrews 10:19-25

Faith plus community created endurance.“For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” Matthew 18:204. It is how we are sustained “The light of the early church illuminated the path of humankind in one short flash. Yet its spirit and witness stayed alive even after its members had been scattered and many of them were murdered. Again and again, through history, similar forms arose as gifts of God, expressions of the same living Spirit. Witnesses were killed, and fathers died, but new children were and are born into the Spirit again and again.” - Eberhard ArnoldThrough the kind of community that Jesus prescribes to us, no external force can extinguish the flame of the Gospel.When we were called into God’s family, we were also called to belong to Him in eternity with one another.“He is our peace.” Eph 2:14 Christ was sent to be the mediator.“For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of him, you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” 1 Corinthians 1:26-31“Every human wish or dream that is injected into the Christian Community is a hindrance to the genuine community and must be banished if community is to survive. He who loves his dream of a community more than the Christian community itself becomes the destroyer of community - even if the intentions are honest, earnest, and sacrificial.” - Bonhoeffer

1. We pull away from people - believing them to be the enemy
2. We lose perspective

We are called into this life to be thankful recipients, not demanders. For when Christ calls us to Himself, He calls us to die to ourselves.Healing is found in Kingdom Community - but Jesus is the Healer.Community should always point you back to Christ. That is the purpose of Kingdom Community.Kingdom Community is the act of pursuing His presence in unity with one another, creating space for confession, faith, prayer, study of the Word, worship, sanctification, serving, discipleship, sharing the Gospel, love, grief, joy, loss, abundance, and fun! It’s a life lived for Jesus, in Jesus, with Jesus, together.Prompt for keys to come up (not on slide): “One of my prayers is that New Song would champion the type of Kingdom Community that spills over into the world.”We are not called to only do what the Lord asks us to do when we have a guaranteed outcome.In order for people to see Jesus in you, they have to be able to find Jesus in you.“Without oxen, a stable stays clean, but you need a strong ox for a large harvest.” Proverbs 14:4 (edited) 

Acts 1:3-8

SACRIFICIAL MISSION 

52% of Christians who attend church monthly and say their faith is important and agree they have a responsibility to share their beliefs.

Barna Group

73% of Christians belief it was their responsibility to share their faith, but only 52% have actually shared their faith at least once with someone in the last year.

Telling the Gospel

31% of Christians believe they are not called to share their beliefs.

Lifeway Research

18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[b] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 

Matthew 28:18-19 

The degree of sacrifice as well as the kind of sacrifice will vary, depending on context and calling. Some will work in the slums of Africa, others will raise a large family; some will take on a job that pays a low salary, others will make lots of money and give most of it away. There is no absolute rule to follow here, no perfect standard against which to measure both quality and quantity of sacrifice. Comparisons are simply out of the question. Only one truth applies to all: the ultimate sacrifice we make should be the whole of ourselves to God. And then we should simply let life take its course.

Gerald Sittser

If we take the Christian faith seriously, we will probably end up traveling somewhere or loving someone or trying something we would never have imagined at an earlier stage in our lives. It is simply what a life of disciples requires.

Gerald Sittser

Sacrificial Mission: We pursue sacrificial missions by giving, serving, and loving sacrificially in our homes, our Church, our community, and the world.

Serving-focused Missions: overemphasizes meeting the physical needs of others and downplays the power of the Gospel. 

 4 But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, 5 “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii[b] and given to the poor?” 6 He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it. 7 Jesus said, “Leave her alone, so that she may keep it[c] for the day of my burial. 8 For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.”

John 12:4-8

Conversion-focused Missions: overemphasizes the moment of salvation rather than inviting people into a life-long devotion to Jesus. This downplays the really physical needs people face and also downplays the importance of discipleship.

15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good[b] is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

James 2:15-16

Jesus-focused Missions: sees people created in the image of God and is moved with compassion for the WHOLE person; spirit, soul, body, relationships, world, etc.

After this Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. 2 And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick. 3 Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. 4 Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand. 5 Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?”

John 6:1-5

Jesus-focused ministry is moved with compassion based off of the need we see, not what is convenient for us.

Luke mentioned that on this occasion Jesus went out to a deserted place to be alone (Luke 9:10), yet the crowds followed Him there. In spite of this imposition, Jesus still served the multitude with great compassion.

David Guzik

God chose to risk everything in the incarnation; such a risk was costly beyond measure. But the incarnation also reminds us that the risk is worth taking. Our salvation is proof of that. God calls us to take risks too, following, however inadequately, the example that Jesus set. 

Gerald Sittser

The God who loves to have an outgoing Image of his Son loves to have many images of his love (who are themselves outgoing).

Michael Reeves

15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 

Colossians 1:15

Myth: People could use Jesus, but they don’t NEED Him.

Reality: People are separated from God, and have the ability to be eternally separated from Him.

For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, 10 as it is written:

“None is righteous, no, not one;

11    no one understands;
     no one seeks for God.

12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
     no one does good,
     not even one.”

Romans 3:9-12

13 For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard?[c] And how are they to hear without someone preaching? 15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” 

Romans 10:13-15 

Myth: I cost is too much

Reality: Wherever you go, there you are.

Myth: The work is too much

Jerusalem - where Jesus was executed at the word of an angry mob

Judea - rejected His ministry

Samaria - regarded as a wasteland of impure half-breeds

The ends of the Earth - the Gentiles were seen by some Jews of that day as nothing better than fuel for the fires of Hell.

Reality: Small risks. Everyday. 

If you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one

Mother Theresa

Myth: Somebody else will do it

Reality: Purpose over privilege

I must look only to the end for which I am created, that is, for the praise of God our Lord and for the Salvation of my soul. Therefore, whatever I choose must have as its purpose to help me to this end. 

St. Ignatius

9 I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. 10 All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. 11 And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. 13 But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. 14 I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. 

John 17:9-17 

ANNOUNCE GUYS/GIRLS NIGHT

PACK THE HOUSE / HELP!

We pursue the presence of God, who is a person, and we pursue Him first; above every other action.

TRANSFORMATIONAL DISCIPLESHIP

We pursue transformational discipleship by focusing on spiritual formation and every Christian’s destiny to progressively grow in Christ-likeness.

New Song Church

Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master and in high favor, because by him the Lord had given victory to Syria. He was a mighty man of valor, but he was a leper.

2 Now the Syrians on one of their raids had taken a young girl captive from the land of Israel, and she served Naaman’s wife. 3 She said to her mistress, “If only my lord were with the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his skin disease.” 4 So Naaman went in and told his lord just what the girl from the land of Israel had said. 5 And the king of Syria said, “Go, then, and I will send along a letter to the king of Israel.”

He went, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten sets of garments. 6 He brought the letter to the king of Israel, which read, “When this letter reaches you, know that I have sent to you my servant Naaman, that you may cure him of his skin disease.” 7 When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, “Am I God, to give death or life, that this man sends word to me to cure a man of his skin disease? Just look and see how he is trying to pick a quarrel with me.”

2 Kings 5:1-7

Transformational discipleship gets complicated when:

1. We idolize leaders

3 She said to her mistress, “If only my lord were with the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his skin disease.” 

10 I appeal to you, brothers,[a] by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment. 11 For it has been reported to me by Chloe's people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers. 12 What I mean is that each one of you says, “I follow Paul,” or “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Cephas,” or “I follow Christ.” 13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?

1 Corinthians 1:10-13

We are all hypocrites in transition. I am not who I want to be, but I am on the journey there, and thankfully I am not whom I used to be.

Erwin McManus

9 So Naaman came with his horses and chariots and stood at the door of Elisha's house. 10 And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored, and you shall be clean.” 11 But Naaman was angry and went away, saying, “Behold, I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call upon the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place and cure the leper. 12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean?” So he turned and went away in a rage. 

2 Kings 5:9-12

1. We idolize a process

In prayer it is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart.

John Bunyan

We take what we think are the tools of spiritual transformation into our own hands and try to sculpt ourselves into robust Christlike specimens. But spiritual transformation is primarily the work of the Holy Spirit. He is the Master Sculptor.

Jerry Bridges

1. We idolize ourselves

Body Dysmorphia: persistent, intense focus, shame and anxiety over perceived body defects

Discipleship Dysmorphia: persistent, intense focus, shame and anxiety over perceived discipleship defects

“I just feel like I should be doing more.” 

The moment we begin to feel satisfied that we are making some progress along the road of sanctification, it is all the more necessary to repent and confess that all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Transformational discipleship is done from a place of victory, not from a place of trying, striving, or will power.

For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.

Hebrews 10:14

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

2 Corinthians 5:17-18

Sanctification is not about becoming someone you are not. It is about aligning your outward life to match up with your inner life.

Give up the struggle and the fight; relax in the omnipotence of the Lord Jesus; look up into His lovely face and as you behold Him, He will transform you into His likeness. You do the beholding–He does the transforming. There is no short-cut to holiness.

Alan Redpath

He turned and went away in a rage. 13 But his servants approached and said to him, “Father, if the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more, when all he said to you was, ‘Wash, and be clean’?” 14 So he went down and immersed himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; his flesh was restored like the flesh of a young boy, and he was clean.

2 Kings 5:13-14

17 Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. 

John 17:9-17 

PLACING OUR FAITH IN THE TRUTH OF GOD’S WORD DAILY.

I would give almost anything in the world if I cold have been there and watched him. I think every time he went down into the water he would come up and look at himself. He probably said, “T...

“One thing, I have desired of the Lord, that I will seek that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. To behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple.” Psalm 27:4
Pillars of the Church
The pillars of our church are PURSUING THE PRESENCE OF GOD, TRANSFORMATIONAL DISCIPLESHIP, KINGDOM COMMUNITY, AND SACRIFICIAL MISSION
“At New Song Church, we pursue the presence of God by seeking him first and above all else.”-NSC website

1. We are to pursue.
2. What we are to pursue is the presence.
3. The what is actually a who, because it is the presence of God.

 4. We are to do this first, above every other action/option.
“The reason the church is in crisis today is because we have settled for the omnipresence rather than for the manifest presence of God.”- Frank Hartly
there is an aspect of God where he is OMNIPRESENT meaning he is everywhere all at once at all times
there is a MANIFEST aspect of God’s presence. Manifest means to display or show by one’s acts or appearance; demonstrate.
“The presence and the manifestation of the presence are not the same. There can be one without the other. God is here when we are wholly unaware of it. He is manifesting when and as we are aware of his presence.”- A.W. Tozer
Pursue means to chase something, run after, seek to attain.
“The church has developed a mentality that wants to do nothing, but yet receive everything. We don’t want to make any effort on our part anymore, we just want to sit by and wait for God to hand it to us, drop it into our laps, so to speak.”- Pastor Curt (article on pursing God)
“Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near.” Isaiah 55:6
“Seek the Lord and His strength; seek his face forevermore.” Psalm 105:4
“The Lord looks down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there are any who understand, who seek God.” Psalm 14:2
“3He (Zacchaeus) sought to see who Jesus was but could not because of the crowd…4 so he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him…5 And when Jesus…saw him he said ‘Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.’” Luke 19:3-5
“27 When she heard about Jesus, she came behind him in the crowd and touched His garment…32 and He looked around to see her who had done this thing.” Mark 5:27,32
“37 When she knew that Jesus sat at the table in the Pharisees house, brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil, and stood at his feet behind Him weeping and she began to wash His feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair; and she kissed His feet and anointed them with fragrant oil…” Luke 7:37
The Hebrew word for presence is parim=face.
This implies a close and personal encounter with the Lord as the face reveals the unique identity of a person.
“15 If your presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here. 16For how then will it be known that your people have found grace in your sight, except you go, with us?” Exodus 33:15,16
“One thing, I have desired of the Lord, that I will seek that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. To behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple.” Psalm 27:4
“In America, there is a generation that is experiencing more options than any generation in all of history.”-Jesus Culture
“And they (Adam and Eve) heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord…” Gen 3:8
“Cain went out from the presence of the Lord.” Gen 4:16
But what defines a true church is to run after (pursue) the presence (manifest/personal encounter) of God as our only hope (first/above all else).
“One thing, I have desired of the Lord, that I will seek that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. To behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple.” Psalm 27:4
desire, decide, do
When we desire to pursue the presence of God we will decide what we are willing to no longer settle for and we will do what others may not, because His presence is above all other things!

STAND IN AWE

Psalm 33:6-9 By the word of the Lord the heavens were made and all their host by the breath of his mouth. He gathered the waters of the sea as in a bottle; he put the deeps in storehouses. Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him, for he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm.

I often feel left out or lonely

I can't do anything right 

My life is not useful 

I do not enjoy my life 

What young people need today is not to stand in awe of something but to stand in awe of SOMEONE. 

AWE: a feeling of reverential respect mixed with fear or wonder.

“Let all the earth fear the Lord;
 let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him”

Hebrews 12:28-29 Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, and offer to God pleasing service and acceptable worship with reverence and awe; for our God is [indeed] a consuming fire.

Bonfire Pic

Being afraid of God and fearing God are two different things.

When I genuinely fear the Lord I fear hurting him. I don’t fear him hurting me.

I have respect and reverence for God, but I am also drawn to his warmth and beauty.

1 We promote awe of God by seeing Him in CREATION 

Romans 1:20 Ever since the creation of the world his eternal power and divine nature, invisible though they are, have been understood and seen through the things he has made…

I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting system through which God speaks to us every hour, if we only tune in. - George Washington Carver

Earth's crammed with heaven, And every common bush afire with God, But only he who sees takes off his shoes; The rest sit round and pluck blackberries. - Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Sunset pic

This is my Father's world:

O let me ne'er forget

That though the wrong seems oft so strong,

God is the Ruler yet.

This is my Father's world:

Why should my heart be sad?

The Lord is King: let the heavens ring!

God reigns; let earth be glad! 

2 We promote awe of God by Seeing Him in ART

Exodus 31:1-11 The Lord said to Moses, “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship, to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, to work in every craft. And behold, I have appointed with him Oholiab…. And I have given to all able men ability, that they may make all that I have commanded you: the tent of meeting, and the ark of the testimony, and the mercy seat that is on it, and all the furnishings of the tent, the table and its utensils, and the pure lampstand with all its utensils, and the altar of incense, and the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the basin and its stand, and the finely worked garments, the holy garments for Aaron the priest and the garments of his sons, for their service as priests, and the anointing oil and the fragrant incense for the Holy Place. According to all that I have commanded you, they shall do.”

Art gives us glimpses of the renewed world, It helps us to taste and see that the Lord is good.

3 We promote awe of God by seeing him in JESUS

2 Corinthians 4:6 For God, who said, “Let there be light in the darkness,” has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ.

He must increase, but I must decrease. 

Awe Challenge:
_Turn off notifications on your phone.

_Create a plan for your screen time.

_Go on awe walks. 

_Read a Psalm. Write a Psalm. 
 _Enjoy art. 

_Gospel Meditation. 

Psalm 55:1-8

4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

Romans 6:4

FEAR

THE ANATOMY OF FEAR

Fear: an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat.

ALEX HONNOLD PHOTO**

EL CAPITAN PHOTO**

FREE SOLO PHOTO***

THE ANATOMY OF FEAR GRAPH***

The church, in general, has done a horrible job with mental illness. We have ignored it, pretended it doesn’t exist, or worse, acted as though all mental illness was a result of sin. Our obsession with outward perfection has led us down a dark, dangerous path of contempt toward anything that doesn’t measure up to our false definition of what a “good Christian” should look like.

Jessica Thompson

It is of no use to say to men, “Let not your heart be troubled,” unless you finish the verse and say, “Believe in God, believe also in Christ.

Alexander MacLaren

6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, 7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control [sound-mind].

2 Timothy 1:6-7

The first step in dealing with such fears is to understand that they are not from God. It is a significant step to say, “This isn’t God making me feel like this; God hasn’t given me this.” Perhaps it is from personality, perhaps a weakness of the flesh, perhaps a demonic attack – but it isn’t from God.

David Guzik

1. FEAR IS NOT A LACK OF FAITH, IT IS FAITH IN REVERSE

Fear: an unpleasant emotion caused by the BELIEF that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat.

I saw a study that said speaking in front of a crowd is considered the number one fear of the average person. Number two was death. This means to the average person, if you have to be at a funeral, you would rather be in the casket than doing the eulogy.

Jerry Seinfeld

Most of the time for us, the feeling of fear is REAL but the threat we face is NOT REAL.

The worst evils of life are those which do not exist except in our imagination. If we had no troubles but real troubles, we should not have a tenth part of our present sorrows. We feel a thousand deaths in fearing one…

Charles Spurgeon

Anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows, but only empties today of its strength.

Corrie Ten Boom

1. FEAR WILL SPIRITUALLY PARALYZE US AND ROB US FROM OUR GOD-GIVEN PURPOSES (Worst-case scenario)

10 Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” 11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?”

Exodus 3:10-11

13 Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” 

Exodus 3:13

Then Moses answered, “But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you.’”

Exodus 4:1

10 But Moses said to the Lord, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.”

Exodus 4:10

OUR VISION OF PEACE AND SAFETY IS DIFFERENT THAN GOD’S VISION OF PEACE AND SAFETY

15 And he said to him, “If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here. 16 For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Is it not in your going with us, so that we are distinct, I and your people, from every other people on the face of the earth?”

Exodus 33:15-16

“The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble…”

Psalm 9

“God is our refuge and strength; an ever-present help in trouble…”

Psalm 46

“Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty…”

Psalm 91

1. FEAR WILL ROB US FROM THE MENTAL PEACE AND SPIRITUAL REST HE PURCHASED FOR US TO LIVE IN. (Best-case scenario)

THE WAY TO BEAT FEAR IS TO FEAR (FEAR OF THE LORD)

The fear of the Lord leads to life, and whoever has it rests satisfied; he will not be visited by harm.

Proverbs 19:23

Oh, fear the Lord, you his saints, for those who fear him have no lack!

Psalms 34:9

THE WAY TO BEAT FEAR IS TO LOOSE YOUR CONFIDENCE (IN WORLDY METHODS)

10 But Moses said to the Lord, “O my Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor even now that you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.” 11 Then the Lord said to him, “Who gives speech to mortals? Who makes them mute or deaf, seeing or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? 12 Now go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you are to speak.” 

Exodus 4:10-12

THE WAY TO BEAT FEAR IS TO QUESTION EVERYTHING (THAT ELEVATES ITSELF ABOVE GOD)

4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, 6 being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete.

2 Corinthians 10:4-6

19 O that you would kill the wicked, O God,

    and that the bloodthirsty would depart from me—

20 those who speak of you maliciously

    and lift themselves up against you for evil![d]

21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord?

    And do I not loathe those who rise up against you?

22 I hate them with perfect hatred;

    I count them my enemies.

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;

    test me and know my thoughts.

24 See if there is any wicked[e] way in me,

    and lead me in the way everlasting.

Psalm 139:19-24

2 He [God] makes me lie down in green pastures.
 He leads me beside still waters.

3 He restores my soul.
 He leads me in paths of righteousness
     for his name's sake.

4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
     I will fear no evil,
 for you are with me;
     your rod and your staff,
     they comfort me.

5 You prepare a table before me
     in the presence of my enemies;

Psalm 23:2-5

ANGER

There is no such thing as an angry person; there are only humans. Some just have a better grip on their anger than others.

1 O Lord, you have searched me and known me.

2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;

    you discern my thoughts from far away.

3 You search out my path and my lying down

    and are acquainted with all my ways.

4 Even before a word is on my tongue,

    O Lord, you know it completely.

5 You hem me in, behind and before,

    and lay your hand upon me.

6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;

    it is so high that I cannot attain it.

Psalm 139:1-6

17 How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God!
     How vast is the sum of them!

18 I try to count them—they are more than the sand;
     I come to the end[c]—I am still with you.

19 O that you would kill the wicked, O God,
     and that the bloodthirsty would depart from me—

20 those who speak of you maliciously
     and lift themselves up against you for evil![d]

21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord?
     And do I not loathe those who rise up against you?

22 I hate them with perfect hatred;

Psalm 139:17-22

But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled,

    my steps had nearly slipped.

3 For I was envious of the arrogant

    when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

Psalm 73:2-3

O God, why do you cast us off forever?
     Why does your anger smoke against the sheep of your pasture?

2  Remember your congregation, which you have purchased of old,
     which you have redeemed to be the tribe of your heritage!
     Remember Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.

3  Direct your steps to the perpetual ruins;
     the enemy has destroyed everything in the sanctuary!

4  Your foes have roared in the midst of your meeting place;
     they set up their own signs for signs.

5  They were like those who swing axes
     in a forest of trees.[b]

6  And all its carved wood
     they broke down with hatchets and hammers.

7  They set your sanctuary on fire;
     they profaned the dwelling place of your name,
     bringing it down to the ground.

8  They said to themselves, “We will utterly subdue them”;
     they burned all the meeting places of God in the land.

9  We do not see our signs;
     there is no longer any prophet,
     and there is none among us who knows how long.

10  How long, O God, is the foe to scoff?
     Is the enemy to revile your name forever?

11  Why do you hold back your hand, your right hand?
     Take it from the fold of your garment[c] and destroy them!

Psalm 74:1-11 

“This is not the song of an atheist, but the wail of a believer.”

G. Campbell Morgan

26 Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and give no opportunity to the devil.

Ephesians 4:26-27

The absence of anger . . . can, in my opinion, be a most alarming symptom . . . If the Jews cursed more bitterly than the Pagans this was, I think, at least in part because they took right and wrong more seriously.

C.S. Lewis

37 Pilate asked him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.” 38 Pilate asked him, “What is truth?”

John 18:37-38

A man that does not know how to be angry does not know how to be good. 

Henry Ward Beecher

The Bible doesn’t counsel AGAINST your anger, but anticipates your anger and shows us how to GROW in it.

Mike Winger

1. The spectrum of anger
2. The root of anger
3. The filter of anger

THE SPECTRUM OF ANGER

7 These are the ways you also once followed, when you were living that life. 8 But now you must get rid of all such things: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive language from your mouth. 

Colossians 3:7-8

Anger: “anGRRRR”

Wrath: anger displayed outwardly; onto someone or something

Malice: “congealed anger; anger that has been nursed along” (J. Vernon McGee)

And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, 5 but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. 6 The Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? 7 If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it.”

Genesis 4:4-7

Slander (blaspheme): to talk about another in a way that misrepresents who they are.

Abusive language: words that cut others down or grieve the Holy Spirit

THE ROOT OF ANGER IS INJUSTICE

The way we release anger reveals who we think is the just judge.

“Sinful anger is our expression of playing God.”

David Powlison

22 I hate them with perfect hatred;

    I count them my enemies.

1. LOVE IN PSALMS
2. We are created in the image of a God that feels emotions
3. PSALMS 6:4 — Return, O Lord, and rescue me.  Save me because of your unfailing love.
4. PSALMS 26:3 — For I am always aware of your unfailing love, and I have lived according to your truth.
5. PSALMS 33:22 — Let your unfailing love surround us, Lord, for our hope is in you alone. 
6. PSALMS 136:1 — Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!  His steadfast love endures forever.
7. Unfailing love = “hesed” = love, generosity, faithfulness, goodness, enduring commitment 
8. Love = the genuine inner readiness and longing to secure the good of others
9. 1 JOHN 4:19 — We love because he first loved us.
10. ACTS 13:22 — But God removed Saul and replaced him with David, a man about whom God said, ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart.’
11. Love for Christ is of 1st importance, 2nd importance, and 3rd importance
12. Charles Spurgeon — “It shows what weight our Saviour attached to the matter of his (Peter’s) love, that he asked him about that, about that only, and about that three times over.”
13. MATTHEW 7:21-23 — “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of Heaven.  Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter.  On judgement day many will say to me, ‘Lord!  Lord!  We prophesied in your name and case out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’  But I will reply, ‘I never knew you.  Get away from me,’”
14. PSALMS 63:1-8 — O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water. I have seen you in your sanctuary and gazed upon your power and glory. Your unfailing love is better than life itself; how I praise you! I will praise you as long as I live, lifting up my hands to you in prayer. You satisfy me more than the richest feast. I will praise you with songs of joy. I lie awake thinking of you, meditating on you through the night. Because you are my helper, I sing for joy in the shadow of your wings. I cling to you; your strong right hand holds me securely.
15. (MATT PIC) ??
16. When you realize the greatness of God’s love for you, then your relationship with Him becomes a consuming addiction, not a convenient addition
17. Some addictions will kill you; but the presence of God is the addiction that’s going to heal you and fulfill you
18. Charles Spurgeon — “He who truly longs for God longs for him now.”
19. PSALMS 27:4 — The one thing I ask of the Lord - the thing I seek most - is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, delighting in the Lord’s perfections and meditating in his Temple.
20. LUKE 14:26 — “If you want to be my disciple, you must, by comparison, hate everyone else - your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sister - yes, even your own life.  Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple.
21. MATTHEW 10:37 — “If you love your father or mother more than you love me, you are not worthy of being mine; or if you love your son or daughter more than me, you are not worthy of being mine.
22. When you realize the greatness of God’s love for you, then your worship is not just obligation, it is immeasurable delight
23. (SIGN PIC)
24. PSALMS 16:11 — In his presence is the fullness of joy
25. When you realize the greatness of God’s love for you, you want God more thank you want even His greatest gifts
26. A.J. Stuemky — “The process of prayer will change you in ways that an answered prayer never will.”
27. God gives us gifts and satisfaction; but our satisfaction is ultimately not found in the gifts, but in the Giver
28. When you realize the greatness of God’s love your, your experience in the wilderness become experiences in worship
29. PSALMS 88 — ”O Lord, God of my salvation, I cry out to you by day. I come to you at night. Now hear my prayer; listen to my cry. For my life is full of troubles, and death draws near. I am as good as dead, like a strong man with no strength left. They have left me among the dead, and I lie like a corpse in a grave. I am forgotten, cut off from your care. You have thrown me into the lowest pit, into the darkest depths. Your anger weighs me down; with wave after wave you have engulfed me. Interlude You have driven my friends away by making me repulsive to them. I am in a trap with no way of escape. My eyes are blinded by my tears. Each day I beg for your help, O Lord; I lift my hands to you for mercy. Are your wonderful deeds of any use to the dead? Do the dead rise up and praise you? Interlude Can those in the grave declare your unfailing love? Can they proclaim your faithfulness in the place of destruction? Can the darkness speak of your wonderful deeds? Can anyone in the land of forgetfulness talk about your righteousness? O Lord, I cry out to you. I will keep on pleading day by day. O Lord, why do you reject me? Why do you turn your face from me? I have been sick and close to death since my youth. I stand helpless and desperate before your terrors. Your fierce anger has overwhelmed me. Your terrors have paralyzed me. They swirl around me like floodwaters all day long. They have engulfed me completely. You have taken away my companions and loved ones. Darkness is my closest friend.“
30. (SURVIVOR CLIP)
31. (LILY CLIP)
32. Carrie Ten Boom — “There is no pit so deep, that God’s love is not deeper still.”
33. Elizabeth Elliot — “This hard place in which you, perhaps, find yourself, is hte very place in which God is giving you the opportunity to look only to Him.”
34. EXODUS 15:27 — After leaving Marah, the Israelites traveled on to the oasis of Elim, where they found twelve springs and seventy palm trees.  they camped there beside the water.
35. David Guzik — “Elim was wonderful - a place of provision, with twelve wells and seventy palm trees.  Yet there was no new revelation of God at Elim as there was at Marah, where God revealed Himself as Jehovah-Rapha.”
36. Charles Spurgeon — “Israel had no miracles at Elim.  Wells and palm trees they had; but they had no miracle there…no promise, and no new revelation of God, and no new name of Jehovah there.”