Daily 7A The Movement Launch Meeting ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Launch Code⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

5 minutes to light the fuse

Hear from God

Remember who we are

Receive blessing

Go change the world

Ron and Nick talk about how we learned about Abiding in Christ and our early mentor, Mike Wells.

notes:

Acts 2:5

Now

 To the disciples following Jesus's command to wait in Jerusalem until they received power it must have seemed like God was slacking. They have the command to tell the whole world about the gospel and they are just supposed to wait around?? and yet in the end God brought the world to them.

Acts 2:6

Bewildered

 The work of Holy Spirit did not begin in clarification but in disheveling the people who ran to see what He was doing. But the work was immediately one of bringing a particular kind of unity and clarity no one could have anticipated. The reversal of the Tower of Babel happens here. God came down to men who were not trying to reach Him. God brought language back together. The scattering is now a gathering.  Now we have the real chance of a unified world. (Bonhoeffer's quote in Life Together:  Without Christ there is discord between God and humanity and between one human being and another. Christ has become the mediator who has made peace with God and peace among human beings. Without out Christ we would not know God; we could neither call on God nor come to God. Moreover, without Christ we would not know other Christians around us; nor could we approach them. The way to them is blocked by one's own ego [das eigene Ich]. Christ opened up the way to God and to one another. Now Christians can live with each other in peace; they can love and serve one another; they can become one. But they can continue to do so only through Jesus Christ. Only in Jesus Christ are we one; only through him are we bound together. He remains the one and only mediator throughout eternity.

Acts 2:11

Jews Converts Arabs Cretans

 The first display of Holy Spirit presence affects everyone the same way. Utter amazement and no discrimination. Even though the Jews received the Holy Spirit he immediately shows he is not their exclusive property. This is a message stamped on history. The people of God we're not supposed to be called out to keep out. They were supposed to reveal God to the world. Now Holy Spirit takes his first appearance to show them the new dispensation is a gathering of all people to the living God.

Daily 7A The Movement Launch Meeting ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Launch Code⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

5 minutes to light the fuse

Hear from God

Remember who we are

Receive blessing

Go change the world

Ron and Nick continue a discussion about the coming of the Holy Spirit and being in a community.

notes:

Acts 2:4

Identity

From here on out in the story whenever we see a person who received the Spirit, we see the potential that Jesus is in them and with them.  These are now the acts of the Holy Spirit and it is his identity we look for in what the people do.  These are not people trying to know God, they are people filled with God line Jesus was filled with God.  They know who he is and they know who they are.  They have the internal witness of the Spirit of Jesus.

All of Them

 The Holy Spirit makes no distinctions. All who waited for Him to come met him. Young and old men and women. This must have been both a shock and a delight. Social justice is a good thing maybe even a great thing but true equality and fair treatment is a myth outside this singular experience. This is the only place in history where the entire playing field is leveled completely and every single person receives the gift. Every person elevated to God-friend status. This is the only social equality that the church guarantees and it trumps any other. Making races equal or genders equal to each other before each other is meaningless. God giving every person equal access to the Holy Spirit and therefore equal before Him is actual equality. This is why the church must not become an entity which majors on economic, gender, or any other form of liberation theology because these are less than perfect and never to be obtained equalities while gospel equality IS liberation theology that is obtainable now and forever.

Daily 7A Movement Launch Meeting ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Launch Code⁠⁠⁠⁠

5 minutes to light the fuse

Hear from God

Remember who we are

Receive blessing

Go change the world

Ron and Nick talk about the struggle between flesh and Spirit and the way the devil talks vs to us vs the way God talks to us.

notes:

Acts 2:2 The Spirit Comes

 Ex - the sonic boom that hit va beach greenbrier and hickory

What are the marks of the Spirit's arrival?

Sudden - not gradual but obvious and immediate. One moment the Spirit was absent the next He arrived and everyone knew it. 

 Sound - the Holy Spirit is not silent He is audible and audibly present. The Holy Spirit has his own voice. They heard Him. Their ears perceived him. This was not a spiritual experience it was a physical experience. It does not say they felt him blowing on their skin like the wind it says he made a sound upon their ears like the wind. This is the opening of the ears of our race to the new voice of God in the world. 

Blowing - the Holy Spirit comes with a sense of motion. He is not static sound he is moving sound. It is the sound of a wind that would bear is along with it were we to be open to it. 

Violent - the Holy Spirit doesn't sneak in the room. He is loud. He isn't trying to hide. He is making sure they hear him. 

From Heaven - the direction Holy Spirit comes is from heaven down to us. This is the divine gift Jesus promised. He doesn't come in through the door or windows as from the earth. He descends. Do not doubt he is not of this world. He is the arrival of God unincarnate - God in Spirt. God completely free to move in and around all things in the earth. 

Filled - this Holy Spirit is filling. He fills things. He fills houses. The first thing he does is fill a house. He fills us. He fills. His first act even before tongues is to fill up the house; to immerse everyone and everything in the house. They were praying and in a flash they were swimming in God. Surrounded by goodness and health itself. Peace and joy and love. All of it all around them. 

Acts 2:3 What Seemed to Be

 The Holy Spirit is a person. The first time we meet a person we get impressions and some facts but we cannot get a grip on everything they are. The first people to meet the Holy Spirit in his new relationship to the human race told us what they saw and thought of him but the Spirit himself who authorized this account didn't feel the need to sharpen their account or fill in blanks. He leaves it at "seemed" and doesn't firm it up. What does this tell us about this moment?  The tongues of fire must not be significant enough for Holy Spirit to clarify who he is. He doesn't want us to focus on them in this introductory scene. He is content to leave that part fuzzy - we should be too.

Identity

From here on out in the story whenever we see a person who received the Spirit, we see the potential that Jesus is in them and with them.  These are now the acts of the Holy Spirit and it is his identity we look for in what the people do.  These are not people trying to know God, they are people filled with God line Jesus was filled with God.  They know who he is and they know who they are.  They have the internal witness of the Spirit of Jesus.

Daily 7A Movement Launch Meeting ⁠⁠⁠⁠Launch Code⁠⁠⁠

5 minutes to light the fuse

Hear from God

Remember who we are

Receive blessing

Go change the world

Ron and Nick discuss taking every thought captive, noise, and inviting the Holy Spirit into our day all day.

Notes:

Acts 1:22

From the time 

What may not stand out at first here is the fact that not only were there people who followed Jesus without being among the chosen 12, but evidently there were many who did so. Enough that there was a pool of people who potentially could take Judas' place. 

They followed Jesus without a title and without recognition. And after all had happened, even after Jesus himself had departed, then they were called into the 12. They were ready to take a place among the leaders for one reason; they faithfully followed when no one noticed and when following was all they could do

Acts 1:23

So They Proposed Two Men

The simplicity of this solution for such an enormous task is amazing. This person will stand in the shoes of the Apostles alongside Peter and the others to bear witness to the most important life ever lived with the most important message ever proclaimed.  And the leadership is stumped. It might be one guy or another. They aren't sure which one. They know they need a 12th man so they do what? They put them both before the Lord and throw some dice. This may sound crass to crass ears but the truth is that it is the beautiful faith of men convinced God can make any chance turn to His purposes and the faith that he will make this turn to his purposes. Without faith it is impossible to please God (hebrews 11:6) and without faith it's impossible to serve God.

Daily 7A Movement Launch Meeting ⁠⁠⁠Launch Code⁠⁠

5 minutes to light the fuse

Hear from God

Remember who we are

Receive blessing

Go change the world

Ron and Nick discuss the magnitude of the command for husbands to love their wives.

Daily 7A Movement Launch Meeting ⁠⁠⁠Launch Code⁠⁠

5 minutes to light the fuse

Hear from God

Remember who we are

Receive blessing

Go change the world

Ron and Nick talk religious platitudes like "I guess that's the will of God" and "I really want God to use me."

Notes:

Acts 1:15

Peter stood up (also in Acts 2:14)

There is a scene in The Matrix where Neo stands up to the representatives of the evil matrix for the first time and doesn’t run away. When someone asks what he is doing, Morpheus replies, “He’s beginning to believe.”  We can almost see the wheels going round in Peter’s head when this moment comes. He’s been a failure till now. A denier and a runner. But now he stands up. What gives him the right to speak to the assembly?  Who gave him a platform or authority?  He thinks he can rebuke Jesus. He uses swords when Jesus says put swords away. He spouts curses when he’s afraid of associating with Jesus. And he goes fishing when it looks like Jesus’s plan isn’t working out. Now he stands up?  Shouldn’t it be John? At least John didn’t cut, curse, or run. But it’s Peter who takes charge when the community is waiting for the gift. He recognizes the moment they are in together - the need for perspective and replacement of the traitor. He has no particular right to take a place of leadership himself. He is a traitor too. But he is beginning to believe something. He is beginning to believe the Jesus commissioning; the placement of Peter at the foot of the church (Mt 16:18). The declaration that he is not Simon but Peter. He is beginning to believe in his given name and place. Peter stood up because he began to believe the gospel. Jesus restoration and Jesus placement. 

Acts 1:16

Identity

The Holy Spirit is the one who Peter sees in the words of the Old Testament. He doesn’t yet possess the Holy Spirit or vice versa but he knows him. The Holy Spirit identity is a writer and speaker. He is consistent from the beginning of time. He is always speaking to and through people who know him. 

Acts 1:17

He was one of our number

 The implications of this statement are profound. Judas the betrayer was not an outsider. He was one of them. He was one that Jesus called to himself after praying all night (Luke 6:12-16). This means that Judas joined Jesus' ministry on purpose - God's purpose. The betrayal was not a mistake nor did God cause it. God knew it and He also knew how it fit in his plans.

Acts 1:20

In the Psalms

There seems to be no doubt on the part of the earliest believers and teachers of Christianity that everything in the Scriptures related to Jesus, his life, his death, his earthly ministry and his future ministry. All of everything related to Jesus for them. It was a simple belief that they held and allowed them to look to the past present and future with confidence that since they belonged to him nothing could be beyond explanation and nothing could be out of control. If you need convincing read the Psalms quoted here and see how little they have to do with "systematic theology."  No modern theologian would try to make these connections. They would be run out of their school. We can have a better theology and a better life if we adopt the view of these simple believers. Everything is about Jesus.

Daily 7A Movement Launch Meeting ⁠⁠Launch Code⁠

5 minutes to light the fuse

Hear from God

Remember who we are

Receive blessing

Go change the world

Ron and Nick talk about community and hearing from God together.

notes:

Acts 1:14

Their instinct was to be together and to pray together. They had just experienced a whirlwind of mind bending activity. Arrest, trial, and death of their leader.  Resurrection. 40 days of learning from a man who was dead but is now alive and then some fantastic departure to heaven. And their response is to go back to Jerusalem, stay together and pray. 

This has to be a result of their life with Jesus. This is not my instinct. When I am confused or instructed to wait I tend to isolate and pray by myself. Is community at the core of my life and my life in Jesus?  It seems like it should be if I've really spent time with him.

Daily 7A Movement Launch Meeting ⁠Launch Code

5 minutes to light the fuse

Hear from God

Remember who we are

Receive blessing

Go change the world

Ron and Nick discuss sources and the names we are called and how some people are bigger to us than others. Plus our continuing walk through the book of Acts with the Holy Spirit.

Notes:

Acts 1:11

I feel like I want to keep looking into the cloud where I last saw you Jesus. I don't want you to leave and I'm unsure of what to do next. It was so easy and bright and clear just a moment ago when you showed yourself to me but now I'm looking at nothing but clouds. I'm looking at where you were and I'm standing here with no desire to look around at this dirty dark world you've left me in. I'm sad and lonely. What do I do now?  Wait for power is what you said. Wait. Power. Spirit. Witness. 

Please Holy Spirit come and empower me and also fulfill the promise of comforting me. Comfort and power and direction and provision all are promised in you. Today I seek all in you. May I have some evidence of your direction for us today?  A breadcrumb of providence?

Daily 7A Movement Launch Meeting Launch Code

Ron and Nick talk about the necessity of having a community of people around us to help us hear and hold what God is telling us AND we announce our daily online meeting of the movement to encourage us to live like the gospel is true.

Notes:

Acts 1:8

Identity

The Holy Spirit is power if a new and different kind than any power ever entrusted to men. It is a received power not an earned power or a built power.  He is the power and it cannot be separated from his presence.

At This Time

Jesus's teaching about the kingdom must have been like his other teaching: plain in some aspects and completely opaque in others. After 40 days of teaching about the kingdom the followers of Jesus are anxious for the kingdom to come but mistaken about what the kingdom meant. 

Is it God's fault we don't understand his teaching?  Sometimes I tend to subconsciously place the blame for my misunderstandings at the feet I God. And there is some evidence that Jesus taught the crowds in ways they could not understand (mt 13:10-17) but not these people. They are the ones who have the keys and he tells them plainly about the kingdom. And still they are struggling to understand.  Why?  God's teaching is clear but our paradigms are not changed. In order to have God teaching we need God hearing. These followers heard kingdom and thought of power exercised through men. But God was telling them about a kingdom where power would be exercised through a Spirit. 

Launch Code for 7A daily zoom

Notes:

(vs 7)

It Is Not For You to Know

They ask a good question and Jesus doesn't rebuke them for asking it, he simply tells them it isn't their business to know. There are some things (many) that knowing will not do us any good and may harm us. The tree of knowledge is not the tree of life. Accepting God at his word and waiting upon him is better than analyzing rationalizing and predicting what God is up to. It is enough to know that our God knows. Knowing God is always better than knowing information.

(vs 8)

Identity

The Holy Spirit is power if a new and different kind than any power ever entrusted to men. It is a received power not an earned power or a built power.  He is the power and it cannot be separated from his presence.

At This Time

Jesus's teaching about the kingdom must have been like his other teaching: plain in some aspects and completely opaque in others. After 40 days of teaching about the kingdom the followers of Jesus are anxious for the kingdom to come but mistaken about what the kingdom meant. 

 Is it God's fault we don't understand his teaching?  Sometimes I tend to subconsciously place the blame for my misunderstandings at the feet I God. And there is some evidence that Jesus taught the crowds in ways they could not understand (mt 13:10-17) but not these people. They are the ones who have the keys and he tells them plainly about the kingdom. And still they are struggling to understand.  Why?  God's teaching is clear but our paradigms are not changed. In order to have God teaching we need God hearing. These followers heard kingdom and thought of power exercised through men. But God was telling them about a kingdom where power would be exercised through a Spirit.