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God Chose You for This |09.01.24| Dream BIGGER pt.3
September 1, 2024
There’s a quote I’ve heard a lot, but I don’t know where it originally came from, “Variety is the spice of life.”
It means that just like adding spices to the ingredients of your meal can completely change the meal and make what used to be bland into an exciting dish, the variety of choices in life is what keeps it from being bland or boring.
[SLIDE 2] lower third blank
And I’m definitely someone who appreciates variety in life. Even though I have some areas of my life where I am a creature of habit, there is something in me that yearns to be able to choose something new or novel.
And I think all of us like to have choices, don’t we? The ice cream chain, Baskin Robbins, has become known for its “31 flavors” of ice cream. Coffee shops spring up all the time and draw a crowd to try out their new and novel recipes.
Streaming platforms like Netflix and Disney are completely built upon the idea that we want to be able to choose what we watch, instead of just turning on the TV and seeing whatever has been programmed for us.
But all the choices and options in our society have also created a new phenomenon called choice paralysis. Have you ever experienced that? Where there are TOO MANY choices, and you don’t know what to pick?
You sit at a new restaurant, and are handed an entire NOVEL of all of their menu items, and you have to spend 30 minutes just reading all the choices and then don’t know how to narrow it down.
You turn into the cereal aisle at the grocery store, or the chip aisle, and you’re overwhelmed with all the options. Do I go with name-brand or store brand? Are they really any different? And what size? Family size? Jumbo?
Or here’s one that my wife does all the time: you sit down on the couch and turn on a streaming platform like Netflix and then you spend 45 minutes just scrolling through all the OPTIONS of what you COULD watch, and then you’re tired and you’ve never actually started anything! Anyone else do that?
That got me thinking about the difference between having to choose something, and having someone else choose for you, or BEING chosen for something.
Being chosen means that it’s clear what you have to do. When you’re on the playground and you’re chosen for one of the teams for dodgeball, you know what to do. Participate on this team and win the game.
When I was in college, I was involved in a few theatre plays, and after the auditions, they would post the cast list. And if I was chosen for a part in the play, I knew what to do next. Start learning my lines, participate in the rehearsals with the cast, and try and do our best to create a great experience for the audience.
When you are chosen for a job, you know what to do, because you have someone else who has CHOSEN you and invited you into a mission.
[SLIDE 3]
And in our Bible passage today, we’re going to see how God has chosen US. And he’s got a plan for us. And he’s inviting us to join him in his work so that more and more people can know and follow Jesus.
So let’s open our Bibles to Colossians ch 3, which can be found on p156 in the NT in the black, seat-back Bibles. And as you’re finding it, I want to remind you that we’ve spent the last few weeks in our series called Dream Bigger, where we are learning that God is calling us into his family and his mission, and when we partner with him, he’s able to work through us to accomplish more than we could ever ask or imagine.
The last two weeks, we’ve been learning from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, where he’s telling them that their previous way of life before they started following Jesus was the type of life that feels more like death. It leads nowhere.
But God has made them alive with Jesus, and invited them into this journey of learning how to follow Jesus and let the Holy Spirit work through us. And when we join Jesus in his work, it will blow us away to see what Jesus can do through each of us.
Today, we’re looking at a different letter Paul wrote to a different group of Jesus followers who were asking a lot of the same questions. Now that they had started following Jesus, they weren’t sure how it should change the way they live. Is believing in Jesus just something in our heads? Can we still interact with the rest of the people around us who don’t follow Jesus? Do we change our behaviors?
And Paul encourages them, saying, YES! Following Jesus is supposed to change you. It frees you from old ways of death and slavery and anger and sin. Following Jesus is the process of being rooted and established in God’s love so that every part of your life can be an overflow of God’s love flowing into you. Therefore, he then encourages them with the passage we’ll read together. So let’s read…
[COLOSSIANS 3:12-17]
[SLIDE 4] v12
“Therefore, based on the fact that Jesus has healed you and claimed you and is continuing to grow you… recognize that God has CHOSEN YOU.”
You used to be standing against the chain link fence, but God has called your name and chosen you for his team, for his family. And he’s made you holy, which means to be set apart. To be consecrated for a special task.
And he calls you his beloved. His cherished one.
[SLIDE 5] v12b
“Therefore, as God’s chosen ones, consecrated and cherished by God, here’s what you’re supposed to do now: CLOTHE yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.”
And I like Paul’s choice of the word “clothe” here. Because we get clothed every day! And I would assume that most of you get dressed in the morning, before you’ve interacted with anyone outside your house. At least, I hope that’s the case.
[SLIDE 6] lower third blank
But what would it look like if we chose to begin each day getting dressed with these things Paul lists? Because God has chosen us for his family and his mission, we choose to put on the appropriate uniform each day.
What would it look like for us, as we were putting on actual clothes, we also thought about getting dressed in compassion for the people we will run into? How would it change our outlook if we chose to put on kindness at the beginning of the day?
How would it affect our desire to listen to God’s guidance if we were clothed in humility before the day began? Or meekness? How would it affect the way we interact with others if we intentionally got dressed in patience and asked for God’s help with those things for the day ahead?
I bet it would be similar to getting dressed for a specialized job or a fancy event. You’d be intentionally putting on a uniform or a fancy outfit, and the process of getting dressed in that also gets you in the proper mindset for what lies ahead.
That’s what Paul is saying: You’ve been chosen by God. He’s picked you to be adopted into his family, and we have a family dress code. He’s chosen you for his work laid out for this day, and you’re going to need some special parts of your outfit.
You’ve been set apart because of his love for you, and that changes how you can interact with each other.
[SLIDE 7] v13
So bear with one another in the family of God, have patience with each other. Why? Because THEY have been chosen by God too! They have been set apart because they are cherished by God too! And so are you, so have patience with each other, and forgive each other if there is any complaint between you, just as the Lord forgave you!
Paul’s letter to the Romans reminds us that it was “while we were still sinners, while we were still in rebellion against God, while we were still acting like enemies to God’s way of life, EVEN THEN Christ CHOSE to die for us so that we could be raised to life and brought into God’s kingdom way of life.
And what does it look like to forgive each other just as the Lord forgave us? Well, it takes love for the other person, for one. But I also love the reminder in our Prayer Guide when it breaks down the part of the Lord’s Prayer about being forgiven and forgiving others.
[SLIDE 8] blank
Here’s what it says, “When we turn…” So “Ask God to check your heart…”
“We can even choose to forgive people in advance!”
Because of God’s love for us, and the grace we’ve received through his forgiveness, we can choose to pre-forgive someone, knowing that they have, and they will continue to wrong us.
[SLIDE 9] vv14-15
And like we’ve mentioned already, this is really only possible because of Love. God’s love that he gives us to wear intentionally every day is what leads to unity. Wholeness. Shalom.
And we’ve been CALLED to peace (Shalom) as a unified (made one) body of Christ. We’re all separate and unique, but God is continually forming us TOGETHER.
[SLIDE 10]
That’s why we talk about the fact that we’re all on a journey of being transformed by Jesus, TOGETHER, for the sake of others. Because God has CHOSEN us to be a part of his family, and he’s leading the way for us to be a part of his mission.
[SLIDE 11]
This is sometimes difficult to stick with as followers of Jesus, because everything around us tells us that WE should be choosing things that WE like individually.
So we often spend our time and focus choosing what WE want to do. I spend time focused on what I want to accomplish. Or what I want to buy. Or what I want to experience.
And sometimes, our choices lead to good things in life. Sometimes, we’re dealt a situation we wouldn’t have chosen. And sometimes, our choices get us in hot water.
But the main issue is that if we go through life only focused on OUR choices and desires, we’re limited to what WE can accomplish.
But as we’ve said already, God is calling us to DREAM BIGGER. He’s chosen us, consecrated us for his plan, and cherishes us as his children.
We’re TOGETHER set apart for his mission, and we’re TOGETHER cherished as his family. And we’re CALLED to operate as a family, TOGETHER.
[SLIDE 12] v16
And we see that in the last few parts of our passage. Paul tells us to teach each other and admonish each other. The word translated for teach means to be instructed on what to DO. So we’re supposed to help each other learn what to DO as followers of Jesus. That’s not just the pastor’s job, or the Leadership Team, or the Bible study leader.
We’re ALL called to teach each other, and help each other learn what to DO, how to participate in the good works that God has set out in front of us in advance, just like we talked about the last few weeks.
AND, we’re called to admonish each other. This word means to warn or counsel each other on what is not wise, what to STOP.
In other words, ALL of us are supposed to be helping each other on this journey of learning to follow Jesus with our whole lives.
[SLIDE 13]
That’s why we have as one of our core values as a church “We, not Me.” Because we know that following Jesus isn’t done alone. It’s a JOY to be transformed together for others. And we show this through love and care and teaching and helping each other, and by honoring one another to glorify God.
[SLIDE 14] v17
And that’s actually where Paul ends the passage as well. “Whatever you do, through speaking or acting, let it be done in the name of Jesus, pointing back to Jesus and his work, so that we can give thanks to God the Father through him.” – to give him glory.
Doing everything in the NAME of Jesus is just like any time a team gives a team cheer. When our football team is about to come back and score, we do it in the name of “Da Bears!”
William Wallace in Braveheart pumped up his men to fight “For Freedom!”
King Leonidas made sure all his soldiers knew they were fighting “For Sparta!”
And as followers of Jesus, Paul is encouraging us to do everything we do, everything we say, in the name of Jesus.
[SLIDE 15] blank
How would that influence our actions and behaviors? If we sat down and said we were “Eating lunch in the name of Jesus.” Would we be more mindful of how the food in front of us is a gift from God? Would we be more mindful and kind with waiters?
What if we made a phone call in the name of Jesus? Would that change how we speak to the other person, realizing they bear the image of God as well … that Jesus died to save them as well?
God chose you for THIS…he has chosen you to be a part of his family for his mission.
And we can CHOOSE to say “No, thank you.” We can choose to disobey and walk away from the life he is offering to us. But then we’re back to trying to figure out how to make life work for us, constantly unsure what our next step is and whether we’ll be able to take care of ourselves or the ones we love.
But if we accept God’s call, if we say YES to the fact that God has chosen us, then we get to grow in our obedience one small step at a time.
[SLIDE 16]
And every single time we get together, we always try and ask ourselves two of the most important questions for every Jesus follower: What is God saying to me and what is he inviting me to DO about it?
And if you’re paying attention, my sermons are normally my way of sharing MY answers to those two questions. I talk about the main theme that stands out to me from the passage, and then I give ideas for how we might respond to God’s invitation.
And this isn’t just for our own personal growth, but it helps us grow TOGETHER as a whole church family, because we were made for community like that. God actually designed us to learn and be formed by others, and to help others grow in the process.
And if the past few years taught us anything, it’s that we can’t go back to a life of sticking to ourselves. The pandemic and social unrest in our nation has taught us how much we NEED others.
And Jesus invites us into a FAMILY, TOGETHER.
[SLIDE 17] blank
We’re all invited to take next steps in our faith TOGETHER. Each of us, no matter where we are in our journey of following Jesus, each of us have a next step that he’s inviting us to take so that we can learn to trust him more, to be more bold for him, or even to learn how to participate in his work.
So I can’t tell you what YOUR next step is, but I do want to offer this as an idea for all of us. If it’s true that God has chosen us to be a part of his family and he’s inviting us to join him in his work of reconciling and redeeming everyone around us, then I would suggest we try and DO what the last verse says:
[SLIDE 18] v17
Whatever you do, in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Whatever you DO, do it in a way that points to Jesus. Do it in a way that highlights Jesus. Do it in a way that give thanks to God and lifts Jesus high.
[SLIDE 19]
How can I point one person to Jesus this week?
I don’t need to figure out how to save them, or lead them to Christ for the first time. I don’t need to mandate a huge long prayer. I don’t need to convince them to memorize a Bible verse. But what could I do that just points back to Jesus?
Because God has chosen us for this. He’s chosen us for his mission. And he’s calling us to Dream Bigger about the impact of our actions, especially when we join what Jesus is already up to around us.
[SLIDE 20] blank
When we join what Jesus is doing, he’s able to work through our actions in ways that are far more abundant than we could have imagined. He’s able to bring glory to God through our lives through even the simplest of things.
And this isn’t something that is put on us as a burden. This is isn’t Mission Impossible, where he gives us a mission, should we choose to accept it, and then says that if we fail, he’s going to disavow any knowledge of us.
God has already chosen us. He’s already forgiven us. And he’s already prepared in advance the ways we can join him in his work.
So don’t get lost in a big or HEAVY call…just ask Jesus which ONE person he’s inviting you to point to him this week. What name just popped into your head?
If it’s a member of God’s family already, someone who believes in Jesus, then maybe God is inviting you to point them to Jesus through encouragement or wisdom.
If it’s a stranger, maybe you can point them to Jesus by offering kindness and compassion.
If it’s a friend who isn’t a follower of Jesus, or doesn’t have a strong faith, maybe God is inviting you to point them to Jesus by just sharing patient love with them.
And if anyone presses in and asks why you’re acting in that way, you get to just say something like, “Because I’ve received love from Jesus, and I wanted to share that with you…”
This isn’t something to fear, or feel like its a heavy burden. Jesus’ yoke is easy, his burden is light. He’s prepared in advance the good works he’s called us to join him in.
We GET to let our words and actions be done in the name of Jesus, and that’s how we give thanks and glory to God.
[REFLECTION]
So what is God saying to you? What is standing out?
How is he inviting you to take a next step in obeying him? What is he inviting you to DO?
Let’s take this next minute or so to reflect on that so that we can join Jesus in his work this week.
It means that just like adding spices to the ingredients of your meal can completely change the meal and make what used to be bland into an exciting dish, the variety of choices in life is what keeps it from being bland or boring.
[SLIDE 2] lower third blank
And I’m definitely someone who appreciates variety in life. Even though I have some areas of my life where I am a creature of habit, there is something in me that yearns to be able to choose something new or novel.
And I think all of us like to have choices, don’t we? The ice cream chain, Baskin Robbins, has become known for its “31 flavors” of ice cream. Coffee shops spring up all the time and draw a crowd to try out their new and novel recipes.
Streaming platforms like Netflix and Disney are completely built upon the idea that we want to be able to choose what we watch, instead of just turning on the TV and seeing whatever has been programmed for us.
But all the choices and options in our society have also created a new phenomenon called choice paralysis. Have you ever experienced that? Where there are TOO MANY choices, and you don’t know what to pick?
You sit at a new restaurant, and are handed an entire NOVEL of all of their menu items, and you have to spend 30 minutes just reading all the choices and then don’t know how to narrow it down.
You turn into the cereal aisle at the grocery store, or the chip aisle, and you’re overwhelmed with all the options. Do I go with name-brand or store brand? Are they really any different? And what size? Family size? Jumbo?
Or here’s one that my wife does all the time: you sit down on the couch and turn on a streaming platform like Netflix and then you spend 45 minutes just scrolling through all the OPTIONS of what you COULD watch, and then you’re tired and you’ve never actually started anything! Anyone else do that?
That got me thinking about the difference between having to choose something, and having someone else choose for you, or BEING chosen for something.
Being chosen means that it’s clear what you have to do. When you’re on the playground and you’re chosen for one of the teams for dodgeball, you know what to do. Participate on this team and win the game.
When I was in college, I was involved in a few theatre plays, and after the auditions, they would post the cast list. And if I was chosen for a part in the play, I knew what to do next. Start learning my lines, participate in the rehearsals with the cast, and try and do our best to create a great experience for the audience.
When you are chosen for a job, you know what to do, because you have someone else who has CHOSEN you and invited you into a mission.
[SLIDE 3]
And in our Bible passage today, we’re going to see how God has chosen US. And he’s got a plan for us. And he’s inviting us to join him in his work so that more and more people can know and follow Jesus.
So let’s open our Bibles to Colossians ch 3, which can be found on p156 in the NT in the black, seat-back Bibles. And as you’re finding it, I want to remind you that we’ve spent the last few weeks in our series called Dream Bigger, where we are learning that God is calling us into his family and his mission, and when we partner with him, he’s able to work through us to accomplish more than we could ever ask or imagine.
The last two weeks, we’ve been learning from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, where he’s telling them that their previous way of life before they started following Jesus was the type of life that feels more like death. It leads nowhere.
But God has made them alive with Jesus, and invited them into this journey of learning how to follow Jesus and let the Holy Spirit work through us. And when we join Jesus in his work, it will blow us away to see what Jesus can do through each of us.
Today, we’re looking at a different letter Paul wrote to a different group of Jesus followers who were asking a lot of the same questions. Now that they had started following Jesus, they weren’t sure how it should change the way they live. Is believing in Jesus just something in our heads? Can we still interact with the rest of the people around us who don’t follow Jesus? Do we change our behaviors?
And Paul encourages them, saying, YES! Following Jesus is supposed to change you. It frees you from old ways of death and slavery and anger and sin. Following Jesus is the process of being rooted and established in God’s love so that every part of your life can be an overflow of God’s love flowing into you. Therefore, he then encourages them with the passage we’ll read together. So let’s read…
[COLOSSIANS 3:12-17]
[SLIDE 4] v12
“Therefore, based on the fact that Jesus has healed you and claimed you and is continuing to grow you… recognize that God has CHOSEN YOU.”
You used to be standing against the chain link fence, but God has called your name and chosen you for his team, for his family. And he’s made you holy, which means to be set apart. To be consecrated for a special task.
And he calls you his beloved. His cherished one.
[SLIDE 5] v12b
“Therefore, as God’s chosen ones, consecrated and cherished by God, here’s what you’re supposed to do now: CLOTHE yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.”
And I like Paul’s choice of the word “clothe” here. Because we get clothed every day! And I would assume that most of you get dressed in the morning, before you’ve interacted with anyone outside your house. At least, I hope that’s the case.
[SLIDE 6] lower third blank
But what would it look like if we chose to begin each day getting dressed with these things Paul lists? Because God has chosen us for his family and his mission, we choose to put on the appropriate uniform each day.
What would it look like for us, as we were putting on actual clothes, we also thought about getting dressed in compassion for the people we will run into? How would it change our outlook if we chose to put on kindness at the beginning of the day?
How would it affect our desire to listen to God’s guidance if we were clothed in humility before the day began? Or meekness? How would it affect the way we interact with others if we intentionally got dressed in patience and asked for God’s help with those things for the day ahead?
I bet it would be similar to getting dressed for a specialized job or a fancy event. You’d be intentionally putting on a uniform or a fancy outfit, and the process of getting dressed in that also gets you in the proper mindset for what lies ahead.
That’s what Paul is saying: You’ve been chosen by God. He’s picked you to be adopted into his family, and we have a family dress code. He’s chosen you for his work laid out for this day, and you’re going to need some special parts of your outfit.
You’ve been set apart because of his love for you, and that changes how you can interact with each other.
[SLIDE 7] v13
So bear with one another in the family of God, have patience with each other. Why? Because THEY have been chosen by God too! They have been set apart because they are cherished by God too! And so are you, so have patience with each other, and forgive each other if there is any complaint between you, just as the Lord forgave you!
Paul’s letter to the Romans reminds us that it was “while we were still sinners, while we were still in rebellion against God, while we were still acting like enemies to God’s way of life, EVEN THEN Christ CHOSE to die for us so that we could be raised to life and brought into God’s kingdom way of life.
And what does it look like to forgive each other just as the Lord forgave us? Well, it takes love for the other person, for one. But I also love the reminder in our Prayer Guide when it breaks down the part of the Lord’s Prayer about being forgiven and forgiving others.
[SLIDE 8] blank
Here’s what it says, “When we turn…” So “Ask God to check your heart…”
“We can even choose to forgive people in advance!”
Because of God’s love for us, and the grace we’ve received through his forgiveness, we can choose to pre-forgive someone, knowing that they have, and they will continue to wrong us.
[SLIDE 9] vv14-15
And like we’ve mentioned already, this is really only possible because of Love. God’s love that he gives us to wear intentionally every day is what leads to unity. Wholeness. Shalom.
And we’ve been CALLED to peace (Shalom) as a unified (made one) body of Christ. We’re all separate and unique, but God is continually forming us TOGETHER.
[SLIDE 10]
That’s why we talk about the fact that we’re all on a journey of being transformed by Jesus, TOGETHER, for the sake of others. Because God has CHOSEN us to be a part of his family, and he’s leading the way for us to be a part of his mission.
[SLIDE 11]
This is sometimes difficult to stick with as followers of Jesus, because everything around us tells us that WE should be choosing things that WE like individually.
So we often spend our time and focus choosing what WE want to do. I spend time focused on what I want to accomplish. Or what I want to buy. Or what I want to experience.
And sometimes, our choices lead to good things in life. Sometimes, we’re dealt a situation we wouldn’t have chosen. And sometimes, our choices get us in hot water.
But the main issue is that if we go through life only focused on OUR choices and desires, we’re limited to what WE can accomplish.
But as we’ve said already, God is calling us to DREAM BIGGER. He’s chosen us, consecrated us for his plan, and cherishes us as his children.
We’re TOGETHER set apart for his mission, and we’re TOGETHER cherished as his family. And we’re CALLED to operate as a family, TOGETHER.
[SLIDE 12] v16
And we see that in the last few parts of our passage. Paul tells us to teach each other and admonish each other. The word translated for teach means to be instructed on what to DO. So we’re supposed to help each other learn what to DO as followers of Jesus. That’s not just the pastor’s job, or the Leadership Team, or the Bible study leader.
We’re ALL called to teach each other, and help each other learn what to DO, how to participate in the good works that God has set out in front of us in advance, just like we talked about the last few weeks.
AND, we’re called to admonish each other. This word means to warn or counsel each other on what is not wise, what to STOP.
In other words, ALL of us are supposed to be helping each other on this journey of learning to follow Jesus with our whole lives.
[SLIDE 13]
That’s why we have as one of our core values as a church “We, not Me.” Because we know that following Jesus isn’t done alone. It’s a JOY to be transformed together for others. And we show this through love and care and teaching and helping each other, and by honoring one another to glorify God.
[SLIDE 14] v17
And that’s actually where Paul ends the passage as well. “Whatever you do, through speaking or acting, let it be done in the name of Jesus, pointing back to Jesus and his work, so that we can give thanks to God the Father through him.” – to give him glory.
Doing everything in the NAME of Jesus is just like any time a team gives a team cheer. When our football team is about to come back and score, we do it in the name of “Da Bears!”
William Wallace in Braveheart pumped up his men to fight “For Freedom!”
King Leonidas made sure all his soldiers knew they were fighting “For Sparta!”
And as followers of Jesus, Paul is encouraging us to do everything we do, everything we say, in the name of Jesus.
[SLIDE 15] blank
How would that influence our actions and behaviors? If we sat down and said we were “Eating lunch in the name of Jesus.” Would we be more mindful of how the food in front of us is a gift from God? Would we be more mindful and kind with waiters?
What if we made a phone call in the name of Jesus? Would that change how we speak to the other person, realizing they bear the image of God as well … that Jesus died to save them as well?
God chose you for THIS…he has chosen you to be a part of his family for his mission.
And we can CHOOSE to say “No, thank you.” We can choose to disobey and walk away from the life he is offering to us. But then we’re back to trying to figure out how to make life work for us, constantly unsure what our next step is and whether we’ll be able to take care of ourselves or the ones we love.
But if we accept God’s call, if we say YES to the fact that God has chosen us, then we get to grow in our obedience one small step at a time.
[SLIDE 16]
And every single time we get together, we always try and ask ourselves two of the most important questions for every Jesus follower: What is God saying to me and what is he inviting me to DO about it?
And if you’re paying attention, my sermons are normally my way of sharing MY answers to those two questions. I talk about the main theme that stands out to me from the passage, and then I give ideas for how we might respond to God’s invitation.
And this isn’t just for our own personal growth, but it helps us grow TOGETHER as a whole church family, because we were made for community like that. God actually designed us to learn and be formed by others, and to help others grow in the process.
And if the past few years taught us anything, it’s that we can’t go back to a life of sticking to ourselves. The pandemic and social unrest in our nation has taught us how much we NEED others.
And Jesus invites us into a FAMILY, TOGETHER.
[SLIDE 17] blank
We’re all invited to take next steps in our faith TOGETHER. Each of us, no matter where we are in our journey of following Jesus, each of us have a next step that he’s inviting us to take so that we can learn to trust him more, to be more bold for him, or even to learn how to participate in his work.
So I can’t tell you what YOUR next step is, but I do want to offer this as an idea for all of us. If it’s true that God has chosen us to be a part of his family and he’s inviting us to join him in his work of reconciling and redeeming everyone around us, then I would suggest we try and DO what the last verse says:
[SLIDE 18] v17
Whatever you do, in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Whatever you DO, do it in a way that points to Jesus. Do it in a way that highlights Jesus. Do it in a way that give thanks to God and lifts Jesus high.
[SLIDE 19]
How can I point one person to Jesus this week?
I don’t need to figure out how to save them, or lead them to Christ for the first time. I don’t need to mandate a huge long prayer. I don’t need to convince them to memorize a Bible verse. But what could I do that just points back to Jesus?
Because God has chosen us for this. He’s chosen us for his mission. And he’s calling us to Dream Bigger about the impact of our actions, especially when we join what Jesus is already up to around us.
[SLIDE 20] blank
When we join what Jesus is doing, he’s able to work through our actions in ways that are far more abundant than we could have imagined. He’s able to bring glory to God through our lives through even the simplest of things.
And this isn’t something that is put on us as a burden. This is isn’t Mission Impossible, where he gives us a mission, should we choose to accept it, and then says that if we fail, he’s going to disavow any knowledge of us.
God has already chosen us. He’s already forgiven us. And he’s already prepared in advance the ways we can join him in his work.
So don’t get lost in a big or HEAVY call…just ask Jesus which ONE person he’s inviting you to point to him this week. What name just popped into your head?
If it’s a member of God’s family already, someone who believes in Jesus, then maybe God is inviting you to point them to Jesus through encouragement or wisdom.
If it’s a stranger, maybe you can point them to Jesus by offering kindness and compassion.
If it’s a friend who isn’t a follower of Jesus, or doesn’t have a strong faith, maybe God is inviting you to point them to Jesus by just sharing patient love with them.
And if anyone presses in and asks why you’re acting in that way, you get to just say something like, “Because I’ve received love from Jesus, and I wanted to share that with you…”
This isn’t something to fear, or feel like its a heavy burden. Jesus’ yoke is easy, his burden is light. He’s prepared in advance the good works he’s called us to join him in.
We GET to let our words and actions be done in the name of Jesus, and that’s how we give thanks and glory to God.
[REFLECTION]
So what is God saying to you? What is standing out?
How is he inviting you to take a next step in obeying him? What is he inviting you to DO?
Let’s take this next minute or so to reflect on that so that we can join Jesus in his work this week.