Jesus Wants to Use You |08.18.24| Dream BIGGER pt1
Ephesians 2:1-10
Pastor Drew Williams
It’s been said that there are two types of people you will encounter in life. The dreamers and the realists. Both types of people have strong convictions and beliefs, and both types of people generally are trying to make the most of what life has to offer them.
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I wonder which you would consider yourself? You don’t have to speak it outloud or anything, but would you consider yourself a dreamer or a realist? Would you say that you are constantly optimistic and believing that you can push farther than you ever have before? Or are you more focused on making wise decisions based on the facts you have so that you can sustain what you’ve built?
Some of you probably even cheated right now and said, “I’m both. I’m the best of both worlds!”
Well, regardless of where you classify yourself in your life, we are starting a new series this week called Dream Bigger: God’s Plan for Your Future. We’re going to look at where God is calling our church to follow him in this next season, and the leadership team and Pastor Erik and I have been hard at work trying to discern how we can best join in with where Jesus is leading us.
So I’m very excited to share with you over these next few weeks where I feel God is inviting us to dream bigger and join in with the work that he’s doing. But I also feel like this series will be helpful to you in your personal life as well, because we’re going to look at how God is calling EACH of us to follow him.
As I’ve often said, “If you’re still breathing, God still has a plan for you!”
And so I’m looking forward to sharing today’s message with you, because we’re going to look at the reason why followers of Jesus can experience the most happiness, how to immediately understand God’s will for you, and how our church will be a force of transformation for the whole Sauk Valley over the next few years.
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So please open your Bibles with me to Ephesians chapter 2, which can be found on p??? Of the NT in the black, seat-back bibles. And as you are finding it, this part of scripture that we will be reading comes in the middle of a letter from Paul, one of the main early church leaders. This letter was written to all the churches in the area around Ephesus, a city Paul had spent two years in.
Paul had started the church in Ephesus on one of his journeys, just by meeting people, talking about the joy he has because of Jesus, and then naturally teaching people more and more about Jesus. And that message has spread to more and more people, including people that Paul never met in person.
So he’s writing this letter to help make sure that everyone understands the fullness of the truth of the good news of Jesus, rather than letting a game of telephone from one group of believers to the next and to the next warp the message.
And so, in some ways, this is Paul’s letter written to US. To you and me. To people who are following Jesus that he never met in real life, so it’s exceptionally helpful to understand the full good news of Jesus in just a few short pages.
He starts the letter with the normal set of greetings and well-wishes, and then he talks about how grateful he is for how he has heard about the faith of all of you, and he remembers you in his prayers. And then he dives right in with what we will read together…
[EPH 2:1-10]
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For anyone who likes direct communication, Paul is your guy. “You were dead.” Wow, he’s just finished talking about how grateful he is for their faith, and then he says how grateful he is for the resurrection of Jesus, and then he starts our passage with WHY he is grateful, “You were DEAD through the trespasses and sins in which you once walked.”
And as Paul continues to explain, we see that in his view, our way of life before Jesus was a death-type of life. If I was preaching this message ten years ago, we’d be talking about the TV show the Walking Dead. If this message was in October, we’d be talking about the Living Dead and zombies.
My favorite description is from the classic movie, The Princess Bride, when Miracle Max declares Westley to be only “mostly dead.” He says, “There’s a big difference between mostly dead and all dead. Mostly dead is slightly alive. With all dead, well, with all dead there’s usually only one thing you can do, which is to go through his clothes and look for loose change.”
Now, our culture seems to have a fascination with death. There are always movies and stories about ghosts, or what happens after death. Or how to cheat death and live forever.
But all that is final, because we know that dead is dead. Death is final. Period. Full stop.
And that’s what Paul was saying to these new believers. There was no escaping death for you before. In fact, you were already dead. “Dead man walking, on the way to the end.”
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And not to make you feel demeaned or talked down to, he continues, “All of us were like that! We weren’t in control of our lives. We were slaves to our senses. Hungry? Find something to eat. Tired? Lay down. Feeling mad? Yell at someone to make yourself feel better. Feeling lonely? Figure out what you can GET from someone to fill you up.
And what kind of life is that? That’s no life at all. The only focus is ME and the only hope is ME and the only protection is ME and there’s no way to fend off the end.
And you might disagree. You might say, “But Pastor Drew, there’s LOTS of good things in life. Our family, the work we accomplish, sunsets, a good meal. What about all of that?!
And you’re right, life isn’t bleak from a moment to moment basis for most people. But Paul is trying to make the point that we weren’t created just to be filled up with a good meal or a job well done. And all of us know what he means because, no matter how many good meals we have, no matter how many good days of work we accomplish, NONE of them leave us feeling, “Well, my life is now complete! That’s everything I could have ever wanted.”
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The Jewish King Solomon, the richest and most powerful king Israel ever had wrote in the book of Ecclesiates that he used his great wisdom and his great riches and his great power to try and find true happiness, but everything eventually failed him.
Instead of putting this on the screen, just listen as I read his words about his search:
I said to myself, “Come now, I will make a test of pleasure; enjoy yourself.” But again, this also was meaningless. 2 I said of laughter, “It is mad,” and of pleasure, “What use is it?” 3 I searched with my mind how to cheer my body with wine…and how to lay hold on folly, until I might see what was good for mortals to do under heaven during the few days of their life. 4 I made great works; I built houses and planted vineyards for myself; 5 I made myself gardens and parks and planted in them all kinds of fruit trees. 6 I made myself pools from which to water the forest of growing trees. 7 I bought male and female slaves and had slaves who were born in my house; I also had great possessions of herds and flocks, more than any who had been before me in Jerusalem. 8 I also gathered for myself silver and gold and the treasure of kings and of the provinces; I got singers, both men and women, and delights of the flesh, many concubines.[a]
9 So I became great and surpassed all who were before me in Jerusalem; also my wisdom remained with me. 10 Whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them; I kept my heart from no pleasure, for my heart found pleasure from all my toil, and this was my reward from all my toil. 11 Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had spent in doing it, and again, all was meaningless and a chasing after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun.
If all we have to hope for in life is what WE can do and what WE can ensure and what WE can experience, it’s a pretty small existence. And Paul simply calls it what it is: death.
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You were dead in the way you used to live your life, as we all did, “BUT. GOD intervened!”
God, who is RICH in mercy – he has abundant storehouses full to the top of mercy. Out of the great LOVE with which he loved us. He’s got so much love, as one song-writer put it, “if his love is an ocean, we’re all sinking.”
But God, because of his mercy and love…EVEN when we were already DEAD… God made us alive together with Christ.
Paul is saying that when God raised Jesus from the dead, he included us in that process. Doing for us something we could never do for ourselves. Do you know why we could never raise ourselves from the dead?
Because dead things can’t DO things. Dead things can’t do anything.
Dead things just lay there. Dead things decompose. Dead things pass on and other things take over. Dead things get forgotten. Dead things get thrown out. Until…Jesus.
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It’s not because of something you did to earn it, but it’s because of God’s grace that you have been saved from the death-life you used to live, “and now you have been raised up with Jesus and given a seat, a spot, with Jesus in the heavenly places – in the LIFE that available in the kingdom of God.”
And Paul isn’t talking about LATER ON in some other “place” called heaven, because he goes on to explain that the reason God did this was so that he could love you for eternity.
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“God did this SO THAT in the ages to come he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace. How much is immeasurable? I don’t know! It’s SO MUCH you can’t measure it!”
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And then Paul picks up the thread he started a few verses ago to remind us that God didn’t do it because of anything WE did. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the GIFT of God – not the result of works, so that no one may boast.”
No matter how much of a “good person” someone is. No matter how many charities someone supports. No matter how excellent their church attendance sheet is, God didn’t save you because of something you DID. He saved you, he saved ME, because of who HE is. He saved us because he loves us and he wants to keep showing us his love and kindness for all eternity.
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And if that doesn’t fill you with incredible joy and happiness, then you must not realize how much your life without Jesus is actually death. Maybe you don’t realize that all your work and effort isn’t actually going to be able to secure anything for you in your life. At least, nothing that isn’t temporary.
Sometimes, people will have a near-death experience and that will wake them up to how grateful they are for life. Or people will experience a strong sickness that takes them out of commission.
I just had this happen to me this week. And this is a silly example, but it’s fresh on my mind, and I definitely was paying attention that on the week I was preparing THIS message, I was diagnosed with walking pneumonia.
At first, I did what every guy my age does, I drank more water, had an extra coffee, and tried to muscle through it. But each night, I couldn’t sleep for more than an hour or two at a time, and whenever the fever would break, I would have to change the sheets because they were soaked with my sweat.
My body ached in every joint. My headache was excruciating. I didn’t want to eat. I didn’t want to move. I didn’t want to sit.
I know, I was a big baby. And it was like I was the walking dead. I was of no use to Megan with the kids. I couldn’t even go visit Emmy’s new kindergarten teacher with her. And I had to cancel multiple meetings with people I was really looking forward to spending time with.
It’s okay, you can say, “AW.”
The point I’m trying to make is that I felt like death. And then GOD, in the riches of his mercy and out of the great love with which he directed doctors and scientists to develop antibiotics, allowed me to get prescribed a z-pack.
And let me tell you. Within an hour, I felt myself being raised up out of my dire state and seated back into the land of the living. I still have a lingering cough, and my ribs hurt from all the coughing, but I feel alive again.
I know that’s a silly example, but many of you know what I’m talking about. Because now that I feel better again, all of a sudden, I’m grateful for all the joy in my life. Now that I feel better, I don’t want to waste any more time scrolling on my phone or zoning out. I want to have experiences with my family. I want to press in deeper to the heart of God. I want to make sure everyone I know is able to know that Jesus loves them so much that he wants to rescue them out of death and bring them into his life!
Getting better wasn’t due to anything that I have done. And being saved by Jesus isn’t because of anything I have done. But it’s allowed me to DREAM again. And I think that dreamers should be the best doers. And I think Paul thinks so, too.
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“For we are what God has made us to be, created in Christ Jesus FOR GOOD WORKS, which God prepared beforehand so that we may walk in them.”
We have been rescued out of death, not so that we can twiddle our thumbs until the afterlife, but so that we can join Jesus in his work in THIS life! And we don’t have to come up with whatever we think we need to do to earn God’s favor, he’s already taken care of that! He already has lavished his favor and grace and kindness on us, AND he’s prepared the good works in advance for us to do.
Just like how my wife sets out my daughter’s outfit the night before. Emmy is invited to join in with the work, but it’s already been set out.
Just like how a teacher puts a worksheet on every kid’s desk. The students get to engage in the learning and the work, but it’s been set out by the teacher.
Just like how you and I get to ask God, “Who have you put in my path today that I get to show love to?” Just like how we get to ask God, “What is something you’re inviting me to do today?”
And, again, it’s not something that is up to US. Here’s how Paul finishes the letter:
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“Now to him, who, by the power at work within US, is able to accomplish ABUNTANTLY FAR MORE than all we can ask or imagine, to HIM be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”
It’s God’s power that raised Jesus from the dead, and it’s that same power and brought us into new life. And it’s HIS power that is able to accomplish WAAAY more than we could ever imagine.
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And so, when I tell you that God has prepared some work for you to do to join him in, what I’m saying is, DREAM BIGGER.
You might not realize that engaging in a spiritual habit with your church family like the 21 Days of Prayer might be the time that God brings some new fruit of the spirit in your life.
You might not realize how the quiet, consistent involvement in a church family is constantly speaking to those watching and can be what GOD uses to spark a hunger in someone’s life.
You might not realize how that 15th invitation to a friend, after all the times they’ve said “no thanks,” or “sure, someday,” – the FIFTEENTH one might be the one that changes eternity for them because it sets them on a path of accepting Jesus.
God is calling us to DREAM BIGGER. Not bigger gestures, but bigger impact. Not bigger effort, but bigger faithfulness to asking for HIM to show you what he’s laid out for you that day and then obediently walking in it.
If you’ve ever wondered what God’s will for you is, he has a simple answer for you, and its for you to do what he tells you to do TODAY. And then the next day. And then the next day.
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That’s what our whole church’s mission is built around. We exist to strengthen families and individuals by helping them become transformed by Jesus, together, for others.
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And you might ask me, Pastor Drew, HOW can we BECOME transformed by Jesus, together, for others? Everything we do as a church is actually trying to help you and me spend time with Jesus and his church through spiritual habits.
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Because we know that when we spend time with Jesus, the Holy Spirit works in us to transform us to BECOME more like Jesus in how we think feel and act. It’s truly as simple and as mysterious as that. God works through these habits that Jesus gives to us.
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And then as we grow in the fruit of the spirit, as we experience more love, more joy, more peace, more patience, more kindness, more generosity, more faithfulness, more gentleness, more self-control…as God grows that in us, we will naturally join Jesus in his work for the sake of others.
And I know that this can be difficult, because we live in a world that is still full of so much death. And it’s easy to get pulled BACK into old habits. It’s easy to get bogged DOWN by the culture around us. It’s easy to think BACK to when it felt easier and not be sure how to move forward.
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But the people of God are people who GO. Forward, not backwards. And our church was started with that relentless focus on pursuing Jesus, no matter what it meant they had to leave behind.
And the mission of our church remains the same. We want every single man, woman, and child in the Sauk Valley to have a daily interaction with a follower of Jesus, so that as many people as possible come to know Jesus as their savior, and not just as a curse word. And that can only happen if we’re living our faith out in our daily lives.
And so, Pastor Erik and I and the leadership team, we’ve been trying to dream bigger. We’ve set some audacious goals for ourselves as a church. Here’s a few:
In the next three years, we want to see 500 people in discipling relationships with each other. That means that you have someone that points you to Jesus regularly, and you point them to Jesus regularly. And that can happen in the context of our Sunday gatherings, but it’s probably going to happen more with the relationships you have outside of church as God makes it clear who he’s put in your path.
Many of you already have this type of relationship with someone or in your life group or in a Bible study you’re a part of, and that’s great. We’re just dreaming bigger to see Jesus working in even more lives.
Because New Life is a place where EVERYONE is called to be involved. Where ALL of us are invited to grow as apprentices of Jesus’ way of life.
So hear me when I plead with you: don’t miss it. Don’t just skirt around the edge of church community. Don’t just get a taste and then head back to the rest of your segmented life.
Step in. Step up. Get involved. If you’re already in a group, or already serving somewhere, turn around and invite someone else in as well. If you’re not involved anywhere, get involved!
Because God is inviting you. His mission only happens through us! Isn’t that crazy? He actually is DEPENDING on YOU! His mission, of spreading the news and inviting the world to follow Jesus, was designed from the beginning to be done through YOU.
God WANTS to use you! He wants to GROW you. He wants to transform you, and your family, so that you can see life transformation. So that you can see your community changed. So that we can see Jesus lifted up across the whole Sauk Valley. He wants to use you!
And we are a people who are called to DREAM BIGGER, because God is the one who is at work in us and through us. So can you imagine what it could look like in the next few years for our church family?!
In the next ten years, I see how God could work through New Life to reach 1000 families and individuals and invite them into the journey of becoming apprentices of Jesus.
That means hundreds of marriages strengthened. That means hundreds and hundreds of people who make friends who feel like family, who can be there for them in the highs and the lows.
That means hundreds and hundreds of kids growing up in healthier homes and surrounded by many many church uncles and aunts and grandparents and friends, because New Life family is a tangible expression of the arms of love of God.
Don’t you want that for your family? For your friends? Dream Bigger! Because God is inviting us to join him in this!
I see us needing to sacrifice our generous leg room so that we can fit more chairs in here because of all the people who are hungry to spend time with Jesus.
I see us needing to find more space to hold all the kids and teens who God is entrusting to our care. The kids and teens in your families. On your streets.
I see us being the church who helps grow leaders in our community, by helping YOU grow in your giftings so that you are doing even bigger things and making an even bigger impact in your home, in your neighborhood, with your extended family, in your workplace.
I see us becoming known as the church who is relentlessly focused on strengthening families.
I see our church being known as the church who is making a difference in our community.
Because I think God is leading the way. And I KNOW that he can do miracles, because look at how he can bring LIFE out of death. And he has promised to accomplish ABUNDANTLY far more than we could even ask or imagine, so I’m going to DREAM BIGGER and I’m going to follow him.
One day at a time. One step at a time. One small act of obedience at a time.
And I pray that you will join in with this, too.