AUGUST 29, 2021 SUNDAY MESSAGE
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Transcription (please disregard any errors):
Come on. Praise the Lord. Everybody. This is the day that the Lord has made. Let all the glad people rejoice in the Lord. Come on.
Make me feel at home.
Give God some praise. It feels good in here. If you would just do it a little louder. I really feel good. Come on. Let's give God our best right. Shout unto God.
Hallelujah, Hallelujah. It is the Lord's doing.
And it is marvelous in my eyes. I'm excited to be here today. Eric's been talking about wildfires, and the thing about wildfires is that they are uncontrollable, and it takes a lot to get them under control. And our praise should be uncontrollable. There's some things that the enemy brings our way. He's attacking us in various ways. But how many of us know that the garment of praise overtakes the spirit of Heaviness? So if you're heavy this morning, I just want you to give God your best praise.
Come on. Tell the Lord. Thank you.
Come on.
Give Him your best praise. In spite of all that we're going through, I'm excited to give God praise. Would you join me in a word of prayer?
Come on.
Lift your hands. God, we thank you for this day. We thank you for this time of sharing here at common ground northeast God. We need to be on fire for you that you've called us. You've blessed us. You've worked in our lives. And yet, God. Now we're examining what would a tactical approach look like to igniting our fires. Thank you for bringing this back on our radars. That as we've been blessed. God, you're calling us to be a blessing. And so now, God, I pray that the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart will be acceptable in your sight today.
This we believe you for in Jesus name. Amen. Well, it's good to be here again. Would you do me a favor? Give God a praise one more time. Turn with me to the book of Ephesians. I'm so glad to be here with my brother and friend, Pastor Eric, then Lady Emily and all of you. I feel comfortable today. So I'm just going to get right to the word of God. I'm excited to preach on this topic in Ephesians chapter two, beginning with verse one, we have these words in the new international version.
And as for you, look at your neighbor and say, yes, you that wasn't good enough. Look at them. Say yes, you. You were dead in your transgressions and sins and what you used to live when you followed the ways of the world and of the ruler of the Kingdom of the heir, the Spirit who is now at work. And those who are disobedient and all of us also lived among them. At one time, all of us gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts like the rest.
We were by nature deserving of wrath. But God. But because of His great love for us. God, who is rich in mercy. He made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions. It is by Grace that you have been saved and God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in heavenly in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of His Grace expressed in His kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
For again, it is by Grace that you have been saved, and it is through faith, and that is not from yourself. It is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast, for we are God's handiwork created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do just for a few minutes today, I want to talk to you about this subject. Yes, but are they still breathing? I believe that that's exactly a God's standard. When he determines is he going to invest.
Is he going to send you and is he going to send me those of us who have benefited from the saving
Grace of Jesus Christ, when God wants you and I to be in action and to have work and to go out and engage people, the only standard God has is, yeah, but are they still breathing? So watch this today. I try to be a good father. My wife and I have five kids. I don't know if I am or not, but I did get a barbecue grill for Father's Day, and it's one of those barrel grills man the fires on the bottom, and I've never used it.
But I'm going to break it out today whenever you do a cookout and you're trying to put that asparagus on there any asparagus fans in the room today. I got to have that asparagus and you had that selected meat. Nothing can happen unless you get the fire right until you get those colds, right. Nothing can happen. And you know, when you do a fire when I start a fire today, not all the colds have to be on fire. When you start a fire, you just need one or two of them to catch.
And the key to it is connection that even if you can get a few of them to be on fire, if you place them in such a manner that they're connected to one another and you're willing to wait, how many of us understand that eventually they'll all catch on because they are connected. You see, we can go from code to combustible if we're connected and in our evangelism and in our work for the Lord, the key to it is just being connected. Pastor Eric has been challenged us in the area of evangelism.
He's been tactical and he's given us some practical tools that will help you and I to be ignited and help us to get out there and be hot, as he says in doing the work and spreading God's love. And you and I need to be hot as we will discover the key. Here's my take on Evangelism, the key to Evangelism and telling others about the love of Jesus Christ and letting them feel the love of Jesus Christ. In my estimation, it can all be summed up in one word.
And that word is connection. That word is connection. That when you and I allow the God of the universe to use our willingness to be connected with those who are hurting, those who are broken, those who haven't felt his love, those who don't know about His saving Grace. It is our willingness to come outside of our comfort zones and establish connections. I'm going to take everybody to school. I'm going to give you a definition of connection. What does it mean to have a connection? I don't know if we have a slide up here or not.
Here's. Connection. Connecting with others is a sense of being. I think we got it. There's a blank. What would you put in that blank? Connecting to others here's? The cool part about it. Connecting with others is a sense of being. Somebody shout out, what would you put in that blank? Related. Okay. Anybody else? What are some of the key elements of connection? What would you put in that blank? Connecting with others is a sense of being blank to another person. Blatant. Blake. Okay. Being close to another.
That's really good. Being close. Empathetic empathetic. That's really good. That's the next slide. You're ahead of me. You're too good. You got my notes. Connecting with others is just really good. Really good. The definition of being connected says that connecting to others, the key in greeting is being open and available. That connecting with others is a sense of being open and available to another person. Here's. Key, even as you feel they are open and available to you. Let me give you the key ingredient. Now, there's a sense of reciprocity in here, though, when they're open and available to you.
And what we'll find out is that we're more comfortable connecting with people who are willing to connect with us, who are also open and available to us. There's a sense of reciprocity in that first definition. I'm going to give you this key one as well. But what we will find is that that's not God's
mandate is that God is open to people who are not open to Him and as believers in Christ. And as those who will be on fire for Jesus Christ, he's going to send us to some people and some places where people are not necessarily open to us, what we look like, what our history is, what our culture is.
And yet God still requires for you and I to show His love in those places. The standard for the believer is not necessarily reciprocity. Key ingredients of human connection are somebody helped me right there. She's already said one of them. What would you think? The key ingredient for human connection is it's two of them. Let me just make this easy. Somebody shout out one empathy, right?
Like she just said, it right. It is empathy and compassion. That the key ingredients of human connection, our empathy and compassion.
When we have an ability to go outside of ourselves and have a sense of goodwill for someone else and have a concern for their well being. Here's the working premise of my summer that whenever you and I establish and maintain Godly connections, we will all experience natural and spiritual progression. Let me get back to the text in our text today. In Ephesians chapter Two, Paul highlights the connection that God maintains with his children, even when you and I did not deserve it. In Ephesians two, Paul talks about a God who is, yes, open and available while also being empathetic and compassionate to people whose faith were not placed in Him, to people who were not regarding Him, to people who were in a bad season.
And yet does anybody rejoice that when we find ourselves in those places, God still maintains a connection with us. He loves us in spite of us. And we're here for just a few minutes. I'm going to give you five principles from the text that will help you and I to be on fire for God, and that if we do these five things, and if we recognize these five things in the text, we can be the type of person that Pastor Eric's been preaching about over the past three weeks.
There are five principles from the text that produce wildfires and that will cause the Gospel of Jesus Christ to be spread and cause you and I to be to run a leg on that relay. Number one is condition. You see, what Paul highlights in Ephesians chapter two is that these are people who had a disfavorable condition. And the Bible says that all of us, though, had this condition. We were all in this condition. We all had this experience. The Bible says that He's quickened us and made all of us alive who were dead in our transgressions and sins.
Whereas in times past, we all walked according to the course of this world. All of us had bad conversation. We were by nature, the children of wrath. And we all fulfilled the desires of the flesh. And when the enemy of our souls goes to God and says.
Look at their rap sheet.
Why would you love them?
Why would you send your son to save them? Look at who they are.
They're not worthy of your love.
They're not worthy of this investment. They're not worthy of this blood. God, look at their sheep. They're dead in their sins. They walk according to the course of this world. And when God wants to bless us, the enemy puts this in God's face and God's standard is, yes. It may be true of them. This may not be their stellar season. They may be underachieving. But my standard is yes. But are they still breathing? Because when you and I are still breathing, God is still investing in us.
And as believers, when we see people who don't measure up to our standards and we would diss them and we would shun them and we would walk on the other side of the street, we would want no part of them. God would say to us, yes, but are they still breathing? And if they're still breathing, I still love them. I still want to bless them. I still want to heal them.
I still want to move in their lives.
And I need you to operate with my same standard. Don't walk across the street. I know they're broken, but they're still breathing.
That's the standard, God says. Yeah, man. But are they still breathing? I was going to help one of my loved ones, and they had fallen way off the pace in life. And they were struggling. And I went to kind of hang out with them. And I didn't really want to. And they were doing bad. And when I went over, they were asleep. And I walked in the room and all I could hear was them breathing. And God says, if
they're still breathing, you still have a chance.
And the reason you're here is because I want to heal them. I want to lift them. If they're not dead, I'm not finished. I need you to agree with me. I need you to get over yourself. I need you to get past yourself. Because God's standard is not our standard for other people. God's standard is simply this. Yeah, but are they still grieving? Number two. So the first one is condition. We all share that condition. The second one is we're wanting to be on fire for God.
That when God saw people in this condition, he maintained a connection with them. And then number two, he took an action. And the Bible says all of this was true. And it is into this brokenness and this pain that God stepped in. And the Bible says, Somebody rejoiced with me. But God. And it's right there that God says, you know what? Nobody else thinks you're worthy, but I think you're worthy. Nobody else thinks you're worth it the time and the investment. It is right there that God took in action.
He stepped in. The Bible says, But God, who is rich in mercy for his great love were worth. He loved us even when we were dead in our sins. He made us alive because when God sees brokenness, he doesn't walk on the other side of the street. He maintains a connection. And then he employs an action. And this is the one I love. This is the one I love. This is number three. That that person that was broken, that that person that was hurting. God maintains a connection.
He performs in action. And then he gives them another position in life. Look at what the Bible says, that this is the person and God has raised us up together, that God did not leave us there.
That God did not walk on the other side of the street. That when God saw what we thought was disfavorable and unlovable. God said, I'm going to apply my blood. I'm going to give my love to that circumstance. And then whatever God touches can be healed. Whatever God touches can be loved. Whatever God touches can be lifted. And if you look at them next week, if you look at them next year, somebody rejoice with me. They'll be in a better position.
And he's made us sit together in heavy places. He gave us a promotion. He changed our positioning and those that we looked down on. Now we have to look up to whenever God is involved. Here we are. We had a condition. We were broken. And I may be talking to somebody this morning. I want to put this in that you look good today, but at home, you have a condition. You came to Church to common ground this morning and shot Eric up here. Jammer. Eric was jamming.
I was impressed. I didn't know he had it like that. He's about it. He's about it. And you're here, and you're struggling. And you have a condition. Even though you look good, you still need God to make an action. Employing action on your behalf behind the smiles. And God is not afraid. I should say of what's really wrong with you. He wants to lift you to another spiritual position, a position of healing. He said, Pastor, I'm breathing. And maybe you're here and you're breathing. But you're not doing much more.
I want to pray for you today. So he lifts us to another position. We had a condition. God maintained a connection employed in action. And now I'm just going to say it as a notorious B-I-G. Would say, doing better now. Gucci sweater now, right? You're doing better now. You bother. So now you've got a different position. And here's where it turns the corner pressure. Then God gives you insight to the global planning. The universal plan. Number four is projection. God says, here's what I'm trying to accomplish in the land.
I want to put you on my team, but I got to give you kind of the team agenda. Here's the global plan. I lifted you, and I want to lift everybody. And so number four is projection that in the ages to come, he might show the exceeding riches of his Grace and his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. This is why I lifted you. This is why I elevated you. This is why when other people Dawed you and walked past you and didn't think you were worthy, I still did.
Because I'm on a global mission and I want to save all of humanity. Number four is this projection that you and I are now privy to. We understand what God is doing in the land. It's a movement. It's not
an isolated incident. It's the Grace of God. It's the universal Grace of God that is moving on behalf of all of his children. And you and I have to be able to catch the fire and catch the vision that God is doing a global work. And then number five is inclusion.
That when I found you in a condition and maintained a connection, I took an action out of my love and out of my Grace. And now you're doing better. And now you have insight into what I'm trying to do globally is to invite you to be a part of it, that you can go from condition to inclusion. In fact, the reason that I maintained the connection is that I always hoped you be a part of it. And now wait a minute.
You are uniquely qualified because you, too, had a condition. And now you understand that there go, Ah, except for the Grace of God, that nobody is any better than anyone else. What represents the difference is just the Grace of God. And when you understand that, it's not you. It's not your education. It's not your intellect. It's not your talent. It's simply the Grace of God.
You might be more willing to go back in and help your brother. I want to tell you a story. And then I'm going to get out of here. A few years ago, I coached a basketball team. My oldest son, Kenneth, played basketball. I was coached and several people on the team. There was a family, a white family, Mary, Brad, Jimmy and Henry. Jimmy played on the team, and Mary was kind of a team mom. And they were all really cool. We developed over the years that our sons played together, kind of a family atmosphere about three years into our relationship.
One Friday night in 2009, before Mother's Day, I was at our Church because we had a roof League. I had to shout back, cleaning up this water, and I get a call from Mary saying, Ken, I wasn't their pastor. They knew me as coach, but we were very close and connected. They're watching now. In fact, she's like Henry's in the hospital, and he's not doing well. It's one of their sons, not the one who played for me, Jimmy. So I dropped the shot back like any good pastor would, right.
And I run to St. Vincent's Hospital on west ADC street in Indianapolis. And there I am in the middle of this setting, like an hour ago. I never dreamed this is the last person I thought I'd be yet that's the life of pastor. So I'm there in the middle of it, and we're praying, and we understand this prognosis. It's not very good. But we had all agreed to trust God. So that's Friday night. And then I think that's the 8 May or something. And then after Church, that following Sunday on Mother's Day, my heart goes out to Mary because we're really close.
And I decided at the Church to go back to St. Vincent's Hospital to visit her. Because who would want to go through this on Mother's Day? And whatever my presence could mean, I just wanted to throw something at it. But when I get there, Mary's not there. So now, of course, I'm off the hook. Right? So I can just go do my thing. I can hang. I tried, right? I tried to be a good pastor, try to be a good friend. So I'm on my way to the elevator.
And Mary's not there. And I did go in and visit with Henry. But Mary's not there. I see you. Same Vincent's Hospital. So before I can get on the elevator, God says to me, Mary's not here. But what about all of these other people in the ICU at St. Vincent's? And I was like, God, hold up. You are tripping. Please don't. Come on, guys. You are tripping this. No. I want you to go around and ask all these people. Can you pray for them? Hold on.
We got to negotiate. We got to talk here because I don't know them and they don't know me. Can I be 1000% transparent with the Church? Everybody in the ICU that day that I saw waiting was white, and I wasn't. I wasn't really comfortable, man. Right here's what I know about the ICU. If you're there your loved ones there, you're very serious. And God says, I'm telling you because you're hot. I need you to go pray for all of these people. So I go into this corner and contemplate.
I understand that God requires this of me, and he understands that I do not want to do it. But he wins. So I'm trying to here's my big dilemma. How do I approach them? Like, how do I do it? I'm not particularly good at hospital Ministry. Like, I'm going through all the reasons why I shouldn't do this. Gosh like I require this of you. So I go in the corner and I give him a little speech and I come out and I
say, okay, God, at 205, I'm going to do it.
Okay. Got it at two. Seven. I'm there, right? 215. I'm all the way in God, right? Because I don't have the nerve to do this. So I gave him a little speech together, and I just walk up to a family and I say something like, hey, excuse me. Don't mean to bother you. I'm Pastor Kin Rush, and I'm just out here today, and I was just wondering, I know you're here with your loved ones, supporting your loved ones. Anything I could do to be a blessing to your family.
And if I might pray for you or whatever, I'm hoping she says no. Right now. It's really cool right now. It's cool. It's cool. Don't worry about it. I can handle it. Noah's preferred. Actually, she says, sure. So I'm going to make a long story short. I'm black. They're all white. I'm like God. What's up? Black people don't get sick on Mother's Day. What's up? I don't know. But nobody's black. And I am long story short. For two and a half hours, I ministered at St.
Vincent's Hospital in the ICU, and nobody said no. Nobody said no. This one lady was so over the top, she's like, oh, Pastor Ken, God bless you.
Thank you for being here today.
Did we have an appointment? Because this is off the cup. And she takes me to ground zero to the bedside of her loved one and introduces me to all of her family. And so here's how I know without question that that was God, because two and a half hours later, when I finally found felt a release
from God to leave, I walked to the elevator. I pushed a button to go down like, okay, God, are you happy?
Right.
And when the doors open, Mary comes off the elevator, the lady that I came to see initially walks off the elevator, and so it goes full circle. And I know that it is God. At the time, I had no understanding. It was in retrospect, looking back at that over time, for years that I came to understand God and Evangelism. This was May 10. Henry would pass three days later, her son Henry. Most of these people had low life expectancy. But God's requirement is, yeah, but are they still breathing?
And so when I would get to the bedside, it was just simply a matter of are they still breathing? And over the years I look at that. And why was it that I was so hesitant because I did not understand there's a long list of reasons, my fear, just the sense that I was not qualified and missions and all of that as I closed. But because I didn't know them as people, I struggled to connect with them. And what I've learned since is if we look at people on the face value of who they are or who we think they are or who we think they should be and whether or not we should engage them, we will miss God.
In that moment. We will totally miss God. You see, what God was teaching me was even when you don't know them, you know their condition. And the connection is not always to who they are and where they are. It is that we all share the same condition. I too, have been in the ICU, and I understand that. And so if you have a human condition that you can connect to, it does not matter who the person is that's in that condition. Well, God bless you. That's the word of the Lord today.
Come on, let's give God pray. I want to pray. I told you earlier I would pray. I want to thank God for this opportunity. You and I should be on fire. And sometimes we're hot. And sometimes we're not. But when we look at the work that God has done in our lives and only you know where the Lord has brought you from. Only you know what he's saving you from secretly. And that should be motivation. But today, if you're here and you look good, but everything is not good.
I want to pray for you. If you have a particular need. I know this is a little different. This is how I flow. And you really want God to Minister to your circumstance. Would you just stand on your feet? Would you just lift your hands up toward heaven? God, we thank you for this day when we lift our hands. This is a universal sign of surrender. God, I'm admitting that I have a condition. God, I have a position and I still have a disfavorable condition. And now, God, I need to be connected to you in a way that you will
employ an action of love.
I need healing. I need forgiveness. My marriage needs work. God, there are things that are happening in my life and my career. And now God, here we are. God, I thank you that you have always maintained a connection. I've always known that you were there. It's never been you. It's always been me. And yet God, here I am. I lift my hands. The universal sign of surrender. And I'm simply saying that I surrender all.
And I need your love.
I need that love that Paul talked about in Ephesians chapter two. I need that Grace. I need to be a benefactor of that.
I need healing in ways that nobody else knows.
Only you know the tears.
Only you know what I'm struggling with. Only you know the areas that I need healing and redemption in and God only you know where I need forgiveness.
Would you touch us in a unique way? Would you let us feel your Grace? Would you let us feel your love? Would you touch us one more time? And, God, it is unquestionable that many times we have opportunities to show that we're connected to you, just like those coals on the grill. God, you're hot in anything.
And anybody that's connected to you should be hot as well.
Yet I admit this day that I am not. I should be. I could be. But I'm not. But I want to be. And now I know I need to be God. Would you make me hot? Would you restore my home? Would you restore my marriage? Would you restore my faith? Would you bless common ground? Would you bet? Pastor Eric and Sister Emily? God, we want to be hot. We want there to be an uncontrollable spread of your love. And we want to be included in that. This we believe you're for in Jesus name.
Amen and Amen. God bless you.
COMMUNION:
(1 COR. 11:23B-26)
“The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
PRAYER REQUESTS:
We are hosting prayer team meetings for both the congregation at large and individuals to sign up for individual prayer.
SUGGESTIONS FOR WORSHIP:
“Praise & Worship” Spotify playlist and “Praise & Worship” YouTube playlist (slightly different from each other), both of diverse music that are being constantly updated!
Bethel Music :
Bethel Music’s hours of live music YouTube Playlist, also being constantly updated
Bethel provides chords to most (if not all) of their songs here (just have to register email, but free!)
Live worship moments from the Upper Room YouTube Playlist
Journal writing! (I’m a writer too, so sometimes creative writing and writing my thoughts to God is my form of worship.)
Declare and worship with truth by singing and praying scriptures.
WORSHIP NIGHT! Dedicate a night to worship with friends and family, your house church or neighbors, those who need prayer, love worship, or just enjoy music through a video chat platform like Zoom. You can have one person leading at a time (switching off to whoever else wants to lead) while others sing along, pray, or prophesy, etc.
Serving your community, both online, in person, or both, is a great way to worship God, from spreading encouragement and God’s Word online to physically serving food to others. If you are able to go out and serve, click here for opportunities.
COMMISSIONING:
As Jesus said in John 20:21,
"Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you."
Go, be the Church!
In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Amen.