Get Committed Part 5

 

This message was preached at Word Of Grace Church on January 29th 2023  by Colin D'Cruz. For the audio & video please click here. To listen to the worship please click here.

GET COMMITTED - PART 5

Matthew 28:18-20 “And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."” - Matthew‬ ‭28‬:‭18‬-‭20‬ ‭ESV‬‬

You and I, if we are believers, we live under the highest orders by the highest authority to go and make disciples. We also spoke about the different stages of growth as a believer- seeker, infant, child, young adult and parents (mothers and fathers) 

An infant's life is characterized by ignorance. As a child, however, there is some growth and began to read their bible.  They are only concerned with themselves, their comfort and well being. They are not committed to serving even though they might do some things. Young adults have grown spiritually and have moved from being self-centred to others centred. They have grown in maturity and progress. They are committed to serving. Fathers and Mothers not just care for people but give birth to people through the gospel. These are the four discipleship stages. It will be good to assess where you are and see how you can grow. Children will always think they’re adults, so you need others also to speak into your life and progress in the area of growth. The focus should be on growing. 

There are milestones in our journey. We looked at 3 milestones: 

1. Personal worship

2. Public worship

3. Heart worship

You will find more on these in part 2 of the series. 

4. Being part of a small group: when you are a part of a church, you are not a part of an organisation, you’re a part of an organism. During the week we meet in small groups where we get to know people at a more deeper level - to care and share, to challenge and support, to confide and confess, to rejoice and weep, and to be accountable to each other. Personal growth does not happen in isolation, it happens in the community. Where do we find small groups in the Bible? “And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts,” ‭‭- Acts‬ ‭2‬:‭46‬ ‭ESV‬‬. At Word of Grace we have a few gyms ( house groups). We are starting an online gym for people who are unable to make it to any of the gyms. Over the years our small groups have cared for one another very well. 

5. Loving one another: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this, all people will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another."”‭‭ - John‬ ‭13‬:‭34‬-‭35‬ ‭ESV‬‬. “We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.” - ‭‭1 John‬ ‭3‬:14-‭15‬ ‭ESV‬‬. Love is expressed in connecting with one another. We’ve got to be people who are loving one another. Let’s connect with one another intentionally. 

1. Love involves practising hospitality. One of our key values is to express love through offering hospitality. Whether you are married or single you can be hospitable. Let’s be biblical. 

2. Having authentic relationships - to have deep friendships. The Bible has 51 or more one another’s. Practising those is showing love to one another. We are not perfect but we’re making an effort to grow. 

6. Obey the word of God: “"If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”‭‭John‬ ‭14‬:‭15‬ ‭ESV‬‬. A growing disciple is one who is feeding on the word, meditates on the word and is transformed through obeying the word. This should be happening on a regular basis. “For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.” ‭‭James‬ ‭1‬:‭23‬-‭25‬ ‭ESV‬‬. You want to be blessed. Read the word and do what it says. Sometimes culture is very different from what the Bible says. But we need to adjust our life to reflect the word of God. 

7. Servanthood: “Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came up to him with her sons, and kneeling before him she asked him for something. And he said to her, "What do you want?" She said to him, "Say that these two sons of mine are to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom." Jesus answered, "You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?" They said to him, "We are able." He said to them, "You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father." And when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers. But Jesus called them to him and said, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles Lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."”‭‭Matthew‬ ‭20‬:‭20‬-‭28‬ ‭ESV‬‬. This is the principle of the kingdom. The way to greatness is through serving. If you want to be first, you have to be a slave. Jesus modelled it himself and calls us to follow him in the same way. If you want any form of public ministry, you have to serve and become a servant. Those who wash the feet of the saints have the privilege of leading them. We are talking about sacrificial serving. We are here to serve the body of Christ and be servants. This is a value that is held in high esteem by Jesus and by us. If you want to progress in your spiritual life, serve. We all have a role and a function in Word of Grace. You can’t be part of a body if you don’t have a function. It would not serve any purpose. 

8. Mission: Jesus came to earth and after dying on the cross and resurrecting, he says in John “Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you."”‭‭John‬ ‭20‬:‭21‬ ‭ESV‬‬. Our mission is to proclaim the gospel. “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence, earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” ‭‭Revelation‬ ‭20‬:‭11‬-‭15‬ ‭ESV‬‬. This is the reality of our future without Jesus. The moment you trust Jesus you know your name is written in the book of life. The second death is forever and there is no escape. If anyone here has not put their faith in Jesus, today is the day of salvation. Our mission is to share the gospel with love and gentleness. That is what we are called to do till the end of time. 

We have looked at 8 discipleship milestones. As we mature, we can do these at a much deeper level. As a new Christian, you would’ve spent 5 mins with the word. As you mature, you want to spend 30 mins etc. we grow in our depth and capacity of doing them.

 Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again),  Spirit-filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English-speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that has people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service.  Word of Grace is a part of a wider international family of Churches called RegionsBeyond.To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org.  

The Church Of Christ Was Born

This message was shared by Lasya D'Cruz on 19th March 2020. It answers the question why should we do church and what should life be post resurrection. Life just begins at the cross, it does not halt there.

1 In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2 until the day when he was taken up after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3 He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.

4 And while staying with them, he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

6 So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” 9 And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.

When you say what were the last words of Jesus on the earth, many think about His words on the cross. But if “it is finished” are the last words of Jesus, we have no reason to continue meeting like this. The reason we do what we do today is that he did rise again on the third day and appeared to many people over a course of 40 days.

The passage we will be looking at today is from a book which has historically been the most relied on for strategies on how to do church. Bill Hybels said the local church is the hope of the world. The book of Acts is a blueprint – it is both prescriptive and descriptive because there were some things in this book that are not going to happen again, like the Ascension of Jesus. But most of it is prescriptive. The book is written by Dr. Luke as an extension of the gospel of Luke.

These are the beginnings - of the birth of the body of Christ – the church. So what in fact were the last words of Jesus?

4 things Jesus addressed in his last few days with the disciples- these are the 4 P’s:

1. The proof

a. Why did Jesus bother proving that it was Him and that he was indeed alive? Think about how the disciples were behind closed doors, afraid and self-arrested. Jesus, in his kindness gave them these proofs – to give them sufficient confidence. He entered a locked room, he showed them His wounds, he ate and drank with them.

AW Tozer says “If you have to be reasoned into Christianity, some wise fellow can reason you out of it!

 If you come to Christ by a flash of the Holy Spirit so that by intuition you know that you are God's child, you know it by the text but you also know it by the inner light, the inner illumination of the Spirit, and no one can ever reason you out of it.”

Proof is for the purpose of witnessing whereas communion is to build faith.

b. Communion with Jesus is the only way we will build faith. There is no counterfeit to the confidence we gain from simply communing with Jesus. “When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight.”

Luke 24:30-31 ESV

2. The Promise –

a. Jesus mentioned numerous times about this helper, comforter who will be given to us and his command was to wait for the promise.

b. Gal 3:18 and 29 talk about the promise of inheritance.

c. Matthew Henry says it like this – “Temporal good things are given by Providence, but the spirit and spiritual blessings are given by promise”.

d. The Father gives the gift, but Jesus is the baptiser, he executes it and the Holy spirit himself is the gift. So if you have not received the holy spirit, let this be your time of waiting on God. All his promises are yes and amen.

e. What does waiting look like? Acts 1:14 – they continued in one accord to pray. My experience of receiving the Holy Spirit.

3. The power

a. What is peculiar about this promise is that it gives us power. Do we really need it? I am convinced that Jesus is Lord.

b. Imagine you walk into an antique shop and spot a 100 year old beautiful lamp. You bring it home and it doesn’t work, you get a bulb, rewire it and set it up on a coffee table. It is still not working. Why is that? It needs power. That is how important the power of the Holy Spirit is for us to reflect Christ.

c. IS the Holy Spirit relevant for today?

i. John 14:26 – He brings to remembrance everything that Jesus taught

ii. John 16:13-14 – glorify Jesus by taking what is Jesus’ and declaring it to us

iii. John 16:13 – Tell us what is to come.

So he has the past, present and future covered. The Holy Spirit is always going to be relevant!

4. The purpose

a. What qualifies us to do ministry? I am no theologian or pastor, can I share the gospel?  Yes, because I have tasted and seen! I am a witness. The power comes with a purpose and the purpose is always to glorify Christ because the Holy spirit glorifies Him.

b. The choosing of Christ is always followed by his charge. Mark 13:34-35 “It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. Therefore stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning—”

c. If you do not know what your calling is, go back to the last assignment Jesus has given every believer- ends of the earth have not yet been reached. So that’s a great place to start!

So in these confusing times, what can we really rely on? Our jobs, our health, our finances, or the Promise of the Father? Let us use this time to really wait well and apprehend the promises of God in our life and be witnesses.

Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again),  Spirit-filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that has people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service.  Word of Grace is a part of a wider international family of Churches called RegionsBeyond.To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org. 

The Future Will Write Your History | Navaz D Cruz

This message was preached by  Navaz D'Cruz at Word of Grace Church on  January 6th 2019. To listen/download the audio please click here. To listen to the Sunday's worship and prophetic contributions please click here.

THE FUTURE WILL WRITE YOUR HISTORY

INTRODUCTION

I have a message, the burden of which has been increasingly growing in my heart as each year goes by. This year I have felt that God has laid this as a prophetic message for Word of Grace and maybe even beyond.

I believe there is something in this message for everyone – a new believer, a not so young Christ follower and a seasoned Christian like myself.

This is also in line with the series that Colin is taking us through but coming from a different angle.

TEXT

Proverbs 29:18  Where there is no revelation/vision, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom's instruction.

 2 Tim 4: 7-8 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

Phil3:12 -
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me

The title of my message today is this : The Future will write your history.

What will it say about you?

 Last Sunday we heard about Jim Elliot. The whole of Christendom knows about him. His famous quote is “ He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot loose!”

Such amazing passion, dedication and fixed focus. We may never become a Jim Elliot and that does not disqualify us or excuse us from living with purpose, passion and a perspective that ends in eternity.

What legacy will you leave behind? You will leave one behind either unintentionally or by design.

To answer that question we first need to recognize that:

1.    We were created on purpose for a purpose.

 A creator who has a design in mind created you.  You are not here by chance or by an accident. You are not a mistake.

Psalm 139:14-15 13For You formed my inmost being;

You knit me together in my mother’s womb.14I will praise You,for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Eph 1:11 -In him we were also chosen,^[e] having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will,

Eph 2:10 ¹⁰ For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

This is critical to your purpose. Unless you are reconciled to your creator, you will never be free from a useless existence and be able to begin to live this purposeful life and fulfill your God given destiny here on the earth.

As Christians, we too can live like this – carelessly, without vision/purpose and a revelation of why we are here on the Earth.

Being saved is only just getting off the starting block of this eternal relay we are all running in. How then do we run this race? Many Christians sadly have lost their first love; their hearts have grown cold, distracted with the cares of this world. One day we will have to give an account for how we have lived.

 1 Cor 3:12 If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw, 13his workmanship will be evident, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will prove the quality of each man’s work. 14If what he has built survives, he will receive a reward. 15If it is burned up, he will suffer loss. He himself will be saved, but only as if through the flames.

Proverbs 23:4 warns us not to wear ourselves out in trying to get rich.

2.    The second issue is sustainability.

Finishing strong is vital. Can we keep the fire burning after 2 years, 5 years, 10 years twenty 40?

If I do not stay connected and rooted in Jesus my spiritual fervour, can wither off and die.

3.    Building a legacy is in God’s DNA.

 Apart from the fact that God created you for a purpose, we need to understand the character and nature of God. He has put the same DNA in us as we are “His image bearers”.

We have been created to create, care for and contribute to the earth.

The command that God gave Adam to steward and multiply still holds good today.

We are still commanded to create and care and contribute. This has to do with every area of our life: personal, at work, in the home, our marriage, children, neighbourhood, our material possessions, our spiritual life, church community.

Jesus spoke a lot about stewardship and multiplication. Just look at the parable of the talents, the wise manager etc etc. God is always looking for ROI( return on investment)

It is there in Genesis and is there is Revelation 22:12"Look, I am coming soon, bringing my reward with me to repay all people according to their deeds. 

Colossians 3:23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ, you are serving.

More than 40 verses talk about rewards. Look it up. This must be important.

Before we get it twisted. We know that we have been saved by grace.

We have not been saved by works bur for works

We function from acceptance not for acceptance

We lives from the identity of sons and not to get identity

We have been blessed so that we can bless

We live from victory and not for victory

When we know our identity, we will know our destiny.

SO NOW WHAT?

 What version of Christianity will your children or grandchildren enjoy because of what you invested into the kingdom?

Will it be a diluted version or even better than what you have known and experienced.

Our ceiling should be the floor that the next generation stands on. Legacy builders think about the quality of their life not so that they can enjoy a good life on earth but so that generations after them can reap the fruit of it too. Are you a legacy builder?

Mature sons and daughters in the house of God will learn to broaden their shoulders and be burden bearers rather than be a burden.

When we know that, we are children of God bought at a high price we will realize that our lives are about stewardship and not entitlement.

This is a difference between stewardship and Entitlement. Which column do you have more ticks?

STEWARDSHIP – A child of God with good identity	ENTITLEMENT- A child of God with poor identity.
Surrendered life	Self-centered life
Seeks to serve	Wants to be served
Contributors	Consumers
Gratitude	Feels entitled
Wants to please God	Wants God to please them
Blesses others	Seeks to be blessed
Generous	Stingy
Multiplies resources	Depletes resources
Giving	Demanding
Involved	Disconnected
Submitted	Independent
Handles resources in a kingdom way	Handles resources in a self-indulgent way
Others oriented	Self-focused
Satisfied	Always needy
Dependable	inconsistent

Word of Grace can be like a greenhouse- as long as you are in this church you thrive spiritually or may appear to thrive.

This is because the external environment is influencing you and acting upon you. But if you move away from WOG will you continue to burn hot for Jesus?

How much you internalize of the values you enjoy at WOG depends on your capacity to absorb and put into practice and make it your DNA.

You have to forge your own history with God.

Everyone’s character will be put to the test in the crucible of crises. Will you come out as pure gold?

This, will be tested when the storms of life hit us and they will. Will we be like the wise builder or the foolish one?

My prayer is that we like Paul will be able to say I have fought the good fight, I have run the race and now there waits a crown for me.

HERE ARE SOME KEYS THAT WILL HELP IN YOUR LEGACY BUILDING.

1.    PRESENCE – I cannot emphasize this more. That is why the first phrase in our tag line is Enjoying God. Apart From Him, we can do nothing. We need to stick close to Jesus every day. Practice his presence as a lifestyle.

"Relying on God has to start all over everyday, as if nothing has yet been done."  –C. S. Lewis

2.    PROVIDENCE – Know that God’s favour rests upon you. He is your provider and will give you more than you can ask or imagine. “God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s supplies.” –Hudson Taylor

3.    PERSPECTIVE – Do not live just for today or for the next 5 years. Where do you see yourself when you are 70? Where do you see yourself in eternity? "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose." –Jim Elliot

4.    PURPOSE – Do not be a drifter. Before you know it, 5 years have done by ad you will have little to show for it. Have goals. IF you fail to plan, you will plan to fail. Have goals personal, professional, family, spiritual. God is interested in all of our lives “Our greatest fear should not be of failure but of succeeding at things in life that don’t really matter.” –Francis Chan

5.    PASSION – Put your might behind everything you do. Do it as unto God. “If you can’t fly, then run, If you can’t run, then walk, If you can’t walk, then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving forward.” –Martin Luther King Jr.

This passion can only be sustained and fueled, in the presence of God.

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters,” Col3:23

1Cor 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them— yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.

So let us life this life worthy of our calling in Jesus. Let us fight the good fight of faith and not give up or get tired of doing good, because what we build will be a legacy that will last forever and one day the future will bear witness to it. LET’S PRAY

DISCUSSION POINTS FOR GYM MEETINGS

. Do you recognize that you have been created by design? What unique gifts and talents has God blessed you with?

. HAve the core values we talk about at Word of Grace become yours? Or is it an extranl influence?

What are some of the goals you have for life?
. Are you a legacy builder? 
What will you change to become more focused and live purposefully? Do you have a year plan and a 5-year plan?
. What will you do differently in your Christian calling to leave a legacy behind?

Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again),  Spirit-filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that has people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service.  Word of Grace is a part of a wider international family of Churches called RegionsBeyond.To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org.