First, it is essential to understand that people come into a marriage with their own subconscious ideas of what it will be like. When these two worlds collide, major problems can occur, which is evident in the number of marriages that are ended over “irreconcilable differences.” We must decide that rather than “my way,” we will commit to finding “our way.” Commonality of goal, the ability to communicate about everything openly, and understanding the need to compromise will help us craft a vision for where we are going as a couple…together.

Secondly, if we want to have commonality of goal, we must shift our mindset away from what society and tradition have said marriage should be. The old mindset of the 50’s and 60’s that sees mom at home all day vacuuming in a dress and pearls is still around and it’s completely unreasonable. In fact, it’s not even Biblical. True marriage is not about roles, it about sharing dreams together. It’s about submitting to each other in the knowledge of God. And it’s about putting the other first and making all decisions with the other in mind.

Finally, we must make the decision to commit to the commitment of marriage. No husband or wife is perfect. We all have faults and will all make mistakes. We cannot hold unforgiveness toward our spouse or shut them out. If we refuse to hear the other, we cause our marriage to begin to disintegrate. All marriages go through shifting seasons when one spouse’s needs overshadow the other. We must be willing to make whatever adjustments are necessary for the best interest of the marriage and the family – not simply decide based on our own self-interest.

As time goes on, life seems to be more and more hectic. We cannot forget that a marriage must be tended if it is to survive and grow. Resist taking the other for granted and be sure to make time for the wooing to go on. In marriage, we must offer affection and love that expects nothing more. Marriage is the most important relationship ever created. Children draw security from a strong marriage, and communities benefit from the foundation they provide. There is no condemnation in Christ. Perhaps you have gone through a divorce or are struggling in your marriage right now. The good news is, with God’s help, any married couple can decide today, to commit, or re-commit, to taking the steps that lead them to their best life.

There are four instances in the Bible where “The Cup” is discussed:

1) The Cup of Water which represents Compassion
2) The Cup of Greed and Selfishness
3) The Cup of Sorrow and Suffering
4) The Cup of the Covenant

Each will be discussed in turn throughout the course of this series. Today, we will be looking at the Cup of Water. The Cup of Water is the manifestation of our faith. All too often, people come to church to get the experience without ever moving forward into a deeper relationship with God. The concept of the Cup of Water is where the challenge arises. Will you go beyond yourself to offer the water to others?

The Water is all that God has done in your life. You know what happens to water when it sits in a cup? It goes stale and grows mold and is undrinkable. Cups of Water are meant to be poured out. How do you pour out the water? You help others. Luke 10 paints a beautiful picture of how to give the Cup of Water. Luke 10 is the story of the Good Samaritan, and we all know the story. Poor man gets beaten up; twice he is passed by BY A PRIEST AND A PRIEST’S ASSISTENT!!! Yet, a man who is considered the enemy, stops and helps the beaten man. He sacrifices his time and resources to aid a man in need. That is giving the Cup of Water.

Now, you may be thinking, “I don’t have those kinds of resources!” You have something, right? You may not be living your best life, but you are living. And the life you are living is desperately needed by those who are dying around you. Reach out. Help out! Pour out. Give your Cup, great or small, and watch as God’s water changes lives.

Verses Used:
Matthew 10
Luke 10

There are four instances in the Bible where “The Cup” is discussed:
1) The Cup of Water which represents Compassion
2) The Cup of Greed and Selfishness
3) The Cup of Sorrow and Suffering
4) The Cup of the Covenant

Each will be discussed in turn throughout the course of this series. Today, we will be looking at the Cup of Water. The Cup of Water is the manifestation of our faith. All too often, people come to church to get the experience without ever moving forward into a deeper relationship with God. The concept of the Cup of Water is where the challenge arises. Will you go beyond yourself to offer the water to others?

The Water is all that God has done in your life. You know what happens to water when it sits in a cup? It goes stale and grows mold and is undrinkable. Cups of Water are meant to be poured out. How do you pour out the water? You help others. Luke 10 paints a beautiful picture of how to give the Cup of Water. Luke 10 is the story of the Good Samaritan, and we all know the story. Poor man gets beaten up; twice he is passed by BY A PRIEST AND A PRIEST’S ASSISTENT!!! Yet, a man who is considered the enemy, stops and helps the beaten man. He sacrifices his time and resources to aid a man in need. That is giving the Cup of Water.

Now, you may be thinking, “I don’t have those kinds of resources!” You have something, right? You may not be living your best life, but you are living. And the life you are living is desperately needed by those who are dying around you. Reach out. Help out! Pour out. Give your Cup, great or small, and watch as God’s water changes lives.

Verses Used:
Matthew 10
Luke 10

Next, it’s important to realize that our souls are birthed at conception, and the being which is created at that point never dies. Our conceived beings are eternal, as we are made in the image of God, and He is eternal! So when the horrible happens and a child, born or unborn, dies, we can take comfort in knowing that God receives them and that their names are written in the Book of Life, burning brightly as innocents. As we age, when we turn to the Lord, again our names are bright lights in that book as we become more like Christ and want to make His name higher than ours. Those who continue to turn away from the Holy Spirit’s promptings will find their names fade from that book, if they choose not to reach out to what God is offering them. Our name is a vital component of who we are, and, in Proverbs, we find out that “a good name is better than great wealth” – Prov. 22. Your name is your calling card, for good or bad, and for all eternity.

The Holy Spirit is God on the earth today, and it is HIS job, not ours, to convict all men of sin, to comfort, and to bring understanding as we continue to search out what God is saying to us individually. In the Old Testament, God the Father spoke to the men of that time, and the Holy Spirit instructed the prophets what to say to the people of Israel & Judah. Then, for 33 years, Jesus was God the Son on the earth, showing us what God looks, acts, and sounds like. He had to die, not only for the sins of man, but to release the Holy Spirit to empower men, women, and children to have the authority we are talking about. Our authority comes from living in Christ and being filled with the Spirit! Remember how important that is! Even our impossible situations can be fixed up and made BETTER by God’s miracle-working power when we know who we are and what we have. In 1906, people were for revival in the country of Wales, UK, and in the city of Los Angeles; now, as a result of their prayers, over 1 billion Pentecostals filled with the Spirit are in the world today! We must look up to heaven, position ourselves in alignment with God’s Word, and realize that in every situation, God is bigger, more powerful, more abundant, and “able to do exceedingly more than we ask or think” – Ephesians 3.

So the question must be asked…how do you live the gospel in 2011? It is almost easy to say, “Well, it was easier for the early church to live the gospel, they were starting it out!” But the sad truth is, too many Christians struggle with being Children of God because they have forgotten what Jesus died to give us. Jesus died to open a way–Christianity was first known as “The Way”–for us to reconnect with God! But what does that mean? What is it that Jesus gave us?

Sit back, because it’s time for a refresher:

First off, Jesus saved us from sin and eternal death. I John 3:4-6 states that all who believe in Christ are saved; all who do not, are not. Acts 2–Peter’s powerful message at Pentecost was a declaration: Salvation comes through the name of Jesus Christ! And Acts 4: Peter and John stand up to the Pharisees to declare the truth–Jesus is the only way. Jesus is the only way to be saved from sin and death!

Secondly, Jesus saved us from a wretched, unfulfilled life! He brought peace into our chaos! His presence is with us always, filling us with His love and life. He brings His light into our darkness, driving away the chaos of the world, and brining His order. Jesus’ name is Emmanuel, which means “God with us!” Jesus died to be with us! Thus, His very presence drives out the essence of the world that makes life so hallow.

Jesus’ death brought us assurance and stability! Which the world is running about in a panic–I don’t have enough money; I’m going to loose my house; I need to have these clothes; I have to buy that car; I need; I need; I need!–we stand firm on the promise that God is our provider. He will take care of all our needs. Matthew 6:33 says, “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.” God’s promises are eternal; everything God gives is eternal. The things of this world are temporary; the things of the Kingdom are eternal! We build our lives on God promises (the house on the stone); when the storms of life come, we stand strong. Safe. Stable.

One of the best results of Jesus’ death and resurrection is that He droves away all fear! The entire Bible–Old and New–is full of God’s assurance that we have nothing to fear because He is with us! Jesus affirmed it. Matthew 6, again, He is urging us not to fear, for we are more precious to Him then all of creation. Do not be afraid! I’m here with you! It is going to be great!

In Christ, we have the Kingdom in us! The Kingdom is not an invading force; it is not a conquering army of men; it is the Power that destroys all that the devil is forcing upon the world. Where he brings chaos, the Kingdom brings peace. Where there is hate, the Kingdom brings love. Where there is selfishness, the Kingdom brings selfless service (service that gains rewards in Heaven–another perk!) When the world stands divided, the Kingdom stands united! And with the Kingdom in us, we have the authority to speak God’s will into existence! John 3:16 makes God’s will very clear. It is His will that no one should perish. We have the power to make that happen. We speak God’s will into existence through prayer and proclaiming His Word. And His will changes peoples’ lives!

When you know what Jesus died for, when it dawns on you, then everything clicks into place. And when everything clicks, you understand who you are! We are the Children of God! And when we bring the Kingdom into the world with humility and authority, lives change.

This story is one of the more…colorful narratives of Jesus’ ministry. We see a great of deal passion and determination from the characters involved—from the steadfast nature of the paralyzed man’s friends to the steadfast rigidity of the pharisaical onlookers. But let us focus on the former group.

Imagine the paralytic’s friends. Imagine their love for this man and their unceasing desire to help him in whatever way they are able. They’ve prayed with him. They’ve wept with him. They’ve perhaps defended him from others who have suggested that his sins are the reason for his condition. In spite of the efforts they have made, we can assume that none of the four are a doctor, and so any assistance that they’ve offered might seem to them ineffectual. (They’d be wrong, of course. But this is how they might feel.) Then, unexpectedly, they receive word that Jesus is returning to his adoptive hometown of Capernaum. An opportunity!, they think. From the beginning of his ministry, Jesus has—according to Mark’s Gospel—already healed many people, cast out many demons, preached with boldness, and cleansed a leper. So the four friends decide that need to get their friend to Jesus as soon as possible upon his return to the city.

Jesus does return and gossip goes out where he’ll next be speaking. And once these four friends learn of it, they make haste with their crippled companion over to the house where Jesus is staying. Upon arriving, however, they are immediately hit with a considerable obstacle—the house is packed with listeners, supporters and critics alike. There is no way in! One, faced with such a concrete challenge, could ultimately accept their defeat, or at least a delay. The four friends, on the other hand, keep moving.

The first task they must negotiate is to get their friend up on the roof of the house! This was probably not an easy charge considering that the paralytic lay on a horizontal mat, meaning that two men likely climbed onto the roof and then lifted their friend from a lying position. However they did it, once the five friends were successfully on the roof of the house where Jesus was preaching, they were still no closer to the encounter they were seeking. The only way to get to their healer, to pursue their hope, was to dig.

Can you imagine the reaction of the crowd within when that first finger poked through the clay roof? Here was Jesus, the Christ, packed into a hushed room of his followers (worshiping him) and his detractors (testing him), teaching and awing the crowd. Then, in that moment of extreme focus and palpable conflict comes a faint chipping sound, followed by a blanket of dust wafting down from the ceiling. A finger emerges through the crack, somebody gasps, and a murmur circulates throughout the room. But the disturbance is not finished. The finger becomes a hand and the hand, eventually, a hole roughly 7 feet by 3 feet. The murmurs below soon crescendo into chaos and then down comes the paralytic! When finally the man has been lowered upon Jesus’ table—an odd sight itself—the teacher breaks the silence: “My child, your sins are forgiven.”

There are two critical points I want you to notice. First, it is crucial to note that Jesus addresses the paraplegic as his “child.” Immediately he welcomes this man back into his family, fully accepted and whole. This is the relationship God wants with each of us, and this is one reason why He sent his son to come and reconcile us back to Him. This particular claim is central to the Gospel, so please do not skip over the ramifications of such a meaningful title.

Secondly, I want you to notice the phrase just before Jesus’ startling proclamation: “Seeing their faith, Jesus spoke.” One can get as caught up in the theological nitpicking if they’d like, but it seems perfectly clear that Jesus heals the crippled man by his friends’ conviction. The implications of this evidence are astounding! Piggybacking upon Bill Wiese’s message last week, what this means for you and for me is we are, or rather, can be in some way responsible for the healing of our friends! Our persistence in prayer for those placed in our sphere of influence is a considerable force. Our faith, in other words, has real impact on the lives of others, whether we know it or not.

This is the reason, I believe, this account is communicated not only in the Gospel of Mark but two of the other accounts as well. It seems to be a point that is important enough that God remind us on several occasions the impact we play in His kingdom in general, but on those sovereignly placed in our community in particular.

Ephesians 3:14-16 (NLT): When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit.
Colossians 2:19 (NLT): and they are not connected to Christ, the head of the body. For he holds the whole body together with its joints and ligaments, and it grows as God nourishes it.
Matthew 9:37 (NLT): He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few.

Paul had three revelatory visions in regards to the church. Two were focused on the Church functioning as a body with Jesus as the head. The Head of the Body is where all the thoughts, actions, reaction, dreams, and visions arise. And when the body is working in agreement with the will of the head, things happen!

In Colossians, Paul is warning the church not to become disconnected with the head. Change cannot occur if the body is disconnected. Jesus saves your soul; He does not change your behavior. It is when you come into alignment with the Head (Jesus) through the function of the Body (your place in the church) that change occurs. This principle is true for both achieving change in your life and in changing the world. When the church is in alignment with what Jesus has planned, the world changes. (That is what we as leaders try to do–pray and seek the will of Jesus and then enact His will.)

When the “body” becomes disconnected with the “head,” abnormalities arise. In the medical field, this is known as cancer–the lungs stop working, cells turn on the organs, the brain stop functioning. In the church, cancer materializes, per example, as crossing your arms and refusing to help because someone hurt you. What change can occur when the body is fussing amongst itself? There is no forward motion!

You see, God’s will is always in motion. He will accomplish His plans with or without us. He finds willing vessels. His will gets done! The challenge to us as Christians and to the church for 2011 is will you take that step? Will you enter into the journey of God?

The train is moving. Will you get on?

A lot of Christians tend to look inward, toward themselves: what they are and aren’t doing to further God’s kingdom. How they are and aren’t sinning. When Jesus met with Zacchaeus, he was on the road to Jerusalem, where people were awaiting his arrival with palm leaves for the donkey to walk on. He saw Zacchaeus climb the tree and wait to see him in the crowds that followed.

Zacchaeus was the chief tax collector in this little town that Jesus passed through. Tax collectors in the Biblical times were people from the local towns chosen by the Roman government to collect money from their towns for the Roman government. These people were highly looked down upon. They were considered thieves, and so unaccepted in their towns. Zacchaeus was the chief tax collector in his city, and so he unaccepted even more so.

He was a part of the bottom rung of society, and yet, Jesus saw him waiting patiently up in the tree for him. He was not looking inward; he was looking outward. He saw Zacchaeus in the tree, and felt his eagerness just to see him. He felt his wanting to feel something real, which Zacchaeus knew he would get when he saw Jesus. That is how it needs to be when people see us- they need to know that we care, and that we are real.

Another thing- Jesus knew Zacchaeus’ name. Jesus knows everyone’s names. Oftentimes, it becomes easy to know that he knows our names- the names of those to talk to him daily, or even only every so often. He knows every single name of every single person he has ever created, even the ones who do not believe in him. He knows everything about them, just as he knows us. He knows them just the same, so shouldn’t we? Enjoy the fellowship of the world- they are who he came to save. Of course he came to save us also, but they are the ones who need saving right now. Come out of your safe little world and don’t preach at them. Show them with your love and with your life what a life with God can be. People get touched wherever you go, just as wherever Jesus went, he touched people. They can see the light and life in your world.

Before you can save them, you need to seek them. It says that “When Jesus got to that spot; he looked up and said…” Jesus knew that Zacchaeus would be waiting for him in the tree. You need to seek people out, find them where no one else would ever look. Only then can you save them. Always be looking outward to where you are going; do not only focus on what you are doing in the here and now.

There is a big difference between being a believer and a disciple. Most people probably don’t stop and really think about this. Most people probably picture a bearded man in sandals when the hear the word disciple. What’s more, most people probably tend to think that the end of their faith journey culminates in their belief, in their salvation moment. A lifetime spent away from God pivots upon the events of one morning, wherein a person’s heart becomes inexplicably soft—by a pointed sermon or a moment of worship or even the power withheld in the very name of Jesus himself—they respond to that altar call, confess their sins, give their life to Christ, and then for many, they’re done. Not so for the disciple.

Getting saved by Jesus is the easiest task one could ever hope to perform. One doesn’t have to accomplish anything by their own cleverness or effort. One doesn’t need to do anything period. Except surrender their pride and accept the gift. It is, after all, the Holy Spirit who is doing the saving anyway. It’s his work to his glory; not yours. Consider it this way: if salvation were the goal for humanity, if it alone was the charge of the Great Commission, then Scripture would read, “Go into all the world and save people.” Instead it reads, “make disciples of all nations.” Disciples, unlike Christians, are not born. They are made.

Concerning the passage from Matthew above, before the charge to his disciples to go make more disciples, Jesus commands the remaining eleven to go to “the mountain” in Galilee. Scholars have debated to which Galilean mountain he directed them. Some have argued that it was perhaps Mt. Carmel, where Elijah slew the false prophets of Baal. Others have suggested Mt. Table. I personally believe that it was Mt. Hermon, a coastal mountain overlooking Caesarea Philippi, where Jesus had once taken his disciples and proclaimed “I will build my church” (Matthew 16: 13-20). It is this same mountain that Peter, James, John, and Jesus ascend in Matthew 17, where the Lord appears transfigured and meets with Moses and Elijah. Mt. Hermon is, in short, a significant site to the disciples, and thus likely the one mentioned in this week’s passage.

So here Jesus takes all eleven disciples and, overlooking the pagan colony of Caesarea Philippi and all the sinners within, he commands, “Go and make disciples of all the nations.” What, then, is the difference between the saved and the disciples? For one thing, discipleship is necessarily beyond salvation. It’s the next, big step in one’s faith walk. Again, being saved is easy; becoming a disciple, on the other hand, takes work. It takes, according to this passage, first being baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Now, this naturally constitutes an actual physical water baptism by which one publicly and symbolically demonstrates their physical death and rebirth in Christ, but it also suggests that we are to be baptized in the name, or, in other words, immersed in the spirit of God. God has a hand in our salvation, to be sure, but He also guides us toward discipleship after He finally gets His hands on our lives.

We must get out of His way so that He may do so, however. One must never underestimate the power of his own will. As C.S. Lewis once suggested, the spirit of God “cannot ravish. He can only woo.” So if the God of Heaven, who merely spoke the cosmos into existence, can approach the door of your spirit but cannot (or rather, will not) force His way through, then we can conclude that a man’s will is a strangely powerful thing. So to become a disciple, finally, we must allow God to take our hand and lead us deeper into Himself. Once this happens, we’ll begin to feel convicted about our sin. We’ll begin to actually want to spend time in prayer, in worship, and in the Word. Getting saved, you see, cleanses our spirit but doesn’t change our bad habits or attitudes. Going deeper into God’s teachings and truths is what ultimately transforms our lives from believers to disciples. We begin to talk differently, act differently. We begin, in short, to live our faith as well as believe it.

A challenge facing Christianity today is that we have a great many Christians and too few disciples. We need more disciples in the kingdom, more Christians walking out, not just believing in, their faith. If the original eleven disciples multiplied and, in time, transformed the the Roman Empire from a land of unrestrained paganism to the site of the early Church, how much more of an impact will a kingdom of disciples have today? Certainly have we more than eleven disciples at the present moment. Our focus, then, as a Church should be to foster a community of discipleship, and not belief only.

A life that isn’t challenged is the life of a person who isn’t living to the level of potential God requires. God is living. Life is dynamic and growing. We are called to be moving, growing – living our Christian life to the full. We always want to be striving and moving towards a place we have never been before. God wants to bring us into new places and into new experiences that we’ve never had. We are the ones that hold ourselves back by focusing on why things can’t happen instead of walking in faith.

It matters how we think. Paul says that we live small lives because we are thinking too small and living too small. We aren’t possessing what God has for us because we get caught up in life. The stuff of live conspires to lock us into thinking small and keep us from seeing what God wants us to see – what he has for us and where he is taking us. God wants us to trust him and follow him – taking steps toward our visions and dreams in faith – instead of getting caught up in small thinking and focusing on what we can see. We want to live our lives focusing on what is possible with God and not what our natural eyes and thoughts tell us is impossible.

The church is like the twelve tribes – different tribes with different styles for different people – different cultures, emphases and tasks. There are different kinds of churches that God is using. God is working through different peoples and different churches. People are finding their place and their tribe within the body of Christ. One body – many tribes. God is never hemmed in. God is doing different things in different places through different tribes. Anytime you get in a place that claims exclusivity with God, you are in the wrong place. The body of Christ is diverse. There is nothing better than finding where you fit. You can plant, connect and let God start flowing through you and your connections. The whole concept of not thinking small and not being fenced in works from this idea.

Acts 4 – The Jerusalem church in the book of Acts is the first church. We can learn so much from it in the book of Acts because it is the model on which we should base our churches. Everything in this church was new, powerful and exciting. They would meet in the public square of the Temple – the center of Jewish life. All of the early converts were Jews, converted to believe that Jesus was the Messiah (which made the Jewish leaders angry and aggressive towards the early church because they had just crucified Christ). Peter and John would perform miracles within the temple and the religious leaders would question on whose authority they were acting. (When you are stuck in religion, you can’t see the glory of God, even when it is right before your face.)

At this point in Acts, the church is having a prayer meeting. (By the way – there isn’t a gift of prayer. It is something that all Christians need to do. Prayer is the most powerful thing on this planet. It fills your spirit with life and growth. It is crucial for us). v29 – “Give your servants great boldness in their preaching. Send your healing power. May miraculous signs and wonders be done in the name of your servant Jesus.” They prayed for great boldness: courage, daring, audacity, bravery, bravado, valor, confidence, self assuredness, brashness. It’s easy to be bold when you are hiding behind someone who is stronger than you – but that’s not boldness.

Boldness is when you step out of encouragement and start doing – speaking and declaring. Having faith despite the outcome, not knowing what the result or the cost of your boldness will be. The boldness of the first church led to a period of persecution and murder. This led to the Roman persecution of the church, but they were unafraid. But their boldness and their sacrifice led to the spreading of the church across the world. This was the moment that God had planned – everything up until the crucifixion of Christ was to lead up to this moment in which God began to move through human beings and bring his Kingdom and his love back to earth through his church.

v32 – All the believers were of one heart and mind. And they felt that what they earned was not their own, and they shared everything. They began to sell their property and share – created charity. Charity comes from Christ dwelling inside of people. Christ wants us to live and trust that no matter what we have Christ is going to provide for us. This revelation led to the explosion of the church – there was a famine and a need, the church met the need and the people poured in. There was no poverty among them. Some people tried to cheat the system. They sold their things, but kept some of the proceeds. They dropped dead. It’s a big deal when God is doing something, and you miss it. If you position yourself with boldness, faith and obedience, you will catch the wave of what God is doing.

If you hesitate or position yourself in the wrong place, you will miss it. If you become afraid, you will fall off and be pummeled. When God is doing something, you want to position yourself right where God is and be bold. It’s a lot bigger from the top of the wave – from God’s point of view. It can be scary when you decide to step out, be bold and do something radical for God. But when you are in position when God is bringing a challenge, he will bring something incredible through you. It can be scary and challenging, which is why you need to find your tribe, stay covered and stay connected. God used the boldness of the first church to explode his church on the earth. What will he do through you?