• he was a precise note taker
• knew the Old Testament
• took the livelihood away from people

• wrote a book in the Bible
• provided livelihood to people for all of time.

Matthew 9:9-13

9 As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at his tax collector’s booth. “Follow me and be my disciple,” Jesus said to him. So Matthew got up and followed him.

10 Later, Matthew invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. 11 But when the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with such scum?”

12 When Jesus heard this, he said, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do.” 13 Then he added, “Now go and learn the meaning of this Scripture: ‘I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.’ For I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.”

“The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.”

― Frederick Buechner

Hosea 6:6

6 I want you to show love,

    not offer sacrifices.

I want you to know me

    more than I want burnt offerings.

• Connected to the God
• Connected to Community
• Connected to Calling

• Connected to the God
• Connected to Community
• Connected to Calling

Luke 4:1-2, 14-15.

Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan River. He was led by the Spirit in the wilderness,[a] 2 where he was tempted by the devil for forty days. Jesus ate nothing all that time and became very hungry.

14 Then Jesus returned to Galilee, filled with the Holy Spirit’s power. Reports about him spread quickly through the whole region. 15 He taught regularly in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.

Mark 6:30-32

30 The apostles returned to Jesus from their ministry tour and told him all they had done and taught. 31 Then Jesus said, “Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.” He said this because there were so many people coming and going that Jesus and his apostles didn’t even have time to eat. 32 So they left by boat for a quiet place, where they could be alone.

Matthew 14:1-13

14 When Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee,[a] heard about Jesus, 2 he said to his advisers, “This must be John the Baptist raised from the dead! That is why he can do such miracles.” 3 For Herod had arrested and imprisoned John as a favor to his wife Herodias (the former wife of Herod’s brother Philip). 4 John had been telling Herod, “It is against God’s law for you to marry her.” 5 Herod wanted to kill John, but he was afraid of a riot, because all the people believed John was a prophet. 6 But at a birthday party for Herod, Herodias’s daughter performed a dance that greatly pleased him, 7 so he promised with a vow to give her anything she wanted. 8 At her mother’s urging, the girl said, “I want the head of John the Baptist on a tray!” 9 Then the king regretted what he had said; but because of the vow he had made in front of his guests, he issued the necessary orders. 10 So John was beheaded in the prison, 11 and his head was brought on a tray and given to the girl, who took it to her mother. 12 Later, John’s disciples came for his body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus what had happened. 13 As soon as Jesus heard the news, he left in a boat to a remote area to be alone. But the crowds heard where he was headed and followed on foot from many towns.

Luke 6:12-13.

12 One day soon afterward Jesus went up on a mountain to pray, and he prayed to God all night. 13 At daybreak he called together all of his disciples and chose twelve of them to be apostles. Here are their names:

Luke 22:39-44

39 Then, accompanied by the disciples, Jesus left the upstairs room and went as usual to the Mount of Olives. 40 There he told them, “Pray that you will not give in to temptation.” 41 He walked away, about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, 42 “Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” 43 Then an angel from heaven appeared and strengthened him. 44 He prayed more fervently, and he was in such agony of spirit that his sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood.

Luke 5:16

16 But Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer.

How do we move past the road blocks that try to stop our faith? Listen in to this next message in our Change Your City series – “Faith Blocks”. Follow along to find out…

What happens you face an obstacle, a roadblock, or a barrier? Do you shut down? Get frustrated? Avoid or walk away?

Matthew 17:24-27 24 On their arrival in Capernaum, the collectors of the Temple tax[a] came to Peter and asked him, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the Temple tax?”25 “Yes, he does,” Peter replied. Then he went into the house. But before he had a chance to speak, Jesus asked him, “What do you think, Peter?[b] Do kings tax their own people or the people they have conquered?[c]” 26 “They tax the people they have conquered,” Peter replied. “Well, then,” Jesus said, “the citizens are free! 27 However, we don’t want to offend them, so go down to the lake and throw in a line. Open the mouth of the first fish you catch, and you will find a large silver coin. Take it and pay the tax for both of us.”

IXTHUS – “Jesus Christ, God’s Son, the Savior.”

1. Faith Block of “Not Enough”

Believers can fail to act in the kingdom of God when they feel …

• they can feel like they are not enough so they fail to even try –
• they can feel like they don’t have enough resources, finances, or understanding…. and don’t try

26 “They tax the people they have conquered,” Peter replied. “Well, then,” Jesus said, “the citizens are free! 27 However, we don’t want to offend them, so go down to the lake and throw in a line. Open the mouth of the first fish you catch, and you will find a large silver coin. Take it and pay the tax for both of us.”

To move past the faith block of not enough – go to Jesus first in what you lack.

Jesus will speak to you in action – It will be something hard, or tough, and very personal.

**But Jesus is testing / stretching you so that you stop focusing on what’s missing and focusing on what Jesus is providing.**

2. Faith Block of “Doubt” –

• Do you doubt Jesus is speaking to you? –
• Do you doubt He has chosen you to participate in the growth of this Kingdom?

Most people do not fully understand what Jesus is speaking to them about so they shut down. They fail to comprehend what Jesus is speaking because they fail to spend time listening.

The sermon last week – Peters mother in law was touched by Jesus then immediately started using her skill for the kingdom. We all were touched by the Jesus last week; but did you immediately start using your skill for the kingdom?

The Holy Spirit revealed to us Monday, that most people did not because there was a Spiritual Blockage. And most would say it was lack of understanding, or knowing…

**The Spiritual blockage of doubt prevents movement in the kingdom of God.**

Luke 24 41 Still they stood there in disbelief, filled with joy and wonder. Then he asked them, “Do you have anything here to eat?” 42 They gave him a piece of broiled fish, 43 and he ate it as they watched.44 Then he said, “When I was with you before, I told you that everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and in the Psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.

**The Spiritual blockage of doubt is broken through what you give to Jesus.**

vs 45…. then he opened their minds…

Doing Life Together –

What does luke 24:41-45 mean to you? What are you going to do this week that is different than weeks prior? Be accountable to each other. If someone says something get their number and check up.

3.Faith Block of “changing your city”

Changing your city is not a sermon series….. it’s a LIFESTYLE that every believer is enrolled in the moment they call Jesus Lord. We are all called to change our own city.

15 That evening the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away so they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves.”16 But Jesus said, “That isn’t necessary—you feed them.” 17 “But we have only five loaves of bread and two fish!” they answered. 18 “Bring them here,” he said. 19 Then he told the people to sit down on the grass. Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he gave the bread to the disciples, who distributed it to the people. 20 They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftovers.

• Jesus is Jesus…
• Disciples are all believers…
• the crowd is our different cities…
• the bread and fish are what we have to offer. It’s not enough without Jesus.

We will change our cities if we are willing to participate and be involved in the group project known as vision.

Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

Next Steps – Seek the Lord. Jesus will reward you with what you need to change your city. Hold someone else accountable. Check in. See how they are doing in seeking the Lord in the coming weeks.

Ever feel like you’re doing everything you know to do, but it just doesn’t amount to anything? Or what your trying to get never materializes? Sometimes we can find ourselves close to Jesus and still feel like our nets are empty. Listen to this message and build your faith to fill your nets. This is the message “Empty Nets” in our Change Your City series. Follow along here:

Luke 5:1-11

One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God. 2 He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. 3 He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.

4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”

5 Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”

6 When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. 7 So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

8 When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” 9 For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, 10 and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.

Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.” 11 So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.

1. The Shallows vs The Depths

• Shallows – Where Jesus speaks to us
• The depths – Where Jesus calls us to action

James 2:14-17

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

James 4:17

So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.

Doing Life Together – 

What is your depth with Jesus? What is He calling you to take action on?

Luke 5:1-11

3 He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.

4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”

In the shallows and the depths there was Jesus, Peter, and a pile of empty nets.

A continual empty net is an indicator that you need to move from the shallows to the depths

If you feel like you are unproductive, if you are missing something even though you have Jesus. I challenge you to move to the depths like Peter and Jesus; and take action on the word of God. Take action on what the Holy Spirit is speaking to you about.

You might say but I’ve tried before and it didn’t work…in order to change your city…. you gotta try again.

Luke 5:1-11

5 Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”

6 When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. 7 So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

Your faith-lead actions in changing your city will inspire others to do that same.

2. What does it take to be a successful fisherman?

5 Skills all fishermen need (and we need to change our city):

1. 1. Navigate the seas – position ourselves to fish where the fish are at.
   2. Catching fish – know what tool to use for the situation. How to communicate with our friends, family, neighbors, co workers….
   3. Prepare the fish – they had to salt and brine the fish to last the journey. Are we equipping and our loved ones to last the journey of life?
   4. Export the fish – are we discipling our fish/family/friends to go change their cities?
   5. Repeat – keep fishing.

Next Steps – Which part of the fisherman’s step are you on? Finish your step and move onto the next one. 

Wondering how to develop strong faith? Faith in the face of attacks, turmoil, …life? In this latest message of our Faith Check series “Strong Faith” – we’ll look at Jeremiah’s strong faith and how it got there.

Jeremiah 1:17-19

17 “Get up and prepare for action.

Go out and tell them everything I tell you to say.

Do not be afraid of them,

or I will make you look foolish in front of them.

18 For see, today I have made you strong

like a fortified city that cannot be captured,

like an iron pillar or a bronze wall.

You will stand against the whole land—

the kings, officials, priests, and people of Judah.

19 They will fight you, but they will fail.

For I am with you, and I will take care of you.

I, the Lord, have spoken!”

Jeremiahs responsibility was to prepare and proclaim…. that’s our responsibility also.

That is how we gain a strong faith.

Get up – prepare for action

Some translations say gird your loins – meaning tuck your robe into your belt cause you are about to run. The more we develop our faith the more we need to be ready to listen and act on the Word of the Lord.

Tell them everything I tell you to say. – say what the Holy Spirit speaks to you about. 

Tell everything the Lord says. Don’t add to it. Don’t take away.

Do not be afraid of them – or God will make you look foolish

Jeremiah 1:18-19

18 For see, today I have made you strong

like a fortified city that cannot be captured,

like an iron pillar or a bronze wall.

You will stand against the whole land—

the kings, officials, priests, and people of Judah.

19 They will fight you, but they will fail.

For I am with you, and I will take care of you.

I, the Lord, have spoken!”

Jeremiahs responsibility was preparation and proclamation.

Gods responsibility is preservation…

Doing life together in the comments:

How does Jesus preserve you?

Today I have made you strong….. foundation in Jesus. Strength comes from God making us strong….. and when does he make us strong?

Today!!!! He makes us strong.

When a city was fortified the enemy couldn’t overtake it. It was a waiting game. Either the enemy went somewhere else or the people in the city starved and let the enemy in…. Too many believers get surrounded by the enemy and allow themselves to starve and eventually cave….

Your nourishment comes from the Lord strengthening you daily. Preserving you with His word.

Eternally: He preserves your soul.

In turmoil: He preserves your mind, heart, life.

He preserves us through the enemy, through life situations…. because He is with us.

Your faith is strong because Jesus preserves you through preparing and proclaiming His Word.

There is this imagery in Jeremiah 20:11-13 of what it looks like when Jesus preserves us through our preparation and proclamation of His word.

11 But the Lord stands beside me like a great warrior.

Before him my persecutors will stumble.

They cannot defeat me.

They will fail and be thoroughly humiliated.

Their dishonor will never be forgotten.

12 O Lord of Heaven’s Armies,

you test those who are righteous,

and you examine the deepest thoughts and secrets.

Let me see your vengeance against them,

for I have committed my cause to you.

13 Sing to the Lord!

Praise the Lord!

For though I was poor and needy,

he rescued me from my oppressors.

YOUR NEXT STEP: Make sure your faith is strong: Prepare and proclaim His word.

Get a verse this week for your life to meditate on and start proclaiming it.

Double down on next steps – I want you to start preparing this verse in your spirit and begin proclaiming it…

Matthew 5:14-16

14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

Our next season and sermon series is “Change Your City.”  The sermon series will be hyper-focused on everything happening in and around Capernaum in the Bible. And Matthew 5:14-16 happens just outside of Capernaum.

Would you begin proclaiming the word of God over our next season with me?

Have you ever been expecting or needing something from someone who is not reliable? We all know what it feels like to hope this time they will come through. And we all know what it feels like when they don’t… again. Today’s Faith Check message is titled “Reliable Faith”. We’re going to look at the difference between putting our faith in something that’s unreliable verses what is reliable – God. Because He is always reliable.

Jeremiah 1:11-12

11 Then the Lord said to me, “Look, Jeremiah! What do you see?”

And I replied, “I see a branch from an almond tree.”

12 And the Lord said, “That’s right, and it means that I am watching, and I will certainly carry out all my plans.”

There is a play on sounds here in the Hebrew text. The word translated almond (shaqēd) has the same root as the word hasten (shōqēd).  As the early blossoming almond tree gave promise of the later spring fruit, so God would watch over His word to bring it to fruition.

God will always carry out His plans – God is always reliable. 

Todays message is called  ‘Reliable Faith.’

Unreliable faith is:

1. Unreliable faith is when we place our faith in anything but Jesus. When we establish idols and put our hope and trust there. (Social media, news, other people like family, our job, ….)
2. Unreliable faith is actions without relationship. (I’m a good person I volunteer, I serve, I give…. but I don’t know Jesus.)
3. Unreliable Faith is a relationship without actions. (I’m saved, but I don’t do anything with it)

Matthew 7:12-27

21 “Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. 22 On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ 23 But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’

24 “Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. 25 Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. 26 But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. 27 When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.”

Reliable faith is only through Jesus. 

**Underline or circle all the times YOU or YOUR is mentioned in this scripture…**

Jeremiah 29:10-14

10 This is what the Lord says: “You will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised, and I will bring you home again. 11 For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. 12 In those days when you pray, I will listen. 13 If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. 14 I will be found by you,” says the Lord. “I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes. I will gather you out of the nations where I sent you and will bring you home again to your own land.”

Are we keying into the fact that Faith Check is all about “your relationship with Jesus”?

Babylon represents earth…. home is heaven.

When your mind focuses on the future and hope that is Jesus in Heaven – nothing else compares:

• frustrations
• situations
• health
• telling people about Jesus

Reliable faith is…

•  When you pray He listens
•  If you look with your whole heart you will find Jesus

Jesus has to be found by you – just because your grandma prays doesn’t give you an automatic get into heaven card. This is a two-way relationship.

Let’s talk about the coronavirus for a second.

Do a faith check right now… Do you hyper-focus more on the conspiracy theories, the political climate, or even dwell more on what used to be…. Or do you allow the Holy Spirit to speak to you for a second about the uncertainty of this world and realize the urgency for Jesus?

How is your relationship with Jesus? Genuinely asking. Will you be the one that gets to heaven and says Lord Lord, and hear from Jesus? or I don’t know you?

Next Steps: Make this the Sunday that you start, build, or strengthen your relationship with Jesus.

Jesus is Reliable!

But it starts with your reliable faith.

What does it mean to have unshakable faith? Constant, unfailing, indisputable, without question…It all starts with having Jesus as our foundation – last weeks bones give us the ability to move and carry forward. In this weeks message “Faith Check – Unshakeable Faith”, we look at just that. Confident constant faith that carries you through the storms of life, verses riding the waves like a roller coaster.

Just a reminder – Salvation and foundation are different.  Last week the challenge was for the Church to seek the Holy Spirit in how we need to individually make Jesus our foundation, so that we can move into the next season carrying the vision from the Holy Spirit.

This week – How do we keep moving with the vision?

Jeremiah 51:59-64

59 This is the message Jeremiah the prophet gave to the staff officer Seraiah son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, when he went to Babylon with Zedekiah king of Judah in the fourth year of his reign. 60 Jeremiah had written on a scroll about all the disasters that would come upon Babylon—all that had been recorded concerning Babylon. 61 He said to Seraiah, “When you get to Babylon, see that you read all these words aloud. 62 Then say, ‘Lord, you have said you will destroy this place, so that neither people nor animals will live in it; it will be desolate forever.’ 63 When you finish reading this scroll, tie a stone to it and throw it into the Euphrates. 64 Then say, ‘So will Babylon sink to rise no more because of the disaster I will bring on her. And her people will fall.’”

The words of Jeremiah end here. Here he passes the baton.

The story shifts perspective onto Seraiah

Seraiah—Yahweh has prevailed … in other words – Jesus Won! Won and done.

Our faith on Jesus comes from the past… Jesus won. I’m not sitting around questioning Jesus or my faith or reality. I am confident Jesus won.

Let’s do life together in the comments and start proclaiming what Jesus already won over. I dare you to be bold and proclaim things that might feel scary right now, but pick up the inheritance of deliverance that belongs to you and proclaim it.

Doing life in the comments – Proclaim what Jesus has Victory over!

When I feel hopeless and hurting I fast forward 1000 years in my mind. I see myself worshipping Jesus laying in-front of His thrown in heaven. It calms every storm in my life. It keeps me grounded and reminds me that my faith isn’t a roller coaster ride – it’s unshakable. – Pastor Matt

Let’s look at unshakable faith at the end of Jeremiahs story.

Jeremiah in his final act – hands over the word of God to be carried, cast, then camped on.

• Carry the Word
• Cast the Word
• Camp on the Word

We need to be doing this in 2 areas – The Church and Personal life

Personally –

It’s not good to be someone different at all the places you belong to.

You need to have unshakable faith in all areas and all times of your life.

Jesus is the center and everything we have circling around us truly circles around Him.

** If you are dealing with anxiety or control issues…. think of the sun having true control of the earth; and envision Jesus doing the same over your live. Break free of anxiety by trusting Jesus is in full control.

Church – 

The fastest way to kill a church is to expect the pastor to be the only one to carry the word and vision from the Holy Spirit forward.

The fastest way to grow a Church is to carry the word and vision daily alongside the pastor  – not only is this infectious to others it transforms your mind, heart and attitude. 

** Take action on the word and vision daily – if our church keeps saying it’s important that we are “doing life together” in this season; we need to find a way to do life together. When we move into a new season as a church we all move together. 

This week we are focused on external next steps

Next Step – Encourage and pray for someone this week not in your home – then take it to the next level and invite them to communion or Ladies Art night and do life with them.

What is our faith founded on? What gives it structure? Can it hold up to all life holds in store for us? In this next message in the Faith Check series – “True Faith”, we’re talking about just that… time to check our faith. We’re doing a deep dive on FAITH through the book and lens of Jeremiah. It’s about the faith of believers during their exile, paralleled to the exile of our church members from our building. Want to know what Lighthouse 805 Church is really like? Well today’s message is a pretty good look at how we operate. We keep it real. We’re a family. We are Holy Spirit lead. We speak truth to one another. Wondering why we aren’t meeting together in person yet? Tune in.

Today we’re in Jeremiah 32

But first we’re going to look at Luke 6:47-49

“47Anyone who comes and listens to me and obeys me 48 is like someone who dug down deep and built a house on solid rock. When a flood came and the river rushed against the house, it was built so well that it didn’t even shake. 49 But anyone who hears what I say and doesn’t obey me is like someone whose house wasn’t built on solid rock. As soon as the river rushed against that house, it was smashed to pieces!”

Your foundation is based on taking action from Jesus. Listen AND obey. They DUG deep, and BUILT.

Not talking about salvation – we’re talking about foundation. Salvation is secured, but it’s a firm foundation that allows you to grow, receive, and move forward with Christ to the promises God has for us. What does your foundation look like right now? How many of us are finding excuses to not build in this season? Without this foundation set and built on in this current season; we will not be able to hold or carry or move in the vision God has for our next season.

As your Pastor – I’m asking you to commit to making Jesus the foundation in your life now, in this season. Stop making excuses and get rid of anything that has taken up residence in your life distracting you from doing just that.

Jeremiah 32:8-16 “8‘Then, just as the Lord had said, my cousin Hanamel came to me in the courtyard of the guard and said, “Buy my field at Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin. Since it is your right to redeem it and possess it, buy it for yourself.” ‘I knew that this was the word of the Lord; 9so I bought the field at Anathoth from my cousin Hanamel and weighed out for him seventeen shekels of silver. 10I signed and sealed the deed, had it witnessed, and weighed out the silver on the scales. 11I took the deed of purchase – the sealed copy containing the terms and conditions, as well as the unsealed copy – 12and I gave this deed to Baruch son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, in the presence of my cousin Hanamel and of the witnesses who had signed the deed and of all the Jews sitting in the courtyard of the guard. 13‘In their presence I gave Baruch these instructions: 14“This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: take these documents, both the sealed and unsealed copies of the deed of purchase, and put them in a clay jar so that they will last a long time. 15For this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: houses, fields and vineyards will again be bought in this land.” 16‘After I had given the deed of purchase to Baruch son of Neriah, I prayed to the Lord:”

Purchase: What is the price we need to pay in this season of our church?

• – Time
• – Dedication
• – Pride
• – Reading and studying the Bible
• – Genuine worship
• – Take action on the Word of God

Through the purchase/setting Jesus as the foundation – 3 things happened:

1. Public – The purchase was done publicly and had witnesses. This makes us accountable and invites others to do the same. This current season is calling us to do life together outside of the 4 walls of a church building. There’s a reason for that. It’s foundation building. If we don’t actively do it we won’t be able to carry the vision for the new season God has for us.
2. Preserve – Jeremiah asked the purchase documents to be stored in clay pots. This was to preserve them for some time, awhile, the future. The Dead Sea Scrolls lasted in clay pots for 2000 years. When we pay the price of making Jesus our foundation we are preserved. Our faith is stabilized. It doesn’t fluctuate up and down with the weather or circumstances. We are steady.
3. Patience – “When are we getting back to normal?” “When will we return to normal?” Wrong questions…. Right question…. “Am I ready for the NEW normal?” Are we patiently preparing for the next season? This is not a passive patience. It’s like the patience of a farmer who diligently plows deep, straight, consistent furrows. Then sows the right seeds, in preparation of the next harvest. We’re not sitting with a book waiting for this season to be over; we’re like the farmer from sun up to sun down preparing for what’s coming. You can’t wait on a crop that hasn’t been planted.

NEXT STEPS – Take action to set Jesus as the one and only foundation in your life.

Is your faith genuine or fake? Real fruit or fruit flavored? Can it give nutrition, reproduce? Or does it rot over time, go stale? We’re continuing our deep dive into FAITH, in this message of our Faith Check series – Fruitful Faith.

Jeremiah 24

After Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim king of Judah and the officials, the skilled workers and the artisans of Judah were carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Lord showed me two baskets of figs placed in front of the temple of the Lord. 2 One basket had very good figs, like those that ripen early; the other basket had very bad figs, so bad they could not be eaten.

3 Then the Lord asked me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?”

“Figs,” I answered. “The good ones are very good, but the bad ones are so bad they cannot be eaten.”

4 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 5 “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Like these good figs, I regard as good the exiles from Judah, whom I sent away from this place to the land of the Babylonians. 6 My eyes will watch over them for their good, and I will bring them back to this land. I will build them up and not tear them down; I will plant them and not uproot them. 7 I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me with all their heart.

8 “‘But like the bad figs, which are so bad they cannot be eaten,’ says the Lord, ‘so will I deal with Zedekiah king of Judah, his officials and the survivors from Jerusalem, whether they remain in this land or live in Egypt. 9 I will make them abhorrent and an offense to all the kingdoms of the earth, a reproach and a byword, a curse and an object of ridicule, wherever I banish them. 10 I will send the sword, famine and plague against them until they are destroyed from the land I gave to them and their ancestors.’”

Let’s talk about this Bible verse not only as the state of the church in corona time – but also as believers in new seasons.

In this story there are 3 groups of believers:

• The believer that refuses to move to the next season –

• • Bad figs represented not only those against God but those that refused to follow the direction of God.

• The believer that moves to the new season but is waiting to get back to the old season
• The believer that moves to the new season and trusts Jesus

So how do we develop faith like the believers that move into new seasons and trust Jesus?

1 – The Time to Build is Now

People were exiled from their homes. They needed to build a new home. Don’t sit around waiting to get back to normal. This is your new normal.

When we build, we work on our faith and our trust. God will build us up and will not tear us down.

****Doing life in the comments**** 

What is it that you need to build? What do you need to construct in your life? 

When we build inside of new seasons we become like a house vs a tent – there is…

• protection
• limitless power
• sewage / sanitation
• fresh water

When we enter new seasons we need to build and not lament. 

2 – It’s Time to Plant in New Seasons

To set down roots in a new season. Roots represent a source of life. People did not leave when God told them to leave. They thought their source of life was connected to the routines and city they lived in rather than God.

The soil determines the growth of the plant. The root pulls the nutrients from the soil and the plant grows. Jesus is the root, but your season determines your growth.

Some of us are stuck in past seasons. All the nutrients have already been used. Jesus, the root, is telling us to move to the next season for new growth.

We need to move to the next season – mentally, physically and faithfully.

God’s desire is for us to connect to Jesus more that we connect to soil. Meaning – connect more to what Jesus is doing right now and right here; than what He did back then.

Complaining and grumbling is failing to see Jesus in this season. 

Xerox Case Study:

Xerox had the most successful single product of all time. They revolutionized businesses and homes.

They had ground breaking research; but the people in charge decided it wasn’t for them and gave all the technology to Steve Jobs. Xerox had the future in its hands, but the ownership thought it was meant for someone else.

Xerox is like a lot of believers… Reading the Bible and thinking it’s not for me its for someone else.

Jesus is speaking – are you listening to grow?

https://artgrid.io/clip/83735/paper-moving-through-rolls-on-printing-machine

***Like Xerox when we fail to listen, we fail to pivot***

When we fail to pivot into new seasons there are consequences.

3 core consequences from Jeremiah 24:10 as illustrations on this side of the cross and new covenant. 

1. Sword – When we fail to move into our next season we fight God, and we fight people that are living in the new seasons. We can become frustrated and angry with different viewpoints.
2. Famine – We are starving for Jesus to speak to us in our past seasons, but He is speaking from your new season. So you refuse to consume new insights.
3. Plague – Your mind becomes twisted and your heart is hardened towards the freshness of Jesus

2-Part Next Steps:

Part 1 – Build 1 new routine.

Part 2 – Leave 1 soil behind.

Let go of 1 thing from a past season. Maybe it was a glory that was awesome but God is calling you to a new glory. Maybe it was something tragic, and you have been holding onto that pain.

Have you ever seen an artist completely focused on their craft? Everything they do is intentional. Taking their time perfecting their art. They use their hands to shape exactly what is in their mind. This is our relationship to the Father.  We are in His hands as He shapes and crafts us. He is intentionally focused on crafting us…we are His masterpiece.

You are not a mistake. Your past has not disqualified you. You are the artwork of God.

We are continuing our sermon series Faith Check – a series all about faith through the book of Jeremiah. Today’s message is “Forming Faith”.

Jeremiah 18:1-4

The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord saying, 2 “Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will announce My words to you.” 3 Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something on the wheel. 4 But the vessel that he was making of clay was spoiled in the hand of the potter; so he remade it into another vessel, as it pleased the potter to make.

• Clay  = you and me
• Potter = The Father 
• The Wheel… is the tool used by the Father to shape us.

Idol check – Do you talk to a person before talking to God? Do you count more on your work providing than God providing?

Doing life in the comments – (Add a comment to engage with us)

How do you stay Planted during the Process? with help from people? your word? 

• Water is Jesus – not only used to shape us, and mold our lives.

• Dry lake bed – cracks are everywhere it is evident water used to be present. Now it’s dry and desolate. If your faith feels dry and things are falling apart or cracked, it’s evidence you need to reconnect your water source.

https://artgrid.io/story/16162/Dry-Lake-Bed

• Kiln is the the Holy Spirit

There are 2 firings for pottery:

1. The bisque fire is to remove impurities and make the pottery stable enough to receive glaze or adornment.

2. The final glaze fire is to cover the porous pottery with adornment and also prevent absorbing external influences.

The Holy spirit likewise is transforming us from an impressionable vessel to sturdy enough to be adorned by the love of Jesus. then transforms us to seal us up from external influences that the enemy would love to distract us with.

• transforms us
• works out the impurities
• prepares us to be a complete vessel
• transforms us from temporary to long term – Sunday morning believer to daily disciple

How do we keep our faith on Jesus in order to grow? 

The Yahoo Case Study

Yahoo failed to grow because the cost was too high and the risk too great.

They were number 1 in search and an online portal to the world –  https://artgrid.io/story/16349/The-Writer

Someone listening here is failing to grow – because the cost of discipleship is too high for you. The cost of serving is too high for you. The cost of reading the Bible is too high for you. The cost of genuine relationships is too high for you.

The risk of losing reputation

The risk of Jesus not showing up when you call on Him

The risk of losing material possessions… a lot of people don’t tithe because their mind is on losing money instead of trusting Jesus.

How do we use faith to stay planted on the potters wheel, when we get past the cost and risk:

Jeremiah 18:15

‘For My people have forgotten Me,

They burn incense to worthless gods

And they have stumbled from their ways,

From the ancient paths,

To walk in bypaths,

Not on a highway,

God is looking at His people and says His people have left the road for a path

There was a difference between the ancient road and the bypath.

 – paved vs unpaved.

STOP avoiding the cost and fearing the risk!

In order to keep your faith on God through all the storms – like the pottery on the wheel in the hands of God….we need to hyper-focus on 2 things found in verse 15:

“People have forgotten me”

1 – Know Jesus personally

Pay the cost of time in reading and discerning. Pay the cost in pride of discipleship. Show up to our communion nights, be part of our Thursday Bible study. Start committing to the next steps we do weekly.

Our church inspires and gives practical ways to deepen our faith.

“burn incense to worthless gods”

2 – Worship Jesus always

Worship is your heart towards Jesus. Pay the cost, time and energy to worship Jesus. – – worship with your heart.

– sing

– serve

– do life together

Your next step this week – Get Connected

Connect to your word. Connect to someone you haven’t talked to since covid started. Serve. Sign up for Bible study Thursday night.

Have you lost faith? Finding Faith – is the first installment of our new series “Faith Check”. This sermon series “Faith Check,” is a Holy Spirit lead deep look at FAITH through the book of Jeremiah. Have you ever seen an abandoned house? Yard overgrown, paint peeling, broken windows, dirt and neglect, just broken down? This is what our spirit looks like when we loose faith.  Let’s be honest with ourselves and have a Faith Check. What state is your faith in?

Jeremiah 13:1-11

13 Thus the Lord said to me, “Go and buy yourself a linen waistband and put it around your waist, but do not put it in water.” 2 So I bought the waistband in accordance with the word of the Lord and put it around my waist. 3 Then the word of the Lord came to me a second time, saying, 4 “Take the waistband that you have bought, which is around your waist, and arise, go to the Euphrates and hide it there in a crevice of the rock.” 5 So I went and hid it by the Euphrates, as the Lord had commanded me. 6 After many days the Lord said to me, “Arise, go to the Euphrates and take from there the waistband which I commanded you to hide there.” 7 Then I went to the Euphrates and dug, and I took the waistband from the place where I had hidden it; and lo, the waistband was ruined, it was totally worthless.

• Jeremiah represents Jesus
• Belt represents Humanity
• Euphrates represents behind enemy lines.

What is FAITH? –

Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”

James 2:26 says, “For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.”

If we are the belt, then the buckle is faith. It must be firmly engaged and attached to Jesus.

Are you able to keep your faith up while behind enemy lines or do you fail?

Blockbuster Case Study – 

They were in the movie rental business. The truth is we value movies and entertainment more than ever today, but blockbuster failed. Why?

 – Because they dug deep into their routine.

– The world changed and they didn’t move forward or adapt.

• Do you have a blockbuster faith right now?
• Is your faith failing because your not moving forward?
• Are you waiting for the world to return to what it used to be?

It didn’t work out for blockbuster and it wont work out for you.

The Inheritance Factor – What faith inheritance are you passing on?

Jesus is moving forward, are you clinging onto Him or hiding in the rocks waiting on things to return?

Doing life in the comments –

*** What are ways you are moving forward in your faith? ***

Gods precisely explains why His people have failed to move forward in their faith in verses 8-11. Let’s look at this and then do the opposite.

Jeremiah 13:8-11

8 Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 9 “Thus says the Lord, ‘Just so will I destroy the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem. 10 This wicked people, who refuse to listen to My words, who walk in the stubbornness of their hearts and have gone after other gods to serve them and to bow down to them, let them be just like this waistband which is totally worthless. 11 For as the waistband clings to the waist of a man, so I made the whole household of Israel and the whole household of Judah cling to Me,’ declares the Lord, ‘that they might be for Me a people, for renown, for praise and for glory; but they did not listen.’

 

How do we find faith to fully connect to Jesus?

…refused to listen to My words

1 – Listen to the His Words

Are you reading the Bible to check your list or to check your heart? Listening to the Word is different than reading the Word.

…walk in the stubbornness of their hearts…they were taking steps to further their hard hearts

2 – Take Godly next steps

Are you taking next steps to your faith or to your comfort?

…have gone after other gods to serve them and to bow down to them

3 – Relationship with Jesus

The entire story of the belt shows the Fathers heart. “I want you to be connected to Me.” Are you working on your relationship with Jesus all the time? Is something distracting you?

Your Next Step – Today is the day to let go of old ways and hold onto Jesus.

• Let go of thinking worship isn’t worship without a church building; you are missing out on your weapon that is worship if you refuse to adapt.
• Let go of thinking church isn’t church without Sunday morning; you are missing out on growth if you refuse to adapt.
• What do you need to let go of so you can hold onto Jesus?

Can I let you in on a secret? Hope wins! Every time. This is the last in our Can’t Cancel Hope series. I knew before we started this series the last thing to be spoken was Jesus in the tomb.  In fact, one of the core images in my mind of this series was the picture of Jesus in the tomb; isolated and separated from His friends and people He loved. Waiting to be set free.

Luke 24:1-8:

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’ ” Then they remembered his words.

“Why do you look for the living among the dead?”

One of the most powerful statements. Why do you look for hope in dead things?

Hope wins because hope is Jesus.

You ever watch a movie for the first time with someone who already seen that movie? Sitting around spoiling every moment. Ohh this is the best part…

Jesus spoiled the end of the story to the disciples, just like…

Jesus spoils the ending of your story, if you listen.

“Spoiler alert, I love you, see you in heaven. Hope wins.” – Jesus

Jesus is our Hope. He knows the plans he has for us. He is telling his plans for you all the time through the Holy Spirit and the Word.

Hope is confident expectation – Jesus was confidently expecting to raise from the dead. 

• Hope gets you through. 
• Hope guides you. 
• Hope delivers you…
• Hope wins

What are some of the things that Jesus went through before He rose? 

Hope wins through:

1. Betrayal – Judas and Peter. When those you love let you down.
2. Attacked – Whipped and beaten – When life hits you over and over, wears on you.
3. Suffocation – cross – When you can’t breathe under the pressure of life, or people, you feel like the life is slowing draining out of you.
4. Isolation – in cave/tomb – When you are cut off from people you love.

Doing life in the comments – What do you need Hope Winning through? 

doubt, fear, frustrations, anger…

Hope Always Wins… 

…the only time hope fails is when hope is discarded before results.

What do we need to learn so we don’t throw hope away? Especially when we are that close to breakthrough?

1 Timothy 1:1

Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior and the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope,…

1 – Live in Your Shoes

The first thing Paul says is his name. It’s who he is. If you try and be someone else you will constantly be let down. You are trying to obtain something that doesn’t belong to you. And Jesus is too good to let you have something that doesn’t belong to you.

2 – Live in His Authority

An apostle of Jesus – apostle means “sent one” – Paul was sent by Jesus. He was not acting on his own will but the will of Jesus. Granting the full authority of Jesus over his actions.

When we start living in the authority of Jesus we gain clear direction and lose unclear wandering.

3 – Live in Your New Life

God is the author of your life. He gave you a new life, will you live in it??

• Where you came from does not cancel where you are going.
• Stop dropping Hope because of your past.
• Accepting Jesus as savior gave you a new life.

Remember what the angel said at the tomb – Why do you look for the living among the dead?

Look for Hope in Jesus

Your next step this week – Pick up dropped Hope. Because Hope wins. 

Maybe you dropped hope in an area. Maybe you know someone who dropped hope.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

CHECK THIS OUT!

Our new sermon series starts next week – “Faith Check”

We spent time on Hope. Now we are diving into faith. We will be hyper-focusing in the book of Jeremiah throughout this series.

I want to encourage you to do 2 things:

1st – Get a new journal to write everything the Holy Spirit will speak to you through the entire series.

2nd – Invite someone to watch or listen to a message in the upcoming sermon series. Share a video with them, start a watch party and tag them. Tag them in a comment. Start praying now for who that will be.

How do you keep hope alive from a distance? Remember the first day of “social distancing”, we’ve been here awhile now. Reflect on some of the actions you had to take at the beginning – setting yourself away, shutting out friends and family, isolating… Remember when it felt abnormal? When you wondered if there was a possibility you could be hurt if you got too close to someone else? This is the next message in our “Can’t Cancel Hope” series where we look at people in the Bible going through dark times, places, isolation and how they kept hope alive.

Follow along with Pastor Matt here:

John 4:13-19

13-14 Jesus said, “Everyone who drinks this water will get thirsty again and again. Anyone who drinks the water I give will never thirst—not ever. The water I give will be an artesian spring within, gushing fountains of endless life.”

15 The woman said, “Sir, give me this water so I won’t ever get thirsty, won’t ever have to come back to this well again!”

16 He said, “Go call your husband and then come back.”

17-18 “I have no husband,” she said.

“That’s nicely put: ‘I have no husband.’ You’ve had five husbands, and the man you’re living with now isn’t even your husband. You spoke the truth there, sure enough.”

19 “Oh, so you’re a prophet!

The woman at the well was socially distancing herself from her own community for several reasons, and these reasons still plague the church today. 

Why do people socially distance themselves in Church and community?

1 – Fear

2 – Past Hurts

3 – Insecurities

The cure to social distancing is Jesus. Jesus deals with our fears, hurts and insecurities. 

John 4:27-30;39-42

27 Just then his disciples came back. They were shocked. They couldn’t believe he was talking with that kind of a woman. No one said what they were all thinking, but their faces showed it.

28-30 The woman took the hint and left. In her confusion she left her water pot. Back in the village she told the people, “Come see a man who knew all about the things I did, who knows me inside and out. Do you think this could be the Messiah?” And they went out to see for themselves.

39-42 Many of the Samaritans from that village committed themselves to him because of the woman’s witness: “He knew all about the things I did. He knows me inside and out!” They asked him to stay on, so Jesus stayed two days. A lot more people entrusted their lives to him when they heard what he had to say. They said to the woman, “We’re no longer taking this on your say-so. We’ve heard it for ourselves and know it for sure. He’s the Savior of the world!”

The key to breaking out of social distancing is….

1 – Be honest with yourself and Jesus

2 – Turn Tragedy into Testimony

Our church is digging deeper into what God has called us to do. And what He has called us to is ‘doing life together‘.

Your next step today is: messaging someone who is not living with you…

Start with “How can i pray for you today? Here is how you can pray for me.”