The Town

<p>Joshua was a great military leader who followed the commands of the Lord. God had promised to be with him as he led Israel into the Promised Land. Under Joshua, the nation of Israel experienced the presence of God from one victory to the next. As a result of Joshua's leadership, and at the end of his life, Israel was a nation after God. They were His people and He was their God. Joshua built up a future history for the nation of Israel. As he neared his death he called the nation together one last time. In this gathering, found in Joshua 24, the gracious leader calls the work of God to remembrance. <br><br>In this moment, Joshua could have taken credit for his victories. Joshua could have installed a government to establish his legacy. Instead, he gave the glory to God. Joshua reiterates the redemptive history of the past in order to inform the future of Israel. Stone's Throw is a church that has a future history. We desire that this history would be about Jesus. The Gospel informs our future and it is our hope and prayer that our children, and our children's children and generations to come are founded upon the Gospel of Jesus Christ.</p>

<p>Jesus is our example of what missionary should be like. But first, he changes our lives with his own mission. Jesus crosses cultural boundaries, satisfies our deepest needs and invited us to join him on mission. We, the church, belong to Jesus, and we get to participate with him as he works in the world.</p>

<p>Christianity is not meant to be experienced alone. God has called us forth as his chosen people to regularly assemble together in community. This community is called the church! Here, Christians find a place to rest, talk about Jesus, be comforted, and urge each other forward toward godliness. As good as this sounds, it can't happen apart from the consistent presence of one another. From the beautiful picture of the early church in Acts, to Peter's reminder that Christians are strangers in this world, the Bible clearly holds up the design of coming together, with the goal of being of one heart and soul.</p>

<p>Everyone is a leader. Anytime we have influence we are leading. The question is whether or not we leading others for ourselves or in a selfless way. The world is in desperate need of leadership - leaders that are servants. In the New Testament, the word "servant" is used over 900 times to describe those who lead the way that Jesus leads. Each of us have people in our lives that we can and will influence. Will we lead them toward Jesus or toward our own end?</p>

<p>This church exists to be a big presence in a big community to make a big impact for Jesus. Our call is for all people to come as they are, to meet Jesus, so that they might participate fully in God's plan for their mission and life. The work here has only just begun. What happens to a church when they are fueled by the Gospel and empowered by the Holy Spirit as they live in obedience? They are participating in God's plan for their life and are never satisfied with the past but always asking how they might be used of God in the present.</p>

<p>What is your deepest need? What do you need to be true? We live in a culture that wants to believe sincerity is the test of truth. If we sincerely believe something, than it must be considered truth. The Christian faith makes assertions that do not allow for alternate truth. Jesus is the heart of Christianity and he meets our deepest needs - to know God and to have a Savior. The Christian faith makes assertions that only Jesus allows us to know God and that only Jesus is the Savior of the world.</p>

<p>The greatest need we have is to know God. God has given us the means of grace that we need in order to know him and know him deeply. These means of grace are the disciplines of grace - spending time in God's Word. Spending time in worship and community with other Christians. Prayer. Prayer is most neglected because we don't understand it. Yet John tells us that prayer is the key to knowing God and His will for us more deeply.</p>

<p>What is of utmost importance in the church? Jesus. Everything the church is about revolves around Jesus. For John, the testimony of Jesus Christ was his life, his death, and his resurrection. These testimonies concerning Jesus were the most important concerns for the church in his day and they are of the most important concern for us today. In fact, believing the testimony of Jesus' life and death is paramount to knowing eternal life. The most important Christian teachings surrounding the person of Jesus are a matter of eternal life and eternal death. If we know Jesus we have eternal life. And if we have eternal life, everything we do and everything we are is affected by that relationship.</p>

<p>Fear is something we all struggle with. There are things that keep us up at night. Fear can range from anxiety to all terror. How can we live a life without fear? How does the God who created us with the ability to fear also tell us that we have no reason to fear? The Gospel gives us every reason to live in real peace as Jesus ends our fear.</p>

<p>We have all asked the question at some point in our life. "What is love?" How do we know when we have found love or have been loved? Is love a feeling? An experience? Can we define what love is and what it isn't. John says that God is love. God has defined love for us in his Word and by His actions. Jesus is the love of God manifesting itself so that we can know what it means to be loved perfectly. When we let God define love for us we will know what it means to be loved and to love others. True doctrine will define true love. When we know true love we will love others in the way that we have been loved by God</p>

<p>God is love. If God is love, it makes sense that Christians would love God and love others. This is the second time that John wants to address this issue. John is facing a church that is divided by conflict and tension. In this passage, we can see the true heart of a pastor as he exhorts and encourages the fractured congregation to reflect on God's love for them. John teaches that the motivation and inspiration of Christians' love for one another is the healing work God has done in their lives. The work of God in our lives leads to a natural outpouring of love within the church.</p>

<p>"I've received a word from the Lord." I can't tell you how many times I have heard this phrase. It also comes in other forms: "I have prayed about this," "I heard the next best thing to an audible voice," or "[insert mega-church pastor name here] has said." Many times this phrase is used by excited Christians to qualify some life decision, a reason to leave the church, an excuse to sin, or some other direction the person wants to take and has already set their mind on taking. It is hard to argue with someone when they believe that God has clearly spoken to them with a new revelation. There are two dangers that present themselves when responding to someone who believes they have been moved by God in a certain direction. The first danger is to accept what the person has said without testing what they have said against the Scriptures. The second danger is to reject what the person has said without testing what they have said against the Scriptures.</p>

<p>We define ourselves in all kinds of different ways. Christians tend to focus on what makes them distinct - distinct from the world and even distinct from one another. But Jesus says that the church will be defined by their love for one another. That is why John says that true Christians will have a love for one another like no other - it will be so revolutionary that those outside the church will literally define Christians by their love for one another.</p>

<p>The Christian is sure to sin. We are sure to fail because God is not done working with us until the day that we meet Jesus. Even though we fail, we have been promised that Jesus is up to something - he is making all things new - and it is precisely because of this that though the Christian might falter they can always be sure that nothing can separate them from the love of God. The return of Jesus will be the event that brings the brokenness and sinfulness of the world to an end. John promises that on the day that we meet Jesus, we will be with Jesus and made like Jesus. The promised return of Jesus builds up our assurance in three ways: it demonstrates that God loves us with a revolutionary love; that God's will is for us to be part of his forever family; and that God has a bigger vision for us than we could ever have for ourselves.</p>

<p>John describes the spirit of antichrist as being present whenever we deny that Jesus is the Messiah and Son of God. These titles not only tell us about who Jesus is, but they also point to his Lordship over all things. That means we also deny him when we struggle to lay claim on the things which chiefly belong to him. God calls us to abide in him through the work of his Son and the indwelling of his Holy Spirit, and it is only when the church worships him in spirit and in truth that we find our fullest satisfaction.</p>

<p>The world offers much but can never deliver. We are promised happiness, peace, and joy if we buy into the pursuits of our culture. But since sin came into the world it has only been able to offer brokenness and discontentment. Jesus was set against the ways of the world in order to bring us something new - a Kingdom that would last forever. John exhorts the church to turn their affection away from the promises of the world and instead turn their affection toward Jesus who is making all things new.</p>

<p>Every generation in the church is called to carry the Gospel to all generations. Each person has a purpose and mission in which they are called to participate. Children are called to a simple faith as an encouragement to the aged and experienced. Young men and women are called to lead and exert influence for the Gospel. Older and wiser generations are called to share, teach, and preach of the goodness of God. This is how a functioning family works well together for the cause of Christ. We never pass the mantle until we take our last breath.</p>

<p>What is love? Today it can mean so many things. Bono of U2 sings "in the name of love", Haddaway pleads that his baby won't hurt him with it, romantic novelist Jojo Moyes says that "love drives all great stories, and sister Catherine Wybourne says, "Love is free yet binds us." So many opinions and so many songs. John, an Apostle of Jesus tells us that love is absolutely without question a fruit of the Spirit exhibited by true followers of Jesus. In fact, he says, without love for one another, we are walking in darkness and an obstacle to the Gospel. Jesus gave his disciples a new commandment when he said that they were to love one another in the way that he had loved them. This changed everything. To love like Jesus loved will mean a new depth, scope, and purpose in love. A church that loves like Jesus loved will have a contagious culture, clarity of purpose and will thrive on mission.</p>

<p>Humans are heartfelt hypocrites - plain and simple. We claim to know truth but do not practice the truth. But Jesus changes all of that. Jesus transforms heartfelt hypocrites into righteous sons of God. But what is the proof that we have sonship? How do we know that we have been called into the family of God? John provides several tests throughout his letter to the church - and these tests are designed to call the unbeliever to faith while assuring the true believer that they are indeed an adopted son of God. The first test John asks is whether or not we are liars or sons. We can know that we are a son if we desire to live the way that Jesus lived. Many claim to know God - but what is their proof?</p>

<p>Has God spoiled the ending? Does God's promise to forgive us for all our sins give us a reason to sin? Won't a person who know's they can get away with something take advantage of the one who allows them to get away with it? Not for the person who's heart has been won over by grace! God has not allowed us to get away with our sin, but instead poured out all of his wrath upon Jesus who became our sin, so that we might have the forgiveness of sins. This forgiveness, this immeasurable grace doesn't spoil us and encourage us to sin, but rather compels us to do war with sin out of our love for the God who has been gracious to forgive us of our sins.</p>

<p>Am I a Christian if I am struggling with sin? What if I want victory but can't seem to make it happen? What does the Gospel have to say about me if I am struggling in sin? John is very clear that those who are bearing fruit are truly Christians. However, those who claim to be a Christian but do not desire the things that God desires make God and themselves out to be a liar - and only one of these is true. The good news is that imperfect people can be in perfect relationship with God because of the perfect work of Jesus.</p>

<p>In a fast-changing culture, the church must be united under one truth - that Jesus Christ is Lord. The church must speak the truth with clarity, in love, in humility, and with loving kindness to a world that is broken and hurting. Too often we have ignored the truth, run from the truth, devised a new truth or keep the truth silent. But the Gospel demands that every human being reckon and respond to the Truth that is the Gospel. Our response to the changing culture cannot be one of shock or hatred, but rather understanding and love. We can hold fast to the truth of Scripture and love those who disagree with the Gospel - in fact it is our calling. Our mission, and purpose and reaction to the changing culture depend on our unity under the Gospel. We must make much about Jesus and speak the truth with clarity.</p>

<p>John wrote his letter to a fractured church. And to deal with the fracture John taught about the quality and proof of God's love for his people. God's love is our model for how we ought to love one another. God's love is the reason we have salvation. God's love is everlasting and has secured eternal life for the believer. If we have been loved by God and if we have loved God, we will love others in the way that God has loved us.</p>

<p>Christian's often talk about having a joy that surpasses all understanding. This is a joy that Christian's possess no matter what life might bring their way. But how is this kind of joy possible? It is in the blessings of justification that we can discover the means of joy. Justification is the foundation of our joy in that no matter what happens we know that we have peace with God, stand in grace and can rejoice even in suffering.</p>

<p>Christian's often talk about having a joy that surpasses all understanding. This is a joy that Christian's possess no matter what life might bring their way. But how is this kind of joy possible? It is in the blessings of justification that we can discover the means of joy. Justification is the foundation of our joy in that no matter what happens we know that we have peace with God, stand in grace and can rejoice even in suffering.</p>

<p>Pastor Dan Betters shares his life verse, 2 Corinthians 5:21.</p>

<p>Pastoral Intern Steve Hart shares his life verse, Acts 1:8.</p>

<p>Pastor Tom Harr from Faith Presbyterian shares his life verse, Ephesians 2:8-10.</p>

<p>Parents dream of a home where children obey them. But obedience is more than adherence to the rules. Obedience is born from the desire to honor authority. Parents that wish to cultivate a culture of honor and obedience will make it their goal to honor others in their relationships. The Scriptures give us very clear instruction on how we are to honor everyone and their position in relationship to us whether they are equals, superior or inferior to us in relation. Parents will cultivate a gospel-centered spirit of honor and obedience in their home by honoring the relationships they have.</p>

<p>There is no question that parenting is incredibly difficult and incredibly rewarding. As parents, we can freely admit that much of the time we are making things up as we go along. We need grace and we need to give our children grace. When God matters most to us parents will look for moments to inject the Gospel story into redemptive moments. In Ephesians, Paul has a few but very specific instructions for parents that can change the course of their lives and the course of their children's lives. Our goal as Christian parents is to give our children grace by giving them the full story of the Gospel. It is our goal to teach our children to view all of life through the triumph of Jesus Christ as Lord.</p>

<p>What is the secret to a great marriage? It is a constant pursuit of something greater than ourselves? Husbands and wives that pursue Jesus in their marriage will always be pursuing greatness. In Ephesians, Paul says that the relationship that Jesus has with the church is an illustration of a great marriage. Husbands and wives are to treat each other with the same self-sacrificing love that Jesus loved the church with. No matter if we are looking to get married, already married, fighting for our marriage or ready to quit, the Gospel applied will transform our relationships from good to great.</p>

<p>When all is said and done what will you have left the ones that you love on this earth? How will their lives be different because of the investment that you made in them? The older we get the more we think about what our legacy might be. The history books will not remember most of our names but the mark we leave will be felt for generations even by those who have long forgotten we ever existed. How we raise our families now and what we teach our families about God will reverberate for generations. What kind of legacy are you leaving your family? In this sermon, guest preacher, Dr. Chuck F. Betters preaches from the story of Joshua and the Israelites crossing the Jordan River to begin their conquest of the Promised Land. Upon crossing the river they build a memorial consisting of 12 stones. It would be a memorial that would be noticed for generations to come and the story of that historic day would be retold to remind the generations of God's great covenantal love for His people. Each of us are building a legacy, a memorial built not with stones but with values and doctrine. What is your memorial constructed out of?</p>

<p>In Ephesians Paul has some detailed instruction for how families ought to function. But these instructions are found deep into his letter to the church and only come after Paul has revealed the mystery of the Gospel. How we live our lives in the context of family is heavily dependent upon what we believe about God and the implications the Gospel have on our lives and relationships. We matter to God and when God matters most to is the Gospel will inform us about ourselves and the people we live with, it will reform us as we seek to remove sin and prioritize Jesus above all things and it will transform is into humble servants who serve others out of a reverence for Jesus.</p>

<p>There is a tension in which we all live. With each passing minute we know that we are closer to the end of this life. With each battle in life we wonder if there will be a positive outcome. Even when we experience a positive outcome we wonder where the next hammer might fall. We can either succumb to the tension of being a part of the human race or we can trust that God has not only relieved the tension but broken it completely. We can either live in the agony of defeat or the spoils of victory. Jesus has won the victory and his resurrection is the very basis for why the Christian can proclaim, "Jesus changes everything."</p>

<p>When Jesus arrived in Jerusalem he did not come as a conquering king but rather as a suffering servant. He came to die for the very race that put him to death. But before Jesus would die on a cross the crowd had to decide what they believed about Jesus. Some ignored him. Some rejected him. Some sought to kill him. Others wanted to wait and see. And others believed he was the King. Each of us must reckon with Jesus. There is no doubt that he changed the world. No matter where we stand we must make a decision - we must come to a verdict. For those who believe that Jesus is the King a real life change will happen. For those who worship the king possess an unwavering confidence, an unbreakable hope, a perfect peace, and life eternal.</p>

<p>God's work in our life does not stop when He saves us by giving us faith in Jesus. His work in us continues until we take our last breath as He makes us more like Jesus. The disciple who is maturing in their faith will desire to participate fully in the plan and mission of God. They will grow in humility and worship. They will be prepared for the moments when life takes a turn. In Habakkuk we see the picture of maturity as the prophet begins the book in complaint against God but ends rejoicing in the God who lives him not matter what the circumstance.</p>

<p>Change is something every human being desires. We want to be better. We want to make a difference. We want to stop being ruled by that which brings us down. Idols are the good things that we have made ultimate things that when put in the place of God they bring us down and rule us. In order to bring about real change we must be able to discern what our idols are, uproot and replace our idols and ultimately silence our idols rule in our lives. Jesus is the only God who can replace the gods we love and bringing about real change.</p>

<p>It feels really good to be the king—to rule and reign over everything in your life. To have people serve you, and love you. But we have some problems with living like this. First, we are no kings at all. Jesus is the true King. Secondly, Jesus is passionate about ridding our life of the sin where we insert ourselves onto the throne of our own lives. When we live for the glory of our own kingdom, we devalue things around us, turning people into objects and objects into enemies. However, the Spirit at work in us can teach us to live for the glory of the true King and teach us to truly love those around us.</p>

<p>We all want to know if we matter. We want to matter to the world, in the workplace, in our community, to our family and to our friends. We often judge a person based on how valuable they are to us or to our objectives. Many of us find all of our value in all of the wrong places. We base our value on our job, our skills or our success. We make the good things and opportunities God has given us into main things and we fall into idolatry. Our worth is not found in what we accomplish but rather what Jesus accomplished for us and has given to us.</p>

<p>There is an idol from which all other idols come. This idol is responsible for bringing sin into the world. The idol of self has caused every problem in the world that we face today and yet we continually try to build up the self into the Savior it is can never be. Self-Esteem cannot help us to a better life. Self-esteem can only judge us on what we have done lately. A life built on self-esteem is empty, painful, fragile and restless. But Jesus offers us something different - he offers us a life that is not build on our accomplishments or failures, but on his righteousness and grace.</p>

<p>Jesus transforms greedy people into generous people. We are born with greedy hearts. Human nature is constantly moving to make good things the main things. When good things become the main things they become coveted things. Coveted things become idols and idols destroy us. They steal our time and money and ultimately our materialism will impede the flow of the Gospel. But Jesus has changed the heart of the believer from one that is overrun with idols to one that is rooting out and burning down idols.</p>

<p>There are many ways that humanity has tried to use to get right with God. Religion. Tradition. Morality. But it isn't until we have come to the end of our effort and ideas that we can see were it not for Gods grace there would be no way to get right with God. God has declared the a righteous person is the person who walks and lives by faith in Him. We have to come to the end of ourselves and become lost in God's live for us and be made righteous. There is no other avenue but faith in Jesus to get right with God.</p>

<p>Have you ever asked God to resolve a situation for you and He answered in such a way that you did not expect or even want? That is what happened to Habakkuk. He had asked God to change the ways of Judah and once he heard God's response he only had more questions. The wrath, love and action of God can often leave us wondering and confused. When this happens there are steps that we can take to understand God better, to walk in faith, and to worship God for who He is.</p>

<p>Habakkuk prayed with expectancy. He was honest with God and God responded. God still works the same way today. God listens to us and He responds to us. Many Christians do not pray with expectancy and live in a practical atheism. But if God really is who the Bible says He is than prayer is a powerful way to be intimate with the Creator of the Universe.</p>

<p>There are times in our lives when we decide it is time to get right with God. It might be a new year, a new job, a new trial or a new direction. But it is during those times when we realize our need to be right with God. If we want to get right with God we have to get real with God first. We have to get real about our struggles, our questions, our sin, our worship and our view of who God is if we are ever to get right with Him. Getting real with God means being honest with ourselves and with God and it is not an easy journey. Being honest about ourselves can be full of shame - but there is no shame when we are honest before the cross of Jesus. God was honest about how He feels about sin when He allowed His Son Jesus to die for our sins. God was honest so that we can be honest - so that we can be right with God.</p>