Moving On

Thank you so much to all of you who have read this blog over the last 4 years. I have lost touch with it recently due to high activity. I want you to know I am resuming the blog but have decided to move it to another location.

The blog will now be located at http://stonebridgesa.wordpress.com/

Thanks.
Jason

Preachers I Listen Too and Learn From

It seems like I have been asked this a lot recently so I decided to put it out here. These are the preachers I listen too on a pretty regular basis. I don't agree with all of them on everything. But, here is my list in no particular order: (You can find most of these guys in iTunes or at oneplace.com)

James MacDonald
Chip Ingram
John MacArthur
John Piper
Kevin Carson
Andy Stanley
C.J. Mahaney
Stephen Furtick
Perry Noble
Robert Welch
Charles Stanley
Jack Graham
Darrin Patrick
Mark Driscoll
Albert Mohler

Those are the favorites anyways.

Keep Going!

When your memories exceed your dreams, the end is near. This is true of a person individually and the church collectively. At StoneBridge, we will never let our memories exceed our dreams. We have seen God do the supernatural for us over the last few months. Let's not take that for granted church.

I remember when I was in my teens, I wanted to buy an expensive pair of tennis shoes, so I spent all summer working a fireworks stand. I have come to be very casual and unimpressed about fireworks. Day after day people would come up to me and ask, "What does that one do?" And I would say, "That goes way up in the air and explodes into lots of colors." They would think for a minute, then point to another and say, "What does that one do?" And, I would say, "That goes way way up in the air and explodes into lots of colors."  I was around it for so long I didn't have the excitement for anymore.

Church, right now, we are seeing things that churches across the land would love to see! We are in the middle of a move of God! When a person gets saved, or when families join the church, or when we add on rooms for people - not everybody is seeing that! Those are God moments when we need to be aware of the fact that we are on "holy ground!"

I remember a man in the Bible name Noah that built an ark for God. An incredible even seeing how it had never rained. The Bible says he spent 120 years building this ark and telling people it was going to rain and he was laughed at. Not one convert in a 120 years! But he kept going. He built this big ark and then God showed up and the rain came down and amazing things happened! Noah got to see this big HUGE move of God. And then the Bible says at the end of Genesis 9:28 - "And after the flood, Noah lived another 350 years." Nothing. Nothing else recorded about his life for 350 years?!?!  I wonder something. I wonder if Noah lived on that ark, and took the grandkids out to see the ark, and told people about the ark - and you know what, he spent all that time living on past victories.

Our memories will never exceed our dreams! Every victory God gives us we will celebrate but they will only bolster our confidence to ask God for more victories. Every accomplishment we will celebrate the power and plan of our God but it will only bolster our courage to attempt bigger things for God! Let's keep going!

Biblical Productivity #1 - The Principle of One Thing

I like lists. I like to make lists. As a matter of fact, I can put my whole day on a post-it note most of the time. I take great joy in crossing things of my list.  However, the list never ends! This is true for me as a pastor and I'm sure true of everyone else too. So I want to go over some principles of what I call "biblical productivity". The first principle: You can't fill someone else's cup if yours' is empty. 

If we ourselves are empty, we have nothing to offer those around us. In Matthew 4:19, Jesus said, "Follow me, and I will make you (cause you to become) fishers of men." We are called to follow Jesus. Jesus then causes us to do from what we have become.

Luke 10:41-42: "But the Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things,⁴²but one thing is necessary". The one thing is worship. Time with God precedes everything we do for people. There are many things that are urgent; there is one thing that is necessary.

More coming later.

Jason

Decision Making in the New Year

I got this from John MacArthur. Some great questions as you ponder life in 2011.

Did you know 90% of the choices you make as a Christian involve areas where Scripture says surprisingly little? What you wear, where you go, how you spend your free time—you won’t find many explicit instructions in the Bible. But you can find plenty of rules and strictures in the various spheres of evangelicalism, many of them unhelpful and even harmful (and not only in the fundamentalist camp).

Of course Scripture forbids all clear-cut sins such as lying, cheating, stealing, murdering, or committing adultery. The Bible also clearly calls us to pursue Christ and grow in our faith. No Christian seriously questions whether he should read the Bible, pray, or tell others about Christ. Scripture is unambiguous about those things.

There is, however, one class of questions that seems to fall somewhere in the middle. These are the issues dealing with Christian freedom—things that fall between what God prohibits and what He commands. What entertainment is acceptable? What kind of music is okay? What can a Christian do or not do on Sunday? What about what you wear, what you eat and drink, or how you spend your free time—does the Bible address those things?

Some would say, "No, the Bible doesn't address those things. Those are gray areas, so do what you want to do—you're free in Christ!" While it is true that the Bible doesn't specifically list every possible decision you'll face in life, it does address all choices with principles that govern Christian freedom. When you run your choices through the following grid of principles from God's Word, you'll find both clarity and true freedom to live your life to God's glory.

Will it benefit me spiritually?

All things are lawful, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful, but not all things edify (1 Cor. 10:23).

A "profitable" thing is useful, helpful, or to your advantage to do; and the idea behind "edify" is to build up spiritually. So based on this verse, ask yourself, "Will doing this enhance my spiritual life? Will it cultivate godliness? Will it build me up spiritually?" If not, you should seriously question whether that behavior is the best choice.


Will it bring bondage?

All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything (1 Cor. 6:12).

In the second part of this verse, Paul is saying, "I will not be brought under the power of anything." If what you are considering can be habit-forming, why pursue it? Don't allow yourself to be in bondage to anything or anyone. You are a bond-servant of the Lord Jesus Christ, and Him alone.

Will it defile God's temple?

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body (1 Cor. 6:19-20).

Don't do anything that you know will harm your body or bring shame—it is the only instrument you have to glorify God. Romans 6:13 says, "Present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God." How you choose to use your body should always reflect your concern to honor Jesus Christ.

Will it cause anyone to stumble?

Food will not commend us to God; we are neither the worse if we do not eat, nor the better if we do eat. But take care lest this liberty of yours somehow become a stumbling block to the weak (1 Cor. 8:8-9).

This is the principle of love. As Romans 13:10 says: "Love does no wrong to a neighbor; love therefore is the fulfillment of the law." If you know that your choice—what you consider "in bounds" and approved—causes another Christian to stumble and sin, love that brother or sister enough to restrict your own freedom. That is not very popular in our self-absorbed society, but it is biblical. To continue to indulge in a legitimate freedom that causes problems for another Christian is a sin. For "by sinning against the brethren and wounding their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ. Therefore," Paul said, "if food causes my brother to stumble, I will never eat meat again, that I might not cause my brother to stumble" (1 Cor. 8:12-13).

Will it further the cause of evangelism?

Give no offense either to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God; just as I also please all men in all things, not seeking my own profit, but the profit of the many, that they may be saved (1 Cor. 10:32-33).

Whether you are aware of it, what you allow or disallow in your behavior affects your witness for Christ, and the world is watching. It's an issue of testimony—what your life says about God. Your testimony either tells the truth about God, or it tells a lie. The choices you make in areas where Scripture speaks principally rather than specifically should reflect your concern not to bring offense to God's reputation but to bring Him praise instead.

Will it violate my conscience?

He who doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and whatever is not from faith is sin (Rom. 14:23).

First Corinthians 10:25-29 contains three references to abstaining from a certain practice "for conscience sake." Never train yourself to violate your conscience. If your conscience is troubled by what you consider, don't do it. If you aren't sure about it, don't do it. It is hard to overstate the value of a clean conscience, but it is worth keeping your conscience clear so that your relationship to God will not be hindered. If you'll keep yourself in prayer and the study of God's Word, you will inform your conscience so you can "walk as children of light...finding out what is acceptable to the Lord" (Eph. 5:8, 10).

Will it bring glory to God?

Therefore, whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God (1 Cor. 10:31).

That verse is clearly both the summary and the goal of all the principles listed above. Isn't our heart's cry to glorify our Lord and Savior with our lives? Think about your decision—Will He be glorified, honored, and praised through it? May we say along with Jesus, "I glorified You on the earth" (John 17:4).

So the next time you face a decision where Scripture is less than specific or overt, run it through the principles above and enjoy your freedom in Christ. Happy New Year from Grace to You!

Value Statements

We are all in. We have given everything we have to God and are totally dependent upon Him to work for us. God takes full responsibility for the welfare of the life fully devoted to Him.

We will think simplicity. We don’t spread ourselves too thin. Every program and ministry idea will be ruthlessly evaluated by our core values. By focusing on simplicity, we find efficiency.

We will not be known by our protests. We will not be known for what we are against, but for what we are for

We will be Church together, Church apart. Churches are on the same team. We value Kingdom work. Other churches exist for fellowship not competition.

We will not seek “volunteers,” we will empower leaders. We want to inspire confidence in our leaders by providing insight and improvement opportunities. Every member is a minister and takes ownership in their areas of service. 

We want excellence, not perfection. Perfection will drive you crazy and end up making you feel devalued. On the other hand, excellence is achievable. By focusing on excellence, we make sure we are always giving God our best.

We know our future is brighter than our past. Our memories will never exceed our dreams. Our audacity to ask will never exceed God's capacity to answer.

We can’t out-give God, but we try. God has always been generous to mankind. By being a generous people we will only reflect God to our community.

We are about quantity AND quality. Quantity because every number, every statistic, represents a life that was changed, and we are all about life change. Quality because we value life-change has our highest core value and believe God wants fully equipped Christians who can do the work of the ministry.

We are bringing the honor back. A sense of honor has been lost among our generation, we want it back.  We will honor God by honoring those He has placed in authority over us and honoring His creation.

We desire accountability through community. This only works if we can count on each other. We err on the side of “Can Do,” and focus on making it happen.

Ephesians 3:14-21

“Greatness of His Power: Power of Prayer”

Introductory Thoughts

* This is Paul’s second prayer in Ephesians. His first prayer (1:15-23) was for the Ephesians to know what is the hope of his calling (past), the riches of his inheritance in the saints (future), and the surpassing greatness of his power (present). Paul’s desire is for the Ephesians believers to deepen their relationship with God who has enriched them with every spiritual benefit. 

*In this present context, the focus of Paul’s prayer is that the Ephesians might know Christ’s strengthened love, so that this “one new body” that has just been discussed can function properly.

THE PETITION  (vs.14-17)

NOTE:  “For this reason” - This marks the resumption of the sentence begun in verse 1 which was interrupted by Paul’s digression. 

NOTE: The petitions of Paul’s prayer are based on “God’s glory.”  The basis for which Paul prays and expects God to answer is for His Glory. Paul makes these requests not according to our ability to receive, but according to God’s ability to give. In other words, Paul does not want us to experience a portion of God, but to experience the limitless supply of God Himself. Out of God’s “glorious riches,” He will give and give and give. There is more in God’s endowment fund than we can ever use and we are beneficiaries of His riches.

Petition 1: To be strengthened with power through the Spirit in your inner being - v.16

God gives us the strength we need to serve Him. It does not and cannot come from us. 

It is only by the Holy Spirit working on us, in us, through us, and for us that we can be successful for Christ!

This is why Paul gives them the command not to “quench the Spirit” but to be “filled with the Spirit” (5:18).

X-Ray Q: Does the Holy Spirit have the freedom to work in your life today? Is the Spirit in absolute and total control of you? Or are there certain parts that you still control?

This strength is not physical but spiritual; It is not focused on our outer man but our inner man

The inner person is the heart or mind of the believer whereas the outer person is the physical body

God is interested in our hearts and minds – he wants our thoughts, passions, ambitions, and affections for this is the key to Lordship 

X-Ray Q:  Who/What do you think about most?

X-Ray Q: Who/What do you want most?

X-Ray Q: What drives you? What “flips your switch?”

The Christian life is not about outward conformity; The Christian life is about inward change!

Petition #2 - So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith

This is not talking about Christ coming into your heart at salvation. This is a very intimate phrase showing the close relationship which we are to have with Christ and the control he is to have over us. We are to let Christ become the dominating factor in our attitudes and conduct. 

“ Dwell” here means to literally “make one’s abode, reside in, to settle down 

Christ doesn’t want to be just an invited guest; he wants to be “at home”, the ruler of us

Illustration:  Robert Munger wrote a fascinating booklet entitled “My Heart, Christ’s Home,” in which he pictures the Christian life as a house. Jesus comes into the house and goes from room to room. He goes into the library of the mind and begins to clean up the trash found there. He replaces it with His Word. He enters the dining room of the appetite and finds many sinful desires listed on a worldly menu. He replaces things like materialism, pride, envy and lust with humility, love, and purity. When he finally comes to the closet, the owner of the house hesitates to open the door to all his dark and secret sins. He can’t bear to have Jesus look inside. But Jesus does come inside only after He’s invited and cleans it up. Jesus then settles down and feels at home.

Do you have some rooms in your life that you haven’t allowed Jesus into? Let Him to come into every area of your life and do some cleaning with his penetrating holiness and matchless grace. Jesus dwells in our hearts through faith. Our faith in Him means that we invite Him to do some housecleaning. We put our faith in Him so that He can do the needed renovations in our life.

THE PURPOSE (vs.17-19)

Purpose #1 - To Know The Love Of Christ

Being rooted and grounded in love

The present tense refers to an action or event that occurred in the past but that still has continuing results today

We were rooted and grounded in the love of Christ at salvation and we are to become more rooted and grounded in this love in our sanctification or Christian walk 

“Rooted” is from the plant world - Just as a tree must have roots down deep into the soil if it is to have both nourishment and stability, so too we as believers must have our spiritual roots deep in the love and truth of God. (Psalm 1:3)

“Grounded” is an architectural term referring to the strong foundation of a building  (Matthew 7:24-27)

Four dimensions of Christ’s love

Breadth - It reaches to all people, nations, sins, needs, cares, and situations.

Length - It never had a beginning; It will never have an end

Depth - It can’t be measured

Height - High enough to take you all the way to heaven

Song: The Love of God

Could we with ink the ocean fill, And were the skies of parchment made, Were every stalk on earth a quill, And every man a scribe by trade, To write the love of God above, Would drain the ocean dry. Nor could the scroll contain the whole, Though stretched from sky to sky.

The love of God is greater far Than tongue or pen can ever tell; It goes beyond the highest star, And reaches to the lowest hell; The guilty pair, bowed down with care, God gave His Son to win; His erring child He reconciled, And pardoned from his sin

“With all the saints” - Growth in the individual believer cannot occur in isolation but must be accomplished in context with other believers. Furthermore, true growth cannot occur by association with only certain believers but with all believers

Purpose #2 - Be Filled With All The Fulness Of God (v.19)

“Filled” comes from a word that means, “to be overflowing, like a cup that is running over.” It means total dominance, to come to the place in your life where you are totally overwhelmed by God’s presence. It means giving everything to God and leaving nothing for your self.

We are filled with the fullness of God by knowing Christ’s love experientially

Experiencing God’s moral excellence, perfection, and power would result in love between Jewish and Gentile believers. 

Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians is that God would strengthen them in the inner person, resulting in Christ effectively dwelling in them for the purpose that they, having been rooted and grounded in love, might be able to comprehend with all the saints the wonders of Christ’s love, so that they might demonstrate this love to one another

X-Ray Q: Do you experience the fullness of God on a regular basis? That’s what Paul prays for believers. If you don’t live with this kind of fullness, try praying this prayer for yourself and for others. Are you willing to say to the Lord, “Lord, fill me up so that my life is all you and none of me?” I often want some of the Lord and some of me

THE POWER (v.20)

NOTE: These petitions and purposes can be quite challenging. To be strengthened in our inner man so that we might live in the holiness of Christ and know the love of Christ? To be filled with all the fullness of God so that we are living in his power and loving others with his love? 

The power to answer this prayer and make this prayer a living reality comes from God

He is able. There is nothing that God cannot do.

He is able to do. God is not idle or asleep, but active in our lives. 

He is able to do immeasurably more. His expectations are higher than our requests. 

He is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask. He listens to our prayers. 

He is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine. God reads our thoughts.

The power of God that is needed to make this prayer a living reality in our lives is already at work in us, therefore we just need to release it and let it work

The word power is dynamin, meaning dynamite – It is incredibly powerful

The word for “is at work” is energoumenen, meaning energy

The power of God is willing to energize our lives in order to give us the ability to live life in Christ’s holiness and love

X-Ray Q: What is keeping us from experiencing this kind of power? Why do we have so many power outages?

3 Action Steps To Releasing God’s Power

Pray this prayer for yourself on regular basis. Take this text, insert your name and pray it every day for a week. Ask God to change your inner person, and pray less for your physical needs.

Pray this prayer for other people. Put their names in the prayer and ask God to grant them strength, depth, comprehension, and fullness.

Think of an impossible situation right now. Is there something you are facing that seems way beyond hope? Make a decision to trust God to do immeasurably more than all you can ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within you.

THE PRAISE (v.21)

Paul gave God the glory because it would have to be a work of God to make this prayer a living reality

The Glory and Power of God is seen in the church for the church is the place were the miracle of God’s saving grace is seen as we communicate God’s love tangibly to one another

This is a fitting conclusion to the message that Paul has given them in the first three chapters.  God has purchased us and placed us in Christ.  He has reconciled us to himself and to each other.  He has placed us in his church and given us the ability to come before him in prayer.  He has given us all the resources and power needed to live the Christian life – to live a life of holiness, to experience Christ’s love in an intimate manner and then demonstrate this love in a tangible manner to others.  So, are you strengthened today in your inner man? Or are you tired, worn down trying to live in the power of your own will and not that of the Spirit?  Is Christ at home in your heart as the Lord of your life? Is he making the decisions? Is he pleased with your thoughts, words, attitudes, and actions? You may look like a Christian outwardly but are you truly a Christian inwardly?  Are  you experiencing the love of Christ daily in your life? Are you showing this love tangibly to other people in the community? You may think this is impossible. That is because you are leaning to your own understanding and living in your own strength. God’s power can make these petitions living realities in your life.  God can do exceedingly abundantly above what you are asking.  He can enable you to overcome sin. He can enable you to forgive people that have sinned against you. He can enable you to bring him glory with your life. He can soften your heart and flood your life with righteousness so that you are filled and overflowing with his nature and character. He can enable you to love others with his love – a love that is expressed with actions and not just words.  A love that is free and sincere.  A love that produces authentic relationships whereby we make everyone around us better.  This only happens as we allow God to fill us and use us – thus making His church truly a place where He is glorified!