Restore Mtown: Recent Episodes

Restore Mtown

Sermon Podcasts from Restore Church in Marshalltown, IA

"Blessed are they who hunger & thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied." Anger isn't always wrong. It's holy when the anger fuels you to help. Help those oppressed, dismissed, overlooked, and betrayed. The second half of this verse is really hard to reconcile in this season. The Hamilton lyric, "I'll never be satisfied" seems a lot more appropriate. Overwhelmed with this reality this morning.

Is there hope?

Does Jesus have a plan?

Does the Church have a part?

Our scars tell a story. What is your defining scar? For most of us, our defining scar is not physical. It is emotional, relational and maybe even spiritual. Today, we look at how each of us is a scarred person, persons filled with fire and fear. We see how our fire (passion) will help fuel us to keep going, while our fear will kill our momentum.

Dr. Paul Daniel is the Executive Director of Center Associates (Marshalltown and Tama, IA).

Paul uses his wealth of mental health knowledge, and deep faith to help us understand the season, struggle and opportunities we have before us. Paul talks about how trauma, specifically, COVID-19, affects our brain, decision making, emotions, and spiritual lives. Along with touching on how we can stay connected, deal with stacked-trauma (tornado + COVID), communicating with our kids, and more.

"Whatever can be taken away from the Church, is not essential to the Church." - Erin Ryden

What is Church?

Is it a building? A pastor? A service?

Covid-19 has caused fear and frustration, but God has also used it to help us realign our values, understandings, and actions to what really matters.

Join us, as Pastor Dylan, Pastor Sarah, and Erin talk about how God is using this season to shape and show what the Church truly is.

Covid-19 has forced us to live differently. As individuals, families, churches, communities, countries and the globe.

This can produces a lot of fear.

The question is, what type of fear does it produce?

Today we dig into the story of Martha, Mary and Jesus, and look how God deconstructs the fear of man and reconstructs in our faith the fear of God. Please join us in digging in deep to the better way forward.

Here is Pastor Dylan's interview (4 minutes long) with KFJB1230 from Friday, March 20th. A big thank you to Ken Huge, News Director, and the KFJB team.

www.1230kfjb.com

KFJB Facebook Page

As we journey through the Christian life, all of us face seasons when God strips everything away in hopes that it will narrow our focus onto Him. He does this because he loves us; he does it so he can remind us of our identity and of our inheritance. As we enter these desert seasons, the devil meets us there in an attempt to steal away the very things God has given to us.

It is in the desert that we must take a stand against the enemy.

It is in the desert that we must throat punch the devil.

How to throat punch the Devil:

Hit him hard. Hit him first. Hit him often.

1. Wake up running to Jesus. Run to him early, run to him often. Make him your first priority. 2. Put on the armor of God – get ready for battle because whether you like it or not, you’re in one. 3. Read God’s word. Know God’s word. Speak God’s word. Share God’s word. Memorize God’s word. 4. Pray. Speak to God, but also listen. 5. Declare truth over your life, your situation, and your people. 6. Don’t do it alone, we’re better together.

We all have a snapshot of God. It is that default image we have had since childhood that tends to shape our faith experience. What is your snapshot? Is God old? Is God angry? Is God judgmental? Is God compassionate? Is God a miracle worker? Whatever your view, we must ask, “Is my view of God broad enough? Do I see him for all he is or am I seeing just a small snapshot of him?” Listen as Pastor David challenges us to move from a snapshot view to a portrait view of God.

Here is the interview Pastor Dylan with Pastor Terrell Walters of Beacon of Hope Church in the Jordan Neighborhood in North Minneapolis shown at our "Serve" Sunday Night (2/16/20)

If you are interested in joining us for the June 25-28th trip, please contact us at info@restoremtown.com

Pastor Ryan preaches in the third week of our Counter series. Ryan shares about confession and how we can live within "Greater Things" as we move towards what God has for us. In the culture, confession is viewed as weakness. In the Economy of Jesus, confession owns the moment and honors those to whom we are confessing. Confession elevates them to the place God sees them in. Confession removes the space between God and us and Others and us.

“Do all the good you can,

By all the means you can,

In all the ways you can,

In all the places you can,

At all the times you can,

To all the people you can,

As long as ever you can.” - John Wesley.

Why is generosity essential in the Kingdom of God?

Today, we will not answer how? what? where? who? But why we should be generous.

We will explore Jesus' interaction with Lazarus, Judas, and Mary with her perfume. In this story, we will see what generosity is and isn't.

Generosity is dependent on a mindset of abundance, a posture of humility, & a drive to apply.

In our first "Tell" Sunday Night, Lauren shares her story of God's promise, the stronghold of insecurity, the power of Jesus, and the pursuit of seeing God's promise fulfilled in her and through her.

Recorded 1/12/20

We are called to Greater Things; We are capable of Greater Things.

However, Greater Things = Harder Things.

Join us as Pastor Dylan shares his personal story of great failure, pain and ultimate healing God gave him after 12 years of praying, pushing forward, and wondering if God would ever heal this painful situation in his story.

We wrapped up our Greater Things with a panel of Restore leaders sharing insights on how each person grew to understand God's deep love for them, and develop a deeper love for Him.

Please join us, as we hear from LaVonne, Erin and Lauren's story!

The Greater things of God is His love is WIDER|LONGER|HIGHER|DEEPER

God’s love is HIGHER than our comprehension….

What does this mean? It means anything we discuss today, we need to imagine His love is exponentially more. We don’t have the language, brainpower, or imagination to encapsulate this reality.

Join us today, as seek to explore an uncontrollable, unfathomable, unimpeachable, and unedited God who transcends our world. How does this transcendent God translate his "bigness" into His character of love in His relationship with the world...the people He created?

"But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent." 2 Peter 3:8-9

What does it mean to be loved by a God who sees a day as a thousand years, and a thousand years as a day?

It can be nerve-wracking. To know that God is not a quick fix God. To know that God will not eject us from our current situation.

It is also encouraging. That we are more than "our last at-bat". God sees us as more than what we currently are.

Join us as we develop a longer-view of God, and learn to rely on His timing and His promises.

January is the season of reinvigorated goals, and reissued Y memberships. If you look at social media almost everybody’s “2019” was the worst ever, and everybody proudly proclaims this year will be the best year yet. Many people will seek to attain more this year - more money, love, experience, opportunity, peace, etc. Many people will seek to have less this year - less stress, less drama, less distance from family.

The reality is our focus is often consumed with less and more for 30 days, and then we go back to our default rhythms of life. But life is not a pursuit of more or less, but life is the pursuit of “Greater Things” or “Lesser Things”.

Fear reduces us to lesser things, but Love unlocks greater things.

Join us, as we begin to dig in Greater Things for 2020 at Restore and in our personal life. Today we dig into Ephesians 3:14-21, and seek to discover a wider view of God's love.

God has arrived.

The holiday season is a time of anxious anticipation of the coming Messiah. Join us as we dig into what Jesus' arrival means today, and the good news that is surrounding His return.

This week Pastor Ryan talks about the Love in the last week of our Engage Mtown series. What do we do when we are faced with the decision between safe and love. Pastor Ryan talks about the life of Ruth and Naomi. About how grief changed them and how it will change us. Do we try to hide our wounds from others like Naomi? Ruth lived a life that was high in character and that was what was known about her.

Love is a declaration when it costs us something. It cost Ruth her future and it pointed to a greater love in the birth of Jesus. Ruth stepped into a life of love and faith.

Nehemiah 10:8 tells us that, “The joy of the Lord is your strength!” What does that even mean? How do I find the Joy that I am desperate to have but that is largely missing from my life? Join Pastor Dave as he shares two stories, one from the Bible and one from a classic Disney cartoon, that both teach us how to position ourselves to allow Joy from the Lord to spill over onto us.

Have you ever wrestled with God?

Do you think that it is okay to wrestle with God?

What if wrestling with God was essential for finding peace with God?

Join us as we continue to dig into Advent (the anxious anticipation of the coming Messiah), and seek how we can experience peace amidst turmoil and tumult. We look at the promise of peace, the reality of conflict and the hope of the future.

The season of Advent is an annual opportunity to reorient ourselves toward the Christian hope: that one day Jesus will return and restore all things to their intended order. In Scripture, we often see hope framed around dreams; dreams of the future, dreams of our calling, dreams of the fulfillment of God’s promises in our lives.

One man whose life was dramatically impacted by dreams is Joseph. At age 17 Joseph had a dream that shifted the trajectory of his entire life; unfortunately the road to get there wasn’t as easy as he had hoped for. After sharing the dream with his family he is abandoned by his brothers, enslaved by the Egyptians, wrongly accused, discarded by his master, imprisoned and forgotten. While the dreams of God often have detours, we know they never hit dead ends. God uses every circumstance and hardship to develop us into men and women who have the character to fulfill the dream of God in their lives.

13 years after receiving the dream, Joseph finally has the opportunity to fulfill it. He’s released from prison, given a prominent position in Pharaoh’s ranks, and is used by God to save an entire nation from the threat of famine. What the enemy intends for harm, God uses to accomplish his good and glorious plan.

Is there a prayer of thanksgiving in seasons of failure?

We expect suffering (external forces complicating life), but what happens when we are faced with our own shortcomings, stupidity, arrogance, bias, prejudice. Simply put...FAILURE.

The core tenets of our faith are to LOVE GOD & LOVE PEOPLE. Every time we fail it is not about the event or act, but about a lack of love of God, and in turn, love of people. Today, we look at a great failure of love for God and people through King David.

What happens when Nathan confronts David on his dehumanization and desecration of Bathsheba, Uriah and ultimately God Himself?

How does David respond? How do I respond to the illumination of my failure?

Why does God challenge David? To damn or to free?

Why does God challenge me? To damn or to free?

“Friendship is the only cement that will ever hold the world together.” - Woodrow Wilson

We live in a culture with the perpetual desire and numerous depictions of finding your "soul-mate". It is always framed as a romantic relationship, but are romantic relationships really the foundation of all relationships?

Have you always been married?
Was your marriage your first relationship?
Do you have to be married to be used by God?
Do you have to be married to fulfill all God has for you?

We are all built for friendship, regardless of marital status. Today, we look at the relationship between David and Jonathan and see that friendship, not marriage, is the foundational relationship in our lives. Join us as we look at how God used David's "soul-mate" to support David and model the arrival of humanity's "soul-mate" 1000 years in the future.

7 billion on the planet. 30k in Marshalltown. House full of people. I feel all alone. Can I thank God when I feel left out...hopeless...alone?

Our 20's are often marked by PROMISE and PROBLEMS. This was also true for David. In 1 Samuel 16, David is anointed as the next king of Israel. We would think that should be a time of celebration, which it is, but it also means that life will be easy. David's anointing didn't bring ease, it brought problems that produced loneliness.

Did David have a prayer of thanksgiving in his loneliness?

Do we have a prayer of thanksgiving in our loneliness?

God uses our loneliness to strip away all the life preservers we use to keep afloat, so He can lift us up and place our feet on the water to be able to walk with Him.

David's season of loneliness produced Psalm 19 and 23.

In Acts chapter 17, Paul wraps up his address in Athens with a call to repentance. All of us must approach God through repentance. It is through repentance that we give the Holy Spirit permission to do for us what we can’t do for ourselves. Listen as Pastor David challenges us to change the status quo and approach God with our shoes untied.

God is near...

Does that fill your soul with joy?

Does it trouble you?

The God who creates also inhabits His creation. He desires to connect with us, and created each of us with a desire to connect to Him. Join us as we dig into how our soul is a magnet drawn to the creator, but our soul struggles to find him due to being blinded by sin.

Today we ask the question "how do we shift from a God who is near, to a God who is known".

“To create is to reflect the image of God. To create is an act of worship.” - Erwin McManus

The first characteristic God reveals about Himself is not that He is love. Nor that He is good. We learn that He creates. As the origin story of all of existence zooms in, we see God as creator.

“In the beginning God created…”

As image-bearers of God, we reflect His character. We reflect His creativity. Today we jump into how our creativity points us back to our creator, and our sin confuses our creativity with being the Creator.

EVANGELISM

This word carries a lot of connotations with it. For some it means sharing the "Good News" (The root 'evangelion' means 'Good News'). For others, it is someone SHOUTING the "Good News" at them (Think Bullhorn Preacher outside of any sporting event). Ultimately, it is about communicating and connecting people to Jesus.

This message is for all of us who have tried to force people to hear about your thoughts on Jesus, or felt forced to hear someone's thoughts on Jesu.

This message is for all of us who remained silent about Jesus, because "forcing" people didn't seem very much like Jesus.

This message is for all of us who want to communicate and connect people to Jesus.

Join us as we look to Paul, and see how he did not fall prey to SHOUTING the Gospel or resigning himself to be silent about the Gospel. He instead, was able to share the Gospel in a powerful and personal way that connected all walks of life to Jesus.

The worst four-letter word in the Kingdom is "they" or "them".

In the Kingdom of God there is only us.

Today we will dig into Paul's journey into 1st century Athens (Acts 17) and look at the shocking similarities to our own modern-day culture.

Join us as we dig into what it means to be "church for the rest of us" as we celebrate Restore's 4th birthday and kick off our new series "Us & Us".

"Two thousand years ago people thought God was for the Pharisees. The Pharisees were the religious people who claimed moral superiority. Then Jesus showed up. And EVERYTHING changed. Jesus claimed to be God, in the flesh, but He hung out with irreligious people who everyone thought to be morally inferior. Jesus was called a ìfriend of sinnersî because He spent time prostitutes and tax collectors and Roman soldiers. And people began to realize that God wasnít just for the Pharisees, that God was for the rest of us. Today, somehow people still believe that God is for the religious people who claim moral superiority. But theyíre wrong. God is STILL FOR THE REST OF US." - Vince Antonucci

We often look at self-control through the lenses of buffets, bars, and ballgames. Can we say no to an extra pass through the dessert bar? Can we stop at zero or 1 drink? Can we keep our emotions in check after a bad call by the ref?

We look at self-control as a way to abstain from certain activities, actions, etc.

But what if self-control is more about abundance than it is about abstinence? What if it is about a greater work of God?

Join us as we dig into the fruit of self-control through the lens of Paul in 1 Corinthians 9:19-27 and Jesus in Philippians 2:7-8.

All of God’s giants have been weak men and women who have gotten hold of God’s faithfulness.-Hudson Taylor

Our stories are marked with a combination of failure and faithfulness. Today we dig into how God's faithfulness helps build a bridge from our failures into a life of faithfulness. Join us as we look at God's incredible work in us, but also what God wants from us. From throwing away idols to walking in step with Him to build faithfulness in us.

Galatians 5:22-23; Romans 3; Joshua 24

Am I good?

How do I become good?

Is God good?

We have an interesting relationship with goodness. We are drawn to goodness, but we are highly skeptical of anyone or anything that claims to be good (without flaw in both character and conduct). Each one of us has heard and probably uttered the phrase "too good to be true".

Join us we dispel impostors of goodness (boy scout & lady justice) and dig into what true goodness is rooted in and how we can experience it today.

“For many Christians, following Jesus means we are just really, really nice.” -Sharon Miller, author

Kindness is not simply a feeling of compassion, a smile or an open door. Kindness is compassion expressed through generosity.

Yet, we, especially in the Church, buy into the greatest impostor of kindness. It is the surface smile, open door or warm feeling we call niceness.

Join us as we dig into the difference between kindness and niceness, and how choosing kindness can transform us, our neighborhoods, and the way we think about church.

The impostor of gentleness focuses on the moment rather than the promise. God chose to speak to Elijah in a gentle whisper, it was to draw him close to himself. In this message Pastor Ryan digs into the Impostor of gentleness and helps us see the authentic from the fake.

We all want to find a place that we can be vulnerable even if it is for a moment. Gentleness invites us into a vulnerable place we want to go to. We have the ability to use the gentleness in the fruit of the spirit to help those around us dig deeper into their lives.

Patience should be considered more of a “vegetable” of the Spirit, we need it but we don’t really want it. This week in our series on the Fruit of the Spirit Pastor David explores two common imposters of patience and how to cultivate the real thing.

There always seems to be a mountain of obstacles that interrupt our peace: anxiety, fear, relational strife, hardships, trials, injustice. This week we dive into a familiar story to address the impostors of peace and where true peace comes from.

We pick up the story in Exodus 13. After 400 years of slavery, the Israelites had finally been freed from their captivity to the Egyptians. The identity of slavery had been ingrained into the Israelites for nearly 20 generations, but God was moving them from slaves to son.

When they left Egypt, they marched out boldly armed for battle and camped near the Red Sea. But when the Egyptians pursued them through the desert, their confidence came crashing down. They cried to the Lord and questioned Moses’ leadership. In an instant, their confidence in God shattered.

The Israelites fell prey to the belief that peace is simply the absence of conflict. Like many of us they did everything in their power to avoid it. No matter how much we try to avoid conflict, it always catches up with us. It is in the avoidance of conflict that chaos is born.

What do we do when we find ourselves camped between conflict and chaos? What do we do when we’re sandwiched between the two things we’ve spent our entire lives avoiding? Isn’t that the place where peace really matters? If peace can’t be employed in that place, it shouldn’t be employed in any place.

Peace isn’t produced in the avoidance of conflict or the absence of chaos. Peace comes when we look chaos and conflict in the face and say, “I don’t have control of this situation but I know the God who does.”

“The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” – Exodus 14:14

This week we look at Joy and what the impostor looks like for our lives and relationships. Are you happy? The impostor wants us to settle, settle for almost, settle for good enough. Pastor Ryan talks about how at times we see Joy as a Sasquatch we have heard of it but is it really there? Pastor shares that we can also become suspicious of joy in our lives. What do we do with the impostor in our lives? How do we move from happy to joy?

The "Fruits of the Spirit" are the 9 markers of every healthy culture, community, and relationship. As with anything great, there are numerous knockoffs, fakes, and impostors that seek to deceive us. During our series, we will dig into the real and dispel the impostors that cripple our culture, community, and relationships.

To kick off our series, we dig into the most elemental and essential characteristic...love.

God describes Himself as love. He implores us to love others as our self. He even says if we don't love others, we don't love Him.

It cannot be overstated, love is important.

The more important something is, the more impostors there will be.

Join us as we dig in to dispel impostors and look to Jesus' words in John 15 for God's definition of love.

"Evil spirits were expelled."

Evil spirits....seriously?

Like Poltergeist? Stranger Things? Voodoo? Ghost Hunters? Ghostbusters?

Many of us are skeptical of the reality of evil spirits, but I believe we almost all agree that there is more to life than what we experience or can prove in a scientific lab. I believe we can all agree that not everything in our world is working for our good.

This is the reality of spiritual oppression. Spiritual oppression creates prisoners and captives. Join us as we dig into how the Holy Spirit gives freedom to both prisoners and captives.

A diverse church is God's idea because a diverse church reflects the diversity of God as Father, Son & Holy Spirit.

Acts 6:1-7 is as relevant in 21st Century America as it was in the 1st Century Roman Empire. As diversity brought about conflict, the Holy Spirit used 12 Apostles, and 7 Spirit-filled Greek men to elevate the oppressed Greek widows to a level playing field with their Jewish counterparts.

Join us as we dig into the power of humility amongst leadership, and the unique perspective each gender, different ethnicities, socio-economic backgrounds, age, amongst other defining characteristics, teach us about God.

Every time a person is baptized a miracle has occurred.

Is the water miraculous? No. It is H20 like the rest of the water that covers 70% of our globe.

Is the baptismal special? No. We use $200 horse trough.

It is the public expression of the life-giving, changing, transforming, legacy shifting work of Jesus in a person's life.

Check out our message from our Baptism Sunday at Grimes Farm Ampitheater.

We have all seen a balloon bouquet. At graduation parties, wedding receptions, and floral shops. Helium-filled balloons of various colors and styles kept together by one weight.

This is an apt metaphor for the Church. Different people, personalities, ethnicities, gender, backstory, gifting, and experiences kept together by one weight. The Triune God. Father. Son. Holy Spirit.

In today's message, we dig into one of the hardest accounts of the New Testament. The story of Ananias and Sapphira. Through this difficult story, we see a battle over who receives glory in the church (Glory literally means "weightiness"), and why that has far-reaching repercussions (both good and bad).

"Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth." - Mike Tyson

What happens when our plans hit roadblocks?

Our dreams are dashed?

Our purposes are thwarted?

What happens when fear rears it head?

Join us we see what happens when fear seeks to destroy the early church and, more specifically, Peter and John.

On Good Friday Jesus was crucified and buried. On Easter Sunday He rose from the dead. But, on Saturday His friends, family and followers had to live with the grief of Jesus being in the tomb. Many of them did not know if they would ever see Him again. It was a dark day, it was a day in which they had to embrace their hurt and disappointment. Join Pastor David as he shares a message about learning to live in our hurt and see God's purpose in it.

Jesus’ ability to perform miracles was not dependent on his divinity but on his dependence on the Holy Spirit. If that same Spirit lives inside of every believer, why do we see so little healing taking place in much of the modern church?

In Acts 3, Peter encounters a man crippled from birth at the gate called Beautiful. Day after day the man came to the gate and day after day he left in the same condition in which he came.

But while everyone looked past this man seeing only his outward condition, Peter saw what could be and invited this man to experience the healing power of Christ. In one moment, the man’s life was forever changed.

We invite you to experience the same healing power of God. His healing isn’t a work of the post but a present reality that can be experienced through the power of the Holy Spirit.

What elicits awe in you?

Expansive Oceans?
Towering Mountains?
Beautiful rivers
Architecture
Intellect

The book of Acts is filled with the movement of an awe-inspiring God through a Spirit-filled people. Today we dig into Acts 2:42-47, and see how the Church moved from the Spirit-filled moment of Pentecost into the Spirit-filled movement seen throughout the rest of Acts.

Acts 2:42 "All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer."

Don’t you hate cliffhanger endings? This is the first message in our Kingdom Come series. Jesus promises Pentecost and the Spirit to come, but in this first message we don’t arrive there. Instead we wait and look at what the Kingdom of Jesus looks like. We end with anticipation for what he is about to do. Are you willing to wait for the better kingdom that he wants to build in you?

10 years ago Simon Sinek shared a 15-minute talk in a regional TED talk, that would go on to be viewed on Youtube 20 million times. Earned him a multi-book deal and created millions of dollars in income for himself.

The talk “How Great Leaders Inspire Action”…

What’s your why?

Why > What
Purpose > Practice

Jonah 4 1 This change of plans greatly upset Jonah, and he became very angry. 2 So he complained to the Lord about it: “Didn’t I say before I left home that you would do this, Lord? That is why I ran away to Tarshish! I knew that you are a merciful and compassionate God, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. You are eager to turn back from destroying people. 3 Just kill me now, Lord! I’d rather be dead than alive if what I predicted will not happen.” 4 The Lord replied, “Is it right for you to be angry about this?” 5 Then Jonah went out to the east side of the city and made a shelter to sit under as he waited to see what would happen to the city. 6 And the Lord God arranged for a leafy plant to grow there, and soon it spread its broad leaves over Jonah’s head, shading him from the sun. This eased his discomfort, and Jonah was very grateful for the plant. 7 But God also arranged for a worm! The next morning at dawn the worm ate through the stem of the plant so that it withered away. 8 And as the sun grew hot, God arranged for a scorching east wind to blow on Jonah. The sun beat down on his head until he grew faint and wished to die. “Death is certainly better than living like this!” he exclaimed. 9 Then God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry because the plant died?” “Yes,” Jonah retorted, “even angry enough to die!” 10 Then the Lord said, “You feel sorry about the plant, though you did nothing to put it there. It came quickly and died quickly. 11 But Nineveh has more than 120,000 people living in spiritual darkness, not to mention all the animals. Shouldn’t I feel sorry for such a great city?”

Jonah’s “why” is revenge - God’s “why” is restoration

We see the immaturity of Jonah on full display:

Change of plans greatly upset Jonah, - Spiritual Temper Tantrum
Jonah said mean things using nice words (Systematic Theology 101 Class)
Jonah shrinks when God questions or challenges him.
Jonah’s disobedience (initially it was with his feet, later it was his heart) opened the door for Satan to move (Satan is like a lion crouching at the door)
God finishes Jonah putting up a mirror to Jonah and his motives. Selfish Motives of Jonah (Plant - brought shade) vs Selfless motive of God (120k people of Ninevah)

“The last act is the greatest treason. To do the right deed for the wrong reason.” - TS Eliot “Murder in the Cathedral”

The sinful heart’s “why” is revenge (God is your Hitman) The prodigal heart’s “why” is restoration (God is the Healer)

Am I Jonah? “God has my head & hands, but not my heart”

Jonah reveals 4 heart motives that drive towards revenge and away from restoration:

Salary - “Grace is my paycheck for my good works.”
Selfish - “Grace is for Me and Not We.”
Segregated “If you won’t destroy them, destroy me”
Shifty “Hey Jonah, I’m talking to YOU!”

Ultimately it’s a story about a Prodigal God… Prodigal: Extravagant Reckless

“Victory begins with the name of Jesus on your lips; but it will not be consummated until the nature of Jesus is in your heart.” Francis Frangipane - “3 Battlegrounds”

The most used phrase on Mother’s Day will not be “I love you”, but “I’m sorry”. How many of you have used a Mother’s Day card to apologize to your mother?

Is “I’m Sorry” enough? Jonah 3:1-3 Then the Lord spoke to Jonah a second time: 2 “Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh, and deliver the message I have given you.” 3 This time Jonah obeyed the Lord’s command and went to Nineveh, a city so large that it took three days to see it all.

The words “I'm sorry” can be incredible, even life-altering. But our “I’m sorry” will soon fall flat if our actions don’t also say “I’m sorry”.

Repentance releases God’s power in our life.

“One act of obedience is better than 100 sermons.” - Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Our obedience leads us into “enemy territory”.

PLACES OF FEAR
PLACES OF HATE
PLACES OF PAIN
PLACES OF INSECURITY
PLACES OF IGNORANCE

Matthew 5:43-45 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. Ephesians 6:12 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Jonah 3:4-10 4 On the day Jonah entered the city, he shouted to the crowds: “Forty days from now Nineveh will be destroyed!” 5 The people of Nineveh believed God’s message, and from the greatest to the least, they declared a fast and put on burlap to show their sorrow. 6 When the king of Nineveh heard what Jonah was saying, he stepped down from his throne and took off his royal robes. He dressed himself in burlap and sat on a heap of ashes. 7 Then the king and his nobles sent this decree throughout the city: “No one, not even the animals from your herds and flocks, may eat or drink anything at all. 8 People and animals alike must wear garments of mourning, and everyone must pray earnestly to God. They must turn from their evil ways and stop all their violence. 9 Who can tell? Perhaps even yet God will change his mind and hold back his fierce anger from destroying us.” 10 When God saw what they had done and how they had put a stop to their evil ways, he changed his mind and did not carry out the destruction he had threatened.

Our obedience fuels opportunities for others’ repentance.

Individual obedience has community benefits
Individual disobedience has community consequences.

Why do we repent?

Social
Natural
Emotional
Relational
Financial
Spiritual

Repentance releases God’s power in their life.

PRODIGAL: Reckless; Extravagant

Is mercy enough? Jonah 2:1 Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from inside the fish. 2 He said, “I cried out to the Lord in my great trouble, and he answered me. I called to you from the land of the dead, and Lord, you heard me! 3 You threw me into the ocean depths, and I sank down to the heart of the sea. The mighty waters engulfed me; I was buried beneath your wild and stormy waves. 4 Then I said, ‘O Lord, you have driven me from your presence. Yet I will look once more toward your holy Temple.’ 5 “I sank beneath the waves, and the waters closed over me. Seaweed wrapped itself around my head. 6 I sank down to the very roots of the mountains. I was imprisoned in the earth, whose gates lock shut forever. But you, O Lord my God, snatched me from the jaws of death! 7 As my life was slipping away, I remembered the Lord. And my earnest prayer went out to you in your holy Temple. 8 Those who worship false gods turn their backs on all God’s mercies. 9 But I will offer sacrifices to you with songs of praise, and I will fulfill all my vows. For my salvation comes from the Lord alone.” 10 Then the Lord ordered the fish to spit Jonah out onto the beach.

“There are no atheists in foxholes”

Jonah’s Blow-hole Conversion

Jonah’s freedom began in the fish; not on the beach.

Repentance is in response to God’s extravagant, reckless mercy

Romans 2:4 Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?

Repentance is a u-turn in our journey.

Repentance is a mile-marker on our journey, & not the destination.

Is mercy enough? Psalm 40:1-3 I waited patiently for the Lord to help me, and he turned to me and heard my cry. 2 He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along. 3 He has given me a new song to sing, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see what he has done and be amazed. They will put their trust in the Lord.

Setting: Assyria is crumbling some due to civil unrest (Nineveh), and Israel is actually growing in political power, but regressing in spiritual power (God sent Hosea and Amos). Jeroboam II is the king. Jonah is politically affiliated prophet in the nation that God has just called a prostitute.

Timothy Keller’s Breakdown of Jonah: (Prodigal Prophet)

PRODIGAL: Reckless; Extravagant

Good People = Mercy & Bad People (Prodigals) = Judgment

Jonah 1:1 The Lord gave this message to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 “Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh. Announce my judgment against it because I have seen how wicked its people are.”

God’s “Arise & Go” became Jonah’s “Arise & No”.

This is a story of a prodigal God & a sinful world.

3 But Jonah got up and went in the opposite direction to get away from the Lord. He went down to the port of Joppa, where he found a ship leaving for Tarshish. He bought a ticket and went on board, hoping to escape from the Lord by sailing to Tarshish.

4 But the Lord hurled a powerful wind over the sea, causing a violent storm that threatened to break the ship apart. 5 Fearing for their lives, the desperate sailors shouted to their gods for help and threw the cargo overboard to lighten the ship.

But all this time Jonah was sound asleep down in the hold. 6 So the captain went down after him. “How can you sleep at a time like this?” he shouted. “Get up and pray to your god! Maybe he will pay attention to us and spare our lives.”

7 Then the crew cast lots to see which of them had offended the gods and caused the terrible storm. When they did this, the lots identified Jonah as the culprit.8 “Why has this awful storm come down on us?” they demanded. “Who are you? What is your line of work? What country are you from? What is your nationality?”

9 Jonah answered, “I am a Hebrew, and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land.”

10 The sailors were terrified when they heard this, for he had already told them he was running away from the Lord. “Oh, why did you do it?” they groaned. 11 And since the storm was getting worse all the time, they asked him, “What should we do to you to stop this storm?”

12 “Throw me into the sea,” Jonah said, “and it will become calm again. I know that this terrible storm is all my fault.”

13 Instead, the sailors rowed even harder to get the ship to the land. But the stormy sea was too violent for them, and they couldn’t make it. 14 Then they cried out to the Lord, Jonah’s God. “O Lord,” they pleaded, “don’t make us die for this man’s sin. And don’t hold us responsible for his death. O Lord, you have sent this storm upon him for your own good reasons.”

15 Then the sailors picked Jonah up and threw him into the raging sea, and the storm stopped at once! 16 The sailors were awestruck by the Lord’s great power, and they offered him a sacrifice and vowed to serve him.

17 Now the Lord had arranged for a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was inside the fish for three days and three nights.

Is Jonah a story of judgment or a story of mercy?

God’s mercy is a raging sea.

God’s mercy is a warning.

God’s mercy is a question.

God’s mercy is failed effort.

God’s mercy is a calmed sea.

Is the fish God’s extravagant, reckless mercy, or is it punishment for Jonah’s extravagant, reckless sin?

For many Easter marks a day of celebration, but that wasn’t the case for Jesus’ friends and loved on the first Easter morning. Jesus’ friends didn’t wake up anticipating his resurrection, they woke up dreading his death.

In Mark 16 we find three women headed to the tomb where Jesus’ body had been laid. 1 When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to the tomb to anoint Jesus’ body. 2 Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb 3 and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?”

You don’t buy burial spices unless you’re sure in your mind that the person you’re buying the spices for is in fact dead. Just like the women many of us carry burial spices with us. We look at our dreams, hopes, and purpose and see no other option than death. Death seems to final to us.

But, just because it seems final does not mean that God is finished. Your situation may seem bleak or hopeless, but God is not done working on you yet. There’s a new reality on the other side of that stone.

As the women walked toward the tomb they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away?” Who will remove the barrier between where we are and where want to go? Who will roll away the stone of doubt, indecision, guilt, and condemnation?

The stone has been rolled away!

None of these barriers could contain the resurrection life that lay inside that tomb. The very thing that stood between you and God was set aside that Easter morning.

4: “But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. 5 As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.

6 “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him.

So often we’re scared of what will happen if the stone is rolled away. But God’s goodness will always exceed our expectations.

We now have the opportunity to have a real-time encounter with resurrection life.

But that encounter doesn’t end with you. An encounter with God will always produces a sending out and speaking out of what we have seen and heard.

7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter, He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you. 8 Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone because they were afraid.

What will you do with what you have seen and heard?

“Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” John 20:29

Sermon Notes:

Mark 15:33-34 At noon, darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock. Then at three o’clock Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”

Gut-wrenching Loneliness. He was on full display surrounded by crowds but felt utterly abandoned and alone. We have experienced this:

Addiction
Divorce
Grief
Pain

Sin had officially separated, isolated, and now was on the verge of destroying him. How did we get here?

How did we get here?

Triumphal Entry
Temple Cleansing
Judas
Trial

Conflict always comes to a head.

Jesus brings conflict.

Mark 15:37-38 Then Jesus uttered another loud cry and breathed his last.

Conflict had led to separation, isolation, & the destruction of Jesus…or had it.

Conflict is essential for reconciliation.

And the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.

The Cross IS a symbol of reconciliation. It’s not religious action, prayer, compassion, kindness, joy, repentance…it all begins at a cross.

“Expectations are resentments under construction.” ― Anne Lamott The crowds were expecting Jesus to save them from their political bondage to the Roman empire shouting "Save us today!" as He passed them on the streets.

Jesus' response was to offer them reconciliation to the Father and salvation from the debt of their sin. He was going to die for them.

Mark 11:1-11 New Living Translation (NLT) Jesus’ Triumphant Entry 11 As Jesus and his disciples approached Jerusalem, they came to the towns of Bethphage and Bethany on the Mount of Olives. Jesus sent two of them on ahead.2 “Go into that village over there,” he told them. “As soon as you enter it, you will see a young donkey tied there that no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. 3 If anyone asks, ‘What are you doing?’ just say, ‘The Lord needs it and will return it soon.’”

4 The two disciples left and found the colt standing in the street, tied outside the front door. 5 As they were untying it, some bystanders demanded, “What are you doing, untying that colt?” 6 They said what Jesus had told them to say, and they were permitted to take it. 7 Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their garments over it, and he sat on it.

8 Many in the crowd spread their garments on the road ahead of him, and others spread leafy branches they had cut in the fields. 9 Jesus was in the center of the procession, and the people all around him were shouting,

“Praise God![a] Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord! 10 Blessings on the coming Kingdom of our ancestor David! Praise God in highest heaven!”[b]

11 So Jesus came to Jerusalem and went into the Temple. After looking around carefully at everything, he left because it was late in the afternoon. Then he returned to Bethany with the twelve disciples.

Matthew 6:10 “May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.”

Definition of Kingdom of God: Wherever God Reigns

3 Kingdom Relationships:

Marriage Covenant

Mk 10:2-12 2 Some Pharisees came and tried to trap him with this question: “Should a man be allowed to divorce his wife?” 3 Jesus answered them with a question: “What did Moses say in the law about divorce?” 4 “Well, he permitted it,” they replied. “He said a man can give his wife a written notice of divorce and send her away.” 5 But Jesus responded, “He wrote this commandment only as a concession to your hard hearts. 6 But ‘God made them male and female’ from the beginning of creation. 7 ‘This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, 8 and the two are united into one.’ Since they are no longer two but one, 9 let no one split apart what God has joined together.” 10 Later, when he was alone with his disciples in the house, they brought up the subject again. 11 He told them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries someone else commits adultery against her. 12 And if a woman divorces her husband and marries someone else, she commits adultery.”

Relationships of Compassion

Mk 10:13-16 13 One day some parents brought their children to Jesus so he could touch and bless them. But the disciples scolded the parents for bothering him. 14 When Jesus saw what was happening, he was angry with his disciples. He said to them, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. 15 I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.” 16 Then he took the children in his arms and placed his hands on their heads and blessed them.

Relationship w/ Wealth

Mk 10:17-25 17 As Jesus was starting out on his way to Jerusalem, a man came running up to him, knelt down, and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 18 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked. “Only God is truly good. 19 But to answer your question, you know the commandments: ‘You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely. You must not cheat anyone. Honor your father and mother.’” 20 “Teacher,” the man replied, “I’ve obeyed all these commandments since I was young.” 21 Looking at the man, Jesus felt genuine love for him. “There is still one thing you haven’t done,” he told him. “Go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 22 At this, the man’s face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions. 23 Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God!” 24 This amazed them. But Jesus said again, “Dear children, it is very hard to enter the Kingdom of God. 25 In fact, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!”

26 The disciples were astounded. “Then who in the world can be saved?” they asked.

3 Terrible Saviors

Spouse
Kids/Yourself
Wealth

27 Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But not with God. Everything is possible with God.”

1 True Savior

Jesus is the Bridegroom
Jesus is the Son of God filled w/ Compassion
Jesus is the true Rich Young Ruler

28 Then Peter began to speak up. “We’ve given up everything to follow you,” he said.29 “Yes,” Jesus replied, “and I assure you that everyone who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or property, for my sake and for the Good News, 30 will receive now in return a hundred times as many houses, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and property—along with persecution. And in the world to come that person will have eternal life. 31 But many who are the greatest now will be least important then, and those who seem least important now will be the greatest then.”

Sermon Notes for Multiply: Faith is a Rollercoaster

“Jesus Christ is the same today, yesterday and forever.” - Hebrews 13:8

People 1:1 - “We are not the same yesterday, today or forever. Heck, we aren’t the same from 8 am to 8 pm.”

Our Faith journey is a rollercoaster.

Jesus: “But who do you say I am?”

Peter, was ready for this pop quiz.

Peter had uprooted his family.

Peter had paid attention

Peter had watched Jesus do a ton, teach a ton. He was ready for Jesus to simply ask the question:

Peter: “You are the Messiah.” (Connect Mark 1:1 - Messiah Claim)

Top of the Rollercoaster…

CONFIDENCE

click. click. click. click. click. click.

31 Then Jesus began to tell them that the Son of Man must suffer many terrible things and be rejected by the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He would be killed, but three days later he would rise from the dead.32 As he talked about this openly with his disciples, Peter took him aside and began to reprimand him for saying such things.

33 Jesus turned around and looked at his disciples, then reprimanded Peter. “Get away from me, Satan!” he said. “You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from God’s.”

ARROGANCE

Who is discipling Peter?

Satan’s 3 favorite statements:

Faith shouldn’t be too hard.
1. Jesus' Response: “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me.35 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will save it.
Faith shouldn’t be too costly.
1. Jesus' Response: 36 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? 37 Is anything worth more than your soul?
Faith shouldn’t be too consuming.
1. Jesus' Response: 38 If anyone is ashamed of me and my message in these adulterous and sinful days, the Son of Man will be ashamed of that person when he returns in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

Mark 9:1-5a Jesus went on to say, “I tell you the truth, some standing here right now will not die before they see the Kingdom of God arrive in great power!” 2 Six days later Jesus took Peter, James, and John, and led them up a high mountain to be alone. As the men watched, Jesus’ appearance was transformed,3 and his clothes became dazzling white, far whiter than any earthly bleach could ever make them. 4 Then Elijah and Moses appeared and began talking with Jesus. 5 Peter exclaimed, “Rabbi, it’s wonderful for us to be here!

Clarity

Let’s make three shelters as memorials—one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 6 He said this because he didn’t really know what else to say, for they were all terrified.

CONFUSION-fear

Because God is Constant, Confusion is a Great Catalyst of Faith.

7 Then a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my dearly loved Son. Listen to him.” 8 Suddenly, when they looked around, Moses and Elijah were gone, and they saw only Jesus with them.

“Jesus Christ is the same today, yesterday and forever.” - Hebrews 13:8

Have you heard the phrase “Controlling the Narrative”?

We hear about in politics. Infamous scandals. It is also a driving theme in Mark. The Gospel of Mark is this continual struggle for control over the narrative of God. (custody battle)

Mark 7:1 “One day some Pharisees and teachers of religious law arrived from Jerusalem to see Jesus.”

“Come to intimidate Jesus”.
“Come to shut up Jesus”.
“Come to interrogate Jesus”.
“Come to regain control over God."

5 So the Pharisees and teachers of religious law asked him, “Why don’t your disciples follow our age-old tradition? They eat without first performing the hand-washing ceremony.” 6 Jesus replied, “You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he wrote, ‘These people honor me with their lips,  but their hearts are far from me. 7 Their worship is a farce,  for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God.’ 8 For you ignore God’s law and substitute your own tradition.” 9 Then he said, “You skillfully sidestep God’s law in order to hold on to your own tradition. 10 For instance, Moses gave you this law from God: ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and ‘Anyone who speaks disrespectfully of father or mother must be put to death.’ 11 But you say it is all right for people to say to their parents, ‘Sorry, I can’t help you. For I have vowed to give to God what I would have given to you.’ 12 In this way, you let them disregard their needy parents. 13 And so you cancel the word of God in order to hand down your own tradition. And this is only one example among many others.” 14 Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. “All of you listen,” he said, “and try to understand. 15 It’s not what goes into your body that defiles you; you are defiled by what comes from your heart.”

Inside-Out Faith vs. Outside-In “Faith”

Who controls Jesus?
Who controls worship/practice?
Who controls Scripture?
- “You skillfully sidestep God’s law in order to hold on to your own tradition.

Example of Outside-In “faith”:

Pharisees - Jesus compares them to the non-kosher food

Example of Inside-Out faith Jesus gives:

Gentile Women
A deaf person unable to speak.

Who are we? Am I inside out or Outside in?

Do you fight the light?
Who controls how I worship?
- Religion can be Idol Worship
- Religious words can be taking God’s name in vain
Do you read the meaning into the Scripture, or does the Scripture read meaning into you?

The truth will ultimately control the narrative.

Luke 8:17 all that is secret will eventually be brought into the open, and everything that is concealed will be brought to light and made known to all. John 8:31 Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. 32 And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 14:6 Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.

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Mark 6:35-38 35 Late in the afternoon his disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. 36 Send the crowds away so they can go to the nearby farms and villages and buy something to eat.” 37 But Jesus said, “You feed them.” “With what?” they asked. “We’d have to work for months to earn enough money[a]to buy food for all these people!” 38 “How much bread do you have?” he asked. “Go and find out.” They came back and reported, “We have five loaves of bread and two fish.”

Abundance starts with a “couch cushion” offering

39 Then Jesus told the disciples to have the people sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in groups of fifty or a hundred. 41 Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he kept giving the bread to the disciples so they could distribute it to the people. He also divided the fish for everyone to share.

God takes our “Couch Cushion” Offering and places Abundance into our hands.

Rejection to Abundance
Perpetual reminders - each time they came back to him, he reminded them of abundance by placing more fish and bread in their hands that anything they ever gave him.
Purposeful: For the Crowds, Jesus’ compassion didn’t stop at his words, but went into his actions.

42 They all ate as much as they wanted, 43 and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftover bread and fish. 44 A total of 5,000 men and their families were fed.

The Crowds Experience Provision; We Are Called to Experience Abundance.

How many of you have daydreamed about winning the lottery? Abundance: The overflow pointing to a future hope.

Mark 6:35-38 35 Late in the afternoon his disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. 36 Send the crowds away so they can go to the nearby farms and villages and buy something to eat.” 37 But Jesus said, “You feed them.” “With what?” they asked. “We’d have to work for months to earn enough money[a]to buy food for all these people!” 38 “How much bread do you have?” he asked. “Go and find out.” They came back and reported, “We have five loaves of bread and two fish.”

Abundance starts with a “couch cushion” offering

39 Then Jesus told the disciples to have the people sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in groups of fifty or a hundred. 41 Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he kept giving the bread to the disciples so they could distribute it to the people. He also divided the fish for everyone to share.

God takes our “Couch Cushion” Offering and places Abundance into our hands.

Rejection to Abundance
Perpetual reminders - each time they came back to him, he reminded them of abundance by placing more fish and bread in their hands that anything they ever gave him.
Purposeful: For the Crowds, Jesus’ compassion didn’t stop at his words, but went into his actions.

42 They all ate as much as they wanted, 43 and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftover bread and fish. 44 A total of 5,000 men and their families were fed.

The Crowds Experience Provision; We Are Called to Experience Abundance.

GETJESUS

GETDUNKED

GETINVOLVED 

GETVOCAL

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Mark 6b-13

Then Jesus went from village to village, teaching the people. 7 And he called his twelve disciples together and began sending them out two by two, giving them authority to cast out evil spirits. 8 He told them to take nothing for their journey except a walking stick—no food, no traveler’s bag, no money. 9 He allowed them to wear sandals but not to take a change of clothes.

10 “Wherever you go,” he said, “stay in the same house until you leave town. 11 But if any place refuses to welcome you or listen to you, shake its dust from your feet as you leave to show that you have abandoned those people to their fate.”

12 So the disciples went out, telling everyone they met to repent of their sins and turn to God. 13 And they cast out many demons and healed many sick people, anointing them with olive oil.

God will disappoint you, but He is never disappointing.

Flipping the Narrative

Jesus enables us to reject the pursuits/purposes/plans/passions that aren’t “good enough” and embrace the abundant life He has for us.

Reject your history; Embrace His Story

Reject the Savior-complex; Embrace the Savior

Reject your life; Embrace His Life

Transcript:

Jesus leaves there, he now has his twelve disciples and now he starts to pair them off and he says, “alright, it’s time that you step away from being a spectator, watching me, being my apprentice, to now you’re going to get some jobs on your own. Pair up two by two and start preaching. And when you come to a place, you come to a people that reject the message, that I am the anointed one, I am the Messiah, I am the unique one, knock the dirt off your sandals and move on.”

I want to let you in on a secret, you are not the savior. You are not called to save anyone. Frankly, you are not capable of saving anyone. The reason Jesus told them to pack light is because they did not bring the gospel, they brought the message of the gospel, Jesus himself brings the gospel. What happened when they said no to the things God said no to? I’ll give it to you real quick, this is what it says. It says “so the disciples went out telling everyone they met to repent of their sins and turn to God. They cast out many demons, and healed many sick people, anointing them with oil. See, what happened when they rejected the things that God had them to reject, they stepped into life. What would have happened if they hung out at the places that rejected them? The demon possessed would have been demon possessed. The sick would have been sick. And the people that didn’t want them there, still didn’t want them there.

You’ve got to reject where you’re not wanted and step into things that God has for you. If you will not do that, you will not feel the fullness of God in you. You will always be fighting against what he has for you. But if you will step out of the things where you’re not called and into the things that God has for you, you will see people healed, physically, emotionally and spiritually. You will see the move of God in your life and through your life. You will have so many get vocal stories that we will just be overwhelmed by them. Because when we step in line with God, when we allow him to provide and to direct our steps the life that God can give, only God can give will pour out of our lives. And those that are sick, possessed, struggling around us will see the life of God as it rises up in them and through them.

Multiply 2019: Rejection Mark 6:1-29

Rejection is saying you’re not good enough.

3 Rejections in Mark 6:1-29

Rejection of Identity (Vv.1-6a)

Rejection of Message (Vv. 6b-13)

Rejection of Justice (Vv. 14-29)

Mark 6b-13

Then Jesus went from village to village, teaching the people. 7 And he called his twelve disciples together and began sending them out two by two, giving them authority to cast out evil spirits. 8 He told them to take nothing for their journey except a walking stick—no food, no traveler’s bag, no money. 9 He allowed them to wear sandals but not to take a change of clothes.

10 “Wherever you go,” he said, “stay in the same house until you leave town. 11 But if any place refuses to welcome you or listen to you, shake its dust from your feet as you leave to show that you have abandoned those people to their fate.”

12 So the disciples went out, telling everyone they met to repent of their sins and turn to God. 13 And they cast out many demons and healed many sick people, anointing them with olive oil.

God will disappoint you, but He is never disappointing.

Flipping the Narrative

Jesus enables us to reject the pursuits/purposes/plans/passions that aren’t “good enough” and embrace the abundant life He has for us.

Reject your history; Embrace His Story

Reject the Savior-complex; Embrace the Savior

Reject your life; Embrace His Life

Corrie Ten Boom “You may never know that JESUS is all you need, until JESUS is all you have.”

GETJESUS GETDUNKED GETINVOLVED GETVOCAl

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Description:

Mark 5:1-20is a story about a scary man, dead places, Jesus drowning pigs, and how we live in the aftermath of grace. It is a story that at first glance seems so different from our lives, but a closer look reveals that it is a story that mirrors our lives very closely. Listen in, as pastor Dave Foix tells the story in a way you haven’t heard before.

Scripture:

5 So they arrived at the other side of the lake, in the region of the Gerasenes.[a]2 When Jesus climbed out of the boat, a man possessed by an evil[b] spirit came out from the tombs to meet him. 3 This man lived in the burial caves and could no longer be restrained, even with a chain. 4 Whenever he was put into chains and shackles—as he often was—he snapped the chains from his wrists and smashed the shackles. No one was strong enough to subdue him. 5 Day and night he wandered among the burial caves and in the hills, howling and cutting himself with sharp stones.

6 When Jesus was still some distance away, the man saw him, ran to meet him, and bowed low before him. 7 With a shriek, he screamed, “Why are you interfering with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? In the name of God, I beg you, don’t torture me!” 8 For Jesus had already said to the spirit, “Come out of the man, you evil spirit.”

9 Then Jesus demanded, “What is your name?”

And he replied, “My name is Legion, because there are many of us inside this man.” 10 Then the evil spirits begged him again and again not to send them to some distant place.

11 There happened to be a large herd of pigs feeding on the hillside nearby.12 “Send us into those pigs,” the spirits begged. “Let us enter them.”

13 So Jesus gave them permission. The evil spirits came out of the man and entered the pigs, and the entire herd of about 2,000 pigs plunged down the steep hillside into the lake and drowned in the water.

14 The herdsmen fled to the nearby town and the surrounding countryside, spreading the news as they ran. People rushed out to see what had happened.15 A crowd soon gathered around Jesus, and they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons. He was sitting there fully clothed and perfectly sane, and they were all afraid. 16 Then those who had seen what happened told the others about the demon-possessed man and the pigs. 17 And the crowd began pleading with Jesus to go away and leave them alone.

18 As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon possessed begged to go with him. 19 But Jesus said, “No, go home to your family, and tell them everything the Lord has done for you and how merciful he has been.” 20 So the man started off to visit the Ten Towns[c] of that region and began to proclaim the great things Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed at what he told them.

Transcript:

John 8:34 says “Jesus Replied: I tell you the truth, Everyone who sins is a slave to sin.” Sin has us in chains, sin controls us, the reason we are always doing things we don’t want to do is because we are a slave to sin. The reason we keep going back and back and back and we can’t seem to break free, it’s because literally we are slaves to sin. Until Jesus.

Jesus won’t blush when you bring your mess. We know we bring a mess to the table, and sometimes we approach Jesus and we’re afraid He’s going to blush and not want us because of how messy we are. And actually, we have to get comfortable in bringing our mess. We can’t hide it. Admitting and owning our brokenness and sinfulness is the best first steps we take toward Jesus. Often times in our spiritual life what’s holding us back is we don’t want to let our mess be found out. We don’t want to admit who we really are. We don’t want to really own the brokenness we know is inside of us.

Come now as you are! How often have we wanted to fix the own brokenness in us? And we fail, and we fail, and we fail, and the frustration builds, and then we just start to believe the lie that it just can’t happen. The truth is, it can’t happen so long as you try to fix it, but it can happen when you approach Jesus and let him do the stuff!

Maybe you identify with that, you feel like, “you know what? I met Jesus, but I still have this mess.” And so, What you’re really asking is “why do I feel like my pigs are still swimming?” Here’s some practical things that might help us drown our pigs. How to drown pigs 101:

We ask Jesus, because we know Jesus has to do the work.

We surrender. There’s nothing else we can do and we trust him.

But then we also have to participate in the work. He does the stuff, but we’re active participants.

We have to learn to be honest about our brokenness. You can live with your secrets and you’ll continue down your struggles. I promise you that. But when you start to be honest about your brokenness, you will start to see relief.

Keep reminding yourself that Jesus did the work, but then walk away from the water. You don’t need to stand and look at who you used to be anymore. You don’t need to get yourself close to the struggles you used to have.

Talk about everything Jesus has done. So when Jesus transforms a section of you, verbalize it.

Then get dressed. We literally put on the spirit of Christ. We start to see ourselves through the lens of what Jesus has done in us and through us and we walk that out.

Mark 5:1-20is a story about a scary man, dead places, Jesus drowning pigs, and how we live in the aftermath of grace. It is a story that at first glance seems so different from our lives, but a closer look reveals that it is a story that mirrors our lives very closely. Listen in, as pastor Dave Foix tells the story in a way you haven’t heard before.

You're listening to "Spiritual Warfare and Multiplying Faith" from our series "Multiply."

Follow the link below for access to the full message.

https://restorechurch.podbean.com/e/multiply-you-gotta-have-faith/

Spiritual Warfare: Any tactic, trick, or tug of the Thief that derails the work of God in our lives and the world.

Mark 4: 3 “Listen! A farmer went out to plant some seed. 4 As he scattered it across his field, some of the seed fell on a footpath, and the birds came and ate it. 5 Other seed fell on shallow soil with underlying rock. The seed sprouted quickly because the soil was shallow. 6 But the plant soon wilted under the hot sun, and since it didn’t have deep roots, it died. 7 Other seed fell among thorns that grew up and choked out the tender plants so they produced no grain. 8 Still other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they sprouted, grew, and produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted!” 9 Then he said, “Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.”

3 Tactics:

Blinds Us (Soil #1)
1. Pharisees
Blitzes Us (Soil #2)
1. Crowds
Bullies Us (Soil #3)
1. Judas & Peter

Can I develop a multiplying faith?

If so, how can I develop a multiplying faith?

Our faith is EXPOSED & EMPOWERED by the waves of life.

Our faith is only as powerful as the object of our faith.

George Michael & Pastor Dylan’s Grandma: “You gotta have faith”

If God wants all people to come to Him, why don’t they?

God’s a liar
We are masochists
Or…

Spiritual Warfare: Any tactic, trick, or tug of the Thief that derails the work of God in our lives and the world.

Mark 4: 3 “Listen! A farmer went out to plant some seed. 4 As he scattered it across his field, some of the seed fell on a footpath, and the birds came and ate it. 5 Other seed fell on shallow soil with underlying rock. The seed sprouted quickly because the soil was shallow. 6 But the plant soon wilted under the hot sun, and since it didn’t have deep roots, it died. 7 Other seed fell among thorns that grew up and choked out the tender plants so they produced no grain. 8 Still other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they sprouted, grew, and produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted!” 9 Then he said, “Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.”

3 Tactics:

Blinds Us (Soil #1)
1. Pharisees
Blitzes Us (Soil #2)
1. Crowds
Bullies Us (Soil #3)
1. Judas & Peter

Can I develop a multiplying faith?

If so, how can I develop a multiplying faith?

Mark 4:35-41

35 As evening came, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” 36 So they took Jesus in the boat and started out, leaving the crowds behind (although other boats followed). 37 But soon a fierce storm came up. High waves were breaking into the boat, and it began to fill with water.

38 Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion. The disciples woke him up, shouting, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?”

39 When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Silence! Be still!” Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great calm. 40 Then he asked them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” 41 The disciples were absolutely terrified. “Who is this man?” they asked each other. “Even the wind and waves obey him!”

Our faith is EXPOSED & EMPOWERED by the waves of life.

Our faith is only as powerful as the object of our faith.

GETJESUS GETDUNKED GETINVOLVED GETVOCAl

You're listening to "In Sync With the Season" from our series "Multiply."

Follow the link to hear the full message!

https://restorechurch.podbean.com/e/multiply-1550515494/

Mark 2:23-3:6

23 One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. 24 The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”

27 Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. 28 So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

Another time Jesus went into the synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there.2 Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath. 3 Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.”

4 Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent.

5 He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored.6 Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.

Jesus is always willing to break systems to bring breakthrough.

God is ushering in a new season of rest; will you enter into it?

You're listening to "Relationships Are Everything" from our Multiply series.

Follow the link to hear the full episode!

https://restorechurch.podbean.com/e/multiply-1549898929/

Mark 3:20-35

20 One time Jesus entered a house, and the crowds began to gather again. Soon he and his disciples couldn’t even find time to eat. 21 When his family heard what was happening, they tried to take him away. “He’s out of his mind,” they said.

22 But the teachers of religious law who had arrived from Jerusalem said, “He’s possessed by Satan, the prince of demons. That’s where he gets the power to cast out demons.”23 Jesus called them over and responded with an illustration. “How can Satan cast out Satan?” he asked. 24 “A kingdom divided by civil war will collapse.

25 Similarly, a family splintered by feuding will fall apart. 26 And if Satan is divided and fights against himself, how can he stand? He would never survive. 27 Let me illustrate this further. Who is powerful enough to enter the house of a strong man and plunder his goods? Only someone even stronger—someone who could tie him up and then plunder his house.

28 “I tell you the truth, all sin and blasphemy can be forgiven, 29 but anyone who blasphemes the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. This is a sin with eternal consequences.” 30 He told them this because they were saying, “He’s possessed by an evil spirit.”

31 Then Jesus’ mother and brothers came to see him. They stood outside and sent word for him to come out and talk with them. 32 There was a crowd sitting around Jesus, and someone said, “Your mother and your brothers are outside asking for you.” 33 Jesus replied, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” 34 Then he looked at those around him and said, “Look, these are my mother and brothers. 35 Anyone who does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”

2 Voices: God’s voice and His echo; Satan’s voice and His echo.

Jesus’ Family: Well-meaning, protective, but ultimately there thought is he is crazy.
Chaperone’s: Vengeful, hateful, and call him Satan.

Close in Proximity ≠ Close in Relationship

How do you know if something is the voice of life or death?

“Whoever does God’s will”

Who gets a voice in your life?

Our lives are the echo of the voices we listen to.

As we journey through life it can often be hard to get in sync with the season we are in. The religious leaders of Jesus’ day were so concerned with the religious system they were in that they failed to partake in the season of rest that Jesus provided. They were looking for the next move of God but failed to see it because the old way of thinking clouded the vision of the new things God had in store.

Today we look at Jesus’ take on the “old” versus the “new” and how it affected his view of the Sabbath. Discover how Jesus breaks the system to become our Sabbath rest.

Sermon Notes:

Multiply: In Sync with the Season

Our lives happen in seasons. We all experience changes and alterations that can make it difficult to engage with the season we’re in. In Mark 2 we find a group of religious leaders who were fasting to lament their season of brokenness and longing for the awaited Messiah. Meanwhile, Jesus and his disciples are feasting to celebrate the new thing that God was bringing his people into.

Mark 2:18-22

18 Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came and asked Jesus, “How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?”

19 Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? They cannot, so long as they have him with them. 20 But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast.

21 “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. 22 And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.”

The long-awaited Messiah is here.

The new season he is ushering his people into will require an entirely new way of thinking, in fact, it will require us to be new people with new hearts if we ever hope to enter into it.

Jesus is not an add-on, he’s all consuming.

Miracles happen in the margin.

Busyness is the gatekeeper to breakthrough.

Mark 2:23-3:6

23 One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. 24 The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”

27 Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. 28 So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

Another time Jesus went into the synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there.2 Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath. 3 Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.”

4 Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent.

5 He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored.6 Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.

Jesus is always willing to break systems to bring breakthrough.

God is ushering in a new season of rest; will you enter into it?

Jesus is the multiplier of rest.

It’s All About Relationships

Jesus was surrounded by crowds at every turn in his story. The crowds gathered from as far as 120 miles to the south and 50 miles to the north. They continually pressed against Him. People wanted to see Jesus, touch Jesus, be healed Jesus, rebuke Jesus, and even some wanted Him dead.

Today we look at the "house party" in Mark 3, and learn that being close in proximity does not mean being close in relationship. Check out what we learn about hearing the voice of God while being amongst a sea of people.

SERMON NOTES:

Multiply: Jesus is the Resurrection

It’s All About Relationships

The Crowds, had gathered from as far as 120 miles to the south and 50 miles to the north, had continually pressed against Jesus, and Jesus had just gone up a mountain, and unlike Moses he didn’t come down with 10 commandments but 12 apostles.

House Party in Mark 3

The Crowd - Onlookers
The Face of the Future - Apostles
God’s Chaperone’s - Pharisees
Family -Mother and Brothers

Our closest relationships will either build us or bury us.

Jim Rohn - “Show me your 5 closest relationships, and I will show you my future.”

Mark 3:20-35

20 One time Jesus entered a house, and the crowds began to gather again. Soon he and his disciples couldn’t even find time to eat. 21 When his family heard what was happening, they tried to take him away. “He’s out of his mind,” they said.

22 But the teachers of religious law who had arrived from Jerusalem said, “He’s possessed by Satan, the prince of demons. That’s where he gets the power to cast out demons.”23 Jesus called them over and responded with an illustration. “How can Satan cast out Satan?” he asked. 24 “A kingdom divided by civil war will collapse.

25 Similarly, a family splintered by feuding will fall apart. 26 And if Satan is divided and fights against himself, how can he stand? He would never survive. 27 Let me illustrate this further. Who is powerful enough to enter the house of a strong man and plunder his goods? Only someone even stronger—someone who could tie him up and then plunder his house.

28 “I tell you the truth, all sin and blasphemy can be forgiven, 29 but anyone who blasphemes the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. This is a sin with eternal consequences.” 30 He told them this because they were saying, “He’s possessed by an evil spirit.”

31 Then Jesus’ mother and brothers came to see him. They stood outside and sent word for him to come out and talk with them. 32 There was a crowd sitting around Jesus, and someone said, “Your mother and your brothers are outside asking for you.” 33 Jesus replied, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” 34 Then he looked at those around him and said, “Look, these are my mother and brothers. 35 Anyone who does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”

2 Voices: God’s voice and His echo; Satan’s voice and His echo.

Jesus’ Family: Well-meaning, protective, but ultimately there thought is he is crazy.
Chaperone’s: Vengeful, hateful, and call him Satan.

Close in Proximity ≠ Close in Relationship

How do you know if something is the voice of life or death?

“Whoever does God’s will”

Who gets a voice in your life?

Our lives are the echo of the voices we listen to.

Why does God choose to heal some, but not others?

Is it based on a person's faith? Is it based on God's feelings on a particular day or moment?

Could it be, that God's goal isn't healing? At least not temporal healing. Could it be that healing is just a foreshadowing of God's true goal...resurrection?

Join us as we dig into 3 unique stories of healing that point to the resurrection Jesus would experience a year later and we will experience in the future.

Scripture: Mark 1:40-2:17

Jesus & "The Leper"

Jesus & "The Paralytic"

Jesus & "Tax Collector"

What do parents, fugitives, and Jesus all have in common?

They've all heard, "Everyone is looking for you."

The Gospel of Mark is a sprint. The transitions are swift, the descriptions are straightforward and the point is in your face. Yet, 3 times Mark describes Jesus pausing, even when everyone was looking for Him. The demand on Jesus was high, but God’s call to pause is higher.

Join us as we dig into Mark 1:35-39, and the depth of what it means to "pause".

Rest #Refuel #Recalibrate.

Have you ever been blown away by a speech? A teacher? A leader?

We are all drawn to charismatic leaders. They seem to be able to take the same words you and I use, but they just amplify the power, precision, and purpose of those words.

It is undeniable that Jesus was a charismatic leader. Throngs were drawn to him. People clamored from miles around. People gave up their jobs to follow him.

But, lots of leaders are charismatic. Is Jesus just another charismatic leader? Mark calls Jesus the Messiah, "Anointed One". Join us as we dig into if Jesus is anointed or simply charismatic, and how that translates to our world, our neighborhood, ourselves.

Growing up I loved tag team wrestling. I loved the Rockers, Bushwackers, Demolition and my favorite was The Mega Powers dream team of Hulk Hogan and Macho Man Randy Savage. Each person had their unique character, style, and moves, but both were working together for one goal, to score the pinfall.

Today, we look at the first tag team of the New Testament. Join us as we see John the Baptist tagging in Jesus. Both had the message of the Kingdom of God. John preached to "wait" for the Messiah. Jesus preached to "follow" the Messiah.

Join us as we weigh the cost of "waiting" vs. the cost of "following".

This is the Good News about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God. It began just as the prophet Isaiah had written: “Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, and he will prepare your way. He is a voice shouting in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord’s coming! Clear the road for him!’ ” Mark 1:1-3

God is always preparing for His arrival in our lives, and even through our lives. Today, we kicked off our journey through our new series, Multiply. We will be using the Gospel of Mark to guide us through our journey to know who/what we should multiply and how we should multiply. HINT* It's JESUS!

Join us today, as we dig into the introduction of Jesus by His cousin, John the Baptist.

Pastor David and The Prophet Isaiah wrap up the Engage Mtown 2018 series with a message of God's love in action. In this busy Christmas season please take a moment to pause and hear how much God loves you.

"Peace is being whole"

Join us as we continue our "Engage Mtown" series with our message "Peace". We find that while God speaks about peace as becoming "whole", we often connect peace with "being quiet". "Let's keep the peace". "I want peace and quiet". etc. God's version of peace is better...although harder. Join us as we fight for peace, and realize that peace is so much better than we can even imagine.

"Joy is the intense quality of fulfillment" - Pastor Dylan

There are many "Joy Fillers" and seemingly innumerable "Joy Killers" in our life that compete over our sense of fulfillment. At best, this seems to leave us with a sporadic joy.

We ask the question today, is that how we should experience joy? Is that the best we can hope for?

Join us as we dig into Paul's words in Philippians 4:4-5, and unravel what it would look like to a real, consistent "intense quality of fulfillment"(aka joy) in our lives.

Hope is a choice against the odds, but if our hopes are found in the promises of God, they are certain to be fulfilled. Join Pastor David as he shares the story of Abraham, a man who chose to live with hope.

"Celebration is the concrete way in which God's ecstatic joy becomes visible amongst us" - Henri Nouwen

Pastor Ryan wraps up our "Family Dinner" series, as he pulls up a chair to the "Table of Celebration". Pastor Ryan dives into a wedding celebration in Revelation 19, and helps us see the power of real, authentic celebration in light of world consumed with fake, plastic Facebook celebration.

For more information go to www.restoremtown.com

“Adam and Eve are the luckiest people in the world…Because neither of them had Mother-in-laws”.

At least 5 sitcoms will use this as a basis for their holiday-themed show. Whole Foods is using a variation of this as their holiday ad campaign. It is the tried and true depiction of the judgmental Mother in law sitting in her "judgment seat" at the Thanksgiving table (I personally have a great MIL - So get off my back Shirley!).

Today, we are going to move from the judgment seat to the mercy seat, as we saddle up to the "Table of Grace".

We can all agree that grace is:

Free
Forgives
For All

The question we will ask today is, could grace actually be deeper and better than we could have ever imagined? Join us as we dig into the "Table of Grace" David creates for his best friend's son, Mephibosheth.

"When you eat, I want you to think of God, of the holiness of hands that feed us, of the provision we are given every time we eat. When you eat bread and you drink wine, I want you to think about the body and blood every time, not just when the bread and wine show up in church, but when they show up anywhere, on a picnic table or a hardwood floor or a beach." - Shauna Niequist

The seat of honor at all family dinners is at the head of the table. Today we dig into Luke 14 and see Jesus and the religious leaders wrestling over who would sit at the head of the table. It’s a conflict of honor. Who will be honored?

Pharisees ask Jesus:

“Will He honor our Religion?”

“Will He honor our culture?”

“Will I be honored?”

Will Jesus accept the parameters that we have chosen for him to operate in?

We ask Jesus:

Will God honor the cultural faith I quilted together, a mix of this-a mix of that?
Will God make sure that my life is honored, exactly how I have it?
Will God honor my relationship even though I don’t honor him in my relationship?
Will God honor my finances, even though I am not generous with my money?
Will God honor me, and operate in a way that only makes me secure, safe and happy?

Jesus simply asks us: “Will they honor my Father?”

Will God give me the seat at the head of the table?

Will I give God the seat at the head of the table?

Have you ever had a weird family dinner?

Are you anticipating a weird dinner on November 22nd?

Are you trying to avoid weird dinner on November 22nd?

Maybe it's because you have:

a super political uncle
Family Disputes
Secrets; Revealed secrets
Pending Divorce, Etc.

If you are an expert at weird dinners, don't worry, you are not alone. God gives us numerous examples of weird dinners. He also shows us the purpose of weird dinners. Weird dinners are essential for reconciliation.

Join us as we sit at the "Table of Reconciliation" and dig into Joseph's "weird dinner" filled with his estranged family, 1950's style segregated dinner seating, and God's grace and hospitality.

Aw Tozer “What comes into our mind when we think about God, is the most important thing about us.”

As we dig into the story of God, we see Him as a present, loving, intentional, and engaging God throughout His entire creation throughout history. As followers of Jesus, we are called to represent this all-presence, loving and engaging God in the world today. Jesus uses the phrase "salt and light" to illustrate this.

Join us as we dig into how we can be "salt and light" in Marshalltown, and how we can do this right in our area of influence.

Check out Michael Frost's BELLS strategy in his e-book (free)

At Restore we are passionate about kids. Children are not just the church of the future; they are the church of today. Sarah Trosen (Restore Church's children's pastor) gives us a glimpse of what a normal Restore Children's service is like as she defines contentment and challenges us to look and see the good things God is doing in our lives right now.

What does it mean to worship passionately?

Is worship about emotion?

Is worship about volume?

Is worship about theatrics?

Today we seek to develop the language and the practice of passionate worship. Join us as we dig into the language ("Great Shema" Deuteronomy 6:4-9), and the practice (John 12:1-11), and seek to passionately worship Jesus in all aspects of life.

John Wesley, “Catch on fire with enthusiasm and people will come for miles to watch you burn.”

In our new series, "Fired Up" we will explore the 4 passions which drive and direct Restore. Our passions are:

We are Gospel Catalysts
We Worship Passionately
We Celebrate Kids
We Love M’town.

Today we dig into our 1st passion. We are Gospel Catalysts - “Jesus will work in us and through us”. Jesus has tasked the church to continue the work He did while on earth. He wants us to bring heaven to earth (Matthew 6:10).

Join us as we look at Peter and John in Acts 3, and learn how we can bring heaven to earth.

For more information go to www.restoremtown.com or facebook.com/restoremtown.com

We have killed the spider. Now what?

It feels like we've crossed the finish line when in reality, we have simply just started the race. Join us as we dig into how we finish the race God set before us.

For more information on Restore Church check out www.restoremtown.com

In the 4th week of our "Kill the Spider" series, we set out to kill the spider. How do we snuff out the abusive, addictive, and disease riddled spider that has sought to destroy our identity, will, and soul?

Join us as we dig into Romans 8, and see how God frees us from condemnation and then allows us to dig through the lies of Satan, and fill them with His truth and promises.

How do we reconcile our new life w/ our sinful nature?

Romans 7:25 speaks of this tension, "Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin."

If you are a follower of Jesus, you know the struggle of living out of the victory God has promised us, and the effects of the spider (sinful nature) in your life.

How do we try to get rid of the spider?

What do we do?

Can we really live in victory?

Today, we look at how we aim to kill the spider, by clearing the cobwebs (fruits/overflow of the sinful nature).

For more information on Restore Church, check out www.restoremtown.com

"For the wages of sin is death." Romans 6:23a

Why are the wages of sin death?

Is it simply God punishing us for our debt to Him? Is it simply transactional? Or is it relational

Join us as we uncover the trauma of sin, and see how we are all living with PTSD (Post Traumatic Sin Disorder). We will dig into sin's desire to control us through by abuse (identity), addiction (will) and disease (body/mind). We will show how death isn't God's punishment for our debt, but death is the natural conclusion of sin's abuse, addiction, and disease.

Romans 7:13-24

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