A New Name, A New Life: House Church Recap 4/21/13

To finish up our series on "The Grace by Which We Stand", Abi discussed what it means when God gives us a new name. His grace covers us but also transforms us, and Christ doesn't view us through the lens of our old life, but through what he has made us to be - a new creation. We must learn to see ourselves through this same lens of grace!

The story of the Man of La Mancha, Don Quixote, is a story of redemptive grace and love. To read the synopsis of this story, visit this website.

1. How is this a story of Grace? Don Quixote saw Aldonza differently than she saw herself. Although her past was low and she was treated as an object, he sees only beauty, saying, "Sweet lady... I dare not gaze full upon thy countenance lest I be blinded by beauty... Dulcinea, I see heaven when I see thee Dulcinea."
2. Aldonza refused to believe that she could be any different. She declared that saw was "not any kind of lady... born on a dung heap to die on a dung heap, a strumpet men use and forget... you have shown me the sky but what good is the sky to a creature who'll never do better than crawl... I am no one... I am nothing!"
3. Don Quixote gave her a new name, Dulcinea, which means "overly elegant sweetness" and was the exact opposite of how she appeared to the world because of the life of brokenness she was living.
4. In the end, she realized that she wanted to be Dulcinea. She walked into the grace that was offered.

Text for this week: Romans 5:1-5

"Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.  And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us."

Paul, the writer of Romans, also had a name and life changing experience.He lines it out in these two verses:

• Galatians 1:13-16 "For you have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism, hwo intensely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it. I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers. But when God, who set me apart from my mother's womb and called me by His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles..."
• 1st Corinthians 15:9-11 "For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them - yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. Whether, then, it is I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed."

Paul was fully aware of the pain he caused, of all of his sin and his shame. Yet he still stood up and took hold of the grace that was given him by Christ. He knew his name was changed.

1st Timothy 1:12-17 "I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me trustworthy, aoppointing me to his service. Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners - of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in Him and receive eternal life."

Paul understood how to walk in grace and had more to say about it than any other writer of the Bible. The word for grace, "charis", is found 68 times in the entire Old Testament, only 13 times in the Gospels, but 144 times in Paul's letters. His goal was to preach the message of grace because it was the message of his life. See Acts 20:24. If this was Paul's story, how do we relate?

• Just like Paul, we do not stand except for the grace of God. What new name does God want to give you? Maybe you already know, but you haven't taken hold of it and lived by it yet. See 2nd Corinthians 5:17... "the old has gone, the new is here!"
• We don't earn this grace, it is given freely. The word for grace is charis and the word for gift is charisma. They share the same root and a similar meaning! See Galatians 2:20 & 21 and Ephesians 2:8-10.
• Grace comes to the humble. See 1st Peter 5:5. When Aldonza realized she was making poor choices, she was able to accept grace.
• Grace is enough, it is sufficient, it is all that we need to live and be strong. See 2nd Corinthians 12:9 & 10. We do not only live, but His power is made perfect in our weakness. When we are weak, we are strong.
• We are not only meant to "get by" but to have an influence for Christ's Kingdom. When we let Satan convince us that our past or our shame will never allow us to move forward, our realm of influence is extremely limited. Standing in God's grace expands that realm because we know it is not us, but Him who does the work.

Ask yourself: Is my realm of influence limited because I'm not standing in grace? What new name and new life has God given me that I need to take hold of? How can I stand in that new name and glorious grace?

And Having Done All, Stand: House Church Recap 4/14/13

This week's recap covers the second part of the series, "The Grace by Which I Stand". The disciple of Christ must learn and be grounded in many things in this wicked world. One of the key foundational principles of grounding ourselves is learning to stand - after having "done all".

We must first and foremost learn the lesson of The Grace by Which We Stand. For an introduction to this concept and what it means to dwell in the Grace of Jesus, visit our last House Church Recap. 

Main text for this week is Zechariah 3:1-7: 

Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. The Lord said to Satan, "The Lord rebuke you, Satan! Indeed, the Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?" Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments and standing before the angel. He spoke and said to those who were standing before him, saying, "Remove the filthy garments from him." Again he said to him, "See, I have taken your iniquity away from you and will clothe you with festal robes." Then I said, "Let them put a clean turban on his head." So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments, while the angel of the Lord was standing by.

And the angel of the Lord admonished Joshua, saying, "Thus says the Lord of hosts, 'If you will walk in My ways and if you will perform My service, then you will also govern My house and also have charge of My courts, and I will grant you free access among these who are standing here."

The activity of Satan is a reality in our world, for he is the little god of this world. We cannot underestimate his effect on our lives and on those around us who are not grounded in faith. It takes faith to resist him and STAND in the work of the cross! This standing requires us to go beyond what we feel. See Ephesians 6:10-13 to read what God's Word says about putting on "the full armor of God". Why must we be so armed? The devoted disciple whose breath of life is the Glory of God and the expansion of His Kingdom must learn the lesson that "open doors" and movement of the gospel comes with a challenge, presented in 1st Corinthians 16:9. Many adversaries stand in the way when doors are opened wide.

So, we are called to stand, "having done all". What does that mean? How can I do that when I feel the pain of my past failures?

Cultural Context for this passage: Zechariah the prophet was a contemporary of Joshua, Haggai, Malachi, and many others. In this week's text, we see him as an example of how men stand before God, not before men. Joshua was among several prophets and priests who broke God's law. Haggai was also a prophet who pointed out the complacency and lack of spirituality among the people of Israel. Malachi was sent by God to expose weak worship and unacceptable attitudes. As we often are faced with our failures, Joshua was surrounded by evidence of his spiritual failures and sinful nature. This kind of thing is perfect ammunition for Satan. How can we stand against it when Satan attacks?

Verse 1: Why is Satan standing there waiting to attack?

• He is the accuser of the brethren - it is his nature. Revelation 12:10
• Our own sin allows him a way into our hearts.
• When we give him an opportunity, he takes it. Ephesians 4:26 & 27

Chapter 2 of Zechariah is full of prophecy, and God's promises are presented as Satan stands by to block the work of God. 

Verse 2: Joshua takes a beating from Satan in this verse. Satan comes at us with demands of justice and uses the Law against us with accusation and condemnation. Therefore we must be careful and guard our hearts. When we hear Satan's coarse, hate-filled, condemning voice grating our conscience, we must run to God in repentance and stand on His Grace and on His promises! He always forgives us when we repent. See 1st John 1:9. 

What do we do to run stand this way, to call upon our advocate (1st John 2:1 & 2), the Lord?

• First we apply the blood with sincerity in our broken spirits. Psalms 51:17
• Do not engage in conversation with the adversary, entertaining his condemning facts about our failure. That voice of guilt, shame, fear, and failure will beat you. Move quickly to repentance and dwell on the work of the cross, Christ's blood. 
• Take every thought captive and learn to hide the promises of God in your heart and meditate on them. See Ephesians 6:17 and arm yourself with the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. 
• Stand in the knowledge that the Judge of all is your friend, Jesus, who paid it all for our sin. Our sins are already paid for. 

Verse 3: We must learn the lesson of being careful. 

• Remember that we are not saved by works. Ephesians 2:8-10
• All our righteous deeds are like filthy rags. Isaiah 64:6
• Jesus knew no sin took on ours. He is our righteousness. 2nd Corinthians 5:21

We must also be careful speaking against His Church, even with all of her struggles, she stands clothed in His Righteousness, and we are a part of that, a part of His Bride.  If we try to stand on anything aside from Christ and His work in us, Satan will devour us. 

Verses 4 & 5: Who is doing the work? What did Jesus do?

1. He separates us from our filthy garments (verse 3) our sin, guilt, and shame. 
2. He clothes us with His spotless righteousness. Christ is now our righteousness!

• He choses us to be holy and blameless in Him. Ephesians 1:4
• His grace is lavished upon us. Ephesians 1: 7 & 8

Verses 6 & 7: We must walk in His ways and press on. 

• God's will is that we press on toward the prize of His Calling and wants us to grow. Philippians 3:12-16
• We grow in grace and knowledge in order to glorify Him. 2nd Peter 3:18

God's grace simply calls us to grow and press on, so that we have done all.

1st John 2:12-14:  "I am writing to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one.

I write to you, dear children, because you know the Father.  I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong,                                                                                                                        and the word of God lives in you, and you have overcome the evil one."

"If Grace Is An Ocean, We're All Sinking" House Church Recap 4/7/13

Last week's House Church teaching began a series called "The Grace by Which We Stand". This series focuses on how we understand grace and how deeply it impacts our lives. Each week there will be a specific testimony given of how living outside of grace and then finding it has changed lives.

The text for this week was Romans 5:1-5:

"Therefore, having been justified by faith,we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God. And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance,proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us."

This series on grace does not make light of the high cost of sin, to cheapen its effect, or even cheapen grace itself. The message is designed to lead us into solid Biblical grounds that keep us from something so many of us struggle with day to day - condemnation of the adversary. Until we learn more about Biblical grace it is easy to fall into the adversary's trap: he hands us our shame and failures and simply lets us beat ourselves with condemnation. This means that we aren't living in the reality of God's love! Love and grace have in fact been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit and we must break away from our guilt and shame. Are you tired of living in constant guilt and condemnation?

The Spiritual Domino Effect:
Peace with God introduces us to His Grace. Grace leads us to learn to stand in triumph in the midst of trials, knowing that the outcome is designed by God to produce perseverance. Perseverance and patience are a supernatural gift that is designed to allow God to forge within me proven character: steel in our souls, strength of character, uprightness. These things breed hope in all situations and "hope does not disappoint".

1. Verse 1 emphasizes that Grace gives us peace with God through Jesus and Jesus only (see Romans 4:24 & 25). 

          - We have come to understand that it is not only peace with God through Christ, but also His peace in all of life.

          - How do we reach this grace? By faith we reach up to Christ. The cross shows us how.

    2.  Verse 2 says that we are introduced to His Grace by faith.

          - This means that now that we know God's peace through Christ's work on the cross, we are taken by the hand and lead to grace. Knowing Him introduces us to His grace, His mercy, and His continued work in our hearts and lives.

          - Grace makes us understood by Christ:
             We are a work in progress.
             We fail.
             We cannot be saved by works.
             The power of the cross is the power of Jesus' innocent blood spilled for our guilt to
             cleanse us of all sins daily and forever. This grace, undeserved and daily given, is
             the Grace by Which We Stand.

          - This is the way that we plant our feet solidly in life: faith enough to take Jesus' hand.


   3. Verse 3 shows us the effective outcome of trials. Because we are introduced to His Grace and walking in His peace, we can exult in the Hope of the glory of God.

          - Trials are designed by God for a progressive work in our lives with a precious outcome. They are not waste, not in vain, and not cruel. See James 1: 2-4 and James 1:12.

         -  Not only do we survive trials and learn, but they produce effective qualities in us and also "precious songs in the night". In Psalms 42:8, David wrote these words: "The Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime; And His song will be with me in the night, A prayer to the God of my life." Job 35:11 is another example to look at.

   4. Verse 3 says that trials bring about perseverance, patience, steadfastness little by little when we abide in grace. These qualities are wrought in us and are gifts from God that allow us to stand in the midst of life while many around us fall.

        - If we do not abide in Christ's love and mercy, we experience anxiety, stress, hopelessness, fear, fatigue and depression.


   5. Verse 4 emphasizes "proven character" that makes us upright, unwavering, with steel in our souls.

      - This proven character holds fast to integrity. See Job 2:3.
   
     - God can use this, but men also. We are in need of a generation of proven character, integrity that has been forged through trials.

   6. Verses 4 & 5 discuss the way that grace leads all the way to hope.

      - Hope cannot and does not disappoint. Why not? Now that we have peace with God and have been introduced to His grace, we walk through our trials with perseverance and patience which shapes a proven and upright characters which in turn breeds hope in all circumstances so that we can stand in grace.
 
     - We stand because we are experiencing the daily love of God being poured out within our hearts - enough to overflow into the lives of others through the Holy Spirit.


Join us this Sunday, April 14th, for a continuation of this series.

Stories from the Field: Real Compassion

This post comes from a personal newsletter from a STN Staff Member. 

A lady from the village hobbled towards our camp with her husband. As she lifted her shirt, we could see that she suffered severe burns down the entire right side of her body. Our medical team began to uncover the damage and found that the wounds exceeded our capabilities. The team did all they could medically and shared the peace of Christ with the couple.

Nearby a group of believers met for discipleship. By divine appointment, our team leader had decided to share on the story of the Good Samaritan. As he shared and discussed how the church should respond to the needs of the hurting around them, he turned to see the woman who had come and called the church to be the “good Samaritan”. Out of their nothingness, the church pulled their resources to get the woman the treatment she needed. Overwhelmed by Christ’s story and the love she had experienced, her and her husband gave their life to Christ. 

Jesus asked "Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the robbers’ hands?” And he said, “The one who showed mercy toward him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do the same.”

Luke 10 (NASB)