Change Your Words, Change Your World…

There is incredible power in our words.  I did a message series a few months ago called “Dump the Junk”.  It was an eye opening experience to go on a 14 day experiment to rid myself of any toxic talk.  Here are some of the notes from that message…

“I hate you”

“You’ll never amount to anything”

“You never do anything right”

 “You were an accident”

“You are nothing but a failure”

“I have never loved you”

“You’re so stupid”

“Where did you get that outfit?”

“You’re nothing but white trash…”

“You’re just like your dead beat father”

“I wish you were never born”

 

Words are powerful.  The saying goes that “sticks and stones may break my bones but words can never hurt me.”  Yeah right.  That is false.

 

Questions:

• How many of you have been negatively affected by someone’s words?

• How many of you have tried to forget those words but can’t?

My First two memories:

1. Hiding behind the couch while my parents were shouting at each other and fearful what my father was going to do to my mom and us kids.

2. The first time I got spanked.  I called my sister a Bitch.  My mom said, “Why did you call your sister that?”  “Well, that’s what daddy calls you!”

The Bible speaks so strongly about our communication…

Proverbs 18:21 (ESV)

“Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.”

Proverbs 13:3 (ESV)

“Whoever guards his mouth preserves his life; he who opens wide his lips comes to ruin.”

Proverbs 21:23 (ESV)

“Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble.”

James 1:26 (ESV)                                

“If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.”

Matthew 12:37 (ESV)

“For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Proverbs 15:4 (ESV)

A gentle tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit.

Proverbs 12:18 (ESV)

There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.

 

The text that we are going to zero in on today is Ephesians 4:25-32…               

 Ephesians 4:25-32

“Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. 26“In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27and do not give the devil a foothold. 28He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need.

29“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”

These verses cut to the heart of our communication and lists 4 areas of our communication that we need to DUMP.

1.     Dump the Lies and Half Truths

Ephesians 4:25

“Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body.”

• Deception

• Exaggeration

• Half Truth = Full Lie

  • “Where were you last night?”  I was at work.  Truth.  But you forget to mention that you stopped by your ex-girlfriend’s house on the way home.   You see.

  • Lies

    • You get caught in a string of lies and before you know it, you don’t know what is true anymore.

  • The Key to this is that you need to get honest with yourself.  You need to come clean and dump the junk!

 2.     Dump the Anger

 Ephesians 4:26-27

“In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27and do not give the devil a foothold.”

3 Greek words for anger:

 

a) Thumos refers to a fury out of control. It sometimes refers to something that went up in smoke.

b) Parorgismos is an internal seething, a fuming resentment that most often arises out of jealousy.

c) Orge refers to anger based on a settled conviction. People have certain priorities they’re committed to, and when something violates those priorities, they respond. For example, you love your children with all your heart, but if someone hurts them, you will be angry.

You can be angry and sin or be angry and not sin. Your motive is the issue.

 

You can be angry but not sin.  This is called righteous indignation or holy discontent.

Examples: Starving children, abuse, neglect, social injustice, etc…

 But what happens all too often is what we allow our anger to get the best of us in a given situation and we explode on those we love the most. 

• Some of you are Exploders

• Some of you are Imploders

• Silence vs. Violence

• Fight vs. Flight

 3.     Dump the Selfishness

 Ephesians 4:28

“He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need.”

 The Bible discusses many different kinds of stealing.

1. Non-payment of debts (Ps. 37:21)

2. Falsifying account books (Luke 16:1-13)

3. Cheating on taxes (Matt. 22:17-22)

4. Using improper measurements (Amos 8:5; Hos. 12:7)

5. Not paying a fair wage (James 5:4)

 

 4.     Dump All Other Junk

Ephesians 4:29-31

“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.”

The Greek word translated “corrupt” (sapros) means “rotten.” It refers to something that is worthless, useless, or diseased. Rotten fruit smells terrible and is worthless. You wouldn’t want to get near it, let alone eat it. The same thing is true of rotten language. Whether it’s in the form of off-color jokes, profanity, dirty stories, or crude speech, none of it should characterize a Christian.

1)     Bitterness

 “Bitterness”–smoldering resentment that results in a brooding, grudging, unforgiving spirit.

2)     Rage

 a wild rage arising from selfishness.

3)     Anger

 “Anger”–a settled, internal resentment.

 4)     Brawling

“Clamor”–violent public outbursts.

 5)     Slander

 6)     Malice

 7)     Complaining

 8)     Negative Attitude

9)     Critical

10)  Whining

11)  Judgmental

12)  Gossip

13)  Arrogance (pride)

14)  Non-Verbal

15)  ALL CAPS (e-mail, text, social media)

Ephesians 4:32

“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”

 Conclusion:

When it comes to communication, write down the main thing that you struggle with…

 

This week, give this to the Lord and ask Him to help you from the inside out.  

 

Drinking Blood, Eating Flesh? Seriously? Are we called to be vampires?

Looking at the Church’s long-standing tradition of the Lord’s Supper (or Communion) from a perspective of a preschooler will challenge your theology.

“Daddy, so what exactly are they doing with the bread and the juice at church?”

“Well, baby girl, it’s like this…”

How do you boil the message of the Lord’s Supper down to where a preschooler could understand it?  I thought about this week as I was preparing my message in the series “Why Do We?”  We are looking at the long standing traditions of the church and explaining them in a way that hopefully, anyone could understand.

We are drifters…

Humans have a propensity to drift.

Christians have a propensity to drift – because they are humans.  It’s in our DNA.  Jesus knew that.  He knew that unless He built a systematic method for self-examination and remembrance into the very fabric of our weekly gatherings, we would continuously drift away from our True North and onto our selfish paths.  Communion is the answer.

In 1 Corinthians 11:17-34, the Apostle Paul outlines to the Corinthian church how we are to administer Communion.  Here are his commands to the church.  You’ll notice that he begins with the fact that we need to prepare our hearts FIRST, before we partake.

 

1. We must look up…

 

1 Corinthians 11:17-22

“In the following directives I have no praise for you, for your meetings do more harm than good. 18 In the first place, I hear that when you come together as a church, there are divisions among you, and to some extent I believe it. 19 No doubt there have to be differences among you to show which of you have God’s approval. 20 When you come together, it is not the Lord’s Supper you eat, 21 for as you eat, each of you goes ahead without waiting for anybody else. One remains hungry, another gets drunk. 22 Don’t you have homes to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you for this? Certainly not!”

The reasons the Corinthian church was being divisive was because they neglected their True North!  They stopped looking UP and stared looking all around.  The became inspectors of others and ceased being self-examiners.  They let their selfish interests overtake their focus on the bigger picture!

2. We must look back…

 

1 Corinthians 11: 23-26

“For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”    

Looking back is  a powerful tool.  When I first became a Christ follower when I was 16 years old, my pastor and mentor challenged me to write in a journal everyday.  He said it was like recording your spiritual journey and legacy.  He was right!  What I didn’t realize however, was the invaluable lessons that I have learned simply by thumbing through those old pages.  I have an accurate account of God’s activity in my life!  Whenever I need a boost of encouragement, I “remember”.  Whenever I need to get perspective, I “remember”.  Whenever I doubt my calling, I simply scroll back through those books and “remember”.

In the same way, Jesus wants us to remember HIM during the Lord’s Supper.  How should we remember Him?

Remember that Christ died.

Remember how Christ died.

Remember why Christ died.

 

3. We must look ahead…

 

1 Corinthians 11:26

“For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”

Recognizing this fact is like watching the Super Bowl on DVR already knowing the outcome.  Even though the outcome might look bleak, you don’t worry because you know who will win.  Guess what?  Have you read the book of Revelation?  We win!  When we look ahead, it gives us proper perspective to handle today’s adversities.

4. We must look within…

 

I Corinthians 11:27-29

“Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. 28 A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. 29 For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself.”

 

The Corinthians neglected to examine themselves, but they were experts at examining everybody else. Communion is never to be taken without healthy self-examination.  It is essential.  In fact, the reason why people in the Corinthian church were “asleep” (dead) was because they didn’t take Communion seriously.  Stern warning!

Sometimes I wish God still dealt with His Church in that manner.  However, new churches being built would be wise to place a morgues in the basements if this were the case!  Just a thought.

 

5. We must look around…

 

1 Corinthians 11:33

“So then, my brothers, when you come together to eat, wait for each other.”  

 

Communion must be a demonstration of unity in the body of Christ, His Church!

How can we remember the Lord’s death and not love one another? “Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another” (1 John 4:11).

 

 

 

 

 

 

Even Pastors Second Guess

For most pastors, Monday mornings are the most difficult times of the week.  That is were they think about Sunday’s sermon and service with critical eyes and second guess the effectiveness of their communication.  However, Mondays are great for me. It’s Sunday afternoons that get me!

I don’t know if it’s a drive for excellence that consumes my thinking or a compulsion to move from good to great, but I seem to never be satisfied with my communication.  Take yesterday as an example.  After a amazing church service where we saw a high school girl give her life to Christ (our high school principle and another high school student led her to Christ), I got in the car, pounded the steering wheel in frustration and vented to my wife at how much I dropped the ball.  This is not my most flattering side.  I felt like I was all over the place in my sermon and that I didn’t connect at ALL.

But, interestingly enough, despite of me…God moved.  And boy did He ever!  I am so humbled and grateful that it is not about ME.  Whew…if it were, we all would be in bad shape!

I am thankful that we serve a God that shows up and shows off when we don’t do our best.

I am grateful for a team of people (especially my wife) who knows how to encourage me with her words and with her servant’s heart.

Here are 99  things that I have learned in the last 24 hours…

1. It’s not about me.  It’s about God.

2-99.  Same as #1

Yep.  That pretty much sums it up!

 

Top 20 Ways to Crash Your Church…

See “Sermons: Hot off the Press” section!  These are convicting…

PK

 

A FIRE in my bones…

Jeremiah 20:9 says “his word is in my heart like a fire,
a fire shut up in my bones.
I am weary of holding it in;
indeed, I cannot.”

That is how I feel about this upcoming Sunday at Living Grace.  Seriously, I can’t contain how excited I am about preaching.  Maybe it is because I have not preached in 2 weeks, but I am seriously ecstatic about this Sunday.  God has given me a message that is in my BONES and I cannot contain it.

I am always amazed at how God shows off at Living Grace.  Even on Labor Day, when churches are the LAST thing on people’s minds, the place was PACKED!  We are going to have to ADD more chairs again THIS Sunday.

This series has really been rocking my world.  I am so thankful for my good friend Joe Neikirk for preaching for us these last two weeks.  This has really given me some time to spend in unhurried fellowship and communion with the Father in preparation for an AMAZING fall season of ministry.

Trust me, you don’t want to miss a moment!  But don’t just be a spectator – get in the game.  We area always looking for GREAT volunteers who go above and beyond the call of duty and service Jesus to this generation.  I know that God has been stirring on your heart to get more involved.  Go ahead.  Be persistent.  Don’t give up.  Don’t get discouraged.  Press on.

Invite a friend this week to LGC.  You’ll be glad you did.

 

Do You Want To Get Well? Video!

http://vimeo.com/14556793

God has been pursuing you with reckless abandon.  He wants to heal you.  He wants to set you free!  He wants to make you WELL.  The questions remains, do YOU WANT TO GET WELL?  This message was one of the  most powerful messages that I have ever heard!  It was delivered this past Sunday at Living Grace Church by Joe Neikirk, a new LGC church member and great friend of mine!  Watch it at your own risk!  Are you ready?