Kingdom-Minded at Netcast

The more I have studied the Kingdom, the less I wanted to teach on it. It is so massive of a topic that I think we could spend our entire lives learning about it and still not come close to fully grasp it's magnitude. The series has really challenged my thinking of mission, unity and the local church. Today I read John 1:1-18 and again was reminded of our responsibility of Kingdom-Mindedness.

John 1:1-18 
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. 6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light. 

Our job as a local church is to always bear witness about Jesus. John the Baptist was a perfect model of this. He lived his life in an effort to decrease so that Jesus would increase. As people would look at him, he would point them back to Jesus, saying "Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." May we model the same thing. May Netcast be a place that fights the temptation of trying to put butts in seats in order to build an empire, but rather utilize the influence that God gives to advance the Kingdom by point people to our King.

Taking the Kingdom by storm.

There is no question about it that the Kingdom of God has been under attack from the day it began. Nations have tried to outlaw it, churches have misrepresented it, science has tried to disprove it and persecution has tried to scare it. Yet, the Kingdom of God continues to this day. In Matthew 11, Jesus says that the violent men and women are the ones who take the Kingdom and advance it. He doesn't say that the gentle in Spirit take it, he doesn't say the the smart people take it, he doesn't say the great debaters of our day will take it. He specifically says the "violent" take it by force. Then in a previous chapter, Jesus tells us that as we take the kingdom, to be as wise as a serpent and as innocent as a dove. That is confusing because those are two opposite characteristics.

Nonetheless, we are called to be wise, innocent, violent and forceful as we live our lives as ferocious men who God has entrusted with the responsibility of advancing his Kingdom.

Spending March w/ Jesus 3-12-09 "Jesus Plants Seeds."

Jesus didn't just save people; he also planted seeds for others to be saved later.

Read Mark 5

Jesus saved me while I was in college. I can remember in High School, having no clue about any type of religion or spiritual morality. I really never knew a spiritual person all throughout my years living in NJ. The closest I came to religion was celebrating Christmas and Hanukkah in December, but I only thought that those times were about getting gifts. I never knew the historical meaning behind the holidays.

I, like others, wanted nothing to do with Christianity the first time I heard it. I remember my roommate (Chris Kaufman) and other friends in college, sharing the gospel of Christ with me often and telling me about the love and grace of Christ. I always thought they were crazy. Actually one day after a conversation with my roommate, Chris, I remember calling my dad and telling them that I was at a colt college and he needed to pick me up. My father, being raised in a non-practicing Catholic, quickly agreed that the people at ENC were weird, but encouraged me to stay calm and just ride out the experience.

After a few months at school, I had multiple of people telling me of their story and what Christ had done for them. Over time, my heart was softened to Christ until the day God use Ricky to lead me into the Kingdom. I am so thankful for the guys and girls who went out on a limb and allow God to use them to plant a small seed in my life. Some of those people are Chris Kaufman, Carlos T, Mark, AZ, Dre Benson, Andrea Allen, Tiffany, Joey T, Adrian M, and my beautiful bride Beth Shomo.

When people think of Jesus, they rarely think of him as the one who was planting the seed in which someone else would get to water. Look in Mark 5:18-20; Jesus just healed this man of demons and did a miraculous work in his life. This is what the text says: As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. Jesus did not let him, but said, "Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you." So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.

In this text, you can see that Jesus was sending a man to go and plant seeds to the Gentiles. In other texts we know that Jesus was sent to the Jews and not the Gentiles. However Paul was the one to be a missionary and mouthpiece to the Gentiles. It was Paul who was sent to water the seeds that had already been planted in the lives of the Gentiles.

Jesus (who was a Jew) was sending a man to go and tell of his greatness in a culture that was typically despised by Jews. At this time Jesus was in ‘Decapolis’. ‘Decapolis’ is a Greek word that means ‘Ten Towns’. They were cities east and south of the Jordan River, where Greek people had lived for about three hundred years. So Jesus was in Gentile territory to which he would not return. Jesus sent the man to tell other Gentiles the good news. This man would be a witness among Gentiles to the saving power of Jesus.

Personally I do not have the gift of evangelism. I have led people to Christ, but it is not something I do everyday. However, I do have a responsibility everyday. Everyday, I am called to plant seeds. I am called to be like the man that Jesus sent out to plant seeds and like the scriptures say, "just tell about him." I then have to trust that God will continue to send more people to water my seeds.

Today I planted 2 seeds. I was with my accountant and told her about what Christ did in my life, and I was with a partner at work and told her and her son a little about Christ. We all need to do what Christ tells us to to in Mark 5:19; "Go...and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you."

Our job is not to save people, that is God's job. I love how JI Packer puts it "God Saves Sinners." It is my job to plant seeds and just tell of him, it is His job to save people.

Here are some places that I can plant seeds:

1. At the check out counter.

2. At the restaurant.

3. At the local GYM.

4. At Work.

5. In the break room.

6. When meeting with clients, vendors, and other work related people.

7. When I am with my neighbors.

8. When I'm getting coffee at Dunkin D's or Starbucks.

9. Even within my business e-mail signature. (See below)

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Matt Chewning
www.storr.com
Account Manager
Storr Office Environments
336-217-4525 - Direct line
336-362-5662 - Cell
336-217-4501 - Fax
I am too anointed to be disappointed, too blessed to be depressed, too chosen to be frozen, too elected to be rejected, have more to shout about than to pout about and have more to sing about than complain about. "To God be the Glory Forever, Amen" Romans 11:36

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We can plant seeds through full blown conversations, or we can plant seeds through a one sentence comment. Either way, "PLANT SEEDS."

If nervous about planting seeds; keep this scripture in mind.

Romans 1:16

I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes