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Just Walk Across the
Room 1-- The Single Greatest Gift
Three Seasons Community
Church– 9-7-08
Today, we begin the process of understanding
how to get "usable" to God!
Be Willing to Enter the Zone of the Unknown
The first step in being used by God is being
willing to remove ourselves from our circles of comfort and stretch out
a hand to a person who needs the hope we alone can offer.
On a scale of 1-10 how comfortable are you with
moving out of your circle of comfort and stretching out your hand of
friendship to another?
Whether you’re comfortable or uncomfortable
with this idea of "Just Walk Across the Room" are you willing to give it
a try?
It’s in the zone of the unknown where God often
does his best work!
What would happen if we were to take a few
steps across a room? Is it possible that we could actually impact
someone’s eternal destiny—perhaps even that of their family? That we
could change the course of an entire family history by simply taking a
few steps toward someone who may be heading for a Christless eternity?
Do you think that would be worth the risk of
ten steps across the room?
"The day Christ-followers like you and me stop
taking walks across rooms in this manner, the day we stay glued to our
circles of comfort, refuse to make the walk, refuse to enter the zone of
the unknown … the day Christ-followers like you and me stop doing that
sort of stuff, it is lights out for the kingdom of god here on earth. It
is the beginning of the end of redemptive history. It’s the slow defeat
of the church—the bride of Christ. It’s the end of the dream of Christ
that people on earth would come to know him."
Christianity is always just one generation away
from extinction! It’s up to us to pass on the "good news" to the next
generation! And the first place to start is with our children!
Throughout this four-week experience, I want
you to remember that one of the top priorities of the holy spirit in
each of our lives is to turn every single person here—every single
Christ-follower—into a walk-across-the-room kind of person.
If you’ve submitted your life to Christ but
wonder why you’re not just rocketing ahead in your spiritual development
or your spiritual maturity, could it be that, for too long now, you have
clung to your circles of comfort, refusing even to glance toward that
zone of the unknown, let alone take a walk into it?
Listen for the Spirit’s promptings
In order for us to be effective in the zone of
the unknown, we must be led by the spirit. We must listen to the
Spirit’s promptings every step of the way.
Being walk-across-the-room people means that we
walk when the Spirit tells us to walk and we don’t walk when the Spirit
says not to walk.
Matthew 5:13 [PAGE 683]
How is your spiritual potency?
How is your spiritual proximity?
The idea of spiritual potency and spiritual
proximity is why we need to "Just Walk Across the Room"
Just walk!
Romans 5:8 [Page 798]
"But God demonstrates his own love for us in
this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (tniv).
John 13:1 [Page763]
It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus
knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the
Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them
the full extent of his love.
Philippians. 2:5-8 [Page831]
Your attitude should be the same as that of
Christ Jesus: [6] Who, being in very nature God, did not consider
equality with God something to be grasped, [7] but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. [8]
And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became
obedient to death-- even death on a cross!
Think for a moment about the implications of
that walk: this passage tells us that Jesus, under direction from his
father, left the ultimate circle of comfort—heaven itself … direct
participation in the trinity … the worship and adoration of the angels.
Jesus Christ left the supreme circle of comfort and he took the longest
walk a person could ever take... But why? He did it to stretch out a
hand to people just like you and just like me. he did it to reach
people, many of whom were smack dab in the middle of absolutely wrecking
their lives.
Just walk!
Why? Because Jesus "just walked" for you. [John
4]
If you are a Christian, then someone probably
took a risk for you along the way and did a little something that would
interest you in the possibility of knowing the love of god and the
opportunity to be freed from your sins.
This week, I hope you will take the postcard
that you were handed when you walked in today and write a note of
gratitude to the one who walked for you.
"Jesus Christ knew that fulfilling his
redemptive mission would be excruciatingly difficult, risky, downright
defeating, and seemingly fruitless for us at times. ‘But if you will
just persevere,’ he might say, ‘the potential is colossal.’ think of it!
One more treasure—a priceless human being—might be snatched from the
clutches of a horrendous, lifeless eternity because of your work. So go!
Go right now and bear witness. Sow the seed. Take the walk across the
room...
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