The Church Jesus Would Attend Part 1-Part A

Do you know that God has a very unique plan and purpose that only you can accomplish? Like a thumbprint or fingerprint or snowflake, it's very individual, and it's something that God has for you to do that only you can adequately accomplish, and it can't really get done quite without your involvement.

And I say, find out what that is and do it with all of your heart. So, what do you look for when looking for a church to attend? Some common considerations are decor and the general ambiance of the church, the music they play, what time they have services, what sort of teaching style they have, how long the services last, and what sort of small group activities they offer, how easy it is to get in and out of their parking lot, and what their core beliefs are, and the list goes on and on. Now, here's another consideration to add to the list.

What sort of church would Jesus attend? Skip will examine the answer to that question in today's broadcast of Connect with Skip Heitzig Weekend Edition. But before we get started today, we've got a great new resource from Joel Rosenberg in our Connect with Skip resource center. The beating heart of Bible prophecy is the land of Israel and the Middle East. Joel Rosenberg has his finger on the pulse of the world-shaking changes happening right now, and he unveils them in his new nonfiction book, Enemies and Allies. This is the first book of its kind that takes you inside the Oval Office, inside the palaces of the kings and crown princes, the presidents and the prime ministers, in Israel and in the Arab world as we ask them, what do you think about religious freedom, about making peace with Israel, about the threat from Iran, about U.S.-Arab relations, U.S.-Israel relations? Enemies and Allies from multiple New York Times bestselling author Joel Rosenberg takes you on an unforgettable journey inside the turbulent Middle East. You'll go behind closed doors to hear from the very kings and crown princes, presidents and prime ministers who are leading the charge. Enemies and Allies includes exclusive, never-before-published quotes, insights, and analysis from the author's conversations with some of the world's most controversial leaders. Your hardcover copy of Enemies and Allies is our thanks for your generous gift of $35 or more today.

To give, call 800-922-1888 or visit connectwithskip.com. Today we're in John chapter 17, so mark your Bibles, let's join Skiff Heitzig as he shares some insights about church. Church can become a place where participation is minimal, where perceptions are unreasonable, and where worship is invisible. Again, church can become a place where participation is minimal, perceptions are unreasonable, and worship is invisible.

Now I'm going to read this little thing. It's job descriptions of five people on a church staff or perceived job descriptions by some of people including pastor, assistant pastor, music minister, youth pastor, and church secretary. Here it is, pastor, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, more powerful than a locomotive, faster than a speeding bullet, walks on water, gives counsel to God. Assistant pastor, able to leap short buildings in a single bound, as powerful as a switch engine, just as fast as a speeding bullet, walks on water when the sea is calm, talks with God. Minister of Music leaps short buildings with the running start, almost as powerful as a switch engine, faster than a speeding BB, is occasionally addressed by God, walks on water if he knows where the tree stumps are. Youth pastor runs into small buildings, recognizes locomotives two out of three times, uses a squirt gun, knows how to use a water fountain, mumbles to himself. Church secretary lifts buildings to walk under them, kicks locomotives off the track, catches speeding bullets in her teeth, and freezes water with a single glance. When God speaks, she says, may I ask who's calling?

So you see what I mean? Church can become a place where participation is minimal, perceptions unreasonable, and worship is invisible. Now this is not that kind of a church, that I know, but because that can become the issue, people are asking this question. Church, what good is it?

The first study in this series, we sought to briefly answer that by saying everyone needs it. It's a place where God's people gather so we're accountable. It's the place where God's principles are given so we can grow.

It's a place where God's purpose for us is to be covered, God's purpose for our life is uncovered, and it's the place where God's presence is found in a very unique way. I received a letter from someone not long ago who doesn't go to church anywhere, used to go to church, but for the last three years he said I don't go to any church, I'm just at home and I read my Bible and he's come to certain conclusions about himself and churches and God and life and so there's no accountability. He's not answerable to any person. He's basically turned a personal relationship with Christ into a private relationship with Christ and it's the Elijah complex. You know I'm the only prophet and there's no one else out there who knows anything but me.

We all need each other. The second week we looked at Matthew 16 and Jesus said I will build a church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. So Jesus said I'm starting this thing, I get to name it, that's the church, I built it, I own it, and I will keep it.

This morning the question before us is what in Jesus' own mind should that look like? See if it's his church, what is that church in his mind and from his thinking, his idea, what's it supposed to be like? A lot of times I'll read literature that church organizations put out or I'll hear certain leaders from organizations or denominations talk about going back to the New Testament, we're a New Testament church, we want to be like the church in the book of Acts. It's fine, that's good, but it's not far enough back because Corinth was a New Testament church.

Remember that, you don't want to be like them. Now let's go back further past the book of Acts to the very one who founded the church, Jesus himself. What does he have to say about it? A lot and it's in a prayer and it's in a prayer in John 17, the longest recorded prayer of Jesus in the New Testament, where he is praying for his followers and those who will believe in him through the testimony of his followers, so he's praying for the church. So the question I want to ask and attempt to answer this week and next week is what kind of church would Jesus attend?

And my answer will be founded firmly in the text itself so that it's not based upon opinion, but upon exactly what Jesus said. What kind of church would Jesus attend? And there's four main characteristics that are found in John 17. Number one, the church that Jesus would attend is one that radiates the glory of God. Number two, the church that Jesus would attend is one that reveals the truth of God. Number three, a church that Jesus would attend is one that rescues the enemies of God. And number four, a church that Jesus would attend is one that rallies over the love of God. Those are the four legs that we will build this prayer upon as we uncover it this week and next week.

Let's look at the first this morning. A church that Jesus would attend is one that radiates the glory of God. Look at verse 1 of John 17. Jesus spoke these words, lifted up his eyes to heaven and said, Father, the hour has come. Glorify your son that your son may also glorify you. Down to verse 4. I have glorified you on the earth.

I have glorified you and I have finished the work which you have given me to do. And now, oh Father, glorify me together with yourself, with the glory that I had with you before the world was. Go down to verse 9. I pray for them, them being his disciples. I do not pray for the world, but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. And all mine are yours and yours are mine.

I am glorified in them. Down to verse 22. And the glory which you gave me, I have given them that they may be one just as we are one. Verse 24, Father, I desire that they also whom you gave me may be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory which you have given me, for you loved me before the foundation of the world. Eight times in this prayer, eight times that word glorify or glorified or glory appears. What does that mean? Because it sounds like a very churchy sounding word.

It's important to know exactly what it means for this reason. It is the glory of the Father that motivated Jesus' entire life. It's what motivated him every day on his life on this earth. Well, to glory or to glorify or glorified means two things and both of these senses are found in the text. Number one, God's glory is the visible expression of God. The visible expression of God. It's the unfiltered, turned up to 10, not decaffeinated, full strength expression of the presence of God. It's the outward wow that brings the inward whoa if anybody comes in contact with it. It's what Isaiah said, he saw the Lord lifted up, Isaiah 6, I saw the Lord in a vision high and lifted up and the train of his robe filled the temple and the angel said holy, holy, holy, the whole earth is full of his glory. And Isaiah said woe is me.

Woe is me. The outward wow that brings the inward whoa. It's what Moses wanted, right, when he said this isn't enough Lord, I want to see your glory.

I want the outward wow and God had to say now Moses whoa hold up here. You can't see my glory, no man can see my face and live. So there's one aspect of the glory of God that is the visible expression of God that we will all one day see. But second and really more for our purpose this morning, it's the valued attention toward God, attention toward God.

The word dox adzo means to focus on, to point attention to, to have a good opinion of or to make renown. So look at verse four, I have glorified you on the earth. Look at verse six, I have manifested your name. I've pointed to you father on every occasion.

I put you father on center stage and I pointed the spotlight at you and made you renown. That's what we're to do. That's not only what Jesus did but Jesus gives that goal to his followers. So what is to be the primary goal of the church? It's to glorify God, to point to God, to honor God, to make God renown, to make him famous so that people's opinions about God are made better because of our lifestyle. That's what it means to glorify God. People's opinions about God are made better because of our lifestyle.

You say how do we do that? Two ways that Jesus points to, two ways to glorify him. Number one, by declaration, by declaration, by verbally making him renown. Jesus always did this. I've been amazed as I've read through the gospel of John in particular how many times Jesus would say now what I'm telling you isn't something I made up, it's what the father told me to tell you. And he said I always honor him, I always do those things that please him.

He was always giving verbal declaration to people about the will of the father. So let's do that. Let's make Jesus famous in this town. Let's make the Lord renown by our witness, by our declaration, by what we tell people. And let's move it for a second from out there to right here. Not just our witness before the world but our worship as we gather together.

The verbal declarations enter into that. I'll tell you there's one thing we probably should never do when we gather together for a worship service. Ready, this is it. Shout to the Lord. Shout to the Lord. This is God we're dealing with. We make a declaration that he is worthy and righteous and to be honored. That's part of glorifying God. And I'll tell you when we worship, this is why worship, one of the reasons it's so cool. Worship is the one exercise that is completely, if it's done right, selfless. Because all the attention, all the focus is off of us and onto him.

If, I got to say this, if it's true worship, if it's not true worship, then the focus is us. And it comes out like this, I didn't like that song. Or I don't like guitars. Or I do like guitars. Or I don't like drums. Or I do like drums. Or I don't like that choir.

Or I do want the choir. Who cares? It's about him. It's for him.

The issue isn't how it made you feel or I feel. How did it make him feel? I've always loved the story about President Lyndon Johnson who had an aid, a special aid in the White House. And the special aid was invited to the White House for supper. And Bill, I forget his last name, Bill was asked to pray for the food. So he did, bowed his head, quietly, was thanking God as he was praying. And President Lyndon Johnson on the other end of the table couldn't hear him adequately. He interrupted his prayer saying, speak up Bill. And Bill without even looking up said, I was not addressing you Mr. President.

Hey, that's pretty cool, huh? To say that to the President. You know, I wasn't talking to you. This isn't about you right now.

This isn't a press gathering. I'm talking to God. And we remember that when we worship.

It's about him. What did the Lord think of my worship, our worship today, as I declared him? Back in 1928, Evelyn Underhill wrote this to the Church of England.

I'll share one sentence. We are drifting toward a religion which keeps its eye on humanity rather than on deity. That was 1928. We're drifting toward a religion in 1928 that focuses on humanity rather than deity. Can I just say we've arrived. So we glorify God by declarations. What we say about him to the world. What we say about him when we're gathered together. Second, we glorify him by demonstration. By what we do. By what we do in life. Look at verse 4. I want you to see this from Jesus' own words. I have glorified you on the earth.

How? We finished the sentence. We finished the sentence.

I have finished the work which you have given me to do. So how do you glorify God? By finishing the work he gave you to do. Do you know that God has a very unique plan and purpose that only you can accomplish?

Like a thumbprint or fingerprint or snowflake. It's very individual and it's something that God has for you to do that only you can adequately accomplish and it can't really get done quite without your involvement. And I say find out what that is and do it with all of your heart. I want you to understand that God's plan and purpose for you isn't just heaven. It's not just well I'm saved so I'm going to heaven. So what are you going to do till you get there? What's the ride going to be like? Do you know if heaven was the only goal for your life, you know what would happen the very moment you receive Christ as your Savior?

Yeah. You just keel over dead. You come forward. We pray with you. The undertakers would drag you out and you go to heaven immediately.

Right? Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. Go directly to heaven. But that's not God's only goal. Before you get to heaven, before you get there He has some plan and some purpose and I say discover it with all your might.

Find out why God put me on this earth. So that's priority number one. Church should radiate the glory of God. The church Jesus would attend is a group of people that makes it all about Him that turns the me generation into the He generation so to speak.

Second number two. It's one that reveals the truth of God. Look at verse six. I have manifested your name to the men whom you have given me out of the world. They were yours.

You gave them to me and they have kept your word. And now, now because they have kept your word, now they have known that all things which you have given me are from you. For I have given to them the words which you have given me and they have received them and they have known surely that I came forth from you and they have believed that you sent me.

Now please don't, don't, not understand this. Please see the flow of this. Jesus saying you father gave me words of truth that I passed on to them my followers. They received those words and they have not only kept them but they have passed them down. You know it's easy to get distracted with what we think makes for a good church and not consider what Jesus' opinion on the matter might be.

At the very core, the church should be Jesus' plan and purpose for the church. We'll continue to explore what that is in our next study here in Connect with Skip weekend division. And right now Skip wants to connect you with Joe Rosenberg. I've traveled with Joel to Middle East cities to meet with kings and crown princes. We sat together on the east lawn of the White House for the signing of the historic Abraham accords and I've previewed his new book Enemies and Allies. I can tell you it contains never before published quotes from behind closed door meetings with some of the most powerful and mysterious leaders in the Middle East. You will want to read this book. Enemies and Allies by Joel Rosenberg includes insights and analysis from the author's conversations with some of the most controversial leaders in the world.

This is the first book of its kind. Almost nobody's ever had that chance to not just meet one of these major leaders but to meet almost all of them and then they get to tell the story in first person language. Come with me into the palace into the motorcade and come meet the most interesting consequential and controversial leaders in the entire Middle East.

Enemies and Allies by Joel Rosenberg includes insights and analysis from the author's conversations with some of the most controversial leaders in the world. We'll send you a hardcover copy of Enemies and Allies as thanks for your gift of $35 or more. To give, visit connectwithskip.com or call 800-922-1888. And for a copy of today's teaching, The Church Jesus Would Attend Part 1, just call 1-800-922-1888 or order online at connectwithskip.com.

Each copy is just $4 plus shipping. We should look forward to hearing from you, and next time, we'll talk more about The Church Jesus Would Attend, what that church would look like, and how our church might better reflect Jesus' purpose for the church. That's next time here in Connect with Skip, Weekend Edition, a presentation of Connection Communications. Make a connection, make a connection at the foot of the cross and cast all burdens on His word. Make a connection, a connection, a connection. Connecting you to God's never-changing truth in ever-changing times.