I mean, this is good. Church is not something that you go to right. I think we've heard that. But is that right?
It's a it's We are the body of Christ. We sing about it. We're family. We're called out ones. We got to get beyond that we can. And we will. Right? Come on now. So last week we went, talked about the backside of john chapter 17. The end of john 17 would probably be the better way to say that. I'm going to read this verse again, I'm going to fill in a couple things that I'm going to share a couple things that we talked about last week, in case you weren't here. And then we're gonna go all the way back to the beginning, because I think there's some really cool things about the beginning of john 17. But the point that many people get to whenever we get to john 17, and share a lot of and I said last week, sometimes I get tired of hearing messages about it. So I thought I would do one of my own. Um, yeah, it's just anyways 1722 the glory that you've given me, this is Jesus. I have given them so that they may be one as we are one, we've been singing about that this morning, right? I in them, you and me that they may become completely one. So literally, the Father, Jesus is crying out that we would have the same oneness that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit have. That's amazing. But why? why did why does he want us to have that? And he says, so they may they may become completely one why so the world may know that you sit me in love them, even as you've loved me, and I've heard a lot messages about this, as I said last week. But I think a lot of times we kind of are in this like abstract idea. Like what is Oh yes, we love each other. And because we love each other, the world's gonna know that you know me. And so practically, if that's the case, and we're doing a great job with it, man, I kind of grunted, whenever I've been down that time. What the heck. Like, think about it, but think of our lives. When was the last time someone saw the love that we have for one another? and came to know the Lord? Maybe we know a lot? I don't know. Right? Right. So we can if not, we can grow. Like if we can see this, this is what's been on my heart. Because I've started to see some of this take place. I'm like, wow, this is actually true. But what does it practically look like to do this? Right? Like, it's easy to say, I love you. But like, what does it mean to actually love people? What does it mean to to walk in this love that Jesus is like, be unified? Because one, so the world has said we the world can know that Jesus is actually the Messiah, and know that the Father loves them. So what does that look like? And so a couple things I had mentioned last week, I really enjoy verse 21, that says, that they may all be one as you father are in me, and I am in you, may they also be in us and then against us, or the world may believe that you sent me. And that just really stood out last week, because the Father, Son and Holy Spirit I perfect community, I know that it's a rerun a little bit, but I was going to share this, again, had perfect community. Why would they want to break that community bike, but in their perfect community, they decided to open up themselves to imperfect people. So that then we can be become be made perfect, right. And so if we want to be as a Father and Son, and Holy Spirit are our communities that we have with one another, have got to be open communities. And it's really hard, as I said last week, because I'm going to tell you something, I have some really cool guys I like to hang out with. And I don't know, I don't want anyone messing with that you no one ever experienced that. Like, you know, there's some personalities that you just go great with and some that just rubs you the wrong way. And I think sometimes in an effort to protect this thing that we have, we end up unintentionally even closing ourselves off. And the father, son of the Holy Spirit never did that to us. And so, you know, what does that look like? And I guess we can all ask ourselves that what does it look like in my workplace or in my, here at stones river with people here or different places like that. So the idea that we've got to be that we've got to open back up to that open up to because that's it's scary, it's risky. It requires trusting God, it requires all this stuff to open up and say, okay, who else because we mentioned this, I talked to someone I thought about this last week, I talked to someone a couple weeks ago, who just said, you know, I've been in church for a long time, actually two people actually, it's so funny for a long time. And I am so lonely. I'm so lonely. And I this one of the persons got really frustrated and did some really funny stuff, but he probably shouldn't have done. Um, but
but I mean, the reality was is like how can we be in be in church for such a long time in a community and have this loneliness, and I think that a lot of it has to do with there's so much and a lot of it. There's so many different reasons, but sometimes we just get into our comfort circles and we Forget, hey, we could do more to invite other people to be into this so that the world may know that you sent me in the second part to that before I get into the beginning of 17 is, he says, so the world may see and know, well, if we're not out in the world, and they'll never see it, and they'll never know it. If we isolate ourselves to coming to the church building on Sundays, and that's it, then when does the world see that we love each other? Right? When if we're not intentionally in community together, walking with one another out, if we're only doing in isolation, they can't see it either. Right? We're never meant to do that. But if we if we can build into our lives intentionally, having places that we go to, with with community with 234 people, and just hang out and be intentional about loving people, I bet you're going to be like, What in the world? God, I can't believe that you did this. Right. It may take some time. But as you do it, it'll blow it'll blow your mind. He he he does that. And I wouldn't I just encourage that. I'll give you an encouragement, go something go to something you enjoy doing. That would actually probably make it a little bit more fun, huh? I mean, go ask the Holy Spirit, right? Hey, I'm not complaining about smoking hookah. I don't really smoke, actually. But I don't I don't complain about hanging out with my boys, right. If you enjoy playing racquetball go get some people start playing racquetball, if you enjoy eating, go to eat, I'd recommend finding, I'd recommend finding a local place where you can get to know the owners and stuff like that, you know, not some place where it's hard to get to know people and just go, hey, let's Why don't we once a week, every other week, get together and go to this place and try to get to know people and stuff like that, right. Anyway, that's what we talked about last week. So let's look at john 17. One. But before we do that, just want to really quick open, does anyone have anything that they would like to share based on what we talked about last week? failures successes. You know, we talked about, we talked about what I'm sharing this being one and letting the world anyone experienced anything? They want to share? No pressure? Yeah, David?
Can I have to just watch what john was saying just sparked off a memory. Young people, especially this for everybody. But for our young people. You don't realize how much of an impact you really make on your peers. Trudy and I moved to Canada. And this was in 1986. And we were instantly put to work at a Christian camp. And as the week went through, we had our devotionals. And we had some boys and girls that were sent to us from the Boys and Girls Club. They were in family situations that were not the best. And they needed a break. And they came. And one young lady came up to me and says, David, would you baptize me? And I said, Well, yeah, but let's let's talk. And so we were talking and I said, what, what push you to, to this, what brought you to this this moment. And she says, Well, this is my third year at camp.
And I just want the joy that I see in other people.
And it was the it wasn't the great devotionals that we had planned. It wasn't the arts and crafts. All that was cool stuff. But all the boys and girls that were in that camp had a joy to their lives for who they were in Christ. And someone from a totally different environment, a totally different circumstance. That lesson was what stood out with her for three straight years. And so I just want to let you know that you have the impact. This week, I was told by the spouse of a fellow teacher, Mr. B, I want to thank you so much. My husband is needed you in his life. And I'm just like, I'm just being a friend. You know, I'm just being a co teacher. I'm just, you know what she says but, you know, the husband said I got to get to work early. Why? We started a prayer session, a prayer time and he wanted to be Part of and with COVID and everything. Got this. I was just being me. So I mean, I'm not trying to do this, I'm trying to say is that you don't have to be this super spiritual person that walks around with the Bible open all the time. live out your walk with people, and they will notice.
Wow, David, thank you so much for sharing, you know? Yes. Do you want to get on this? Okay. Hey, what's up? filling up? The right. Awesome. That's amazing. I was wondering what that was when I came in the other day? Oh, no. Maybe we need to do some for the brothers. That's awesome.
There are fantastic. So if you didn't hear that there's there'll be envelopes back there for this secret sisters? Is that what you call it? Right. So I would encourage all the ladies to participate in that. That sounds awesome. That sounds exciting. Thank you all for sharing that. I think David's really right about the young folks. I was reading an article this week about friendships and stuff. Do you know when you're at your most popular peak in life just about 23. So Seth, you're past your prime, bro. You're done past it now. I think you're 24. Nevermind, you're the most popular you've ever been. I'm just kidding. It's not actually it's probably a year or so ago, right. But you don't wreck I just say that for the younger folks to just encourage you. Like you have probably more friends, more contacts, you're around more people who don't know the Lord in an easier, very organic place like school and hobbies and things like that you can really make a huge impact for the Lord. It's just incredible, incredible. For us older folks, we got to really be intentional about trying to find communities and stuff like that. Because, you know, it's a little bit harder, you know. So actually, one of the guys that I talked to is in his 60s and told me, I have no friends that I have my wife, and I have family and we spend time together is what he said to me. He said, But I recognize the other day that I am 60 something years old, and I have no friends. I was like there are tons of people like that, that are just waiting for us to like recognize and invite them to be part of community and just hang out with them. And I was thinking about this like if you're like really? For some of us we love one on one, right? Like a lot of the introverts like love to be one on one because it's just you can get deeper faster and stuff like that. For some people it's more comfortable. Hey, it's I was talking about this today like it doesn't always have to be one on one you know that right? Like you can be like hey Steph, can you go with me because I'd like to spend some time with this person and honestly, I'm just a little bit nervous about it. Sometimes that can be really good too because I can get to know more people So anyways, there's just so many cool ways to to get to know folks. But let's be on the on the lookout for those types of people, among others, but sometimes I talk more about so much about persons a piece I forget that God says he puts a lonely and families. He says the prisoners free to sing Oh man, get that verse gets me that song gets me. So let's look at john 17. One. It starts off by saying after Jesus spoke these words, a good preacher would go back and look at those words. I'm not today because we've been going along too much. I'll just encourage you to go look at the words that he says it's about persecution, but have come that you would have peace and I've overcome the world and a lot of really cool stuff like that. So I guess I did say a few of those words. He looked up to heaven and said, Father, The hour has come glorify Your son out of stop there for a second. What I love about this beginning section is if we talk about how we can live as one together Jesus says what in that prayer that we read earlier be one as we are one. So now we get to see a little bit of a model of the way the Father and the Son interact with one another. I think Cool like I love john 17 is because we're seeing this Jesus talk and the way that they respond and the way they treat one another. And so Jesus first off starts off here by saying glorify Me, which we don't see a lot of Jesus saying that right in the in the in the scriptures. But he says right now at this point glorify me. But there's a reason why he's gonna say so why does Jesus say, glorify me, why does he want to be glorified? It feels good to be glorified, right? Like, right? I'm just being honest, when you're honored, lifted up, that's what he's saying, lift me up, honor me. There's a reason why he wants to be there. But it's not selfish. This is a whole been talked about the whole right side of Kingdom the whole way, like, so different than the ways of this world. So the ways of this world is be glorified so that people can look at you and go, you're awesome. And you're amazing, and you puff yourself up. But Jesus says, Father, glorify me why, so that the Son may glorify you. So what we're seeing is we're seeing the father, bringing Glory to the Son, Isn't this an amazing relationship, bring glory to the son so that the son can then glorify the Father.
Think about our relationships, think about what we show the world if we begin to live out that type of love, that one person is giving something so the other person can give it right back. And you're just caring so much for one another. I thought about this, like, kind of practically. I know I mentioned, when you live things out, like it really just scriptures out, it really just kind of stands up stands out in your mind. When we were in Pennsylvania at that conference thing that we were doing a month or so ago, Shawn was given a slot to speak. And he was honored and having a slot. There's some really cool people speaking at this thing. And what I love about what I've learned a lot from Shawn is Shawn has taught me to live what I teach. And he's probably he's better not probably he's better than I am at it. But because Sean lives, family and community and lifting one another up, when he took that slot to speak, he spoke for a few minutes and then had all of us get up and share. So so and so we share something so and show so we share he was using this honor this glory to actually glorify and bring God honor through the body and through all of us. And I'll tell you, we had people that came up to us afterwards and said, I was even caring for this meeting until I saw till you guys had your session. Because I saw a brotherhood this, there's no glory to me here. I didn't do it. So brotherhood, a camaraderie, a like that's the way the body supposed to work. It looks like right. It's not just a person, one person or two people that it's like, this is what it looks like, this is what community looks like. And it was just like, I saw this in it. I saw what Jesus in the father do in Sean whenever he took his glory, his honor, and began to just pass it. And I recognize man, I want to be like that, like I just started thinking, Shawn, I want to be more like you. I want to take what God given and when I when I receive something my first thought be how can I help others with it? How can I honor my brothers and sisters with it? How can I empower my brothers and sisters with what I've been given? The Father gives him glory, the son may glorify You Why? Why does he want to do this? It says sense or because you have given him authority over all people. So the father not only was giving Jesus glory, but the fact that you see the word give all through this, by the way, Ben, we've talked about that a lot. For God so loved the word he gave, like, this is what love looks like, it looks like giving, it doesn't look like taking. And when you take it's to give, it just flows in and out. So when you receive something is to give, when God gives us something so that we can give it to other people. That's it, it's not so we can just sit around and be like, oh great a prophet I am. That's stupid. Like it's so that you can encourage and edify the body. That's the whole point. Right? So that he gives him authority over all people, which to me goes Wow, the father and son, the father has to have an awful lot of trust in the son. Because the authority that we're going to see is really powerful authority. We'll read that here in a second. But he has got to trust the son to say I trust you with this authority, which means the son then has to be trustworthy, which may ask me the questions. Am I trustworthy? And I'm a person who, who trust others, who has relationships that I can trust others? Or am I trying to control things too much. I've got a really good friend, that's a great businessman. I'm a great business minded person who struggles because he won't let go. He won't train people up and let go because he wants things to be done a particular way. And I'm like, bro, you're so smart and all these other areas. You have to let go in the father was willing to let go. And we have to do that with if we want to empower each other and build up the body. We've got to grow. We've got to be able to let go. We've got to be able to let go of authority. Father, let go of authority. That's that's this is the chat one in our in the church, there's a lot of it's just there can be struggles because we end up with these bottlenecks of leadership and authority, where we have to learn that when we have the authority, it's not for us. It's for others. It's to serve others, it's to lift others up. It's not so someone goes, wow, john, you're such a great person. That's no, like, any kind of authority that we have. And we all have that relational authority in people's lives, by the way, right? Know that you do? So he gives them the authority and what is this authority that he gives him, this is incredible. He has given him authority over all people for what to give eternal life, to all whom you've given me. If you had the power to give eternal life, you'd have to trust someone an awful lot to hand over the authority and power to give eternal life to somebody else.
That is, that's this is love, like what we're seeing with the Father and the Son. We're seeing love. This is real love. This is heart gut wrenching man, man, I'm gonna give up this authority. I don't know if the father felt like that. But it would be like that for us, oh, man, can I do this? Can I trust this person. But he gives this authority to give eternal life to the sun. So the sun has that authority. It says, verse three is so powerful. And it just reminds me of the relational aspect of all of this. And this is eternal life. So what is eternal life? I think many of us have heard sermons on this too, right? That you that they may know you, this is Jesus talking to the Father, they may know you father, the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you've sent. So he doesn't say that eternal life is living for ever in this moment. That's a benefit. But eternal life, having actual life that lasts forever, is knowing God. And as I've thought about this a lot, and I thought about the way that I have failed, and many of us fail in sharing the person of God with people. I thought about this this week. Imagine you had coffee with somebody, and you just or you just saw him in a coffee shop, and we're just talking, we're having a good time. And strike up a conversation. said, Man, that was a great time. Let's Let's do this again. And we did we went and did it again. Then we started having lunch together and doing some things together. And then one day, you know, sets the person I mean, he pulls up in a Ferrari and I'm like, dang, man, that's a that's a pretty sick ride, bro. I didn't know you had this kind of money. But later on, I found out that he was a billionaire that had you know houses and on the beach and houses on the lake and this huge mansion. He's smiling right now. He's like, that sounds great. He's like, dude, I'm down with that. House in Murfreesboro, like his mansion man, the killer four wheeler stuff this guy loves for in fire. He loves four wheelers and fire if you don't, I'm helping you get to know stuff. He has a four wheeler with a pit on the back a fire pit in the fire pits going while he's riding the four wheeler. Now it'd be nice. Fireworks shoot. Now the back. You can just go light them on the fire pit and roman candle it up while you're doing it. But you find out this, you find out all these things about this person. But here's the reality. What was so cool originally, this is what you didn't get to know the person because of all these benefits. You got to know the person because you cared about them and wanted to know them? Well, I think we do unintentionally. Sometimes when we share who God is with people. We just stick to sharing what the benefits are. So it would be like me saying, hey, you really got to know Seth, because Seth has really cool four wheelers, sets a billionaire. He's got a private chef. And with his private chef, man, man, she cooks the best food there is me. She is five star. She's amazing. You know, you can go when you can vacation. He'll lets you have his vacation home and all this stuff. And I feel like that's how we've often shared the gospel. We've shared this thing. Jesus can do this for you and this for you and this for you. All those are great things. But then what ends up happening is we never really know God. Like, I can ask people do you know God? I mean, I know he's died for my sins like, but do you know, God? Because Jesus is saying here that eternal life is knowing God. That's why Jesus and Matthew, they come to him and they say, Lord, we've prophesied in your name, and we've cast out demons and we've done miracles. And he says, but I don't know you. They had the benefits. But their heart wasn't deeply connected with him and he said, I just don't know you. That's a terrifying verse. I mean, it really for me, it is Like I'd like a lord, but it draws me in a good way to the heart of the Father to know God, God. There's awesome benefits that you give us. Yes, we can live forever. Yes, you have this incredible kingdom. And this is such a so important. The kingdom, oh, and everybody can get all fired up about that. At the heart of eternal life is us knowing God. And if we look at that with our each other for us to be as one we have to know each other, know each other, which requires us getting into each other's lives and opening up our lives where it's really uncomfortable. And even now, it's I got to share some things with you this week, right? There, like, Oh, my gosh, I can't believe you did that. I said, Yeah, of course I did.
That's just reality. But like, we have to be vulnerable, right? I mean, that's, that's the reality. And then I open up and other people open up, and it's really, really cool. But knowing Do we know God, and do we actually know one another. And then I'm just gonna read the last two verses of this paragraph, at least it's paragraph this way in my Bible. But I like the way it ends here. I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. So now Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had, in your presence before the world existed. So Jesus had a great glory before the world existed. He's asking the father to glorify Him in this, but you know what's crazy? In john chapter 12, this goes back to the right side up kingdom. In john chapter 12. Jesus says that he's going out, I'll just read this real quick. He's talking to Andrew and Philip, at this Greek festival when he says, The hour has come for the Son of man to be glorified. So he knew this was coming. Very truly I tell you, so this is what does it mean for him to be glorified here. Very, truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain. But if it dies, it bears much fruit. Basically, he says, I am going to glorify the father by dying. Like, and that really strikes me? Are we in such relationship with one another, so desirous of building one another up, that we're really literally willing to die for each other, like if I knew that it was going to help Seth tremendously. If I were to die, I would I would I be willing to do it. Those who love their life will lose it. Those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. So losing your life here. It's okay, because you'll keep it for eternity. Whoever serves me must follow me in where I am, there will be my servant, also, whoever serves me will honor the Father. So we recognize to that hour honoring the father comes in US serving God. And what I love is that it doesn't say back to chapter 17, I glorified you on earth by saying I glorify you. He says, I glorified you on Earth, because I did what you told me to do. Because I finished the work that you gave me. And God has given the church, not stones river, the church universal, a work to do, he has given us these things. And whenever we walk in that, and part of it is loving one another, so the world may know. But when we actually do it, that's when the father is glorified. When I preach about it, it's not really glorifying the Father. But it's when we take a step and actually do it. It is it reminded me when I read this, and I'll end the parable of the two sons, right? where Jesus tells this parable, and it says, Well, I told this one son, I told my sons to go out and work in my vineyard. He's telling this to the scribes and the elders, and it's about the scribes and the elders. But he says, I took my two sons, I told my two sons to go out to the vineyard, and one of my sons said, Absolutely, Dad, I'll do it. And then he didn't go. Then I went to my, to my other son responded the opposite way and said, No, Dad, I'm not going to do this. But then he actually came in, he worked in the vineyard, which of my two sons did the will of the Father. Right? We're talking about doing the will of the Father. I said, Well, it's the one that actually did the work. He's talking about the scribes and the Pharisees and the religious people who with their mouth said, Yes, I'm gonna go do it. But then he says, guess what? The tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom before you. Because they didn't just say it with their mouth, they actually wouldn't did it. In fact, they denied it with their mouth, but they actually wouldn't did it. And so Jesus says that multiple set multiple times that these tax collectors and sinners the prostitutes are actually getting that actually checks, does a check in my heart. And go Am I being like these religious people that say a lot of things, but, but I'm not actually doing them. Because he says that those are the those people are going to get into the kingdom of heaven. And one of my friends was sharing a story. He was actually talking about this passage. He said, You know, I started going to this barber shop and this guy, I met like, I don't know, months ago, and we start having these conversations about spiritual things. He was a very like nominal. It may be maybe Christian at first. But over time, Holy Spirit's worked on his heart. And now all of a sudden he loves God. And this guy drops the F bomb like every other word, he says. But this guy has decided that it is his mission to use his his chair, to share the kingdom of God with people. And he's effin going to do it. Forgive me, but you understand what I'm saying? Bah, bah, bah, blah, blah. And Sean said, those are the tax collectors and sinners that are going to get into the Kingdom before the religious people that are just sitting around going to church.
And this can be not great. It's going to be they're gonna do it roughly, who did Jesus hang out with? They had swords and they weren't supposed to write their packing. That's the kind of people Jesus hung out with. And they were the people that were inheriting the kingdom because why they were doing the work of the Father, not just saying that they would do the work of the Father. Anyways, I love it. Let's be one, let's be let's do it. Very practically, this is God has been speaking a lot of my heart for that. Who can I get to spend more time with Who can I hang out with more? Who can I do more hospitality in the house? Who can I have lunch with? Who can I call? Lord, I know, you know, Lord, I pray I just asked you right now, Father, thank you for showing us the relationship that you have with with the son in this in this passage. And how you are you give, you give you give you give. And you receive and when you receive you give. And this is beautiful relationship where you just care for one another so deeply. And Lord, I just pray that we would that we would receive that we would begin to walk in that Lord. And I know that you are such a patient God and I thank you for being a patient God, because oftentimes I take baby steps and but I know that you're a God that enjoys as we take those steps of growth, the disciples made small steps of growth, and you just hung out, you just hung with him because you loved watching that take place. So I asked right now that you would give us all just some practical, Holy Spirit, or some thoughts, some people that come into our mind. Maybe you've given us some of those and we just need that gumption to go and do and I asked that if that's it lower that you would give that to us so that we can that we can unite even deeper. I know that we have some good relationships father and I know that many people have them here and by the way everyone this is I love what Megan said last week it's not just about being here at stones river it's all over we are the body of Christ, not stones River. So Lord, wherever we're at, at our workplaces, Florida, wherever that we would unite together and show the world what it really means to love one another so that they'll say well, I don't know what the deal is with those people. But Jesus must be something special. I thank you for that in Jesus name. Amen.
