Dan Gould

Tag: Where You Go I Go by Kim Walker/Jesus Culture

  • Sunday AM Remix – 7.03.11

    Have you ever felt like God was asking you to do the impossible?  I mean look at you!!! Just Kidding!  Many times that is exactly what we do, we look at ourselves and our own resources, instead of looking to God, and trusting Him to do what we thought to be  impossible or a mistake.  Gideon is a great example of a person who would give excuse after excuse but in the end would trust God and see Him do something that seemed impossible.

    HEROES
    “Gideon:  What God Can Do With a Few”
    Judges 6-7

    * God doesn’t use extraordinary people!  Why? Because there are none! – Romans 3

    * God loves taking a zero to a hero, a looser to a leader, the ordinary to extraordinary.

    “The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight. So the Lord handed them over to the Midianites for seven years. The Midianites were so cruel that the Israelites made hiding places for themselves in the mountains, caves, and strongholds. Whenever the Israelites planted their crops, marauders from Midian, Amalek, and the people of the east would attack Israel, camping in the land and destroying crops as far away as Gaza. They left the Israelites with nothing to eat, taking all the sheep, goats, cattle, and donkeys. These enemy hordes, coming with their livestock and tents, were as thick as locusts; they arrived on droves of camels too numerous to count. And they stayed until the land was stripped bare. So Israel was reduced to starvation by the Midianites. Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord for help.”  Judges 6:1-6 (NLT)

     * Throughout  scripture we see the people of God going through these stages – Rebellion – Retribution – Repentance – Restoration

    THREE BIG THINGS WE CAN LEARN FROM GIDEON

    1.  In his CIRCUMSTANCES– Gideon was SHATTERED.

    “Then the angel of the Lord came and sat beneath the great tree at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash of the clan of Abiezer. Gideon son of Joash was threshing wheat at the bottom of a winepress to hide the grain from the Midianites.”  Judges 6:11 (NLT)

    * You don’t have to have all of your life together for God to show up.  He’s not dependent on you at all!

    2.  By his SURPRISE – Gideon was SELECTED.

    “The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, ‘Mighty hero, the Lord is with you!’  ‘Sir,’ Gideon replied, ‘if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? And where are all the miracles our ancestors told us about? Didn’t they say, “The Lord brought us up out of Egypt?” But now the Lord has abandoned us and handed us over to the Midianites.’   Then the Lord turned to him and said, ‘Go with the strength you have, and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!’  ‘But Lord,’ Gideon replied, ‘how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family!’   The Lord said to him, ‘I will be with you. And you will destroy the Midianites as if you were fighting against one man.’”  Judges 6:12-16 (NLT)

    * If, Why, Where, But – The four big words of excuses!

    • Remember:  God sees you not only AS YOU ARE but also as you will ONE DAY BE.

     * Apple Illustration – How many seeds are in this apple?  Lesson – We may be able to count how many seeds are in an apple, but there is no way for us to count how many apples are in each seed! God sees the future potential, not just the present reality!

    3.  For his GROWTH – Gideon was STRETCHED.

    “That night the Lord said to Gideon, ‘Take the second bull from your father’s herd, the one that is seven years old. Pull down your father’s altar to Baal, and cut down the Asherah pole standing beside it. Then build an altar to the Lord your God here on this hilltop sanctuary, laying the stones carefully. Sacrifice the bull as a burnt offering on the altar, using as fuel the wood of the Asherah pole you cut down.’”  Judges 6:25-26 (NLT)

    * We have to be rescued from ourselves first, before we can begin to be used to rescue others.

    Gideon was stretched in these three areas

    • SPIRITUALLY
    • EMOTIONALLY
    • PHYSICALLY

     4.  Through his GOD – Gideon was SUCCESSFUL.

    • Command #1:  Excuse the COWARDS.

    ‘Therefore, tell the people, “Whoever is timid or afraid may leave this mountainand go home.”’ So 22,000 of them went home, leaving only 10,000 who were willing to fight.’  Judges 7:3 (NLT)

    “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”  2 Timothy 1:7 (NKJV)

     * God doesn’t make public heroes of private cowards!

    * Sometimes the Church doesn’t need to get bigger, it needs to get better!

    •  Command #2:  Exclude the Careless.

     “But the Lord told Gideon, ‘There are still too many! Bring them down to the spring, and I will test them to determine who will go with you and who will not.’ When Gideon took his warriors down to the water, the Lord told him, ‘Divide the men into two groups. In one group put all those who cup water in their hands and lap it up with their tongues like dogs. In the other group put all those who kneel down and drink with their mouths in the stream.’ Only 300 of the men drank from their hands. All the others got down on their knees and drank with their mouths in the stream.” Judges 7:4-6 (NLT)

    * One + God = A Majority

    * Note: Worship and cracked pots is all they had – points to the New Testament.

    • Command #3:  Enlist the COMMITTED

    “The Lord told Gideon, ‘With these 300 men I will rescue you and give you victory over the Midianites. Send all the others home.’  Judges 7:7 (NLT)

    “He divided the 300 men into three groups and gave each man a ram’s horn and a clay jar with a torch in it.   Then he said to them, ‘Keep your eyes on me. When I come to the edge of the camp, do just as I do. As soon as I and those with me blow the rams’ horns, blow your horns, too, all around the entire camp, and shout, “For the Lord and for Gideon!”’ It was just after midnight, after the changing of the guard, when Gideon and the 100 men with him reached the edge of the Midianite camp. Suddenly, they blew the rams’ horns and broke their clay jars. Then all three groups blew their horns and broke their jars. They held the blazing torches in their left hands and the horns in their right hands, and they all shouted, ‘A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!’   Each man stood at his position around the camp and watched as all the Midianites rushed around in a panic, shouting as they ran to escape. When the 300 Israelites blew their rams’ horns, the Lord caused the warriors in the camp to fight against each other with their swords. Those who were not killed fled to places as far away as Beth-shittah near Zererah and to the border of Abel-meholah near Tabbath.”  Judges 7:16-22 (NLT)

    If you missed this weeks message, I encourage you to get it here.  While you are there, browse around our new website … we think you will like it and find it to be a great tool in inviting friends to FBC Harvester.

    As always, I hope you make plans soon to join us at FBC Harvester  next weekend! If distance is a problem, you are always welcome to listen to any of the teachings from our worship service from our website. If you have questions, please feel free to contact us here. We would love the privilege of helping where we can.

  • Bible Challenge – Genesis 13

    “So Abram settled in the land of Canaan, and Lot moved his tents to a place near Sodom and settled among the cities of the plain. 13But the people of this area were extremely wicked and constantly sinned against the Lord.” v 12-13 (NLT)

    Have you ever done something that you thought was going to be better than it actually was?  Have you ever put yourself in a situation that where you thought, “that would never happen to me.”  How did it turn out for you?  Lot did the same thing, he picked a place that looked good and seemed to have a lot of promise, but in the end it caused havoc and heartache because of the location and the surrounding influences of the people in the area.

    For Lot, the good pasture and available water seemed like a wise choice at first. But Lot failed to recognize that the wicked Sodom could provide temptations strong enough to destroy his family.  It leaves me with a question for all of us to think about today: Have you/I chosen to live, play, work in ‘Sodom’?

    Now I understand what you are saying to yourself right now, but if someone doesn’t go and share Christ with them, how will they ever hear the message of Christ?  Great question, but notice, Lot didn’t pick the land based on the opportunity to share the Gospel, he picked it based on the opportunity he saw in it for himself. So before you ask that question check your motives as to why you are putting yourself in the environment. Yes, God does command us to reach people in the ‘Sodom’ near us, however, we must be careful not to become like the very people we are trying to reach.  If the only difference between you and them is church attendance, then why would they need Jesus?

    Today, Are you being wise and intentional with where you spend your time? It will have an impact on you in ways you never thought possible!

  • Bible Challenge – 1 Corinthians 14

    “For God is not a God of disorder but of peace, as in all the meetings of God’s holy people.” v. 33 (NLT)

    WOW, what a chapter!!!! From using the gifts of the Holy Spirit, tongues and prophecy, to an order of worship … which includes the instruction for women to remain silent in a church gathering.

    Now, before we go into a great debate as to what is being said and how it applies to us today, we have to understand that Paul is calling the Corinthian Church to unity. There are somethings that are being done that are causing disruption, conflict, and making the Church not as effective as it should be.

    So lets tackle the first one – Speaking in Tongues! I have already confessed that I believe in this gift, but have seen it used in ways that are not described in the Bible.  This has caused me to be cautious when someone begins to speak in tongues around me.  Maybe you are like me, or maybe it’s just something that I deal with and the Holy Spirit is teaching me to grow in this area.  But here, Paul confronts the self-oriented use of the gift of tongues. People were using the gift to satisfy their own needs instead of using the gift as a sign to unbelievers.  The way they were using the gift of tongues was causing unbelievers to look at them like they were crazy people. This is why he says, “If you speak to people in words they don’t understand, how will they know what you are saying? You might as well be talking into empty space.”

    Speaking in Tongues is a Spiritual Gift.  The Bible calls it a Heavenly Language (v.2) but it is to be used wisely. In private, it’s a way that you speak to God through the power of the Holy Spirit.  In public, after speaking in tongues it should be interpreted so others can be encouraged by what is said through the power of the Holy Spirit.

    Second – Women! Again, let me put an emphasis on unity. In the Corinthian culture, women were not allowed to confront men in public. Though women have the same Christian freedoms as men, questioning men in a public worship gathering was causing division in the church.  Because women of that day didn’t receive formal religious education as the men did, it was believed that some of the questions asked in public could have been asked and answered at home without disrupting the service.  Again, Paul’s words were to promote unity, not to teach about women’s roles in the church.

    Today, I want to be a learner! I admit that I am wrestling with these things also.  I have been challenged to understand the Holy Spirit more in the last couple of months than ever before.  I pray you will be also!

    May this be the cry of our hearts.  May the words penetrate deep into our hearts so we can live it, revealing your Spirit in us daily!

     

  • Bible Challenge – 1 Corinthians 4

    “For the Kingdom of God is not just a lot of talk; it is living by God’s power.” v.20 (NLT)

    Ouch! We have all heard the phrase “Talk the talk and walk the walk!” It’s a phrase used to remind us of the importance of putting our words into actions. For many non believers, they look at people who claim they are Christians with words but then contradict those words by their own actions.

    A true Christ-Follower lives by God’s power! Think about that for a moment! Are you living by God’s power? We unleash God’s Power in our life when we spend time in his Word weather by reading, hearing, or participating in the Word. But the Super Natural Power of God flows when we Meditate on His Word, Evaluate our lives according to His Word, and Activate our faith in the Light of His Word! When we do these three things, it brings His Word to life! This allows us to live by His Power in a way others can see Him more clearly.

    Today, lets live by God’s power so others can see that being a Christ Follower is not just a title but a way of life!

  • Bible Challenge – 1 Corinthians 2

    “For I decided that while I was with you I would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified.” v.2

    Wow, what would this look like on a daily basis? What would it look like if we saw people based on what Jesus Christ has done for them instead of what they have done for themselves! How would it change the way we treat people, the conversations we have, and or the things that we do?  I don’t know exactly what it would look like, but I think it would radically change the way we live, how we talk, how we see others, and how we serve!

    Jesus saw everyone in the same way, sinners who needed a savior. Every encounter, regardless of who they were, He addressed sin and then revealed an opportunity to be loved and forgiven by God. He stayed focused on His purpose and didn’t get side-tracked by their situation. In this He was able to offer them what they really needed instead.

    Today, will you focus on Jesus and let everything flow from your relationship with Him.