Sermon Cloud

Larry: Well, it’s November, and before long we’ll be up to our eye-balls with Christmas. In fact, planning is already well underway for our annual Operation Christmas Compassion. Next Sunday this all gets started with our Christmas Compassion Offering. And we will give. We will give so that others will know the kindness of God. We will give so that others might experience the blessing of Christmas. And we will give, because we believe that this time of year is more about giving than receiving. In fact, for the last five years God has moved ordinary people like us to open our hearts to not only give of our income, but to bring cans and bake cookies, to pack boxes and to just spread the kindness of God to people who could use a little encouragement and hope this time of year. And I really believe this could be a year of extraordinary blessing – not only for our community, but also for us.

Yet, as I was thinking and praying and planning for this Sunday, it struck me that as great as it is to spread the kindness of God through something as cool as Christmas Compassion; as great as it will be for many of us who get to deliver boxes of blessing to our neighbors; as great as it will be to bring a smile to some kids faces and bring a family hope… I found myself strangely conflicted over this project. And the reason I felt conflicted, is that I don’t want people to think that we only care about them at Christmas. I don’t want anyone to feel like a project, like I’m better than them. No, in my heart I want everyone who receives a plate of cookies or a box of blessing is to truly feel like God loves them! And the more I thought about that, the more I realized that God feels the same way. And the more I thought about that, the more I realized you probably felt that way as well. So I dug into God’s Word this week and was reminded that although we all might participate in this thing called Operation Christmas Compassion and although we all might get on board with a spirit of kindness this time of year… the kindness of God, flowing through our lives this time of year, is something God wants to see flow out of our lives everyday of the year – to every person we meet. You see, it’s His kindness that changed us. It’s His kindness that makes us like Him and it’s His kindness that He wants our world to experience. So today, we’ve created this service to remind us of how God’s kindness is central to God’s plan for changing the world. God has a subversive agenda for changing our world, a plan to turn our world upside down with His kindness through the likes of you and me. So as we prepare our hearts for more than just a season of blessing, let me just read for us from Ephesians 4:32, to remind us where God’s plan for changing the world with kindness begins: Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving one another just as God in Christ forgave you.

1. A Conspiracy of Kindness begins as a dream And God’s dream is to change the world through changed lives: Lives that have been transformed by His kindness. If you look at the context in where God gave us this teaching, we see that this quality of kindness one of the key qualities that God wants to create in our hearts as we become like Jesus. Kindness a fruit of the Spirit of Christ in us – his new nature. Listen to how he leads up to this through this chapter: Beginning in verse 17 he says, “Live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused. Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him. They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity. But that isn’t what you learned about Christ. Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, …throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God – truly righteous and holy.” Ephesians 4:17-24

Then he goes through an entire list of ways we live apart from God: Ways we hurt one another and break relationships: By Telling lies, letting anger control you and your relationships, stealing, using foul and abusive language, being controlled by bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words and slander. God wants us to discard the hurtful habits of the past in the way we treat each other and start treating each other with the kindness and compassion of Christ. God’s dream is that through faith in Jesus Christ, and through the power of the Spirit He gives us, is that we will change our ways from hurtful ways to gracious ways. His dream is that Jesus will change us, because we cannot change our world without Him.

This morning, I want to let you in on how God’s dream is working. We have a ministry called “Changing Ways.” For the last few years this ministry has been led by Gary and Sheryl Wallace. And on most Friday nights you’ll find them working with people who are ready to let the Spirit of God change them to live God’s ways. I’ve asked Gary to come and share just a little of how God’s dream has been working to change lives.

Gary can you share with us how God has been changing some of the lives he has brought to us through this ministry? Gary, “God has been doing some great things!”

“One person has been clean from prescription drugs for several weeks now.”

“Another has lost over 8 pounds since begining to take some of the Spiritual principles to heart.”

“Still another, formerly homeless from a chaotic home life and a bi-polar condition is now stable and living in her own apartment. She has also re-established relationships with her many children after being separated for several years.”

“One’s leg was beginning to heal thanks to the prayers of the community and it’s now almost completely healed.”

“One mother says, ‘I first came, just to support my daughter. Now I wouldn’t miss Friday night for myself for anything.”

“One person was led to Christ through one of Pastor Larry’s messages and a subsequent meeting with him. Encouraged by Larry to attend Changing Ways, she came finding a feeling of acceptance and encouragement.”

“Invited to WCC by a member working at the YMCA, one person finally got the nerve to call the church office and was directed to call Sheryl where they were invited to attend our Friday meeting, and then showed up for the meeting.”

“One person is now graduating and going home to her family down south. Having found Christ, left the drugs, alcohol and broken relationships of the past, her life has been stabilized. Through establishing consistent Boundaries with her daughter, she was able to see her leave the streets and become an assistant manager at a local fast food restaurant. She’s also overcome a number of physical ailments, obtained a GED, got a good job and has been promoted several times.”

“Although God is good in helping so many people, the work is hard, and not everyone always makes it. We could really use prayer for these people and especially for a family with three little boys who have no left us to go live in another town. We really need God to look out for those boys and hope that they find a good church home.”

Thanks Gary, let’s pray for these boys and this ministry. Would you pray with me?

Adam: 2. A Conspiracy of Kindness Requires a Step of Faith

When it comes to kindness and compassion often the largest roadblock is our faith. We take one look at the problem, and we look at our resources and we don’t have the faith to see our resources as useable, let alone able to have an impact. In case you haven’t realized the extent of the problem take a look at these facts.

- Nearly 3 billion people in the world live on less that 2 dollars a day. That’s $730 a year.

- The average household in the 97321 area code makes about $68,000 a year.

- About 1.8 billion people in the world live without access to clean drinking water.

- About 1 billion people entered the 21st century without the ability to read a book or write their name.

Stunning isn’t it? The needs feel so immensely overwhelming. Almost to the point where its paralyzing.

There is a story in the gospels that reminds me of this same exact feeling. Turn to John chapter 6.

After this, Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee. A huge crowd followed him, attracted by the miracles they had seen him do among the sick. When he got to the other side, he climbed a hill and sat down, surrounded by his disciples. It was nearly time for the Feast of Passover, kept annually by the Jews. When Jesus looked out and saw that a large crowd had arrived, he said to Philip, "Where can we buy bread to feed these people?" He said this to stretch Philip's faith. He already knew what he was going to do. Philip answered, "Two hundred silver pieces wouldn't be enough to buy bread for each person to get a piece." One of the disciples—it was Andrew, brother to Simon Peter—said, "There's a little boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But that's a drop in the bucket for a crowd like this." Jesus said, "Make the people sit down." There was a nice carpet of green grass in this place. They sat down, about five thousand of them. Then Jesus took the bread and, having given thanks, gave it to those who were seated. He did the same with the fish. All ate as much as they wanted. When the people had eaten their fill, he said to his disciples, "Gather the leftovers so nothing is wasted." They went to work and filled twelve large baskets with leftovers from the five barley loaves.

Jesus said this to stretch Phillips faith. Often we see the need and it’s so great. Then we look at our resources and we are overwhelmed to the point of being paralyzed and we never use what God has given us. Imagine if the little boy had not offered his 5 loaves and 2 fish to Jesus… This is what God asks of us. He knows we don’t have the resources to meet all the need, but he does and he wants us to have the faith to trust him with our 5 loaves and 2 fish. So I ask this question, what could your loaves and fishes do?

Larry: God’s conspiracy to change the world is not just about expressing kindness through little steps of faith so that life might be a little more tolerable. Ultimately, God’s conspiracy to change the world is to show them what God is really like. It’s to show them that they no longer have to live in a world of broken relationships. To show them God’s kindness because we’ve experienced it ourselves. And what we will show them is this:

3. A Conspiracy of Kindness flows out of Forgiveness

That is why when Paul gives his command in Ephesians 4:32 to be kind and compassionate, he doesn’t just leave it at that. He tells us where the true source of our kindness comes from – it comes from our own experience of forgiveness from God. It was God in Christ that made it possible for you to be forgiven. It was God in Christ, that took away all your sin, all your guilt, all your shame. His forgiveness made you a friend of God, a child of God – and now nothing separates you from His love. And this is what our world needs most: the restoring of broken hearts, the healing of ruined relationships.

You see most of our world wants justice or revenge when we are wronged in a relationship. We want to get even or make them pay. And what happens is that people just hurt each other all the more. We let slander fly, we put up barriers, we hold onto anger and we make others pay by not forgiving them, not accepting them, not extending an olive branch of peace. But that is not the way of God in Christ.

If you have come this morning and have experienced the forgiveness God has provided through the death of His Son on the cross, you now possess the ability to break the cycle of the hatred that breaks relationships. You have that ability in the center of your heart, because you have Christ’s heart, and in the center of his heart is forgiveness. This is why we must never forget the cross. That is why we must continually come to celebrate the Lord’s Table. Because when we do we remember what Jesus went through for us. We remember that He gave His body to be beaten and broken; we remember that He willingly chose to lay down His life for us; we remember that He shed His blood so our sins could be taken away; and we remember that He did all this so we could be made friends with God. As Paul reminds us in Romans 2:4 by saying, “Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to lead you to repentance? His kindness was meant to turn you to a new way of life – to be like Him and start changing the world just like His kindness changed you!

If you have experienced this change through the forgiveness of sin by the blood shed by Jesus Christ, we invite you now to remember the kindness of God to you by coming and taking these symbols of God’s kindness – the broken bread, representing the sinless body of Jesus, and the cup, representing the blood poured out for you for the forgiveness of sin.

Before you come today I believe God would have each of us reflect upon the health of the relationships he has given you to enjoy. Is the kindness of Christ at the center of your relationships? Is their any bitterness or hatred or anger that is keeping you from experiencing harmony in your relationships? Do you need to forgive someone who has hurt you? Do you need to seek forgiveness? Be kind and compassionate to each other, forgiving one another just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

And secondly, as you come to the table today we have placed offering plates at each table. Many of you have prepared to give an offering today. Others have not. But as you come to the table, we ask that you would also give your offering at the table. And as you do, take a moment to please reflect on what it cost Jesus to provide your forgiveness. So now, let us remember the kindness and mercy of God. Let us pray.