He who has an ear let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches!
Every church is challenged to be an overcoming church. It is a challenge to persevere, to allow ourselves to dream again, to believe that God wants to do amazing things. He has truly been faithful in the past to us and we will reflect on His goodness today, but what about tomorrow. My desire is to paint a picture of what could be, of what could happen if we truly become more aware of the time God has given us. There are two greek words for time, chronos which literally denotes a space or time or succession of times and ‘kairos’ which is primarily due proportion, a signified or fixed period, an opportunity that presents itself for a specific moment or season. In order for us to be passionate about following Jesus, we need to discover the ‘kairos’ events that He gives us and enter the learning circle. Chronos is linear but kairos is circular.
Most learning in Jesus’ day was based on oral tradition. Literacy rates were low as written material was restricted to the elite. People learned through storytelling and verbal teaching rather than reading texts. Their minds were trained to store information and knowledge with accuracy. When he commanded them to “teach everything I have commanded you,” it was expected that they could repeat it.
The fact of the matter is like it or not we are a visual culture.
I want to begin with Jesus words in Mark 1 because it has a great tie in to the calling on the churches to repent!
14After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. 15"The time has come," he said. "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!"
This morning we are going to focus on what it means that the time is come, how the kingdom of God is near and unpack what it means to repent and believe.
The time has come
The word for time here is kairos. Kairos happens when the circumstances of your life are brought together in the bottleneck of time. Often there is a definite sense of pressure being created to experience something of this significance.
Kairos events can be positive or negative – Think about the birth of your first child, a special vacation, the death of a parent, a sickness, the events of 9-11
Kairos moments can also be recognized by the impact they leave on you. A performance review can produce positive emotions or negative ones depending on the way it goes for you. It is often the negative events and emotions that produce the greatest opportunity for growth in our lives.
Kairos events signal opportunities to grow. A new job opportunity arises and you are forced to move...take the opportunity to start afresh. Heller Kellar said it best, life is a daring adventure or nothing at all. The landswap, the development of a whole new neighbourhood around our church, a new business plaza…all signal great opportunities for growth for Southside.
Note this, that the churches referred to in chapter one and two are located in cities. 'The church is never to remove itself from society. It is never to hide out on a mountaintop, seeking to quarantine itself from the contamination of the world. The churches in Revelation are located in cities, and their influence is compared to a lamp stand, shedding light in the darkness around.
There is a clear pattern that John establishes with every church as he addresses them.
He begins with an awesome address of authority – it has the character of OT prophets who would exclaim, This is what the Lord says” We can easily run past these words and yet miss the power to not take lightly what we hear…John wants to make sure that attention is given. A vision is given of the one who hold the seven stars in his right hand. We agree that we live in a visual culture. Well, John knew that back then and he painted an incredible picture of the glory of Jesus for us.
Observe - I know your deeds – it usually leads to a positive affirmation…it leads to something positive about the congregation, something that God has done through them as they have responded to Him. It is distinctive in that God is actively present and watching what is happening in their church. I know your deeds, I’m watching, I’ve been there. He doesn’t forget the good things that are happening, He celebrates these moments and doesn’t discard them.
Reflect - there is a charge given - I hold this against you and there is definitely a sense of holy fear coming across, but there is no guessing now, they now know exactly where they are at. It would be likened to going to the doctor and waiting to hear his assessment. You certainly want a clean bill of health, but if there is cancer, you want to know. If your blood pressure is high, if your heart is susceptible to an attack, you want to know.
The charge for the church in Ephesus is that there heart isn’t in it, its all duty and He doesn’t just want empty rituals, He wants passion.
Discuss - There is a question – who’s listening: the implication – not everyone is, not everyone agrees. We have the option, we have a free will, he is knocking and so what are we going to do about.
Plan – when you turn around, when you make the 180 degree turn and repent, when you plan, account and act upon your faith, there is assurance, there is hope, there is the tree of life, hidden manna, a white stone with a new name written on it, authority over nations…
Account – Is your lampstand still lit? Is Christ coming against you with His sword?
Act – Listen and overcome
Let me talk to you about the life circle – a new approach to learning, a new lifestyle of learning. It happens in recognizing the opportunities that God presents to us, both good and bad, as opportunities for growth and going through the circle will help us process the events of our lives.
For the most part, we tend to be linear thinkers,
Point A – Point B - a straight line
Salvation – Heaven - a straight line
Wide Road – Narrow Road - a straight line...
But our relationship with God is more dynamic than that.
When we walk down life’s path with purpose in mind and a kairos moment takes place, we have some choices to make-
We can choose to stop, choose to ignore it, choose to go backward or we can determine to enter circular thinking, a redemptive circle.
The process for entering is found in the next part of the verse…. Repent and believe the good news.
Repent - unfortunately not a popular word in sharing the gospel, but a very necessary word before belief can happen.
Repent is the greek word - metanoia – a change of mind that ultimately reveals itself in a change in lifestyle. That change of mind has to go straight to the heart, the heart is in no way removed. We have to feel differently, there has to be a change of heart for us to admit that we need to do a 180 degree turn.
There are three words involved in repentance in making that 180
We need to first observe – Why did I act the way that I did and feel the way that I feel Certain events will trigger and bring certain emotions to the surface so we need to ask questions, questions that are honest – Why am I driven to this habit, or driven to want to fulfill a need in this way, what is really at the root of my issue. This is the only way for real change to take place.
Discuss – we have to share it with someone else if repentance is to really take hold, someone who strong enough to handle confession and face us straight up. That means we have to face our own failings, pain and failure.
James 5:16
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.
Confessing sin to someone else may sound like getting root canal or getting your wisdom teeth pulled but it is necessary for healing, for true life change. As we share our struggles and the ugliness of our ways with others, we open ourselves yes for others to see, but we also open it up for us to see.
A spiritual community consists of people who have the integrity to come clean. It is comprised of those who own their own shortcomings and failures because they hate them more than they hate the shortcomings and failures of others, who discover that a well of pure water flows beneath their most fetid corruption.
Just because we go through a kairos moment does not mean that we have learned something, if we just stop at repentance we only invite the experience to return
Repentance is just the first half of the circle.
We have to move to the second half of the circle and that takes us to believe. Pistis - greek
Now faith, Hebrew says is the substance of things believed. Faith is action
Just as there are three elements to repentance, there are three for belief or faith.
The first is to plan, a plan to lead to inner change.
In order to make our plan succeed, we need at least one person to hold us accountable. Sharing our inner feeling with someone else may seem awkward and hard, but it is so necessary if we are to grow. We can’t skip accountability and expect to really take strides in our faith.
To say that your faith is personal is really a self contradiction because faith in order to be real faith, has to be acted out. If you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord – sounds like going public to me
Let’s look at examples of the circle in each of the churches:
Ephesus
In Ephesus, they forgot to do what should ultimately sustain them. They forgot their first love, they were serving God on empty and God could see burnout coming. He could see that they were losing the fire. It is passion that drives us! The people in Ephesus had so dissected their lives in to all very good assignments, but they had cut the very heart out of why they did what they did.
Smyrna
The Bible does give us answers on the"why" of suffering, but in the long run we make attempts and there is a sense that it feels incomplete. We ultimately have to submit to God because we cannot see as He sees. God's final answer to Job was, in effect, "You must be satisfied with my love and authority because in your finiteness any explanation I give you will not satisfy you."
In reality persecution will touch you, but it can’t touch you. As hard as it is to accept the fact that in reality we will go through painful circumstances, it can’t touch your relationship with God…and what is in store for those who suffer, the crown of life. He has the victor’s wreath in mind that was awarded to those who won great competitions.
You are rich. You have no idea how much you are worth and nothing that they say or do changes the way I see you. Your reputation is safe with me, I see things as they really are.
Pergamum
They stood strong in the face of these external challenges to their faith, but inwardly truth was under decay as false teaching had crept in and had started to pollute their minds.
I know where you live. God knows where you live. He knows everything about you. He knows how you have been treated, right or wrong. He has felt your pain, your joy. He knows your disappointment, your failure, your success. He has been with you in the storm and in the calm. He loves you and if you know Him as Abba Father, you are His child
Be strong and courageous.
Thyatira
This church would be quite impressive today. They were not satisfied with yesterday’s success. This was a place where there was probably a lot going on, a lot of good stuff, ministry was booming, people were giving of themselves freely, new people were coming, needs were being met, new ministry teams were springing up. There was a steady incline in the number of people attending…but there was a problem, there was sin in the camp and it wasn’t being dealt with.
And herein lies the life lesson for us. A church can be crowded, there can be a buzz in the air and ministry happening right, left and center and yet not becoming what God intended…. a people called out for His name.
Sardis
A dangerous disease had afflicted this church, they were lulled to sleep. They started strong and had vibrancy, it was a place that other churches went to visit because there was spiritual life. They also didn’t face much in the way of trying circumstances and they began to coast. They began to rest on their laurels, their past accomplishments.
They started to be content with the status quo and really didn’t expect much more.
The call - 'Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.'"
Ephesians 5:14
Ephesians 5:14
Philadelphia
They’re a church with “little strength…”. Perhaps it was a particularly small group of people, or maybe they were of generally lower class in Roman terms.
Either way, it seems the church was undergoing some sort of persecution or opposition, apparently from Jews who had rejected Christ. These Jews had probably prevented this Christian church from worshipping in the Jewish synagogue. This is why the letter states: “Yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name…”
We don’t know the extent of this opposition, but there was obviously pressure on them to deny Jesus. And maybe worse…But in the midst of this opposition, Jesus says to them – I know your deeds. I have seen what you have done and what you have been through.
I am providing you with an open door. It doesn’t tell us what the open door is, but the implication of these two uses of “door” imagery is this: Once we have walked through this first door (the door of salvation), we are called to walk through the second door (the door of service and evangelism) as well.
Laodicea
This is a love letter with a strong call to being committed to this relationship. We observe how we become wretched in love and how Christ, our counselor calls us to open up our heart to him. It is hard to admit you need counseling, for most people it is a sign of weakness, an inability to get your life together. Jesus patiently waits for us to receive his counsel and he begins the kairos moment calling us to realize we are masters of self deception. Thankfully, He doesn’t leave us there, as he presents us a plan to keep our spiritual edge, our oneness and a passionate awareness. He then shows us how to account for His presence and act on it in a very real and tangible way.
· Nobody likes being called out on the carpet, nobody likes rebuke, it is not pleasant to be seen for what you really are without Jesus – wretched, poor, blind…remember we are not talking about non-Christians here, we are talking about believers, people who have crossed the line of faith.
A bona fide believer has got to come to the place where he is left bare and completely undone before he is of any use to Jesus.
The correct response is to repent and believe! Why, because the kingdom of God is near, this is not just a space / time element. It is the reality of faith as we recognize the times we are living in.
So, how do you take up your cross and follow Him and become a fully devoted follower. Enter the process of change and embrace the fruit of the Spirit that He wants to grow in your life and do it with someone else, even better, do it in community, in a group with other believers in Jesus intent on doing the same. When it gets hard and there is inner pressure and you want to get out, don’t turn back, make the decision, I have decided to follow Jesus. The rewards are great for those who persevere like the man who found the pearl of great price and in turn sold everything to have it.
A letter to the church at Southside
As you read this letter, I want you to know that it comes with a great deal of prayer. Since the beginning of this year, Sharon and I have sensed that this would be a significant one for us. During the last few months God has really confirmed His leading through others, through journaling, through those who have spoke prophetically in our lives. This does not come easy or lightly.
June 27th 2010
To the elders and my church family at Southside,
Over the past three years I have been heavily pursued by a ministry in London, ON but never felt the desire or leading to go there despite being asked repeatedly. One day while reading the job description online for the ministry in London, I happened to come across another opportunity. It caught my attention because I really felt that the position and the things they were looking for in a pastor described me completely.
At that point I committed the process to God, asking Him to shut or open the door to this potential ministry I was considering. We asked God to give us a real sense of His peace and we have had no doubts whatsoever that the Lord is starting a new chapter in our lives. While it is incredibly difficult to leave we are excited for what the Lord has in store for us. This has come with much prayer, discernment and is a very bittersweet moment for me. I love you, Southside, and we will continue to pray for God’s leading in the ministry here. God already knows the person who is coming
Thank you for believing in me for the past 9 years and for giving me the opportunity to transition into this role.
I have accepted the position of Lead Pastor at Grace Community Church in Marden, Ontario effective August 30th 2010. In doing so, I tender my resignation as the Lead Pastor of Southside Community Church effective August 29th 2010.
Love In Jesus,
Isaiah 50:10 Praying that He will reveal His way as He lights your path.
Pastor Jack
The Takeaway
He who has an ear let him hear what the Spirit says to the church
Questions For Discussion
1. What is the significance of the expression, ‘they left their first love’?
2. What does Revelation 2:8-11 teach us regarding the nature of God
3. Why is Christ revealed as the one who has the sharp sword with two edges?
4. Are we willing to see what the Laodicean church saw? The ability to take responsibility for our sin, taking a stand, counting the cost and following through.
5. What does it mean to you to be an overcomer?
