Guest Blogger: Pastor Clay

As we neared the very end of this year’s 21-day fast, I continued to pray and seek God for new revelation inside of His Word, and a thought came to my mind and a certain passage of scripture along with it.

All my life growing up in church (mostly charismatic and Pentecostal type churches) I heard a particular phrase quite often. I heard this phrase said by many preachers, evangelists, teachers, and I, Clayton Baird, have even said it before.

The phrase goes like this:

“WHEN YOU ENCOUNTER JESUS CHRIST, YOU CAN NEVER WALK AWAY THE SAME.”

All my life, thus far, I believed this phrase to be true; but I have recently come to the conclusion that I don’t believe the statement in its entirety. Do I believe Jesus Christ can change a man or woman in an instant? Yes. Do I believe there is power in our Lord that is able to completely bring healing, resolve, restoration, peace, and hope to a circumstance right there on the spot? Absolutely! But I also believe to experience true transformation and change it takes more than simply “being” in the presence of Jesus.

Now before you throw stones and call me a heretic (haha)… follow me on this point.

I want to turn on attention to Matthew 19:16-26 (NIV):

The Rich Young Man

16Now a man came up to Jesus and asked, "Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?"

17"Why do you ask me about what is good?" Jesus replied. "There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, obey the commandments."

18"Which ones?" the man inquired.

Jesus replied, " 'Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony,19honor your father and mother,' and 'love your neighbor as yourself.'"

20"All these I have kept," the young man said. "What do I still lack?"

21Jesus answered, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."

22When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.

23Then Jesus said to his disciples, "I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."

25When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, "Who then can be saved?"

26Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

Here in Matthew 19 we find the story of a man who encounters Jesus Christ… the same one that healed the blind man, the paralyzed man at the pool of Bethesda, the woman with the issue of blood, and the Centurion’s servant. But the rich young man’s story ended a little differently.

He doesn’t walk away healed, restored, or uplifted. The Bible says he walks away sad, disheartened, and downcast. He came to Jesus asking about salvation, and yet, he left without salvation. He left exactly the same way as when he came.

The difference with the rich young man’s story is simply… FAITH. If he would have believed, fully, in the One he was encountering and had faith that life following Jesus would have been more fulfilling than what he currently had, then I am sure he would have sold all his possessions and followed the Lord. But because of his lack of faith and belief, he was not changed or transformed in his encounter with God.

Fasting is extremely powerful and it certainly gets the attention of our God in heaven, but if we forget to couple our fasting with some extreme FAITH that Jesus can and will bring healing, restoration, and hope to our situations… then, I believe, it is possible to encounter Jesus and walk away the same. But through FAITH, transformation takes place. Jesus is certainly “willing” to do what we ask of Him (Matthew 8:1-4), but is out FAITH at a level that Jesus CAN DO what we are asking of Him?

What the rich young man didn’t know was the promise that was extended to him and anyone else like him in Mark 10:29 when Jesus said:

"I tell you the truth," Jesus replied, "no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel 30will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life.

I believe our encounter with Jesus Christ during this fast must be coupled with extreme faith, that Jesus is who He says He is, and that He is more than enough for what I am going through and what I need in my life.

Twelve disciples were offered the same deal as the rich young man, and they all said, “YES.” And from then on, their life with Christ was the most fulfilling thing they could have ever dreamed of. But one man (the rich young man) missed the opportunity, and walked away the same, because he did not have faith.

Don’t miss your opportunity to never be the same again… it comes when we encounter Jesus and have great FAITH!

Hebrews 11:6

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

Blessings,

Clayton Baird

Jesus: Originator, Definer, and Sustainer

“For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” – Colossians 1:16-17

In the above passage, the Apostle Paul wants us to know Jesus as the Creator. Three points here – Originator, Sustainer, One who is the Definer – Look at verse 16 – read – made by Him – there He is the originator - “and for Him” – There He is the definer. Read verse 17 – There He is Sustainer.

Originator, Definer, Sustainer

Originator – Paul is dissatisfied to say Jesus is the originator of all. He must elaborate – things in heaven and earth. Here’s why. Gnostics were happy to think of God as making everything in heaven because heaven was good and clean but earth was bad. And they wanted to release God from having any contact with stuff. Paul says No. Jesus is the creator of Heaven and Earth. Gnostics loved invisible, but not the concrete and visible. He says No, He has created invisible and visible. Then thrones and powers and rulers and authorities.

Gnostics looked at Jesus as a lesser emanation of God like an angel or throne. What he is saying is this. Everything you think Jesus is just made by, God, He is actually the One who made everything! He is not the object of creation. He is the Originator, the Definer, and Sustainer of it all.

Now let’s put it all together. When he says sustainer as holding it and then definer, meaning its purpose – How do we apply this?

Illustration/Application: I have a watch. It is a good watch – it was a gift to me but it’s only good if I use it for the purpose in which it was defined. If I try to use this as a golf tee – it won’t work very well. Two things will happen. My golf game will suffer and the watch will be destroyed. Do you know why many of us as Christians are in such agony? We live for ourselves – instead of the purpose for which we were designed. Do you know why all of us are in agony in some way, shape or form? You were designed for a purpose and the purpose was not you. And when you live for yourself, the irony is that life gets worse. No matter how successful, exuberantly thrilling for a moment of hype, I promise you it will get worse. You were originated, you were sustained, and you are purposed for one being, the living God. Your body, health, time, Mount Everest, the Serengeti, the Arctic, a paramedic, hormones, Helium, t-cells – all for Him. Now He gives you an incredible command – not just a privilege – an incredible command in 1 Timothy 6:17. The living God gives us richly all things to enjoy. You are not just allowed to enjoy material stuff, you are commanded to, but in this way. You’re commanded to enjoy life like a child invited to another child’s birthday party. All of the gifts that are given to him, you get to play with. But they aren’t yours. They are his – you touch all things for the One for whom all has been made. It changes everything. You go from being a golf tee to being what you were designed to be.

He is supreme!

pcraig

Guest Blogger: Looking to Him and Finished Strong

As we approached the final stretch of the fast, I could not help but think of the story of ancient Olympic marathon runners…

The original story behind the modern day Olympics comes from the ancient battle between the Greeks and the Persians. The battle took place at a Greek city called Marathon. The Greeks who were easily out numbered, won a seemingly impossible victory. From there, one solider ran from the battlefield to the city of Athens, approximately 26 miles, to announce the good news. Upon entering the city it is written that he uttered the words, “Rejoice! We conquer!” After uttering these words of victory the messenger collapsed of exhaustion and died. Out of this the marathon contest was birthed.

During the ancient Olympic games, competitors were granted the assistance of one person who could help them at their most desperate time of need. Each competitor was allowed to select a person and position them at the finish line of the race. As the runners turned the final corner and saw the finish line in site, their loved one was standing there waving them on. Imagine running a grueling race and looking to see your loved one cheering you on towards victory.

The race of life can be very tough sometimes even for those walking in Christ. In face, the Greek word for race is “agona” where we get the English word for “agony”. Many times the circumstances of life seem too much. Death, illness, stress, and a host of other problems often cause us to take our gaze off of Jesus, but Paul encourages us strongly in Hebrews 12:1-3,

Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Here on the final stretch of the fast look to Him. As you turn the corner of this seemingly eternal three weeks, look to Him who stands at the finish line urging you on. The things you have been praying and believing for during this fast are found only in him, so look to Him. Maybe your problems are much greater than simply enduring in the fast. Look to Him, cast aside your doubt and fear and fix your eyes on Jesus. With our eyes fixed firmly on Him, we will run this race and not grow weary.

Pastor Jeremy DeBord

Last Night's Slides...

As promised, the slides from last night's VISION 2010:

Going to be Sick!

We have an awesome series starting next Thursday here at theTURN - February is going to be great! It will be a teaching series that I will spend lots of time re-examining our foundations in the faith. If you want to grow, you better get yourself here - that is all I am saying!

“Essential Ingredients: the ABC’s of Christian Living” – college and 20-somethings

Consider this: the few simple exercises done in elementary school are the foundation that all future learning—and all future success—is built on. The same is true of your Christian life. If your spiritual building blocks are firmly in place, you have a strong foundation to support your future growth and withstand even the worst of life’s pressures. Join theTURN all month long as we anchor our lives to God’s essential ingredients!

You don't want to miss a single night! Stay consistent and receive all that God has for you!

pcraig

Will You Be a Part?

You do not want to miss this Friday night here at theTURN! I can promise you that.

We invite you to join us this Friday, Jan 29th starting at 10pm for a night of prayer. We will gather at theTURN and pray from 10pm Friday night til 6am Saturday morning. Join us as we pray over our friends, ourselves, our community, and our world.

We have some very creative and interactive means of prayer that we will employ throughout the night. I can assure you that you have not attended a prayer meeting quite like this before! We will have corporate prayer, individual prayer, and even prayer stations for you take solitary moments to reflect on different areas of your life.

Bring your bible, a pen, and maybe even a blanket or towel if you so desire to use to kneel.

Some Scriptures to start mulling over:

2 Chronicles 7:14 NIV

“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”

Romans 8:26 NIV

“In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NIV

“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.”

James 5:16 NIV

“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”

See you Thursday & Friday night!

pcraig

Guest Blogger: Do You YEARN for God?

During this fast I have been listening to a song every morning that is simultaneously crushing yet encouraging my heart….sounds like a spiritual paradox doesn’t it?

It’s the song “Yearn” by Shane & Shane. If you haven’t heard it before, I’d like to encourage you to listen to it before the end of the fast.

It’s a simple prayer that merely says, “Lord I want to yearn for you. I want to burn with passion over you....and only you...Lord I want to yearn”.

Sure, we’ll joyfully enter into a time of passionate worship and prayer on a Sunday morning when the worship team is singing the right song, and even on a Wednesday night. Or how about on the days when the Sun rises precisely when we’d like it to and we wake up on the “right side of the bed”? It’s slightly easier to enter into a moment of selfless worship unto our God when the moments and situations are right, isn’t it? But what about the days when it seems as though our stomachs are screaming at us because of the fast; maybe you’re somewhat discouraged because you’re not having the experience you’d hoped for during this fast; or maybe nothing is necessarily wrong, we’re merely not in the mood to worship...

My very simple question to you is this: “Do you YEARN for the living God?

The initial and immediate answer to that simplistic question is, “Of course I do!”

But do we truly YEARN for our God?...

During this fast I’ve been paying a lot of attention to the Psalms, and as I do I attempt to think as David thought. “As a deer pant and thirsts for streams of water, so my soul longs for you O God. My soul thirsts for God. The living God. When can I go and meet with God? (Psalms 42:1-2)”

I don’t question for a moment that we all love to enter into the presence of God with passionate worship…..but do we yearn for Him? Are we ok with not taking time out of our day to sit down with the living God? Are we truly ok with waiting until a Sunday morning or Wednesday night to step into His presence? I’m not talking about the moments when you’re day has lacked any and all enjoyable moments and you hear that perfect song that just warms your heart as you lift up your hands in worship and thank God!

…Do we YEARN for God?”

One thing I’ve come to realize during the fast is this: A true yearning for God knows no past, or present circumstance. That’s not implying that those circumstances are non-existent, it merely implies that no circumstance will have a hindrance on the praise I give my God. The increase/decrease of the intensity or severity of our circumstances should have no affect to the intensity of our worship unto God.

I believe a wonderful example of that type of yearning and worship is displayed in Job 1:20-21:

At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised

Do we yearn for God?

My prayer not only for myself, but for you as well, is that we would develop a craving for God beyond what we thought was possible; that our hearts would ache until we have encountered God....that in the midst of difficult times – whether big or small - our yearning for Almighty God would stir up a zeal and passion that would cause us to cry out in utter worship at all times – regardless of our circumstances.

God give us a yearning for you. Burn within us a passion that can never be subsided. God, that we would not become complacent or content in our relationship with you, but that ever day we would seek to chase after you with more passion and zeal than the day before. Let our yearning for you overflow out of our hearts and into the lives of others.

Pastor Blake Hamon