November 12 Unleash the Commitment (Acts 11:19-30)
4 min Song 1
4 min Intro to Commitment Sunday
Well, today is Commitment Sunday! I can hardly believe it’s here. Today is going to be a life-changing day in the life of our church, I thrilled that you’re here to be a part of it. If you are a guest today, you picked a great day to come because you are getting ready to witness a move of God in the lives of our people. It’s going to be powerful and historic, and we’re glad that you’re here.
We’re a church committed to become more like Jesus, because we desire to be and show the love of Jesus to the overwhelmed, under-resourced, and far away in this community and around the world. We’ve been praying that God would take our Surrender to the next level, our Faith to the next level, and our Generosity to the next level….and I believe God has done that in our lives, and I believe we’ll see the result of that this morning.
So everyone do me a favor, and grab the Unleashed commitment card that was on your chair when you came in. Put that card in your hand and hold it. If you’re here with your spouse, you may want to grab the same card and hold it together. I want us to PRAY over what God is going to do here today because this is the biggest thing God has done in our church and very possibly the biggest thing we’ve ever done in our generosity, as we partner with God in Unleashing the Gospel & pushing back the darkness.
(Prayer…passionate, bold prayer over the commitment card)
1 min Welcome/Fellowship (heads up about early offering)
4 min Song 2
2 min Offering
4 minutes Children/student Video as bumper
22 minutes Message
Wow! I love watching God work in the lives of our children and students! He is Unleashing His power and potential in each one of them, and this shows us that Unleashed has been about ALL of us, every age, everyone going on this journey with God and choosing to be Unleashed for His glory. I love it!!!
Someone asked why were spending all this time and energy on Unleashed. The why is everything. There are two huge reasons why we are in this generosity initiative. The first reason why is because As believers, we have the responsibility and privilege to join God in pushing back the darkness.
We saw in Acts 1 that Jesus commanded us, you and me, to take the light of the gospel into the four corners of the world. That’s not an option for you, for me, for any believer, for any church.
Let’s talk about the responsibility. We sometimes forget the what Jesus has done for us and what He expects of us. He created us, right? Why did God create us? To worship Him. To love Him. To obey Him. To bring Him glory and pleasure. Before the Fall, that was pure and untainted. Since the Fall, we have struggled to worship Him with a whole heart. We were created to worship, but sadly, we worship ourselves, our family, our money, our possessions, our comfort. Our security. Unleashed is an opportunity to reorient our worship to our Creator, not created things.
He created us, yes, AND He redeemed us, right? “I was sinking deep in sin, far from the peaceful shore. Very deeply stained within, Sinking to rise no more; But the Master of the sea Heard my despairing cry, From the waters lifted me, Now safe am I.”
1 Peter 2:9 says, we “proclaim the praises of the One who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”
That touches on the privilege part of our calling. We have the privilege of carrying the gospel light into our community and into the darkest places on the globe and get a front row seat to watch God do amazing things as a result of our participation in the gospel, particularly with our generosity.
Lot of darkness in our world. In the Bible darkness is a metaphor to describe ignorance and lostness and separation from the Light. Lost in darkness: (build) 5.3 Billion people worldwide 260 Million in the U.S. 5-7,000 churches closing each year in U.S.
Read a few prayer requests…
I said at the beginning that there were two big reasons for Unleashed. The first one is the most important: As believers, we have the responsibility and privilege to join God in pushing back the darkness. This is why we are on this earth; why we are a church.
But the second reason we are in this generosity initiative is that Unleashed is an incredible opportunity for us to grow in our walk with Jesus and increase our joy and fulfillment. (leave up) Repeat.
All through the Bible, when people are generous with God, not only was His pleasure increased, but so was theirs.
Turn to Acts 11:19-30 page 50. We’ve been studying the very 1st church and how it was they turned the world upside down.
And this morning we finish our study by looking at the 2nd church & their incredible commitment. This very 1st church was 100% engaged, and so was this one. That’s been our primary goal from the beginning of Unleashed: that each of us, that all of us would go on a prayer journey to take our surrender and faith and generosity to a whole new level.
So let’s read Acts 11:19-30 (on screen) (with comments)
v.19 ch.8 Stephen had preached, got stoned to death
v.20 Hellenists (gentiles)
v.22 Antioch ( between v.22 & 23 put a map showing location of Antioch/Jerusalem)
v.26 So prominent and powerful was their witness that they were called Christians; 1st time in history.
v.27 down; not in longitude, north or south, but in elevation; Jerusalem on the top of a range of high hills/mtns
v.29 Judea—must have been hardest hit, though ALL of them were suffering
From our reading, we can see that The Antioch church was known for three things: (build)
Sending The 1st church sent Barnabas and other believers to Antioch to share the gospel; to push back the darkness. A big part of Unleashed is about us sending and supporting people from our church to places like Seattle and Portland and the 4 corners of the church. Sending is what a healthy church does.
I’m excited to announce that our first Unleashed sending is going to be Ben and Emily Casey. (pic) Emily has been our children’s minister for ? years and God has called them to Seattle to come alongside one of our partners up there. I’m excited and I’m sad. But they are the 1st fruits of Unleashed. I believe more of us will be called and sent to the 4 corners of this globe.
Contagion This Antioch church was also known for its contagion. If you’re contagious, you infect others with what you have. If you have Jesus, you should be contagious and be sharing Him with those where you live, work and play. Do you have a list of people far from God that you pray for and look for opportunities to witness to? There is no greater joy than to see someone you’ve prayed for and witnessed to come to Jesus.
Generosity Even though they were suffering in the famine as well, they were prompted to be generous with others for the sake of the gospel. I have heard so many stories the past few weeks from many of you how God has prompted you to be generous for the sake of the gospel. We heard some of those stories a few minutes ago. People I’ve talked to are so excited to take their surrender and faith and generosity to a new level. About this kind of generosity, Paul wrote: “During a severe testing by affliction, their abundance of joy and their deep poverty overflowed into the wealth of their generosity. 3 I testify that, on their own, according to their ability and beyond their ability, 4 they begged us insistently for the privilege of sharing” 2 Corinthians 8:2-3
Leave that passage up there. The phrase that sticks out to you? You know what sticks out to me? Their abundance of Joy. Generous people are joyous people. And this is the 2nd big reason we are involved in Unleashed. Why Unleashed? (build)
As believers, we have the responsibility and privilege to join God in pushing back the darkness.
As believers, we have an incredible opportunity to grow in our walk with Jesus and increase our joy and fulfillment. I want that for me. I want that for you. The commitment of the church in Antioch was so strong that Antioch, not Jerusalem, Antioch became the most powerful church in the 1st century. To this day it is known for its sending, its contagion, and its generosity. Here’s my last question to you: What do you want Rush Creek to be known for?
- Hundreds of more kids will go to camp and the trajectory of their lives changed forever
- Hundreds of more people will go on mission trips & their lives changed forever
- Families will move and serve Kingdom around the world
- Thousands of people will be impacted by our Compassion efforts
- Thousands of people will come to a church revived or a church planted
- Thousands of people will hear the gospel when we translate the N.T. into their language
- Thousands of people in Moldova/Mexico/El Salvador will get food, medicine, love/care and hear the gospel for the very first time
- A city of “Nones” Portland, will become a city of Christ followers
- Hundreds/Thousands of our “Ones” will continue to be our focus and we will see Christ reach them, celebrate in their baptism, and tell the story for generations to come
5 Minutes Set up ACN video This is bigger than you. Bigger than me. What we do here today will determine what we are known for for generations. (Advance Commitment Night video)
5 Minutes Explain card & set up prayer/reflection
So, like at ACN, in a few moments ALL of us are going to get participate and celebrate in this incredible opportunity. If you’ve already turned one in, still take one and walk through this with us. Remember: The first goal of Unleashed? 100% engagement
Pull out Commitment Card (pic of commitment card)
First and foremost; Prayer. Prayer Vigil yesterday; this journey began w/ asking what? “God what is your role for me in Unleashed?”
Some of you came here today knowing exactly your number. But God may still have another number He’s talking to you about right now. Is the number you are thinking about one that when you get to heaven, God says to you, “Now THAT was a great step of faith!”
Some came today w/ “no intention” of committing or just haven’t spent much time thinking or praying up to this point. Asking you to pray NOW, “God, how can I participate……what would you want me to do?”
Remember this:
What we give matters
· Total giving over 2 years
· Some first time givers
· Some letting go of comforts, more sacrificial than ever before
· Don’t have to fill out all blanks, just last one that represents total giving
· My prayer…boldest step of faith
“Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.” Corrie Ten Boom
(Leave up during prayer time)
3 minutes Prayer/reflection at chairs (band vamp)
(go sit down on front row)
9 Minutes Ask them to move with cards.
Now, we’re going to sing and when you’re ready to commit, bring your card down and lay it on the altar. Even if you turned one in, bring another one with your commitment.
2 songs
3 minutes Close the service
Come Dec 3rd put your faith into action. We’re calling it the December 3rd: The Big Give
Pray and all God’s people said, Amen!
58 minutes
Que “Wonders” as the walkout
Someone asked why were spending all this time and energy on Unleashed. The why is everything. There are two huge reasons why we are in this generosity initiative. The first reason why is because As believers, we have the responsibility and privilege to join God in pushing back the darkness.
We saw in Acts 1 that Jesus commanded us, you and me, to take the light of the gospel into the four corners of the world. That’s not an option for you, for me, for any believer, for any church.
Let’s talk about the responsibility. We sometimes forget the what Jesus has done for us and what He expects of us. He created us, right? Why did God create us? To worship Him. To love Him. To obey Him. To bring Him glory and pleasure. Before the Fall, that was pure and untainted. Since the Fall, we have struggled to worship Him with a whole heart. We were created to worship, but sadly, we worship ourselves, our family, our money, our possessions, our comfort. Our security. Unleashed is an opportunity to reorient our worship to our Creator, not created things.
He created us, yes, AND He redeemed us, right? “I was sinking deep in sin, far from the peaceful shore. Very deeply stained within, Sinking to rise no more; But the Master of the sea Heard my despairing cry, From the waters lifted me, Now safe am I.”
1 Peter 2:9 says, we “proclaim the praises of the One who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”
That touches on the privilege part of our calling. We have the privilege of carrying the gospel light into our community and into the darkest places on the globe and get a front row seat to watch God do amazing things as a result of our participation in the gospel, particularly with our generosity.
Lot of darkness in our world. In the Bible darkness is a metaphor to describe ignorance and lostness and separation from the Light. Lost in darkness: (build) 5.3 Billion people worldwide 260 Million in the U.S. 5-7,000 churches closing each year in U.S.
Read a few prayer requests…
I said at the beginning that there were two big reasons for Unleashed. The first one is the most important: As believers, we have the responsibility and privilege to join God in pushing back the darkness. This is why we are on this earth; why we are a church.
But the second reason we are in this generosity initiative is that Unleashed is an incredible opportunity for us to grow in our walk with Jesus and increase our joy and fulfillment. (leave up) Repeat.
All through the Bible, when people are generous with God, not only was His pleasure increased, but so was theirs.
Turn to Acts 11:19-30 page ??. We’ve been studying the very 1st church and how it was they turned the world upside down.
And this morning we finish our study by looking at the 2nd church & their incredible commitment. This very 1st church was 100% engaged, and so was this one. That’s been our primary goal from the beginning of Unleashed: that each of us, that all of us would go on a prayer journey to take our surrender and faith and generosity to a whole new level.
So let’s read Acts 11:19-30 (on screen) (with comments)
v.19 ch.8 Stephen had preached, got stoned to death
v.20 Hellenists (gentiles)
v.22 Antioch ( between v.22 & 23 put a map showing location of Antioch/Jerusalem)
v.26 So prominent and powerful was their witness that they were called Christians; 1st time in history.
v.27 down; not in longitude, north or south, but in elevation; Jerusalem on the top of a range of high hills/mtns
v.29 Judea—must have been hardest hit, though ALL of them were suffering
From our reading, we can see that The Antioch church was known for three things: (build)
Sending The 1st church sent Barnabas and other believers to Antioch to share the gospel; to push back the darkness. A big part of Unleashed is about us sending and supporting people from our church to places like Seattle and Portland and the 4 corners of the church. Sending is what a healthy church does.
I’m excited to announce that our first Unleashed sending is going to be Ben and Emily Casey. (pic) Emily has been our children’s minister for ? years and God has called them to Seattle to come alongside one of our partners up there. I’m excited and I’m sad. But they are the 1st fruits of Unleashed. I believe more of us will be called and sent to the 4 corners of this globe.
Contagion This Antioch church was also known for its contagion. If you’re contagious, you infect others with what you have. If you have Jesus, you should be contagious and be sharing Him with those where you live, work and play. Do you have a list of people far from God that you pray for and look for opportunities to witness to? There is no greater joy than to see someone you’ve prayed for and witnessed to come to Jesus.
Generosity Even though they were suffering in the famine as well, they were prompted to be generous with others for the sake of the gospel. I have heard so many stories the past few weeks from many of you how God has prompted you to be generous for the sake of the gospel. We heard some of those stories a few minutes ago. People I’ve talked to are so excited to take their surrender and faith and generosity to a new level. About this kind of generosity, Paul wrote: “During a severe testing by affliction, their abundance of joy and their deep poverty overflowed into the wealth of their generosity. 3 I testify that, on their own, according to their ability and beyond their ability, 4 they begged us insistently for the privilege of sharing” 2 Corinthians 8:2-3
Leave that passage up there. The phrase that sticks out to you? You know what sticks out to me? Their abundance of Joy. Generous people are joyous people. And this is the 2nd big reason we are involved in Unleashed. Why Unleashed? (build)
As believers, we have the responsibility and privilege to join God in pushing back the darkness.
As believers, we have an incredible opportunity to grow in our walk with Jesus and increase our joy and fulfillment. I want that for me. I want that for you. The commitment of the church in Antioch was so strong that Antioch, not Jerusalem, Antioch became the most powerful church in the 1st century. To this day it is known for its sending, its contagion, and its generosity. Here’s my last question to you: What do you want Rush Creek to be known for?
- Hundreds of more kids will go to camp and the trajectory of their lives changed forever
- Hundreds of more people will go on mission trips & their lives changed forever
- Families will move and serve Kingdom around the world
- Thousands of people will be impacted by our Compassion efforts
- Thousands of people will come to a church revived or a church planted
- Thousands of people will hear the gospel when we translate the N.T. into their language
- Thousands of people in Moldova/Mexico/El Salvador will get food, medicine, love/care and hear the gospel for the very first time
- A city of “Nones” Portland, will become a city of Christ followers
- Hundreds/Thousands of our “Ones” will continue to be our focus and we will see Christ reach them, celebrate in their baptism, and tell the story for generations to come
This is bigger than you. Bigger than me. What we do here today will determine what we are known for for generations. Intro (Advance Commitment Night video)
So, like at ACN, in a few moments ALL of us are going to get participate and celebrate in this incredible opportunity. If you’ve already turned one in, still take one and walk through this with us. Remember: The first goal of Unleashed? 100% engagement
Pull out Commitment Card (pic of commitment card)
First and foremost; Prayer. Prayer Vigil yesterday; this journey began w/ asking what? “God what is your role for me in Unleashed?”
Some of you came here today knowing exactly your number. But God may still have another number He’s talking to you about right now. Is the number you are thinking about one that when you get to heaven, God says to you, “Now THAT was a great step of faith!”
Some came today w/ “no intention” of committing or just haven’t spent much time thinking or praying up to this point. Asking you to pray, “God, how can I participate……what would you want me to do?”
I do believe it will take 100% of us. I don’t want anyone to miss out and watch from sidelines. When the great Michael Jordan was playing for the Bulls, he scored 69 points—69 points! in one game! Afterwards, a reporter asked Stacy King, one of his teammates, who had only played a couple of minutes in the game, what it was like to be a part of the game. He said, “I’ll always remember this night as the night that me and Michael combined to score 70 points.” Don’t be a Stacy King. Unleashed is for all of us; for each of us.
I pray, band begins to vamp. Call them to pray/discuss. Prayer time (Music vamping; 3-4 minutes; seated/kneeling/altar)
Now, we’re going to sing and when you’re ready to commit, bring your card down and pin it on the horse. Even if you turned one in, bring another one with your commitment.
2 songs Pray Come Dec 3rd put your faith into action. We’re calling it the December 3rd: The Big Give
4 min Song 2Closing song
