Category: Go and Make

Acts 4:33 (NIV)
³³ With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all…

“God’s grace is the key. God’s grace gives us, in one sense, nothing to strive for… it’s already been given to us… but we get the full experience and adventure of living up to that calling. We know the ending (to some degree), but it’s a surprising, astonishing ending, and we get to discover how that unlikely ending comes about! Part of the drama is believing the promise despite appearances.

God’s grace works mightily in us to live for God, to live like Jesus, to live empowered and invigorated by his Spirit… to fully live under Jesus’ ALL authority in heaven and on earth… to spend our lives making disciples… going wherever we need to go, wherever he wants us to go… to make disciples—born-again, Spirit-filled, passionate, adventurous, risk-taking disciples of Jesus.” (P. Jason Park)

The same power that raised Christ from the dead is at work in our lives. God is transforming us, equipping us, making us more and more like Jesus. God is growing us as disciples of Christ as we obey and go make disciples.

Prayer: Father, use us to testify to the resurrection of our Lord Jesus and minister in your power and love to those you are sending us to. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Let’s worship to “The Same Jesus” by Matt Redman (click here)

-DP

Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV)
²⁸ “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

“Jesus’ yoke is more than a way of life or of thinking. It is a relationship, a following, a commitment. It is choosing to walk the walk of Jesus, to approach life his way, to attain ‘the whole measure of the fullness of Christ’ (Eph 4:13c). Therefore rest is not just a sense of peace and tranquility in the chaos of life. It too is a relationship, a rest in him and in dependence on him. It is like a small boy with a big brother; he knows there are all sorts of things he cannot do but believes that with big brother’s help there is nothing he cannot do. So it is with Christ; we approach life’s vicissitudes and obstacles with a sense almost of omnipotence. Every crisis becomes an opportunity to watch Christ work.”(Grant Osborne, Matthew, ZECNT)

As we seek to obey Christ and his command to go and make disciples, we are never alone. He is with us and carries the burdens that we bring to him. As we go to our neighbors, co-workers, family members and friends, may there be opportunities to see Christ move and work in power!

Prayer:  Father, thank you that we get to participate in your kingdom work and that we get to see you move in people’s lives. We rely on you today as we go. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Let’s worship to “The Wonderful Cross” by Shane & Shane (click here).

-DP

Matthew 7:7-8 (NLT)
⁷ “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. ⁸ For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

A PRAYER OF SUSANNA WESLEY
You, O Lord, have called us to watch and pray.
Therefore, whatever may be the sin against which we pray,
make us careful to watch against it,
and so have reason to expect that our prayers will be answered.
In order to perform this duty aright,
grant us grace to preserve a sober, equal temper,
and sincerity to pray for your assistance. Amen.
(SUSANNA WESLEY, ENGLAND, 18TH CENT.)

“Susanna was a very strong woman of conviction and character, especially during a time and in a culture where women’s roles were very limited, mostly to home life. One day, she was reading about missionaries from Denmark. She was so captivated by their passion for the Lord, risking their lives to share the gospel. She wanted to live like that—but how? She determined to pray more for people, and speak to them with more warmth. And she resolved to begin with her own children.” (P. Jason Park)

Prayer:  Father, give us the resolve to pray with diligence, persistence, and with determination empowered by your Spirit to live out your calling to make disciples. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Let’s worship to “Fire Fall” by Planet Shakers (click here)

-DP

Matthew 5:13-16 (NIV)
¹³ “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. ¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

“The church, in fact, needs to see itself as Matthew saw it: as a distinct and appealing counterculture; a city set on a hill, making visible the reality of God’s reign in the midst of the old order; a community concerned not so much to root out the weeds in its midst as to cultivate wheat of such quality that others will see it ‘and give glory to your Father in heaven.’” (T. Donaldson in Patterns of Discipleship in the NT, 48)

Our lives matter to God. We play an essential role as salt and light in this world. God desires to use each of us to touch others’ lives with the love of the Father in dark places. It is worth it to pursue holiness and retain “saltiness” so that others can have the opportunity to see Jesus in us.

Prayer:  Father, may we be a community of salt and light in our cities, bringing glory to you! In Jesus’ name, amen.

Let’s worship to “I Turn To Christ” by Matt Redman (click here)

-DP

Let’s read aloud together the following passage and confession:

Matthew 4:18-19 (NIV)
¹⁸ As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. ¹⁹ “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” ²⁰ At once they left their nets and followed him.

Matthew 11:28 (NIV)
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”

Confession
“I am no longer my own but yours. Put me to what you will, rank me with whom you will. Put me to doing, put me to suffering. Let me be employed for you or laid aside for you, exalted for you or brought low for you. Let me be full, let me be empty. Let me have all things, let me have nothing. I freely and wholeheartedly yield all things to your pleasure and disposal. And now, glorious and blessed God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, you are mine and I am yours. So be it. And the covenant now made on earth, let it be ratified in heaven. Amen.” (John Wesley, Covenant Prayer)

Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for the privilege of belonging to you. I am forever yours. I come to you once again and surrender my life to you. Help me to follow you today. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Let’s worship to “Hymn of Surrender” by Matt Redman (click here).

-DP