jesusfollower

one year ago... rooted

Steve McCready reminded me that it was one year ago that our team from Brentview traveled out to Belfast for the Rooted Conference followed by two weeks of incredible mission in Killyleagh.  Amazing trip, amazing experience.  For me, the Rooted Conference was a delight, despite the exhausting jet lag.  Our Brentview team was introduced to our friends from YFC-NI... and while some of them got caught up on their sleep, I gave a total of five different talks in one day... the first one starting around 2am Calgary time... (I think Steve was trying to kill me!!)... for a group of some 100+ up-and-coming ministry leaders in Northern Ireland.  Loopiness set in somewhere around the 3rd talk.  But what a privilege it was to be there  that day!  And what an honor it has been to continue in partnership with such passionate followers of Jesus.  Thanks, Steve, for the opportunity, and for the reminder to be praying for all those gathered that day.

The final photo here is one of my all-time favorites.  I'm on the left, Steve is next to me, Pete is leading worship, and sitting next to him is Alan.  I will never be able to fully express the blessing these three men have been in my life.  What an honor to it is to call them friends.  Can't wait to see what plans God has for us next!

Rooted Faith: Go Out (part 4)

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4. ROOTED FAITHFULNESS PRODUCES AN OVERFLOWING LIFE.
The Great, encouraging News, however, is that we don’t have to be fruitless.  We don’t have to be stuck in our fruitlessness.  A person who is rooted in faithfulness in God will produce an overflowing life.  Rooted faithfulness produces an overflowing life.  (Notice I didn’t say a comfortable life, or a no-problemed life; I said an overflowing life.)  Those who dig themselves down deep into the Lord and establish themselves in him will stand tall in his strength and will flourish and be fruitful in the freedom and the fullness of God.

 That’s why Colossians 2:6-7 says what it does.  “And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to live in obedience to him.  Let your roots grow down into him and draw up nourishment from him, you will grow in faith, strong and vigorous in the truth you were taught.  Let your lives overflow with thanksgiving for all he has done.”   We start with our lives based on CHRIST.  We GROW DOWN into him, and we DRAW UP nourishment from him.  We root our lives completely in Christ and tap into all he has at his infinite disposal and draw up that fullness from him until we can’t contain what begins to happen in our lives and we overflow with thanksgiving for all he has done.  We GO OUT from ourselves and proclaim the goodness of God.  We can’t help but to talk about what we have seen and heard.  Everything that we are drawing up is too much for us to contain!  The fruitful life just happens then.  It isn’t nearly as concerned with the exterior appearance as it is with the filling and overflowing that comes from a life lived in him.  It’s can be a little out of control; it leaves fruit all over the place.

But that’s good!  It is about Jesus producing good works within you.  It is about Jesus shaping you from the inside out.  It is about accepting Jesus as your Lord and living like it.  It is about living in him and for him and through him.  It is about obeying him.  It is about letting Jesus fill you up and plan your life and make you wise.  It is about doing what he wants you to do and going where he wants you to go.  It is about admitting that you need Jesus desperately and that he has saved you.  And as you add a another ring of life every year and as your bark ages and you show the wrinkles and scars of life, it is about letting Jesus grow you to be more and more strong and vigorous in the truth that you’ve been taught.  And it is about recognizing that you are not worthy enough nor are you able enough to contain the fullness of God within yourself.  It is about daily digging deep into him and drawing up from him more than you need so that you stand tall in his truth and go out into the world around you spilling him on everybody and everything you contact.  Rooted Faith places priority in a nourishing relationship with Jesus that just naturally ends up leading to a fruitful life.

Don’t get caught fruitless!  Paul says to another vibrant group of new followers of Christ, in the city of Philippi, in Philippians 1:9-11- “I pray that your love for each other will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in your knowledge and understanding.  For I want you to understand what really matters, so that you may live pure and blameless lives until Christ returns.  May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation – those good things that are produced in your life by Jesus Christ – for this will bring much glory and praise to God.”

Romans 11:17 says that “if the roots of the tree are holy, the branches will be too.”  Galatians 5:22 says that when God’s Spirit directs our lives, he will produce an abundance of fruit- the product of our rooted-ness in God.  The fruit of God’s Spirit are life-and-world-changing seeds like love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Gal 5:22-23) – all those things that our world needs but seems to have a shortage of is produced within you when you live with a rooted faith.  The Bible goes on to say that “those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit” (Gal 6:8).  And it also says, “What counts is whether we really have been changed into new and different people” (Gal 6:15).  Colossians chapter 3 says that we should be clothed with all those things that God produces from within us; mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness, and especially love and peace in your heart, and always be thankful.  Brentview, are you changed?  Are you different?  Are you fruitful?  Grow Down.  Draw up.  Go out.  Let your lives overflow with thanksgiving for all he has done.  And he has done a lot!  In this generation, let there be fruit.  Amen. 

BENEDICTION - Ephesians 3:17 says, “May your roots grow down deep into the soil of God’s marvelous love… Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God.”

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Full audio version of this sermon.  Download June 21 09 Ken Castor

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Rooted Faith: Go Out (part 3)

(...continued from yesterday...)

3. Fruitlessness produces nothing good.
I think we want it to be different.  I think we want to be a part of a vibrant movement of faith.  But fruitlessness produces nothing good.  In Mark chapter 11, on their way to the Temple in Jerusalem, Jesus and his disciples passed by this healthy, good-looking fig tree.  The tree really looked great.  The leaves were incredible.  But Jesus stepped in for a closer look and discovered the good-looking fig tree had a problem.  It had no figs.  The fig-tree was fruitless.  Jesus got quite upset and he cursed the tree!  They all went on to the Temple, which was busy with religious activity and looked healthy and vibrant, and full of people attending and doing their religious duty.  But Jesus stepped in for a closer look and he was frustrated by what he saw.  The Temple- a place where people were supposed to come and be changed by their focus on the Lord- was not rooted in God anymore.  In the Temple that day were distracted hearts.  There were marketers, set up to sell their goods and make a profit, stealing attention from God and probably stealing some money from the people who had come.  This practice was cheapening the spiritual formation of the people.  And everybody seemed to be just fine with it all.  Except for Jesus.  He got really upset.  And he cursed the Temple!  He went around overturning all of the selling tables and driving out everyone associated with this unfaithful system.  He chastised everyone saying, “My Temple will be called a house of prayer for all nations but you have turned it into a den of thieves.”  Quite a day! ☺

The next morning Jesus and his disciples passed by the same old fig tree again.  But this time, when they saw the tree, the disciples noticed that it didn’t look very good anymore.  In fact, this fruitless fig tree, was completely shriveled-up and dead!  Mark notes that the tree had withered from the roots up.  It dried up from its source.  All of the sudden what looked to be pretty and impressive on the outside was cut off from its source and couldn’t draw up the nutrition it needed.

No matter how impressive the expression of religiosity, no matter how grand of a building or prestige or reputation they once had, if at their roots a generation rejects the opportunity to grow down deep into the soil of God’s marvelous love and draw up life from him, that generation or that person or that system of religion will shrivel up.

I fear that if Jesus took a close look at our good-looking expression of Christianity from the 20th and 21st century in North America he might be really upset with the lack of fruit… with the shallow roots… with the poor spiritual nutrition.  It is clear in Scripture that those who claim to be religious but who are actually only dressed up, only appearing to be good in their church habits, do not please God. Read Matthew 25 or Luke chapter 11.  The harshest words in Scripture are reserved for those who pretend outwardly to be close to God but who lack the inner heart of faith to produce fruit from God.

Matthew 7:17 says “A healthy tree produces good fruit… And every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire.”  Faithlessness produces fruitlessness and fruitlessness produces nothing good.

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Full audio version of this sermon.  Download June 21 09 Ken Castor

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Rooted Faith: Go Out (part 2)

(...continued from yesterday...)

2.  Today, North America Christians are remarkably fruitless.

We find a much different picture of Christianity today.  We have grown accustomed to “church” being… well… a bit staler than the fresh experience of the first Christians.  North American Christians today, are for the most part, remarkably fruitless.  We are comfortable with our habit of attending church on Sunday morning and we are comfortable with our habit of forgetting about church already by Sunday night and not thinking about our faith for rest of the week.  Our faith today is in many ways a suppressed replica of the passion and power and maturity of faith of those in the 1st century movement. Back then, they couldn’t contain Jesus within themselves.  Today, we are quite good at containment.  Consider these sobering stats:

•     From George Barna’s book, Revolution: Those who regularly attend church go twice a month on average.  And they admit “that attendance at worship services is… generally the only time they worship God” (p.31).
•     Reginald Bibby, in the research for his book, Restless Gods, says, that in Canada, only 10-15% adults under the age of 55 attend church regularly and that most churches are declining in numbers or dying out (p.77).
•     From the book, Goodbye Generation: A Conversation About Why Youth and Young Adults Leave the Church, by David Sawler:  Only one percent of our church growth in North America is from people not born into the faith.  “This means we are reaching almost no one who does not have a church background already” (p.8).
•     By the age of 25, approximately 90% of all youth who once considered themselves Christians leave the church and even their faith (p.7).
•     From the book, The American Church in Crisis, by David Olson, a book that studied 200,000 congregations in the States: - With the rate of population growth in the States, to maintain the same percentage of Americans who attend church, there needs to be a net gain of 3,200 churches each year.  But this decade there has only been an average net gain of 300 churches a year (p.120).
•     And it’s not just a lack of growth.  It’s about a lack of character.  From the book UnChristian: What a New Generation Really Thinks about Christianity by David Kinnaman:  - 16% of young adults do not even know one Christian.  Of the rest who do, only 15% of those thought the lifestyles of the Christians they knew were any different than the way most other people they knew lived their lives (p.48).  On average, our sinful practices and selfishness and hypocritical behaviors look just like every body else’s or worse.  “Currently,” Kinnaman says, “Christianity is known for being unlike Jesus” (p.212). 
• •    Barna noted personally:  “One of the greatest frustrations of my life has been the disconnection between what our research consistently shows about [the beliefs and practices] of churched Christians and what the Bible calls us to be… If the local church is comprised of people who have been transformed by the grace of God through their redemption in Christ and the presence of the Holy Spirit, then their lives should be noticeably and compellingly different from the norm.”  But they’re not (p.31).

It just seems like our North American churches are not overflowing with Jesus.  Today, in Calgary, there could easily be 900,000 people not in church.  Church attendance, involvement and community-influence is on the decline. Young people are fleeing the church.  Most people don’t even think of church anymore… but if they do it is often in a negative light because they’ve been hurt by a Christian or they don’t see anything special about what Christians have to offer.

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Full audio version of this sermon.  Download June 21 09 Ken Castor

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Rooted Faith: Go Out (part 1)

I believe that our churches in North America today really struggle to have an overflowing life.  I think we have become quite good at containment; keeping our faith within ourselves and our spiritual fruit to a minimum.  Yet the whole goal of our relationship with God, as far as God is concerned, is that we will overflow with his life; that we will have an abundance of the product that comes from having God’s life within us.   John 15:16 – Jesus told his followers, in John 15:16, “I chose you.  I appointed you to go and produce fruit that will last.”  The product of our faith is supposed to be overflowing from us.  And for some generations of Christians, this was their experience.  Consider the different dynamics of the first generation of Christianity; Think about our faith for a minute and then think about the faith of the first century believers:

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Full audio version of this sermon.  Download June 21 09 Ken Castor

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1.  The First Christians were abundantly fruitful.
Here is how Colossians starts: chapter 1 verses 1-6:  “This letter is from Paul, chosen by God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and from our brother Timothy.  It is written to God’s holy people in the city of Colosse, who are faithful brothers and sisters in Christ.  May God our Father give you grace and peace.  We always pray for you, and we give thanks to God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, for we have heard that you trust in Christ Jesus and that you love all of God’s people.  You do this because you are looking forward to the joys of heaven- as you have been ever since you first heard the truth of the Good News.  This same Good News that came to you is going out all over the world.  It is changing lives everywhere just as it has changed yours that very first day you heard and understood the truth about God’s great kindness to sinners.”

From the time that Jesus died, something funny happened on the way to the forum.  Christianity, which began as a small gathering of 120 people on Pentecost Sunday in Jerusalem, exploded onto the world map.  Within 30 years the seed of the Gospel had rooted itself significantly in the city of Rome and had become a powerful force all over the Roman Empire.  They were stirring up so much commotion that the government felt the need to try to contain the spread of this movement.  Paul, in fact, most likely wrote this letter to the Colossians, while he was in prison in Rome for talking about Jesus.  Something had made this young, pumped-up Pharisee so dramatically change the course of his life that he logged thousands of miles of travel; endured scores of beatings and imprisonments; he zealously spoke to large crowds, politicians, and kings; not to mention that he broke through ethnic and gender and slave and economic barriers along the way.  Even under arrest, Paul continued relentlessly sharing his faith with prisoners and guards, with judges and rulers, and writing letters to new groups of Christians all over the place.  And he wasn’t alone.  Numerous others did virtually the same thing: people like Timothy and Titus, Barnabas, Lydia and Priscilla and Aquila and Apollos, and many more.

The Colossian church itself had become a growing movement of Jesus Followers.  Colosse was a small city, in what is now Turkey, immersed in pagan festivals and the worship of Roman gods.  The Good News about Jesus came into this city by a guy named Epaphras.  Colossians chapter 1 verse 7:  “Epaphras, our much loved co-worker, was the one who brought you the Good News.  He is Christ’s faithful servant, and he is helping us in your place.  He is the one who told us about the great love for others that the Holy Spirit has given you.”

Now I know I’m only giving a snapshot here, but just think about this for a second.  Before this group of believers gathered in Colosse, there was no church in that city.  None.  2000 years later, this is hard for us to understand in North America because we’re used to churches existing on virtually ever corner of a city and we’re used to our society traditionally being somewhat Christian-ish.  We’re used to First Baptist and 2nd Baptist and Fifth Baptist of the 12th Split and Twentieth Baptist Church of the 1875 Convention of the Immaculate Postmillennialists… or something like that.  Back then people didn’t church shop.  Back then people didn’t go somewhere because they liked the preacher better or because it was a more comfortable time or because they had the best looking drapes or the best music program or kids ministry.  Back then people heard about Jesus and they had to make a decision:  Am I going to receive Jesus Christ as my Lord?  Am I going to lay my life on the line to follow this man?  People were introduced to Jesus and were faced with a dilemma:  Am I going to worship Jesus and obey him rather than Caesar?  Am I going to risk my career?  Am I going to risk alienating my family?  Imagine yourself in a city where the message about Jesus Christ had never been heard before.  Imagine yourself in a city that is filled with other gods, other options, other systems, other ways of doing life and you decide to commit yourself to a growing movement based on a personal relationship with the living Christ- not because your family had always gone to church on Christmas or Easter, but because you yourself became so gripped in the core of who you are that you had to give your whole self over to Jesus.  It’s interesting to note here, that things now in North America are actually similar in culture to the way things were back then.  Most people today are not from church backgrounds anymore; our society today is filled with other gods, other options, other systems, other ways of doing life than Christianity.

The difference today is the Christians.  Something made Paul live like he did.  Something made this guy, Epaphras, go to his hometown of Colosse and start telling people about Jesus.  And something made thousands upon thousands of people in this first generation of Christians absolutely change their lives by accepting Jesus Christ as their Lord. All over the world, the Gospel was spreading and it was changing lives everywhere.  People were realizing “Wow, this Jesus, he is amazing and I need him.”  And within a very short while, Christianity had gone out and taken root all over the world.

For instance, in Acts chapter 4, Peter and John got arrested for healing a man and telling people that the healing was done in the power of Jesus Christ.  When the authorities told them to stop talking about Jesus or else, they said they couldn’t stop.  “No, you have to stop!” the frustrated rulers demanded.  “No,” Peter and John said, “you really don’t understand.  We really can’t stop.  We can’t help it.  It just overflows from us.  We can’t contain what’s inside of us!  We have to let Jesus out!  If we don’t we’ll burst!”  They said literally, “We cannot stop telling about the wonderful things we have seen and heard.”

It seems that back then in that time there was a freshness and an incredible power to the Christian faith.  It seems that people let their lives grow down into Christ and be so dramatically changed by God that they couldn’t contain the life that was drawn up inside of them.  The first Christians were abundantly fruitful.

rooted faith - draw up (part 4)

The Good News, everyone, is that you can make it through anything you are facing or will face if you draw up nourishment from Christ because Christ is the source of all life, of all strength and of all truth.  So as you place your footing in him, you will not be moved by the winds that blow against you because CHRIST can not be shaken by them.  As you let your roots grow down into him, you allow Christ to accomplish his plan for you, in you, and through you.  He builds you up in strength.  Psalm 33:11 says that “the Lord’s plans stand firm forever; his intentions can never be shaken.”  Well, when you faithfully live in Christ you become one of his plans!  You become his intention!  And as his plan, as his intention, you will stand firm!  As you live in Christ, he shapes you by his hands and builds you up for his purpose and for his glory.  As you grow down into him and draw up nourishment from him, he enables you to stand strong in his power.  And his power is the strongest power!  No wind can shake the foundations of heaven let alone rattle God.  No economic crisis can unnerve him or cause him worry about his retirement account.  No storm can cause him fear.  No illness can wreck God.  No enemy can surprise him.  No situation is too stressful for him to handle.  So cast your burdens upon him.  Lean into him.  Christ cannot be shaken… so let your roots grow down into him and draw up nourishment from him so that you can stand firm in his truth.

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Full audio version of this sermon.  2009-06-14 Rooted Faith - Draw Up - Ken Castor

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Paul said in Philippians 4:12-13, “I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything.  I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little.  For I can do everything with the help of Christ who gives me the strength I need.”

Psalm 93, says, (from memory NIV) The Lord reigns, he is robed in majesty; the Lord is robed in majesty and armed with strength.  The world is firmly established; it cannot be moved.  Your throne was established long ago; you are from all eternity.  The seas have lifted up, O Lord, the seas have lifted up their voice; the seas have lifted up their pounding waves.  Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea - the Lord on high is mighty.  Your statutes stand firm; holiness adorns your house for endless days, O Lord.

If you are being blown about today, let your roots grow down into Christ. The unshakable God is here today for you to draw up the nourishment and strength that you need.  You might be realizing today that you need Jesus… that you really can’t stand forever on your own… that you really don’t want to be like a tumbleweed and you really do need to put down some roots into something and you really do need to stand tall and strong and you really need to stop getting blown about by the things that hit your life.  You can do this by inviting him into your life and receiving him as your Source for living. As we pray in a minute, just ask him to make your life secure in his.  The Good News is that as Jesus comes into your life you will begin to draw up everything you need to stand passionately and powerfully.  And as you grow down more and more into him, you will be filled from the fullness of God and you will overflow with thanksgiving for all he has done.

Let’s pray:  Dear Lord, let us live in obedience to you.  Forgive us for standing on any other ground than the truth of your foundation.  Lord, let us put ourselves down deeply into you, more and more, and seek after all we need to truly live by growing deeply into you.  Lord, for those who need to accept you as Lord, we pray that you would help them to trust you now.  Let them put their roots down into you.  Let them pray: “Lord, sorry I have been living my life on my own and in my own power and not focused on you.  Forgive me.  I accept you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you Lord, for absorbing my fallenness and brokenness on the cross.  Thank you for letting me lean all of myself on you.  Your scars are beautiful… and I accept you as my Lord.  Please, Jesus, come into my life and let me grow down into you more and more from this day forward. Help me to draw up from you all that I need at all times.  Fill me now and forever, Lord, to overflow with thanksgiving for all you’ve done.” Amen. 

BENEDICTION – Philippians 4:19-20 says, “And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.  Now glory be to God our Father forever and ever.  Amen.”

rooted faith - draw up (part 3)

Jesus tells this story, found in Matthew 7:24 – “Anyone who listens to my teaching and obeys me is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock.  Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse, because it is built on rock.  But anyone who hears my teaching and ignores it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand.  When the rains and the floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will fall with a mighty crash.”  (Matt 7:24-27 NLT)

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Full audio version of this sermon.  2009-06-14 Rooted Faith - Draw Up - Ken Castor

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There is the idea that storms reveal the true wisdom and strength of a person.  The wise person will have their life rooted down and built up in such a way that when storms come they will remain standing strong… and even grow from it.  Those who secures themselves down into Christ will draw up strength to stand in even the most torrential rain or winds.  Proverbs 10:25 says that “Disaster strikes like a cyclone, whirling the wicked away, but the godly have a lasting foundation.”
 
There is no other noun that we should base ourselves on than Jesus Christ.  There is no other person, no other place, no other thing, and no other idea that should ever serve as an alternative to Christ as the foundation for our lives.  It’s like the old hymn sings, “Our hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness; I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus’ name. On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand, all other ground is sinking sand!  When darkness veils His lovely face, I rest on His unchanging grace; In every high and stormy gale, My anchor holds within the veil.  On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand, all other ground is sinking sand!

The Good News today is that you can dig your roots down deep into Jesus and you will not be disappointed because there is no more secure ground in which to be established.  In Christ you will draw up all the resources you need to stand firm through anything.  That’s why the Psalms begin the way they do: with such hope.  Psalm 1:2-3 says, “Oh, the joys of those… [that] delight in doing everything the Lord wants; day and night they think about his law.  They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season without fail.  Their leaves never wither, and in all they do, they prosper.”  And in Psalm 52 we get the picture of sturdy contentment that results from a life that is faithfully rooted and drawing up nourishment from God: Psalm 52:8-9 says, “I am like an olive tree, thriving in the house of God.  I trust in God’s unfailing love forever and ever.  I will praise you forever, O God, for what you have done.”
 

rooted faith - draw up (part 2)

But to stand firm in this truth and overflow with thanksgiving is not an easy task.  (I bought a tree and planted it on Friday… and then our dog dug it up!)  It’s like when you try to get your life rooted, something comes along and tries to uproot you!  On all sides of Colossians 2:6-7 are verses that indicate that faithful living will be under attack; the pressure will be to adulterate our faith to other ideas and pursuits that in the end cause us to go astray from our love in God. 

 - - - - - Full audio sermon from June 14, 2009, Brentview Baptist - 2009-06-14 Rooted Faith - Draw Up - Ken Castor - - - - - - -

In chapter 1 verse 23, after Paul has just described how amazing Christ is and how he died on the cross to reconcile us to God, Paul says, “But you must continue to believe this truth and stand in it firmly.  Don’t drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News.”  And in verse 4 of chapter 2, Paul says, “I am telling you [all these things] so that no one will be able to deceive you with persuasive arguments.”  And then in verses 8-10, Paul encourages the Colossians: “Don’t let anyone lead you astray with empty sounding philosophy and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the evil powers of this world, and not from Christ.  For in Christ the fullness of God lives in a human body, and you are complete through your union with Christ.  He is the Lord over every ruler and authority in the universe.”

It’s as if some strong winds of ideas and diverting thoughts are storming in and battering against the Colossian believers.  The situation is serious. We face this sort of storm against our faith all the time.  For these winds cause damage and thrash apart lives and tear through the faith of some people.  But like I said last week, more often than not, the winds are not the terribly destructive gusts of tornadoes and hurricanes, but are usually the steady, blowing winds of the prairies, that slowly over the years wear against a person’s stamina and endurance.  In the end, the diversions of this life that blow against us constantly, can eventually knock us off of our foundation, erode our faith, and uproot us.  If any of you are like me – and most of you are (and no that’s not an insult to you!... or to me!)- then you are hit daily it seems with the pressure winds of this life: big decisions to make, bills and mortgage to pay, kids school activities, soccer practices, yard work, illnesses, busyness, worries, stress, ahhhhh!!! The last two months have been among the craziest busy of my life as I’ve traveled all over for my school research and have dealt with a broken-down minivan and helped coach my son’s soccer team and been busy here in the meantime and on and on and on.  I’m exhausted and have realized on many occasions in the last two months that I couldn’t keep going in my own power.  You know, even the winds of the pressures of time have been taking a toll on me personally lately--- as I keep losing hair on top of my head and I keep finding it reappearing in my ears and on my lower back!  I’m feeling some strong wind burn here!

And in the worst of times, like when Kathy was sick a year-and-a-half ago and I was scared for her and for our family, and during a few other really intense seasons of gut-wrenching agony and soul-searching and decision-making, I have learned that in Christ we can draw up all the nourishment we need to be built up strong in his truth so that we are able to withstand anything that comes our way.  In fact, sometimes the wind, though it thrashes against us, can actually serve as an opportunity to grow down deep in faith even more.  I remember back to my childhood (which is seeming further and further away from me now!).  In the woods next to our house was the greatest tree I have ever known.  I have no idea what kind of tree it was, only that it was the coolest tree ever.  It was on the edge of the forest and had branches that were perfectly spaced for my short kid legs and perfectly sized for my small kid hands.  I would spend hours climbing all over this tree, enjoying every branch, resting in the leaves, going all the way to the wee green branches on the top and holding on when the wind blew.  This tree was secure and it wasn’t going anywhere and I remember as a kid being in love with that tree.

But I also remember that not everything was perfect about that tree.  Some branches had been broken off, either because it had been hurt by someone or it had suffered some damage during a storm.  I remember after one thunderstorm another tree had fallen over and crashed against my favorite tree.  The collision had created about a five-foot gash in my tree and had ripped off several branches.  But I remember finding it really interesting that the fallen tree, in its brokenness, had been caught and had come to rest by leaning on my favorite tree.  It’s as if the strength and security of my favorite tree had absorbed the pain of another tree and was now offering comfort and hope to it.  I remember being so proud of my tree!  No matter the circumstances, no matter the storm, no matter what hit it or what winds or pressures blew against it, my favorite tree stood firm.  And I’ve got to tell you, the scars on that tree became part of its beauty to me.  Every scar and wound and knot became a mark of beauty as that tree continued to draw up nourishment and be built up in strength and to stand strongly as a pillar in a broken, stormy world.  Since then, this tree has become a symbol to me: a symbol of how if I am rooted in Christ and drawing up nourishment from him I can stand strong through anything and even then become a source of uplifting strength to those around me when they get blown around or lose their footing. Those who dig themselves down deep into the Lord will stand tall in his strength.

rooted faith - draw up (part 1)

The Bible paints a simple and wondrous picture.  Those who dig themselves down deep into the Lord will stand tall in his strength.  Those who immerse themselves in the Lord will stand in the strength and the fullness of God. 

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Full audio version of this sermon.  2009-06-14 Rooted Faith - Draw Up - Ken Castor

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That’s why in Colossians 2:6-7 it says, “And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as Lord, you must continue to live in obedience to him.  (Don’t fake it.  Don’t pretend.  Don’t stand on your own.  Don’t try to prove your own ability. It’s not a job interview!  Don’t get dressed up on the outside but fail to put that effort and energy into your commitment to God.  Be faithful.  If you’ve accepted Jesus into your life as your Lord, then live like it inside and out.  How do you do that?  Well, it says…) Let your roots grow down deep into him and DRAW UP nourishment from him so that you will stand strong and vigorous in the truth you were taught.  Let your lives overflow with thanksgiving.” 

So last week I drew this diagram for you:  We begin with CHRIST, who is the Source of everything we need.  For in him we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28).  As we live in Christ, as we have accepted him into our lives and as we live in faithfulness to him, then we root ourselves into the most powerful and most secure and most amazing Source of life possible.  As we GROW DOWN into him, we get rooted into his inexhaustibly awesome power and love. Instead of giving in to all the pressure of our society to grow up and grow up fast through society-pressure, or shortcuts or steroid philosophies, we are to grow down into Christ and find our secure footing in him.  And so as we let our roots grow down, we are then able to DRAW UP nourishment from him.  Another way of saying this is that as we root into Christ, then we are built up by everything he does for us and gives to us.  In this verse, it is not our purpose to grow up and to get established and to become self-sustained and to make a name for ourselves.  No, in this verse, it is our aim to grow down and to get grounded in Christ and to become God-sustained and to make his name known.  This sort of living results in a life of enduring enrichment in everything that God has to offer--- and he has a lot to offer!  And so as we draw up everything we need to live according to God’s desires and plans for us, then we can’t help but to naturally flourish and GO OUT into the world sharing the wonders of what God does.  As we dwell in Christ, he dwells in us and we draw up from him his Spirit and the fullness of all of his characteristics and motivations and that fills us up and compels us to overflow with thanksgiving for all he has done.  This is the model of the life of true faith in Christ.  This is spiritual formation. 

This is the way God intends for us to truly live.  As Colossians 1:27 says, this is the secret to life: That Christ lives in you and this is the assurance that you will share in his glory!  So no matter what you are experiencing in your life, whether it is a season of calm, of excitement, or of storm, you can share in the joy and security and source of life that is found in no one or nothing other than Christ.

rooted faith - grow down (part 4)

Part 4 of the manuscript for "Rooted Faith - Grow Down" (continued from yesterday...):

 As we become rooted more and more in Christ… then we are able to DRAW UP everything we need to truly live. 

 Paul says, let your roots grow down into him and draw up nourishment from him so that you will be built up in faith, strong and vigorous in the truth.  The idea is that as we establish ourselves deeper into Christ, we will grow more mature and confident and assured together as people to face anything that comes our way because our roots, which will have sunk deeper and deeper into Christ, will enable us to draw up everything we need to be built up in stature and wisdom in this life.  Christ will supply all our needs!   As we root our lives purely and wholly and completely and devotedly into Christ, as we continue to live in obedience to him, he will give us the wisdom and the strength and the depth of love that we will need to stand firm and tall in this world no matter what kind of Chinook wind blows against us.

So, let your roots GROW DOWN into him and DRAW UP nourishment from him, so you will grow in faith, strong in the truth your were taught.  As this happens, then, as we grow down and as we see God nourishing us and constantly replenishing our strength, we will begin more and more to overflow in thanksgiving for all he has done.  As our roots grow down, we will draw up from him and then we just seem to naturally  GO OUT from our relationship with Jesus with a life of fruitfulness.  We oxygenate the world.  We pollinate it.  We become fruitful.  And from us goes the seed of the Gospel all over the world.

This is why I want to get in the way of my son growing UP.  Today on his birthday, my prayer is that my son will grow down into Jesus and become the man of God that he was created to be.  As he grows down in Christ, he will draw up nourishment from the Lord of the Universe, and he will be built up and become strong and vigorous in the truth… the Good News about Jesus… and in that strength he will overflow with thanksgiving and everyone around him will be blessed.

There is a prayer in Ephesians 3 that I would like us to make our prayer for each other. Paul prayed this:

“When I think of the wisdom and scope of God’s plan, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth.  I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will give you mighty inner strength through his Holy Spirit.  And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts as you trust in him.  May your roots go down deep into the soil of God’s marvelous love.  And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love really is.  May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so great you will never fully understand it.  Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God.  Now, glory to be to God!  By his mighty power at work within you, he is able to accomplish infinitely more than you would ever dare to ask or hope.  May he be given glory in the church and in Christ Jesus forever and ever, through endless ages.  Amen.

As we move into communion today, we are challenged that now, just as we accepted Christ, we must continue to live in faithfulness to him.  So lets start today by rooting ourselves into him.  So as we take this time together to accept anew, with pure faith, we remember that he has taken the brunt of our sin upon himself and has forgiven us.  And because of that, he reconciles us to God through his death on the cross.  Christ Jesus invites today, to receive him anew and to live faithfully in him in a rooted faith.

 

For the full audio version: 2009-06-07 Rooted Faith - Grow Down - Ken Castor