Praise me the Most High God, with all of your body,soul,mind,strength and memory. Tell of my wonders. Be glad and rejoice and sing praise to my name.

Yor enemy has been turned back by the cross. He and his companions stumble and perish before you for I have judged righteously and have sat down on my throne.

I,The Lord Jesus Christ, reign forever. I judge the world in righteousness and govern the nations with justice. I am a refuge for you when you are oppressed and a stronghold in times of attack. If know my name and trust in me and seek my face you will never be forsaken.

Sing praise to me. Proclaim among the nations what I have done.

Jim will be leading a 6 week series on worship at Victory Baptist Church on Wednesday nights beginning October 20th at 6:00 pm.

In the early church it was all about following Jesus. Today the church is consumed with leadership training,leadership seminars,leadership books and talking heads talking about leadership. But not one time in the ministry of Jesus did he call his disciples to be great leaders. Not once did he submit a list of 21 leadership traits that qualified them to be his next generation leaders. As a matter of fact most of the disciples would not pass the leadership expectations that we find in the leadership training manuals of today.However, they excelled at following the example of Jesus while he was with them. Jesus never said follow me and I will make you great leaders. Instead, he said follow me and I will make you followers of my Father in heaven. John 13:15

When was the last time you heard a pastor or another religious leader call for more followship training? How many books have you read on being a great follower? Do you know of any followship institutes? Or is there a school of followship at a university near you?

The early church followed Jesus. Where he went they went. How did they know where he was going? They stayed close to him when he was going somewhere. They looked for the signs that marked his presence. Things like miracles,signs,wonders,healings,deliverance,etc. Or more obscure signs like people asking questions about life. Leadership training won’t prepare you to answer those questions. Only being with Jesus prepares you to answer the hard questions of life.

So how do we follow him today? We look where he is demonstrating his love. He is at work every day in everyones life trying to convince them of his love for them and he often asks us to join him in his work. The more we follow him the more accurate we become at pouring out his love to others.

Jesus is the greatest follower ever. He did all that the Father asked him to say and do. He is our example of  a perfect follower.He is worthy of us becoming great followers.  John 5:19,6:38,7:16,8:28,12:49-50,14:31

(I do think leadership training is important but not at the expense of learning to follow Jesus)

Jesus is worthy of an attractive church. My tomato plants grew to be 11 feet tall this year. I have never seen them so tall. They had abundunt fruit that was both beautiful to look at and delicious. They were very attractive because they were healthy and colorful. I don’t know why they grew so tall. I did the same thing this year that I had done in previous years. You know, water and fertilizer. For some reason they decided that this was their year to shine.

But what about his church. Have we grown to new heights this year ? Have we produced the fruit we were designed to produce? Are we attractive to the hungry world or do we so resemble the world that there is nothing that makes us shine in the darkness. Have our bright reds and yellows faded into grays that are attractive to no one ?

Jesus said that it was for his father’s honor that we produce the fruit we were originally designed to produce and in the process we prove we are the disciples of Jesus. John 15:8  LGV    He is saying that we are our most attractive when we are producing fruit. Fruit that will last.

Jesus is worthy of an authentic church. As followers of Jesus we should be who we say we are. We have made it so easy today to call ourselves christians. We have lowered our expectations of what it means to carry the name Jesus in our hearts. We answer the telephone poll by saying we are believers but would never tell our co-workers or class mates.

Several years agoI had a conversation with a leadership team about a key worker in the church. It seems that he was tearing his family apart and had ruined his reputation in the business world. I asked why he was still in a leadership role and not being restored. The reply; “what he does in his personal life and business life does not impact what he does here at the church. They are two seperate things”.

Not true ! Being an authentic church means that we obey the teachings of Jesus 24/7. The reason the world calls christians hypocrites is because many are. We treat our neighbors like dirt and we curse the slow car in front of us. Yes, we all make mistakes. But Jesus expects more from those who claim to follow his teachings. The problem is that we don’t expect the same things of ourselves that Jesus expects of us. And I am not talking about living in sackcloth and ashes or being a legalist. He is looking for an authentic church(all christians) and authentic congregations (local gatherings).He expects us to be the “de-light” of the world and the salt of the earth. Not pious religious Pharisees or spiritual phonies. The time has come to revisit HIS expectations and submit to HIS plan for HIS followers. Not manmade rules but Spirit-filled, Spirit led expressions of  Jesus to the world around us.

“There was a time when you did not know Jesus,but now you know him. Live like you do”. Ephesians 5:8  LGV

Jesus is worthy of an intentional church. Jesus expects his followers to do what he did. That is a great expectation ! In John 14:12 Jesus said that his followers would do what he did and then some if they had faith. And in Matthew 25:35 -36 Jesus said that when he was hungry someone gave him something to eat and drink as well as clothes to wear.

The church that honors the name of Jesus is the church that is intentional about being the church to the people in the shadow of its steeple(big gathering). Or in the shadow of its own front porch(your neighbors). Jesus is worthy of each of us who carry his name in our heart to also carry his name on our hands. And we don’t need a committee to tell us how and what to do. It’s simple: If YOU see someone who is hungry then YOU feed them. Don’t call the deacons or the elders or the benevolence committee. Get them some food ! Be intentional !

God is at work every day pouring his love out to his creation. And he uses us to accomplish that task. I call that a TAG. Everyone you see each day is a target of God’s love. Your child, your spouse, your friend,your enemy,your neighbor or your classmates and co-workers are all targets of God’s love. He does not withhold his love from anyone.

There are times though that he is unable to get the message of his love to the people you see each day. So, you get tagged to help. It is as if God is saying,”hey, Jim, I have been trying to get my message of  love to your co-worker over there but he just isn’t listening. So I’m asking you to help. Here is what I want you to say.”

So how do you know if you have been tagged ? Usually it comes in the form of a request from the person God is working on. They may ask you to pray for them. Or they may make a statement about God that you know is not true. They make ask your opinion about a crises in their life. Or they may ask you for help. If you see an opportunity to be Jesus with flesh on then consider yourself tagged.

People everywhere need to see the love of God demonstrated in a practical way by real people living real lives. Be on the lookout today for God’s tag.    2Cor. 5:20

God is at work in everyones life everyday trying to convince them how much he loves them. Every morning when you look in the mirror you can tell yourself that God is already at work pouring his love into your heart. While you were sleeping he was speaking to your spirit through dreams. When you awaken he is speaking your love language through his creation. And if you sit still for just a moment you will hear his quiet voice speak to your heart before you begin your busy day.

Why does he send his love every day ? Because he is our Creator. And, as Creator, he desires to make sure we understand who he is and how much he loves us. It is important for us to know that our Creator cares for us. God designed us with the need to know that someone, somewhere, loves us. And our Creator is willing to fill that need every day.  John 3:16

Jesus is worthy, praise him. Praise the name of Jesus. Praise him all of you who profess that he is your savior. Praise him all of you when you gather together for your meetings. Praise him for he is good. Praise him for he finds our praise pleasant. For the Lord has choosen each of you to be his own, his own treasured possession.

Jesus is great, greater than all other gods. He does what pleases him whether in heaven, or on the earth, or in the depths of the seas, or in your life. Praise the name of the Lord.   lgv

  Jesus, here I am. I trust  you. But  I  am really having a hard time with a few people right now. Tell me how to pray for them. For I know that you had to deal with people who gave you a hard time. I know that there is no shame to those who respond in love. But sometimes I just do not want to. Sometimes I want people to suffer for what they did.

Show me how you did it Jesus. I want to learn from you. Reveal to me the truth about you, myself and others around me. I have put my trust in you as my Lord and Savior and will hope in you every day.  lgv