Pastor Tony Ashmore continues the series "Crazy" with part 2, "Crazy Bout The Word" in this Sunday morning celebration.
Crazy PT2
Pastor Tony Ashmore
Sunday, September 11, 2011
www.mylifegatechurch.com
Sermon Notes:
You might be crazy if…
* Your favorite book and favorite author are the same word: John.
* You have no idea what the hottest new song or band is, you think Beautiful Exchange by Hillsongs is probably #1 on the charts! Your friends think you are out of touch with reality because you don’t keep up with the latest news, fads, events, rumors. They also notice you seem happier all the time too.
* Your kids are complaining about what you will not let them watch on television and roll their eyes when you suggest a movie.
* You and your closest friends get really stoked because the message at church this week was the same thing you have been talking about when you get together. You also might be crazy if some of your “normal” family/friends ask if you can talk about something besides the Word, church, or Jesus. They’ll say it nicely to avoid sounding “anti-Christ” but they are just not into it.
* Your favorite part of a conversation with a friend who is away from God or His church is when they begin to open the door to talking about Christ. You have to exercise extreme self-control because you don’t want to scare the living daylights out of them with your Jesus explosion.
* Somebody’s really ticked at you because you de-friended them on Facebook because their posts were inappropriate. You thought you were hiding their posts when you did it but you did it wrong because you really don’t care that much about learning all the rules of Facebook, you just thought it would be a good way to share God’s Word with others.
* You take the long way to get to the cash register in the convenience store because you have a covenant with your eyes and you will not walk past the girly magazine rack.
* You think it is normal for God to speak to people. You actually hear whispers and recognize His voice. And when you follow those whispers, people’s lives are changed for the better and you know why you are on this planet.
* You have had a rough week, are worn out, feel beat up, but you get up early on Sunday, arrive at church with a smile on your face, put on your Dream Team badge and serve others willingly because you know God loves it when you keep your word no matter how you feel, you know someone’s life will be touched because you served, and because the Word says you will be blessed, encouraged, and empowered when you get together with other Christians at church.
* Your children put being at church on the same level as Chuck E. Cheese.
* You not only know there is a giving kiosk in the foyer, when you first saw it you wanted to be the first to use it. Instead of thinking “Oh another way to get money” you thought “Alright, another way to give!” Your method for deciding how much to give is you and your wife each write down a number and you pick the biggest one.
* You know what SOAP means, you do it everyday, you get together once a week with others to do it, and you think you might start your own SOAP group.
* You would rather pray about it than talk about it. You think good things happen when you take it to the Lord in prayer. People probably think you are too spiritual, they might even think you are a fanatic. But they also know who can touch God when they need it and they will come to you.
* You wear Bibles out using them. You know what a concordance is. Your favorite app is YouVersion and you know your way around BibleGateway.com better than you do around Google.
* You read in the Word that God heals, you believe He still does it, in spite of all the reports that tell you it won’t happen, in spite of all those around you expecting the worst, in spite of all the examples where it looks like it didn’t happen, in spite of all the fears inside of you. You believe it, you speak it, you pray it, and a few weeks ago you walked with your little boy into his first day of preschool—the same little boy who was supposed to die when he was a baby.
Normal people believe in God, but do not believe His Word is divine. Crazy people think the Word is supreme, that it is the actual Word of God and is supposed to preeminent in our lives.
1 Peter 2:9 “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that you should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light”
Hosea 9:7 ‘Because of your great sin and hostility, you say, “The prophets are crazy and the inspired men are fools!”’ Normal folks think it’s fine for pastors and some of the leaders to go wide open after Jesus in their lives and to make the Word the ultimate authority in their lives, but for those of us with ‘real lives’, that’s just crazy.
Crazy Bout Jesus People Love the Word—The Word is a Person (John 1) and their life is built upon and bounded by the Word
* It’s important to get the Word inside me. It permeates me. Changes the way I think, which changes the way I speak, which changes the way I act, which changes the habits I have, which changes the life I live. Romans 12:2 “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”
* The Word defines the boundaries you set in your life—the things you see, the things you’ll do, the things you won’t do. You are teaching your kids how to have a great life by using the Word to set their boundaries, regardless of how it conflicts with the culture. You have lowered your “chance” of bad choices by lowering the number of choices you must make. Psalm 119:105 “Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.”
* The Word opens the door to intimacy with Jesus. It is the beginning of wisdom. Develop a love for the Word, fall in love with the Word, and you will develop a longing for more of Jesus. More of Jesus means less of me. More of Jesus means more of Heaven released into my earth. More of Jesus means more understanding of God’s specific words for me—more of my destiny, more of my purpose, more of the rich and satisfying life Jesus died to give me. Makes me even crazier! Acts 26:19-25 “And so, King Agrippa, I obeyed that vision from heaven…24 Suddenly, Festus shouted, “Paul, you are insane. Too much study has made you crazy!” (MESSAGE: That was too much for Festus. He interrupted with a shout: "Paul, you're crazy! You've read too many books, spent too much time staring off into space! Get a grip on yourself, get back in the real world!") 25 But Paul replied, “I am not insane, Most Excellent Festus. What I am saying is the sober truth—the Word.”
So What/Now What?
Hebrews 9:2-4 “There were two rooms in that Tabernacle. In the first room were a lampstand, a table, and sacred loaves of bread on the table. This room was called the Holy Place. 3 Then there was a curtain, and behind the curtain was the second room called the Most Holy Place. 4 In that room were a gold incense altar and a wooden chest called the Ark of the Covenant…”
3 levels of God’s Presence: 1) omnipresence; 2) inner presence; 3) manifest presence.
(note Hebrews 8:5) The model of Heaven, the Tabernacle, shows us the Presence of God is on and around the Ark of the Covenant—the container of His Word, His laws, His decrees, His ways. Fall in love with God’s Word, get it inside you and all around you. You become an Ark of the Covenant and you will experience His presence in all 3 realms—it will become your “normal”.
* Get in the Word for yourself.
- Get a Bible version you can understand.
- Make reading the Bible a priority. Put it in your daily schedule.
- Start doing SOAP
- Join or start a SOAP group
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Sunday, September 11, 2011
09/05/11 - Harvest PT2 - Pastor Tony Ashmore
Pastor Tony Ashmore continues to teach on "Harvest" in this Wednesday evening celebration.
Harvest PT2
Pastor Tony Ashmore
Wednesday, September 5, 2011
www.mylifegatechurch.com
Harvest PT2
Pastor Tony Ashmore
Wednesday, September 5, 2011
www.mylifegatechurch.com
Monday, September 5, 2011
09/04/11 - Crazy Bout Church - Pastor Tony Ashmore
Pastor Tony Ashmore begins a new series entitled "Crazy" with part 1, "Crazy Bout Church" in this Sunday morning celebration.
Crazy PT1
Pastor Tony Ashmore
Sunday, September 4, 2011
www.mylifegatechurch.com
Sermon Notes:
1 Peter 2:9 “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that you should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light”
Normal people believe in God, but not in His church. Crazy people think the local church is the most powerful place to be on this planet. They think it is the hope of the world. In spite of the press, in spite of the failures, in spite of the mistakes made, they believe the church is making a difference and is still God’s plan for changing the world.
1. 2 Corinthians 5:13-14 “If it seems we are crazy, it is to bring glory to God. And if we are in our right minds, it is for your benefit. Either way, Christ’s love controls us. Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life.” Normal folks believe Christ died for all, but it’s just crazy to believe that should affect every area of our lives and that we should live our lives for others in a way that separates us from all the ‘normal’ folks.
2. Matthew 10:34-40 34 “Don’t imagine that I came to bring peace to the earth! I came not to bring peace, but a sword. 35 ‘I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. 36 Your enemies will be right in your own household!’ 37 “If you love your father or mother more than you love me, you are not worthy of being mine; or if you love your son or daughter more than me, you are not worthy of being mine. 38 If you refuse to take up your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of being mine. 39 If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it.” That’s crazy!
3. Matthew 12:46-50 (Jesus’ family comes to take him away—he’s gone crazy. But he sets out some crazy priorities.)
4. Hosea 9:7 ‘Because of your great sin and hostility, you say, “The prophets are crazy and the inspired men are fools!”’ Normal folks think it’s fine for pastors and some of the leaders to go wide open after Jesus in their lives and to make church a top priority, but for those of us with ‘real lives’, that’s just crazy.
You might be crazy if…
* You think every Christian should be involved in a church.
* You love Sundays because it’s Church Day!
* Your best friends are church people.
* Your job is something you do to make a living, your church and your ministry are what you live for.
* You are late to all the family gatherings and parties because they always do them on Sundays and they all know you’ll be there after church.
* Your facebook looks more like an advertisement for your church than a page in a gossip magazine.
* You get confused when people talk about a dream team and they are not talking about being on a ministry team at church.
* Your idea of a great weekend is staying up all night Friday cooking BBQ so I can spend all day Saturday selling it to make money to give away to needy kids for Christmas, then making sure I get to both celebrations on Sunday so I can talk about how much fun we all had doing that.
* You get extra pumped when it is raining, sleeting, snowing or hailing because you are on the parking lot team at your church and you will really get to serve people today.
* You just finished serving in the Launch nursery, changing diapers, cleaning messes, getting puked on by babies and when you find out a team member for the next celebration has called in sick you excitedly volunteer to do it again—because you love babies, because somebody’s life will be changed because you cared for their child, and because you know Jesus hangs out in the nursery.
* You might be crazy if your priority list sounds something like this: God, Church, Family, Career. It’s Biblical. It was modeled by Jesus, but it’s crazy. All the normal folks will tell you that.
* But when all the normal folks’ normal lives are crashing around them, when their relationships continue to be unstable, when their complicated lives become overwhelming, when their careers, even their family life, is unfulfilling, when all their ‘normal’ answers don’t work, you might be crazy if you are the one they ask to pray, the one they cry with, the one they feel safe telling, “My life is not what I thought life would be.”
5. Acts 26:19-25 “And so, King Agrippa, I obeyed that vision from heaven. 20 I preached first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that all must repent of their sins and turn to God—and prove they have changed by the good things they do. 21 Some Jews arrested me in the Temple for preaching this, and they tried to kill me. 22 But God has protected me right up to this present time so I can testify to everyone, from the least to the greatest. I teach nothing except what the prophets and Moses said would happen—23 that the Messiah would suffer and be the first to rise from the dead, and in this way announce God’s light to Jews and Gentiles alike.” 24 Suddenly, Festus shouted, “Paul, you are insane. Too much study has made you crazy!” (MESSAGE: That was too much for Festus. He interrupted with a shout: "Paul, you're crazy! You've read too many books, spent too much time staring off into space! Get a grip on yourself, get back in the real world!") 25 But Paul replied, “I am not insane, Most Excellent Festus. What I am saying is the sober truth.” Normal folks think it is OK to have a vision from Heaven, even believe we all have a God-given destiny and purpose, but to pursue it with every step and every ounce of your being—that’s just crazy!
So What/Now What?
* Jesus was called crazy, defined as a lunatic. When in fact, He was demonstrating normal—as defined by the God of the Universe, the creator of mankind. We have dumbed down normal. Crazy takes it to an HNL—out of the mire and muck this world describes as normal and up to a high place with a high calling. A place set apart for the set apart, a place on a hill where our light will shine brightly in the darkness instead of being hidden under the cloak of darkness this world, this culture, redefines as light.
* Make a decision to be Crazy.
- Fill your head with Crazy thoughts by learning God’s Word. Start with SOAP.
- Surround yourself with Crazy friends who know the real “High Life”—the one lived with the Most High. Make it a point to find the Divine Flow between you and the people God wants in your life. Arrive at church earlier and stay later. Sit in different places. Actually get up and connect during connection times. Go to the information center and find out about a dinner group or one of our connect groups. Go to lunch today with someone the Lord leads you to.
- Connect to your church on a deeper level. Commit to become a member. Go to Next Step. Join the Dream Team and find your place in ministry. Begin living for something bigger than you, your career, your family and, like Debbie and Jody Rollins or Shannon and Angie Agan, find out how every area of your life and your dreams are found and enriched in being Crazy bout God and Crazy bout His Church!
Crazy PT1
Pastor Tony Ashmore
Sunday, September 4, 2011
www.mylifegatechurch.com
Sermon Notes:
1 Peter 2:9 “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that you should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light”
Normal people believe in God, but not in His church. Crazy people think the local church is the most powerful place to be on this planet. They think it is the hope of the world. In spite of the press, in spite of the failures, in spite of the mistakes made, they believe the church is making a difference and is still God’s plan for changing the world.
1. 2 Corinthians 5:13-14 “If it seems we are crazy, it is to bring glory to God. And if we are in our right minds, it is for your benefit. Either way, Christ’s love controls us. Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life.” Normal folks believe Christ died for all, but it’s just crazy to believe that should affect every area of our lives and that we should live our lives for others in a way that separates us from all the ‘normal’ folks.
2. Matthew 10:34-40 34 “Don’t imagine that I came to bring peace to the earth! I came not to bring peace, but a sword. 35 ‘I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. 36 Your enemies will be right in your own household!’ 37 “If you love your father or mother more than you love me, you are not worthy of being mine; or if you love your son or daughter more than me, you are not worthy of being mine. 38 If you refuse to take up your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of being mine. 39 If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it.” That’s crazy!
3. Matthew 12:46-50 (Jesus’ family comes to take him away—he’s gone crazy. But he sets out some crazy priorities.)
4. Hosea 9:7 ‘Because of your great sin and hostility, you say, “The prophets are crazy and the inspired men are fools!”’ Normal folks think it’s fine for pastors and some of the leaders to go wide open after Jesus in their lives and to make church a top priority, but for those of us with ‘real lives’, that’s just crazy.
You might be crazy if…
* You think every Christian should be involved in a church.
* You love Sundays because it’s Church Day!
* Your best friends are church people.
* Your job is something you do to make a living, your church and your ministry are what you live for.
* You are late to all the family gatherings and parties because they always do them on Sundays and they all know you’ll be there after church.
* Your facebook looks more like an advertisement for your church than a page in a gossip magazine.
* You get confused when people talk about a dream team and they are not talking about being on a ministry team at church.
* Your idea of a great weekend is staying up all night Friday cooking BBQ so I can spend all day Saturday selling it to make money to give away to needy kids for Christmas, then making sure I get to both celebrations on Sunday so I can talk about how much fun we all had doing that.
* You get extra pumped when it is raining, sleeting, snowing or hailing because you are on the parking lot team at your church and you will really get to serve people today.
* You just finished serving in the Launch nursery, changing diapers, cleaning messes, getting puked on by babies and when you find out a team member for the next celebration has called in sick you excitedly volunteer to do it again—because you love babies, because somebody’s life will be changed because you cared for their child, and because you know Jesus hangs out in the nursery.
* You might be crazy if your priority list sounds something like this: God, Church, Family, Career. It’s Biblical. It was modeled by Jesus, but it’s crazy. All the normal folks will tell you that.
* But when all the normal folks’ normal lives are crashing around them, when their relationships continue to be unstable, when their complicated lives become overwhelming, when their careers, even their family life, is unfulfilling, when all their ‘normal’ answers don’t work, you might be crazy if you are the one they ask to pray, the one they cry with, the one they feel safe telling, “My life is not what I thought life would be.”
5. Acts 26:19-25 “And so, King Agrippa, I obeyed that vision from heaven. 20 I preached first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that all must repent of their sins and turn to God—and prove they have changed by the good things they do. 21 Some Jews arrested me in the Temple for preaching this, and they tried to kill me. 22 But God has protected me right up to this present time so I can testify to everyone, from the least to the greatest. I teach nothing except what the prophets and Moses said would happen—23 that the Messiah would suffer and be the first to rise from the dead, and in this way announce God’s light to Jews and Gentiles alike.” 24 Suddenly, Festus shouted, “Paul, you are insane. Too much study has made you crazy!” (MESSAGE: That was too much for Festus. He interrupted with a shout: "Paul, you're crazy! You've read too many books, spent too much time staring off into space! Get a grip on yourself, get back in the real world!") 25 But Paul replied, “I am not insane, Most Excellent Festus. What I am saying is the sober truth.” Normal folks think it is OK to have a vision from Heaven, even believe we all have a God-given destiny and purpose, but to pursue it with every step and every ounce of your being—that’s just crazy!
So What/Now What?
* Jesus was called crazy, defined as a lunatic. When in fact, He was demonstrating normal—as defined by the God of the Universe, the creator of mankind. We have dumbed down normal. Crazy takes it to an HNL—out of the mire and muck this world describes as normal and up to a high place with a high calling. A place set apart for the set apart, a place on a hill where our light will shine brightly in the darkness instead of being hidden under the cloak of darkness this world, this culture, redefines as light.
* Make a decision to be Crazy.
- Fill your head with Crazy thoughts by learning God’s Word. Start with SOAP.
- Surround yourself with Crazy friends who know the real “High Life”—the one lived with the Most High. Make it a point to find the Divine Flow between you and the people God wants in your life. Arrive at church earlier and stay later. Sit in different places. Actually get up and connect during connection times. Go to the information center and find out about a dinner group or one of our connect groups. Go to lunch today with someone the Lord leads you to.
- Connect to your church on a deeper level. Commit to become a member. Go to Next Step. Join the Dream Team and find your place in ministry. Begin living for something bigger than you, your career, your family and, like Debbie and Jody Rollins or Shannon and Angie Agan, find out how every area of your life and your dreams are found and enriched in being Crazy bout God and Crazy bout His Church!
08/31/11 - Harvest - Pastor Tony Ashmore
Pastor Tony Ashmore teaches on "Harvest" in this Wednesday evening celebration.
Harvest
Pastor Tony Ashmore
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
www.mylifegatechurch.com
Harvest
Pastor Tony Ashmore
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
www.mylifegatechurch.com
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