Wired for Worship I. Jesus Instructs on little Children Mark 10:13-16 II. The Immeasurable Value of a Child Psalms 139:13-16

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1 Cross Creek Community Church, Pastor Dave Martin April 19, 2015 Wired for Worship Baby Dedication 30-Day Challenge, Acts 2:42-47, Heb 10:24-25, Rom12:1 I. Jesus Instructs on little Children Mark 10: People were bringing little children to Jesus to have him touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. 14 When Jesus saw this, he was indignant [much displeased a very strong emotional reaction]. He said to them, "Let [sharp dbl command, start allowing] the little children come to me, and do not hinder them [stop preventing a rebuke], for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. 15 I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." 16 And he took the children in his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them. Jesus welcomed children Child-like trust and dependence Kingdom of God is by simple trust Blessed only place in N.T Emphasizes a warmhearted fervor as Jesus blesses each child II. The Immeasurable Value of a Child Psalms 139: For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. 14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 15 My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, 16 your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. Life begins at conception Precious Unique, one of a kind, eternal God sovereignly oversees III. Parental Involvement is Vital Proverbs 22:6 Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it. Train setting aside, narrowing, hedging in Child s conduct away from evil & toward godliness To dedicate the child to God to prepare the child for future responsibilities Your responsibility In partnership with relatives/church family BUILD the RELATIONSHIP! Newspaper columnist Abigail Van Buren has composed a "Parent's Prayer" in which she stresses the practical side of raising children. Says "Dear Abby": "Oh, heavenly Father, make me a better parent. Teach me to understand my children, to listen patiently to what they have to say, and to answer all their questions kindly. Keep me from interrupting them or contradicting them. Make me as courteous to them as I would have them be to me. Forbid that I should ever laugh at their mistakes, or resort to shame or ridicule when they displease me. May I never punish them for my own selfish satisfaction or to show my power. "Let me not tempt my child to lie or steal. And guide me hour by hour that I may demonstrate by all I say and do that honesty produces happiness. "Reduce, I pray, the meanness in me. And when I am out of sorts, help me, O Lord, to hold my tongue. "May I ever be mindful that my children are children and I should not expect of them the judgment of adults. "Let me not rob them of the opportunity to wait on themselves and to make decisions. "Bless me with the bigness to grant them all their reasonable requests, and the courage to deny them privileges I know will do them harm. "Make me fair and just and kind. And fit me, Oh Lord, to be loved and respected and imitated by my children. Amen." Pastor's Manual, Encyclopedia of 15,000 Illustrations: Signs of the Times.

2 Dedication Service, 2 nd service At this time, would the parents, their newest addition and other children in their family come forward... <Families will enter through the rear of the stage > I would like to recognize the grandparents of these precious children Would the grandparents also please stand. "Standing before us are three generations. Seeing this brings to mind Proverbs 17:6 which tells us that 'Grandchildren are a crown to the aged, and parents are the pride of children.' Thank You. Service of Dedication: Children are a gift from God. Psalm 127:3 proclaims that "Sons are a heritage from the Lord, children a reward from Him." As Christian believers we are called to recognize that children belong first and foremost to God. God in his goodness gives children as gifts to parents each one uniquely hand crafted by our Creator. Parents not only have the awesome responsibility of caring for this gift, but also the wonderful privilege of enjoying the gift. Because children belong to God and are given by His grace as gifts to parents, it is only proper and appropriate that children be dedicated back to God. We are told in 1 Samuel 1 that Hannah presented her son Samuel to the Lord. In Luke 2:22 we read that Mary and Joseph brought their baby Jesus to the temple in Jerusalem in order to present him before the Lord. In the same way, these parents bring their children, presenting first themselves and then their child / children before the Lord our God. Parents, I call your attention to the commands of God recorded in Deuteronomy 6:4-7 that tell us: "Hear O Israel: The Lord our God is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on their children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up." Parents are commanded to First Love God & be the example and Second Properly train your children Ephesians 6:4 says: "fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord." God's instructions are plain. Parents, I encourage you to love God with every ounce and fiber of your being and teach your children to do the same. As you love God and one another, you will model before your children a wonderful love for God that they will want for themselves By coming forward before God and his people, do you hereby declare your desire to dedicate yourselves, your child and your entire family to the Lord? If so, please respond by saying "We Do." Having come freely, I ask that you enter into the following commitment in the presence of God and his people. So that your child may walk in the abundant life that Christ offers, do you vow by God's help and in partnership with your family and the church, to provide your children a Christian home of love and peace, to raise them in the truth of our Lord's instruction and discipline, and to encourage them to one day trust Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and Lord? If so, please respond by saying "We Do." Finally, I ask that the grandparents, family members and this church family make a vow as well. I ask that you make the following commitment to those who stand before you: So that these children may walk in the abundant life that Christ offers, do you vow by God's help, to be faithful in your calling as members of the body of Christ, to help these parents be faithful to God, and to help teach and train their children in the ways of the Lord so that they might one day trust him as Savior and Lord? If you accept this responsibility, please respond by saying "We Do." Prayer of Dedication A bouquet of flowers given to the moms as they leave, each family given a gift

3 We have learned the power of a challenge We are learning the five purposes of church Taking big steps in our spiritual development toward reaching our God-given potential Last week we learning the importance of Authentic Community doing life together Encourage you to sign-up and become a host home and facilitate a LIFE group I will also be starting a new series Wednesday April 29 th called Heart to Heart Going into various topics First topic will be Heaven then the underworld Hell then we ll be covering topics such as SEX, abortion, homosexuality, even politics Hot relevant subjects Connecting in smaller groups So what were the five keys the early church did that radically changed the world for Christ? 30-Day Challenge Cultivate authentic community Today Experience worship as part of your daily lifestyle Take successive steps of spiritual growth Practice personal stewardship Reach out to the world around us Church was birthed at Pentecost, Peter preaches first sermon and 3,000 souls saved We read Acts 2: They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. Early church practiced authentic community they also were committed to a lifestyle of worship Members of the early church devoted themselves to Apostles teaching, fellowship, prayer and result was passionate worship, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people WORSHIP! (180 times) 1. We were wired for Worship (In Heaven: Rev 4:8-14, 5:11-14, 7:9-12) John 4:24 24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth." [To adore from heart] God is spirit We are created in God s image, we too have a spirit to know & worship God Our Lord Jesus tells us those who know and worship God must do so in spirit and in truth We are told in Rev 22:9 Worship God Love Him supremely He is worthy great worth In fact all creatures in all creation will worship Him Philippians 2: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Glory Worship Praise! Revelation 4:11 11 "You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being." The four living creatures & 24 elders worshipping the One on the throne Creator, sustainer Revelation 7: After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count 11 All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying: "Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!" Great multitude saints, all the angels, 24 elders, four living creatures fell down & worship God Now and throughout eternity Worship Him in spirit and truth How you doing?

4 Illustration of my Samsung Galaxy Note 3 cell phone I use it everyday for a lot of things phone calls, texting, calendar events, , weather, GPS, taking notes, pictures Every time it performs a task it reflects well on Samsung That s what great creations do, they reflect well on their makers That s what worship is reflecting well or giving glory to your maker/creator Like a cell phone was wired for communications we are wired for worship So we gather 2. God s will is for us to gather weekly Hebrews 10: And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching. [Return of Christ] God tells us it s good for us to meet together so that we can spur one another on toward love & good deeds Purpose for sermons every week Teach & build the habit of meeting together Phrase meeting together is episunagogen from two words, epi = in or upon and sunagogen which sounds a lot like a Jewish word, synagogue or for us, the church Something about gathering together on the Lord s day A place to grow and learn and worship This is God s perfect will A positive good habit to build into our lives Example to our children Our lives are a non-stop blitz of messages and inputs Books, magazines, television shows, radio, surfing web, smart phones, exercising, chores around the house, shopping The video recorder of our memories is always running and always storing what we see/hear/experience On top of that, in the 1970s the average American experienced about five hundred ads a day telling us what we deserved and what we should want. Today, along with old-school outlets like television, magazines, billboards, and radio, are website banner ads and cell phone ads from Facebook, Google, Pinterest, Groupon, and so on. So that number has accelerated to five thousand ads a day that are saying, Buy me, try me, taste me, wear me, or put me in your hair. Our eyeports and earports and the brain absorb them all, causing us to view God, people, and the world around us with distorted lenses. So where does that get corrected? Where do you go to be reminded that you re not necessarily the center of the universe... that the one with the most toys doesn t necessarily win... or that the things you buy, try, taste and wear aren t going to make you happy over the long haul? The answer is church, where truth is taught from God s source of truth: the Bible. In church you hear a message that reminds you that this world doesn t revolve around you. In church you hear that this is your Father s world. He made it. In church the songs, the message, and the people you hang out with remind you that despite how you ve seen people treated all week, people matter to God and ought to be treated with love, respect and dignity. At church, you re reminded that you are significant and treasured and that God has good plans for you. Church reminds you that God has a purpose for every person in this world. It reminds you that He wants you to serve and contribute, and that character matters and the Lord wants you to act with integrity, honesty, justice, love, joy, peace, and patience. In my humble opinion, the most important decision you make every week is the decision to come to church because at church you get the interior of your soul reset. Your priorities are repositioned and your sense of what s true can be retuned to what s really right and excellent and worthwhile for your life So the challenge this week is to commit to coming to weekly worship 3. Worship is something you do (It s a verb active not passive) Romans 12:1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship.

5 Listen to this verse in the Message paraphrase: Romans 12:1 So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. You were wired for worship and for episunagoging Rom 12:1 is like the hinge point of Romans For the first twelve chapters of Romans, the Apostle Paul describes all that God has done for us: how we weren t doing all that well as sinners and God sent His son, Jesus, to come and deliver us. Romans 3 says that salvation through Christ is a free gift; Romans 4 says you can receive this gift by faith; and Romans 5 7 describes the freedom you experience once you ve become part of God s family. For eleven and a half chapters, Paul expresses the amazing things God does for His followers. Then, in 11:36 he describes who God is. He says, Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments and his paths beyond tracing out! Then, in chapter 12, he says this: [read verse 1]. Paul is saying, Based on all the mercy God has poured out on you, and because of who He is and what He s done, there is only one logical response. The Greek word for spiritual or reasonable there at the end of the verse is logiken ( low-geek-en ) Want to try that one? Say: logiken. ( Logiken. ) Logiken is where we get our word, logical from. Lo-geek... logic hear the similarities? Paul is saying, In view of all that God is, and everything God has done for you, your logical response is to worship Him. And the way you worship Him is to present your body as a living sacrifice to God. Back in Paul s day, the Jews still worshiped God by bringing a bull, a ram, or a lamb to the altar in the Temple in Jerusalem; slit its throat; and then place its body on the altar as a sacrifice. The difference for us is instead of being a dead sacrifice, our logical response to all that God has done for us is to become living sacrifices. We are walking-around sacrifices that give God honor all day long. Some people think that worship only takes place in church on Sundays. Sunday worship is incredibly important, but from God s perspective, worship is more than that. Worship is something you do, action Like your smart phone gives the manufacturer the glory by what it does you give God glory by doing everything you do well. Worship as you re doing the dishes. Mowing lawn, working for my boss Realize it s my attitude while serving can please or displease God and I want to please God. Tomorrow morning, when you get up, you can give God glory by saying, Thank you, Lord, that I get to live another day. When you get in your car, you can give God glory by how you drive to work, and the attitude you maintain toward the drivers around you. When the car next to you cuts you off, well, you can choose to give God glory or not. At work, you can give God glory by working hard, or you can drain a little glory by slacking off and doing shoddy work If you re a student, you can give God glory by the way you treat your teacher and the way you attack your homework. Or you can kind of crawl off the altar of worship with an attitude and do your own thing. If you re in sports or an extra-curricular activity, your intensity and teachability there can be either an act of worship, or not. Colossians 3:23 says, Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as if you were working for the Lord and not for a person. That s worship. Parents, investing in your kids, raising them well, loving them, teaching them truth, reading to them Bible stories, exposing them to things they might excel at, setting boundaries, proper discipline, and helping them sort out what they might like and be good at can all be acts of worship. NOW WHAT? Be sure you are saved, then be baptized! Signup sheet in welcome center Be experiencing a life of connected worship! Signup to be a host for LIFE group Be keeping your spiritual tanks full for those around you! Your children need you mom/dad Let s Pray