Pastor Jonathan Burgess
February 1, 2015 - W1505

Today, we are going to ask ourselves the question “What is Jesus Doing?”, and we will reflect on what it means to follow Jesus. Sometimes we may question ourselves as to whether we like what Jesus is doing; however, we don’t get to veto Jesus simply because we don’t like what He is doing. That’s the thing about being a reflection of Jesus; we don’t get to change the image.

 Sometimes following Jesus can be frustrating, because we may put things in the wrong order when we assume that we are following Him. The Bible says, “Then Jesus went to work on His disciples. ‘Anyone who intends to come with Me has to let Me lead. You’re not in the driver’s seat; I am. Don’t run from suffering; embrace it. Follow Me and I’ll show you how. …Self-sacrifice is the way…” (Mathew 16:24-25 MSG)

 Look at this 1960’s advertisement which shows a VW bus having nine back seat drivers. Let’s admit it, some of us have our professional back seat driver’s license. We are good at letting Jesus steer the wheel if it’s about going to Heaven, but when we get frustrated, we may choose to steer from the back.

 Maybe you are frustrated because things are not working out in your efforts to follow Jesus. Don’t be discouraged, Jesus wants you on His team.

 Being a Sea Hawks football fan, I read an article about the insane stuff that their fans do. One guy has 60 different jerseys, and depending on whether the offense or defense is doing well, he would run into a room and change jerseys. He would leave the jersey on if his team was doing well, and he would change jerseys if they were not.   Another lady rubbed her special football beads, and said her team had lost when they broke. Before the season even started, a guy got a permanent tattoo of the Super Bowl champions on his arm.

 Sometimes we can put more faith in silly things like this than in Jesus, because it makes us feel in control; however, Jesus is actually “in” control of everything. What would happen if we put that same kind of faith in Jesus?

 God is going to lead us into faith, and it is going to start by understanding three things.

1. Following Jesus is not done in a VACUUM!

Sometimes we may have a hard time understanding what Jesus is doing in our life, because we are trying to figure it out by ourselves; however, there is safety in a multitude of counselors.

Famous author Ken Blanchard said, “None of us is as smart as all of us.”

 A year ago, Pastor Wayne asked Dan Shima and me, to pray with him for the right minister to go to Kona and lead the newly established New Hope church. At that time, Pastor Wayne did not know that I had a strong bond with Kona. This was because I had lived there for five years when I was a keiki, and because I was baptized in Kona 30 years ago by my father.

 Find a small group where you can discern things like this together, instead of by yourself.

 Let’s look at how the apostles followed Jesus when they were experiencing conflicts during the birth of a church. “We understand that some men from here have troubled you and upset you with their teaching, but they had no such instructions from us. So it seemed good us, having unanimously agreed on our decision, to send you these official representatives, along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, who have risked their lives for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ. So we are sending Judas and Silas to tell you what we have decided concerning your question. For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay no greater burden on you than these requirements: You must abstain from eating food offered to idols, from consuming blood or eating the meat of strangled animals, and from sexual immorality. If you do this, you will do well. Farewell.”(Acts 15:24-29 NLT)

 The Jewish Christians and those following the Apostle Paul were trying to decide what to do about the Gentile Christians, so they collaborated in their decision making. When you invite other people to pray with you about a decision, they are able to look at your decision from different angles.

 In Acts 15:7-11 Peter talked about the past acts of God. Paul and Barnabas talked about what God was doing in the present, and James referred to what scriptures said in Acts 15: 13-21. Someone was talking about the past acts of God. Someone was talking about the present acts of God, and someone made sure what was said, lined up with scripture.

 The question “What is Jesus doing?” is not a formula, it is an invitation to a relationship. Sometimes we must choose …

• Inventing a FORMULA vs invitation to FRIENDSHIP.

Pastor Richard has talked about small groups and how we are greater together. We are being invited to live our lives vertically by strengthening our relationship with Jesus, and horizontally by strengthening our relationship with others. By doing this, none of us will need to make important decisions on our own.

We all need to be in a small group, because none of us can do life alone. We need a few people in your lives who will catch us, and keep us from floating away. This is not optional.

When you follow Jesus and ask the question “What is Jesus doing?” you have to do it with a group.

2. Following Jesus is not a SCIENCE!       

If following Jesus was a scientific formula such as A + B = C, that would be great. I go to church on Sunday. I go to small group on Wednesday. Therefore, I immediately understand the divine will of God. This is not so. It is actually A + B = SEEK ME.

Jesus is inviting us to a relationship with Him and to seek His will.

Just because we can do something good for God, does not mean that God is in it, or that it is the right time to do it.

Sometimes following Jesus means laying down the good things that we want to do for Him, and instead do the great things that He is calling us to do. Let us refer to scripture to explain this. “Next Paul and Silas traveled through the area of Phrygia and Galatia, because the Holy Spirit had told them not to go into the province of Asia at that time. Then coming to the borders of Mysia, they headed for the province of Bithynia, but again the Spirit of Jesus did not let them go. So instead, they went on through Mysia to the city of Troas. That night Paul had a vision. He saw a man from Macedonia in northern Greece, pleading with him, ‘Come over here and help us.’ So we decided to leave for Macedonia at once, for we could only conclude that God was calling us to preach the Good News there.” (Acts 16:6-10 NLT)

Paul was going to Mysia, and Bithynia to plant a church, but for some reason, God told him it was not the right time. Paul traveled 200 + miles to plant a church, but the Holy Spirit forbid him to. He then traveled another 200 + miles, but Jesus did not allow him to go into Bithynia nor into Mysia. Waiting at Troas, Paul now received the vision to travel 70 miles by sea to bring the gospel from Asia to Europe.

Sometimes when asking the question “What is Jesus doing now?” we have to choose …

• Impeccable planning vs immediacy of His presence.

His presence is more important than our own planning. When my family first came to Oahu to train with Pastor Wayne, I pleaded with God to let me stay here; however God told me no, and to go to Seattle. Recently, God opened the door for me to return, and this past summer I got to baptize my son in the waters off Kona – just like I had been baptized by my father, 30 years ago.

Even if you are doing great things for God, He wants you to know that there is a difference between working for Him and working with Him.

3. Following Jesus is not about my CONVENIENCE.

When Paul went on a ship to Macedonia it was extremely dangerous because many people would die from diseases or from storms that hammered their ship. However, Paul valued God’s presence. Look what happened because of Paul’s obedience. “We boarded a boat at Troas and sailed straight across to the island of Samothrace, and the next day we landed at Neapolis. From there we reached Philippi, a major city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony; we stayed there several days. On the Sabbath we went a little way outside the city to a riverbank, where we supposed that some people met for prayer, and we sat down to speak with some women who had come together. One of them was Lydia from Thyatira, a merchant of expensive purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. As she listened to us, the Lord opened her heart, and she accepted what Paul was saying. She was baptized along with other members of her household, and she asked us to be her guests. ‘If you agree that I am faithful to the Lord,’ she said, ‘come and stay at my home.’ And she urged us until we did.” (Acts 16:11-15 NLT)

Paul did not understand why God instructed him to do these things. Sometimes obedience comes without an explanation.   Sometimes I have to choose …

• Insisting my good INTENTIONS vs inviting His INTERRUPTIONS.

The road to Heaven is paved with Christ’s interruptions. Invite His interruptions into your life, and you will find God’s instructions for what He is calling you to do.

Last year my son got tired of playing football, because it took up all of his spare time; however his coach sought him out and asked him to play. Well, he agreed, and it was the best season of his life. During Super Bowl season, and during half-time, he got to play with his team in a scrimmage on Century Link Field. This allowed him to mingle with football hero players like Wilson and Lynch. He also got a signed certificate from Coach Peter Carroll, congratulating Elijah for being a part of their Super Bowl season.

Sometimes we must move from being a fan to being a follower. Jesus is seeking us out and handing you a jersey. He wants you on the field with Him, not observing passively at a distance.

Questions:

• Why does Jesus’s presence override our planning?
• Why are we less effective alone versus being in a small group?
• Discuss and pray about what we will do on the field with Him in 2015.