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This Is That

Reflecting on Acts 2:14-41

Peter stood up.

The same Peter who once sank into the waves.
Who denied the Christ by a flickering fire.
Who ran when the sky turned dark and the veil tore in two.

That Peter.

He stands up now…not just in courage, but in Spirit.

Because something has shifted.
Something new has broken in.
Something ancient and future, mysterious and real.
Something that makes people stop and ask,
“What does this mean?”

You see, they were trying to make sense of the wind.
The fire.
The languages.
The presence.

So Peter gives them language for the new world being born.

“This… is that.”
That prophecy from Joel, the one about sons and daughters prophesying,
about visions and voices and a Spirit poured out on all flesh?

This is that.

This is the fulfillment not of fear, but of promise.
Not of hierarchy, but of invitation.
Not of judgment, but of awakening.

Peter preaches a sermon soaked in Scripture,
but not to prove a point…
to open their eyes.

He walks them through David, through resurrection, through Jesus…
the one they saw, the one they rejected,
and the one God raised.

And the crowd…
they get it.

They are cut to the heart.
Not in shame. Not in guilt.
But in holy recognition.
Something has broken in, and it is bigger than them.
Wider than their categories.
Fuller than their control.

So they ask the only thing left to ask:

“What shall we do?”

And Peter, once a denier, now a proclaimer, answers with the clarity of someone who’s walked through fire:

Repent.
Not just “say sorry.”
Turn around.
Change your mind.
Step out of the old narrative.
Step into this new kingdom where everyone has a voice,
where the Spirit speaks in every language,
where the curtain is torn and the invitation is wide.

Be baptized.
Sink into death so you can rise in life.

And receive the gift.
Not earn.
Not achieve.
Receive.

Because this promise?
It’s for you.
For your children.
For the ones you think are far off.

For everyone who hears the whisper:
This is for you too.

And that day…
Three thousand said yes.
Three thousand entered the new world.
Three thousand were swept up in the Spirit’s river,
flowing not from a temple,
but from people.

So maybe the question today isn’t just, “What happened then?”

Maybe the real question is:
What’s happening now?

Because the Spirit still comes in fire.
Still speaks in surprise.
Still invites the least likely to stand up and speak out.

And maybe…just maybe…this is still that.

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2011 Challenge

Slide1

Alignment and Illumination…being and doing…both are necessary, but there is a vast difference in the outcomes depending on which flows from which…

When doing comes first, ego is inflated and legalism is born. Your God experience is based on "shoulds" and the net result is a religous organizational experience that is lacking spiritual power.

When our doing flows from our purposeful decision to "be" with God, the result is a faith-empowered God-infused organic journey with Trinity that is fresh, alive, and allows the light or presence of God within us to illuminate out of us…Christ is still incarnating in His people as we spend time with Him.

So, we align our hearts, minds and bodies with God through His Word, and through time with Him…this is the being side of things…Now, we have so much more to offer than merely ourselves or our good intentions, we have Christ infused into all that we are and all that we do…this turns every moment into a sacred moment and illumination for ourselves and those around us happens…this is the doing side of things.

There are two parts to the 2011 challenge, a being part and a doing part.

Being:

Spend 20 minutes of "God-talk" time every day at 11:00. It can be 11:00 a.m, or p.m, whatever works for you. When 11:00 rolls around, stop what you are doing, and spend some time just "being" with God…talk to Him, pray for others, ask Him to reveal more and more of who He is to you…allow Him to refresh and renew your tired soul…or simply slow down, center your thoughts on God and practice being with Him…with no agenda, no asks…Just breathe His presence into your present moment and know that He is God. Before long, 20 minutes will be gone, but the peace of His presence will linger in your soul drawing you back for more.

Doing:

Do 20 positive acts on the 11th day of each month. It can be positive words to a friend or family member…a random act of kindness towards a stranger…an encouraging Facebook post or note…or an action that has positive consequences for our world or community like picking up trash without being asked, doing something to lower your carbon footprint or even volunteering for a shift at our clothing bank the Gift of Apparel! You will find that it will get easier and easier to do 20 positive acts, and before long that will begin to morph into other days as your whole disposition begins to transform into a channel of God's positive grace!

I will post some ideas here on the blog and or on my Facebook page! If you have some ideas of positive acts PLEASE add them in the comments areas for others to see and try!

So here's to a 2011 that balances our being and doing so that God has the opportunity to flow through us all like grace filled rain!

Dei Gratia,

Monty

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Origins part six

Origins 3
This Sunday we will be digging back into Acts 2:1-13, looking at "Hit By A Truck" There is a radical transformation that takes place when we becomes followers of Christ…it is an inside-out job however, and not a religious outside-in concept.

Outside-in living leaves us stuck trying harder, wondering why the change doesn't last or doesn't come, focused on "doing" something in order to make God happy enough with us that He will then "do" something that we desire.

That is the old way of living…a religious contract that never fulfills. That is why Jesus came to usher in a new way of living…a way not based on performance but on grace. A way that makes God the prize, rather than a deity to please in order to get Him to do something for us…

In Romans 7:6 Paul reveals the difference:

6But now, by dying to what
once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in
the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.

Few take the journey…those who do are never the same.The old written code was contractual, and we never live up to the contract, and that leaves us stuck. The new way is through a living with relationship with God through His Spirit at work -in- us. Let's take the conversation deeper this weekend @SVA!

Here's an outline for Sunday if you need one… 
Download Origins pt 6 student  

Monty