WEBVTT 00:00:09.879 --> 00:00:12.919 Hi everyone, this is Emma from Encounter Church, 00:00:13.119 --> 00:00:15.900 Henley, and thanks so much for tuning into our 00:00:15.900 --> 00:00:19.059 podcast. Our prayer is that through this podcast, 00:00:19.100 --> 00:00:21.760 you can have an encounter with Jesus that will 00:00:21.760 --> 00:00:25.359 change your life. And now, get ready for an inspiring 00:00:25.359 --> 00:00:28.640 message from our preaching team. My name is Josh. 00:00:28.839 --> 00:00:31.059 I'm part of the preaching team here at Henley. 00:00:31.370 --> 00:00:33.549 and I've got the privilege of sharing with you 00:00:33.549 --> 00:00:38.490 today, but I'm just going to pray first. Father, 00:00:39.250 --> 00:00:46.450 would you come. Come into this space. Lord, would 00:00:46.450 --> 00:00:50.689 you be next to us right now. Lord, would you 00:00:50.689 --> 00:00:54.189 soften our hearts so that we can hear what you 00:00:54.189 --> 00:01:01.820 have to say. In your name, amen. We've all sat 00:01:01.820 --> 00:01:04.180 in a dark theater and watched our heroes have 00:01:04.180 --> 00:01:07.599 the same journey play out on a massive screen. 00:01:08.239 --> 00:01:10.579 It's the story we never get tired of because 00:01:10.579 --> 00:01:13.560 it mirrors the deepest question of the human 00:01:13.560 --> 00:01:18.219 heart. Am I meant for more than this? Tony Stark 00:01:18.219 --> 00:01:21.540 wasn't just rich. He was isolated. He lived behind 00:01:21.540 --> 00:01:24.799 walls of money and brilliance. He convinced himself 00:01:24.799 --> 00:01:27.640 he didn't need anyone or anything and it took 00:01:27.640 --> 00:01:31.620 a cold dark cave literal shrapnel in his chest 00:01:31.620 --> 00:01:36.579 for him to realize that everything was actually 00:01:36.579 --> 00:01:39.500 costing him his soul. Steve Rogers was a kid 00:01:39.500 --> 00:01:43.159 from Brooklyn who was told no by every recruiter 00:01:43.159 --> 00:01:45.560 in the city. He lacked the muscle but he had 00:01:45.560 --> 00:01:49.620 the spirit and he refused to stay down. His transformation 00:01:49.620 --> 00:01:52.500 wasn't just about a serum, it was about a man 00:01:52.500 --> 00:01:56.079 whose internal convictions finally got the body 00:01:56.079 --> 00:02:00.159 he deserved. Peter Parker! was a teenager trying 00:02:00.159 --> 00:02:03.260 to survive high school until a single moment 00:02:03.260 --> 00:02:06.760 changed his DNA and suddenly he had the power 00:02:06.760 --> 00:02:10.199 to be number one. But he was haunted with the 00:02:10.199 --> 00:02:13.400 realization when Uncle Ben said, with great power 00:02:13.400 --> 00:02:17.680 comes great responsibility. Every hero hits a 00:02:17.680 --> 00:02:21.340 wall where their old life and their new calling 00:02:21.340 --> 00:02:24.800 collide. It's the moment they realize that they 00:02:24.800 --> 00:02:29.210 can't go back to who they were. If Tony Stark 00:02:29.210 --> 00:02:33.569 went back to selling weapons, the story would 00:02:33.569 --> 00:02:37.189 just end. If Steve Rogers stays in an alleyway 00:02:37.189 --> 00:02:40.629 picking fights that he can't win, the story just 00:02:40.629 --> 00:02:43.729 ends. If Peter Parker ignores the cries and just 00:02:43.729 --> 00:02:48.360 goes to prom, the story just ends. But here is 00:02:48.360 --> 00:02:50.580 the depth that we missed. They didn't just choose 00:02:50.580 --> 00:02:54.719 to be heroes, they chose to let their old versions 00:02:54.719 --> 00:02:58.280 of themselves die and decided to become something 00:02:58.280 --> 00:03:02.500 else and something new. They all had a moment 00:03:02.500 --> 00:03:07.180 of conviction, a deciding moment of, I am cool 00:03:07.180 --> 00:03:11.680 to this, but I could continue the life I've always 00:03:11.680 --> 00:03:17.379 had. Conviction. It's a weight. all these heroes 00:03:17.379 --> 00:03:21.639 have felt it. It's the moment they realize that 00:03:21.639 --> 00:03:26.479 staying the same, being content with what's convenient 00:03:26.479 --> 00:03:29.039 is actually harder at times than just changing. 00:03:32.680 --> 00:03:35.259 For me, this is a constant decision that I have 00:03:35.259 --> 00:03:38.020 to make every day. To live for Christ and His 00:03:38.020 --> 00:03:41.620 calling over me instead of what I feel is best 00:03:41.620 --> 00:03:45.530 for me. I remember coming to encounter so many 00:03:45.530 --> 00:03:49.289 years ago in 2019 for one thing, a baby dedication. 00:03:49.689 --> 00:03:53.710 I had no intention of coming back. I had no intention 00:03:53.710 --> 00:03:56.449 of being involved. I had no intention of tuning 00:03:56.449 --> 00:03:59.229 in other than that small snippet of that baby 00:03:59.229 --> 00:04:05.069 dedication. And I remember at near the end of 00:04:05.069 --> 00:04:07.090 the service thinking to myself, I have to come 00:04:07.090 --> 00:04:09.129 back and just give this Christian thing one last 00:04:09.129 --> 00:04:12.560 shot. Just one. One last shot, otherwise I'll 00:04:12.560 --> 00:04:16.240 move on. I realised that I have to find a community. 00:04:16.680 --> 00:04:20.259 I have to be in community. I have to be with 00:04:20.259 --> 00:04:25.360 people who mould me. Or, option two, life is 00:04:25.360 --> 00:04:28.540 just going to be hard and lonely. I thought if 00:04:28.540 --> 00:04:32.319 it doesn't work out, then that's okay. But at 00:04:32.319 --> 00:04:36.819 least I tried. In that time really I knew, I 00:04:36.819 --> 00:04:41.680 think I knew God. knew of Him but I simply just 00:04:41.680 --> 00:04:45.360 didn't live it and my life didn't show it at 00:04:45.360 --> 00:04:48.319 the time. So I made the choice to come back the 00:04:48.319 --> 00:04:52.100 next week and then the following week and then 00:04:52.100 --> 00:04:56.959 I made a choice, I chose to live it and to live 00:04:56.959 --> 00:05:01.459 for what Jesus wants us to live. Like all the 00:05:01.459 --> 00:05:04.819 heroes we see on the screen, that choice has 00:05:04.819 --> 00:05:08.399 impacted my life in so many ways. And it all 00:05:08.399 --> 00:05:11.379 came down from one conviction and one simple 00:05:11.379 --> 00:05:16.180 choice. I chose, I could have made the decision 00:05:16.180 --> 00:05:19.420 to simply ignore the feeling, to ignore the call, 00:05:19.720 --> 00:05:21.800 to ignore the conviction. I could have chosen 00:05:21.800 --> 00:05:25.139 that, but I responded to becoming something else, 00:05:25.680 --> 00:05:29.839 something more and something new. I chose the 00:05:29.839 --> 00:05:35.019 harder path. I chose the conviction over what's 00:05:35.019 --> 00:05:37.860 convenient. Isn't that something that we consistently 00:05:37.860 --> 00:05:42.819 battle with daily? All of us. What we do versus 00:05:42.819 --> 00:05:45.480 what we should do, or what might I say, what 00:05:45.480 --> 00:05:49.920 we're actually called to do. Every day we battle 00:05:49.920 --> 00:05:53.259 with this decision, like working from home and 00:05:53.259 --> 00:05:55.300 then doing the hours that we're actually supposed 00:05:55.300 --> 00:05:59.819 to do. Yeah? Or snacking 10 minutes after your 00:05:59.819 --> 00:06:02.870 spouse has just made your dinner. or buying lunch 00:06:02.870 --> 00:06:05.110 from the food truck after your spouse just made 00:06:05.110 --> 00:06:10.009 you lunch. When you consistently choose what 00:06:10.009 --> 00:06:12.449 you're called to do over what you want to do, 00:06:12.810 --> 00:06:16.250 that conviction eventually stops being an effort 00:06:16.250 --> 00:06:21.329 and starts becoming your identity. You don't 00:06:21.329 --> 00:06:24.329 just do the right thing, you become something 00:06:24.329 --> 00:06:27.959 else. And we're nearing the end of this series 00:06:27.959 --> 00:06:31.199 of resurrection files and Tim, Ash and Angus 00:06:31.199 --> 00:06:33.420 have all spoken into the life of this church. 00:06:34.360 --> 00:06:37.839 And we've explored how Jesus meets us in our 00:06:37.839 --> 00:06:40.540 disappointments, He meets us in our secrets, 00:06:41.319 --> 00:06:44.579 proving that He is present even when our expectations 00:06:44.579 --> 00:06:49.100 don't align with our reality. And Angus spoke 00:06:49.100 --> 00:06:52.120 into the physical weight that Jesus stepped into 00:06:52.120 --> 00:06:58.540 and how He restores us from who we were. And 00:06:58.540 --> 00:07:00.620 most recently Ash explored the vulnerability 00:07:00.620 --> 00:07:03.560 of God who invites us to simply touch his scars 00:07:03.560 --> 00:07:08.720 like Thomas did. Meeting us in our doubts to 00:07:08.720 --> 00:07:10.920 build a faith that's both grounded on evidence 00:07:10.920 --> 00:07:16.740 and our belief. And all that brings us to a moment 00:07:16.740 --> 00:07:19.959 of decision. When we encounter this new reality, 00:07:20.279 --> 00:07:24.279 do we stay the same, Church? Or do we allow our 00:07:24.279 --> 00:07:29.060 conviction to change our trajectory? A conviction 00:07:29.060 --> 00:07:37.279 that changes our lives to change others. And 00:07:37.279 --> 00:07:43.579 in this passage, Matthew ends his book with one 00:07:43.579 --> 00:07:45.939 final recount of his interactions with Jesus. 00:07:47.120 --> 00:07:51.279 He ends with two commands, go and number two, 00:07:51.399 --> 00:07:56.399 make. Therefore go and make disciples of all 00:07:56.399 --> 00:07:59.269 nations. baptizing them in the Name of the Father, 00:07:59.350 --> 00:08:03.089 the Son and the Holy Spirit and teach these new 00:08:03.089 --> 00:08:05.250 disciples to obey all the commands I've given 00:08:05.250 --> 00:08:09.170 you and be sure of this I am with you always 00:08:09.170 --> 00:08:13.790 even to the end of the age. And by this point 00:08:13.790 --> 00:08:18.610 the disciples they had seen miracle after miracle 00:08:18.879 --> 00:08:21.360 in front of their own eyes. They had seen the 00:08:21.360 --> 00:08:25.439 blind seeing. They even saw the winds fold at 00:08:25.439 --> 00:08:30.600 the command of Jesus. And in chapter 17, Peter, 00:08:30.740 --> 00:08:33.019 James and John went with Jesus up a mountain 00:08:33.019 --> 00:08:36.879 and they saw the appearance of Jesus change with 00:08:36.879 --> 00:08:41.679 two people, Moses and Elijah. They had all lived 00:08:41.679 --> 00:08:44.450 through the portrayal. they had lived through 00:08:44.450 --> 00:08:46.990 the crucifixion, they had heard the hammer, they'd 00:08:46.990 --> 00:08:49.230 seen the darkness and they watched the heavy 00:08:49.230 --> 00:08:53.429 stone right across the tomb. But then they saw 00:08:53.429 --> 00:08:57.549 the impossible, they saw the stone removed, they 00:08:57.549 --> 00:09:00.690 saw the empty linens and then they sat with Jesus 00:09:00.690 --> 00:09:06.269 and ate with him. And this was their life, this 00:09:06.269 --> 00:09:09.250 was their encounter and this was their experience. 00:09:10.759 --> 00:09:13.360 And it all leads to this moment at the Great 00:09:13.360 --> 00:09:16.620 Commission, where they're standing on a familiar 00:09:16.620 --> 00:09:21.899 mountain in a place that they knew, waiting for 00:09:21.899 --> 00:09:23.919 a word from a man who had just conquered the 00:09:23.919 --> 00:09:30.600 grave. For Jesus, this was the end of the beginning. 00:09:31.659 --> 00:09:36.200 It was the handover, the handover of his ministry 00:09:36.200 --> 00:09:41.629 to them with clear instructions. ministry that 00:09:41.629 --> 00:09:47.509 he had prayed for and for his disciples which 00:09:47.509 --> 00:09:50.110 we jump across to John in John 17 we can see 00:09:50.110 --> 00:09:54.629 some of this in verse 9 my prayer is not for 00:09:54.629 --> 00:09:57.610 the world but for those who have given me you 00:09:57.610 --> 00:10:01.809 have given me because they belong to you all 00:10:01.809 --> 00:10:04.309 who are mine belong to you and you have given 00:10:04.309 --> 00:10:08.649 them to me so they bring me glory now I'm departing 00:10:08.649 --> 00:10:11.519 from the world They are staying in this world, 00:10:11.580 --> 00:10:14.259 but I am coming to you Holy Father You have given 00:10:14.259 --> 00:10:16.740 me your name now protect them by the power of 00:10:16.740 --> 00:10:19.360 your name So they will be reunited. They will 00:10:19.360 --> 00:10:23.139 be united just as we are when Jesus meets his 00:10:23.139 --> 00:10:28.679 disciples Some are hesitant and this is the moment 00:10:28.679 --> 00:10:31.799 the first moment the first conviction the first 00:10:31.799 --> 00:10:34.980 change of their trajectory Because the disciples 00:10:34.980 --> 00:10:39.379 must decide when more than one possibility seems 00:10:39.379 --> 00:10:43.620 reasonable and right. And the disciples, they 00:10:43.620 --> 00:10:46.500 have to make a call in that moment. They could 00:10:46.500 --> 00:10:50.259 turn around and they can leave or they can live 00:10:50.259 --> 00:10:54.539 for Jesus and not for themselves. And Jesus in 00:10:54.539 --> 00:10:56.919 the middle of their hesitation, Jesus does something 00:10:56.919 --> 00:10:59.840 different in that moment, in that very moment. 00:11:00.240 --> 00:11:02.980 And in verse 18, He doesn't shout at a distance 00:11:02.980 --> 00:11:05.519 or rebuke them for their little faith that they 00:11:05.519 --> 00:11:09.190 had. He does something different. He comes near, 00:11:09.610 --> 00:11:15.570 he takes a step and he closes that gap and he 00:11:15.570 --> 00:11:19.490 simply just says this, all authority has been 00:11:19.490 --> 00:11:27.269 given to me in heaven and on earth. From there, 00:11:27.450 --> 00:11:32.289 Jesus then gives two commands. Go and make. The 00:11:32.289 --> 00:11:36.750 second conviction. The second choice. Do we stay 00:11:36.750 --> 00:11:40.769 the same or do we allow the convictions change 00:11:40.769 --> 00:11:46.210 our trajectory? Again, therefore go and make 00:11:46.210 --> 00:11:49.549 disciples of all nations, baptising them in the 00:11:49.549 --> 00:11:52.429 Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit 00:11:52.429 --> 00:11:55.889 and teach these new disciples to obey all commands 00:11:55.889 --> 00:11:58.789 I have given you and be sure of this, I am with 00:11:58.789 --> 00:12:02.850 you always even to the end of the age. When Jesus 00:12:02.850 --> 00:12:06.830 says all nations This changes things for the 00:12:06.830 --> 00:12:10.149 disciples. At that point all they really knew 00:12:10.149 --> 00:12:14.769 was Israel. Until that moment, their world, their 00:12:14.769 --> 00:12:18.029 internal world was tiny. It was defined by the 00:12:18.029 --> 00:12:20.590 borders of Israel, the traditions that they knew 00:12:20.590 --> 00:12:23.289 that their ancestors did and the comfort of their 00:12:23.289 --> 00:12:26.730 people. But Jesus is standing on this mountain, 00:12:26.809 --> 00:12:29.169 he looks them into the eye and he commands them 00:12:29.169 --> 00:12:33.269 to leave what they've known behind. He is telling 00:12:33.269 --> 00:12:35.889 them that the kingdom of God doesn't have a border. 00:12:38.809 --> 00:12:41.129 He's instructing them to go to the Gentiles, 00:12:41.669 --> 00:12:48.070 the outsiders, the rivals, the others, us and 00:12:48.070 --> 00:12:50.230 invite them into the same relationship that they 00:12:50.230 --> 00:12:56.210 know. The disciples encounter this new reality 00:12:56.210 --> 00:12:58.549 and they have a choice. Again, do they stay the 00:12:58.549 --> 00:13:01.350 same? Or do they allow that conviction to change 00:13:01.350 --> 00:13:05.250 the trajectory of their life? And Jesus isn't 00:13:05.250 --> 00:13:08.210 asking them to travel. He didn't say that. He's 00:13:08.210 --> 00:13:11.129 asking them to expand their hearts, to take a 00:13:11.129 --> 00:13:15.529 step. And it gives them instructions like baptism. 00:13:16.269 --> 00:13:19.070 Because it's the physical changing of identity. 00:13:20.129 --> 00:13:22.730 It's the public declaration of, I don't belong 00:13:22.730 --> 00:13:26.149 to this world anymore. I belong to the Father, 00:13:26.230 --> 00:13:31.909 the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen? And what exactly 00:13:31.909 --> 00:13:33.929 are they supposed to teach? Well Jesus simplifies 00:13:33.929 --> 00:13:37.049 it. Again if we go across to John in 13, 34 and 00:13:37.049 --> 00:13:40.370 35, so now I am giving you a new commandment, 00:13:40.610 --> 00:13:44.269 love each other. Just as I have loved you, you 00:13:44.269 --> 00:13:46.789 should love each other. And your love for one 00:13:46.789 --> 00:13:48.690 another will prove to the world that you are 00:13:48.690 --> 00:13:54.590 my disciples. And that's it. So where does that 00:13:54.590 --> 00:13:58.610 leave us? How do we move on from this point? 00:14:01.039 --> 00:14:03.500 It's clear. The first word of the Commission 00:14:03.500 --> 00:14:08.320 is simple, go. But what does that actually mean? 00:14:08.840 --> 00:14:10.799 What does that truly mean? What does go mean? 00:14:12.200 --> 00:14:16.679 For some of us, we may have domesticated this 00:14:16.679 --> 00:14:21.639 word and we've turned go into attend. And we 00:14:21.639 --> 00:14:24.559 treat our relationship with Jesus like a box 00:14:24.559 --> 00:14:27.120 to be checked on a Sunday morning or a Sunday 00:14:27.120 --> 00:14:29.960 afternoon and we show up, we worship, we tick 00:14:29.960 --> 00:14:32.500 the box and then we put Jesus back in the cupboard 00:14:32.500 --> 00:14:35.960 and we stack him there for the next six days. 00:14:37.320 --> 00:14:44.980 But Jesus didn't say attend. He said go. If I 00:14:44.980 --> 00:14:47.070 asked you right now what your leak... week looks 00:14:47.070 --> 00:14:49.230 like, you'd probably pull out your phone and 00:14:49.230 --> 00:14:52.850 show me a calendar full of your busy life, the 00:14:52.850 --> 00:14:56.070 meetings, the school runs, the gym sessions, 00:14:56.870 --> 00:15:02.830 sports, church, the family. The question is, 00:15:03.009 --> 00:15:05.210 how much church work can I fit into that schedule? 00:15:05.929 --> 00:15:08.649 The question is, who are you becoming while you 00:15:08.649 --> 00:15:15.230 do all these things? At Encounter, we have a 00:15:15.230 --> 00:15:18.690 new core value, Monday Invaders. And this is 00:15:18.690 --> 00:15:21.649 exactly what Jesus is calling for. He isn't asking 00:15:21.649 --> 00:15:25.009 for more of your time. He's simply just asking 00:15:25.009 --> 00:15:31.190 for all of your life. He wants to invade your 00:15:31.190 --> 00:15:33.490 workplace. He wants to invade your living room. 00:15:33.789 --> 00:15:36.450 He wants to invade your tough conversations that 00:15:36.450 --> 00:15:40.970 you have. To go means to simply carry the presence 00:15:40.970 --> 00:15:45.330 of Jesus into spaces that don't know him and 00:15:45.330 --> 00:15:48.629 at no point church is this going to be comfortable 00:15:48.629 --> 00:15:52.769 for you and This is where the conviction we talked 00:15:52.769 --> 00:15:57.070 about earlier comes into play Going is a physical 00:15:57.070 --> 00:16:02.909 act But it starts with an internal decision It's 00:16:02.909 --> 00:16:05.450 the choice to stop being number one in your own 00:16:05.450 --> 00:16:09.669 life And when you choose to put Jesus first, 00:16:10.049 --> 00:16:14.070 you are choosing to be someone else in your office. 00:16:14.669 --> 00:16:17.769 You are choosing to be someone else in your family. 00:16:18.250 --> 00:16:21.009 And you are choosing to be something else in 00:16:21.009 --> 00:16:25.049 your life. And you are trading the kingdom of 00:16:25.049 --> 00:16:31.830 self for the kingdom of God. Putting God first, 00:16:32.509 --> 00:16:38.580 it's not complex. It's not hard. It's just small 00:16:38.580 --> 00:16:43.379 intentional steps. It's reflecting his love when 00:16:43.379 --> 00:16:46.460 you're frustrated with a colleague at work. It's 00:16:46.460 --> 00:16:49.340 choosing honesty when it's easier to cut corners. 00:16:51.480 --> 00:16:53.960 It's realizing that your mission field isn't 00:16:53.960 --> 00:16:58.620 across the ocean. It's literally across the hallway. 00:17:01.679 --> 00:17:04.740 For us at Henley, it's the people across the 00:17:04.740 --> 00:17:09.849 road. in Henley and Grange. Don't over complicate 00:17:09.849 --> 00:17:14.970 it. Just take a step. What's the worst that could 00:17:14.970 --> 00:17:18.549 happen? People don't like that you're happy. 00:17:19.670 --> 00:17:21.410 People don't want to hear about your weekend. 00:17:22.349 --> 00:17:24.329 People don't want to hear about what you believe. 00:17:25.750 --> 00:17:28.250 These things are all common responses and I'm 00:17:28.250 --> 00:17:32.210 sure you've all felt them. I felt the whisper. 00:17:33.289 --> 00:17:36.390 of you're not good enough, you're not happy, 00:17:37.049 --> 00:17:40.589 you don't matter, no one wants to listen to you, 00:17:41.109 --> 00:17:44.390 no one values your thoughts, no one cares what 00:17:44.390 --> 00:17:49.289 you do outside of work, but church these are 00:17:49.289 --> 00:17:54.609 all lies and you cannot dwell on these things 00:17:54.609 --> 00:17:58.190 because this is only going to empower those feelings 00:17:58.190 --> 00:18:03.230 and emotions. Please know people love it when 00:18:03.230 --> 00:18:07.109 you're happy. People want to hear about your 00:18:07.109 --> 00:18:09.710 weekend. Your colleagues want to hear about your 00:18:09.710 --> 00:18:12.609 weekend and your life. As crazy as that might 00:18:12.609 --> 00:18:15.630 sound. People want to hear your opinions and 00:18:15.630 --> 00:18:20.869 what you believe. Genuinely. They do. And people 00:18:20.869 --> 00:18:27.250 care about you. And you do matter. And the second 00:18:27.250 --> 00:18:31.069 command is where it gets a little messy. But 00:18:31.069 --> 00:18:34.619 it's also very beautiful as well. is make disciples. 00:18:37.240 --> 00:18:40.980 And we use this word a lot, discipleship. And 00:18:40.980 --> 00:18:44.500 it's intimidating. And sometimes we just don't 00:18:44.500 --> 00:18:49.440 know what it means, or we get confused. Some 00:18:49.440 --> 00:18:51.160 people seem to think it's a three year theology 00:18:51.160 --> 00:18:53.160 degree, and you've got to be a pastor to understand 00:18:53.160 --> 00:18:56.519 what that means. Others seem to think that it's 00:18:56.519 --> 00:19:00.859 just being a good person, which is true. But 00:19:00.859 --> 00:19:03.859 if we look at Jesus this definition of discipleship 00:19:03.859 --> 00:19:08.460 is simple Discipleship is the intentional process 00:19:08.460 --> 00:19:13.599 of guiding someone toward Jesus and This is literally 00:19:13.599 --> 00:19:18.599 what he did literally It's helping someone discover 00:19:18.599 --> 00:19:21.140 who Jesus is for the first time then walking 00:19:21.140 --> 00:19:24.400 beside them as they learn to reflect his character 00:19:24.400 --> 00:19:31.869 It's the shift from me to him And disciples, 00:19:31.869 --> 00:19:35.509 they're not created. They're raised. They're 00:19:35.509 --> 00:19:38.470 raised in a family, raised in community, right 00:19:38.470 --> 00:19:41.670 here. And this is why encounter exists. This 00:19:41.670 --> 00:19:44.369 is why we have resilient disciple groups. And 00:19:44.369 --> 00:19:46.730 this is why we even have sports clubs like basketball. 00:19:50.289 --> 00:19:53.009 People are not called to be individual believers, 00:19:53.589 --> 00:19:55.990 but are to be enlisted as disciples within their 00:19:55.990 --> 00:19:58.750 Christian community. and then their faith must 00:19:58.750 --> 00:20:03.549 be actualized in their lives. Church, you can't 00:20:03.549 --> 00:20:08.769 be a solo disciple. I'm just saying it. If you 00:20:08.769 --> 00:20:13.369 think you can be, you're mistaken. You're called 00:20:13.369 --> 00:20:16.430 to be in community where your faith actually 00:20:16.430 --> 00:20:21.109 has to work in real time. Where you have a reflection 00:20:21.109 --> 00:20:25.369 of Jesus. But please, see this difference between 00:20:25.369 --> 00:20:28.579 planting a seed and making a disciple. Planting 00:20:28.579 --> 00:20:33.099 a seed is one moment. Making a disciple is a 00:20:33.099 --> 00:20:39.940 season. We're often happy to plant a seed. We're 00:20:39.940 --> 00:20:43.539 often happy to say a kind word or to share a 00:20:43.539 --> 00:20:49.220 verse and then just walk away. I'd really say 00:20:49.220 --> 00:20:53.059 this is the first command, this is go. But Jesus 00:20:53.059 --> 00:20:56.009 didn't say plant seeds of all nations. He didn't 00:20:56.009 --> 00:20:59.089 say that. You can start there but he didn't say 00:20:59.089 --> 00:21:03.490 that. He said make disciples and this is where 00:21:03.490 --> 00:21:06.910 the conviction hits. Are you willing church to 00:21:06.910 --> 00:21:11.690 stay in the mess? Are you willing to do more 00:21:11.690 --> 00:21:13.910 than just live your life but actually invest 00:21:13.910 --> 00:21:22.829 in someone else? Like really? Do you have the 00:21:22.829 --> 00:21:27.279 time in your life to do that? I'm not talking 00:21:27.279 --> 00:21:29.640 about the people sitting next to you right now. 00:21:30.559 --> 00:21:32.859 I'm talking about the people in your life that 00:21:32.859 --> 00:21:41.400 you see every day outside of this room. This 00:21:41.400 --> 00:21:47.779 is hard. It's not easy. Doing all this is not 00:21:47.779 --> 00:21:51.059 easy. And Jesus never said, He never said that 00:21:51.059 --> 00:21:54.079 this whole process of going and making disciples 00:21:54.079 --> 00:22:01.720 is easy. We have a plus -one culture here at 00:22:01.720 --> 00:22:06.279 Henley, at Encounter as well in general. And 00:22:06.279 --> 00:22:08.119 we all have that one person here that we want 00:22:08.119 --> 00:22:14.180 to come to know Jesus. Some may have said yes 00:22:14.180 --> 00:22:20.000 to Alpha, some may have said no. I asked a number 00:22:20.000 --> 00:22:25.400 of people in my work and I all got nos. 13 to 00:22:25.400 --> 00:22:31.000 be exact. Was that disappointing? Yeah, it broke 00:22:31.000 --> 00:22:32.599 my heart because I thought I'd built relationship 00:22:32.599 --> 00:22:37.299 with them. Was it disheartening? Yes. Was I frustrated? 00:22:38.259 --> 00:22:45.519 Yes. Should I give up and just move on? No. No, 00:22:45.519 --> 00:22:51.119 we don't do that. It's a journey. We've got to 00:22:51.119 --> 00:22:56.880 be the hands and feet of Jesus and invest in 00:22:56.880 --> 00:23:05.980 people and teach them. He doesn't give us a command 00:23:05.980 --> 00:23:10.059 of go and make in a place of safety, in a place 00:23:10.059 --> 00:23:14.480 of comfort. He calls us to take a step because 00:23:14.480 --> 00:23:19.039 he already took that step. He bore the weight 00:23:19.039 --> 00:23:21.599 of the world, every broken decision we've made, 00:23:22.039 --> 00:23:25.579 every broken decision that you've made. And he 00:23:25.579 --> 00:23:27.960 did it because he lives by a conviction that 00:23:27.960 --> 00:23:31.339 was stronger than his instinct for survival. 00:23:33.359 --> 00:23:36.880 Think about the choices he made. He chose to 00:23:36.880 --> 00:23:42.079 heal when it made him an outcast. He chose to 00:23:42.079 --> 00:23:46.619 love when it simply just made him a target. He 00:23:46.619 --> 00:23:49.400 chose to care for people, the very people that 00:23:49.400 --> 00:23:53.980 would then turn around and say, crucify him. 00:23:59.220 --> 00:24:02.460 In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus stood there. 00:24:03.210 --> 00:24:09.910 And this is one of the defining moments. He's 00:24:09.910 --> 00:24:13.609 there with his disciples. And he could have made 00:24:13.609 --> 00:24:16.289 a choice in that moment. Instead of being taken 00:24:16.289 --> 00:24:19.470 away, he could have made a choice. That would 00:24:19.470 --> 00:24:21.369 have just changed the trajectory, the whole trajectory 00:24:21.369 --> 00:24:22.950 of the world. We wouldn't be here in that moment 00:24:22.950 --> 00:24:27.609 if that was the thing, that was the case. He 00:24:27.609 --> 00:24:29.509 could have avoided everything. He could have 00:24:29.509 --> 00:24:33.759 just saved himself. and then the story just end. 00:24:36.119 --> 00:24:39.259 But no, we know that he didn't do that. And like 00:24:39.259 --> 00:24:41.980 every hero we admire, he made the decision to 00:24:41.980 --> 00:24:45.859 lay down his life. He didn't just become something 00:24:45.859 --> 00:24:50.779 new. He took our old self to the cross so that 00:24:50.779 --> 00:24:55.220 we could receive his new life. He traded perfection 00:24:55.220 --> 00:25:01.930 for our shrapnel. And because of that conviction, 00:25:02.210 --> 00:25:04.809 the trajectory of humanity has become permanently 00:25:04.809 --> 00:25:07.990 altered. And we're now standing in the fallout 00:25:07.990 --> 00:25:10.829 of the gift of grace that can never be revoked. 00:25:12.250 --> 00:25:17.009 But here's the catch. A gift that is never opened, 00:25:18.470 --> 00:25:21.410 a gift that is never opened is simply just a 00:25:21.410 --> 00:25:31.559 box on a shelf. Jesus, He went He shared, He 00:25:31.559 --> 00:25:35.380 conquered. If you want to summarize His whole 00:25:35.380 --> 00:25:38.000 life, that's the very quickest way to do it. 00:25:38.259 --> 00:25:40.920 He went, He shared, He conquered. And now He's 00:25:40.920 --> 00:25:44.980 standing on a mountain in Galilee, looking at 00:25:44.980 --> 00:25:47.680 the disciples. He's looking at you, and He's 00:25:47.680 --> 00:25:54.259 doing the handover. He's passing the baton. And 00:25:54.259 --> 00:25:57.440 Jesus celebrates when you make that same conviction. 00:25:57.799 --> 00:26:00.920 He celebrates when you decide that good enough 00:26:00.920 --> 00:26:05.259 is no longer good enough. He celebrates when 00:26:05.259 --> 00:26:07.700 you choose to be a Monday invader instead of 00:26:07.700 --> 00:26:13.579 a Sunday spectator. Because the power is there 00:26:13.579 --> 00:26:16.240 and the authority is his and the mission, the 00:26:16.240 --> 00:26:19.200 mission is yours to take. You need to make that 00:26:19.200 --> 00:26:29.750 choice. when we planted here was a year of us 00:26:29.750 --> 00:26:31.849 just simply just kind of like working out how 00:26:31.849 --> 00:26:34.349 to make this church work. For everyone that was 00:26:34.349 --> 00:26:36.150 here at the start you would know exactly what 00:26:36.150 --> 00:26:40.230 I'm talking about and we watched God bring in 00:26:40.230 --> 00:26:43.690 new faces and we saw transformations in that 00:26:43.690 --> 00:26:47.529 year and now they're part of this family and 00:26:47.529 --> 00:26:49.509 some of them are even leaders in our church. 00:26:50.910 --> 00:26:54.670 In 2025 that was a really year last year was 00:26:54.670 --> 00:26:58.000 a year of just kind of foundation building And 00:26:58.000 --> 00:27:00.240 we put in the hard work of building a healthy 00:27:00.240 --> 00:27:03.940 culture. And as an example, we really pushed 00:27:03.940 --> 00:27:10.079 into our welcome culture because we felt like 00:27:10.079 --> 00:27:14.740 it wasn't 100%. And we poured the concrete, we 00:27:14.740 --> 00:27:17.539 reinforced the walls so that when growth came 00:27:17.539 --> 00:27:20.700 into this place, we could bear the weight of 00:27:20.700 --> 00:27:24.880 it. So if revival ever came to this place, we 00:27:24.880 --> 00:27:30.220 could withstand it and hold it. But this year, 00:27:30.319 --> 00:27:33.940 2026, Pastor Tim shared last week that this is 00:27:33.940 --> 00:27:38.000 a year of greater vision. This is the year of 00:27:38.000 --> 00:27:42.259 growth in this church. This is the year of fresh 00:27:42.259 --> 00:27:45.420 faces finally coming to see Jesus in their life. 00:27:46.500 --> 00:27:49.119 And church, I want you to see that this is already 00:27:49.119 --> 00:27:55.960 happening here. In January, we had 17 new people 00:27:55.960 --> 00:28:00.829 walk through that back door in three weeks. Some 00:28:00.829 --> 00:28:10.950 are here right now. Did you notice? We have to 00:28:10.950 --> 00:28:15.490 notice. Because while inviting them through the 00:28:15.490 --> 00:28:19.569 door, step two is the mission of making disciples. 00:28:21.230 --> 00:28:26.410 But if we can't get to step two, we fail at step 00:28:26.410 --> 00:28:30.460 one. If we aren't talking about Jesus, if we 00:28:30.460 --> 00:28:34.220 aren't talking like Jesus, if we aren't acting 00:28:34.220 --> 00:28:38.599 like Him, then I have to ask you, why are we 00:28:38.599 --> 00:28:45.460 here? What's our mission here at Henley? Has 00:28:45.460 --> 00:28:48.500 He not delivered us? Has He not brought us back 00:28:48.500 --> 00:28:55.859 from the grave of our own past? And so I'm asking 00:28:55.859 --> 00:29:03.170 you this week, I'm gonna say go. Go be Monday, 00:29:03.529 --> 00:29:06.549 Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday invaders. 00:29:09.890 --> 00:29:11.950 If you walk into your workplace tomorrow and 00:29:11.950 --> 00:29:15.529 you simply just blend in, honestly, that's just 00:29:15.529 --> 00:29:20.890 gonna break my heart. Jesus didn't call us to 00:29:20.890 --> 00:29:25.230 be invisible. He never asked that of us. He asked 00:29:25.230 --> 00:29:30.650 us to go. and then he asked us to make. We didn't 00:29:30.650 --> 00:29:32.950 plant this church to be a comfortable social 00:29:32.950 --> 00:29:37.109 club for the saved, we planted it to see every 00:29:37.109 --> 00:29:40.369 person from Adelaide City to this beach having 00:29:40.369 --> 00:29:45.210 an encounter with Jesus. So tomorrow when a friend 00:29:45.210 --> 00:29:47.269 or a colleague asks you that standard question, 00:29:47.609 --> 00:29:49.950 how was your weekend, this is all I want you 00:29:49.950 --> 00:29:54.309 to do. Tell them about your usual things, how 00:29:54.309 --> 00:30:00.539 your coffee was. how the beach was, how the bowling 00:30:00.539 --> 00:30:04.079 was. But then just add five words at the end. 00:30:05.799 --> 00:30:10.079 I went to church yesterday. You would be surprised 00:30:10.079 --> 00:30:12.740 by how quick of a conversation you can have with 00:30:12.740 --> 00:30:19.019 that. That's it. You don't have to preach the 00:30:19.019 --> 00:30:20.859 person a sermon. You don't have to force a debate. 00:30:20.960 --> 00:30:26.019 You just got to say it. Just reveal your identity. 00:30:26.670 --> 00:30:30.410 your identity in Jesus. Because that other person 00:30:30.410 --> 00:30:32.609 may not even know that you're a person of faith. 00:30:34.930 --> 00:30:37.990 You just gotta leave it there and then plant 00:30:37.990 --> 00:30:44.750 the seed. Because once you do that, that might 00:30:44.750 --> 00:30:47.250 be the reason why we had the 18th, 19th and 20th 00:30:47.250 --> 00:30:49.690 person walk through that door. And this year 00:30:49.690 --> 00:30:52.869 is a season of growth. 2026 is a year of growth. 00:30:56.419 --> 00:31:10.240 So go. Make disciples. Let's pray. Father, we 00:31:10.240 --> 00:31:16.000 stand before you. Not just as a crowd in the 00:31:16.000 --> 00:31:19.799 building, but as a people standing on a mountain 00:31:19.799 --> 00:31:24.019 with a decision. And we thank you that you are 00:31:24.019 --> 00:31:27.240 the resurrected King. who doesn't just watch 00:31:27.240 --> 00:31:30.859 our lives from a distance, but comes near to 00:31:30.859 --> 00:31:37.119 close the gap, a gap that no longer exists. And 00:31:37.119 --> 00:31:39.319 Lord, we confess that it's easy to choose what's 00:31:39.319 --> 00:31:42.319 convenient over what is called of us, and we 00:31:42.319 --> 00:31:44.880 admit that we have often treated our relationship 00:31:44.880 --> 00:31:51.420 sometimes like a checklist. Lord, forgive us. 00:31:53.369 --> 00:31:56.230 And right now, we feel the weight of that conviction 00:31:56.230 --> 00:31:59.109 that you've given us. Like the heroes that we 00:31:59.109 --> 00:32:01.170 admire, we've realized that staying the same 00:32:01.170 --> 00:32:03.190 is more expensive than the cost of changing. 00:32:03.369 --> 00:32:05.970 And we thank you that you didn't stay in the 00:32:05.970 --> 00:32:08.329 safety of heaven, but you chose the harder path. 00:32:08.589 --> 00:32:11.109 You traded the perfection for our shrapnel, and 00:32:11.109 --> 00:32:19.789 we thank you for that. Today, Father, we respond. 00:32:19.869 --> 00:32:23.549 So help us to go. Give us the courage to be Monday 00:32:23.549 --> 00:32:26.609 invaders. And tomorrow when we walk into our 00:32:26.609 --> 00:32:29.089 office, our schools and homes, remind us that 00:32:29.089 --> 00:32:33.809 we aren't invisible. Help us to simply reveal 00:32:33.809 --> 00:32:38.349 our identity in you. And to have those, to say 00:32:38.349 --> 00:32:41.150 those five words, I went to church yesterday. 00:32:47.329 --> 00:32:50.750 Father, you have the authority. and you've given 00:32:50.750 --> 00:32:57.369 us a mission. And this year, Henley is a year 00:32:57.369 --> 00:32:59.829 of greater vision and we refuse to let our old 00:32:59.829 --> 00:33:02.950 versions of ourselves keep us from the new life 00:33:02.950 --> 00:33:12.630 that you've given us. We choose the conviction 00:33:12.630 --> 00:33:15.819 and the identity of the Great Commission instead 00:33:15.819 --> 00:33:23.359 of that convenience of simply living life. God, 00:33:23.380 --> 00:33:28.019 we thank you for what you did on that cross. 00:33:29.359 --> 00:33:33.220 We thank you for the gift of grace that you've 00:33:33.220 --> 00:33:40.339 just poured out on us. And so as we lift up your 00:33:40.339 --> 00:33:44.210 name, Father, Would you just continue to be in 00:33:44.210 --> 00:33:49.849 this place? Thanks so much for tuning in to this 00:33:49.849 --> 00:33:52.930 week's message. If you felt challenged or need 00:33:52.930 --> 00:33:55.509 prayer, we'd love to hear from you on Instagram 00:33:55.509 --> 00:33:59.250 at encounterhenley. Or if you're interested in 00:33:59.250 --> 00:34:01.769 how you can support this ministry, please go 00:34:01.769 --> 00:34:05.670 to our website encounteradelaide .com .au. Thanks 00:34:05.670 --> 00:34:07.710 again for listening. God bless you.