Antioch Church of Santa Cruz: Hospitality

Last night we had a wonderful time discussing a rather difficult passage. Questions arose: How does a person experience salvation? & What should we do after we know life in Christ? Good thoughts, good questions, good discussion.

Matthew 25:31-46 “But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. ³² All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. ³³ He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left.

 ³⁴ “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. ³⁵ For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. ³⁶ I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’

 ³⁷ “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸ Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? ³⁹ When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’

 ⁴⁰ “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’
 ⁴¹ “Then the King will turn to those on the left a
nd say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. ⁴² For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. ⁴³ I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’

 ⁴⁴ “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’

 ⁴⁵ “And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’

 ⁴⁶ “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.”

Antioch Church of Santa Cruz: The Feast of Pentecost

With the outpouring of the Spirit, the themes of resurrection & new life are amplified & the focus on the church & its mission are introduced. This we we celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit. The readings are full of images & metaphors that describe the mystery of the Spirit & his working. Wind & fire; we are rightly awed. We're also drawn by the invitation; Receive the gift, be filled. Our experiences may range from quiet to dramatic--the Wind blows as it pleases--but in every case, we encounter the Being of God within our own being, his transforming, empowering, & loving presence.

Here's the readings for this upcoming Sunday:
John 7:37-39
Acts 2:1-42
Romans 8:9-27

Again, take time over the next few days to meditate upon these texts & allow them to shape your relationship with God. Too, ask to be filled again & again. God does not grow tired of filling us with Himself; it is a joy to Him.

Antioch Church of Santa Cruz: Easter week #5

Hello incredible Antioch people. We had an incredible time last night as we looked at one of Jesus' post resurrection appearances. One of the things I'm thankful for is seeing what Jesus does when He interacts with His friends: Eat, talk, sit, enjoy a fire, drink, forgive, love, & talk theology. Once again the Kingdom isn't about doing super-spiritual things as much as it is seeing the Kingdom within the things we find so normal.

In the 5th week of Easter, we focus on the transformation of our lives. First, we read of Jesus' appearance to Saul "as to one untimely born." Saul is heading in one direction, but when confronted by the Risen Christ, he is radically changed & sent in the opposite direction. Later he explains to the Ephesian church that we all must take off the "old self," & be clothed with the "new self," which is being ever created into the image of Christ. How does this work? It's a mystery for sure, but Jesus says the answer lies in staying connected to Him, the true Vine.

Here's the scriptures for this week:
Acts 9:1-22 The dramatic conversion of Saul. Your own conversion might not be as dramatic as Saul, but let this story prompt reflection on ways Gos has intersected your life, turning  you around & sending you in new directions.
Ephesians 4 Paul (his new name for his new identity) makes theology practical in this section of scripture. All of this points to imitating Christ & allowing our daily devotion to Him to transform us into His image; a lifelong adventure for sure. 

A prayer worth praying: "Jesus, thank you for choosing me & changing me, even as you chose & changed your servant Paul; continue your transforming work in me this day & this week as I seek to stay close to you, my source of love & joy. Amen.

Antioch Church of Santa Cruz: Easter #3

So we are officially in the season of Easter. Last night we spoke about "practicing Resurrection," living the life Jesus lived before He died. As followers of Jesus we have become professionals at helping people get "reborn" & helping them understand the after life, but it's the in between part that is difficult for us. How do we live a life of devotion here & now? How did Jesus do it? How did the disciples live so passionately for the one they loved? Thankfully, Jesus left them with an incredible example & although we aren't to replicate it exactly, we are to take notice of the rhythms of his life & do what He still invites so many to do: "Follow Me."

Last night we all took a card & put one or two spiritual practices from the list below we are going to practice throughout the week. Make space to practice; & remember, learning how to do something isn't easy, yet in the end the reward is well worth the effort; this is "a long obedience in the same direction." Be patient.
Below is the sheet I handed out.

Learning from Jesus by practicing

Habits that Place You before God

Key Verse

Jeremiah 6:16 

¹⁶ This is what the LORD says:

   “Stand at the crossroads and look;
   ask for the ancient paths,
ask where the good way is, and walk in it,
   and you will find rest for your souls.
   But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’

Thoughts

We long to see our lives whole, to know they matter. We wonder whether our many

activities might ever come together in a way of life that is good for ourselves and

others. Lacking a vision of a life-giving way of life, we turn from one task to another,

doing as well as we can, but increasingly uncertain about what doing things well would

look like. We yearn for a deeper understanding of how to order human life in accord

with what is true and good.

Craig Dystra and Dorothy Bass, “Practicing Our Faith” p.146

Spiritual Practices:

 “The main task is, by engaging in ways of using the body differently, to disrupt and

conquer habits of thought, feeling, and action that govern our lives as if we or someone

other than God were God and as if his kingdom were irrelevant or inaccessible to us…

Appropriate disciplines for developing new habits, kingdom habits, are practiced. A

further help in understanding what spiritual disciplines are for the disciples of Jesus is to

recognize them as simply a matter of following him into his own practices, appropriately

modified to suit our own condition.” (Dallas Willard, Divine Conspiracy)

Some Disciplines of Abstinence:

Solitude, Silence, Study, Worship,

Fasting, Frugality, Chastity, Secrecy, Prayer

Some Disciplines of Engagement:

Service, Celebration, Fellowship,

Sacrifice, Confession, Submission, Extra Giving.

My Spiritual Interests (check three or four you are most interested in)

CONNECT: You were formed for God and His family

I would like to live more of my life by faith _________

I would like my relationship with Christ to grow stronger _________

I would like to love people more deeply _________

I would like to resolve conflict constructively and learn to forgive _________

GROW: You were created to become like Christ

I would like to read the Bible more and know how to talk to God _________

I would like to become more like Jesus Christ in my character _________

I would like to be free of addictive behaviors _________

I would like to be free of the love of money and live generously _________

SERVE: You were shaped for serving God

I would like to develop my unique God-given shape for ministry _________

I would like God to open up opportunities to serve Him _________

I would like my home to be a place where I serve God and know his love _________

I would like to know how to help someone else become a follower of Christ _________

SHARE: You were made for a mission

I would like to build relationships with non-Christians and share God’s love _________

I would like to invite unchurched or unconnected friends into my community _________

I would like to reach out to people across cultural barriers _________

I would like to make my workplace a place of service and ministry _________

WORSHIP: You were planned for God's pleasure

I would like to experience more of the presence and power of God in my everyday life _________

I would like to please God by surrendering to Him every area of my life _________

I would like to accept the things I cannot change and become more grateful for all God

has given me _________

I would like to spend more time telling God how great and wonderful He is! _________

How can you live out the things you’ve marked this week at work, school, relationships, home, or in other areas of your life?

What simple ways is God asking you to live these passions out this week?

Spiritual Practices

List a series of activities you already do with some regularity that feed your spirit with God’s life. Think large, across all the fabric of your life in developing this list, not just of the ‘devotional’ exercises and tools. Please list up to 10 of them under these two headings, and in this order:

A list of 10 things in your life that bless you, esp. including ‘fun things’

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

A list of 10 ‘spiritual tools’ or devotional habits that bless you. (i.e. prayer, service, worship, study, silence, etc.)

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Commit to practice at least one spiritual practice from each list each day this week.

Antioch Church of Santa Cruz: Easter Week #2

What a wonderful Easter we had: Great food, great company, baptisms, worship, & the sharing of communion with each other. It is a blessing to be church together in His presence & in Santa Cruz.





This last Sunday marked the what is the greatest event in the history of the world: The Rising of a Man captured & killed by the Romans. Jesus, the first person to rise from the dead; Jesus, God's ultimate demonstration of his commitment to redeem creation, God's demonstration to redeem us.

In most churches Easter builds toward one Sunday; however, as we journey through the liturgical calendar we will be taking a journey through Easter for four more weeks. Jesus' resurrection was just the beginning of what God was doing not the end. The resurrection demonstrated what God had done. Now, in the Biblical story the disciples are left to demonstrate what God desires to do through His people the church. For the next four weeks we will explore one of the greatest theological questions about the resurrection: "So what?"

This week we look at three different sections of scripture:
John 20:19-31 This is the account of what happened after those who followed Jesus discovered He had risen from the grave. What are their reactions? Is their disbelief encouraging to you? How would you have responded? How will you respond now?
1 Corinthians 15:1-34 This is one of the great chapters in the Bible about the resurrection. Who is Paul speaking to & why? What was the church believing that wasn't true? Why is it important for the church in Corinth to believe correctly about the resurrection; why does it matter?
Ephesians 1 Paul again describes why the resurrection is crucial to our faith. Why is the resurrection crucial to who we are? Why does it matter so much?

The resurrection is the center piece of our faith. It may sound weird in a day & age when other aspects of Jesus' life are set as being of upmost importance; however, when we look at the amount of text or dialogue given to the resurrection in the New Testament it become clear: The Resurrection matters & it matter a lot. In fact, it's clear the early church wasn't so eager to "go to Heaven," but they were willing to be eaten by lions because they knew they too would rise again as a part of God's new creation. Do we share the same perspective or convictions? The resurrection is the promise we have as God's church. Too, this is the hope for Santa Cruz, that the church would live out the resurrection before them so they too would have the opportunity to know life.

What does it mean to live the Resurrection? What's it mean to be the church in Santa Cruz?

Antioch Church of Santa Cruz: The Journey of Lent #5

This week we find ourselves walking "out of the depths," in the Season of Lent. As we walk with God as a church during this season, one of the themes is: Our sin. Sin separates us from God & creates all sorts of bent perspectives in our relationship to God & our relationships to each other. However, when we cry out to God He offers forgiveness & reconciles the estranged. Thankfully, God is faithful, forgiving, & desires to help us as we walk with Him in Santa Cruz. Hopefully as you read, pray, & meditate through these scriptures you are reminded of who God is & what that means for us, His Children.

Here are the texts for this week:
Psalm 130 expresses the themes of Lent simply & elegantly.
John 11 Read the story for all its dramatic tension. Observe Jesus' enigmatic behavior & cryptic words. Do you believe His words?
John 12:1-8 Mary, partly in gratitude for her brother's return & partly in anticipation of Jesus' death, pours her costly perfume upon Jesus. Meditating upon this tender moment will begin to prepare you for the sober days of Holy Week just ahead.

 
The Rising of Lazuras: Van Gogh

Take time this week to read through these passages. Read them slowly, quietly, or outloud. Let the stories sink deep into your heart & allow God room to shape you. Do we believe these stories? Do we believe Jesus is the "resurrection & the life?" If so, what does that mean for our lives? What does it mean to be the church in Santa Cruz?

Antioch Church of Santa Cruz: Jesus' Sermon on the Mount in Pictures.

During the second week of Lent we are living through Luke 6:17-49. This is Luke's version of the "Sermon on the Mount." In it Jesus uses a great deal of imagery & stories to reveal what the Kingdom of God is like, what values the New Earth will express, & what we, as Kingdom People should be about.

As we journey through Lent we are looking at Jesus' walk toward the cross & this sermon certainly is a part of that. Why? By saying & using the illustrations He did Jesus was disrupting the powers to be & their values. In fact the Kingdom of this world & the Kingdom of God are in many ways opposed, which is often the case when Jesus addresses many of His audiences. As you stroll through the images I've put forward that depict Jesus' illustrations, take a moment to take in the words of the Revolutionary: Jesus.

(I do understand some of these pictures are disturbing. That said: who are the current poor? who is our enemy? who judges & against whom? I would rather not deal with these things either.) 

¹⁷He went down with them and stood on a level place.

²⁰ Looking at his disciples, he said:

   “Blessed are you who are poor,
   for yours is the kingdom of God.

²⁷ “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, ²⁸ bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.

³⁷ “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 

⁴³ “No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit.

⁴⁶ “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?