JOHANNES AMRITZER – BEING THE PRIEST FOR THOSE THAT DON’T GO TO CHURCH

>You are not just a pastor for those in your church, but you are a pastor for your entire community.

Genesis 23:6
>Although the land wasn’t his yet, Abraham would move around in the land of the Hittites as if it was his.
>We as pastors need to be recognized as a mighty prince of God among those outside the church.
>Be a priest for those that don’t go to church – that’s how you win those within your community.

Acts 17:16-34

How Paul Connected with Those Outside the Church
1. Paul knew how to discipline his spirit. (v16)
>If you cannot discipline your spirit, you can never become a good missionary.
2. Paul built relationships with all kinds of people. (v17)
>A true missionary doesn’t just choose who to build relationships with.
>A true man of God/priest can be a priest to a whole society.
3. Paul was given a platform among them. (v19-21)
4. Paul knew how to connect with their culture without compromising. (v22-23)
5. Paul is quoting their own authorities. (v28)
>In doing this, we show them that we are in the middle of their life.
>When you quote their authorities, it shows that you are interested in their lives.
6. Paul brings everything to repentance. (v30)
>What good is our relationship building if we don’t bring them to repentance?
>It’s our job to push people, to challenge them.
7. Paul was willing to disciple people. (v34)
>When we are discipling people that don’t go to church, they ask the right questions. They ask questions that pertain to life.

GREAT DISCUSSION!

JEFF LEAKE - 5 KEYS TO BEING BOTH PENTECOSTAL AND MISSIONAL.

1. Explanation
2. Demonstration
3. Compassion
>Ministering not just through demonstration but to the heart of people.
4. Inclusion
>Pastor the moment and people fell safe and secure.
5. Instruction
>Teaching people what it means to live out the gifts of the Spirit.

We had a great discussion time today at the Roundtable. Let me know what you think: Can we be both Pentecostal and Missional? If so, how do we do that?

BRAD LEACH – “GOD’S HEART FOR STRATEGIC CITIES”

>In today’s world, we have created an entire Christian subculture where kids can be raised and eventually live as adults in an entirely Christian setting.
>This isn’t the world Jesus was born into and it’s not the world Jesus wants to be born into again.
>The tendency to run away from the mission field is as old as missions.

JEREMIAH 51:34

>The Israelites blamed Nebuchadnezzar for exiling them, but he was actually being used as a servant of God to transport the Israelites to the mission field.

3 RESPONSES THE CHURCH HAS TOWARDS THE CITY - TIM KELLER

1. Jesus against the city.
>Leads to an “Us vs. Them” mentality.
2. Jesus of the city.
>Where we begin to view every movement in culture that is working to serve the oppressed is from God.
>The end result is that the church just becomes one of many institutions that is nothing more than a community center or a political action group.

JEREMIAH 29:1,4
>As the Israelites are complaining about being exiled, God says, “I sent you here.”
>Jerusalem was the “Christian City” – Everyone believed and was the same.
>Babylon was the a place where people didn’t believe the Bible and believed in all kinds of gods.
>Throughout scripture, Babylon represented evil and sin.

JEREMIAH 29:5-6
>There is a different between missionaries and refugees.
>God tells them to increase – his desire is that they were missionaries, not refugees.
>Have kids so you can leave a legacy in the city. Invest yourselves in the city.

3. Jesus transforming the city.
>The Hebrews had a theology of “Sacred Space”
>Jesus said that wherever I go is going to be sacred.
>When we move a church into a neighborhood we make that space sacred.
>Jesus said that the church should be like salt. It will work its way into those parts of culture that tend to rot and preserve them.

JEREMIAH 29:7
>Your life is now tied to this place. If they prosper, then you too will prosper.
>Live in such a way that you are influencing culture.

>Diversity can often lead to sin. (i.e. race riots, sexual perversion, etc.)
>When we bring Jesus to the sins of the city, diversity becomes beautiful again.
>God doesn’t say quietly wait your time until you go home, but He tells them to work for Babylon’s prosperity.
>When the city isolates itself from the community, the brokenness becomes more evident.
PROVERBS 11:10, “When the righteous prosper, the city rejoices.”

Ask yourself this, if your church was taken from your city, would your city even miss it?

JEREMIAH 29:8
>God says, the city isn’t an evil place. Make roots and settle in.
>When you try to isolate yourself from the sin of the city, we forget that we are sinners too.
>We mistake the fact that holiness is separation from sin, not sinners.
>”Preaching against culture is like preaching against a person’s house – it’s where they live.” –Ed Stetzer
>The Bible isn’t against culture, it’s about redeeming and transforming culture.

>It wasn’t until 1950 that the world reached 1 billion inhabitants. Today, only 60 years later, we’re at 7 billion.
>God is behind this growth, because the result of globalization is urbanization. This allows us to reach the city.

>Today is the best time in history for us to continue what the Apostle Paul did.
>He would plant churches in the city and “pollinate” those there with the gospel. These people in the city would then take the gospel to their hometowns all over the region.
>So in reaching the city, he was actually reaching the region, if not the continent.
>The cities became strategic sending centers.

JEREMIAH 29:10-11
>We often forget that this was written to missionaries.
>He points them back to Jerusalem, which tells us that we don’t have an unlimited amount of time.
>God points us to the best city, the new Jerusalem. It gives us a hope.

>Your faith is founded about the mission.
>Your faith will die without the mission field.
>We have to be willing to choose our city over our career.
>Oftentimes, we pray, “God give me my city.”
>But we have to remember that the city is God’s and so are you. You need to pray that God gives you to the city.

JOHANNES AMRITZER – “LOVE MIRACLES”

Genesis 30:27-43
Genesis 31:10-13

>Jacob had a vision, a dream, and he didn’t change it.
>Jacob chose what Laben didn’t want.
>We need to invest in those that nobody else wants to invest in.
>Jacob saw what God saw.
>He knew his calling-his destiny-and he didn't waver from that.

RON JOHNSON – “THE ROLE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN KINGDOM ADVANCEMENT”

“We should not be working to just build ministries. We need to be facilitators for what God is doing.”

Acts 16:6-10

>You’re only one moment away from experiencing something that could transform your future.
>The biggest challenge in experiencing that moment is whether or not we are listening.
>Hebrews 5:14
>God doesn’t just want to speak to you when you’re in the pulpit, but also in ordinary the rest of your week.
>In this passage, Paul is just running with his companions.
>He had deep affection for these men – you don’t find that with colleagues, you see that with family.
>Everything we have, we will give up in a moment for family.

How Paul and his companions were guided by the Holy Spirit
1. They were seeking to go into places.
>If we’re going to be guided by the Holy Spirit, we have to be willing to do at least what we know how to do.
> “If we’re going to be used by God we have to stop being a bunch of parked cars.”
2. Paul was expecting the unexpected.
>To be used by the Holy Spirit, you have expect the supernatural.

WAYS GOD SPEAKS TO US
1. The inward witness of the Holy Spirit
2. The inward voice of the Holy Spirit
3. The audible voice of the Holy Spirit
4. The Bible
5. The Prophetic
6. Through Visions and Dreams

>He is a supernatural God and He works in supernatural ways!

>God knows more about reaching a ‘seeker’ than we will ever know.
>God is far more seeker-sensitive than we will ever know.

3. Paul and his companions were practicing immediate obedience.

Ignite 07 Young Pastors Roundtable

This week I'm taking part in a conference here at Allison Park Church called Ignite07. It's always a powerful week of incredible speakers. Over the next few days, I'm going to post notes from some of the sessions. Here's the first one:

SESSION #1: JOHANNES AMRITZER - "KEY FACTORS IN ACTS-ORIENTED MINISTRY"

-There are no techniques or routines in life with the Holy Spirit.

Acts 2:28 - Everything in spirit-filled ministry is about releasing the grace of God.

Acts 2:42-47
Acts 4:32-33

3 Key Factors
1. The Sensitivity and Obedience to the Words of the Holy Spirit
-Acts 8:29-Philip, Acts 10:19-Peter, Acts 13:2-Paul & Barnabas Sent Out
-Everything is about listening and obeying the Holy Spirit
-“We cannot become spirit-filled if we live our lives as charismatic robots.”
-Don’t let people put you in a box - you need to follow the Holy Spirit at all times.
-This is the most important thing – to follow the Holy Spirit.
-Your life can change so fast just by obeying the prompting of the Holy Spirit.
-Sometimes we have to give away what is in our hands in order to receive what God has for us.
-It’s not about reasoning, but obeying the Holy Spirit.
-Everything we have the Holy Spirit has done for us.
-The faster you flow in the Holy Spirit without reasoning things away, the faster your
churches will grow.
-You need to follow the Holy Spirit in every little thing – in every part of your day.
2. The Fellowship of the Believers
-Our fellowship is holy.
-Our moments together should not be wasted.
-Sometimes we take our fellowship lightly.
a. Oftentimes in ministry, there are many colleagues, but very few friends.
b. Faith
i. Faith is not denying, it is living.
ii. Faith is facing things as they are.
iii. Faith comes from deeper within.
c. Our fellowship needs to be real and genuine and true.
i. Relax – if you are really spiritual it will show.
ii. We don’t need to compare and compete with one another.
-When we are part of a fellowship that is holy, there is no reason to leave.
a. We stick because we are family.
b. We are a band of brothers.
3. The Supernatural
-There must be a stream of the supernatural running under everything we do.
-The Holy Spirit is there all the time.
-Acts 4:32-33