Kickoff, Week 3: For the Love of the Game

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.  See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. Isaiah 43:18-19 (NIV)  Message Title:  For the Love of The Game “I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary. Revelation 2:2-3 (NKJV) Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Revelation 2:4 (NKJV) Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works…” Revelation 2:5(NKJV) …I am the Lord. I will free you from your oppression and will rescue you from your slavery in Egypt. I will redeem you with a powerful arm and great acts of judgment.  I will claim you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God who has freed you from your oppression in Egypt.  I will bring you into the land I swore to give… Exodus 6:6-8 (NLT) RELIGION is your effort to PLEASE God. JESUS is God’s effort to LOVE you. Then God gave the people all these instructions: “I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. Exodus 20:1-2 (NLT) “You must not have any other god but me. Exodus 20:3 (NLT) “You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea.  You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods… Exodus 20:4-6 (NLT) “You must not misuse the name of the Lord your God…Exodus 20:7 (NLT) “Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.  You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God...  For in six days the Lord made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy. Exodus 20:8-11 (NLT) “Honor your father and mother. Then you will live a long, full life in the land the Lord your God is giving you. Exodus 20:12 (NLT) “You must not murder.  “You must not commit adultery.  “You must not steal.   “You must not testify falsely against your neighbor.  “You must not covet your neighbor’s house. You must not covet your neighbor’s wife, male or female servant, ox or donkey, or anything else that belongs to your neighbor.” Exodus 20:13-17 (NLT) When the people heard the thunder and the loud blast of the ram’s horn, and when they saw the flashes of lightning and the smoke billowing from the mountain, they stood at a distance, trembling with fear. Exodus 20:18 (NLT) And they said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen. But don’t let God speak directly to us, or we will die!” Exodus 20:19 (NLT) “Don’t be afraid,” Moses answered them, “for God has come in this way to test you, and so that your fear of him will keep you from sinning!” Exodus 20:20 (NLT) As the people stood in the distance, Moses approached the dark cloud where God was. Exodus 20:21 (NLT) Signs you have lost your love for the game: Your feelings are leading, not your choices. There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death. Proverbs 14:12 (ESV) Choices lead; feeling follow. You are moving, but not growing. But as I looked at everything I had worked so hard to accomplish, it was all so meaningless—like chasing the wind. There was nothing really worthwhile anywhere. Ecclesiastes 2:11(NLT) There is no neutral.  We are either growing or dying. You aren’t having fun. You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy. Psalm 30:11 (NLT) If you aren’t enjoying the journey, you aren’t doing something right. You want to escape, instead of rest. Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (NLT) God established the Sabbath so we would develop a habit of REST, instead of working ourselves into the need for an escape.  How do we get back to our first love? Rest our Bodies When you are worn out… you won’t make wise decisions.  He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46:10 (NIV) Realign our Hearts Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. Colossians 3:1-2 (NIV) Worship realigns our heart with an eternal perspective. And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Romans 12:1 (NLT) Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.  Romans 12:2 (NLT) Refocus our Purpose Make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself into that. Galatians 6:4 (MSG) Don’t be impressed with yourself. Don’t compare yourself with others. Each of you must take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life. Galatians 6:5 (MSG) Remember the Cost He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God. Romans 4:25 (NLT) I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20 (NIV)