Kev’s on-line eGroup sermon notes Ballantyne Campus Sat. Jan. 25, 2020 Pastor Steven Furtick Sermon title: Kingdom Clout Part 3 “Ghosted”

Elevation Worship – with Tauren Wells - release of his new Album – Citizen in Heaven • Echo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8agqyGIaD8 • Citizen in Heaven • Famous For • See A Victory: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNd-PbVhnvA • Never Lost: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IigZiYgPGT0

Scripture: • Acts 1: 1 to 9: 1 In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach 2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. 3 After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. 4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” 6 Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” 9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. 10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” • John 2: 1- 11 • Luke 5 • Mathew 8 • John 16:7: 7 But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. • Mathew 14:26: 6 When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. • Luke 24

Sermon notes from “Ghosted” by Pastor Steven Furtick: • Opening Prayer: We just have so much to celebrate today. Yes we have a lot of things to worry about - however - we choose to focus on what God is doing in our lives – and when

1 we focus on that, it gives us a great perspective. The Bible says that when two of you agree on something that concerns your heart, and pray about it – in accordance to His will – then He will hear you and it will be done – so we need to agree with each other today – we are in a place today where we can align our faith together – and believe in God for a great visitation or habitation in our presence today. Open our eyes to who he is and open our hearts to what He has done. Father we thank you that you are working in this moment – in ways that we can’t see. We thank you for all of the great things that you are doing in our lives right now. You can take sorrow and turn it into victory and purpose – and you can do that. And can you do that today? We came to meet together – not to just sing a few songs or host a middle school pep rally. We came here to worship you – to be changed by you – to be touched by you. So we just want to pray for the person on our right and our left – Please speak to them today – they need to hear from You – and You know that. Please say it in a way so they know that it is You. And while you are at it, can you please bless us to? We need you. We need you in our minds. We need you in our finances. We need you in our decision-making processes. We thank that you are able to do exceedingly and abundantly more than what we ask or imagine. In Jesus name. Amen. • Comments by Tauren Wells following the release of his new Album – Citizen in Heaven – The Heart of the Project: I did not plan for this album to come out during an election year. I think the world and the church equally lose our minds when we start talking about politics and presidents – it is almost like we have forgotten that our hope is not built on a government system – our hope is not invested in an artificial kingdom. We serve at the pleasure of the king – and his is not just any King – he is the King of all Kings – He is the Lord of Lords – he is the alpha and omega – the beginning and the end. And, so we do not have to worry about who is next because God is the same person that he was yesterday, today, and tomorrow – and we have a citizenship that is higher than any earthly affiliation. We are citizens of Heaven. • This week is eGroup sign-up week. If you come to Elevation Church and don’t do the eGroup thing, this is like going to Ruth Chris’ steak house and to just drink water. You need to do this. This is where the real nutrition happens. Getting the message is one thing – digesting it is another. So when you get the message and they can break things down for you – it is a great way to connect – and I know that you are popular and already have friends – just shut-up and join and eGroup. People work on their bodies and work on all external components of their lives – but how much time do you spend each week to prioritize to keep your soul in a good spot? So that is what it’s for - and it is here for you. And if after you try three or four eGroups, the groups might not be the problem (sarcastic comment). • See Acts 1: 1 to 9 • In this text, we can find ourselves engaged at an emotional level – and we can find ourselves comforted by the hope that is Jesus Christ and we are empowered by the mission that he has given us. • I really think that God wants to use you this year – not just for you to ask God to pay bills – miss traffic – and that is fine – but this is the lowest level and that we experience a greater relationship with God - And my hope in preaching Kingdom Clout is that we understand that when we obtain approval from others, it feels empty – because it came from people and

2 they are just as messy as you are – unless there is a foundation beneath it as to why you do what you do. • In Acts 1, it explains how Jesus is building his Church – and the way he did it – all of his disciples had to navigate tremendous uncertainty – and if this is you today – and there are some things that you do not know – this message should be practical and powerful. • Acts 1 explains the whole book of acts – how the holy spirit came – and how the holy spirt was distributed – as the gospel went out all over the world. • And we could spend the whole year in Acts 1. • Say this: I know that I am chosen – despite that all of my mistakes. • Recall that Acts 1 was written after Jesus had gone to the cross – and all of his disciples except John have deserted him. • It touched me to learn that Jesus chose them at the beginning of his ministry – and helped me even more to realize that even after they left him and failed them – he still chose them. • This is really helpful to me. • Once God sees who we really are – when we have had four hours of sleep and we are angry with the kids in the car – where people make a snapshot judgment of you and make a decision as to who you are – God is not this way. • God has a picture of you that is not dependent upon the decisions that you make – and is formed by the destiny that He has created you for. • It says that Jesus chose these apostles and he gave them instructions. • Here is important free point: The chips and Salsa of the sermon that comes for free: Luke is writing his 2nd book (Acts 1) – where he writes that Jesus began to do and teach – after three years of ministry – after dying on the cross, Jesus was just getting started. • This is good for me to know that when Jesus died on the cross, it was only a beginning. • For the person that has the devil telling you that your best is behind you – and if he has been saying that you – he is liar – because Luke says in Acts 1 – when Jesus on this early, that was the just the beginning of what he came to do. • Jesus says this to us: You ain’t seen nothing yet – it is just the beginning. • Yes there have been some good times and bad times – and some successes and setbacks – but note this – it is just the beginning – and whomever this is for – receive it on faith in your spirt – and squeeze some juice out of what I am saying – this is just the beginning. • You have only just begun to be anointed – you have only just begun to prosper – you have only just begun to see the promise and potential that God has for you. • See vs 3 to 7. • He tells them – do not leave Jerusalem. • In the King James version, the Holy Spirit is called the Holy Ghost – along with all of the other “hither”, and “dither” and “thous” and “thees.” • Jesus is teaching his disciples about the Kingdom of God – and they still are not getting it. • We can go through many transformative experiences in life and still miss the point – and revert back to our old expectations – even after even experiencing a radical encounter with Jesus Christ. • Rhetorical exchange between Jesus and his disciples: I wonder who is more frustrated in this situation – Jesus or the disciples – you mean that you still do not get it – after I have

3 demonstrated this kingdom to you over the last three years? And you are still stuck on this surface level? Did you not see the holes in my hand and that I even folded my own laundry before leaving the grave and ascending to heaven? – For no other reason than to let you know that Jesus is in the big things in your life as well as the little things in your life. • Jesus does not give his disciples an answer to their question – and this is the premise that I want to develop with you today – in the absence of answers – faith is born. • In the absence of answers (God how is this going to turn out? What is going to become of this?), faith is born. • Now for the power verse. See vs. 7. It is not for you to know. • It is not for you to always know who, what, where, or how. • Do you like my owl moment – Who? Who? • This is the first of 31 times that Jesus uses the term “witness”. • See vs. 8 and 9: 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” 9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. • My title for this sermon is called “Ghosted.” • Do you know what this term means? - Today is means that someone dropped out of site but did not have the courage to break up with you – where you sent your friend to tell someone to break up with another person – and today we ghost with our thumbs – and so now they call it ghosting. • Ghosted = when someone disappears from your life – or something disappears from your life. • The term 10 is important. • Between the time that Jesus rose from the dead and Pentecost was 50 days. For 40 days Jesus spoke about the kingdom of God to the disciples – making regular appearances show them that he had resurrected from the dead – so they could experience the power of his presence. • And then Jesus told the disciples that he was leaving – he ghosted them – and left them for 10 days to wonder – to see if anything had changed. • A Pastor Furtick classic: Most of us couldn’t live 10 days without electricity in our house – some of us couldn’t live without Wi-Fi for 10 days – and some of us couldn’t live without Wi- Fi for 10 minutes - before we started questioning the existence of a higher power. For some of us - if we are without Wi-Fi we start shaking like a heroin addict – so if we are with a friend at a café and our phone is face down on the table - and it starts shaking we start shaking too. • The disciples were exposed to Jesus’ ministry for three years to understand the power of his presence – now they’re ghosted and left to think about things for about 10 days. • We need the power of his presence in our lives and we need more than 89 minutes a week in a church – we have all kinds of temperaments and anxieties – and we need more than the length of a feature film to be in the presence of God. • And everywhere that we find His presence, the situation is better. Welcoming his presence is different from acknowledging his presence.

4 • For three years the disciples knew about the power of his presence – and where his presence is - his power comes. Therefore you might want to think about inviting Jesus to your wedding. • Recall that Jesus converted water to wine during a wedding. See John 2. • The presence of Jesus makes something flow that was otherwise dry. • And we need to have the presence of Jesus in our relationships because sometimes we run out of resources and the energy that we need – creating a sense of poverty within us – so if we don’t invite Jesus in - we will be limited in our perspective of the relationship. • Invite Jesus into your boat – in your work – and you’re spending decisions – your networking decisions – in your contacts section of your phone as to what should be deleted and what should be kept - See Luke 5. • When you have Jesus in your boat your problems change – when Jesus entered the boat with Peter - they went from there weren’t enough fish to too many fish. When you let Jesus in your boat things change and he makes a difference. And you definitely want him in your boat when you’re going through a storm – even when he is sleeping in the stern. See Mathew 8 – where Jesus rebuked the wind and the waves because the weather was no match for Jesus. • Your life is not defined by the storms or conflicts but rather defined by the presence of Christ within you – that provides a stillness within you that is greater than all of the conflict that is around you. • His presence makes the difference. • The presence of God removes barriers - the presence of God removes mindsets – the presence of God breaks traditions. • Don’t invite Jesus to your funeral – he might trigger a Lazarus event and raise someone from the dead. • For three years the disciples experience the power of Jesus his presence – now during 10 days of wondering – they get to experience the power of his absence. • If the disciples were being honest, they would probably admit that the power of his presence was more exciting – where Jesus fed the 5000 + women and children with the captain D’s dinner. • See vs 9 of Acts 1. • The Holy Spirit will now infill people. • This would be a defining characteristic in distinguishing element of the kingdom from God. • In the old testament the Holy Ghost to Holy Spirit would come on people for a particular task – and now it is within people. • The power of Jesus’ absence does not draw much airtime in church pulpits. It is a bit more difficult to celebrate absence versus presence (in most situations) • Have you ever been glad to be ghosted – when a particular person left you for good – where a disaster was avoided? • The entire outline of the Book of acts is outlined in chapter 1. The Holy Spirit will come - and the disciples will spread the word of God will spread to all areas. • Samaria is worth talking about.

5 • It was an area that the Jewish people avoided – recall Jesus meeting a woman at the well in Samaria. (Jesus had to go to Samaria to save a women). • All of us have something in our lives – that I will call “some area.” • It might be something that you carried from your childhood – it might be something that you saw your parents do and that now you were duplicating mindlessly – it might be something that you have to face that’s going to require you to make amends or reconciliation – it might be something you have to face that will require you to humble yourself. • The term “some area” (A word play on Samaria) refers to some area that you are avoiding that the gospel must go through for you for the purpose of God to be achieved in your life. • The beauty of being chosen is that we no longer have to chase - because we are chosen. • We no longer have to chase in order to have an answer for things about God. • Jesus tells the disciples to take the gospels to the world. • And there was no social construct outside of the nation of Israel to put this in perspective. • The disciples were thinking it was only about the nation of Israel – like playing God bless America – as if America is supposed to be the center of the world. • The disciples still need to realize that God is not a national deity. • It’s not only a geographical expansion for the disciples it is also psychological expansion – and a theological expansion. • In Acts 1, The spirit is going from external/empowering/enabling to with-in you. It is a different kingdom – and it is a different concept. • To begin to see that some of Gods greatest gifts in your life – do not come from moments when you feel His presence – but rather in the moments that you perceive his absence. • What I mean by this is that we cannot always measure the power of God by presence – our emotional state – nor can we measure His presence by how his nature conforms to our plans. • The disciples were married to what they thought Jesus was going to do – where Jesus tells them it’s not for you to know it is for you to be. • See Acts 1:8. For many years I thought this meant that we should be constantly knocking on doors – and we get so focusing on the activity – but Jesus did not give the disciples something to do - he gave them something so they could be. • And this explains why God does not always do what we want him to do – because in the 10 days between – what he does, we get to become. • Consider waiting 10 days or 10 years (for some of us) – and wondering if anything is going to change. • The waiting can make us feel dysfunctional or insufficient. • We know that people don’t define us - and people are responsible for their own decisions – it is relatively easy for us to intellectually appreciate the power of absence – when God takes something out of your life – it is just a significant as when God brings something new into your life. • In my life I have lost people that I thought I could not live without – I have lost things – I’ve lost opportunities – have you ever had life just suddenly change (like an adolescent that no

6 longer wants to hug you)? – or a stage in life changes – and here’s what I love about this text – at the moment that Jesus left the disciples – it reveals the greatest experience of his power that the disciples will ever know. • See John 16:7: 7 But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. • This verse has been ringing in my head all week for someone that has been ghosted. • It may not have been a person – may have been a situation – it may have been a mindset – it may be a story that no longer works – when something leaves your life and even if it was bad for you – it hurts to lose it. • Jesus has to go away in order to send the advocate. • So watch this – if Jesus stays with the disciples in his physical form – Jesus can’t live in them in a spiritual from – Jesus is saying: I know this doesn’t feel good to you, however it is the best thing for you. • The hardest thing in life is to see those moments we feel absence as a gift. • In the absence of the familiar do you have to wait for the gift. • You were not ghosted by God. You are gifted by God. • Are you ready for the gift? • And don’t give up in going through your “some area” – and you will see God use you in ways that you cannot even imagine. • And in the words of Jesus Christ – the savior of the world – you will receive power. • When the Holy Spirit comes on you – Jesus didn’t leave – he just change form. • In the sense of his absence - and in the presence of the Holy Spirit God - is feeling empty places – that He is re-organizing cluttered minds – changing paradigms – showing you priorities that are congruent with his kingdom – He’s working through lock doors – if you don’t recognize him when He comes because He comes in a different form. • See Mathew 14 • When Jesus walking on water to see the disciples they were terrified – they thought he was a ghost. • This is the same thing they said about Jesus when he left the tomb. • See Luke 24 • It was not a ghost that they saw– it was a gift – and we don’t necessarily perceive it for what it is. It didn’t feel good - but it was good – and continues to work within us an order for achieve a greater purpose. • With the Holy Spirit the power of his presence becomes complete for both the disciples and us. • What do you not half that you think you need? This is where God can show up. • Jesus is message to the disciples: take the gospel to the whole world – and I’m out. • At the moment of the disciples greatest challenge they had the least physical proof that he was with them. And that is how it is – when you need God the most. • What you did not get from God or from others is sometimes the place of the greatest gift is revealed. • Jesus was taken from them so that he could be within them.

7 • We often shout about the presence of God – do we also shout about the presence within us? Here’s the revelation: Christ is in within me – the hope in the glory is within me – and we do not need external signs from others to know that He is real. • The greatest gift of God is knowing what is around you changes – and what is within you is revealed. • This is what God is doing in this season of your life – he is showing you what you’re made of. • You are made of the same stuff that God spoke into the world. • He gifted you – say this: You are gifted. • God has gifted us for this sphere that we have the capacity to influence. • He didn’t leave us - it just looks different now. • Marriages, happiness and parenting look different as we enter new seasons of our lives. • God didn’t change your marriage – He is just providing you a new and deeper definition of love. • Ghosted = gifted – the greatest transition and the arrival of the Holy Spirit. • Hopefully this message will reinforce the understanding that you are not alone - and God did not abandon you. • Do not perceive the presence of problems in your life to be an indication of the absence of God – He did not leave you – not in your relationships – not in your resources.

Charles Spurgeon Moment (CSM) – His thoughts on Acts 1

I have engraved you on the palms of My hands? O unbelief, what a strange marvel you are! We do not know what to wonder at most—the faithfulness of God or the unbelief of His people. He keeps His promise a thousand times, and yet the next trial makes us doubt Him. He never fails; He is never a dry well; He is never as a setting sun, a passing meteor, or a melting vapor; and yet we are as continually troubled with anxieties, molested with suspicions, and disturbed with fears as if our God were a mirage of the desert. “Behold” is a word intended to stir our admiration. Consider the depth of this! “I have engraved your person, your image, your circumstances, your sins, your temptations, your weaknesses, your wants, your works; I have engraved you, everything about you, all that concerns you; I have put all of this together here.” Will you ever say again that your God has forsaken you when He has engraved you on His own palms?

8