good morning again but a great day with the baptisms it's awesome to think that janet was here at last baptism watching her daughter and son in law and then since then has put her trust in jesus and that's one of the reasons god wants us to be baptized it's it's our joy to be baptized but also the people watching and hearing then get to learn about jesus so maybe today you're thinking about put your trust in jesus for the first time what a great day to do it or even getting baptized if you haven't yet so just encouraging stuff we have six more people ready to get baptized next service lord willing as well so god is really changing a lot of lives and we're just celebrating together so let's pray and you could turn today to luke chapter nineteen is where we're going to start in the move chapter nineteen let's pray together father we thank you for our time here right now god how you communicate to us how you inspire us how you change our lives in our hearts and we give you the praise guide our steps we pray jesus and thank you for coming so close to us we pray in your name amen we're going to think beyond the walls of the church today and do it with this question what was jesus doing in the community during his time on earth in then today what is he doing in the community through you our lives changed when we read the bible watch jesus closely imitate him but don't miss the last part are empowered by him so it's more than just an imitation and a copy but he helps us in our walk with god so as we do that today we're going to get five conversations with jesus and five applications for us and really  today to reimagine is relational intelligence and i'll say it this way the ability to come alongside of people very well that to reimagine to have that vision and passion for coming alongside of people in the importance in that in our lives and i know you might be here today you say i'm a task person not a relational person well it's really key as we follow god in the relationships around us to be able to build these strong bonds so five conversations the first three people were people that were not following jesus as jesus came alongside of them so luke chapter nineteen starting in verse one jesus entered jericho and was passing through a man was there by the name of the key is he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy he wanted to see who jesus was but being a short man he could not because of the crowd so he ran ahead and climbed on a sycamore fig tree to see jesus since jesus was coming that way and when jesus reached the spot he looked up and he him come down immediately i must stay at your house today so he came down at once and welcomed him gladly and all the people saw this and they began to mutter jesus has gone to be the g of a sinner there you go a crowd that wants to gossip and slander well here's the first principle adjust your path so that you can spend time together a relational principle it's true in families if there's going to be healing in a family so often we need to adjust our paths so we spend more time together it's also true in the community if there's healing in a community adjust our path so we spend that key time together jesus is passing through jericho and he looks up and he sees this short man in a tree who's a key is you might think of someone you know that might be wealthy he's kind of isolated on the inside he knows he's guilty of some things sometimes someone can be wealthy isolated and in the inside they know they're guilty of a few things and jesus pursues zuki is i said imitate jesus except the part where you just say to someone i'm staying at your house today that might be a little dicey but but for the most part continue to imitate jesus is not swayed by what people are saying the crowd is saying he's going to be with a sinner that's not going to slow down jesus he's not depend on what the crowd thinks of him he's going to continue to follow god's plan when i served in oakland there were a few people that stood out to me beyond the walls of the church i was serving in a church but they were living in an in east oakland called the killing zone if you've ever been in oakland you might know what that area is and how many homicides there are at night there's helicopters that are just shining down trying to catch criminals it's like a battle zone there they had just graduated from cal berkeley and just appeared to have futures and a whole world before them and then they shifted and went and lived in the killing zone now their family might say what a waste of an education you could have had such a well paying job what do you do and what are you thinking why would you go towards the neighborhood where there's violence and sin and murder and drugs and it's dangerous why would you risk your lives and go there jesus pursued zick eous these friends started to use a word i wasn't familiar with before they started well it's incarnation all in so you know i understood jesus incarnation but i hadn't really connected the dots the incarnational ministry that jesus left the comforts of heaven in came down to be where we are to take on the flesh to be in a body even die in a cross but that willingness to come alongside and maybe even make some sacrifices in be there close they just ask the question well how are we going to connect and reach the people if we live far away we want to do life together and i think of our international partners just traveling all the way the crosses are are in africa right now in just had a child and pray for the situation there for the health of  the their newborn but but with that i mean they have gone to be with refugees on the other side of the world to love them and come alongside them i think incarnational i think of our prison team that goes into the prisons incarnational the medical clinic to be right alongside the incarnational we have now people at the senior center across the street over here leading a bible study over there incarnational by on their request so yes there's formal ministries but the emphasis in this message is one on one one on one pursuing people and then guiding them spiritually jesus is guiding them to eternal life but coming alongside people well it includes being intentional in pursuing people might start in your family but it certainly extends into the community here's a second story second conversation let's go to the right and john chapter three in this is nicky demas if you're a long term christian you might think oh another story i know but i really want us to think through the lens of coming alongside people well not just as a concept but looking what jesus does in following his lead so do on chapter three starting in verse one now there was a man of the  demas a member of the jewish ruling council he came to jesus at night and he said rabbi we know you are a teacher who has come from god for no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if god were not with him in reply jesus declared i tell you the truth no one can see the kingdom of god unless he is born again how can a man be born when he is old that could be missed asked surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born in jesus answered i tell you the truth no one can enter the kingdom of god unless he is born of water and of the spirit so this conversation is a little different approaches jesus you might have some people that approach you and they've got some questions well who's in it could be miss he's religious he doesn't yet have that relationship with god that's eternal but he's religious and he's wrestling with some things he's trying to figure out he's heard things about jesus and he's seen things and he's just got questions but he kind of wants to do it privately this would be the person that doesn't want to come to church yet but maybe they want to e mail you or maybe they'll get together and talk about coffee they're interested in some religious things about jesus but they're kind of keeping it on the down low and they're not sure they're confused so the principle here listen to someone's heart and listen to the holy spirit so you can bring timely guidance timely guidance i want to say this clear i think there's a great correlation between how well we listen and how well we reach the community thanks for watching our program today and i want to let you know about our web site activate life died or you can send us your prayer requests we are honored to pray for you we also have daily devotions and other resources you can sign up for and if you want to support us financially you can do that through the website now we'll get back to the teaching as we get into god's word to getting up they broke the norms and it just continued to grow into more and more locations and in you know that's just one example but it was based on accountability dignity and responsibility and we help each other it was a family model and i just thought wow there's so many beautiful truths to that in so doing that life together coming along side in when you think about that you know jesus modeled that that same approach with us and in not now but then also back then in so i want to reimagine what can be how lives can be changed when not from a distance but up close we come alongside that's the thrust of this message today so these last two people followers of jesus and let's take a look at luke chapter seven luke chapter seven starting in verse eighteen told him about all these things and this is john the baptist and in jesus so calling two of them john sent them to the lord to ask are you the one who was to come or should we expect someone else so john the baptist i mean he's just serve the lord with all his heart and mind and soul he's not persecutors for his faith he's now in jail you know when pain and disappointment come in you can do some weird things to your perspective a man i mean when you thought life was going to go this way in all sun it's going that way it can kind of taint sometimes our view of life of other people of our faith it can taint our view of god when we're disappointed in the despair and so john the baptist is going through a really big time of just you know is god still good is jesus i've given my whole life to the lord but now i'm just i've got to be honest i've got some doubts because this is not how i thought life was going to go never been there in so that's what he's wrestling with and he sends some of his guys these and they go as jesus and when the men came to jesus they said john the baptist sent us to you to ask and they probably a little bit ashamed are you the one who was to come or should we expect someone else they got to ask jesus are you really the savior or is there like somebody greater coming along because it's not all adding up right now that very time jesus appeared many who had diseases sicknesses and evil spirits in gave sight to many who were blind so then he replied to the messengers go back and report to john what you seen and heard the blind receive sight the lame walk those who have leprosy aren't here the death here the dead are raised and the good news is preached to the poor and then here's a here's a little note for john blessed is the man or woman who does not fall away on account of me desperation despair discouragement for john he's wounded i can't have every word starts with the  wounded there he is and he's struggling in prison he's trying to put the pieces together the guys he stands are probably trying to do the same thing in what posture does jesus take patient and kind patient in kind let me just ask you in your family would people describe you as patient and kind in parenting that's something that gets tested often can you continue to all the questions he starts it's a demonstration another one of his love throughout the old testament these are all the prophecies the blind they're going to see when the messiah comes what does jesus do the blind can see and then he turns around and says the blind can see look right here blind not blind tell john the baptist don't fall the way don't fall away so he's acting a demonstration of love to encourage to bring clarity john the baptist is not quite making it do you know anyone that's not quite making it feeling defeated so i mean that's that's the principle here is reassure and build up someone who feels defeat it i don't think what a beautiful picture of the old testament moses is praying it is his arms are lifted up and he's praying joshua's in the middle of a battle moses praying with arms lifted out in moses just grow so tired you know aaron in her come alongside of him and hold up his arms so there's not defeat but he continues to pray and there's victory down below for joshua aaron in her they know how moses feel and in their right they are to hold his arms up and that's what jesus is doing is holding up john the baptist he'll put affirmation there's no one greater born among women than john the baptist he builds he builds up where there's a bruised reed in so in cross country and i didn't run cross country i was talking to someone who did this week and they were talking about this pacer role in so when there's a race there's also a pacer in training and that pacer runs alongside in helps the runner to not go too fast to get worn out and not go too slow to fall behind the pace in part of that pacing role it's not just physical in time but in a race mentally psychologically perseverance wise you need someone right the saying keep going you got this you're on pace all right slow down low bit speed about you got this keep going keep go in stride stride stride in i think of how jesus comes along side of us it's ok a slow down of speed up speed up you've got this in continuing to encourage encourage with john the baptist bringing real hope to someone who feels defeated not fake hope real hope what a difference that makes luke chapter ten one last one no he was beheaded and because of his faith but how important jesus's words were how timely i say you know chapter fifty how timely that word a word in due season a strategic word that someone needs to hear out of your mouth that god is speaking through you doesn't have to be a long word but just something timely is so important so last one luke chapter ten verse thirty eight as jesus and his disciples were on their way he came to a village where a woman named martha opened her home to him she had a sister called mary who sat at the lord's feet listening to what he said but martha was distracted by all of the preparations that had to be made she came to him and asked lord don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work all by myself tell her to help me the lord answered martha martha you who are worried i'm sad about many things but only one thing is needed mary has chosen what is better and it will not be taken away from her martha was busy martha was distracted martha was weary she was well intentioned i mean she really had a great start she wanted to serve the lord she wanted to be hospitable open up her home but did you notice she started to get a little feisty a little demanding you ever made that turn stirred up with like doing the right thing good intentions like want to help out and then pretty soon you start to resent some people when you're getting like bothered by some people who aren't doing it the way you're doing it and we're going to hard as you are a knowledge of us will be doing some good and you have people over but you're stressed out the whole family stressed because you're stressed out  i'm not preaching to anybody i know but i'm saying you know some people who might be like a martha so there she goes and what does jesus do protects mary no no no no mary's doing mary's right on track mary is abiding mary is abiding martha you're not abiding right now i got great intentions but he protects mary he guides martha towards health what a gift to guide her  a picture of health the person you're rebuking is that actually the person who's a picture of abiding close to the lord is not what martha expected here maybe not what she wanted to hear but guiding her in towards a picture of health here's the principle redirect someone who does not realize they are majoring on the minors in life there's the majors and there's the miners in how do we lose perspective we start majoring on the minors have you ever done that have you ever like put the job way up here in the family down there the money up there in the friend down there have you ever just switched things god's order in all of a sudden what should be the best is not so important but then what's not so important you've actually made something huge so you have my team doesn't win it like ruins my month you know exactly when someone's m miners in jesus sees this and martha and he's in love and he's going to redirect or you know i did something this week that was just silly i was running late packing my lunch spaghetti you know put extra sauce in there had a container and there's four seals on the container and i just had this little thought that you know the main thing is not to be any later than i am so as i was heading out the house i just snapped two of the seals and put the spaghetti in my bank and i was surprised to find out when i had made it up to my office and opened up the bag that the spaghetti because there weren't four seals had made its way all over my clothes all over my bag the spaghetti sauce and i was borrowing a book from someone that is now covered in red so i'm scrubbing that book trying to get it clean how do you get spaghetti sauce off t so i'm just trying to wait they clean i'm saying sorry if you need a new book i'm trying to fan it in my office get before i give it back in the pages you know a big you know when they're wet and dry and they just change a little bit i'm offering in y because in a split second instead of what was actually most important all four closed i thought most important just to hustle in keep moving here in so what happens when you shift what's most important in what's not most important and you shift those you get a mass you get a mess a small picture but it can happen on a big scale in so jesus is coming along side of martha in trying to help her in this mess to try to get her to refocus and it's this little shift it's this little redirect in by the way next time someone's doing that it might not be right that second to say ha ha you're martha h pastor said how ha god's timing god's tone god's words but jesus knows the situation and how to redirect and the light bulbs are going to go on for martha and if you're married don't feel self righteous aha i know i've been relaxing perfectly i've been abiding i've been telling you this for years you know just stay on track with the lord so just some real life examples from jesus one on one how do we wrap up today bring this home when you think about jesus coming alongside i also think about the holy spirit there's a name for the holy spirit para clete i said that to someone not too long ago and they said what is this more soccer stuff para word two parts para and calais zero is called para is alongside called alongside the holy spirit comes along longside encourage or comfort or help friend advocate in so the holy spirit working through you you come alongside someone and god works through you comfort you encourage your their advocate you're their helper a coming alongside incarnational modeled by jesus the work of the holy spirit in out through us living it out god's heart coming alongside of people well and we're live in a culture that's getting a little wild a little crazy in christians are trying to figure out what do i do with this culture come along side the answer is not to come of self righteous have it all together have all the answers let me look joe no pun you and in lighten you that's not it it's not it it's not to be oh no it's getting crazy scared intimidated you  know hide in a corner and every once in awhile just lob over a little money and then just hide in scale that's not it it's not to say well i don't like this culture in turn my back and just have some resentment toward some people in this culture that's not it biblically jesus the holy spirit we see that coming alongside time and time again it's an ability i think that's under valued to come alongside to connect to listen to gu y to really bring the encouragement that's needed in so we see that in that that's when it comes to message step by step when someone knows they're not alone you're next to them you're with them you're go walk with them in so how can two you know walk together unless they agree it takes humility in compassion in a busy world it goes under valued that coming alongside someone else it's what jesus does it's what the holy spirit does in  case you know there's three things that are strengthened when we do that first when you do that your relationship with god is strengthened because you're right in the spot where god wants you along side then your bond with that person is strengthen they don't feel distant or judged her alone or ridiculed or mocked that they feel like oh here's someone that's big i can count on here's someone favorable and understanding and thank you so much you know there's a reason why paul just keep saying send somebody my direct to be as i could just send luke you know in or else we'll send titus somewhere just that one person that comes along side would you agree makes such a difference in life when you get that one person right there in then for them it's going to help them because they feel god's love through you and it strengthens their relationship with god so it looks like a small thing to come alongside well but actually your relationship with god their relationship with god and your bond together god is working in all three of those at the same time and so we reimagine this here is the take home many people will not walk forward with jesus until they first experience someone coming alongside of them they first experience someone coming alongside of them and after that experience they want to move forward with jesus let's pray father would you help us to understand the times to understand the ministry of the holy spirit to understand the ability in importance of coming alongside well would you renew our passion in our vision in our families in our church and in the community father when we have eyes to see those who need to come alongside of the lord would you please help us with our ears in our heart to listen well god would you mand marriages would you keel relationships between parents and kids father may we be a humble connected to her father in our community let us move beyond these walls jesus like you did in the community and to come alongside we thank you lord for the opportunities to reimagine and to live like you live jesus empowered by you and father we pray that if anyone here hasn't yet put their trust in you not dead religion not self righteous ferris sees not naked demas trying to more and more good things but grace an undeserved gift a relationship with jesus christ it's between you and jesus but he couldn't do more he couldn't love you more he couldn't sacrifice more and he knocks on your heart and he knocks on your heart and we put walls up but he wants so much to be in there and to be with you in for and for if you've never made that decision jesus name amen thanks for watching today and i want to let you know about our web site activate life that org there are so many free resources to help you grow in your faith and if you've been blessed during the teaching please send us an e mail if you want to learn more about jesus we'd love to hear from you again our web site is activate life dot org and we'll see you next week