10's, 50's, and 100's

“If you live gladly to make others glad in God, your life will be hard, your risks will be high, and your joy will be full.”

We are those of a Movement of Hope, and we are giving all we have for generations to live the full joys and glories of all Christ provides.  Each step in that direction is evidence of God moving things to a better and better condition in the earth.  Lives improved, families improved, cities improved, and nations improved are displays of His glory and grace. 

God is bringing us into a deeper revelation and further understanding of His rest.  He did not intend for those of His covenant to strive.  Striving produces thorns and thistles that is the revealing of the curse (Gen 3:18-19).  Rest in Jesus is the faith filled life of hope that results in fruit and leaves that heal/make better (Rev 22).

Here are some thoughts to help us see a place of rest provided through Jesus:

He designed us as leaders to tend curtained measures of influences.  As He enables us to see that and live it, we experience a restful place of fulfillment instead of pressured striving.

Moses father-in-law, Jethro, gives Godly insight to Moses that some leaders are called to 10, some 50, some 100's (Ex 18:21).  This speaks to us that not all are called to the same thing or the same “amount”.  When someone called to influence and lead 10’s gets into the pressured striving of trying to lead 100’s, frustration becomes the way of life.  We are to aim for and go after the fullest of what God has given us.   When we are unsatisfied with our lives because we don’t see what the media or our unmet needs project as success, we end up outside His rest and produce thorns and thistles.

We must see that success is not in the numbers or money, but success is in the faithful stewarding of our call.

Jesus told the story, in Matthew 25:14-30, about servants being given different amounts of talents (responsibilities).  Notice again, not all given the same measure.  This lesson from Jesus was that the amount was not the measure of success but tending to the assignment revealed success.  The servant with 2 talents didn’t strive to generate 5.  The servant with 5 talents didn’t strive to generate 10.  They lived in the “grace” given to them and brought forth a full measure.  These servants succeeded in stewarding the assignment they were given.  The one that didn’t steward the assignment was the unsuccessful servant.  As a leader in a Movement of Hope, you can’t get pushed into striving for “more”.  You live in the “rest” of what you have and steward that well so there is glorious results. 

As the 1^st Century Ecclessia was developing, Apostle Paul was lead to a new strategy.  He adjusted from traveling and large group teaching to teaching in a single location with the same handful of people (Acts 19:1-10). Paul taught these 12 in Ephesus and recognized his success wasn’t in the size of the crowd, but it was in the faithful efforts in the assignment.  He didn’t strive to keep some status of fame, notoriety, and being a “highly demanded speaker”.  He was at rest in the grace of each phase of his journey.  From what I can tell, Paul wasn’t aware he was writing Holy Scripture as he wrote letters to those he was influencing.  Those letters became canonized later.  As we are restfully faithful to what we are assigned to, we never know the far reaches of impact we cause.  We get to rest in releasing out of us what we are given and be settled that God will use it as He intends.  If we strive to create the degree of impact, we are taking matters into our own hands as if we are God.  That leads us back to the work of Adam and the result being thorns.  Because Apostle Paul moved in what was needed in each moment and didn’t strive to stay within a certain paradigm of perceived success, he found the place of being content/at rest (Phil 4:11).  We all know the magnitude of Paul’s impact now because he carried out the call without attention to numbers or notoriety.  We see from Paul the reality of needing to use the right measuring device to indicate his success (more on that later).

As a leader in a Movement of Hope, you can’t get pushed into striving for “more”. 

We are often thrown out of rest and step into striving as we give into the pressure for more and being something outside who we're called to be.  There can seem like a constant demand for more. Do more, reach more, build more, make more, get more people, get more known by more people, etc. But what if the calling is to 10 or 50?  What if your highest impact is only in the ones of your family? What if you're called to lead only a few? What if your business isn't huge or the #1 in its field? What if it’s not called to be? What if your congregation only has 25, forever?  What if your name is never in lights and you are never celebrated?  What if you are called to 10,000’s?  Does that make you more of a success than someone called to 10?  If called to 10,000 then steward that call well and live in rest.  Don’t strive for 100,000.  If called to 10, then steward that call well and live in rest.  Don’t strive for 100’s. 

This challenge to rest in what Jesus has given you isn’t about being lazy or living something less than what God has given you. This is about living to the fullest of your calling which may be 10 or 50 or 100’s. Can you live in rest as you giving your all for His glory in that capacity, or will you fight back against His design and strive to do something "more"?

From where do you gain your sense of success?

These questions push us to consider the measuring stick we are using to see if what we are building is on point and successful. From where do you gain your sense of success? Where do you look to gauge your impact? What must things be like to know you've hit the mark? If 10 is your call, live that to the fullest! If 50, find your heart overwhelmingly thrilled to rock that assignment! Stop living in the pressure of "more", and live in the rest of fulfillment.

The quote at the top about living gladly (in rest) to cause others to be glad in God is a powerful statement to use as you measure your success.  Lead all those you are to influence to be glad in God and rest in whatever amount God has given you to lead.  Rest!

Perfecting in Christ / Mandate of Hope - RISE Training Series Jan 2015

Perfecting in Christ - "Where are We?"

by Pastor Mic Cox

The Anchor Church, Parkersburg, WV

One thing we as leaders have to recognize first and foremost is that people are trying to find their identity. The big question in our hearts is “Who am I?” As leaders, spiritual fathers and mothers, we must be able to help sons and daughters navigate their hearts and find purpose and direction. Help them find out who they are. If not the culture around them will tell them they are what they do: their job or their hobby. It will define them by what they do right or wrong and it will lead them to believe they are defined but what others think.  This leads to always trying to achieve more and trapped under the weight of constantly trying to please people.

As leaders we need to change the question from “Who am I?” to “Where am I?” When Adam and Eve ate the fruit in the garden they were duped by the serpent into finding their identity from someone or something other than God -

            "For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." Genesis 3:5

What was the result:

            “Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings.”  Genesis 3:7

They no longer saw themselves as God saw them and immediately covered themselves. God shows up and what is the first thing He says?

            “Then the LORD God called to the man, and said to him, "Where are you?”  Genesis 3:9

When you understand that you can't hide from God that question begins to stand out: Where are you?

The world asks “Who am I?” God asks “Where are you?” That's the question we have to challenge those we are discipling with. Paul, in his letters to the Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians and Colossians, basically wrote a manifesto of where the Christian should be – In Christ. Peter in his first letter writes that:

             "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” 1 Peter 2:9,10

Peter declares that we are:

1. Accepted – Chosen by God Himself

2. Extremely Valuable -  A Holy Nation, A People Belonging to God

3. Eternally Loved – Once we were not a people, Now we are God's People

4. Totally Forgiven – We did not know God's mercy, Now we have received His mercy

5. Fully Capable – We are royal priests – Chosen to tell about the wonderful acts of God

This is where we are now. This is what we now have to teach and train those who are following us to understand. If we do not disciple them the culture will.

Non- Kingdom culture disciples:

From faith to doubt

From Love to insecurity

From Contribution to consumerism

From Rest to exhaustion

(Consumerism and exhaustion are the biggest reason why it is so heard to help people find their purpose and direction and why it's so hard to get them to buy into vision)

I want to bring up a way the church in the past has helped people find where they are. During the Reformation, men like Martin Luther and John Calvin and others began to rediscover what Paul and Peter were talking about when they spoke of being “In Christ”. They highlighted 5 key points they called the 5 Solas:

Sola Fide, by faith alone

Sola Scriptura, by Scripture alone.

Solus Christus, through Christ alone

Sola Gratia, by grace alone

Soli Deo Gloria, glory to God alone.

We will dig into these more in the upcoming weeks. But just a simple understanding of these 5 puts the christian in a new perspective. Just knowing that EVERYTHING WE DO IS TO THE GLORY OF GOD changes everything. They way we carry ourselves, the way we interact with other people, the way live together as a family – all of it is affected by this statement. The Reformers held a high regard for the work of the Holy Spirit, so when you tie in these five and the Holy Spirit you have a powerful punch. It's no wonder that once the Bible was printed in a common language once again and the man on the street could encounter it and his pastor was teaching these 5 main points combined with the power of the Holy Spirit, that the Renaissance was birthed as well as democracy and missionary work to the ends of the earth. It was out of this explosive moment that our nation was eventually founded.

Now I do not want to hold the Reformers up to high. They had their hangups and there are those who profess being reformed that have done some harm (complementarianism being one) but like any movement there are some hang ups. That is why I like the 5 Solas so much – When I use scripture alone backed by the Holy Spirit the things that need weeded out get weeded out! If it is not for God's Glory alone – weeded it out!

Our mandate as leaders is to equip. Those that are following you are looking for identity. Help them change the question from “Who am I?” to “Where am I?” Help then see they are now found In Christ. Use things like the 5 Solas as a base line or walk people through the book of Ephesians to help them find their way. The answer to the hopeless wanderer (see Mumford and Sons) is being found In Christ.

MANDATE of HOPE

by Michelle Harding

Church of the King, Easton, MD

The word mandate come from the Latin word "mandatum" meaning something commanded. It is derived from two root words: "mandu" meaning hands and "dare" meaning give. So in a very fundamental way it is "that which we put our hands to".

Mandate is defined as an authoritative command or instruction; a formal order or commission granted by a superior; or an authorization to act given to a person to represent another.

So an apostolic mandate is the divine directive given by God to His sent ones. Not just His apostles but to His apostolic people; us His sent ones. (from Matt 28:19-12: "Go, therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit; teaching them to observe all I have commanded you...)

 An apostolic mandate comes with the delegated authority to carry out that very decree or order and comes with Kingdom authority and power to complete what He has commanded. Just prior to Matthew 28:19-20; Jesus states in verse 18; "And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, 'All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth'" and in verse 20 says "Lo' I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

So, we can conclude that Jesus is our Commander, our Superior; and we have received authorization to act on His behalf and to represent our King; Jesus the Christ and His Kingdom.

Hope in the New testament is defined by two Greek words; "elpidos" (Strong's # 1680) and "elpis" (Strong's numbers 1679). The first meaning; "The desire of good with expectation of obtaining it" and the second meaning "To expect with desire."

So in its simplest verbiage, we could say that the "Mandate of Hope" is God has released a commissioning to restore the desire and expectation of obtaining good.

Col. 1:3-8

We can see from this passage that the church in Colossae's faith in Christ and love for others was rooted, planted and springing forth out of hope. The passage says that their hope came from the gospel, the good news and that it was bearing fruit and increasing in them and throughout the world.

Perhaps one thing we must do to restore hope is to once again begin to declare the authentic gospel as the Apostles did. When looking at the pattern of the first messages over and over again, you see Jesus fulfills the promises of Abraham, David, and the prophets. Jesus is risen from the dead and ascended to the right hand of God and now enthroned. The thrust was the centrality of Christ and His throne. His overcoming of sin, hell and death.

(Some to check out in the book of Acts: Acts 2 Day of Pentecost; Acts 3 the healing at the gate called beautiful, Acts 4 Peter and John are arrested by rulers , Acts 13 Paul, Acts 17 Paul in Thessalonica)

                The Apostles; like the church of Colossae were bearing fruit and seeing increase in the Kingdom because their hope was rooted in the Gospel, the Good News;  the message of the resurrected, overcoming, reigning Christ.

                Increase through hope happened in the midst of some of the darkest times in human history. In the midst of religious persecution and under the rule of the demonized nation of Rome; their faith and love were known because of its deep roots in the living Hope; Jesus. When our hope is put in political spheres and who is holding power and officiating in the offices of our nation we find ourselves overwhelmed by hopelessness. The Apostles advanced the Kingdom and the cause of our King while Herod and Caesar ruled. Their hope was alive reigning, alive ruling, alive releasing His power and administrating His Kingdom through signs, wonders and miracles.

                His victory ensures Hope for the nations and the people of the earth. The Cry of His coming, the proclamation of the Angels and the heavenly host in Luke 2  was; " we bring you GOOD NEWS of GREAT JOY! Which will be for all the people (no one was excluded) for today in the city of David there has been born to you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord, (The Messiah, The Anointed King!) And further on the heavenly host appear and sing this glorious and too often over looked verse! Glory to God in the Highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He (God) is pleased! He is pleased and He has sent the good news, our Savior, who died for our sins; carried them away; rose again and overcame sin, hell, death, the devil; bringing forth with Him healing, salvation, freedom, love, grace, peace, joy, and ascended to the right hand of God reigning, with all power, all authority, in dominion and glory at the right hand of God! Now and Forever!

He then sent His Holy Spirit in power so that we would lay hands on the sick and raise the dead. We would see the deaf hear, blind see, lame walk. Through His Holy Spirit; nations will be drawn to Him.

Hope is alive. Let us take up this mandate and see hope released, see Hope arise and see Hope founded in our lives, church and communities! HOPE IS HERE! HOPE IS NOW! HOPE IS REIGNING!