- Legacy for Generations
- God has done an amazing work within us and our church over the past 22 years.
- I want you to think about the individual trajectory of your life that led you to FVC
- Maybe someone invited you, you were looking because of something in your life, marriage, kids, pain etc. Everyone here has a story that brought them to this place. Including me.
- We have become a Bonafide real deal biblical church. We are part of the Global network of God.
- We are the family of God, whose names are written in heaven and part of the church of living God which is the pillar and ground of the truth. We exist. We are the church.
- Tonight is legacy night. A night we remember the past, celebrate the today and look towards the future.
- There’s a verse for tonights message. Psalm 78:7 That they may set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep His commandments.
- Its part of a larger scripture from Psalm 78:1-7 READ
- There’s a ton in that scripture- but there’s a few parts I want to pull out tonight
- Here’s why this is important
- There’s a scripture from Deuteronomy 8:11–14 READ
- We’re flourishing as a church. God has, is and will continue to do amazing things in our midst, but comfort can quickly turn into complacency if we forget. We must beware of it
- We must stay humble. We must protect our church. We must continue our legacy.
- How?
- Don’t Forget the Works of God (Our Past)
- Legacy begins with remembrance. And remembrance is thankfulness.
- We’ve all done it. Someone does something kind for us and we forget that they did it. Not good
- One of the greatest books of thankfulness and remembrance is Psalms
- Mostly written by King David- he recalls many times that God had delivered him, protected him, provided for him, blessed him etc.
- David was so moved by his experience with the Lord that he wrote song after song
- God delivered him from Goliath, protected him from Saul, Provided for him in the wilderness, made him king, gave him victory over enemies, forgave his sin and sustained him into old age!
- We read the psalms and hopefully it does the same for us!
- Loading van in early days, coming to church now- still super thankful when I come here.
- Psalm 78:4 Telling to the generation to come the praises of the Lord, and His strength and His wonderful works that He has done.
- His wonderful works he has done! Friend, we can’t forget what God has done for us- it’s a recipe for disaster when we forget what he has done! We should live in thankfulness!
- The problem is that we’re so self centered- its easy to forget how we got to where we are
- We desperately want personal validation/esteem for ourselves, not others. We need the win
- Psalm 77:11 I will remember the works of the Lord; Surely I will remember Your wonders of old.
- read the bible, you can see the historical timeline of God’s faithfulness through the ages.
- And that should encourage us! We should see and read and remember he is FAITHFUL
How do we do that? - Psalm 9:1 I will praise You, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will tell of all Your marvelous works.
- Tell people what God has done in your life. Tell your kids, your family, your friends. TELL THEM
- When God blesses you, don’t forget to tell everyone who did it- it was HIM who did it.
- Our Church, the school, the warehouse, the building, the houses, the payoff
- The salvations, the baptisms, the marriages, the deliverance, friendships, businesses, missions
- It happened here. Don’t forget that it was the Lord that orchestrated it in his church.
- Psalm 30:4 Sing praise to the Lord, you saints of His, And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name.
- You have to WORSHIP to REMEMBER and REMEMBER to WORSHIP
- “When I think of all you DONE when I think of ALL YOU BROUGHT ME THROUGH”
- MAN! What has he brough you thorough? What has he brought this church through?
- There’s been so many challenges throughout the years. People aimed at destroying what God is doing. Trusting for him to repair and have his way.
- Gratitude fuels legacy! It keeps us from pride and unbelief. Keeps us grounded in humility
- This is why you must not avoid worship and get involved. Get your mind involved and worship!
- Psalm 42:4 When I remember these things, I pour out my soul within me. For I used to go with the multitude; I went with them to the house of God, With the voice of joy and praise, With a multitude that kept a pilgrim feast.
- Keep His Commandments (Our Present)
- Legacy is preserved through obedience. God established a testimony and gave His law so His people would live faithfully today.
- Often times people will ask me what the church is doing for X. And from the worlds perspective, unless there’s some tangible measurable outcome from a non-profit, seems like its not doing
- Every time we gather on a Sunday (or wed) we establish the existence of the church, worship God and do our primary mission.
- Our primary mission isn’t to reach the lost, help families, do outreach, etc. Its to exist.
- If we don’t exist, we can’t do anything. The central expression of the Church is worship/word
- We Praise and worship God, receive from his word. THEN we disciple and grow
- But we must exist.
- Think about what an embassy does. An American embassy in a foreign country isn’t there to sell hamburgers, host events, or even just to hand out visas.
- It exists first and foremost to be there a visible, official representation of the United States on foreign soil. The building itself, flying that flag, declares: ‘America is here.
- From the existence flows the mission but it must first exist. Cant happen without its existence.
- We are heaven’s embassy on this earth! When we gather we declare to the lost- THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS HERE and WE AINT GOING ANYWHERE
- This flows into so many important realities of the requirement to gather, worship, serve, give etc
- If we don’t exist as heaven’s outpost, we cease to have influence.
- When the U.S. has no embassy in a country, its citizens lose protection, presence, and representation there. The flag isn’t flying, the authority isn’t recognized. Same as the church
- Ingrain this into your children! Speak about it and live it out to them- tell them why it matters
- Heb 10:24–25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together Acts 2:42 continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. Col 3:16 teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. Eph 5:19–21 giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another in the fear of God.
- One of the many reasons I believe that people who refuse to be part of a local church are walking in disobedience to the scriptures
- I did some math: We’ve had about 2200 Sunday services more than 1000 wed, 100s of special services, 1000 youth gatherings, 2000 bible studies, 30 retreats conservatively over 6000 meets
- That’s a HUGE deal. That’s 6000 swings at the kingdom of darkness.
- Ephesians 3:10 to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places.
- That’s what we DO. We EXIST. Its like your family. It must first EXIST before it can BE
- Psalm 78:5 For He established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel.
- Right now, our legacy is being written by how we live day to day. If the Lord tarries, and if I don’t mess it up and the following leaders don’t mess it up, we can establish a long term church.
- faithfulness, holiness, unity, and consistency until Christ returns.
- Tonight we not only honor the past, but recommit ourselves to walking in obedience.
- John 14:15 If you love Me, keep My commandments.
- Because we love him we obey him. We do what he asks of us willfully and joyfully because his commands are not burdensome. They are a pleasure to us.
- When we gather we are being conformed into the image and likeness of his son. Walking w him
- Hebrews 10:23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.
- Set Their Hope in God (Our Future)
- Legacy propels us forward in hope. Every generation must be taught to trust Him and declare His works and look towards a FUTURE that is yet to be received!
- I want to have a longer meeting about it- but I want you to start to think about including the church in your estate planning. You’ll be dead. There’s no reason You cant bless future church
- Psalm 78:6 That the generation to come might know them… that they may arise and declare them to their children.
- We spoke on hope this past Sunday, and hope is a huge part of being a follower of God
- It’s a future reality that is yet to come that our people believed BY FAITH even if they didn’t see it
- Eve, that the serpents head would be crushed, Abraham, that all nations blessed, Jacob, that a king would come from Judah, Moses, that a prophet would come, David that his kingdom would be an everlasting throne, Isaiah that a virgin would conceive Micah, that messiah would come
- 6000 years it took for that to come to pass!
- And there were periods of hundreds of years where God didn’t speak, the timeline didn’t accelerate, that people grew weary and all they could do was continue in HOPE
- Hebrews 11 outlines heros of our faith that didn’t see the promises- Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, and Jacob.
- Hebrews 11:13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
- There’s some promises of God that you may not receive in this life before you die
- You can be assured of them, embrace them, and confess them tho!
- Can it not all be about us? Can you not lose heart and continue in Faith to believe?
- We have future promises!
- Christ returning to take us to Himself (John 14:2–3)Our bodies being transformed into incorruption and glory (1 Corinthians 15:51–52; Philippians 3:20–21)Final adoption and redemption of our bodies (Romans 8:23–24) Appearing with Christ in glory (Colossians 3:4) Receiving an incorruptible inheritance reserved in heaven (1 Peter 1:3–4) God dwelling with us and wiping away every tear (Revelation 21:3–4)Receiving the crown of righteousness at His appearing (2 Timothy 4:8)
- And it shouldn’t bother us or keep us in some sort of spiritual mood if we don’t receive these promises in our lifetime. It can and should be enough that they are PROMISES to us and FUTURE generations! I’m sure glad that those before me didn’t give up on the promises of God.
- The truth is, that many will give up. Many will fall away and not finish their race because they only see the immediate benefits of the here and now.
- The future of this church rests on whether we raise up disciples, preach the whole gospel, and anchor the next generation’s hope in Christ alone. Our legacy will outlive us if we invest it forward.
- 2 Timothy 2:2 And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.
- We can’t give up on a future we are yet to behold WE must live in legacy with a mindset not just for our childrens children but for the hope of our future redemption in CHRIST
- Church, tonight we stand on holy ground. For 22 years, God has been faithful, but let us not forget this: you have been faithful too. Every time you showed up, every time you prayed, every time you gave, every time you served, you were building this legacy. You are part of the reason this church has gathered over six thousand times. You are part of the reason we are still here as an embassy of heaven.
- Your obedience, your worship, your sacrifices have not been wasted. They have been offerings that declare to the world and to the powers of darkness that the Kingdom of God is here.
- But the story is not finished. Just as those before us handed down the faith, now it rests on us to keep going. We must not forget what God has done. We must continue in obedience. We must set our hope in Christ so that generations yet unborn will rise and declare His works.
- So let us commit together. We will remember His works. We will keep His commandments. We will set our hope in God. And by faith, we will carry this legacy forward, stronger, deeper, and brighter, until Christ returns or calls us home.
- 1 Corinthians 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
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