The Vision of Mosaic - Part 4

For the last part in our vision we looked again at Acts 16 and what it means for us to become a community that "transforms the world'

We saw in Philippi there was a ‘ripple effect’ in terms of transformation

(1) Individual Lives were transformed (Lydia, The Slave Girl, The Jailor - totally different but God met them all)

(2) The Community was transformed (A new community had formed that broke down every human barrier and was an outpost of heaven)

(3) The Culture was transformed (an unjust and exploitative economic system was transformed by the kindgom of God coming - verse 19)

But how do this transformation come about? Through Paul and Silas…..they start the ripple effect. They showed incredible courage, faithfulness, love, sacrifice, boldness, confidence, kindness, forgiveness etc. That is how the culture is transformed….it starts with a transformed heart. External transformation is an OVERFLOW of internal transformation. Paul and Silas had been totally transformed as they had met Jesus and been filled with the spirit and been sent to Philippi and everything that happened was an overflow of their hearts.

How do we get that kind of transformation/freedom in our own lives? We have to understand the human heart and that every single one of us is a slave….something dictates our lives. Jesus shows us that the fruit of our lives comes directly, inevitably and unstoppably from the root/heart (Luke 6.43-35). This is how it works…

A good thing (e.g sport, music, family, work, belonging etc)

Becomes

An ultimate thing (i.e an idol - you must it to be happy/fulfilled/confident etc)

Becomes

A ruling thing (i.e slavery - it has started to dictate your life – decisions, emotions and actions)

Becomes

A destructive thing (you reap destructive fruit in your life)

      (Personal addiction, relationship breakdown, emptiness, loneliness,
      dissatisfaction, lies, jealousy, irrational emotions or thoughts,
      anger, abuse, affairs, cheating, deceit, exhaustion etc)

If we are really going to see this ‘ripple effect’ where through us lives, communities and culture is changed then we must (a) locate our idols and (b) replace our idols. We need to see the same transformation and freedom that Paul and Silas showed as the Spirit changes our hearts.

(1) Locate your Idols

(a) In your daydreams….imagination - where your thoughts effortlessly go to

(b) In your nightmares….what you ‘dread happening’

(c) In your spending patterns….time and money

(d) In your unyielding emotions….jealousy, anxiety, fear, unrest etc

(2) Replace your Idols

(A) REPENT....for the root issue (not the fruit….by why God isn’t first in your life)

(B) REJOICE....that what you long for in that idol is perfectly found in Christ by the Spirit and that he accepts us by grace. Tim Keller brilliantly shows us how this works

      “to rejoice is to treasure a thing, to assess its value to you, to reflect on its beauty
      and important until your heart rests in it and tastes the sweetness of it. “Rejoicing”
      is a way of praising God until the heart is sweetened and rested, and until it
      relaxes it’s grip of anything else it thinks that it needs”

(C) COMMUNITY.....you’ll need others to care for you, challenge your, hold you accountable by asking you to look at the underlying idols that control you, pray for you etc. So if we are really going to be on a mission we need to do it in community. That is why Mission Groups and Accountability are at the heart of the church.

Reflection and Application (you may not want to do all these questions - please pick the ones that are appropriate for your group)

(1) How is the culture transformed in Philippi? What are the different stages/areas of transformation?

(2) What is the cities response to this culture change (vs19)? Does this challenge our views on how ‘Leeds’ will receive us?

(3) What characteristics to Paul and Silas show at various stages of the story that (a) bring transformation externally and (b) reveal that an internal transformation has already happened in them?

(4) What happens if external transformation IS NOT an overflow of internal transformation?

(5) From Luke 6.43-35. What is the point of Jesus’ analogy? How does this help us understand and deal with ‘the negative fruit’ in our lives? What are we NOT to do? What are we to do?

(6) How do we (or society) often ‘explain away’ or excuse ‘negative fruit’? For example any sinful emotion (fear, envy, anxiety etc) or action (gossip, harsh words, lying)? How do Jesus’ words challenge us?

(7) How do locate and replace the idols in our lives? In smaller groups talk about the ‘good things that have become ultimate things?’ Talk about what it means to (a) repent and (b) rejoice in Christ and (c) help each other do both (a) and (b).

(8) Is everyone in (or looking for) accountability groups? If you want to use the card it is here - http://www.mosaic-church.org.uk/pdf/accountability_cards.pdf

(9) How have you found the vision series? What are the 2 things that you as individuals and as a Mission Group want to put into practice?

(9) Pray for (a) each other to be transformed so that our lives would overflow and (b) for the friends you are trying to reach (c) for Leeds to be changed as God’s kingdom comes.