There Is No ME In Team
NOW – this morning ‘Super Bowl Sunday’
WE ARE - stepping out of the Beatitudes,
HOWEVER - we are staying in our series “The End Of Me, Where Real Life Begins…’
TODAY’S… conversation is, ‘There Is No ME In Team.’
LOOK 3 PEOPLE IN THE EYE…
NOW - I’m sure that you have heard the acrostic of the word team – ‘Together Everyone achieves more!’
Together we achieves what? more (anybody like more?)
Who achieves more? Everyone
How do we achieve more? Together
AND LISTEN- part of what makes ‘team’ so awesome and powerful is something called synergy…
You know I really like that word… I MEAN - it’s such a cool word, AND - an even cooler concept.
Synergy basically means that the sum – the effects – the results of a high functioning team are always greater than the sum of their individual abilities…
IN OTHER WORDS – we can do more working together – than working by ourselves.
LIKE - individually we can each lift 200 pounds for a sum of 400… But together we can push up 500!
That’s team, that’s synergy, that’s awesome!
NOW - later today the Patriots and Eagles will face off in Super Bowl LII…
AND LISTEN – no matter who wins, it will not be an individual win – it will be TEAM win. With every player doing their job, because there is no ME in team.
NOW - as I was preparing this message…
I started wondering about who were some the greatest sports teams of all time…
SO – (me and mister goggle) did some hanging out, riding the waves of cyber space together…
AND - after extensive study and research I would like to present to you some of the greatest sports teams of all time…
NOW - they are not in any particular order.
(SHOW PICTURES OF THESE TEAMS)
The UCLA basketball Team who under coach John Wooden won 10 national championships in a span of 12 years…
This picture is from 1973 – they just won their 7th straight championship and had back to back undefeated seasons.
Hey do you know what coach Wooden always kept in his pocket? A cross, to remind him of what really matters.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish from 1946-1949 won 3 national championships
Since 2009 Alabama has been in 6 of 9 Championship games and has won 5 times. Hate them or love them, that is pretty amazing!
The Boston Celtics' were a dynasty in NBA Basketball from 1957 to 1969…Led by Coach Red Auerbach and center Bill Russell they won an 11 championships in 13 years
The New York Yankees… (though I hate to do it, I must give the evil empire their props)
The Yankees have been to the world series 40 times (which is a huge number when you consider that there have only been 113 world series to date) and they have taken home the championship 27 times…
Their best run was from 1949 to 1958 with Casey Stengal at the helm, They were in the World series 10 years in a row and they took home the title 7 times… (the won 5 in row during that span)
Pittsburg Steelers – from 1975-1980 won 4 Super bowls…
From 1984 to 1990, led by Wayne Gretzky the Edmonton Oilers won the Stanley Cup five times.
Okay one more team…
And get ready to boo, hiss and hate…
Since 2001 they have played in 8 of 17 Super Bowls and they have won 5 to date…
They have average 12.2 wins a season and have won 77% of their games….
Won their division 15 times
And went to 12 conference championship in 17 years.
NOW – not only… do we see a lot of awesome TEAMS in sports…
BUT - we also see a lot of awesome teams in the Bible…
Teams btw that are performing for something a lot more important than a trophy or a championship…
(the Glory of God)
QUESTION – when you think of great biblical teams in the bible – what teams pop into your mind?
I MEAN – what were the Teams that had great synergy… that empowered them to achieve amazing things together…
Noah and 3 his 3 sons… (Shem, Ham, Japeth)…
I MEAN – these 3 guys without a single power tool built a ship that was 450 feet long… 75 feet wide and 45 feet high… That’s big. Not to mention collecting all of those animals and keeping the human race alive…
Moses and Aaron… another great team. 2 brothers both in their 80’s standing side by side and helping deliver about 1 million of God’s people from 400+ years of slavery…
I MEAN - think about it… armed with just their faith and a wooden staff they brought the mighty Egyptian Empire to her knees…
Then in Daniel we read about… Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego - 3 guys who stood together, refused to bow to an idol, survived a fiery furnace and whose faith caused a the pagan King Nebuchadnezzar to turn to God.
Nehemiah and His Wall Building Crew – man, I wish had more time to talk about this team… This amazing team lead by Nehemiah rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem that had been in ruins for over 150 years…
I mean, for more then a century and a half no was able to get the job done…
AND THEN – Nehemiah and his team come together –
AND THEY - rebuild the walls in just 52 days! Amazing!!!
YEAH – the OT is full of great teams…
IN FACT – I can think of only one guy who tried to go it alone… and it did not work out so good for him.
Perhaps you heard of him, Samson.
AND - in the NT we have what is in my opinion the greatest team not only in Scripture but in all of human history…
The disciples and the early church…
Talk about synergy.
Just a bunch of regular guys, no egos, no super-stars, just a bunch of guys who loved Jesus and loved each other.
AND LISTEN – if you want to see a picture of this unstoppable T.E.A.M. in action… YOU ONLY - have to turn to the book of Acts… FROM - 11 scared guys behind locked doors, they formed a community of believers that became that literally turned the world upside down.
THE CHURCH… THIS TEAM… THESE PEOPLE…
Were radically devoted to God and his word.
Whatever God told them to do, they did.
Whatever God told them to stop doing, they stopped doing.
Wherever God told them to go they went…
AND – when the government told them to stop talking about Jesus or die – they literally choose death – and thousands died.
I MEAN – one guy on this team once said…
But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God… am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. – Acts 20:24, 21:13
YES – no doubt about it…
THE - greatest TEAM on the face of the planet…
MY – all time favorite TEAM is the church…
the body and bride of Christ the hope of the world.
IN FACT – we are in this room this morning 2/4/2018…
BECAUSE – of what this TEAM did 2000 years ago.
I wonder who will be here in the future because of us?
B/S – what I am trying to say is that, I love the church! I love the local, because the local church is the church!
YES - I love this church!!! I love MGCC.
Not the building, but this group of messed up Jesus-followers who met in this room.
AND - I am so excited about where we are, what God is doing in our midst and where He is going to take us in the weeks, months and years ahead…
As we all get to the end of ME, where real life begins.
BECAUSE – there is nothing like the local church when it is working right.
I have always loved and be moved by these words from Bill Hybels…
There is nothing like the local church, when it is working right.
It’s beauty is indescribable.
It’s power is breathe taking.
It comforts the grieving and heals the broken in the context of community.
It builds bridges to seekers and offers truth to the confused. It provides, resources for those in need and open it’s arms to: the forgotten, the downtrodden and the disillusioned.
It breaks the chains of addictions, frees the oppressed and offers belonging to the marginalized of this world.
Whatever the capacity for human suffering; the church has a greater capacity for healing and wholeness.
Still to this day, the potential of the local church is almost more than I can grasp. No other organization on earth is like the church, nothing comes even close. - Bill Hybels
YOU KNOW - when I look at Maple Grove – I see two churches.
FIRST – I see the church that we are and I thank God for that picture… I am thankful for…
• The awesome elders that we have at MG, Steve Bailey, Tom Z and Jeff Ange, are Godly men. They love the Lord, they love his word, they love their families, they love this church and they are servant leaders.
• The amazing staff that we have (Laurie and Hannah, you just will not find 2 people who love God, this church and young people more than they do)
• The incredible spirit you feel the minute you walk into this building
• For the people leading and serving in our various ministries… (there is a handout in the back)
• That so many people in this room are getting REAL… They are embracing their brokenness, asking God for help and repenting of specific sins
• That for growing desire we have to reach outside of this building more and more and PURSUE the lost and hurting with the love and compassion of Christ.
(Compassion Sunday, Hunger Games, the Compassion bucket and the lives that it has touched, housing and feeding the homeless for a week, Christmas Eve offering we doubled our $2000 goal and now we are providing to water purification through New Life International in Nepal…etc)
• For the partnership that we have outside of this building through our mission giving… providing tens of thousands of dollars to…
LOVE INC mobilizes local Churches to meet the needs of people in our own community.
Christ In Youth is an organization that trains and equips thousands of students every year to be Kingdom Workers through Middle and High School conferences, and international missions trips.
Waypoint Church Partners is an organization that is planting new churches every year in MD, VA and NC… and helping existing church get better
Community Christian Academy which is an independent Christian school in C’ville that provides excellent, affordable Christian education to students from all economic backgrounds.
Advancing Native Missions is a US-based agency headquartered in Afton, VA, that partners with 8,500 native missionaries working in 80 countries helping them to reach people in their surrounding regions with the Gospel.
Mountain Mission School is a non-denominational mission school located in the beautiful coal mining area of Southwest, VA. The school serves infants through high school students from Va and all over the world… MMS – is their home, their church, and their school. Children are often referred due to issues of poverty, divorce, abandonment, abuse, or neglect. MMS currently houses 250 children. Over 20,000 children have been blessed since their founding!
The Pregnancy Centers of Central VA (PCCV) is a pro-life ministry that provides many services to help with unplanned pregnancies.
OKAY – like I said when I think of Maple I see a picture of who we are (and I’m thankful)… BUT - I also see a picture of who God wants us to be/ of where He is taking this TEAM…
This there is no ME in team, team
Jesus spoke these words in John 4:35;
Do you think the work of harvesting will not begin until the summer ends four months from now? Look around you! vast fields are ripening all around us and are now ready for the harvest.
UNDERSTAND - everybody needs Jesus!
Everybody has a right to know what we know.
AND LISTEN – people today with an unprecedented thirst are searching for more!
AND – I say what a great time it is to be the church!
LISTEN - we are so fortunate to be living in this moment of history where people are looking for the answers to life like never before. What a time to be the church…
The Spirit and the bride say “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life. Rev 22:17
UNDERSTAND – our world is full of thirsty people and the church has been given the living water that will quench this thirst…
AMEN?
AND LISTEN – it that ‘living water’ is ever going to get there, it is going to take a team.
YOU SEE – it is only together that we will rise to become the church we have always dreamed of being a part of…
We can’t do it alone… We must do it in TEAM
SOLDIERS – do not fight wars alone.
ATHLETES - do not win championships alone…
LISTEN – all around us in books, in stories, and in life we see the truth of God…that TOGETHER is better.
UNDERSTAND…
Frodo doesn’t even stand a chance against the evil powers that seek the ring… WITHOUT; Sam, Merry, Pippin, Gandalf, Aragorn and the rest of the fellowship…
AND - Dorothy will not make it very far down the yellow brick road UNLESS – the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, the Lion and of course little Toto join her on the journey.
NO – we can’t do it alone… BUT – when each of us come together as one body…. We will achieve more!
QUESTION…
What is the goal of this TEAM we are trying to build here at MG? What are we trying to do?
Why are we here?
What defines success and victory?
What mountain are we trying to climb?
What height are we trying to reach?
What’s THE DREAM that compels us to reach higher?
B/S…
When I look and dream of Maple Grove…
I SEE A PLACE - where the beaten, the tuned off, the weary and the broken are put back together again…
I SEE A PLACE - where people with fears & skepticism about organized religion can come as they are – and discover maybe for the first time that they really-really-really matter to God and find new & living hope in the person of Jesus Christ.
I SEE A TEAM that does life together where no one has to run alone… I see real communities where masks are taking off, and we quit pretending…we get real (like we have done the last 2 weeks) and we get better…
I SEE A TEAM - totally consumed by the truth that everyone is going to spend eternity somewhere… and because this truth consumes us – we will do whatever it takes to make sure that as many as possible get to spend eternity with Jesus. AND BECAUSE – we tremble at the thought of them leaving this life without Jesus, we make Praying For One (Lord, please give me one person that I can share your life with today) an everyday priority.
QUESTION – who is your one?
I SEE A TEAM - that constantly breaks out of the walls of this building and becomes a constant visible force in this community… a church that has such an impact on this community that if we were ever to close the doors – the hurting, the lost, the seeking – of this C’ville would not only notice but rise up in protest…
I SEE A TEAM - where everyone is striving to get better, better, better and better at what Jesus says matters most…
Loving God with all of heart, mind, soul and strength and loving our neighbors (including our actual neighbors) as we love ourselves…
I SEE A TEAM – that passionately pursuing the end ME…
SO THAT – we can more fully live for Him and experience the real, full and blessed life.
I SEE A TEAM - full of people who like – Abraham say;
“Lord even if I don’t know all the details, even though I don’t really know where I am going – I still say ‘YES’… yes I will leave it all to go with you..”
People who like Joshua and Caleb realize – “that God’s church was not meant to merely exist in the wilderness of mediocrity – people who see the land of promise, long to conquer it and fear no giants.
I SEE TEAM - that takes risks, steps out, that puts it all on the line… A TEAM - that prays bold prayers, fears God, is open to the Spirit and lives courageous life’s of adventure for God…
BOTTOM LINE - I see a team that when the world looks at us, they know there is something different – that something is going on that cannot be explained by human reasoning or effort… I SEE A TEAM – no longer content to simply go to church, but who wants to be the church, where God adds to our number daily those who are being saved…
SO – are you fired up!
DO YOU – want to see those dreams become reality?
Anybody want to be on that TEAM?
YES – there is no doubt about it…
The greatest TEAM on the face of the planet is the church of Jesus Christ…
And the greatest work/mission going on is the church (I mean do you know of any other organization that is Redirecting the eternities of lost men and women…?
AND LISTEN…. Here is what I think God is saying to each of us today
I. Get In The Game
The game of joining God in His passionate pursuit of prodigal people… reflecting His character, His goodness and His purposes to a watching world…
Why? So they might know Him?
UNDERSTAND – God didn’t have us put on a uniform for us to stay sitting in the stands, standing on the sidelines, tailgating in the parking lot… OR – sitting on our couches at home.
AND – what an awesome uniform we have put on…
I MEAN – talk about a Jersey!
For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. – Galatians 3:27
UNDERSTAND - on this TEAM…
EVERYBODY plays….
YES – if you get in the game you will take some hits, and you might miss a tackle or fumble the ball every now an then.
Anybody know who that guy is making the tackle is?
I didn’t like Him… Now I do.
He asked to be cut because He wants to play the game.
UNDERSTAND – we need you to get in the game?
Ministry team handout in the back.
Connection card…
NOW – there is one area, it is without a doubt one of our most Special Teams…
Needs some help in all areas but especially (K-3, 4th and 5th)
ALSO – cleaning the church…
AND MEN – here is another way for you to get in the game…
Steve Bailey – beginning 2/13 at 7 pm
It’s about being a servant leader…
BELONG CLASS – next Sunday…
II. Run The Plays
IMAGINE – if you are watching the Super Bowl cheering on the team you want to win…
BUT - all they did all game was huddle…
Wouldn’t you think that there was terribly wrong with your team?
I mean every time they get the ball all they do is stand in a circle, holding hands, firing each other up calling the plays.
BUT they never broke the huddle.
QUESTION - how long would you watch?
Would they win the game?
NOW – is wrong to huddle? Absolutely not!
IN FACT – it is extremely important.
But eventually a football team needs to break the huddle and run the play…
AND – so do we as God’s people…
I MEAN – God didn’t have us (have you and me) put on a uniform, walk between the chalk lines just to huddle up here once a week… He wants us to run the plays…
BOTTOM LINE – we are going to be a church that does more than huddle on Sunday (as awesome, needed and as important as that is)… We are going to run the plays… we are going to SEEK the lost, MAKE disciples and SHOW compassion in this lost and broken world.
III. Listen To The Coach
This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased. Listen to Him! – Matthew 17:5
UNDERSTAND – to play this game…
We need to listen to the coach…
IN FACT - we need to be in constant communications with the sidelines even when we are on the field…
Several years back I noticed that quarterbacks started wearing green dots on the back of their helmets..
AND – I was like, ‘okay, what is that green dot for?
WELL – beginning in the 2007 NFL season, quarterbacks began wearing a green dot on the back of their helmet.
In 2008, defensive players began wearing the green dot on their football helmets.
Helmets with green dots have radio receivers in them. Coaches can call in plays from the sidelines. However, only one player is allowed on the field at a time with the green dot helmet.
IN LIKE MANNER – we need to remain in constant contact with our coach… for at least 2 reasons…
#1 – because we need to know what plays He wants us to run
And
#2 – so that we can hear His voice and get his perspective of the game…
UNDERSTAND – God sees things that we cannot see… He see the big picture.
AND LISTEN – we need His perspective because it’s a tough game…
Our enemy lies about the game, he lies about us as player… he tells we are not good enough… that we are not going to make it… that we might as well give up…
BUT – God can see the yellow line on our field…
VIDEO…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWRO5UqjZiY
Michigan football coach Bo Schembechler in 1983. Here is how he addressed the Wolverines:
Think what a great thing it is to be a part of something that is, The Team, the team , the team
We're gonna win it. We're gonna win it
Because we're gonna play as team
We're gonna believe in each other,
we're not gonna criticize each other,
we're not gonna talk about each other,
we're gonna encourage each other.
And when we play as a team, when the old season is over, you and I know, it's gonna be…
