Sermon Tone Analysis

Vision Sunday

Good Morning New City Church.

It’s Vision Sunday.

What’s Vision Sunday?

Its a day to look back.

To look back at the faithfulness of God And to look forward to the fulfillment of God.

Remember and Be Brave

Remember and be brave.

Some translations say Remember and stand firm.

You can have a brave trust in the faithfulness and sovereignty of God as you remember what He has done.

As I’ve looked back after the past 4 and a half years since we’ve been here I’ve been amazed at the faithfulness of God.

God has provided.

God has answered prayers.

God has kept us.

Can I just be real for a minute, because I want to testify to the faithfulness of God to this church.

Over the past five years this church went thru the disqualification of a former pastor due to a moral failing and fallout from that including loss of members and finances, it went through the normal transitions that happen with a new pastor with a new perspective and different ideas about mission and vision, it went through a transition in location, it went through COVID, online only church, to portable church -meeting in a community center, setting up and tearing down our worship and kids space every week, selling our old property on DIP, finding anew location, meeting in the fellowship hall while we remodeled and updated the church building… the church has gone thru fears and uncertainties and questioning if we would survive.

BUT GOD HAS KEPT US.

LSITEN TO THIS, Yes, the past five or 6 years has been a season of wilderness.

But I believe we at just at the edge of the promise.

I believe we are about to cross the Jordan into what God has for this church.

Just like the Children of Israel had to wonder thru wilderness to arrive at the promise we too have wandered thru the wilderness and I can see the promise just ahead.

Hear me… while the Children of Israel had to go thru the wilderness to get to the promise, the length of time they spent in the wilderness was up to them.

What do I mean?

They spent 40 years in the wilderness but they didn’t have too.

Moses sent 12 spies into the land.

They were ready to enter the land.

But they were unfaithful and fearful.

So the wandered.

But God has a purpose in the wilderness.

So they wandered.

So they had to go thru the wilderness to get to the promise, had they been faithful and not fearful they could have entered sooner, but God use their wilderness to strengthen them.

The length of time in the wilderness is often up to us, but God is faithful and he won’t waste the wilderness season but will use it to strengthen and prepare us for what is ahead.

During the wilderness we’ve learned that God is faithful.

We’ve been stretched.

We’ve become battle tested.

We’ve grown in areas that we didn’t even know existed in us.

We’ve stepped into new roles, and new ministries, and new spiritual giftings, and new faith.

God has not wasted the wilderness.

But again, I believe we are nearing the Promise that God has for New City Church.

That doesn’t mean there’s not battles ahead.

That doesn’t mean that the enemy won’t stop fatiguing against this church.

But the gates of hell will not prevail against the Church.

The Children of Israel Still had to drive out the enemy from the promised land.

Just because we are promise people does not mean that we won’t be a provoked people.

But hear me, the wilderness season is meant to prepare for the work of inhabiting the promise.

It’s still work, but its work from a place of remembering the faithfulness of God in the wilderness.

Just like God gave them manna in the wilderness, and water from the rock, changed the bitter water to sweet water, and provided for healing, and renewed their strength, and delivered them from attacks, and led them from Egypt, parted the sea, and met them in a portable tent while they waited for the promise, God has provided for us, fed us, healed us, delivered us, and kept us.

So yes, the past fie or six years have been wilderness, but the Promise is ahead.

Remember this and be brave, stand firm.

Take it to heart.

Recall it to mind.

You may say, pastor, I hear you about the wilderness, but I’m not sure I hear about the faithfulness of God.

I hear you about the wilderness but I have a hard time seeing promise ahead.

I hear you about wilderness but all I see ahead is wilderness.

Well let me invite you to a vision screening.

Let me invite you to see with new perspective, maybe even new glasses.

Hear me.

Listen and look at the faithfulness of God.

Yes the past five or six years have been a wilderness in the life of New City Church but I see Promise Land ahead…

Last year at NEW CITY CHURCH

Added Members: 17

New Baptisms: 6

New Faces: 700+ attend out reach events Hop & Hunt, Trunk or Treat, Christmas at Collier)

New Givers: 38 first time givers

About $2000 given to Missions plus giving to our ChristmasToy Drive and Foster Child Uniform Drive

Increase in Tithe from 2021 by $23,684.24

Increase in Overall Giving from 2021 by $16,630.66

New Volunteers

44 Weeks in Luke’s Gospel (and we aren’t done)

The best and most attended outreach events we’ve had in years.

Remodeled the KIDS!

Space

Marriages helped.

Prayers prayed.

Communion served.

Untold lives touched by Jesus.

Because of your faithfulness and God’s steadfast love.

GOD IS FAITHFUL.

Remember this and be brave and stand strong.

Take it to Heart.

Recall it to Mind.

Don’t miss what God did.

Sometimes we are like the 10 Spies who only saw the problems and not like the 2 Spies (Joshua and Caleb) who not only saw the problems but also saw the promise.

See faith isn’t ignoring the problem but it’s seeing the promise being worth the trouble.

Why did 10 see the problem bigger than the promise?

Because its easier.

It doesn’t take faith to back down.

It doesn’t take faith to give up.

It doesn’t take faith to see the giants as undefeatable, but it takes faith to see the giants and still desire the promised land.

Doubt is easy, but it gets you nowhere.

Faith.

Faith is hard but it’s leads you out of the wilderness and takes you to the promise.

Take it to heart.

Recall it to mind.

Let the faithfulness of God shape your vision.

Let the love of God shape your vision.

Let the mercy of God shape your vision.

Let the justice of God shape your vision.

Let the righteousness of God shape your vision.

Let the steadfastness of God shape your vision.