Knowing about Jesus will keep Him in the back of your mind, but it won't make Him your focus...until things go wrong. Experiencing His love for you is what brings you to a position of realizing all that has been done for your salvation. It also opens your eyes to your wrong in light of His righteousness. His deity, for sinful flesh. His perfection, for your imperfection. We pray that you experience His love!

Romans 8:3 (NKJV)
For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh,

Philippians 2:7-8
'but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. '

Once you experience His love, you now make the decision to accept it. You are now face to face with something called surrender!

Surrender begins the demolition process against lies of the enemy, religious ideologies, trauma, addiction, oppression, or afflictions. It breaks down your walls and leads you into receiving the salvation that Christ alone can and has offered to "whosoever believes.". Surrender then leads into true "repentance."

Once you repent and begin to walk it out, you are now being transformed, as you grow and begin to reciprocate the love you received back to the one that gave it to you. Transformation takes on outward expressions of the change that has happened in your heart. Expressions like: Studying the Bible, Personal prayer times, worship assemblies, water baptism, baptism of the Holy Spirit, and discipleship. It is an ongoing journey that isn't accomplished in a sprint.

"By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” Jn 13:35

One of the ways we proclaim the gospel is through our "agape for one another." Agape isn't the world's kind of love based on attraction, sex, or personal gain. It's a love that is rescues, that transforms. Paul tells us in Gal 5:6  that this same agape is the activator for faith. So, love isn't just a mark of a follower, but the catalyst that activates them into service for the kingdom. 

What do we mean? The world looks at unity from the outside looking in: "We have a common enemy so we can be unified."We have a common goal so we can be unified." It's united around, on, or about something. But, the Bible, representing what is often called the upside down kingdom, doesn't unify around or about something, it actually unifies in something and someone. We're unified "in the faith," "in the Spirit," etc. This unity preaches to the world around us.

Read these verses: Ps 133:1; John 17:20-21; Eph 4:3, 13; 1 Cor 1:10; Rom 15:5; Phil 2:2; 1 Cor 12:12,13

Jesus says that "the Father is gloried in that we bear fruit..."
This is could be the fruit of the Spirit found in Galatians 5, or the fruit of our labor. Whatever it may be, we know that we, as people of God, are supposed to be fruitful. We want to bear much fruit to the glory of God!

Read these verses: John 15:2; Matthew 7:17; Matthew 7:18;
Matthew 12:33; Ephesians 5:9; James 3:18..

This is the exhortation from Paul to Timothy (2 Tim 4:2). We must preach the gospel with our mouths! (1 Cor 9:16) Romans 10:14-15 asks us a question that we have to answer. "how can they hear without a preacher?" This isn't a call for more pulpit ministers, this is a call for more messenger! You are a messenger of the gospel of Jesus Christ!  

Prayer is not a secondary concern or last ditch effort to get God to move, as too many believers seem to act. It is actually building or birthing something in the spiritual, then pulling it into the natural. This is why Jesus says "when you pray..." Because it was never an optional activity, but a necessary one.

"To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing." Martin Luther

"The devil doesn't fight what's not a threat". This give an insight into why the enemy allows us to be busy about religious practices, but fights prayer on every level.

"MY FATHER"S HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED A HOUSE OF PRAYER...!"

A people of prayer are a people of presence.

In Exodus 33, when God is sending Moses to a lost and captive people, Moses says these words: “If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here." Exodus 33:15

What if this was our hearts cry?! "God, we won't move without You..." Thankfully, we have the presence of God that is to be "with us and in us..."(John 14:17) Let us cry out for the Spirit of God to be present in our assemblies, and not forget Him or try to move on without Him.

Many have built churches on great planning, systems, and religious ideology, but we can't! We refuse to! God says "unless He builds it, we build in vain."(Ps 127:1).

A people of presence are a people of power

The Word of God is absolutely clear...WE HAVE POWER!(Acts 1:8) Power and Authority to act on behalf of heaven to see the kingdom established. Our faith was never supposed to be based upon "wisdom of men..."(1 Cor 2:5) there must be "power"! When Jesus spoke of the "promise of the Father" in Acts 1, He wasn't talking about tongues, He was talking about the Spirit of Power. Tongues is a sign of the power landing, but it is was never the end goal. We've allowed tongues, as amazing and important as they are, to take the place of power. WE NEED THE POWER BACK IN THE HOUSE!

Luke 10:19 (NKJV)
Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

Ephesians 1:19-21
'and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.'

Ephesians 2:5-6
'even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), '
and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, '

II Timothy 3:5
'having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! '

Jesus co-missioned us to "go and make disciples..."
We want, we need to be a church of disciples that makes disciples. Leading others into knowing how to have daily encounters with the God of the universe. Encounters that lead to deeper transformation, bolder proclamations, greater demonstration, and further expansion.

Matthew 28:19 (NKJV)
"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit"

Mark 16:15 (NKJV)
'And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature."'

"Therefore go..."
"You shall be witness..."
We were saved to and empowered to tell others. We know Him in order to make Him known. There is no other option for those that call themselves by His name, those that have felt the depths of His love.

As Paul exhorted Timothy, we exhort you: "II Timothy 4:5 (NKJV) But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

Now let's go!

John 3:16 tells us that God sent His son for the "world". We are also told that God's Will is "for all to come to the knowledge of the truth."(1 Tim 2:4)

A truly "Gospel Centered" church is a missional church. To believe anything else is to deny the teachings and lifestyle of Christ.

Even the greek word for church"ekklesia" calls us to be missional, as it means "to be called from and to." From darkness to light, from death to life, from our pew to the world.

Psalms 2:8 (NKJV)
Ask of Me, and I will give You The nations for Your inheritance, And the ends of the earth for Your possession.