Church of the Nazarene – Harrisonburg

Vision Sunday

“Going beyond our walls is a building block for us. But it’s not something we do individually, it’s something that’s done together.”

We’ve entitled today ‘Vision Sunday’ because across all our campuses, we are celebrating how God has been faithful, and together we are embarking on a new journey.

John 17:15-18

My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world.

-Jesus prays ‘NOT that you take them out of the world’.

-As Jesus prays for his disciples, those that he loves so dearly, He could have prayed that they be removed from this world, but He didn’t.

-Jesus’ followers are ‘not of the world’ (verse 15) but they ARE ‘sent into the world’ (verse 18).

-Followers of Jesus are sent on a mission ‘into the world.’

Our mission: Transformed by God to bring hope to others through Christ.

Today we are excited and expectant, as we officially begin the journey of planting a brand-new Spanish-speaking campus in the Waynesboro community.

Why this?

-We are seen fruit from multi-campus ministry. It’s not always easy. It requires faith. But it’s been fruitful!

-One of the best ways to reach unchurched people is planting new churches. New churches reach new people, or in our case, new campuses.

Why now?

-God is working in Waynesboro through the faithfulness and ministry of a life group. Through that group, there has been more and more growth over the past 12 months.

-God is providing dynamic and faithful leadership through Walter and Maritza Cruz.

-Our church is experiencing growth and momentum.

PRAY

-Commit to a specific time to pray every day for the next 40 days. Pray for our church and for God to provide. Pray for those who will be impacted in the Waynesboro community and beyond.

GIVE

-Consider giving financially to support this important new work. All gifts marked ‘Waynesboro’ will go directly to help us meet our goal. God is already providing! You can give online at cotnaz.org/giving or in person.

GO

-Examine your heart and consider what part you might play in the launch of this new campus. Some will be called to support in the work prior to launch, while others may feel called to be a part of this new campus.

Let us know how you want to get involved at 540-434-1092 or info@cotnaz.org.

John 17:20-21

“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.

Updates on the new Waynesboro campus

The best place to go for more information and for frequent updates throughout the journey.

Waynesboro

Giving at COTN

If you ever have questions or need help with online giving, please let us know: finance@cotnaz.org

Thank you for your partnership in the Kingdom of Christ!

Giving

Church of the Nazarene – East Rock

Building Blocks Part 4

Community

Welcome to our teaching series “Building Blocks”.

Building Blocks is focusing on the essential features, the basics, of the Christian life. And it’s not intended just for new believers in our midst, but as an important refresher for even those of you who are veterans of the faith.

Today we continue looking at the foundational practice of community.

The currents of the world have always been pulling us apart, but now with the advent of social media and on the heels of the pandemic, those forces are amplified.

Isolation, loneliness, depression, anxiety are all on the rise at historic rates because of the powerful pull into isolation.

Here is the truth for us today: We were created for community.

Introvert, extrovert, doesn’t really matter. You were created for life together.

When we find ourselves swept away into isolation and individualism, we find ourselves far from the heart of God.

Our Lord had no vision for believers in isolation.

He called for us to be IN COMMUNITY with each other while at the same time impacting the COMMUNITY in which we find ourselves.

So, we are community impacting the community.

John 17:20-21

“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.

Who is Jesus praying for? YOU and for me, and for generations before us. He is praying for the people who will believe through the message of the first disciples.

What’s Jesus prayer for you and for me?

That we would be one.

He asks the father to move mightily, exert his power and influence in our lives that we would be united together- reflecting Jesus connection with the father.

We cannot go through the scriptures and find that community or togetherness is optional. It’s the very heart of the Lord for his people.

Independence and  isolation, just won’t ever fit.

As the church, we don’t have community because we are all from the same place, or we all like the same things.

Our connectedness, our unity is a spiritual reality that comes through Christ.

So, if you are in Christ, you are in community.

John 17:21-23

that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

Just a few verses before this, Jesus prayed that his disciples would not be taken out of the world, but that they would be sent into the world- He sent them on mission

Here, Jesus prays that our community, our unity, would be a witness to the world of his great love.

Think about that, the way that we come together, in unity, living out this mission is how the world will see that Jesus Christ is real and alive and powerful!

We are a community together in Christ, and we have a mission to bring hope to our world.

We are a community impacting our community.

Giving at COTN

If you ever have questions or need help with online giving, please let us know: finance@cotnaz.org

Thank you for your partnership in the Kingdom of Christ!

Giving

Church of the Nazarene – Harrisonburg

Building Blocks – Part 3

Worship- Make worship your lifestyle and you will have life

We’ve discussed the significance of prayer and the sanctity of the Sabbath, and today we embark on a new journey, adding another crucial block to our spiritual foundation-worship. Imagine these building blocks as the very foundation of our spiritual house.

John 4:21

Jesus replied, “Believe me, dear woman, the time is coming when it will no longer matter whether you worship the Father on this mountain or in Jerusalem.

John 4:22

You Samaritans know very little about the one you worship, while we Jews know all about him, for salvation comes through the Jews.

John 4:23

But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way.

John 4:24

For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

The woman is concerned about the “where”

But Jesus was much more concerned about the “how!”

What is critical is the the “how”

Worship in Spirit emphasizes a heart connection with God!

– God wants to meet with you

Jesus emphasizes the importance of deep, sincere, and authentic connection with God that goes beyond outward appearances and religious rituals. It’s about engaging the heart and spirit win a genuine encounter with the divine.

The core of your worship isn’t what occurs on stage, but what occurs in your heart.

“Worship will never get more powerful the more things you add to it, because its power has never flowed from its form. Its power has always flowed from His presence.” – Jeremy Riddle, The Reset (Returning to the Heart of Worship and a life o undivided devotion.)

Jesus also informs the woman that we are to worship in Truth.

Truth is inseparable from God

-Without knowing God, we can’t understand how or why we worship.

– The knowledge of who God is distinguishes true worship.

God’s truth sets apart believers for Him.

Colossians 3:16

Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts.

Luke 7:36-50

One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to have dinner with him, so Jesus went to his home and sat down to eat. When a certain immoral woman from that city heard he was eating there, she brought a beautiful alabaster jar filled with expensive perfume. Then she knelt behind him at his feet, weeping. Her tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them off with her hair. Then she kept kissing his feet and putting perfume on them. When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know what kind of woman is touching him. She’s a sinner!” Then Jesus answered his thoughts. “Simon,” he said to the Pharisee, “I have something to say to you.” “Go ahead, Teacher,” Simon replied. Then Jesus told him this story: “A man loaned money to two people—500 pieces of silver to one and 50 pieces to the other. But neither of them could repay him, so he kindly forgave them both, canceling their debts. Who do you suppose loved him more after that?” Simon answered, “I suppose the one for whom he canceled the larger debt.” “That’s right,” Jesus said. Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Look at this woman kneeling here. When I entered your home, you didn’t offer me water to wash the dust from my feet, but she has washed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You didn’t greet me with a kiss, but from the time I first came in, she has not stopped kissing my feet. You neglected the courtesy of olive oil to anoint my head, but she has anointed my feet with rare perfume. “I tell you, her sins—and they are many—have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love.” Then Jesus said to the woman, “Your sins are forgiven.” The men at the table said among themselves, “Who is this man, that he goes around forgiving sins?” And Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

Expectations of a Host in Jesus’s Middle Eastern World:

1. A kiss of welcome

2. Washing the guests’ feet with water

3. Olive oil for the guests hands (soap)

4. Esteemed guests would be anointed with special oil (an extra dose of hospitality)

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Table: Head toward the wall, leaning on the left, grabbing food with your right, feet toward the wall, Outcasts and sinners sitting against the wall to be fed after the meal was served.

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1.Worship is Intentional

– The woman came prepared to honor and worship Jesus.

2. Worship is worthy of our best, not our leftovers.

– The woman gave Jesus her best.

-The perfume in the alabaster jar is understood to be equivalent to a year’s worth of income.

– A woman’s hair was her glory… yet she used it to wipe Jesus’s feet.

3. Worship occurs in His presence:

– Worship is not just emotional Although, the Holy Spirit does stir our emotions during worship.

-When we are in the presence of God, we can’t Not worship. The woman knew, if Jesus is going to be there, He will be worshipped!

– Worship is what we were created to do!

Psalms 29:2

Honor the Lord for the glory of his name. Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness.

4. Worship is expressive and participatory

– If you love Jesus and you know it, TELL YOUR FACE!”

-Worship is driven by love and sometimes breaks societal norms:

– David dancing in the streets

– Daniel got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and

gave thanks before God, even though He was forbidden to do so.

– The Israelites marched around the wall of Jericho blaring their

trumpets and screaming waiting for the walls to come tumbling

down.

– The woman with the perfume understood who Jesus was and gave her all in worship.

5. Worship is a lifestlye

– It’s a series of decisions and a shift in our perspective of who God is

and how we respond to Him.

6. Worship Requires Obedience

– Obedience is a tangible expression of love and trust.

– It’s a powerful way to say, “I love and trust You, God.”

Practical ways you can worship

– Using your gifts to serve

– Participating in intercessory prayer

-Giving tithes and offerings

-Helping someone in need

– Many more

Revelation 7:11-23

And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living beings. And they fell before the throne with their faces to the ground and worshiped God. They sang, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and strength belong to our God forever and ever! Amen.” Then one of the twenty-four elders asked me, “Who are these who are clothed in white? Where did they come from?” And I said to him, “Sir, you are the one who knows.” Then he said to me, “These are the ones who died in the great tribulation. They have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb and made them white. “That is why they stand in front of God’s throne and serve him day and night in his Temple. And he who sits on the throne will give them shelter. They will never again be hungry or thirsty; they will never be scorched by the heat of the sun. For the Lamb on the throne will be their Shepherd. He will lead them to springs of life-giving water. And God will wipe every tear from their eyes.”

Spoiler Alert: We are going to be worshipping for the rest of eternity, so we may as well spend time perfecting it now! He deserves our praise

If you make worship your lifestyle, you will have life!

Toddler Worshipping When Holding His New Baby Brother

@spiritlifewham

wait for it! 3 year old boy sings worship song to his newborn brother when he first sees him #baby #waymaker #inspiring

♬ original sound – SpiritLifeWham

Premature Baby Worshipping as Mom Sings

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Premature Baby Worshipping as Dad Sings

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Verses for further study/reflection:

Romans 11:33

Romans 12:1

Giving at COTN

If you ever have questions or need help with online giving, please let us know: finance@cotnaz.org

Thank you for your partnership in the Kingdom of Christ!

Giving