Church Requel
No one has more reason to celebrate than Christ-followers. Think about it. You’ve been declared children of the Most High God. You’ve received eternal life from the Eternal Giver of Life. You have the opportunity to help restore creation from the Redeemer in Chief. Relationship. Eternity. Purpose. On top of everything else we know how the story ends - complete victory! Who’s ready to shake the champagne? Open your Bible to Luke 10:17-24 and prepare yourself for celebration!
Luke 10:17-24 NIV
Shaking The Champagne / Luke 10:17-24 NIV
What does spiritual celebration look like?
#1 - A Celebration Of ___________________ .
“The seventy-two returned with joy and said, ‘Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.’”v.17
They “returned with joy”. Why? Because they had just won a huge spiritual battle - and they knew it! Now they had done what before only Jesus could do. Think of how wonderful Jesus must have felt. One thing was clear. The celebration came from their togetherness. There is joy in togetherness. Not a lone ranger celebration.
#2 - A Celebration Of ______________ .
He replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority … to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.”v.18-19
Verses 18 and 19 can be a challenge for us to interpret. Let’s focus on what we know for sure. A) Victory. Jesus saw Satan fall. God’s kingdom wins in the end. B) Who are the players? Disciples. “I have given YOU authority.” What was Jesus doing? Sending. Praying. Seeing visions. Waiting.
Guess what? He does the same thing today. Except now, in addition to Jesus - the Son of God sitting at the right hand of the Father (sending. praying, seeing visions, waiting - we have a word for that. It’s called “interceding!”), we now ALSO have the Holy Spirit with us. We have no reason to remain defeated. We can be and should be victorious.
#3 - A Celebration Of ______________ .
“I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Blessed are the eyes that see what you see… Many wanted to see what you see but did not see it.”v.21, 23-24
God wants us to know Himself. He reveals Himself. God reveals Himself to us through His Word and through His Holy Spirit. We do not need a special education. In fact Jesus tells us that many who are wise and learned haven’t seen what we have seen, haven’t known what we know. In fact we’re told that God has hidden these things from those who have taken pride in their own knowledge.
God reveals Himself to “little children.” By that he is referring to those who are not elevated in their own status view of themselves. We can celebrate because we have a certainty of knowledge. A certainty that comes from faith, not from a degree on the wall.
#4 - A Celebration Of _________________ .
“All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and no one knows who the Father is except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” v.22
None of this victory happens by accident. God is behind the whole thing! God the Father committed it all to God the Son. We’re told that no one could even know God the Father without God the Son making it possible. It’s all God’s choice! Specifically - within the Trinity - it’s the Son’s choice. And guess what? HE CHOSE YOU! AND ME! That’s worth celebrating!
HOW IS YOUR SPIRITUAL CELEBRATION? When you come together with other Christ followers does it look more like shaking the champagne or more like just another old boring church service?
5 steps to shake the spiritual champagne
Step #1 - Ask God to __________________.
“Fill your minds with those things that are good and that deserve praise:
things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and honorable.”Phil. 4:8 GNT
If you want to shake the spiritual champagne, start by asking God for His help. He wants you to celebrate! He wants to celebrate with you! He wants to help you. He’s waiting for you to ask. But like all things involving our hearts of love, God never forces Himself upon us. What has to change is our attitude. a) How do we think about our spiritual lives? b) What priority do we give it? c) And what is our outlook?
Our attitudes are formed primarily by how we fill our minds. So what are you filling your mind with?
Step #2 - Engage in the ___________________.
As much as we all celebrated the Cav’s championship, none of us celebrated quite like they did right afterward. Why? Because they were engaged in the battle! The pressure was all on them. We celebrated too. But as spectators.
As Christians, we are not supposed to be spectators. We should be on the battlefield ourselves! How does the Bible teach us?
“Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.”Ephesians 6:11 ESV
The truth is that we are all engaged in the battle. Some of us think about it more than others. Another way of saying this is that if you’re not thinking about it, you’re probably losing the battle. You’re probably not “able to stand against the schemes of the devil.”
Step #3 - Join the ___________________.
“For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.”1 Corinthians 12:12 ESV
Christianity is a team sport! We don’t live out our Christianity like a tennis match. We live it out like a basketball team. Everybody has their position, “all members of one body.” None of us can do it all. As great a player as LeBron James is, he needed other great players to take the Cavs to the championship, right? So do you know your spiritual gifts? And do you know at least one ministry team you’re involved with where you can share your spiritual gifts in combination with other people using their spiritual gifts?
Step #4 - Fully rely on ___________________.
Not only do you need other Christians to serve together with you, you must rely on God’s strength and not on your own. You cannot “put on the whole armor of God” without God! Even the Psalmist knew where his strength came from:
“The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my Savior, my God, my rock in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the strength of my salvation, my stronghold.”Psalm 18:2 GW
Your prayer every morning should be: “Thank you God for the opportunities you bring my way today. Help me to live this day to my full potential of who You created me to be. I know I can’t do this without You!”
Even with all these 4 steps, you MUST have one more. It is the 5th step where the champagne gets shook, where the celebration takes place.
Step #5 - Make group celebration a _________________.
“You should not stay away from the church meetings, as some are doing, but you should meet together and encourage each other.” Heb. 10:25 NCV
Can you imagine ANY of the Cavs winning the championship and then avoiding the locker room after coming back from 1-3 and winning that final 7th game? There’d be NO WAY you’d miss that celebration.
There should be NO WAY we’d ever miss the weekly celebration that happens here on Sunday morning either! This is THE TIME, especially if we’ve done the other 4 steps
Has it been a long time since you have shaken the champagne? Look over these 5 steps. Is one or more missing in your life? God’s celebration is happening all the time and all around. Our time here on Earth is merely preparation for Heaven. Doesn’t it follow that we should be practicing some champagne shaking right here and right now?