Trinity Vineyard Church Nakuru

Let's talk about the importance of raising up an altar to God in our homes. How do we do it? Will the generations that come from us after us find us faithful and meet God in the way we order the lives of our families?

  We underscore the significance of recognising one's heart as the ultimate altar, highlighting the necessity of stirrings within the heart that reflect our devotion to God. With insightful anecdotes, this episode eloquently navigates the complexities of worship and our relationship with God. Our goal is to inspire listeners towards a heartfelt honesty in their spiritual journey. Finally, we delve into the heart's role as the centre of our intentions and actions. Exploring the implications of valuing worldly desires like power and fame, we remind listeners of the dangers of idolizing these transient pursuits. We emphasize self-examination and repentance, assuring that our spiritual growth lies in aligning our hearts with God, remaining steadfast in faith, and recognizing that renewal starts with repentance.

John 1:14 14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.   Jesus was the answer to Moses' prayer, "Show me your glory!" Our hope has come. If we ever want to know more than just God's character but come to know Him, Jesus is the answer to this hope. Through Him we get to truly see and know God as Gracious, compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love, a forgiving God forgiving us.

Maintaining love for thousands         And Forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin        Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished;  He punishes the children and their children for the sins of their parents to the third and fourth-generation God's mercy and justice work together so that we always get His love. How God does this is by offering to forgive us. Every way we fail to be truly human, sin, has real impact, consequences and ripple effects. Justice requires that we are held accountable. God offers to lift the burden of sin and all it brings off of us. He keeps His promises of love longer than sin can cause pain to us, He keeps his promises forever.

God's baseline feeling towards us is mercy and he always acts favourably toward us. He is not angry at you or the world.

God's name is not just a label for him, it reveals His Character. Today we look at the center point for the theology of God in Scripture when God himself proclaimed His Name Yahweh and what is in the Name.

In the first encounter between Moses and God in Exodus, He introduces himself and says his personal name. His Name is YHWH. This is the name he is to be called through all generations. While words like god, mungu and others work they are only titles and just like in that time they are often used to refer to many other beings and ideas that people worship.

In this episode, we get into the theology of the Kingdom as a framework for how to think about and what to do with unanswered prayer, especially for healing.

Today we talk with Sean and Meredith about their journey of praying for people, receiving prayer, seeing healing, receiving healing and even battling unanswered prayer while receiving the gifts God has given them.

"Healing can be instant or sometimes gradual, yet in all times it is gradual." The healing Jesus offers is holistic. Sometimes there is such a focus on physical healing or deliverance as if it is the end all of things. It is bigger than that. It is about being fully restored to wellness in all areas that have been out of joint.  Sometimes even after people get healed, there is still work to be done on the emotional, psychological and communal impacts of what they have gone through. This is why healing cannot be outside of the community, is not for show and is always tied to the Kingdom of God and our discipleship.

Jesus healed the sick, trained his disciples to do the same and even sent them out to do it. If God does heal today and all of us can participate, why is it Important for you, as a follower of Jesus, also practice laying hands on the sick to pray for them? It is tied to our discipleship and obedience to Jesus, it shows deep compassion for those around us and it is Spiritual Warfare. Join the conversation.

Today Edgar focuses on the question, "Does God Heal Today?" Does healing happen today? Does God heal today?  Yes.  Through medical intervention and even through miraculous intervention.  Jesus healed out of compassion and two, Jesus healed as a demonstration of the Kingdom of God. He felt people's pain deeply and it moved him to action. And if Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever, he still feels the pain of the sick. The question is, will the church which is the hands and feet of Jesus be moved to action?  For Jesus healing is part of demonstrating the Kingdom of God. When the King is present you feel the power of the King  Now the Kingdom of God has come. We do not experience it in full. Yet today we can experience pockets of thin places. Moments where we become so aware of God's presence. And when the King is present with us in that way, so is the power of the King. When God is present with us in that way, so is his power, and sometimes his power is present to heal the sick.
And because God has not changed, he still does this today.

As God touches our lives, we get to touch others, and Healing is part of it.

Healing the sick was a significant part of the ministry of Jesus. It is a part of the presence of the Kingdom. Our discipleship to Jesus also involves doing what Jesus did. We get to not only proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom but demonstrate the Good News of the Kingdom. 

As we meditate on scripture we not only get the interpretation of what the scripture is, but scriptures then begins to interpret us. Meditating on the scripture and the promises of God day and night is a practice recommended for our spiritual growth, reflection, and connection with God.

When we forget the character of God, we soon forget who we are. When we forget who we are, we live in shame. Whether it is for what we have done, what has been done to us or what has been done around us, shame is what happens when we forget that Yahweh is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love, He forgives sins and rebellion and remains faithful to generations. Yahweh responds to us when we are riddled with shame by being present with us. He reminds us that He knows us and we are familiar with his kindness from times past and promises to be with us.

God has created us all for increase. What is it in your life that God wants to increase?  

We were blessed to be a blessing. Today we talk about how we join Jesus as a faith community to bless our families and the world around us. Like Jesus, we are to see people, see what God is calling out of them, speak that over their lives, and commit to participate in seeing that come to life.

The stories we have believed about ourselves become the identity we live our lives from. We get most of these narrative scripts from our families of Origin.  Moving forward requires becoming aware of what narratives we live from and putting them under obedience to Jesus while destroying any that is consistent with the way of Jesus.

The other thing we get from our families of origin is our relational patterns. Our primary caregivers gave us our templates for relationships and attachments early on in our lives. Though they may have loved us deeply, they were equally broken and so they hurt us alongside that. That gave us a warped view of love and formed our relationship patterns. Discipleship calls us to investigate our relationship patterns and find out where they are not in sync with the way of Jesus and seek healing and growth. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “Yahweh, Yahweh, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.”

Sin, done by you, to you, or around you, impacts you and those around you. And unless dealt with some of these impacts go from one generation to the other. Who you are today is a direct product of your family of origin, key events in your life, and where you grew up. To move forward you need to look back to identify key events in your family and generational line that have impacted and formed you, identifying where you need healing.  And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “Yahweh, Yahweh, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.”

One of the things we inherit from our families of Origin is blessing. All families derive their name from God and He has put something of Him in all of us and some uniquely in each family.  And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “Yahweh, Yahweh, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.”

For Jesus, it was common practice to withdraw from the crowds, go to a lonely place, and quietly be with God. This is one of the core practices of the way of Jesus. It is one of the places we get healing for our souls as we just sit beheld in the father's loving-kindness.

A rule of life is the ordering of our practices and rhythms of relationships in order to intentionally be formed in a certain way. We all have a rule of life. Everything we do and our relationships are forming us. That is not a church thing, that is a human thing.  Sadly, so many people are unaware of the rule of life or have one that does not quite match their values and faith.  Through Lent, in pursuit of radicle discipleship, we will learn to develop a rule of life that matches our rule of faith. We will be equipping you and our community to attempt to order your day and rhythms of relationships in a way that matches your faith in Jesus and is geared to creating room for God to do what only He can do in transforming you.

Lord, hear my prayer,     listen to my cry for mercy; in your faithfulness and righteousness     come to my relief. Do not bring your servant into judgment,     for no one alive is righteous before you.

Did you know a decision can be both not wrong and unwise at the same time? Paul encourages us to live life wisely, redeeming our time. Nothing in this culture will necessarily call you to wisdom or follow Jesus. Nothing will necessarily encourage you to live life better to be better at life. our culture seems to have just two refrains; more not less, and Now not later. It seems to entice us with the lie that self is King. As long as it pleases you then it is permissible. This is what leads many people down a terrible path. Eventually sabotaging their future for present short-term pleasures. We explore one more question that could help us become better at making decisions that are wise.

Our lives are an unfolding story. We write this story one decision at a time. When living out current moments we can oftentimes become myopic and unable to see the ultimate and end up making decisions that are good for the immediate but leave us with stories we are not so proud to tell. How can we turn this around? Is it possible in the heat of the moment to make decisions that are better for the ultimate and leave us with a story worth telling?

Our Culture's best advise is to follow one's heart. But that is never helpful as we have all experienced when later in regrets we ask ourselves, "What was I thinking?".  That is because we easily deceive ourselves when our minds are made up about something. Of our hearts, scripture says they are deceitful above all things. How then can we make decisions better to make ourselves better? Learn to make yourself tell yourself the truth about each decision you make. You owe it to yourself.

Joy is a gift from God, it is also a practice we need to have. As the year ends it is easy to be aware of the disappointments from the year and where you did not see God in the ways you expected.  To find joy we need to learn to see the unexpected King. The one born in a manger instead of a palace. The King has come. We need to be full of expectation while abandoning our agendas and picking God's vision and story over our own and the one from our world. The intentionally choose joy over worry and practice themselves into being joyous people, like our God is.

Offence will happen and disagreements will come. But we are to do all we can to hold on to the unity of the Spirit in our communities of faith. Disunity serves no good and quenches the Spirit of God. As people boldly step into the community, it increases the chances of all these, what does it look like to be faithful to remain united?

Honour is a big deal in the Kingdom of God. Honour is what sustains relationships. We can only follow Jesus well in community. How can we honour each other when the culture of our day is one of contempt, anger and resentment? How can we, in Paul's words, "outdo each other in honour"? We cannot afford to ignore the New Testament teaching on honour regardless of how self-centred the culture is. We reflect God's character, walking in obedience and it is far more than that. When we honour people, we open ourselves up to the blessing and life they carry.

Following Jesus can only be fully realised when we commit ourselves to do it within and alongside a loving community of believers. This includes both corporately in large gatherings and in smaller groups around tables.  The Invitation to follow Jesus is an Invitation to community. Which flies against our culture's over-emphasis on individualism. In community, just like in silence and solitude, we are naked and unashamed. It brings out the best in us and the worst in us. The only way we can grow and be transformed is in these places of acceptance and love.

We would like to be formed to be as generous as our father in heaven is. Generosity is more than just being able to give but is a posture of our hearts. Generosity is who our father is; it frees us from the hold of possessions and money and allows us to enter Kingdom Joy. However, you can't learn to be generous for the rest of your life until you are generous with your possessions and money. Because where one's treasure is, so is their heart. A discipline for followers of Jesus that helps form us into Generous people is giving in a considered, consistent and progressive way. As we tithe, give offerings and give to the poor as Spiritual Discipline we open ourselves up to our hearts being formed to be as generous as our father in Heaven is.

God is inviting us to be people whom others will experience the Kingdom of God breaking through for them, people whom others will experience heaven and earth meet. Thin places, little pockets of heaven breaking in. In the ordinary things of life or the dark and painful things of life.

Again, Kenya is a few weeks to its big elections. We are not to be unengaged but our engagement is to be different. It is incidental who wins the elections. Because for us, it is settled in Heaven and on Earth who is our King and we are called to be fully devoted to Jesus and His Kingdom. If Jesus is Lord, Caesar is not.

John4:10 (NIV) Jesus answered, “If you knew the generosity of God and who I am, you would be asking me for a drink, and I would give you fresh, living water.”

True power serves love, not the other way round. Where the presence of God is, so is his power to heal, restore, and cast out evil. Yet it is all for love because God is love. We are called to become love, that is the only true context for God's power to be demonstrated. Like in Jesus, everything he did and displayed power was because he loved. He was filled, moved and compelled by compassion, healed the sick, raised the dead and cast.out evil.

Jesus promises that anyone who believes in Him will have streams of living water flowing from them referring to the Holy Spirit. He also promises that anyone who believes in Him will do what He did and even greater things. Many of us intellectually accept that statement but often disqualify others and even ourselves. Are we really the 'anyone' Jesus refers to in this promise? God is a good and generous father, and he promises to give the gift of the Holy Spirit to anyone who asks. Not because of what we have done or not done, not because of what we know or do not know but because He is our father.

When God pours out his Spirit we receive authority to speak his word. The spirit of God and the word of God are always tied together. When God speaks the word, the Spirit creates. When the Spirit fills us, it causes us to speak in the same authority as Jesus. Sharing prophecy in the church is so important. It reminds people and the community that God knows them so intricately, that God cares about them It always points to Jesus and invites us to partner with Him.

The father is more than willing to pour out his Spirit. And it is for anyone who will ask. You do not need to know any more than you know today to receive the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is a person to be in a relationship with, not a power to be harnessed. He is God. And the Invitation is to first experience life with Him, in Him and all other things we get to do will flow out of that place. Everything we get to do through the power of the Holy Spirit is out of our relationship with Him. He enjoys our company and loves inviting us to join Him anyway. The invitation is to come and drink, and then living waters will flow out of you. Come, we go. Come, we go.

Jesus was very excited as he talked about us receiving the Holy Spirit. This promise excited him, that as it was always to be from the beginning, God would be in all of us. That our bodies would be temples of the Holy Spirit, filled with the Spirit of the Sovereign Lord. We would contain the presence and glory of God. And it is everyone and anyone who believes. You, you, you and even me.

Jesus came and did what the first Adam failed at. He conquered the devil. Through his life, ministry and finally death and resurrection. And this victory was a victory for us all. Yet, it was not just a victory for us but also a showing us how to fight and win. If we want the life of Jesus, we must take up his lifestyle. In his showdown with the enemy in the desert, Jesus fights and wins and the enemy retreats until another appropriate time. How does Jesus do this? He has formed or rather he has been formed by certain habits or practices from which he lives his life. Jesus is alone in the desert praying. He is fasting, starving the flesh to feed from the Spirit. He leans on the truth and wisdom of scripture every time the enemy tries to entice him with a lie. These are what we call spiritual disciplines. Spiritual Disciplines are Spiritual Warfare. It is how we fight against the flesh, the world and the devil.

There is a cost to discipleship. The cost is the cross of self-denial. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, body and strength. Love always costs us something.  And we are invited to love God with all we are. It will cost you time, money, habits, and relationships, it will cost you the world. Any other message would be cheap grace. Getting saved, as we call it, is just the beginning of the journey not the end of it. According to Jesus, there is a cost to non-discipleship. And the cost is worse. What is the point of gaining the whole world and losing your soul?

The ways of our world are opposed to the way of Jesus. Our cities, cultures and the world will often normalise ways of life that enthrone the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life. To love the world is to be God's enemy. While we are in the world and not of the world, we are called to mount a beautiful resistance. The church is called to be anti-culture. Maybe one of the best ways to love our city is to disobey our city and its pull away from God.

Our war in the world is not against human beings. It is not against your conservative brother or liberal sister. It is not even against people who worship differently from you. Neither is it against a government or institution. Instead, we must be aware that there are real spiritual forces behind the ways of the word that are in open rebellion against God. This is who the fight is against. But fear not, Jesus has conquered the world. He has defeated these elemental forces and shamed them on the cross. And we are in Jesus, sons and daughters of God. Because of this, we are victorious over the world in him. To fight the world, behind enemy lines, we must learn to take every idea from the world and submit to obedience to Jesus. And any argument that is in opposition to the knowledge of God should be demolished.

The enemy's go-to strategy is lies. How do we then fight the enemy's lies? It is by Spirit and truth that we are formed into the image of Jesus. This is why the enemy is always trying to isolate people from the Spirit of God and community before filling them with lies. In our super busy world, people are isolated from the presence of God and from each other and we are ripe for the enemy's lies. Commit yourself to communion with the father and with a church community and a small group and invest in the truth.

When Jesus stood before Pilate and was asked if he was King He famously said that His Kingdom is not of this world instead He was born to testify of truth.  For Jesus, the key to Spiritual warfare is being liberated from the devil's falsehood and deception by the weapon of truth. This is why Jesus comes to as a teacher, to give truth. He famously said: You shall know the truth and the truth will set you free.

Paul encourages that we stand firm so that we may withstand the schemes of the enemy. To do Spiritual warfare well, we need to know our enemy. The devil's main goal is to destroy all that is good. He afflicts both humanity and creation, being the source of sickness and death, natural calamity and chaos in the world. Jesus on the other hand came to destroy the works of our enemy. And through his life, ministry, death and resurrection we receive life and life in full.

The book of James continues to teach and challenge us. We see how the way in which we speak to one another reflects what is going on in the heart. We are also encouraged to look at how we respond to the poor. Sometimes this can make us uncomfortable, yet it is so important to look at what is going on in our hearts. God's Good News is always Good News to the poor. True loving of God must lead us to love other people. We learn that right believing without right living is incomplete. We need the Holy Spirit to empower us to love the way Jesus loves, to see things the way He sees them, and to examine our hearts as we are being formed and becoming more like Jesus.