23 May Pastor Zenzo Matoga | “Denying Self – Breaking the Idol of Self” – North Attleboro & Woonsocket
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IT’S OKAY TO TAKE A SELFIE ONCE IN A WHILE, BUT IT’S NOT OKAY TO LIVE IN A SELFIE MODE ALL THE TIME.
Destroying the idol of self, the Bible calls it denying ourselves.
We live in a selfie generation. In the days of home phones and Kodak cameras, we never saw people taking selfies. Those were the days of answering machines and you knew if it was a Christian home because when the machine picked up, you would hear Christian music.
Icebreaker question:
Q. What do you miss or not miss about the days prior to cell phones and Kodak cameras?
Q. For those who are too young to have experienced regular house phones, what do you think you benefit from not having a cell phone?
We live in a generation that thinks only about me and what I want. Some of the most miserable people are self-centered people. They come to church to please themselves. Discipleship is about what we do for others, not about what we receive.
Definition of selfie: an image of oneself taken by oneself using a digital camera especially for posting about oneself on on social networks.
When we focus on ourselves, we set ourselves up for misery, anxiety, and disappointment. We live when we give. There is something powerful about giving to others. This is the message of Jesus. It is not about coming to church, it is about what we do for the Lord.
Q. What was a time that you were anxious, miserable or disappointed because you were focusing on yourself and not others?
Communities that have done well through Covid know how to rely on one another. They have done well because God created us to be givers. We are living in a selfie generation, a narcissistic generation and we need to break this.
2 Timothy 3:1-2 (NIV)
Ungratefulness is what brings us to a place were we are not Holy. We have a reason to praise God. We may not be where we want to be but we are not where we used to be. A grateful heart stops us from focusing on things we don’t have, but keeps us focusing on the things God has done in our lives. Jesus is alive! He is not in the grave!
Q. What are some things you are grateful for right now? What reasons do you have to praise the Lord even though your life is far from perfect?
THERE IS NO CHRISTIANITY WITHOUT THE CROSS.
John 12:23-26 (NLT)
A seed only produces when it dies. We produce when we die to self. People are preaching a cross-less gospel. We have Christianity because Jesus died on the cross. There is no other way to be a Christian unless we die to self. Unless we die to the wants of the flesh, idols, we will not be able to reproduce. There needs to be sacrifice. There is a price someone has to pay to serve.
Q. What have you sacrificed to serve others? What have others sacrificed to serve you?
Galatians 2:20 NIV
If we are always upset then we are not dead to self because dead people don’t feel pain. The world does not revolve around us. We have been crucified with Christ.
The only way we live as true disciples is by sacrificing something. This is counter cultural but it is the making of disciples.
Matthew 16:24-26 ESV
True joy is a person who is denying themslef. Jesus gave us the secret of Christianity and true discipleship. People trying to save themselves in this life right now are losing it. We should not make life all about us, we will only be setting ourselves up for disappointment.
There are nine causes of depression and only two are genetic. Seven out of nine causes are things we can actually fix and address. One we need to fix is the lifestyle of focusing on self all of the time. We should not walk into a room and want everyone to focus on us. We have opportunities to take the focus off self and serve others.
Q. What opportunity can you take now so you are giving and serving the Lord if you are not doing so already (serve on a ministry, tithe, tell your neighbor about Jesus etc.) ?
Micah 6:8 (NIV)
How to live a life of a true disciple:
1. Act Justly (Do it God’s way)
To do justice, is going to cost you.
Zenzo told a story about him overhearing someone he knew being talked about. He was just going to let it go so these people would like him. But instead, he confronted them and they ended up asking Zeno’s forgiveness and thanked him. Instead of preserving himself, he gave his life to saving someone else’s reputation. God as blessed him.
Q. What has it cost you to act justly?
2. Love mercy. (Forgive others)
To love mercy is to withhold the punishment for what someone has done.
Zenzo had a phone conversation with a women who was not very nice. He decided to bless the woman and sow seed into her organization. She could not believe he was being nice to her after she was so mean. God had blessed him.
Q. In what ways have you loved mercy?
3. Walk humbly (Don’t look for praise)
Don’t expect to be seated at the high table and if you are not, you go home. Highly regard others.
Challenge: This week, practice acting justly, loving mercy and walking humbly.
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