1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:07,583 2 00:00:07,667 --> 00:00:09,292 When Mars Hill was getting started, 3 00:00:09,333 --> 00:00:12,292 I used to drive between our three different locations 4 00:00:12,333 --> 00:00:13,708 preaching live. 5 00:00:13,792 --> 00:00:16,500 Of course, now that the church has 14 locations spread across 6 00:00:16,583 --> 00:00:20,708 4 states, I pastor churches I've never even seen or been to. 7 00:00:20,792 --> 00:00:23,167 We have so much going on at Mars Hill Church, 8 00:00:23,250 --> 00:00:24,583 I can't even keep up. 9 00:00:24,667 --> 00:00:27,208 So, today, I'm going to take you with me to see 10 00:00:27,292 --> 00:00:29,000 8 of the 14 Mars Hill churches, 11 00:00:29,042 --> 00:00:31,333 and you're going to see God's work, 12 00:00:31,375 --> 00:00:34,708 and he's going to show you how he's been loving, saving, 13 00:00:34,792 --> 00:00:36,500 seeking, serving people. 14 00:00:36,583 --> 00:00:38,500 It's exactly what Jesus promised. 15 00:00:38,583 --> 00:00:39,917 "You will receive power 16 00:00:40,000 --> 00:00:42,000 "when the Holy Spirit is come upon you, 17 00:00:42,083 --> 00:00:43,833 and you will be my witnesses." 18 00:00:43,875 --> 00:00:45,917 Those were Jesus' final words. 19 00:00:46,000 --> 00:00:47,333 He told us the truth, 20 00:00:47,375 --> 00:00:49,667 and you'll see it for yourself. 21 00:00:54,542 --> 00:00:57,125 We're really glad and honored to have Pastor Bill. 22 00:00:57,167 --> 00:00:59,625 He's a dear friend of mine, a very godly man, 23 00:00:59,667 --> 00:01:01,208 and everybody at Mars Hill Ballard-- 24 00:01:01,292 --> 00:01:03,417 and almost everybody across all the Mars Hill churches-- 25 00:01:03,500 --> 00:01:05,417 knows who he is. 26 00:01:05,500 --> 00:01:07,125 Ballard itself, as a community, 27 00:01:07,167 --> 00:01:10,667 is about 60% single, and then out of that other 40%, 28 00:01:10,750 --> 00:01:15,917 20% are young marrieds and newly parents, 29 00:01:16,000 --> 00:01:19,833 and our church represents Ballard pretty well. 30 00:01:19,875 --> 00:01:21,917 I mean, we have people that have kids. 31 00:01:22,000 --> 00:01:23,333 We have singles. 32 00:01:23,375 --> 00:01:26,417 We have--whatever Ballard is, we reflect that. 33 00:01:26,500 --> 00:01:29,208 So, we just have to be the church in Ballard, 34 00:01:29,292 --> 00:01:31,583 and that's a pretty exciting mission to be on. 35 00:01:31,667 --> 00:01:33,000 How many weddings a year? 36 00:01:33,042 --> 00:01:35,167 How many couples are going through the premarital process here in a year? 37 00:01:35,250 --> 00:01:38,333 We have about 45 couples every quarter, yes. 38 00:01:38,375 --> 00:01:40,333 So, maybe a few hundred weddings a year, 39 00:01:40,375 --> 00:01:41,708 dozens of babies a year, 40 00:01:41,792 --> 00:01:44,167 so a lot of young people coming in, getting saved, 41 00:01:44,250 --> 00:01:45,583 getting married, making babies. 42 00:01:45,667 --> 00:01:47,375 That's Ballard? Yeah, yeah. 43 00:01:47,458 --> 00:01:48,875 How many Community Groups are meeting 44 00:01:48,958 --> 00:01:50,833 within even just a few miles of here? 45 00:01:50,875 --> 00:01:52,500 I know it's a really densely populated 46 00:01:52,583 --> 00:01:54,208 Community Group area. 47 00:01:54,292 --> 00:01:58,167 Yeah, if we were to just take the three primary places-- 48 00:01:58,250 --> 00:02:01,000 and let's just say Ballard, Magnolia, 49 00:02:01,042 --> 00:02:04,125 and Queen Anne--we're talking about that there's 50 00:02:04,167 --> 00:02:06,625 over 100 groups just in that dense area. 51 00:02:06,667 --> 00:02:08,833 That's awesome. Yeah. 52 00:02:08,875 --> 00:02:10,292 Why Ballard? 53 00:02:10,333 --> 00:02:12,917 Why is Ballard on your heart, and why does Ballard matter 54 00:02:13,000 --> 00:02:15,417 for the city of Seattle and the heart of God? 55 00:02:15,500 --> 00:02:17,833 We are a group of people that have been asked 56 00:02:17,875 --> 00:02:20,500 to incarnate the gospel, and so, I mean, 57 00:02:20,583 --> 00:02:23,333 if half the people at Ballard were used of God 58 00:02:23,375 --> 00:02:26,417 to lead someone to Christ, and then half of those people, 59 00:02:26,500 --> 00:02:29,083 you know, I mean, you just take it in descending order, 60 00:02:29,167 --> 00:02:31,167 but if we did that for 10 years, 61 00:02:31,250 --> 00:02:34,500 we would double this church within 7 years, you know? 62 00:02:34,583 --> 00:02:37,208 I mean, there's just no reason for us to think that 63 00:02:37,292 --> 00:02:40,083 what's going to make this church effective is a program. 64 00:02:40,167 --> 00:02:42,583 It really is going to be the people on mission. 65 00:02:42,667 --> 00:02:45,208 So, Mars Hill, we talk a lot about getting on mission, 66 00:02:45,292 --> 00:02:46,833 staying on mission, being on mission. 67 00:02:46,875 --> 00:02:48,500 What's mission? 68 00:02:48,583 --> 00:02:51,500 So, mission is when we use our lives to make a difference 69 00:02:51,583 --> 00:02:53,500 in the life of someone who's not here. 70 00:02:53,583 --> 00:02:54,917 Okay? 71 00:02:55,000 --> 00:02:57,583 Community is when we use our life to make a difference 72 00:02:57,667 --> 00:02:59,583 in the life of someone who is here. 73 00:02:59,667 --> 00:03:01,375 So, God's asked us to do both: 74 00:03:01,458 --> 00:03:04,500 care for the people in the boat and get out of the boat. 75 00:03:04,583 --> 00:03:07,500 One of the keys to mission is that mission cannot be limited 76 00:03:07,583 --> 00:03:09,000 by the capacity of a building. 77 00:03:09,083 --> 00:03:12,500 A church has to reach more people than can just fit 78 00:03:12,583 --> 00:03:14,625 in one room at one time. 79 00:03:14,667 --> 00:03:16,500 So, we decided to try an experiment 80 00:03:16,583 --> 00:03:18,208 up in Mars Hill Shoreline, 81 00:03:18,292 --> 00:03:19,625 where we're headed right now. 82 00:03:19,667 --> 00:03:21,833 It's a little bit north of downtown Seattle. 83 00:03:21,875 --> 00:03:24,375 It's a bedroom community, largely families, 84 00:03:24,458 --> 00:03:26,000 doesn't have a city center. 85 00:03:26,083 --> 00:03:27,833 It's the place where people live, 86 00:03:27,875 --> 00:03:30,292 who then commute into the city for work. 87 00:03:30,333 --> 00:03:33,792 And what started out as a little experiment in a simple room was 88 00:03:33,833 --> 00:03:36,000 an absolute smashing success. 89 00:03:36,083 --> 00:03:38,000 And we were told, "If you do video, 90 00:03:38,083 --> 00:03:39,500 "the consumers will show up. 91 00:03:39,542 --> 00:03:42,125 People will just want to show up and take, not give." 92 00:03:42,167 --> 00:03:46,333 Absolutely not true, absolutely not true. 93 00:03:46,375 --> 00:03:48,500 Exactly the opposite happened. 94 00:03:48,583 --> 00:03:50,125 The people who love their neighborhood, 95 00:03:50,167 --> 00:03:52,125 the people who wanted to reach their neighbors, 96 00:03:52,167 --> 00:03:55,792 the people who wanted to be on mission in their community, 97 00:03:55,833 --> 00:03:57,333 they went to Shoreline. 98 00:03:57,375 --> 00:03:59,333 They started giving more money. 99 00:03:59,375 --> 00:04:01,833 They started serving more faithfully. 100 00:04:01,875 --> 00:04:05,292 They started participating in more Community Groups. 101 00:04:05,333 --> 00:04:09,208 They were on mission more wholeheartedly and devotedly 102 00:04:09,292 --> 00:04:12,208 than we had seen at any other point in the history 103 00:04:12,292 --> 00:04:14,208 of Mars Hill Church. 104 00:04:14,292 --> 00:04:16,333 It seemed like an accident to me. 105 00:04:16,375 --> 00:04:18,208 I was the church-planting guy. 106 00:04:18,292 --> 00:04:20,417 I was working for Acts 29 at the time 107 00:04:20,500 --> 00:04:21,917 and I lived down the street. 108 00:04:22,000 --> 00:04:23,333 It was in my neighborhood. 109 00:04:23,375 --> 00:04:24,917 Rock, paper, scissors, multisite. 110 00:04:25,000 --> 00:04:27,125 You lose, go. Yeah, you get it. 111 00:04:27,167 --> 00:04:30,292 To tell you the truth, I wasn't even sure it was me until 112 00:04:30,333 --> 00:04:31,708 we had that information meeting. 113 00:04:31,792 --> 00:04:33,417 You called me up on the stage. 114 00:04:33,500 --> 00:04:35,625 "Okay, I guess it is going to be me." 115 00:04:35,667 --> 00:04:37,375 Steve's going to be the campus pastor." 116 00:04:37,458 --> 00:04:39,833 It's like, "All right, what do we do with this?" 117 00:04:39,875 --> 00:04:41,333 Yeah, because had that not succeeded, 118 00:04:41,375 --> 00:04:43,833 we would've been limited to one church in one location. 119 00:04:43,875 --> 00:04:46,208 Where are you taking us now? 120 00:04:46,292 --> 00:04:48,667 So, this is a renovated school. 121 00:04:48,750 --> 00:04:50,417 It used to be an elementary school 122 00:04:50,500 --> 00:04:51,833 in Shoreline. 123 00:04:51,875 --> 00:04:53,708 The Shoreline School District surplused the building 124 00:04:53,792 --> 00:04:57,000 and closed down the school, and we have renovated it 125 00:04:57,083 --> 00:04:58,833 and moved in as a church. 126 00:04:58,875 --> 00:05:02,583 It is a great location, and it represents, honestly, 127 00:05:02,667 --> 00:05:06,708 the mission on the North End--as we just drove past the mosque 128 00:05:06,792 --> 00:05:08,875 that's half a block away. 129 00:05:08,958 --> 00:05:11,875 This represents the mission. 130 00:05:11,958 --> 00:05:14,083 It's right in the middle of the mission, yeah. 131 00:05:14,167 --> 00:05:15,500 Yeah, on the North End. 132 00:05:15,542 --> 00:05:17,500 All right, Pastor Steve, where are we at? 133 00:05:17,542 --> 00:05:19,833 This was the lunch room and auditorium 134 00:05:19,875 --> 00:05:21,708 of an elementary school. 135 00:05:21,792 --> 00:05:23,833 This building is a huge gift. 136 00:05:23,875 --> 00:05:26,917 We looked, as you know, and prayed for years and looked 137 00:05:27,000 --> 00:05:29,833 for all kinds of locations and buildings, 138 00:05:29,875 --> 00:05:33,375 and nothing seemed to come up, and then God just brought this. 139 00:05:33,458 --> 00:05:35,625 And where do you baptize the new Christians? 140 00:05:35,667 --> 00:05:37,125 Right where we're standing. 141 00:05:37,167 --> 00:05:39,625 We put the baptismal tank up right in the middle, 142 00:05:39,667 --> 00:05:41,083 right up front. 143 00:05:41,167 --> 00:05:42,833 What goes on in here on Sunday? 144 00:05:42,875 --> 00:05:45,625 Well, this is where all the kids gather, worship, 145 00:05:45,667 --> 00:05:49,417 pray, sing, and then go to their various classes. 146 00:05:49,500 --> 00:05:51,208 Unlike some of the Mars Hill churches, 147 00:05:51,292 --> 00:05:53,208 where the percentage of children is real low, 148 00:05:53,292 --> 00:05:56,125 a big part of your mission is leading kids to Jesus. 149 00:05:56,167 --> 00:05:59,583 When we do baptisms, I always speak to the kids in the room, 150 00:05:59,667 --> 00:06:02,000 too, and speak to parents about their kids. 151 00:06:02,083 --> 00:06:03,833 And so we see kids baptized. 152 00:06:03,875 --> 00:06:05,208 We see kids meeting Jesus. 153 00:06:05,292 --> 00:06:06,667 We see kids meeting Jesus here. 154 00:06:06,750 --> 00:06:08,417 We see them baptized in the auditorium. 155 00:06:08,500 --> 00:06:09,833 Because that's what we want. 156 00:06:09,875 --> 00:06:12,333 We want parents to be leading their kids to Jesus. 157 00:06:12,375 --> 00:06:15,167 We want parents to be actively involved in the spiritual growth 158 00:06:15,250 --> 00:06:18,333 of their kids and discipling them. 159 00:06:20,583 --> 00:06:24,000 Well, we worship a blue-collar construction guy, 160 00:06:24,042 --> 00:06:26,167 and he would've fit in real well in Everett. 161 00:06:26,250 --> 00:06:29,208 This is a working-class community we're headed into. 162 00:06:29,292 --> 00:06:32,208 Pretty much, Everett's a bunch of guys who are like my dad, 163 00:06:32,292 --> 00:06:35,792 Joe--union dry waller, construction worker. 164 00:06:35,833 --> 00:06:38,292 Get up every morning, put on his steel-toed work boots, 165 00:06:38,333 --> 00:06:41,583 grab his hard hat, fill up his thermos full of coffee. 166 00:06:41,667 --> 00:06:43,208 Mom would make him a sandwich. 167 00:06:43,292 --> 00:06:46,375 He'd jump in his truck and go get it done for the family. 168 00:06:46,458 --> 00:06:47,792 It's a great place. 169 00:06:47,833 --> 00:06:50,417 It's got a great need, and it has a very large 170 00:06:50,500 --> 00:06:52,708 military population, as well. 171 00:06:52,792 --> 00:06:55,333 So, this is sort of a dude place to be. 172 00:06:55,375 --> 00:06:58,167 All right, Pastor Scott, we're here at Mars Hill Everett. 173 00:06:58,250 --> 00:06:59,917 Where are you guys meeting, right now, 174 00:07:00,042 --> 00:07:01,375 where we're outside of? 175 00:07:01,458 --> 00:07:03,000 We meet at Everett Community College's 176 00:07:03,083 --> 00:07:04,417 Fitness Center. 177 00:07:04,500 --> 00:07:06,875 So, they built a brand-new building that opened this last-- 178 00:07:06,958 --> 00:07:08,500 just about a year ago now. 179 00:07:08,583 --> 00:07:10,875 We're already the fourth largest church in Everett, 180 00:07:10,958 --> 00:07:12,417 which is kind of crazy. 181 00:07:12,500 --> 00:07:13,833 How's mission going so far? 182 00:07:13,875 --> 00:07:16,000 I know you guys have already had some converts, 183 00:07:16,083 --> 00:07:17,417 some baptism nights. 184 00:07:17,500 --> 00:07:18,917 Yeah, we've had two baptism nights, 185 00:07:19,000 --> 00:07:21,667 and we've had 16 baptisms, which is totally awesome. 186 00:07:21,750 --> 00:07:24,417 We've had--I know, a number of Community Group leaders 187 00:07:24,500 --> 00:07:27,417 have reported that just guys that aren't Christians 188 00:07:27,500 --> 00:07:29,333 are coming and checking us out, 189 00:07:29,375 --> 00:07:31,167 and asking a lot of questions, 190 00:07:31,250 --> 00:07:33,417 and there's some people that are probably Christians-- 191 00:07:33,500 --> 00:07:36,375 they don't even know it yet, so it's pretty awesome to see. 192 00:07:36,458 --> 00:07:37,917 God's working on them. Absolutely. 193 00:07:38,000 --> 00:07:40,417 Why Everett for you? Why is your heart in Everett? 194 00:07:40,500 --> 00:07:42,625 Why do you feel like God put you here? 195 00:07:42,667 --> 00:07:45,625 When I was 18-19 years old, I worked in a coffee plant, 196 00:07:45,667 --> 00:07:48,333 South Everett, and I asked Jesus to do something in Everett. 197 00:07:48,375 --> 00:07:50,500 Twelve years later, Pastor Steve said, 198 00:07:50,583 --> 00:07:51,917 "Well, what about Everett?" 199 00:07:52,000 --> 00:07:54,917 And I said, "No way, man. I'm not going up to Everett." 200 00:07:55,000 --> 00:07:57,417 And then my wife--God bless her--she said, "Pray about it." 201 00:07:57,500 --> 00:08:00,208 And so I did, and instantly the Holy Spirit just revealed, 202 00:08:00,292 --> 00:08:02,708 "This is where I want you to be a missionary." 203 00:08:02,792 --> 00:08:04,125 So, that's why we're here. 204 00:08:04,167 --> 00:08:06,333 Boeing Machinist, alone, is, I think, a union of, 205 00:08:06,375 --> 00:08:08,292 I want to say 20,000 people, 206 00:08:08,333 --> 00:08:10,625 so there's a huge mission field there. 207 00:08:10,667 --> 00:08:14,375 We also have the Navy base, which has 6,000 people. 208 00:08:14,458 --> 00:08:18,333 By God's grace, the Navy base has just said, 209 00:08:18,375 --> 00:08:19,917 "Yeah, we want you here." 210 00:08:20,000 --> 00:08:22,125 I live .7 miles away from here. 211 00:08:22,167 --> 00:08:25,333 So, I wake up about 6:00 on a Sunday. 212 00:08:25,375 --> 00:08:27,292 About 6:30, I start heading here. 213 00:08:27,333 --> 00:08:30,292 I walk here in the morning, and I just walk and pray 214 00:08:30,333 --> 00:08:31,917 and ask that God'll do something. 215 00:08:32,000 --> 00:08:34,083 The crew gets here about 6:30. 216 00:08:34,167 --> 00:08:36,833 Right now, through those doors over there, 217 00:08:36,875 --> 00:08:40,125 we bring in two trailers' worth of material, and we come in. 218 00:08:40,167 --> 00:08:42,125 We set up the screen, the stage. 219 00:08:42,167 --> 00:08:45,625 Back here is our front house, so we have lighting, 220 00:08:45,667 --> 00:08:47,917 the whole nine, and guys set that up. 221 00:08:48,000 --> 00:08:50,417 It usually takes them about an hour and a half. 222 00:08:50,500 --> 00:08:51,875 Are you seeing singles come, 223 00:08:51,958 --> 00:08:54,208 new marrieds without kids, families? 224 00:08:54,292 --> 00:08:57,667 A number of young single dudes coming. 225 00:08:57,750 --> 00:08:59,667 So, young men? Young men. 226 00:08:59,750 --> 00:09:01,292 A number of them go here. 227 00:09:01,333 --> 00:09:02,792 A number of them work construction. 228 00:09:02,833 --> 00:09:04,500 I mean Everett's a blue-collar town, 229 00:09:04,583 --> 00:09:07,167 so you've got a lot of blue-collar workers up here 230 00:09:07,250 --> 00:09:08,583 just working with their hands. 231 00:09:08,667 --> 00:09:10,792 So, those guys are showing up to church, though, 232 00:09:10,833 --> 00:09:13,417 'cause those are the guys who never show up to church. 233 00:09:13,500 --> 00:09:15,167 Yeah, they're showing up to the church. 234 00:09:15,250 --> 00:09:16,917 A lot of young, young 30-year-old men. 235 00:09:17,000 --> 00:09:19,708 We have 94,000 people in this area that's largely unreached. 236 00:09:19,792 --> 00:09:23,125 We have 19 different neighborhoods here in Everett. 237 00:09:23,167 --> 00:09:24,875 I see not only Community Groups, 238 00:09:24,958 --> 00:09:27,125 but also huddles in those groups. 239 00:09:27,167 --> 00:09:29,667 I see us reaching, down the road, 240 00:09:29,750 --> 00:09:31,500 up to 3,000 people. 241 00:09:31,542 --> 00:09:34,333 I see us having a strong military presence, 242 00:09:34,375 --> 00:09:37,500 where we get a lot of the people from the Navy, Lord willing. 243 00:09:37,583 --> 00:09:40,875 My hobbies are make disciples and plant churches. 244 00:09:42,500 --> 00:09:44,500 We're heading into West Seattle, 245 00:09:44,542 --> 00:09:47,333 which is a particular neighborhood that stretches 246 00:09:47,375 --> 00:09:49,292 through South Seattle. 247 00:09:49,333 --> 00:09:51,667 The original settlers in Seattle 248 00:09:51,750 --> 00:09:54,667 actually landed nearby on Alki Beach, 249 00:09:54,750 --> 00:09:58,208 and the church here is an amazing story, historically. 250 00:09:58,292 --> 00:10:00,500 It was founded by Mark Matthews, 251 00:10:00,583 --> 00:10:02,875 one of the only Christian legends 252 00:10:02,958 --> 00:10:04,833 in the history of the city of Seattle. 253 00:10:04,875 --> 00:10:06,917 He was here back in the olden days, 254 00:10:07,000 --> 00:10:09,917 when Seattle was basically a wild west town with brothels, 255 00:10:10,000 --> 00:10:12,917 and murderers, and lots of gangs and trouble. 256 00:10:13,000 --> 00:10:15,000 He preached the gospel boldly. 257 00:10:15,083 --> 00:10:18,833 Interestingly enough, he was Reformed, theologically. 258 00:10:18,875 --> 00:10:21,833 He also did multisite and started churches 259 00:10:21,875 --> 00:10:24,417 all around the Puget Sound area. 260 00:10:24,500 --> 00:10:26,792 And now you're going to see it for yourself, 261 00:10:26,833 --> 00:10:30,667 Mars Hill West Seattle, led by Pastor David Fairchild. 262 00:10:30,750 --> 00:10:33,292 For those that aren't familiar with Mars Hill West Seattle, 263 00:10:33,333 --> 00:10:34,833 who lives here? 264 00:10:34,875 --> 00:10:36,208 What's the community like? 265 00:10:36,292 --> 00:10:37,625 Yeah, it's really interesting. 266 00:10:37,667 --> 00:10:39,333 Where our building is located on 35th 267 00:10:39,375 --> 00:10:41,333 is right in the middle of the city, 268 00:10:41,375 --> 00:10:43,083 of this part of our city, yeah. 269 00:10:43,167 --> 00:10:45,583 Yeah, you're right-- you're at the top of the hill 270 00:10:45,667 --> 00:10:47,000 between all the different people. 271 00:10:47,042 --> 00:10:50,125 Yeah, you just go a little bit west and a little bit north, 272 00:10:50,167 --> 00:10:51,833 and it becomes more and more affluent. 273 00:10:51,875 --> 00:10:54,500 If you go a little bit east and a little bit south, 274 00:10:54,583 --> 00:10:56,208 it becomes more and more impoverished. 275 00:10:56,292 --> 00:10:58,208 I mean, it's a pretty diverse area, obviously, 276 00:10:58,292 --> 00:10:59,958 bleeding into White Center and Highland Park. 277 00:11:00,083 --> 00:11:02,208 We have a ton of nations that are here. 278 00:11:02,292 --> 00:11:04,708 Ethnic families really know how to open up their life, 279 00:11:04,792 --> 00:11:07,208 and open up their home, and welcome people in warmly. 280 00:11:07,292 --> 00:11:09,417 And so being able to learn that, understand that, 281 00:11:09,500 --> 00:11:11,417 being in this place is just, you know, 282 00:11:11,500 --> 00:11:12,917 it's just grace upon grace, really. 283 00:11:13,000 --> 00:11:14,500 If somebody wants to get married, 284 00:11:14,542 --> 00:11:16,208 this is the place to do it. 285 00:11:16,292 --> 00:11:17,917 This is the place to do it. 286 00:11:18,000 --> 00:11:19,667 Just the generosity of Mars Hill givers, 287 00:11:19,750 --> 00:11:21,667 to be able to raise 1.8 million dollars 288 00:11:21,750 --> 00:11:23,417 to make this space usable, is phenomenal. 289 00:11:23,500 --> 00:11:25,417 If you look up, just the wood and-- 290 00:11:25,500 --> 00:11:26,833 It's an old-school preach room. 291 00:11:26,875 --> 00:11:28,208 It is. It really is. 292 00:11:28,292 --> 00:11:30,625 It is an old-school preach room, and that's for sure. 293 00:11:30,667 --> 00:11:32,000 Yeah, sloped floors, good balcony. 294 00:11:32,083 --> 00:11:33,417 Pews. Kept the pews. 295 00:11:33,500 --> 00:11:34,833 Yeah. 296 00:11:34,875 --> 00:11:36,583 The desire for us in West Seattle 297 00:11:36,667 --> 00:11:39,000 is to get the entire church believing the whole gospel 298 00:11:39,083 --> 00:11:40,500 and just releasing them on mission 299 00:11:40,583 --> 00:11:41,917 and to really own that, 300 00:11:42,000 --> 00:11:44,125 to see that Christ is not just a concept, 301 00:11:44,167 --> 00:11:46,500 but he's their defining reality, and now they make decisions 302 00:11:46,583 --> 00:11:48,667 for the Father's mission in the world. 303 00:11:48,750 --> 00:11:51,292 And what do you think is the big gospel obstacle 304 00:11:51,333 --> 00:11:54,000 that you're facing for your future? 305 00:11:54,042 --> 00:11:56,000 Yeah, I think comfort, I think, is, 306 00:11:56,042 --> 00:11:58,625 in West Seattle, people move to West Seattle for a reason. 307 00:11:58,667 --> 00:12:00,833 They like it. It feels landlocked. 308 00:12:00,875 --> 00:12:03,083 The best beaches. Yeah. 309 00:12:03,167 --> 00:12:05,792 Good places to go for nightlife, coffee, hanging out. 310 00:12:05,833 --> 00:12:07,167 That's right. 311 00:12:07,250 --> 00:12:10,583 And so much of their life is they go into the city to work. 312 00:12:10,667 --> 00:12:12,333 They come back here to cocoon themselves. 313 00:12:12,375 --> 00:12:15,000 And so we're helping our people to see that that's not 314 00:12:15,042 --> 00:12:17,167 their life anymore, you know, that they've been bought 315 00:12:17,250 --> 00:12:18,583 with a price. 316 00:12:18,667 --> 00:12:20,000 They're no longer their own. 317 00:12:20,042 --> 00:12:22,500 They're now their Father's, adopted in the family of God 318 00:12:22,542 --> 00:12:23,875 on his mission. 319 00:12:23,958 --> 00:12:25,625 They're dying for community, they really are. 320 00:12:25,667 --> 00:12:27,625 They need it, and they want it desperately, 321 00:12:27,667 --> 00:12:30,625 and we just are poised with just great opportunity to, you know, 322 00:12:30,667 --> 00:12:32,875 release our people and let them go at it. 323 00:12:34,333 --> 00:12:38,333 Well, Pastor Tim, we're in downtown Seattle, your home. 324 00:12:38,375 --> 00:12:41,208 I mean, you live right down here, condo dwelling. 325 00:12:41,292 --> 00:12:43,500 What's that like with kids and being dad? 326 00:12:43,583 --> 00:12:45,375 It's amazing. It's incredible. 327 00:12:45,458 --> 00:12:48,292 Probably every 3 weeks do I get in a car. 328 00:12:48,333 --> 00:12:51,208 And for us, you know, our heart is here in the city. 329 00:12:51,292 --> 00:12:53,208 Our heart is here in center city Seattle. 330 00:12:53,292 --> 00:12:56,500 And so, you know, as we've seen over the last number of decades, 331 00:12:56,583 --> 00:13:00,792 Christians fleeing urban centers, fleeing center cities, 332 00:13:00,833 --> 00:13:03,625 and to be able to see a generation of people 333 00:13:03,667 --> 00:13:05,500 that care about urban centers, 334 00:13:05,583 --> 00:13:07,333 that care about the urban core. 335 00:13:07,375 --> 00:13:09,583 Christians, we've got an incredible gift. 336 00:13:09,667 --> 00:13:11,833 We've got an incredible gift, and that's the gospel. 337 00:13:11,875 --> 00:13:15,000 And so we have to be here to have that gospel be given 338 00:13:15,042 --> 00:13:18,375 to our city, and we want to call other people to be here, too, 339 00:13:18,458 --> 00:13:20,875 and be the hands and feet of Jesus Christ here 340 00:13:20,958 --> 00:13:23,333 in a very influential city. 341 00:13:23,375 --> 00:13:26,083 Even the story here on this particular property is 342 00:13:26,167 --> 00:13:27,917 pretty compelling and interesting. 343 00:13:28,000 --> 00:13:31,500 Maybe give a couple-minute elevator summary of this 344 00:13:31,583 --> 00:13:33,417 building that we're taking people to see. 345 00:13:33,500 --> 00:13:34,833 Sure. 346 00:13:34,875 --> 00:13:37,292 Four years ago, it was the most notorious nightclub in Seattle. 347 00:13:37,333 --> 00:13:38,792 It was called the Tabella Nightclub. 348 00:13:38,833 --> 00:13:41,417 Yeah, I remember shootings, stabbings in or around the club. 349 00:13:41,500 --> 00:13:43,792 Murder. Murder, yeah. 350 00:13:43,833 --> 00:13:45,500 The city was in an uproar. 351 00:13:45,583 --> 00:13:49,417 And God, by his grace, allowed us to come in 352 00:13:49,500 --> 00:13:52,625 and get this facility, and be able to turn it around. 353 00:13:52,667 --> 00:13:54,000 Sunday night, Sunday night was-- 354 00:13:54,083 --> 00:13:55,583 Sin Sundays. 355 00:13:55,667 --> 00:13:57,125 Sin Sundays. 356 00:13:57,167 --> 00:13:59,417 Okay, at the bar, Sunday night was Sin Sunday. 357 00:13:59,500 --> 00:14:01,708 And we just kept the same theme, quite honestly. 358 00:14:01,792 --> 00:14:05,167 We just said, "We've just got a different answer for sin." 359 00:14:05,250 --> 00:14:08,167 At least two people that I know of, that have come in, 360 00:14:08,250 --> 00:14:10,917 that thought it was a club-- they still thought it was 361 00:14:11,000 --> 00:14:13,125 Tabella--and they met Jesus that night, and come 362 00:14:13,167 --> 00:14:17,583 and they took Communion in the exact same spot where-- 363 00:14:17,667 --> 00:14:19,208 Where the Jagermeister was months ago. 364 00:14:19,292 --> 00:14:20,625 Yeah. 365 00:14:20,667 --> 00:14:23,375 This was a hip-hop club, and so this is where 366 00:14:23,458 --> 00:14:24,792 the main dance floor was. 367 00:14:24,833 --> 00:14:27,000 They had a couple of go-go dancer cages here. 368 00:14:27,042 --> 00:14:30,000 So, I mean, we still had to keep it, because, of course, 369 00:14:30,042 --> 00:14:31,375 it's just an absolute testimony 370 00:14:31,458 --> 00:14:33,125 to what God's done in this place. 371 00:14:33,167 --> 00:14:35,833 So, the bar, I think, was right in the middle, right? 372 00:14:35,875 --> 00:14:38,625 And then there was like the dance floor and VIP lounge 373 00:14:38,667 --> 00:14:41,000 behind that--terrifying place. 374 00:14:41,042 --> 00:14:44,125 And so what was the VIP lounge downstairs 375 00:14:44,167 --> 00:14:47,917 for the most notorious nightclub in Seattle's history 376 00:14:48,000 --> 00:14:49,333 is now what? 377 00:14:49,375 --> 00:14:51,333 It is the children's ministry. 378 00:14:51,375 --> 00:14:53,000 Dude, that's awesome. That's amazing. 379 00:14:53,042 --> 00:14:54,375 It's the children's ministry. 380 00:14:54,458 --> 00:14:57,792 And it was a great day the day we took off the condom dispenser 381 00:14:57,833 --> 00:15:02,417 and put on a children's changing station right there for babies. 382 00:15:02,500 --> 00:15:06,417 What's the church you see out of Mars Hill Downtown? 383 00:15:06,500 --> 00:15:07,917 It's been going a few years. 384 00:15:08,000 --> 00:15:09,417 It's going really well. 385 00:15:09,500 --> 00:15:11,000 We're very honored to have you. 386 00:15:11,083 --> 00:15:13,625 You're a great evangelist, great leader, great family. 387 00:15:13,667 --> 00:15:16,083 In your heart, what's the church you see, 388 00:15:16,167 --> 00:15:18,000 that you're working toward creating? 389 00:15:18,083 --> 00:15:20,083 We've seen 130 baptisms this year. 390 00:15:20,167 --> 00:15:23,208 The average church size in America, you know, is 75, 391 00:15:23,292 --> 00:15:26,625 and so we've baptized twice that almost in a year. 392 00:15:26,667 --> 00:15:29,000 Now, we believe God is just at the beginning 393 00:15:29,042 --> 00:15:31,500 of what he wants to do here in urban Seattle, 394 00:15:31,583 --> 00:15:34,083 and we see a church of 5,000 people, 395 00:15:34,167 --> 00:15:35,500 and we're praying, right now, 396 00:15:35,542 --> 00:15:37,417 that God would give us a bigger building, 397 00:15:37,500 --> 00:15:40,208 because over the next 3 to 5 to 10 years, 398 00:15:40,292 --> 00:15:43,417 we believe that this wave that God is creating is just going to 399 00:15:43,500 --> 00:15:46,792 continue to grow and manifest itself to change Seattle 400 00:15:46,833 --> 00:15:50,708 for the grace of Jesus Christ for generations. 401 00:15:50,792 --> 00:15:52,708 But you think there's an opportunity to have 402 00:15:52,792 --> 00:15:55,625 a Mars Hill of 5,000 in Seattle? 403 00:15:55,667 --> 00:15:57,292 Absolutely, absolutely. 404 00:15:57,333 --> 00:15:58,667 I believe that 405 00:15:58,750 --> 00:16:00,917 that is exactly what Jesus is doing right now. 406 00:16:01,000 --> 00:16:03,417 I believe he's building his church here in urban Seattle, 407 00:16:03,500 --> 00:16:05,417 and I think we're just the beginning 408 00:16:05,500 --> 00:16:07,250 of what he wants to see happen. 409 00:16:11,792 --> 00:16:14,000 Yeah, Rainier Valley, it's in south Seattle. 410 00:16:14,042 --> 00:16:15,625 Historically, traditionally, it has always been 411 00:16:15,667 --> 00:16:19,333 a very diverse area of Seattle, and is, honestly, 412 00:16:19,375 --> 00:16:24,292 the most diverse zip code in the nation, the 98118. 413 00:16:24,333 --> 00:16:26,708 First-generation immigrants, a lot of people that are new 414 00:16:26,792 --> 00:16:28,208 to the United States. 415 00:16:28,292 --> 00:16:33,500 Over 70 nationalities, 20 languages that are spoken. 416 00:16:33,583 --> 00:16:36,500 Oftentimes, you know, we send missionaries off to-- 417 00:16:36,542 --> 00:16:38,333 across the world to the nations. 418 00:16:38,375 --> 00:16:40,500 Well, the nations are here in Seattle. 419 00:16:40,542 --> 00:16:42,500 Yeah, if you've got that many people groups, 420 00:16:42,542 --> 00:16:44,917 if they meet Jesus, then they're connected back to their 421 00:16:45,000 --> 00:16:48,292 country of origin with their families and friends, I mean, 422 00:16:48,333 --> 00:16:51,625 you could reach 70 nations by preaching the gospel 423 00:16:51,667 --> 00:16:54,000 and planting one church. 424 00:16:54,083 --> 00:16:56,500 Willie, tell us a little bit about your heart 425 00:16:56,583 --> 00:16:57,917 for Rainier Valley, 426 00:16:58,000 --> 00:17:01,125 how that intersects with your story of coming to Jesus 427 00:17:01,167 --> 00:17:03,083 and understanding what the gospel is. 428 00:17:03,167 --> 00:17:04,625 Yeah, man. 429 00:17:04,667 --> 00:17:06,625 Well, I was, I was raised in church, 430 00:17:06,667 --> 00:17:08,125 but I didn't care about church. 431 00:17:08,167 --> 00:17:10,125 I didn't care about God or anything, man, 432 00:17:10,167 --> 00:17:11,833 and it didn't mean anything to me. 433 00:17:11,875 --> 00:17:13,333 I wanted to run these streets. 434 00:17:13,375 --> 00:17:16,208 And here in Rainier Valley is where I used to run, man. 435 00:17:16,292 --> 00:17:18,208 I used to run the streets out here, 436 00:17:18,292 --> 00:17:21,625 got a lot of homies out here, did a lot of sin out here. 437 00:17:21,667 --> 00:17:23,000 You know what I'm saying? 438 00:17:23,083 --> 00:17:25,500 And, man, God just got a hold of me, bro, 439 00:17:25,583 --> 00:17:27,208 and God called me into his family, 440 00:17:27,292 --> 00:17:29,000 and I couldn't resist it. 441 00:17:29,083 --> 00:17:33,917 And all of a sudden, I find myself seeking him, 442 00:17:34,000 --> 00:17:37,000 wanting to know, you know, what is this grace? 443 00:17:37,042 --> 00:17:40,208 You know, and once he really got a hold of me, I'm like, 444 00:17:40,292 --> 00:17:41,625 "You know what? 445 00:17:41,667 --> 00:17:43,375 "I've got to share this grace, man. 446 00:17:43,458 --> 00:17:46,125 So, I've got to take it back to these streets, man." 447 00:17:46,167 --> 00:17:48,625 And, you know, I'm taking it to the homies, man, 448 00:17:48,667 --> 00:17:51,625 taking it all over the hood, letting them know who Jesus is 449 00:17:51,667 --> 00:17:53,333 and what he's done for us, bro. 450 00:17:53,375 --> 00:17:54,708 In the Rainier Valley, 451 00:17:54,792 --> 00:17:56,500 there's a lot of people that talk, 452 00:17:56,542 --> 00:17:59,125 and there's dads that drop out, because they talk a lot, 453 00:17:59,167 --> 00:18:00,625 but they're not there. 454 00:18:00,667 --> 00:18:03,000 And so in the Rainier Valley, it's not about talk. 455 00:18:03,083 --> 00:18:04,417 It's about your walk. 456 00:18:04,500 --> 00:18:07,125 And so if you can show consistency of being in their 457 00:18:07,167 --> 00:18:09,625 lives on a consistent basis, and say, "You know what? 458 00:18:09,667 --> 00:18:12,125 "I'm not here just to do a drive-by gospel run, 459 00:18:12,167 --> 00:18:14,625 but I'm here actually to live a life with you," 460 00:18:14,667 --> 00:18:17,625 as Paul says in Thessalonians, "Not only do I want to share 461 00:18:17,667 --> 00:18:20,125 "the gospel of God with you, but also my life. 462 00:18:20,167 --> 00:18:21,833 I want to live life with you." 463 00:18:21,875 --> 00:18:24,833 After a certain amount of time of being on the street corner 464 00:18:24,875 --> 00:18:26,833 and going to the same restaurant, they're like, 465 00:18:26,875 --> 00:18:28,583 "You know what? This guy is legit." 466 00:18:28,667 --> 00:18:30,000 So, I moved down here. 467 00:18:30,042 --> 00:18:32,625 I want to live right next to Rainier Beach High School. 468 00:18:32,667 --> 00:18:34,833 I'm going to be where the people are at. 469 00:18:34,875 --> 00:18:36,208 And you know what? 470 00:18:36,292 --> 00:18:38,667 My house has been robbed twice in three days, right, 471 00:18:38,750 --> 00:18:41,333 when I first moved here in August--but you know what? 472 00:18:41,375 --> 00:18:43,292 Because of the gospel, I'm here to stay. 473 00:18:43,333 --> 00:18:45,500 I'm not here just to do a drive-by gospel. 474 00:18:45,542 --> 00:18:46,875 I am here to stay. 475 00:18:46,958 --> 00:18:49,500 This mission of God is that he would have his people 476 00:18:49,583 --> 00:18:50,917 be his family. 477 00:18:51,000 --> 00:18:52,333 That's God's mission. 478 00:18:52,375 --> 00:18:55,500 Hundreds of times in the Bible, it is said this way by God 479 00:18:55,583 --> 00:18:57,833 to various people groups: 480 00:18:57,875 --> 00:19:00,125 "I will be your God. 481 00:19:00,167 --> 00:19:02,292 You will be my people." 482 00:19:02,333 --> 00:19:05,792 God says this hundreds of times, and he says this to people 483 00:19:05,833 --> 00:19:07,833 who are rebellious, who are sinful, 484 00:19:07,875 --> 00:19:10,625 some of whom are self-righteous and religious. 485 00:19:10,667 --> 00:19:13,833 And it's like a father getting down on one knee to a bunch 486 00:19:13,875 --> 00:19:16,708 of kids who don't have a dad, don't really want a dad, 487 00:19:16,792 --> 00:19:19,667 don't really want to obey their dad, and he looks at them, 488 00:19:19,750 --> 00:19:23,500 with a smile on his face and with love in his heart, 489 00:19:23,542 --> 00:19:27,583 and he says, "I will be your Dad, and you will be my kids." 490 00:19:27,667 --> 00:19:29,500 And that's the Father heart of God. 491 00:19:29,542 --> 00:19:33,500 That's the mission of God, that he would adopt into his family 492 00:19:33,583 --> 00:19:36,500 a bunch of rebellious kids, that he would love them 493 00:19:36,542 --> 00:19:39,125 and change their heart, and through his love, 494 00:19:39,167 --> 00:19:43,542 they would grow to love him and love what he loves. 495 00:19:45,042 --> 00:19:46,500 You're getting baptized tonight. 496 00:19:46,542 --> 00:19:47,875 Yes, sir. 497 00:19:47,958 --> 00:19:49,875 This is going to be an amazing night, 498 00:19:49,958 --> 00:19:53,000 and it'd be great just to hear a little bit of what Jesus 499 00:19:53,083 --> 00:19:56,000 has done in your life and what he's brought you out of, 500 00:19:56,083 --> 00:20:01,333 what he's brought you to-- great to hear that. 501 00:20:01,375 --> 00:20:05,875 I have been in my addiction for 28 years 502 00:20:05,958 --> 00:20:08,875 of my almost 40 years of life. 503 00:20:08,958 --> 00:20:14,375 And I've been at the bottom of the pit serving my drug, 504 00:20:14,458 --> 00:20:19,167 my alcohol, my money, men. 505 00:20:19,250 --> 00:20:23,208 I've been beaten, owned, sold, and traded. 506 00:20:23,292 --> 00:20:26,000 I was assaulted and had an ice pick put in my head, 507 00:20:26,042 --> 00:20:28,000 and I was left for dead. 508 00:20:28,083 --> 00:20:31,375 And that was a pretty hard time, 509 00:20:31,458 --> 00:20:33,208 and I never would've survived through that 510 00:20:33,292 --> 00:20:35,833 if it wouldn't have been by God's grace-- 511 00:20:35,875 --> 00:20:38,125 kind of almost like he's my husband, you know? 512 00:20:38,167 --> 00:20:40,417 Like, we have a friendship, a bond, 513 00:20:40,500 --> 00:20:45,125 and I'm ready to walk with him, because he's got my back. 514 00:20:45,167 --> 00:20:46,625 Absolutely. 515 00:20:46,667 --> 00:20:50,208 I'm stepping out of me, going into him. 516 00:20:50,292 --> 00:20:53,125 And being on mission with God is really having your 517 00:20:53,167 --> 00:20:56,375 Father's heart and then going to work with your Dad. 518 00:20:56,458 --> 00:21:00,708 That's all that we mean by mission: to love who he loves, 519 00:21:00,792 --> 00:21:04,333 to serve who he serves, to pursue who he's pursuing, 520 00:21:04,375 --> 00:21:06,917 as he has pursued you and I. 521 00:21:07,000 --> 00:21:09,208 As we are on mission here in Rainier Valley, 522 00:21:09,292 --> 00:21:11,417 as you are on mission here in Rainier Valley, 523 00:21:11,500 --> 00:21:12,917 people are going to push back. 524 00:21:13,000 --> 00:21:14,417 "What authority do you have?" 525 00:21:14,500 --> 00:21:17,500 See, I don't have any authority, 526 00:21:17,542 --> 00:21:22,833 but there is one who has all authority, and he sent me. 527 00:21:22,875 --> 00:21:25,667 He sent me to tell you about him. 528 00:21:25,750 --> 00:21:27,667 My résumé, not impressive. 529 00:21:27,750 --> 00:21:32,000 His, unbelievable: maker of heaven and earth, 530 00:21:32,042 --> 00:21:35,500 King of kings, Lord of lords, 531 00:21:35,583 --> 00:21:37,208 dead, buried, and risen. 532 00:21:37,292 --> 00:21:40,167 His résumé is unbelievable. 533 00:21:40,250 --> 00:21:42,500 You're right. My résumé, not so great. 534 00:21:42,583 --> 00:21:45,500 Do I have any authority to say that other religions are wrong, 535 00:21:45,542 --> 00:21:47,917 and perspectives are wrong, and ideologies are wrong? 536 00:21:48,000 --> 00:21:49,917 I don't, because I don't have any authority, 537 00:21:50,000 --> 00:21:52,333 but he has all authority. 538 00:21:52,375 --> 00:21:53,708 And the question will be, 539 00:21:53,792 --> 00:21:56,000 "Are you saying your religion is better than mine?" 540 00:21:56,083 --> 00:21:58,833 "No, I'm just saying yours is wrong. 541 00:21:58,875 --> 00:22:00,917 I'm just saying yours is wrong." 542 00:22:01,000 --> 00:22:04,333 And you need to be that bold, and you need to be that brave, 543 00:22:04,375 --> 00:22:06,000 and you need to be that courageous. 544 00:22:06,083 --> 00:22:08,000 You could say, "They will not like that." 545 00:22:08,083 --> 00:22:09,792 We worship a guy who got murdered. 546 00:22:09,833 --> 00:22:11,167 You're on his team. 547 00:22:11,250 --> 00:22:13,375 Just expect a little bit of opposition when you 548 00:22:13,458 --> 00:22:15,792 lovingly, humbly tell the truth. 549 00:22:15,833 --> 00:22:20,833 That's why he says, "All authority in heaven and on earth 550 00:22:20,875 --> 00:22:23,208 has been given unto me." 551 00:22:23,292 --> 00:22:25,000 And here's the good news. 552 00:22:25,042 --> 00:22:27,333 The good news is that most religions, historically, 553 00:22:27,375 --> 00:22:30,000 have only been for one group of people. 554 00:22:30,083 --> 00:22:31,708 So, these people worship this god. 555 00:22:31,792 --> 00:22:33,417 These people worship that god. 556 00:22:33,500 --> 00:22:36,167 Jesus is the God for all people. 557 00:22:36,250 --> 00:22:39,167 What happens when Jesus is the center is all of a sudden, 558 00:22:39,250 --> 00:22:42,500 people who otherwise would be adversaries become allies. 559 00:22:42,542 --> 00:22:44,917 People who don't like one another become friends. 560 00:22:45,000 --> 00:22:47,833 People who were not family become family. 561 00:22:47,875 --> 00:22:50,000 Because you will realize that we're all sinners, 562 00:22:50,083 --> 00:22:52,292 and he loves us, and we all need him. 563 00:22:52,333 --> 00:22:54,917 And when God the Father says, "I will be your God, 564 00:22:55,000 --> 00:22:58,333 and you will be my people," he was talking to a lot of people, 565 00:22:58,375 --> 00:23:00,375 many of whom are not like me. 566 00:23:00,458 --> 00:23:03,292 "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations." 567 00:23:03,333 --> 00:23:05,333 Isn't that good news? 568 00:23:05,375 --> 00:23:07,208 Isn't that amazing news? 569 00:23:07,292 --> 00:23:11,000 And, again, here in Rainier Valley, 70 nations. 570 00:23:11,083 --> 00:23:14,333 So, all you've got to do to obey Jesus is just hang out 571 00:23:14,375 --> 00:23:16,417 in Rainier Valley. 572 00:23:16,500 --> 00:23:17,833 Right? 573 00:23:17,875 --> 00:23:20,833 I mean, if I told you, "You've got to reach 70 nations," 574 00:23:20,875 --> 00:23:23,000 you'd be like, "That's a lot of air miles. 575 00:23:23,083 --> 00:23:26,000 I've gotta book a lot of flights to a lot of places." 576 00:23:26,083 --> 00:23:29,000 And what Jesus did in his love, he conveniently put everyone 577 00:23:29,042 --> 00:23:34,000 right here, all nations. 578 00:23:36,000 --> 00:23:37,833 All right, praise God. 579 00:23:37,875 --> 00:23:39,375 We've just wrapped up the day. 580 00:23:39,458 --> 00:23:41,500 I think it's 10-something o'clock. 581 00:23:41,583 --> 00:23:43,500 It was a 15-hour road trip. 582 00:23:43,542 --> 00:23:48,333 Day one is almost done, and we'll hit a few other 583 00:23:48,375 --> 00:23:49,917 Mars Hill churches tomorrow. 584 00:23:50,000 --> 00:23:51,333 It's been an amazing day. 585 00:23:51,375 --> 00:23:53,833 Where we just finished was Mars Hill Rainier Valley, 586 00:23:53,875 --> 00:23:56,375 and we had over 500 people on a Thursday night 587 00:23:56,458 --> 00:23:58,125 for the core group meeting. 588 00:23:58,167 --> 00:23:59,667 The band knows six songs, 589 00:23:59,750 --> 00:24:02,083 and I think we sang them all four times. 590 00:24:02,167 --> 00:24:05,583 Had 17 baptisms and I got to meet with the president 591 00:24:05,667 --> 00:24:07,375 of the Union Gospel Mission, 592 00:24:07,458 --> 00:24:09,917 one of the most amazing not-for-profits, 593 00:24:10,000 --> 00:24:13,125 really helping and serving people on behalf of Jesus. 594 00:24:13,167 --> 00:24:16,375 They gave me the great honor of touring a place 595 00:24:16,458 --> 00:24:18,208 called Hope Place. 596 00:24:18,292 --> 00:24:21,208 It's where there are 75 to almost 100 women 597 00:24:21,292 --> 00:24:23,667 and their children on any given night. 598 00:24:23,750 --> 00:24:28,292 They're escaping abuse, and assault, and domestic violence, 599 00:24:28,333 --> 00:24:30,208 and dangerous situations. 600 00:24:30,292 --> 00:24:33,208 And we saw a lot of those women worship with us tonight, 601 00:24:33,292 --> 00:24:36,583 and a number give their lives to Christ and get baptized. 602 00:24:36,667 --> 00:24:39,167 And so we rejoice in God's work in their life. 603 00:24:39,250 --> 00:24:43,208 It's been a pretty amazing, exhausting, fantastic day, 604 00:24:43,292 --> 00:24:47,083 and we have not even seen half of what God is doing at 605 00:24:47,167 --> 00:24:50,417 the various Mars Hill churches, but we'll show you some more 606 00:24:50,500 --> 00:24:53,042 tomorrow after we get a little bit of sleep. 607 00:24:55,375 --> 00:24:57,500 All right, we're up bright and early, 608 00:24:57,583 --> 00:25:00,833 out to see a few more Mars Hill churches this morning. 609 00:25:00,875 --> 00:25:03,417 We're on our way now to Mars Hill Federal Way. 610 00:25:03,500 --> 00:25:05,208 If you're not familiar with the area, 611 00:25:05,292 --> 00:25:07,833 it's just south of Seattle. 612 00:25:07,875 --> 00:25:11,500 This church was planted out of Mars Hill West Seattle 613 00:25:11,583 --> 00:25:13,333 a few years back. 614 00:25:13,375 --> 00:25:16,083 They're meeting, I'm told, at a school. 615 00:25:16,167 --> 00:25:19,417 I've actually never been to Mars Hill Federal Way. 616 00:25:19,500 --> 00:25:22,625 And to help us along the way, we're going to go pick up 617 00:25:22,667 --> 00:25:24,583 Lead Pastor Samuel Choi, 618 00:25:24,667 --> 00:25:27,000 who actually did plant this church for us 619 00:25:27,083 --> 00:25:29,000 and continues to lead it today, 620 00:25:29,042 --> 00:25:32,875 and hear what God's been doing in and around Federal Way. 621 00:25:32,958 --> 00:25:35,833 The church launched on September 20th of 2009 with 622 00:25:35,875 --> 00:25:39,208 the first message, the first sermon of Luke's Gospel series. 623 00:25:39,292 --> 00:25:41,375 And where are you guys meeting presently? 624 00:25:41,458 --> 00:25:43,333 We're still meeting at the same school, 625 00:25:43,375 --> 00:25:44,708 Sequoyah Middle School. 626 00:25:44,792 --> 00:25:47,708 And so you guys do a full setup and teardown every week? 627 00:25:47,792 --> 00:25:49,708 Yes, every week for more than 2 years. 628 00:25:49,792 --> 00:25:51,708 How big is the population of Federal Way? 629 00:25:51,792 --> 00:25:55,167 Population, I think, the last 2010 census was close to 90,000, 630 00:25:55,250 --> 00:25:58,500 but it's getting close to 100,000. 631 00:25:58,583 --> 00:26:02,208 The major cities that our members come from are from Kent, 632 00:26:02,292 --> 00:26:03,708 north of Federal Way; 633 00:26:03,792 --> 00:26:05,917 Auburn, right off the east of Federal Way; 634 00:26:06,000 --> 00:26:07,917 and then southeast, some near Puyallup; 635 00:26:08,000 --> 00:26:09,417 in the south of Federal Way, 636 00:26:09,500 --> 00:26:11,125 there's a big city called Tacoma, yeah. 637 00:26:11,167 --> 00:26:12,625 Yeah, so you've got Federal Way, 638 00:26:12,667 --> 00:26:14,625 and then you're drawing from the entire region, 639 00:26:14,667 --> 00:26:18,167 starting Community Groups to reach neighborhoods all around. 640 00:26:18,250 --> 00:26:21,500 The gospel is central in people coming together, 641 00:26:21,583 --> 00:26:24,417 and I believe that it is--it begins with the understanding 642 00:26:24,500 --> 00:26:25,833 of the gospel. 643 00:26:25,875 --> 00:26:27,833 People are hearing the preaching of the gospel. 644 00:26:27,875 --> 00:26:30,583 I believe that this is a connection point where, 645 00:26:30,667 --> 00:26:33,375 as we get together in schools, and the next level, 646 00:26:33,458 --> 00:26:36,583 the next challenge is, "Hey, can we go into our homes and invite 647 00:26:36,667 --> 00:26:38,625 people into our homes and do life together?" 648 00:26:38,667 --> 00:26:41,917 So, that is, I believe, how we become missionaries here, 649 00:26:42,000 --> 00:26:46,000 and that is, I believe, how the gospel will reach through 650 00:26:46,083 --> 00:26:47,833 suburban communities. 651 00:26:47,875 --> 00:26:50,125 So, Pastor Steven, we're in Olympia. 652 00:26:50,167 --> 00:26:52,625 Maybe take a moment for those who are unfamiliar with 653 00:26:52,667 --> 00:26:55,125 Olympia--quite a bit south of Seattle. 654 00:26:55,167 --> 00:26:56,833 What's the culture like here? 655 00:26:56,875 --> 00:26:59,125 Who lives here? What's the area known for? 656 00:26:59,167 --> 00:27:02,333 Yeah, Olympia, first off, is known as the state capital. 657 00:27:02,375 --> 00:27:05,000 So, this is the place that's the center of political power 658 00:27:05,083 --> 00:27:06,917 for the whole state of Washington. 659 00:27:07,000 --> 00:27:08,708 So, it gives a unique feeling. 660 00:27:08,792 --> 00:27:12,083 You have an urban center, but it's definitely a suburban feel. 661 00:27:12,167 --> 00:27:15,292 And then you have a bunch of people from the rural south Sound area 662 00:27:15,333 --> 00:27:17,708 all pouring in to Olympia. 663 00:27:17,792 --> 00:27:19,167 We actually had to break down Olympia 664 00:27:19,250 --> 00:27:20,875 into a couple of different regions, 665 00:27:20,958 --> 00:27:22,375 because we have a nice core 666 00:27:22,458 --> 00:27:23,833 of Community Groups in Olympia. 667 00:27:23,875 --> 00:27:26,833 Then we have groups meeting all the way out almost to Westport, 668 00:27:26,875 --> 00:27:29,333 and we have groups 45 minutes, almost an hour south 669 00:27:29,375 --> 00:27:30,708 in Centralia-Chehalis. 670 00:27:30,792 --> 00:27:32,208 You have a lot of families. 671 00:27:32,292 --> 00:27:34,708 We have a lot of families from rural and suburban, 672 00:27:34,792 --> 00:27:36,625 and then we have military families, as well. 673 00:27:36,667 --> 00:27:38,583 So, Mars Hill Olympia, you're going to have 674 00:27:38,667 --> 00:27:40,000 300 adults and 100 kids. 675 00:27:40,042 --> 00:27:41,375 So, families are huge. 676 00:27:41,458 --> 00:27:43,875 We do get some students from the university, but, really, 677 00:27:43,958 --> 00:27:46,083 it's been with the military, with the government workers-- 678 00:27:46,167 --> 00:27:47,583 which is a very stable job-- 679 00:27:47,667 --> 00:27:50,583 and then with the rural mindset, we get a lot of families, 680 00:27:50,667 --> 00:27:53,125 a lot of families that need a ton of help. 681 00:27:53,167 --> 00:27:55,000 So, Pastor Steven, could you show us your 682 00:27:55,083 --> 00:27:56,417 lovely, glorious offices. 683 00:27:56,500 --> 00:27:57,917 Actually, you've got the worst offices 684 00:27:58,000 --> 00:28:01,000 in all of Mars Hill Church, and we'd love to see it. 685 00:28:01,042 --> 00:28:02,375 Let's go. 686 00:28:02,458 --> 00:28:04,333 Yeah, we've been here for about a year. 687 00:28:04,375 --> 00:28:07,500 We got kicked out of the mall space that we were meeting in. 688 00:28:07,542 --> 00:28:09,667 And then we moved into this office space here 689 00:28:09,750 --> 00:28:11,167 over the course of a weekend, 690 00:28:11,250 --> 00:28:13,167 and so there wasn't much of an option, 691 00:28:13,250 --> 00:28:15,833 so we moved right into here and made ourselves at home. 692 00:28:15,875 --> 00:28:17,333 You need a new office, buddy. 693 00:28:17,375 --> 00:28:18,708 Yes. 694 00:28:18,792 --> 00:28:21,208 You need a midweek space, a place to do classes, 695 00:28:21,292 --> 00:28:22,625 teaching, training. 696 00:28:22,667 --> 00:28:25,333 If people come up for a class, what do you do 697 00:28:25,375 --> 00:28:26,708 with the children? 698 00:28:26,792 --> 00:28:28,417 We can't even offer childcare for midweeks. 699 00:28:28,500 --> 00:28:29,833 Right. 700 00:28:29,875 --> 00:28:31,583 How long has the church been going? 701 00:28:31,667 --> 00:28:33,583 The church has been going for 3 years. 702 00:28:33,667 --> 00:28:35,083 So, four locations in three years. 703 00:28:35,167 --> 00:28:36,500 Yep. 704 00:28:36,542 --> 00:28:38,667 And now, I mean, you're having to do your 705 00:28:38,750 --> 00:28:40,083 midweek, offices, and classes up here. 706 00:28:40,167 --> 00:28:41,500 There's not accessibility. 707 00:28:41,542 --> 00:28:43,000 There's no opportunity for children's ministry, 708 00:28:43,042 --> 00:28:44,500 and it's obviously very temporary. 709 00:28:44,583 --> 00:28:47,833 Long term, as you're thinking about how to be on mission 710 00:28:47,875 --> 00:28:50,917 in Olympia and around Olympia, how important do you think 711 00:28:51,000 --> 00:28:53,833 a permanent location is and why? 712 00:28:53,875 --> 00:28:57,000 So, in a culture of constant change in Olympia, 713 00:28:57,042 --> 00:28:58,917 we want to be the constant. 714 00:28:59,000 --> 00:29:01,833 Just like the gospel is unchanging in the midst of 715 00:29:01,875 --> 00:29:03,375 an ever-changing culture, 716 00:29:03,458 --> 00:29:06,667 we want to be that physically in Olympia, so that 717 00:29:06,750 --> 00:29:09,333 as the military people come in and out of the community, 718 00:29:09,375 --> 00:29:11,500 as the bureaucrats, as the people in the government 719 00:29:11,583 --> 00:29:13,000 come in and out, 720 00:29:13,042 --> 00:29:14,625 as students in the different universities 721 00:29:14,667 --> 00:29:16,625 come in and out, they hear the gospel, 722 00:29:16,667 --> 00:29:18,417 and they get changed by the gospel. 723 00:29:18,500 --> 00:29:20,917 Yeah, so we need to be in prayer for you 724 00:29:21,000 --> 00:29:22,667 that the right space would come available, 725 00:29:22,750 --> 00:29:24,417 one spot where we could do services, 726 00:29:24,500 --> 00:29:27,583 midweek, student ministry, classes, training, development, 727 00:29:27,667 --> 00:29:30,083 conferences, that kind of thing. 728 00:29:30,167 --> 00:29:32,208 I could see how significant that is. 729 00:29:32,292 --> 00:29:34,667 So, I'll just go ahead and ask you Mars Hill. 730 00:29:34,750 --> 00:29:36,083 Be giving generously. 731 00:29:36,167 --> 00:29:37,500 Be praying faithfully. 732 00:29:37,542 --> 00:29:39,667 They're off to a good start, but, really, truly, 733 00:29:39,750 --> 00:29:41,667 I think to get to the next level, 734 00:29:41,750 --> 00:29:44,667 it's going to take a permanent home from which they can start 735 00:29:44,750 --> 00:29:47,292 to act like the family that they are. 736 00:29:56,583 --> 00:29:59,500 All right, Pastor Mark here with my dear friend, 737 00:29:59,583 --> 00:30:01,625 longtime buddy, Tim Smith. 738 00:30:01,667 --> 00:30:03,208 Where are we at, buddy? 739 00:30:03,292 --> 00:30:06,000 We are in southeast Portland in the Sunnyside neighborhood. 740 00:30:06,083 --> 00:30:10,833 You know, it's an interesting cross-section of the whole city. 741 00:30:10,875 --> 00:30:14,833 There's retired schoolteachers, 742 00:30:14,875 --> 00:30:18,333 energy consultants, lawyers. 743 00:30:18,375 --> 00:30:21,500 There's just all kinds of folks all around the city who have 744 00:30:21,542 --> 00:30:26,375 intentionally set up their life to live close-in to Portland, 745 00:30:26,458 --> 00:30:28,375 and they're all living here because they love 746 00:30:28,458 --> 00:30:30,125 this small neighborhood. 747 00:30:30,167 --> 00:30:32,125 You can walk to all kinds of shops. 748 00:30:32,167 --> 00:30:35,917 It has a lot of character, and so they've intentionally set up 749 00:30:36,000 --> 00:30:38,917 their whole life to be able to live in a small village. 750 00:30:39,000 --> 00:30:41,917 And in the middle of the village is? 751 00:30:42,000 --> 00:30:43,917 Is a castle. 752 00:30:44,000 --> 00:30:45,417 I mean, dude, it's Medieval Times. 753 00:30:45,500 --> 00:30:47,000 It is. I'm taking the black knight. 754 00:30:47,042 --> 00:30:49,500 This is one of the coolest buildings I've ever seen. 755 00:30:49,542 --> 00:30:51,292 It's absolutely amazing. 756 00:30:51,333 --> 00:30:53,792 It's in incredible shape, too, for 102 years old. 757 00:30:53,833 --> 00:30:55,708 Folks have been meeting here to worship Jesus 758 00:30:55,792 --> 00:30:57,667 for the better part of the last century. 759 00:30:57,750 --> 00:30:59,708 Kind of retaking and recycling an old building, 760 00:30:59,792 --> 00:31:02,417 how does that fit the vibe of Portland and the McMenamins pubs 761 00:31:02,500 --> 00:31:03,833 and all that? 762 00:31:03,875 --> 00:31:05,333 Oh, yeah, it totally fits Portland, 763 00:31:05,375 --> 00:31:07,917 and people love--people come in all the time. 764 00:31:08,000 --> 00:31:10,792 Whenever Pastor Ryan and I are here during the week, 765 00:31:10,833 --> 00:31:12,792 people are constantly just knocking on the door, 766 00:31:12,833 --> 00:31:15,292 ringing the doorbell, want to welcome us to the neighborhood. 767 00:31:15,333 --> 00:31:18,667 The neighbors have been very friendly and just want to see 768 00:31:18,750 --> 00:31:20,708 the building, see what we're doing with it. 769 00:31:20,792 --> 00:31:22,417 That's how the neighborhood works. 770 00:31:22,500 --> 00:31:24,500 So, what does mission look like in Portland? 771 00:31:24,583 --> 00:31:26,500 Oh, man, it could look like anything. 772 00:31:26,583 --> 00:31:28,917 It really looks like a lot of relationships. 773 00:31:29,000 --> 00:31:31,000 And out of those relationships, 774 00:31:31,083 --> 00:31:32,833 there come all kinds of opportunities. 775 00:31:32,875 --> 00:31:36,000 But I would say, also, when we first moved in, 776 00:31:36,083 --> 00:31:38,500 and we got a lot of negative media coverage, what, 777 00:31:38,583 --> 00:31:42,917 at the time, seemed like a real issue, God-- 778 00:31:43,000 --> 00:31:44,917 Honestly, were you freaking out a little bit? 779 00:31:45,000 --> 00:31:46,833 Oh, I was totally freaking out. 780 00:31:46,875 --> 00:31:48,292 I was freaking out. 781 00:31:48,333 --> 00:31:52,083 But through the coverage, even though a lot of it was negative, 782 00:31:52,167 --> 00:31:55,833 God opened up doors that I don't know if they would've been 783 00:31:55,875 --> 00:31:57,333 opened in any other way. 784 00:31:57,375 --> 00:32:01,125 He opened up relationships with Muslims who came to our defense 785 00:32:01,167 --> 00:32:03,167 to have our position. 786 00:32:03,250 --> 00:32:04,583 It's a strange day. 787 00:32:04,667 --> 00:32:06,333 It is. It is a strange day. 788 00:32:06,375 --> 00:32:09,083 It gave opportunity to build relationships with folks, 789 00:32:09,167 --> 00:32:12,625 key community leaders within the homosexual community here. 790 00:32:12,667 --> 00:32:14,500 And there are friendships developing there. 791 00:32:14,583 --> 00:32:16,417 There's ongoing dialog. 792 00:32:16,500 --> 00:32:19,625 There's a project that we're about to start with 793 00:32:19,667 --> 00:32:22,917 some small groups from this particular community center 794 00:32:23,000 --> 00:32:25,500 from the LGBT community, 795 00:32:25,542 --> 00:32:28,375 and a few folks from our church community are getting 796 00:32:28,458 --> 00:32:31,125 together just to try to build more relationships and try to 797 00:32:31,167 --> 00:32:35,708 move past the caricatures that homosexuals have of evangelicals 798 00:32:35,792 --> 00:32:37,417 and vice versa. 799 00:32:37,500 --> 00:32:40,625 So, I hope that everyone I meet comes to know Jesus, 800 00:32:40,667 --> 00:32:44,917 but it's taken a much more relational kind of community, 801 00:32:45,000 --> 00:32:48,500 building bridges kind of approach here in Portland 802 00:32:48,583 --> 00:32:52,375 that I don't think I ever would have come to, 803 00:32:52,458 --> 00:32:56,583 if I weren't discipled by the negative media attention 804 00:32:56,667 --> 00:32:58,625 that we got at the beginning. 805 00:32:58,667 --> 00:33:00,500 So, finish this sentence. 806 00:33:00,583 --> 00:33:02,292 Mission is-- 807 00:33:02,333 --> 00:33:05,167 I think mission is all about inviting people to know Jesus 808 00:33:05,250 --> 00:33:06,833 and to know us. 809 00:33:06,875 --> 00:33:08,333 So, we extend hands of friendship. 810 00:33:08,375 --> 00:33:09,708 We build bridges. 811 00:33:09,792 --> 00:33:11,125 We get to know folks. 812 00:33:11,167 --> 00:33:13,833 And that doesn't mean we drop a gospel bomb, you know, 813 00:33:13,875 --> 00:33:16,500 every other word on them, but we're developing friendships. 814 00:33:16,583 --> 00:33:19,917 We're hoping that that makes them curious about who Jesus is, 815 00:33:20,000 --> 00:33:23,000 so we can introduce them to God. 816 00:33:23,083 --> 00:33:24,500 That's why we're here. 817 00:33:24,542 --> 00:33:28,875 We want everyone to know Jesus and know us in and through 818 00:33:28,958 --> 00:33:30,833 and all around that. 819 00:33:30,875 --> 00:33:33,833 So, I'll say a few things about what it means to be 820 00:33:33,875 --> 00:33:35,208 a missional church. 821 00:33:35,292 --> 00:33:36,625 Well, the first is 822 00:33:36,667 --> 00:33:38,375 that the Bible is our highest authority. 823 00:33:38,458 --> 00:33:39,792 And if you're new-- 824 00:33:39,833 --> 00:33:42,000 and this is a bit of an informational meeting-- 825 00:33:42,042 --> 00:33:43,500 the Bible is our highest authority. 826 00:33:43,542 --> 00:33:46,000 And we begin with the assumption that if we disagree 827 00:33:46,042 --> 00:33:48,208 with the Bible, it's because we're wrong. 828 00:33:48,292 --> 00:33:49,625 Okay? 829 00:33:49,667 --> 00:33:51,500 We begin with that assumption. 830 00:33:51,583 --> 00:33:53,625 Because here's the bottom line. 831 00:33:53,667 --> 00:33:56,417 Everyone has something or someone that is 832 00:33:56,500 --> 00:33:58,583 the highest authority in their life. 833 00:33:58,667 --> 00:34:01,125 Some of you say, "Well, this is what I think." 834 00:34:01,167 --> 00:34:03,708 Well then, the 3 pounds of meat between your ears, 835 00:34:03,792 --> 00:34:05,833 that is your highest authority. 836 00:34:05,875 --> 00:34:08,125 If it's not an idea that originated with you, 837 00:34:08,167 --> 00:34:10,417 then you do not believe it has merit, 838 00:34:10,500 --> 00:34:12,500 or you may find a teacher, or a spirituality, 839 00:34:12,583 --> 00:34:14,500 or a philosopher, or a world view, 840 00:34:14,583 --> 00:34:16,500 or an ideology, and you will say, 841 00:34:16,583 --> 00:34:18,625 "That's my highest authority." 842 00:34:18,667 --> 00:34:20,375 And what we are saying is, 843 00:34:20,458 --> 00:34:22,792 over the course of thousands of years, 844 00:34:22,833 --> 00:34:26,208 through 40-some authors, God has written a book, 845 00:34:26,292 --> 00:34:28,208 and that book is truthful. 846 00:34:28,292 --> 00:34:32,500 And I'm not saying that the book is always easy to understand. 847 00:34:32,542 --> 00:34:36,083 One of the authors of the Bible, a man named Peter, says himself, 848 00:34:36,167 --> 00:34:38,708 some things that Paul writes are hard to understand. 849 00:34:38,792 --> 00:34:40,917 So, if you ever read the Bible, you're like, 850 00:34:41,000 --> 00:34:43,917 "That's hard to understand," one of the guys who wrote the Bible 851 00:34:44,000 --> 00:34:45,500 says, "I had that same experience." 852 00:34:45,583 --> 00:34:47,833 So we're not saying that the Bible is always 853 00:34:47,875 --> 00:34:50,417 easy to understand, but it's truthful. 854 00:34:50,500 --> 00:34:53,708 And because it's not easy to understand just should compel us 855 00:34:53,792 --> 00:34:55,500 to study it. 856 00:34:55,583 --> 00:34:58,125 In the same way, how many of you are married? 857 00:34:58,167 --> 00:35:00,833 Have you found that the person you're married to is sometimes 858 00:35:00,875 --> 00:35:02,500 hard to understand? 859 00:35:02,583 --> 00:35:04,292 Yes. So, what do you do? 860 00:35:04,333 --> 00:35:07,000 You don't throw your hands in the air and say, "Impossible. 861 00:35:07,083 --> 00:35:08,500 I do not understand." 862 00:35:08,542 --> 00:35:13,000 What you need to do is pursue, to study, to observe, to learn, 863 00:35:13,042 --> 00:35:14,708 to get to know them. 864 00:35:14,792 --> 00:35:16,500 And that's really how the Bible works, 865 00:35:16,583 --> 00:35:19,125 because the Bible is about Jesus. 866 00:35:19,167 --> 00:35:21,625 And to have a relationship with him is the centerpiece 867 00:35:21,667 --> 00:35:23,000 of the Bible. 868 00:35:23,083 --> 00:35:25,792 And to really understand the Bible means we get to know 869 00:35:25,833 --> 00:35:27,167 Jesus better. 870 00:35:27,250 --> 00:35:29,375 And the more we get to know Jesus better, 871 00:35:29,458 --> 00:35:31,375 the more the Bible starts to make sense. 872 00:35:31,458 --> 00:35:33,125 But just like any friendship or relationship, 873 00:35:33,167 --> 00:35:35,833 it takes time and investment to get to know that person 874 00:35:35,875 --> 00:35:37,833 that you're in relationship with, learning about them, 875 00:35:37,875 --> 00:35:39,708 spending time with them. 876 00:35:39,792 --> 00:35:41,708 This is what Jesus says in John 5 877 00:35:41,792 --> 00:35:44,417 to some religious people-- and they tend to be the ones 878 00:35:44,500 --> 00:35:45,833 who really misunderstand the Bible. 879 00:35:45,875 --> 00:35:47,833 He says, "You diligently study these Scriptures thinking 880 00:35:47,875 --> 00:35:49,583 "that in them you'll find eternal life, 881 00:35:49,667 --> 00:35:52,208 "yet you fail to recognize the point of the Scriptures is 882 00:35:52,292 --> 00:35:53,625 to testify to me." 883 00:35:53,667 --> 00:35:56,000 So, our highest authority is the Bible. 884 00:35:56,042 --> 00:35:57,792 And if you don't agree with something, 885 00:35:57,833 --> 00:35:59,792 we would just simply say, "Open the book, 886 00:35:59,833 --> 00:36:01,208 "and let's talk about it. 887 00:36:01,292 --> 00:36:04,000 "And if we're wrong, then we'd like to know the truth. 888 00:36:04,042 --> 00:36:05,708 "And we don't want to make errors. 889 00:36:05,792 --> 00:36:07,125 So help us." 890 00:36:07,167 --> 00:36:09,917 In addition, as a church that sees itself as a missionary, 891 00:36:10,000 --> 00:36:11,917 we believe in doing two things continually. 892 00:36:12,000 --> 00:36:14,333 I'll call them contending and contextualizing. 893 00:36:14,375 --> 00:36:18,000 Contending comes from Jude 3, where the Bible commands us 894 00:36:18,083 --> 00:36:21,000 to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered 895 00:36:21,042 --> 00:36:22,875 unto the saints. 896 00:36:22,958 --> 00:36:25,375 We believe that there is a core of Christian belief 897 00:36:25,458 --> 00:36:27,667 that all Christians everywhere, regardless of culture, 898 00:36:27,750 --> 00:36:30,000 regardless of time, have always believed. 899 00:36:30,083 --> 00:36:32,000 There's one God in three persons-- 900 00:36:32,083 --> 00:36:33,833 Father, Son, and Holy Spirit-- 901 00:36:33,875 --> 00:36:36,083 that we are sinners by nature and choice, 902 00:36:36,167 --> 00:36:39,125 that God came on a rescue mission in the person and work 903 00:36:39,167 --> 00:36:41,708 of Jesus Christ, that he was born of a virgin, 904 00:36:41,792 --> 00:36:44,917 lived without sin, died on the cross in our place, 905 00:36:45,000 --> 00:36:47,708 for our sins, as our substitute. 906 00:36:47,792 --> 00:36:49,167 He was buried. 907 00:36:49,250 --> 00:36:51,208 Three days later, he rose from death. 908 00:36:51,292 --> 00:36:53,375 He's conquered Satan, sin, death, hell, 909 00:36:53,458 --> 00:36:55,000 and the wrath of God. 910 00:36:55,042 --> 00:36:57,625 He has ascended into heaven, where he's ruling and reigning 911 00:36:57,667 --> 00:36:59,292 as Lord, and he's coming again 912 00:36:59,333 --> 00:37:01,417 to judge the living and the dead. 913 00:37:01,500 --> 00:37:02,833 Okay? 914 00:37:02,875 --> 00:37:04,375 We'll contend for stuff like that. 915 00:37:04,458 --> 00:37:06,833 So, you come along and say, "What about other religions?" 916 00:37:06,875 --> 00:37:08,208 "No, it's about Jesus." 917 00:37:08,292 --> 00:37:10,208 "Well, what about other ideologies and perspectives?" 918 00:37:10,292 --> 00:37:13,375 "Well, it's about Jesus, and we will contend for those things." 919 00:37:13,458 --> 00:37:15,708 And we will also contextualize, 920 00:37:15,792 --> 00:37:17,708 and this comes out of 1 Corinthians 9. 921 00:37:17,792 --> 00:37:19,333 And what a missionary always does, 922 00:37:19,375 --> 00:37:22,083 when a missionary goes into a culture, they try and figure, 923 00:37:22,167 --> 00:37:23,833 "Okay, who's here? How do they think? 924 00:37:23,875 --> 00:37:25,833 "What do they wear? What do they eat? 925 00:37:25,875 --> 00:37:27,208 How do they act?" 926 00:37:27,292 --> 00:37:28,708 So, for us, contextualization is asking, 927 00:37:28,792 --> 00:37:31,417 "What would a church look like if it came into Portland, 928 00:37:31,500 --> 00:37:33,625 "and really loved Portland, and was part of Portland, 929 00:37:33,667 --> 00:37:36,125 "wasn't a parasite on Portland, wasn't an assault on Portland, 930 00:37:36,167 --> 00:37:38,375 "but was a loving part of Portland, 931 00:37:38,458 --> 00:37:41,292 "not trying to impose Christianity to anyone, 932 00:37:41,333 --> 00:37:45,167 but to propose Christianity to everyone?" 933 00:37:45,250 --> 00:37:48,125 And 1 Corinthians 9 says, the Apostle Paul, he says, 934 00:37:48,167 --> 00:37:51,125 "I've become all things to all men, so that by all means 935 00:37:51,167 --> 00:37:53,125 "I might save as many as possible. 936 00:37:53,167 --> 00:37:55,500 "I do so for the sake of the gospel, 937 00:37:55,542 --> 00:37:57,333 that I might share in its blessings." 938 00:37:57,375 --> 00:37:59,625 Paul says, "I want to reach everybody, 939 00:37:59,667 --> 00:38:04,000 and I'll do whatever I can, and I'll be flexible in my methods." 940 00:38:04,083 --> 00:38:07,417 But one of the things that will happen in a culture like this is 941 00:38:07,500 --> 00:38:09,167 it will bristle, and it will say, 942 00:38:09,250 --> 00:38:11,583 "Well, that sounds very exclusive." 943 00:38:11,667 --> 00:38:15,500 Everyone is exclusive, because to believe one thing is 944 00:38:15,542 --> 00:38:17,125 to not believe another thing. 945 00:38:17,167 --> 00:38:20,000 To be committed to one thing is to not be committed 946 00:38:20,042 --> 00:38:21,625 to another thing. 947 00:38:21,667 --> 00:38:23,417 So, if you're a committed vegan, 948 00:38:23,500 --> 00:38:26,000 you're not really into barbeques. 949 00:38:26,042 --> 00:38:27,375 Right? 950 00:38:27,458 --> 00:38:31,333 If you're really into Jesus, you're not really into Islam. 951 00:38:31,375 --> 00:38:36,500 If you're into walking to work, you're not really into SUVs. 952 00:38:36,583 --> 00:38:38,333 We all have our convictions. 953 00:38:38,375 --> 00:38:39,708 We all have our preferences. 954 00:38:39,792 --> 00:38:41,917 Some of us hold them very publicly and personally 955 00:38:42,000 --> 00:38:43,333 and passionately. 956 00:38:43,375 --> 00:38:45,792 And the truth is we're all exclusive about certain things. 957 00:38:45,833 --> 00:38:47,917 But here's the distinction with Christianity. 958 00:38:48,000 --> 00:38:50,917 Christianity is exclusive and inclusive. 959 00:38:51,000 --> 00:38:53,208 In fact, Christianity is the most--I'll just say it. 960 00:38:53,292 --> 00:38:55,875 It's the most exclusive and the most inclusive religion. 961 00:38:55,958 --> 00:39:00,708 It's exclusive, because the only way to have a relationship 962 00:39:00,792 --> 00:39:03,000 with God is through Jesus Christ. 963 00:39:03,042 --> 00:39:05,417 He says, "I am the way, the truth, the life. 964 00:39:05,500 --> 00:39:07,625 No one comes to the Father but by me." 965 00:39:07,667 --> 00:39:09,833 He's real clear, and we killed him for it, 966 00:39:09,875 --> 00:39:15,333 and then he rose from death and said, "I told you." 967 00:39:15,375 --> 00:39:17,500 But Christianity is also very inclusive, 968 00:39:17,583 --> 00:39:21,125 because you know who's welcome to come to Jesus? 969 00:39:21,167 --> 00:39:25,833 Vegans and meat eaters, Republicans and Democrats, 970 00:39:25,875 --> 00:39:28,000 men and women, rich and poor, 971 00:39:28,083 --> 00:39:30,375 young and old, black and white, 972 00:39:30,458 --> 00:39:32,667 American, non-American. 973 00:39:32,750 --> 00:39:35,625 Everybody's welcome to come to Jesus. 974 00:39:35,667 --> 00:39:37,833 And so Jesus is very inclusive. 975 00:39:37,875 --> 00:39:42,375 He welcomes everyone to turn from sin and trust in him, 976 00:39:42,458 --> 00:39:44,708 which means for us, as a missional church, 977 00:39:44,792 --> 00:39:46,875 a church of missionaries that wants to be 978 00:39:46,958 --> 00:39:49,625 on the mission of God, that he would be their God, 979 00:39:49,667 --> 00:39:51,625 and they and we would be his people, 980 00:39:51,667 --> 00:39:54,000 being in and near cities is very significant, 981 00:39:54,083 --> 00:39:55,417 very important. 982 00:39:55,500 --> 00:39:57,625 But it also means, when you go into cities, 983 00:39:57,667 --> 00:39:59,125 those are the least Christian areas, 984 00:39:59,167 --> 00:40:02,292 and there tends to be the most hostility to Jesus, 985 00:40:02,333 --> 00:40:06,500 which means being humble, and loving, and patient 986 00:40:06,583 --> 00:40:09,417 is really important, because sometimes in the cities, 987 00:40:09,500 --> 00:40:11,917 people have a caricature of Christians, 988 00:40:12,000 --> 00:40:14,208 and they don't really know any. 989 00:40:14,292 --> 00:40:16,583 And their fears would be well founded, 990 00:40:16,667 --> 00:40:18,708 if we were actually like that. 991 00:40:18,792 --> 00:40:21,917 But since many people who have concerns about Christianity 992 00:40:22,000 --> 00:40:24,292 don't know a Christian, the simplest thing is not 993 00:40:24,333 --> 00:40:26,708 to argue with them, but to love and serve them, 994 00:40:26,792 --> 00:40:29,417 and let them get to know us, and be good neighbors, 995 00:40:29,500 --> 00:40:31,625 and let them know that, "We love your city, 996 00:40:31,667 --> 00:40:33,125 "and this is our city, too, 997 00:40:33,167 --> 00:40:35,833 "and we want this to be a great city for everyone, 998 00:40:35,875 --> 00:40:37,833 "not just the people who agree with us, 999 00:40:37,875 --> 00:40:40,583 "because we're all made in the image and likeness of God. 1000 00:40:40,667 --> 00:40:42,583 "That doesn't mean we're all going to heaven, 1001 00:40:42,667 --> 00:40:44,333 but it does mean we all matter." 1002 00:40:44,375 --> 00:40:46,875 And if people would get excited about Jesus, and humility, 1003 00:40:46,958 --> 00:40:50,708 and repentance of sin, and loving their neighbor, 1004 00:40:50,792 --> 00:40:54,917 so that he would be their God, and they would be his people, 1005 00:40:55,000 --> 00:40:58,917 then the deepest desire of the heart of the average person 1006 00:40:59,000 --> 00:41:03,917 in Portland would be fulfilled and ultimately satisfied, 1007 00:41:04,000 --> 00:41:07,000 because they would be meeting the one who made them 1008 00:41:07,083 --> 00:41:09,833 and doing what he made them to do, 1009 00:41:09,875 --> 00:41:16,000 which will bring for us tremendous joy. 1010 00:41:16,083 --> 00:41:18,500 Father God, thank you for an opportunity to lecture 1011 00:41:18,542 --> 00:41:21,333 and to teach tonight at Mars Hill Portland. 1012 00:41:21,375 --> 00:41:23,667 God, we know that you love this city. 1013 00:41:23,750 --> 00:41:25,292 We love it, too. 1014 00:41:25,333 --> 00:41:27,375 Lord God, if some here don't know Jesus, 1015 00:41:27,458 --> 00:41:30,708 I pray that they would consider him and come to know him. 1016 00:41:30,792 --> 00:41:33,375 God, for those who do know Jesus, 1017 00:41:33,458 --> 00:41:35,500 I pray they would leave here thinking, 1018 00:41:35,583 --> 00:41:38,000 "What does it mean for me to be a missionary; 1019 00:41:38,083 --> 00:41:41,583 "not just a Christian, but a missionary here in this city 1020 00:41:41,667 --> 00:41:44,917 that you have placed me at this time." 1021 00:41:45,000 --> 00:41:46,917 God, I pray they'd get in a church 1022 00:41:47,000 --> 00:41:49,417 where the Bible is opened and Jesus is taught, 1023 00:41:49,500 --> 00:41:51,417 and I pray they'd be a blessing there. 1024 00:41:51,500 --> 00:41:53,625 Because, God, ultimately, it's not just about our church, 1025 00:41:53,667 --> 00:41:56,333 but the whole church, and we want to see all churches 1026 00:41:56,375 --> 00:41:57,917 that love you strengthened and grow. 1027 00:41:58,000 --> 00:42:00,708 And so we ask not only for this grace upon us, 1028 00:42:00,792 --> 00:42:02,917 but upon our brothers and sisters in other places, 1029 00:42:03,000 --> 00:42:05,833 as, ultimately, there really is only one Father and one family 1030 00:42:05,875 --> 00:42:07,417 on one mission. 1031 00:42:07,500 --> 00:42:09,917 And we ask for this grace, in Jesus' good name. 1032 00:42:10,000 --> 00:42:11,375 Amen. 1033 00:42:13,083 --> 00:42:17,333 All right, Mars Hill, another good, long day done. 1034 00:42:17,375 --> 00:42:19,417 It's about 9:30. 1035 00:42:19,500 --> 00:42:21,708 We're just rolling out of Portland, Oregon, 1036 00:42:21,792 --> 00:42:24,125 going to get home to Seattle, I don't know, 1037 00:42:24,167 --> 00:42:25,833 maybe 1:00 a.m. or so. 1038 00:42:25,875 --> 00:42:27,708 We've been really honored to show you 1039 00:42:27,792 --> 00:42:30,292 9 of the 14 Mars Hill churches, 1040 00:42:30,333 --> 00:42:33,083 and it's amazing what God is doing. 1041 00:42:33,167 --> 00:42:35,333 Next week, we start Real Marriage, 1042 00:42:35,375 --> 00:42:36,833 which we're hoping, trusting, praying 1043 00:42:36,875 --> 00:42:40,333 will be the biggest series we've ever done. 1044 00:42:40,375 --> 00:42:44,583 We're trying to open upwards of 9,000 additional seats 1045 00:42:44,667 --> 00:42:48,625 across our 14 churches in 4 states, 1046 00:42:48,667 --> 00:42:51,500 so that more people can meet Jesus and have their life 1047 00:42:51,542 --> 00:42:53,083 changed by him. 1048 00:42:53,167 --> 00:42:55,000 And so this is the end 1049 00:42:55,042 --> 00:42:57,292 of the God's Work, Our Witness series. 1050 00:42:57,333 --> 00:42:59,375 Our hope has been that the Holy Spirit 1051 00:42:59,458 --> 00:43:02,333 would open your heart to love the church. 1052 00:43:02,375 --> 00:43:06,500 Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. 1053 00:43:06,583 --> 00:43:10,333 That's what the Bible says, and it's impossible to love Jesus 1054 00:43:10,375 --> 00:43:12,875 and not love what Jesus loves. 1055 00:43:12,958 --> 00:43:14,583 And as a church that loves Jesus, 1056 00:43:14,667 --> 00:43:16,667 we also want you to love your church. 1057 00:43:16,750 --> 00:43:19,917 We want you to be in prayer for next week, 1058 00:43:20,000 --> 00:43:23,333 as we undertake the biggest thing we've ever done. 1059 00:43:23,375 --> 00:43:26,125 And next week, as well, we're officially opening 1060 00:43:26,167 --> 00:43:29,500 four new Mars Hill churches, Lord willing. 1061 00:43:29,583 --> 00:43:31,333 Mars Hill Rainier Valley, 1062 00:43:31,375 --> 00:43:33,917 Mars Hill Sammamish, Mars Hill Portland, 1063 00:43:34,000 --> 00:43:37,417 and also Mars Hill Orange County. 1064 00:43:37,500 --> 00:43:42,417 Four churches across three states for two reasons-- 1065 00:43:42,500 --> 00:43:44,917 we love God and people-- on one day. 1066 00:43:45,000 --> 00:43:48,125 Here's exactly what I want you to do: care. 1067 00:43:48,167 --> 00:43:51,500 It all starts with caring. 1068 00:43:51,583 --> 00:43:55,500 And as a result of caring, we want you to pray. 1069 00:43:55,542 --> 00:43:59,500 Pray for our church and all of its locations and opportunities. 1070 00:43:59,583 --> 00:44:02,125 And lastly, give. 1071 00:44:02,167 --> 00:44:03,708 Give generously. 1072 00:44:03,792 --> 00:44:07,167 Jesus says, "Where your treasure is, that's where your heart is." 1073 00:44:07,250 --> 00:44:10,292 My hope has been to open your heart, 1074 00:44:10,333 --> 00:44:13,292 to love what God loves and to see what God is doing, 1075 00:44:13,333 --> 00:44:16,125 so that you would generously give, 1076 00:44:16,167 --> 00:44:18,333 so that more people could meet Jesus, 1077 00:44:18,375 --> 00:44:20,583 that our church could grow and expand, 1078 00:44:20,667 --> 00:44:24,292 and that we could continue on this amazing mission to make 1079 00:44:24,333 --> 00:44:26,167 disciples and plant churches. 1080 00:44:26,250 --> 00:44:29,583 The truth is we're riding a wave of God's grace that is 1081 00:44:29,667 --> 00:44:33,833 very unusual, and we don't know how long it will last, 1082 00:44:33,875 --> 00:44:36,708 so we want to be as faithful as possible. 1083 00:44:36,792 --> 00:44:40,833 And we're asking you to pray, and we're asking you to give, 1084 00:44:40,875 --> 00:44:44,583 and we're asking you ultimately to care and to demonstrate your 1085 00:44:44,667 --> 00:44:48,292 care through your praying, your giving, and your serving. 1086 00:44:48,333 --> 00:44:50,417 So, that's a wrap. It's been great. 1087 00:44:50,500 --> 00:44:55,500 We'll see you next Sunday, and please do give generously. 1088 00:44:55,583 --> 00:44:57,000 It's not based off your works. 1089 00:44:57,083 --> 00:44:58,625 It's not based off your race. 1090 00:44:58,667 --> 00:45:00,208 It's not based off your culture. 1091 00:45:00,292 --> 00:45:02,208 It's not based off how you grew up. 1092 00:45:02,292 --> 00:45:03,708 It's not based off your neighborhood. 1093 00:45:03,792 --> 00:45:05,125 It's based off Jesus. 1094 00:45:05,167 --> 00:45:07,417 And so I'm excited, because all these different nations, 1095 00:45:07,500 --> 00:45:10,167 all these different people--I was walking around just today, 1096 00:45:10,250 --> 00:45:11,917 and this woman at Safeway was like, 1097 00:45:12,000 --> 00:45:13,417 "I'm getting baptized, Danny! 1098 00:45:13,500 --> 00:45:15,667 I'm getting baptized! You excited for me?" 1099 00:45:15,750 --> 00:45:17,917 I'm like, "What? Are you joking me?" 1100 00:45:18,000 --> 00:45:21,000 And I'm sitting there almost in tears, saying, "You know what? 1101 00:45:21,083 --> 00:45:24,833 That's the gospel. Only the gospel can do that." 1102 00:45:24,875 --> 00:45:27,625 I'm excited for 30--I'm praying for 30 salvations, 1103 00:45:27,667 --> 00:45:30,333 and I'm excited for 500 people. 1104 00:45:30,375 --> 00:45:33,000 I'm praying for 500 people that will hear the gospel. 1105 00:45:33,083 --> 00:45:34,875 I hope there's an overflow room, 1106 00:45:34,958 --> 00:45:37,083 not just here and not just at Hope Place. 1107 00:45:37,167 --> 00:45:39,083 I hope it goes into the youth room, 1108 00:45:39,167 --> 00:45:40,500 where we're like--you know what? 1109 00:45:40,542 --> 00:45:43,208 There's no video screen. We're going to hear it on audio. 1110 00:45:43,292 --> 00:45:45,417 I pray for that, because Jesus is worth it. 1111 00:45:45,500 --> 00:45:49,667 That's why I'm here, and that's why we're here.