...LOVE WINS

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More information, as promised.


where: San Clemente State Beach
when: April 18-20
cost: $75
theme: LOVE WINS.
what to bring: bible, notebook, pen or pencil, sleeping bag, pillow, clothes, beach stuff, toiletries, and anything else needed for camping.

If there are any questions, leave it on the comments, and I will answer them. If you want to sign up, you can do that at Paradox, or on the comments. Payment will be collected at Paradox or whenever you can get it to me. I hope ALL can come! See you there!

preaching for Jesus...

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Mark 3:13-15 "And he went up on the mountain and called to Him those whom He desired, and they came to Him. And he appointed twelve (whom He also named apostles) so that they might be with Him and He might send them out to preach and have authority to cast out demons."


In studying about discipleship we now see that the second characteristic of a disciple. The second reality is PREACHING FOR JESUS. Now, first and foremost, this preaching for Jesus needs to primarily stem from BEING WITH JESUS. Like a new surfboard, we need to cherish and love God more than anything else. And from that love for Jesus and their love for others, the necessary result should be to tell everyone about Jesus.

It is interesting that Jesus' FIRST AND LAST recorded words to His disciples in the Gospels and in the Book of Acts have to do with evangelism. Matthew 4:19 "And He said to them, 'Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.'" And in Acts 1:8-9 "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.'" Jesus, in these statements, was making it very clear to His disciples and to US that one of the primary activities of God's people is to share the gospel with others. YET SO MANY CHRISTIANS NEVER DO THIS!

Bill Bright, the founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, states that, "only 2% of believers in America regularly share their faith in Christ with others." This is sad, because it is the RESPONSIBILITY of Christians to share the gospel with everyone we come in contact with. Mark 16:15 "God into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation." In the Greek, this passage is saying, "AS YOU ARE GOING, AS YOU PASS FROM PLACE TO PLACE, proclaim the gospel to the whole of creation." Jesus is saying, "Wherever you go, proclaim and preach the gospel." But so many don't do that because of the fear that accompanies evangelizing.

Those fears include:
- Fear of others.
- Fear of not knowing what to say.
- Fear of ineffectiveness.

These three fears can leave us paralyzed, intimidated, and silent. And that is Satan's goal. He wants to render us helpless and idle. He wants to make us stagnate because if we aren't advancing for God's Kingdom, God's Kingdom will not advance either. But the Bible states that we should not fear others, we should not fear the lack of words, and we should never fear our ineffectiveness. Because in Matthew 10:28-31 He addresses this fear of man saying, "And no not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear Him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs on your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows." We should have no fear of those who have power over your physical body, but rather have fear of the One who has power over your spiritual body. Neither should we fear of not knowing what to say. The gospel is a simple message. 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 "For I delivered to you as of first importance what i also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures." Proclaiming the gospel is SIMPLY STATING, Jesus died for your sins, He was buried, and He was resurrected on the third day in accordance to the Scriptures. The message of grace, forgiveness, hope and love is what people need today. They don't need a well thought out hyper-intellectual reasoned argument, they need to know that it is only through Jesus Christ they can have life, and life abundantly. And in proclaiming that, we should know that we are effective. 1 Corinthians 3:6 "I (Paul) planted, Apollos watered, and God grew." Successful evangelism is not about how many you convert. Successful evangelism is living obediently to what the Lord has commanded. To live the life to what He has called us to do. Your words will have an effect. Isaiah 55:10-11 "For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven and do not return there, but water the earth, and make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, SO SHALL MY WORD BE THAT GOES FORTH FROM MY MOUTH; IT SHALL NOT RETURN TO ME VOID, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it."

As disciples of Jesus, one of our vocations should be preaching the gospel to the world. And preaching does not mean that you need to stand behind a pulpit and scream it out. Preaching the gospel is a lifestyle. Through your actions, through your decisions, through your words, the gospel of Jesus Christ needs to go forth. I encourage you, PREACH FOR JESUS, do not have the fear of man, the fear of not knowing what to say, or fear that you are ineffective. God uses you to bring others to salvation. May you carry out His command of preaching the gospel to all people and be faithful in obedience to Him.

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LOVE WINS.

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I have been praying about what the theme of this Spring Retreat should be and what the Lord would want to say to His people. And I believe that He is saying, "LOVE WINS." Love is the essence of why we do what we do. Love is the essence of our service. Love is the essence of our fellowship. Love is the essence of our Savior. Love is the essence of the gospel. Love is the essence of our God. And ultimately, it is this love that wins. It wins us from our flesh. It wins us from our selfishness. It wins us from mediocracy. It wins us from the world. It wins us from our laziness. It wins us from idleness and lukewarm living. IT WINS US FROM SIN. The love exemplified by God the Father through His Son Jesus Christ by hanging Him on the cross is the greatest example of love this world has ever seen. Therefore, as Christians and followers of Jesus Christ, love should be the essence of our lives, and the reason for our living. And to that, we need to strive to LIVE LIFE WITH LOVE. 


1 John 4:8-12
"Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent His only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him. In this love, not that we have loved God but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and His love is perfected in us."

I will see you there!

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retreating doesn't mean running...

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Now, here at Paradox, we are going to do something crazy. We are going to go "retreating". This is not to mean that we are retreating from the battle that is Christianity, nor does it mean that we are running from a common foe, nor does it mean that we are going to a spa. What it means is that we are to take a "retreat from the world". We are "going to the mountain" and going to be with God. And we are going to use this time to grow in our faith, grow in our relationships, and grow in our love for Jesus. Please, come and join us, the invitation goes out to one and all. Hope to see you all there!


I am trying to decide on a theme. IF YOU HAVE ANYTHING THAT YOU WANT TO DISCUSS OR LEARN MORE ABOUT, LET ME KNOW! Leave your thoughts on the comment place. peace!

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...service opportunities

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A huge theme in the life of Jesus is service and what that means for us, is that this should be a huge theme in our lives. This service should not stop at Paradox or at church or amongst your Christian friends, but this service should extend to the people and community that God has placed you in. God has placed you in Santa Barbara, not to only enjoy the beauty and the scenery, even though that is a great thing to do, but He has placed you here to serve. Serving others doesn't have to be this monumental event, but it can be done and very effectively in a humble and simple way. Service doesn't have to be a huge ordeal, even the littlest efforts can open the eyes and the hearts of those who you are serving in the name of Jesus.


Service in your life can manifest itself in many different ways. Service can be paying for someone's lunch, taking out someone's trash, helping someone jump-start their car, giving someone a piece of paper or a scantron for a midterm, or just opening a door for someone else. Service is basically putting others in front of yourself and doing something for them that they don't expect or they don't deserve. 

If you have the desire to serve, we some great opportunities for you! Here they are!

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being with GOD...

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Mark 3:13-15 "And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those whom He desired, and they came to Him. And He appointed twelve (whom He also named apostles) so that they might be with Him and He might send them out to preach and have authority to cast out demons."

Last week, we took a look at the three qualities that every Christian needs in order to be called a disciple of Jesus Christ. Those are...
1. Deliberate Choice
2. Denial of Obedience
3. Determined Obedience
In Luke 14, Jesus outlines these in more detail and it is up to us to adhere to these three qualities to become a disciple of Jesus Christ. So now, you ask, "Now that I am a disciple of Jesus, what is it that I am supposed to do?" And that is where we are currently.

There are three things that each disciple is commanded to do. Those are...
1. Be with Jesus.
2. Preach for Jesus.
3. Have authority of Jesus.
Each one of these characteristics involve so much and are so deep that this week we are looking at only one of these three, which is BEING WITH JESUS.

When Jesus called to the disciples to "Be with Him", you could imagine these men feeling unworthy, completely stoked, completely loved, and totally honored. The reason being is that up until this point, they were taught, being good Jewish boys, that there was no way you could ever enter into the presence of God. Ever since Moses led the Israelites out of the land of Egypt and into the wilderness, God dwelt amongst them in a TABERNACLE. And the tabernacle was set up in such a way that there was a dividing VEIL between the room where God dwelt, the Most Holy Place, and the rest of the congregation of Israel. Only one man, on one day, with one offering could enter into His presence, and even in that situation, he could have been struck down for making one misstep. 

And this separation between God and man continued to the temple of the days of the disciples. Only now, the separation was even greater. The VEIL that separated the Most Holy Place and the people was 4 inches thick and was so strong that nothing could rip it in two. 

BUT now, Jesus, who was God incarnate, was calling these Jewish boys to BE WITH HIM. And in doing this, He was saying that the VEIL that was so strong that separated them from being with God is torn in two. That they have complete access to be with Jesus, to walk with Him, to talk with Him, and to be with Him. And that is exactly what happened. When Jesus Christ died on the cross, it says in Mark, Mark 15:38, that "The curtain of the tempe was torn in two, from top to bottom." We now have confidence that we can come to the Father with boldness and being with God is a HUGE AND UNIQUE DEAL.

But not only that, being with God, and following God, results in GOD BEING WITH YOU. This is an immediate blessing that we can count on when we are being a disciple of Jesus Christ. So many times we are looking for more blessings when we are following after Christ. And God doesn't totally promise that to us. The Bible does say that we will receive a reward and we will be blessed, HOWEVER, we don't know when those blessings will come. Most of the time, when we follow God, our lives don't necessarily get better. Our situations, our finances, our relationships, our issues, immediately may not be taken away. However, GOD WILL BE WITH YOU. I can't say that everything will be okay now, but I can say that God will bless you eventually, either in this life or the next. But the greatest reward that we could EVER ASK FOR!

So, when you are following after God, when you a disciple of Jesus Christ, even though your situation may not be better immediately, GOD WILL BE WITH YOU, and what more can we ask for. God is enough for us! God Bless!

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Spring has Sprung...

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Well, this is probably one of my most delightful times in life (other than summer, of course). But Spring is one of great joy in my life. Because Springtime brings more sunlight in the evenings, some more sun, and the greatest joy of all, EASTER. And this year it is going to be spectacular!


We are kicking it off with the Full Power Youth Jam on Saturday night. This is for all the youth in the city (YES, THAT INCLUDES COLLEGE STUDENTS. Don't think you guys aren't youths as well.) from Carp to Goleta. There will be giveaways, prizes, food, etc.

Then we have an Easter Concert on Easter morning at the Sunken Gardens. Headlining is the band, The Katinas, and Pastor Ricky is going to give the gospel message. It is going to be awesome.

So, if you are in town on Easter, make your way out to the Sunken Gardens for some fellowship, worship, and the gospel. If you will be at home, don't be shy about inviting your friends with you to Easter. Well, God Bless, and enjoy your springtime!

discipleship...

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Mark 3:13-15 "And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those whom He desired, and they came to Him. And He appointed twelve (whom He also named apostles) so that they might be with Him and He might send them out to preach, and have authority to cast out demons."


I am excited about where the Lord has us in His Word. This scripture refers to the calling of the twelve disciples to Jesus and His appointing of them as His disciples.  And this is very unique because this is what Jesus does in our lives. He calls us out of "mere Christianity" and into a "discipleship Christianity". And this is where many of us get hung up. We think that being "Christians" is enough and God is pleased and honored at that. Reading our Bible, praying to Him, and going to church is the extent of our relationship with Jesus. And all those things are great, and we should be doing them, BUT there is so much more.
In Christian context discipleship means that "you devote your life to Jesus Christ, you learn and accept His teachings, and you intent on living that way." I think for many of us, we are content with learning the Word, but RELUCTANT to live out the teachings of Jesus Christ. And that is what a "Christian" does, they sit back and don't LIVE OUT the teachings of Jesus. We need to be intentional about living out the teachings of Jesus Christ. That is what it means to be a disciple of Him.

In LUKE 14:25-33, Jesus explains what it takes to be a disciple. And there are three things that discipleship requires. Discipleship requires:
1. Discipleship involves a DELIBERATE CHOICE.
2. Discipleship involves a DENIAL OF ONESELF.
3. Discipleship involves a DETERMINED OBEDIENCE.

1. Discipleship involves a DELIBERATE CHOICE.
In verse 26, Jesus says that we should hate our families in order to be a disciple of Him. And of course He is not calling us to literally "hate" our families, He is calling us to something different. He uses hatred to explain those relationships in comparison to our relationship with Him. He is to be #1 in our lives. No other relationship should take His place, and to do that takes a DELIBERATE CHOICE.

2. Discipleship involves a DENIAL OF ONESELF.
In verse 27, Jesus says that we should bear our own cross. Not meaning that we wear it around our necks, but we wear it on our backs. Thereby symbolizing our death. Philippians 3:8 "Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ." Paul is saying I COUNT IT ALL LOSS.
- Money as LOSS
- Friends as LOSS
- Family as LOSS
- Image, reputation, success, jobs, prosperity as LOSS
IN COMPARISON TO THE TREASURE THAT CHRIST HAS BECOME FOR ME. Paul made a deliberate choice to DENY HIMSELF of the things that were most important to him for the sake of Jesus Christ.

3. Discipleship involves a DETERMINED OBEDIENCE.
In verses 28-33, Jesus basically says, "Discipleship is costly." Therefore requiring all the more from us a determined obedience to carry out what God has called us to do. It is hard work to be a disciple. There will be persecutions, trials, temptations, attacks, you name it, it will come, but in those times we need to be determined to obey what He wants. Nehemiah is a prime example. Being the cupbearer to the king made him probably the most unskilled to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Yet, God called him to do it and he obeyed. Even when he had attacks coming from all over, he still obeyed.

Now, our motivation to do these things should be one of LOVE. It is because we LOVE Jesus and we desire to serve Him. And that should be our sole motivation. However, there is a reward that we store up in heaven as well. Mark 10:28-31 explains it well. And we rejoice in that. Don't be CONTENT with being a "pew potato", be a "disciple". Be a follower of Jesus Christ by DELIBERATELY CHOOSING, DENYING YOURSELF, and DETERMINED IN YOUR OBEDIENCE to follow where He is leading. Let that be your prayer to Him. God Bless!

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the burial...

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Last night due to my recent sickness we watched David Guzik deliver a challenging message regarding the burial of Jesus Christ and the significance of that as Christians.  To many, including myself, it is the most obscure of the three parts of the gospel. Why did Jesus have to be buried? What is the significance of the act that Joseph of Aramethia and Nicodemus did in preparing Jesus' body and burying Him in the tomb?


There were two points that really struck me and challenged my faith. The first being that Jesus' burial was His last act in identifying with us. The second was that His burial caused these two rich men out of hiding their secret faith and into the light, causing them to stand up for their belief.

The fact that Jesus is able to identify with us on all levels is something that we should take comfort in. Sometimes we feel so alone and isolated. Feeling that what we are going through is something that no one can relate with. Something that is too hard, something that is too much, something that is too painful. But what we forget is that we have a Savior who can relate with us on all levels. Jesus can identify with our embarrassment, our humiliation, our temptation, our pain, our suffering, our stress, our anxiety, all the way until death. Jesus can identify with all that we go through. And in that we need to rejoice and be encouraged.

We also need to stand for our faith. College is a hostile time. It is a time where your faith will be challenged. It is a time where you will be questioned about what you believe to be truth. And it is in those times that we need to be bold and STAND UP for our faith in Jesus Christ. Matthew 10:33 Jesus says this, "So everyone who acknowledges Me before men, I also will acknowledge before My Father, but whoever denies Me before men, I also will deny before My Father who is in heaven." We need to be unashamed, as Paul said in Romans, and stand up for Jesus Christ. Because He is the truth and the way to salvation.

So I encourage you all, let this be an encouragement to you that you stand firm for Jesus, that you don't be a hidden disciple, but an exposed follower of Jesus Christ. And in that to know that you are not alone in what you go through. May you be blessed!

If you are wanting to listen to David Guzik's other messages concerning the gospel CLICK HERE for the other messages.

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trailer...

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Here is the trailer for the Walking on Water surf movie premiere. Enjoy!

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