Bigger Than Us: Prepare The Way

Question: What do you think of when you think of the word “Legacy”?

Is this something you live every day or something that is passed on after you are gone? Your legacy is built in your presence and revealed in your absence.

The reality is this, everyone leaves a legacy. The question is, what kind of legacy will you leave?

For many of us, we don’t think about leaving a positive or lasting legacy until it is too late

Will you fumble the handoff? Or will you pass on the baton well for the next generation?

Passage: Numbers 27:15-22

So Moses appealed to the Lord, 16 “May the Lord, the God who gives breath to all, appoint a man over the community 17 who will go out before them and come back in before them, and who will bring them out and bring them in, so that the Lord’s community won’t be like sheep without a shepherd.”

18 The Lord replied to Moses, “Take Joshua son of Nun, a man who has the Spirit in him, and lay your hands on him. 19 Have him stand before the priest Eleazar and the whole community, and commission him in their sight. 20 Confer some of your authority on him so that the entire Israelite community will obey him. 21 He will stand before the priest Eleazar who will consult the Lord for him with the decision of the Urim. He and all the Israelites with him, even the entire community, will go out and come back in at his command.”

22 Moses did as the Lord commanded him. He took Joshua, had him stand before the priest Eleazar and the entire community, 23 laid his hands on him, and commissioned him, as the Lord had spoken through Moses.

Pray:

Background:

Moses is an Old Testament prophet, appointed by God to lead the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt and to the Promise Land. He was a faithful and courageous leader, but due to his disobedience to God his journey was coming to a close and the people needed a new leader to lead them into the Promise Land.

This is where we pick up in the story as we see Moses Joshua as the next leader of the Israelite people.

Title: Prepare The Way

Main Points: Profile of a Legacy Leader

1. Pray for the next generation

   1. “So Moses appealed to the Lord, 16 “May the Lord, the God who gives breath to all, appoint a man over the community” - Number 27:15-16

   2. Pray first, pray comes before anything else.

      1. “Anything that does not start with prayer and fasting is flaude from the start.” - James Forlines

      2. If the next generation is “appointed” by God then we know it will have success

         3. Our tendency is going to be the opposite

      3. We’re going to want to first, put money aside

      4. Sign them up for the best sport leagues
      5. Put them in the best schools/tutors
      6. Surround them with good company
      7. Get them in church

      8. None of these are bad, at all. These are all great things. But if we neglect prayer as the priority for the next generation then we’ve missed the main thing!

         4. Interceding for the next generation is giving back to God what already belongs to Him.

      9. Bedtime Prayers: I pray these prayers over my kids.

         5. Prayer List:

      10. Pinewood Kids/Boulder Kids

      11. Pinewood Youth/Boulder Youth
      12. Pinewood College/Boulder College
      13. Pinewood Young Adults/Boulder Young Adults

      14. This is the future of Pinewood Church.

          6. Jesus prayed for His disciples

      15. “I pray for them. I am not praying for the world but for those you have given me, because they are yours. 10 Everything I have is yours, and everything you have is mine, and I am glorified in them. 11 I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. HolyFather, protect them by your name that you have given me, so that they may be one as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I was protecting them by your name that you have given me. I guarded them and not one of them is lost, except the son of destruction, so that the Scripture may be fulfilled. 13 Now I am coming to you, and I speak these things in the world so that they may have my joy completed in them. 14 I have given them your word. The world hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I am not praying that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. 19 I sanctify myself for them, so that they also may be sanctified by the truth.” - John 17:9-19

      16. Prepare the next generation

   3. “The Lord replied to Moses, “Take Joshua son of Nun, a man who has the Spirit in him, and lay your hands on him.” - Numbers 27:18

   4. Joshua was a young protege of Moses

   5. Moses took Joshua with him

      1. Moses has been preparing Joshua since the exile out of egypt.
      2. Leaders that are preparing the way take their understudies with them.
      3. “Moses passed along his authority, ability, and anointing to Joshua. He gave Joshua his time, his insight, a learning environment, an opportunity to prove himself, and a strong belief in his future.” - Dr. John Maxwell

      4. Questions: Where are you going that you could take your child with you? Where are you going that you could take a student with you? Who are you taking with you on the journey?

         4. Intentional Preparation:

      5. For Battle

         1. “Moses said to Joshua, “Select some men for us and go fight against Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the hilltop with God’s staff in my hand.” - Exodus 17:9
      6. In Administration
         1. “When Joshua heard the sound of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, “There is a sound of war in the camp.” - Exodus 32:17
      7. In Prayer
         1. “The Lord would speak with Moses face to face, just as a man speaks with his friend, then Moses would return to the camp. His assistant, the young man Joshua son of Nun, would not leave the inside of the tent.” - Exodus 33:11

      8. As A Spy

         1. “These were the names of the men Moses sent to scout out the land, and Moses renamed Hoshea son of Nun, Joshua.” - Numbers 13:16
         2. They are watching anyways

      9. You are either preparing on purpose or

      10. Illust: Sylah video, Neriah video

          6. Preparation comes through protection

      11. Protect the mission

          1. “Meet people where they are and point them to Jesus”
      12. Protect the culture
          1. Stay true to our values

      13. Protect the integrity

          1. Every decision matters
          2. Jesus prepared his disciples.

      14. “Follow me,” he told them, “and I will make you fish for people.” - Matthew 4:19

      15. As the disciples followed Jesus, he taught them how to pray, how to perform miracles, how to preach, how to shepherd, and how to love God and others.

      16. Publicly Commission the next generation

          1. “19 Have him stand before the priest Eleazar and the whole community, and commission him in their sight. 20 Confer some of your authority on him so that the entire Israelite community will obey him.” Numbers 27:19-20
          2. Illust: Relay Race Video
          3. Illust: Football Video
          4. Leverage your credibility. Give away your authority. Commission publicly so that everyone will know.
          5. Set them up for success

      17. Joshua was given public honor, recognition, and approval by a well respected leader.

      18. After Moses death, no one would question Joshua's authority and leadership.

          6. Jesus publicly commissioned His disciples

      19. “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” - Matthew 28:19-20

      20. Personally Empower the next generation

          1. “Moses did as the Lord commanded him. He took Joshua, had him stand before the priest Eleazar and the entire community, 23 laid his hands on him, and commissioned him, as the Lord had spoken through Moses.” Numbers 27:22-23
          2. Legacy leaders follow through. They do not leave abandon projects. They finish what they start.
          3. Legacy leaders greatest strategy is not in their launching, but their leaving.
          4. We never know when the time is going to come for us to empower the future, for some it could be sooner than expected, are you ready?
          5. Ways we empower

      21. Time

          1. This is number one for a reason. The more time you spend with someone, the more you will learn from them 2. Resources

          2. Give them your tools, equipment, and money to help them succeed

          3. Don’t be that person “I started from nothing and so should they” 3. Knowledge

          4. Don’t hoard knowledge as a secret that maintains power. That’s a fearful leader, not a legacy leader. 4. Authenticity

          5. Future generations need to see authenticity in their mentors. Cry together, laugh together, fight together… true strength does not come from authority, but authenticity. 5. Authority

          6. Share responsibilities and hand over authority.

          7. “But what happens if I’ve given everything away, what am I left to do?” Celebrate, affirm, coach, mentor, serve the future generations.
          8. Never be above sweeping the floor, even in your old age. Don’t be the “know it all” leader that wants the honor, but doesn’t want to serve.
             6. Jesus empowers His church

      22. “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” - Acts 1:8

Closing: Why does this matter now? Aren’t we just getting started?

Question: What type of church do you want to build? How long do you want this church to last?

What we do now is bigger than us. The decision we make now affect future generations. The sacrifices we make now will set the tone for our kids and their kids.

Illust: Talking to Julian about our kids preaching, singing, and leading teams.

Let’s be a church that builds something bigger than us

Let’s be a church that believes in something bigger than this generation

Let’s be a church that follows the example of Jesus