Reading Plan

If you’re looking to dive deeper into what the Bible says about this topic, here’s a suggested Reading Plan, one passage per day for a whole week, based on the sermon:

1. MONDAY: John 15:16-25, “I chose you.”
2. TUESDAY: Luke 5:27-32, “I have come to call sinners.”
3. WEDNESDAY: Mark 1:1-15, “The kingdom of God has come near.”
4. THURSDAY: Mark 1:16-34, “A new teaching—and with authority!”
5. FRIDAY: Mark 1:35-45, “That is why I have come.”
6. SATURDAY: Ephesians 1:1-14, chosen before the creation of the world
7. SUNDAY: 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10, “he has chosen you”

eGroup Discussion Questions – Great for personal reflection/journaling, too!

Sermon Notes: “Kingdom Clout, Part One” ⤵️

Preacher: Steve Furtick
Passage: Matthew 20:20
Title: Kingdom Clout, Part One
Series: Kingdom Clout
Date: January 12, 2020

Sermon Notes are taken during the 9:30 Experience at the Columbia Campus.

---

Introduction

• Starting the year 2020 with Matthew 20:20 was not intentional, but maybe God had it in mind.
• My favorite person to share my sermon ideas with is not my favorite preacher, T.D. Jakes, but with my 14-year-old son, Elijah.
• “Clout chasers” are people who are driven and obsessed by what other people think of them.
  • It’s okay to care what people think of you. (e.g., brush your teeth, use deodorant)
  • It’s not okay to be controlled by what other people think of you.
• Jesus preached the “Kingdom of God” or the “Kingdom of Heaven”
  • He didn’t just teach it, he demonstrated it.
  • A good sermon is one you can SEE and HEAR
  • It wasn’t the kingdom his disciples expected; they were looking for political and economic deliverance, but Jesus’ kingdom didn’t liberate them from Roman oppression, they almost missed it

20 Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favor of him. 21 “What is it you want?” he asked. She said, “Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.”
Matthew 20:20-22, NIV

• Their mother got honest with Jesus: “I want my boys to have VIP seating in your kingdom.” She just wanted to make sure they were going to be okay.
  • She went to the right person (Jesus)
  • She had the right posture (kneeling down)
• But Jesus used this as an opportunity to talk about his kingdom, which wasn’t what they thought it was:
  • When he wanted to show us the kingdom, he came as an infant
  • Diapers, not deliverance – be okay celebrating baby steps
  • “Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin.” (Zechariah 4:10, NLT)

A. Attention v. Authority

The kingdom of this world prioritizes Attention
The kingdom of God prioritizes Authority

He appointed twelve that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach and to have authority to drive out demons.
Mark 3:14-15, NIV

• We live in a time where people can’t tell the difference between attention and authority.
  • Just ask anyone under the age of 38, “Would you rather be rich or famous?”
  • Everybody famous isn’t great.
  • Everybody great isn’t famous.
  • There is someone on your row that is great and you don’t even know their name.
• When we meet people, we identify them by what they do.
  • “What do you do (for a living)?”
  • But real kingdom authority comes from
    • Who you are and
    • Whose you are
  • Not from what other people think about you.

B. Clout v. Calling

The kingdom of this world prioritizes Clout
The kingdom of God prioritizes Calling

Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him.
Mark 3:13, NIV

• Clout is what God says about you
  • Not clicks, comments, followers, etc.
• “He called those he wanted” – God has options
  • There’s a difference between having clout and being called and chosen by God
  • Jesus had clout as he entered Jerusalem and people shouted “Hosanna!” but a week later they were the same people shouting “Crucify him!” [Talk about “cancel culture”]
• Like his friend from high school who was adopted would say, “My parents picked me, yours got stuck.”
  • My Father picked me, he called what he wanted

C. Noticed v. Known

The kingdom of this world prioritizes Being Noticed
The kingdom of God prioritizes Being Known

16 These are the twelve he appointed: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter), 17 James son of Zebedee and his brother John (to them he gave the name Boanerges, which means “sons of thunder”), 18 Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.
Mark 3:16-19, NIV

• Jesus chose twelve disciples
• People never see what’s inside
• People celebrate the wrong things
  • They celebrate talents/gifts but not effort
• Jesus calls you something before you are that thing
  • Peter = Petros = Rock = “On this rock I will build my church”
• James and John (sons of Zebedee)
  • Boanerges = Sons of Thunder
  • Zebedee must’ve been successful because he had servants
  • They left something where they had servants to become servants
• It’s important to note not just WHAT they asked, but WHEN they asked it.
  • Jesus had just told them for a third time about his death.
  • Their mother just wanted for her boys to be okay.
• We think that for the kingdom to go forward, we need celebrities to get saved.
• Pastor Steven shares a story about meeting a waiter who recognized him and wanted to tell him how much his teaching meant to him. He finishes by saying, “I’m Mike but I’m nobody.” So Pastor Steven tells his son, “This is why I need to preach this.”
  • You are not “Just a ________” anything
  • I’m not just a nothing.
  • You don’t have to know my name
  • I know a name above every name
• What you want is:
  • Significance
  • Security
• But when you attach significance to status or security to stuff, it’s never enough
• James and John weren’t selfish, they were scared (“Hey mom, you go do it.”)
  • What we really want is intimacy
  • It’s not to be noticed, but to be known

D. Arrival v. Already

The kingdom of this world prioritizes Arrival
The kingdom of God prioritizes Already

• “I already got it.”
• At the moment she asked for her sons to sit on his left and right, they were already there.
• The kingdom of heaven is HERE