good morning everyone so glad you're here with us today I'm sorry I couldn't
be there in person but right now I am in Ethiopia ministering with Compassion
International I can't wait to tell you all the stories about what God is doing
as soon as I return but for this morning I'm so grateful to
introduce to you my good friend Adam Martino who's our special speaker today
he hails from Brooklyn New York growing up in New York City he came to Richmond
about thirteen years ago got involved in one of our sister churches Commonwealth
Chapel and God called him into ministry and he and his wife Leslie planted
United Church almost a year ago now we were so grateful in 2017 to be able to
come alongside them and partner with this wonderful ministry in Richmond
Virginia in fact he was a part of the c32 initiative of the Assemblies of God
to plant churches all over America in various cities and he was the first
church to be planted in Richmond Virginia I'm so grateful that he's here
with us today would you please give a warm WEAG welcome to my good friend
Adam Martino
good morning it it's such a blessing to be here with you guys this morning I'll
tell you what you know you're really in the presence of the Lord and you're
worshiping the right way when it's a bummer to stop
like when worship stops and you're like no keep going keep don't stop don't stop
I'm so grateful for a Shane and Sue and all that they mean to us this church
what it means in our lives that you guys probably don't know and I'm going to
share with you here in a minute but like pastor Shane said we relocated here 13
years ago from New York City and how many people know rich men come on
somebody is not New York City it's a little just a little it's a little
different I remember my first day my first day going to work and I'm at the
gas station and it's about it's about 6:30 in the morning and I'm pumping gas
and I'm you know I'm doing the New York thing so I get out of the car I put the
new put the pump in and I'm minding my own business and you know just doing my
own thing I look over and there's a gentleman staring at me and I look at me
make eye contact and I look back down doing my own thing and a couple couple
seconds later look back up he's still looking at me I'm doing my whole thing
so finally I look again and I go can I help you
and he goes good morning that about sums it up
and about at about sums up my introduction to Richmond Virginia well
this song that was playing in the background there we built this city on
rock and roll and I'm here just to share with you guys a little bit this morning
about united church and about who we are and what we're doing but also I want to
share with you about you come on somebody it's always good when a total
stranger comes in says I'm gonna tell you something about you you like me yeah
you you guys are blessed beyond what you know you guys have single-handedly sown
into Richmond sown around the world and have done so many things and we're gonna
talk about that here in a second but this song we built this city on rock and
roll this word this phrase the rock and Jesus in in in the in the early days
referred to the churches as a rock he referred to Peter as a rock and he said
Peter he this is the conversation that happened he he asked his his disciples
he asked his group a question that some of us might not want to ask our friends
he said hey guys what do you think about me come on somebody all right hey guys
what do you what do you what do you think about me what what do people say
about me what do people who do people say I am and and this is and when people
talk about me on the street what are they saying and and to his disciples
they say well some people think you're you're a reincarnated John the Baptist
and and somebody says yeah well well some some people think you're
reincarnated version of an Old Testament prophet and then Peter says this Peter
Peter gets up and he said I'll tell you who people think you are he says we
think you're the Jesus Christ the Son of the Living God specifically Peter says
this I tell you who I think you are I think you're the Messiah the son of the
Living God and then Jesus says this check this out in Matthew 16 verse 17
Jesus replied blessed are you Simon son of Jonah for this statement that you
made for this statement that you made saying that I'm the Christ the
Son of the Living God or the Messiah the son of the Living God this statement
bless you Simon son of Jonah for that statement because that statement was not
revealed to you by flesh and blood but by my father in heaven and I tell you
Peter that on this rock I will build my church and he uses this specific word
ecclesia and he says he uses this word ecclesia and he says I will build not a
church building not a building or a spot a thing that's about walls or anything
like that but he said I build this word means my gathering place or my
congregation my assembly or my movements and he says church or the gates of death
in your Bible it might be translated as Hell will not overcome it which meant no
matter how many people die and no matter who dies this would continue forever and
ever and ever because of the church because the church was birthed as a
movement and people were gathered around this this simple message and this simple
idea that transcends buildings and transcends space and and is not about
brick and mortar and it's not about walls but it's about Jesus Christ the
Messiah and we felt in our heart we knew God was calling us out of New York City
and and we relocated to Richmond Virginia and we we started worshiping I
went to a Bible College in in in northern New York and a couple of
friends that went to the Bible College were worshiping at a church called
Commonwealth chapel in a couple of months later pastor Rob Rhoden came in
and and we built just the tremendous friendship and and his his father Bob
and and Joan I think I think they're here have been so influential in our in
our lives and and we're just just seeing the church and just being part of the
church and in the early 80s my dad started a church in New York City he was
ordained by a pastor named Jim Simbla of a church called Brooklyn
Tabernacle in in Brooklyn New York City and he started a church in the early 80s and
and just growing up in this and just seeing this and just saying God there's
there has to be more to this place than just the building there has to be more
to what we do than just than just coming inside the walls of this place well a
few years ago something started stirring in my heart and we live in an area of
Richmond we call the Forest Hill corridor it's over on Forest Hill Avenue
in the city of Richmond south of the James River and it's a stretch of road
that that that comes from about Gordon Sims all the way through Bon Air
Huguenot Road we planted the church last February this February in a couple weeks
we're gonna celebrate our one-year anniversary come on somebody or one year
anniversary and God really put this idea of this thought into my heart where he
said what what if it wasn't what if it's it's not it has nothing to do with
buildings it has nothing to do with space what it has to do with is you
being the church going out being hands and feet and and in telling people
proclaiming the good news this is what Peter says to Jesus he says Jesus he
says I don't it doesn't matter what people think about you this is what I
know about you and you're the Messiah you're the Christ you're the you're the
risen God and you can do anything and buildings don't hold you and nothing
this earth can't hold you and a cross can't hold you nothing could old he said
you're right he said you're right and you got it and because you got it this
is the rock that I'll build my church on in just and it's speaking to pastor
Shane and pastor Shane saying hey Adam we want to we really want to come around
you and we really want to support you and doing something inside my heart and
just and just knowing the legacy of this place and legacy inside this church and
Jesus Jesus has this conversation with Peter and then and then a couple a
couple days later he goes to the cross he's crucified he raised
again and he comes back and he's with his disciples he's with people for about
about 40 days and he he has this conversation he says hey I want I want
you to gather everybody I want you to get the whole gang together and a couple
of other people there's probably over a hundred people that gather around Jesus
and Jesus says this and I just want it I want to show this to you and I'm making
a point I'm going somewhere I promised you come on some of you with me still
all right come on Acts chapter 1 verse 8 Jesus says this
he gathers all these people on the side of a hill and and he starts talking he
says look I'm going to give you some detail for next steps I want to give you
clear next steps clear next steps because I'm about to go but you're gonna
be here so here's some clear next steps of what the church needs to look like of
what your life needs to look like of what what I'm calling you what I'm
asking you to do and he says this in Acts chapter 1 he says but you will
receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you and you will be my witness
telling people up about me everywhere in Jerusalem throughout Judea in Samaria
and to the ends of the earth he says this is the detail I want to give you
this is this is what I want to give you and when Pastor Shane and I were talking
and he said you know I just I want you to share about your church I want you to
share about the ministry and I'm thinking about this ministry how you
guys have done just this how West End Assembly has has done just this because
this is what he's saying this is the narrative that Jesus used Jerusalem when
he uses Jerusalem he's talking about the city that he's in when he uses the word
Jerusalem because contextually he's saying the city that you're in he's
saying you need to be the church in the city which you live you need to
demonstrate the love of Christ right where you're at you need to be the
church you need to spread the gospel through the power of the Holy Spirit
come on somebody he said it's that Holy Spirit it's that's power which will be
transformational look we we know this the the local church is the hope of the
world the local church is that well past our atom that that sounds a little bit
weird and cool at the same time what do you mean by that the local church is the
hope of the world because we're charged with stewarding the transformational
gospel of Jesus Christ it's our business it's our business to carry this word and
to place it and in the hands of the Lost and to place it in the hands of the
broken and to place it in the hands of the hurting it's this very idea that
that went through pastor Pastor Bob I call him doc is it okay if I call you
Doc Doc I call him Doc that went through that went through his heart listen to
this listen listen to this Jerusalem and Samaria that's my country or my nation
so so he says this he says Jerusalem which is my city which is here right in
front of me and then Judea and Samaria which is my country my nation then he
uses this term to the ends of the earth with his my entire world so he says the
church is not just for here and it shouldn't just be spread here but it
should be catch fire and that fire should go out through they through your
country through your nation and to the ends of this earth listen listen to this
Pastor Bob Roden started WEAG March 2nd 1969 come on somebody
1969 okay get this you want to talk about Judea you want to talk about
Jerusalem you want to listen to this 1974 planted Mechanicsville Christian
Center come on you could keep clapping this whole time you don't have to stop
clapping once come on balcony clap it up okay 1974 Mechanicsville Christian
Center 1978 Huguenot Assemblies of God 1979
cornerstone Assembly of God 1982 Essex Village Community Church 1983 East End
Assembly of God 1998 Glen Allen Community Church 1999 New Life
Deliverance Tabernacle 2001 Redeemer Assembly of God 2016 planted Center
Church 2017 Iglesia Benedicion I nailed that that was
Spanish come on somebody I nailed that a 2017 partnering with the United Church
you guys the world changers clap for yourself because the vision and the
heart was never just to keep it here the vision and the heart was through the
power of the Holy Spirit we're gonna take this transformational gospel and
we're gonna shove it down the devil's throat we need to celebrate this is and
I got I just get excited I love Jesus I love Jesus I'm a New York City kid you
could take me out of the you could take me out of New York but it's hard to take
the New York out of me I just get out get excited for so long I
spent time shouting and screaming and fighting for the wrong thing now I'm in
my 40s all I want to do is shout and scream for Jesus I just want to make
some noise about the person that changed my life the only one that can change
anybody's life why why is it so important to celebrate because we serve
a great big God that's why we celebrate it's because if we lose a focus on that
if we lose perception on that we can lose our way you you lose your way when
you lose your why when you say why am I doing this why am I sure it's showing up
here why why all these singers here why is all this band here because we serve a
great big God who's faithful who can do anything just like that just in a
moment's notice just in a moment he could show up and change any situation
in our life acts 16 verse 5 says this that the churches were strengthened they
celebrated they were strengthened in their faith and they grew larger and
larger every day they grew because they knew how to celebrate they know how to
rejoice in it each step of the way celebrating what God's doing look we're
little babies we're about to hit year-old and we couldn't be more proud
of it we wish if one new person shows up to church on Sunday everybody's in the
hallway high-fiving high-five and this is this is the best day ever listen to
me King David you write everybody a lot of
us know the story of King David King David took on Goliath and he he killed
Goliath with a rock and his sling right but the Bible says this before he killed
Goliath he killed a lion and before that he killed a bear see he he's celebrated
he knew what it was like for small victories and it was those small
victories it was those small victories that
launched him into a public victory those those private things it was those things
down in his heart it was it was that vision that he had before him that he
knew who God was calling him to be you guys are called to be world changers
first Corinthians 29:11 says this yours O Lord is the greatness the power the
glory the victory and the majesty everything in Heaven's and honor the
earth is yours O Lord and this is your kingdom we adore you as the one who's
over all things lest any man could boast none of us can say oh yeah I'm not smart
enough to start a church I'm not I don't know how to do any of that but I knew
what God called me to do I knew what God spoke into my heart why do we celebrate
because we have great opportunity you heard 11 11 churches 11 ministries have
come through this ministry but you know something I don't care how old you are I
don't care what season of your life you're in I don't care where you've been
or what you've done there's still more that God has for you if you're still
alive if you're not dead God is not done there's more that God has there's more
that God wants to do there's still so much more opportunity out there there's
more people to reach there's more hurting there's more broken I think
about pastor Shane and Sue out out in Ethiopia with compassion you know just
just loving on people just living its to the ends of
the earth right throughout the world it's it's not just about my city yeah
yeah this is if we're here this needs to be our focus and and this needs to be
where we're we're constantly doing him constantly serving constantly putting
putting our hands to the plow but our our heart should say there's so much
opportunity God what would you want from me what would you what would you have me
do God lead me Lord lead me this morning lead me this day put me in contact with
somebody that's broken somebody that's hurting somebody that's lost well pastor
I don't I'm not good with people I don't know how to speak to people I get i get
sonoran vitam to church if you do what you do well and and they do what they do
well it's a perfect marriage it's a perfect union be inviters be people that
that are so had been so so hell-bent on seeing Hell bent that all we want is I
want heaven I just want more heaven I want to see more people coming to church
my pews empty I'm sitting here by myself i'ma change that next week I'm a coma on
I'm gonna call the dude that lives next door that I don't even like because he
needs Jesus and you know what he does this is what said there's there's more
opportunity we have a great God why don't we celebrate we have a great God
we have great opportunity Acts 20:24 says this my life is worth nothing my
life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by
the Lord Jesus the work of telling others the good news about the wonderful
grace of God let me tell you something let me hear hear hear my heart hear my
heart whenever you put your attention on the heart of God whenever you put your
attention to the heart of God which is the lost that's God's heart whenever you
put your attention to the heart of God he'll put his attention close to you
I'm telling you there's so much opportunity out there there's so much
more for us to do there's so much that we need to do that's that's not yet done
I feel like for the first time in my life
41 years old driving down the road enough for the first I feel alive at 41
come on somebody I know I'm a baby I know I know I'm young I don't look I got
some salt and pepper going up top but that's okay that's okay but I feel like
I'm alive for the first time in my life because all I see is opportunity in
front of me that's all I see everywhere I go I go to a baseball game and I said
man this place will make an amazing church this place this man I go to the
movies they say man you could fit a whole band up on that stage
everything church everywhere church every with the way lost people
everywhere because he says my wild life is worth nothing what does it matter to
have a great job what does it matter to have a nice car what does any of that
matter at the end of the day what does that matter
we can't trust in riches but we can trust in the one who richly provides we
have a great responsibility and this is where I want to spend a little bit of
time if I can we have we have a great God we have great opportunity and we
have a great great responsibility it's our responsibility and I want to use a
particular context that maybe you've heard before that you've say that maybe
we can look at it a different way this morning is that ok can we do you got no
choice because I have the mic so it's in Matthew 27 and I want to read you this
portion of Scripture this is this is about Joseph of Arimathea Joseph of
Arimathea and maybe some of us that have been in church for a while have are
familiar with this name or familiar with this story but let me let me read it
this is Matthew 27 verses 57 through 64 it says now when evening had come there
came a rich man from Arimathea named Joseph who himself
and also become a disciple of Jesus this man went to Pilate and asked for the
body of Jesus then Pilate commanded the body to be given to him when Joseph had
taken the body he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth and laid it in his new tomb
which he had hewn out of the rock and he rolled a large stone against the door of
the tomb and departed and Mary Magdalene was there and the other Mary sitting
opposite side of the tomb Joseph from Arimathea grew up he was a wealthy man
he grew up about 20 miles outside of Jerusalem and he it was a small town and
the Bible tells us several things about Joseph it says that he was a rich man so
you can be rich in love Jesus come on somebody says that he served in the
Sanhedrin courts so he was also involved in politics which means he had power he
had fame he had prestige he had titles yet he used all of his influence all of
his wealth all of his years of success and prestige he understood why God
entrusted him with those things why God entrusted him with wealth and with power
not to be a show-off or not to strut around and pride but he used all his
prestige and all his power to get an audience with Pilate here what I'm
saying here he had it all he had wealth and position and fame and
a title but he used all of it for one reason he used all of it so he could go
where no one else could go because of who he was and what he had accomplished
through his success he that that very success gave him the ability to go where
common people could not go and he did it with this mindset
I'm here and I'm begging you sir with all his prestige with all of his wealth
with all of his power and he said I'm begging you for the opportunity I'm
begging you the King James Version uses that word
literal it says here he asked for the body the King James Version says literal
it says he used the way he said when's a Pilate and begged for the body of Christ
he used all that influence all that power everything that he had for one
thing to go before Pilate Pilate and say I'm begging you for one thing I want to
get involved with the body of Christ I'm begging you sir for the body of Christ
I'm begging you Pilate I'm begging you King I'm begging
you my heart's desire all my money all my fame all my abilities all the people
that I know all the resources that I have all the names that I have in my
rolodex come on people that still have a Rolodex all my Rolodex for one thing all
I want is the body of Christ
what are we begging for what do we want to get involved with what's our heart's
desire to get involved with are you begging for the body of Christ now in
this text the body of Christ is the literal that dead flesh of Jesus Christ
but Paul refer to refers to the body of Christ as the church or are we begging
for the body of Christ what do you desire what are we longing for what do
we beg for I've spent a long portion of my life begging for the the worst things
that had could happen to possibly happen to me it was my mindset growing up in
the streets in New York and being addicted to drugs and and doing certain
things I never thought anything good would happen in my life until until one
day I realized that my life's purpose my life call was not in any of those
things it was not in any people it was not in any certain situation or
circumstance that people could manufacture or present to me but it was
for this specific reason that we need to get involved with the body of Christ
says this in in in Proverbs 19 verse 21 it says many are the plans in a person's
heart but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails Joseph had fame and fortune but
he understood his purpose for all that it was to get involved with the body of
Christ and once he understood his purpose he was able to take the body of
Christ listen to me somebody listen to me I don't know what you got going on in
your life I don't know what you have going on inside of you I don't know what
you have going on around you but because he was so so set so mindset you this is
all he wanted was to get involved to be able to make a place for the body of
Christ that he was able to take the body of Christ from a death position and make
it ready for a resurrection position come on somebody he took it from a death
position and made it available for a resurrection position now I'm not saying
Jesus wouldn't have rose either way I believe he would have but that doesn't
matter what matters was his intention and he said I love the body of Christ so
much I want to serve the body of Christ all I want is more of Jesus and I want
Jesus so much that I'm prepared to take this body from the death position and
make it ready for her resurrection position all the stuff he had all the
blessings all the resources he knew his purpose was clear and it was to be a
blessing to the body of Christ come on somebody that's your purpose that's what
God's calling us to do to be a blessing to the body not to be a pain in the neck
to the body come on somebody
to be a healthy a healthy whole functioning part of the body of Christ
so many times we get we get lost and stuff and and and we can't we know we
can't see clearly we we get wrapped up and doing and and sometimes our
intentions are even good but we get lost in the details or we get lost in the
routine and church doesn't feel the same way anymore it's not about the lost it's
not about the broken it's about my my seat my comfortable position my area
that I like to be sees says once once Joseph took the body and moved it from a
death position and put it in a resurrection for this position it says
it says this it says that you wrapped them in clean linen and and and
Nicodemus Nicodemus came and we call he came at night we'll call him Nick at
night Nicodemus Nicodemus came Nicodemus came and he came with he came with stuff
to embalm the body of Jesus came came with stuff to embalm the body of Jesus
and then the women come on ladies ladies yeah then the women came the women came
with fragrant spice and we'll call them the spice they're the original spice
girls and they came they came with fragrant oil so either you're coming to
the body of Christ with an embalming spirit or you're coming to the body of
Christ with something fragrant with something pure with something go which
one are you come on you know you know sometimes we get so we get so wrapped up
in routine we get so wrapped up into it so well this is just this is just what
we do and we forget that it's not about us we forget that it's not about my wife
or about my kids or about this one or about that one it's about making a place
for the body of Christ in my city come on somebody
I'm almost done it's our responsibility it's our responsibility to create a
place for the body of Christ it's our responsibility to create a place for the
body of Christ you see here when when Joseph understood his purpose here's
what purpose did purpose created a position you hear me it was that very
purpose that he understood which created a position took the body from a death
position to a resurrection position when we don't understand our purpose the
Bible says this if the the those that don't have vision go go unrestrained
that's one translation this is without vision people perish but also says those
that don't have vision go unrestrained when we don't have clear purpose when we
don't understand when we can't identify who Christ has called us to be or what
he's asked of us or what he really wants us to do it's hard to find that position
because purpose purpose purpose creates position and Joseph knew if I could just
get my hands on the body of Christ if I could just get my hands on the body of
Christ I can make a place and it said this the song that Pastor Shane played
when he came out in his intro we built this city on rock and roll that said
this it said that she hewn out Iraq come on church nobody said this life would be
easy you imagine what it's like unit out a rock try hewn it out of rock with a
spoon come on somebody that's what life feels like sometimes doesn't it like
we're chiseling away and we don't have the right tools like we're working so
hard like we're day after day just go in just go in just go in just go in and
never feels and never quite feels like like we're making progress
imagine how Joseph felt this wealthy man that wasn't afraid to get his hands
this wealthy man that understood his potential that understood his position
that understood his place was for one thing and one thing only I don't care
what I look like I don't care how many people know me I don't care how many
people know but he's so rich why is his hands dirty why is he got dirt on his
face because I'm not doing it for you I'm doing it for him 11 churches 11
churches 11 ministries have come through this ministry 11 life-giving ministries
and let me tell you something we act the best is yet to come the best is yet to
come can we all stand together
maybe maybe maybe you've been maybe you've been struggling with your place
maybe it feels like a struggle in your house maybe it feels like a struggle in
your job maybe it feels like a struggle for you here because you don't know what
you're doing
maybe maybe you're you're suffering or you're struggling because you feel all
out of sorts so all all out of whack I want to tell you this and and with every
eye closed with every hit bell I want you to hear just hear my voice no
distractions just hear my voice God is for you God is for you God is for you
God is for you God is for you
God is for you and he wants you to get involved with his body he wants you to
beg for his body he says this if this becomes a craving of your heart if this
becomes the desire of your heart if you seek me first if you seek this body
first everything else will fall into place if you put me at the center if you
if you just if you just switch my position
maybe that's all you need to do maybe maybe Jesus the body of Christ Jesus the
church whatever has been last on your list you've been coming to church hit
skip or miss whatever you're watching online whatever it is and this morning
right now you have the opportunity to say god I put you first god I want to
switch positions I don't want to try to put myself first I don't want a tree I
try to keep creating situations for my life situations for me but I want to put
you in a resurrection position in my life let's just pray together maybe
you're here today and you don't you don't even have a relationship with
Christ maybe you don't know what that means let me tell you something coming
to church is great but it doesn't get you saved coming to church is great but
it doesn't get you saved believing in your heart that Jesus Christ is Lord and
confessing with your mouth it's the only way to be safe so if you're here this
morning and you want to change position if you want if you want to put Christ
first in your life just raise your hand I'm not not gonna call you out of your
seat I'm not gonna embarrass I see you I see you I'm not gonna I see you I see
you I see you I see you I see you just slip your hand up we're just gonna pray
together I see you I see you I see you I see you I see you I see I see you
Father God you see the minds in the hearts of each person in this room
father God I pray that you would just pour out your Holy Spirit right now
that your Holy Spirit would go forth and touch the minds and the hearts of each
and every person in this room each and every person that raised their hand I
pray the Lord God that you would bring alignment Lord God to their spirit man
that you would bring alignment in their hearts and in their mind that we would
no longer Lord God be out of whack or be out of sorts but we would put you first
Lord God and if we would just pray something in your heart just like this
if you want to say it out loud you could say it out loud
father God I give you my life I look to you this day as the author and finisher
of my faith I recognize that you died in the grave and you rose again for me and
I receive your forgiveness in my life in Jesus name Amen and Amen
can we put our hands together thank you guys very much
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