Rooted in the Spirit
The Radical Life • Message 2
Bryan Jones
April 6, 2025
Prayer Points for Prayer Time:
- Pray to be filled with God’s strength to overcome challenges.
- Ask God to help you understand his plan for your life.
- Ask God to help you stay connected to Him daily through prayer and reading His word.
Scripture Reading:
Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where He prayed. Simon and his companions went to look for Him, and when they found Him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!” Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” So he traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons.
Mark 1:35-39 (NIV)
A. Introduction
I meet with people who are looking for a radical purpose in life… They are disillusioned with how things are… They feel like there is something more out there…They often wonder if they have done enough… and when I meet with people, I will tell them, I got your next step…
And I can tell they have excitement in their eyes. They lean in … then I tell them, … and they are always disappointed when I answer. They don’t say it… but I can see it in their eyes.
And here’s what I tell them… You need to get your roots deeper, focus on being with God first and hearing from the Spirit. All these other things will fall into place…
I can see the disappointment, and sometimes people don’t fully believe it… because most of us think the issue is with someone or something out there, but oftentimes it’s in here… when you get rooted in the Spirit, things work out.
Here’s why I believe it…
Definition of rooted- show pic…
Everyone wants a radical life, but the definition of a radical life is a rooted life…
Getting in the word, getting in the spirit, getting with God creates a radical life … I know some of you struggle because you think … how does reading a devo, or doing a prayer time, or diving into my Bible and listening to God create a radical life?
I want to show you from the text three things that a rooted life gives you that you might not realize… and by the end of this talk, I want to help convince you that the most radical thing you can do with your life is become rooted in the Spirit by regularly spending time with God.
B. A rooted life gives you…
- POWER.
(Mark 1:35)
When it comes to power, you want more of it … some of you would love to overcome a struggle and others of you just feel trapped or are overcome by something in your life… and you feel powerless…
When I was dating Steph, I was a little overwhelmed visiting her house because they had over 12 dogs… One of the dogs I had mentioned was a Great Dane named Anna. They told me in her prime, she weighed over 125 pounds; she was a big dog…
But there was another dog, a smaller dog, probably 25 pounds, that used to overwhelm Anna… any time this little dog would bark… she would get overwhelmed and afraid… It was like she had no power…
Now, this may seem like an odd picture to us…. a small dog ruling over a Great Dane… a bigger animal afraid and defeated.
We talk a lot about who we are in Christ… but today, there are Christians, even some in this room, who are feeling overwhelmed and defeated.
There are some of you who feel defeated by anger and a short temper.
There are some who can’t find freedom from certain sins.
There are some people who are being defeated with pride.
There are some who aren’t free to really love others because they are too self-absorbed.
There are some who have the life of Jesus in them, but they are more interested in hobbies or work this morning.
I watched this big dog get bullied by this little dog… and I never understood it. And then I realized this, in many ways, was my life… God had rescued and redeemed my life, but I was worried about a bill or health issue.
I had the one who defeated sin, death, Satan, and hell in me, but I was getting defeated and bullied by these little things.
One of my favorite moments was one day when I was at the house, and this little dog was barking … but this time, Anna didn’t move. She stood there … and after a minute, it was like she realized she didn’t have to be afraid … and then she barked… and this little dog ran out the room… and to this day, I’m convinced Anna looked at me and smiled… but that day, she realized her power… I started calling her Annasourous Rex.
If you are being defeated by sin and life, you have to wake up to the power of God…. But you also have to plug in…
What happens to your phone when it's not plugged in… it runs dead.
What happens to a Christian who isn’t daily plugged into the presence of God… they run dead.
If you are eating once a week here at church… you aren’t going to have spiritual power.
Notice what It says about Jesus…
Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where He prayed.
Mark 1:35 (NIV)
Notice what Jesus did… early in the morning… when it was still dark… Jesus got plugged into the Spirit's power.
Jesus constantly broke away to be with His Father, to be filled with the Spirit. One of the biggest shifts in my life happened when I stopped slotting Jesus in and started building my life around Jesus… including drawing near each morning to Him…
Think about it … If I tell people to wake up each morning, even 10 minutes early… people go… That’s crazy, and it feels a little legalistic…
When I was in high school, I woke up at 5 am to train for baseball and was praised for taking my hobby seriously.
There are people who wake up early to study for college classes, and we praise them for taking education seriously.
There are people who wake up early to do cold plunges, which aren’t from God, and to go to the gym, and we praise them for taking their health seriously.
There are parents who wake up early and eat breakfast with their kids before school, and we praise them for taking their children seriously.
But why is it for those who wake up early to be like Jesus, to spend time with him, we say, That’s overdoing it.
… we now live in a time when consumer Christianity has become the accepted norm, and all-out engagement with and in Jesus’ kingdom among us is regarded as just one option people may take if it suits them — but probably as somewhat “overdoing it.”
- Dallas Willard
We need Christians with real power, church…
Christians who can control their tongue.
Christians who have the power to forgive others.
Christians who have the power to say I am sorry.
Christians who have the power to shut down negative talk.
Christians who aren’t on empty but can actually love those who are in need.
Christians who have the power to push back darkness in this world.
The only way to do that is to be plugged into the power source, and if Jesus needed this, how much more do you…
Your public power comes from your private life with Jesus.
When your private life is in step with Him, you will find victory.
- PURPOSE.
(Mark 1:36-38)
Some of you feel you are wandering around, some of you hate your job, some of you feel disappointed with how life has worked out… and maybe you have a great purpose, but you just want more of it...
Simon and his companions went to look for Him, and when they found Him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!” Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.”
Mark 1:36-38 (NIV)
Notice Jesus is breaking away with the Father… He’s getting plugged into the Spirit’s power… then all of a sudden, people show up and say, What are you doing… There is work to be done…
Don’t you love that the disciples are so clueless that they are correcting and informing Jesus… Hey, what are you doing? There is work…
But notice what Jesus says … Let us go, for this why I’ve come.
Here’s the question … Does Jesus plant roots or create fruit first? …. Notice he anchored in. They come, and he says, … Let us go…. For this is why I’m here.
Think about it: God has placed you around friends, neighbors and co-workers… he has given you a great purpose and yet many of us are going, … God, what is my purpose?
Listen, when you grow roots, you will bear fruit. Focus on the roots, and God will start to give you purpose and direction. Too many people reverse the order…
God just needs lives that are His!
What can Jesus do with a life that is completely His?
Listen, let me show you two people who are doing mundane things.
First, let's look at Steve…
In Acts Chapter 2, there is a move of God… and the Spirit of God is poured out… and the church grows by thousands in 2 days… it says 3,000 are added in a single day… and the Lord added daily…
Growth causes problems… everyone is like, … I wish I could live in the book of Acts…. Which problems from the book would you like in your church?
And one of the problems they have is everyone is starting to get overworked and burned out…
One time, I talked to someone who said, … I want to be where we grow, but we aren’t working so hard, and I told her, … I want a six-pack by eating M and M’s… Listen, not my strongest moment… but the point remains… this growth cost something…
So, basically, the widows were getting overlooked, so the pastors and teachers started passing out food… Finally, one day, they stood up and said, … We can’t be doing this…
We are the senior leaders … We need to get back to the ministry of word and prayer… so they go find some Godly people to help serve the food. One of the people they pick is Steve…
Steve is one of the important guys studying the word… giving himself to the ministry of word and prayer. Steve is giving the old ladies cheese-it’s and hummus or whatever… He’s asking, How is your time here going? You want a refill or seconds? I got you!
Acts 6 says he wasn’t just good at serving people; he was full of the Holy Spirit and faith. Steve wasn’t really one of the important ones in this system, but listen to what happens.
Steve starts doing signs and wonders because he’s filled with the Spirit. His life is so on fire for Jesus that it gets him in some trouble with the religious leaders of his day… Remember, Steve is an important man in the faith…
But he gets into a theological debate with the religious people… in this debate… he recounts the entire Old Testament. In it, he announces a rejection of the leaders of God's people and their failure to be fully surrendered and aware of God in their day…. Translation: He dropped a spiritual mic on them…
And by the end of this… they are so mad… they stone him and kill him… and some of his last words are, … Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.
Jesus is so moved by this life… that Steve gets a vision of Heaven… and Jesus is standing. All the other times, he is sitting, but here he is standing… Steve has done such a good job with the old ladies, and with his theological integrity and his courage, he gets a standing ovation.
Steve was the guy they picked to do the trivial stuff while others did the important stuff… so don’t say I don’t have a gift or opportunity… just be faithful where you are!
Philip- you know Phil…
Phil and Steve were pals…. He’s also helping serve people.
Philip… wasn’t seminary trained and didn’t have the most significant or prestigious job. He also served the old ladies and helped out behind the scenes.
One day, an angel of the Lord tells Philip as he’s doing his daily duties, I want you to go down this road… Phil says, On it…
So, while walking, the Holy Spirit says, Go up to that man and speak to him. He’s going to break open Ethiopia and Africa for the gospel; he’s got power, and for the next several thousand years, I’m going to sow the gospel into Africa and break the lie that Christianity is a white man’s religion. So, the gospel is going to break out… but Phil, you need to help him understand Isaiah 53… can you do that? … Phil says, On it!
Now… notice it says in the story Philip finds an Ethiopian eunuch… and if you don’t know what a eunuch is… just ask Perry, our founding pastor, or your parents … no, but he was someone, not trying to be graphic, that had their genitals removed… and here’s the problem … it was an old covenant, and it says in Isaiah, those with that condition couldn’t enter the house of Lord…
So, the Ethiopian eunuch is trying to understand this, and he says, Is this true? Can I be right with God? Can I be baptized? Phil then teaches him all about the New Testament and grace… and it transforms his life…
Phil goes somewhere else, does some missions… and disappears. Then, in Acts 21, Phil settles down, marries, and has four daughters, and it says they all become prophets. Listen, Philip was just doing him… He was faithful each day, and he lived with purpose.
What a vision… He’s a happy helper, but then he is breaking nations open to his sensitivity to the Holy Spirit. Then he’s raising Godly children who would shape the culture … what a life! Faithful… faithful to root into the Spirit and then purpose … Phil had a pretty good time following Jesus.
Listen, far too many people go… What can I do with my life if Jesus helps me? …. But the better thing is … What can God do with my life if I give him it all? …
Listen, when you get rooted in the Holy Spirit, each day he will give you purpose… He will guide and direct your steps… You will bump into people and just start spilling Jesus' glory out… Your job is just to be rooted and in tune…
Rooted= Radical. A radical life is a rooted life…
- PERSEVERANCE.
(John 14:12-14)
Some of you feel exhausted, some of you are tired… and if you have energy, you want more…
I’m not going to spend too much time on this point… but did you know Jesus never burned out…
Jesus never quit. Several of the disciples did, but Jesus never did… think about this: the same spirit that lives in Jesus lives in us.
In fact, Jesus says something that a lot of us don’t like to hear.
Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
John 14:12-14 (NIV)
Now, certainly, Jesus couldn’t have meant what he said… even greater things… for many of us, we are so inconsistent … it’s like roller coaster Christianity. We are hot and then cold… up and then down…
But Jesus was consistent… Why? Because when you grow roots, you will always persevere…
Think about in the garden … What is Jesus doing? Getting roots while the disciples slept…
So, they all fall away… but Jesus preserves. Why? Because he was rooted into God.
A few years ago… my family went to Colorado… my dad, Tristan, and I decided we were going to hike a mountain…. We got about halfway up, and Tristan was done… He started complaining and getting overwhelmed, so I picked him up, put him on my shoulders, and carried him up the mountain and back down the mountain. Now, I was exhausted. But when I got down to the bottom…. Steph asked, How was it, and Tristan spoke up and said, It was super easy… it was a piece of cake… and I was just about to kill him when he said, … Because dad put me on his shoulders and carried me…
Some of you are so exhausted; some of you are doing this because you aren’t letting God carry you through life’s hills and mountains…. I’m amazed at how peaceful and joyful life is when I’m rooted in the Spirit…. Yet when I’m walking in my own strength, it feels like I'm always exhausted, always weary, always worn out…
God wants to pour out real-life power, real-life purpose, and real-life perseverance, but you have to put your roots in Him daily…
Ending-
The most radical life is a rooted life. When you get with God, you get power, purpose, and perseverance…