What are the signs of a Mission-Minded Community?
Homework was to Watch: Videos - MULTIPLY (class was given the 2 hour DVDs)
Matthew 28:18-20
Those who are truly disciples of Christ make other disciples; this is what it means to be a follower of Christ. Discipling is not choice, it is the mission that all disciples of Christ adhere to. “As you go into the world, mentor people by your loving life-style and teaching to become disciples of Christ, baptizing them in the authority of God, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and then continue to mentor them in all things.”
This is commandment of promise. While we accomplish the will of God, Christ will be with us until the end of the age. This is a commandment for “going”. It has nothing do to with asking people to “come to church.” This is the cost of discipleship; to spend our time, energy, resources, social agendas, and entertainment perspectives on fellowshipping and apprenticing our personal contacts for the perfection of their faith.
MISSION STATEMENT
A mission-minded community has a mission statement. I suggest that we use Paul’s (follow him as he follows Christ). His mission statement can be found in Col 1:28, “We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ.” What better mission statement might we have?
OR we might wish to make a mission statement out of the two great commandments: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength and Love your neighbor as yourself.
In these lessons we will agree to use the definition of “supernatural” as something that cannot be accomplished by “natural” man. Salvation then is a “supernatural” act of God. Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel for it is the (dunamis – supernatural/miraculous) power of God unto salvation….”
OR we might wish to make a mission statement out of the two great commandments: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength and Love your neighbor as yourself.
Since these are the summation of all God is ever asking of us, why have we ignored them for so long? Who is God that we should dedicate everything to Him? Is He still powerful and is He still mightily working in the world today? If we do not think so, then we don’t dedicate all our time and energy to asking Him for what He has promised us. He has promised to send His Holy Spirit to live inside us to empower us with wisdom, strength, and courage for every opportunity to shine the Light in the dark places. Are we walking moment by moment to be an instrument of God’s Will in this world? Do we love the commission He has sent us on—a mission of reconciliation?
Are we ecstatic about our own salvation and are we giving God the glory in ALL things?
What about that neighbor? We have all too often hypothetically used “neighbor” to dismiss the responsibility we have to those people who live in proximity to us. Who are the 5 closest neighbors to your front door? Do you love them….as yourself? Do you even KNOW their names? Do you know what their dreams are, aspirations, goals, problems, and can you assist them in any way? This is what God has called you to….love your neighbor!
What mission statement can you compose that will reflect how you will be sharing the Light in the darkness?
Remember: Disciples Disciple! Disciples multiply! Who better to disciple than your neighbor, your friends, your co-workers, your loved ones? Disciples of Christ follow Christ in His work of sharing the Light to the world.
SUPERNATURALIn these lessons we will agree to use the definition of “supernatural” as something that cannot be accomplished by “natural” man. Salvation then is a “supernatural” act of God. Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel for it is the (dunamis – supernatural/miraculous) power of God unto salvation….”
The indwelling of the Spirit and His fruit in our lives is supernatural according to Gal 5:22-23. Our spiritual blessings in Christ are supernatural gifts which no one can take away. Joy, peace, love, hope are all blessings that do not rely on experience or circumstances, but rather they rely on faith in the working of God in our lives. No one can steal your joy, unless you allow them to do so.
SUPERNATURAL LOVE
God loves us without condition. He loves us so much that He gave His only begotten Son. God has not changed in His love for mankind. He loves us all: AIDs victim, prostitute, sexually impure, haters of self, adulterer, liar, white-collar criminal, Hollywood film star, preacher of false doctrines, church-going pew sitter, angelic child, even the criminal on death row. God LOVES each and every one of His creations. It is only by the supernatural power of God that we, as Christians, are able to LOVE one another and to love the world, to love the unlovable, and those who hate us. We praise God for giving us the Holy Spirit through whom we can grow in the love and grace of our Lord.
It is our calling to LOVE as Christ first loved us. It is not our job to condemn, but to love. It is not our place to accuse; that is the Devil’s job (Rev 12:10). It is not our position to sit in judgment of those who are in the world (1 Cor 5:12), but to RESCUE them as our mission of reconciliation empowers us to do (James 5:19-20).
FORGOTTEN HOW to LOVE?
How did we get it sooooooo convoluted in our thinking? How did we get so judgmental? Unloving? Unlovely? How is it that churches have become museums for saints instead of hospitals for sinners? How did we become so pharisaical as to think we did not need to reach out to those who are lost, hurting, and dying without hope? Perhaps it is because we have FORESAKEN our FIRST LOVE! (Revelation 2:4)
Have we forgotten how to “touch” the untouchable? Sometime we give our clothing and other items to the Good Will or to our congregation’s Benevolent Closet, which in itself is not a bad thing, but it does not put us eyeball to eyeball, hand to heart in front of those folks who might need us in their world. God asks us to give a simple glass of water “in His Name”, not in the name of another organization. He asks us to “give in His Name” not just to “give.” He asks us to see the hurting and to respond, not just empty unwanted items into a bin. Have we forgotten what it means to love?
LUKEWARM and LOVING IT! MUST LISTEN TO THESE 4 short VIDEOS - CLICK on link for 1 of 4...find links for other 3 here also....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vllUDgVps7M&list=PL394D3D4AA6779489 (4 short videos)
Watch: Francis Chan – Why People Hate Church (1 hour video but WORTH it!):
A MISSION-MINDED COMMUNITY gives ALL GLORY to the POWER of GOD
PRIDE: Reliance on Wealth, Position, Status, Education, Possessions, and Talents
What are we proud of?
Look up pride and proud. The definition we will use here is, “an inflated sense of one’s personal status or accomplishments.”
What can a Christian be proud of? Have pride in? When have you heard people say, “I’m proud of….? Paul explains, “Indeed, I count everything as worthless because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ.”
The world is listening to our every conversation and determines our value system by the way we praise and glorify in all our interests. We are to be ambassadors for Christ, not football, baseball, movie shows, or fashion. What does our conversation tell the world about what we value? Well, we praise what we value, it’s as simple as that! We are to praise God in word and deed and do all to His glory. But our culture has led us to clap for everything except a soul being brought into His Kingdom, to shout for everything except our joy in the Lord, to share with our colleagues everything but the Light, and to demonstrate our affection for everything except the Cross.
Remember our lesson on Acts 12 when Herod did not give glory to God for his talent of speaking eloquently before his people? God struck him dead and he was eaten by worms. Paul tells us to glory and brag only in the cross of Christ. Christians need to be VERY careful when they start a sentence with, “I’m so proud of…”
· I am so proud of my children
· I am so proud of our school
· I’m proud to be an American
· I’m Texas proud
Christians need to check their cultural habits at the door of humility under the Cross. We sing, “my glory all the cross”, but our every day conversations tell a different story. How might a Spirit-led disciple rephrase the 4 items above?
· I am proud of the way God has led my children to become who they are today because of the cross of Christ.
· I am thankful for the blessings God has poured out on our school through His mercy
· I am thankful that God has blessed America with freedoms and privileges not seen in many nations
· I am grateful to our Lord for fellow believers who live in Texas and share Christ’s vision for the lost.
In an earlier lesson, we saw how Paul handled this very temptation. He could have said, “I am so proud of Titus for having concern for you”. Instead he said, “Thanks be to God, who put into the heart of Titus the same concern I have for you.” (2 Cor 8:16)
As Spirit-led individuals and communities of faith, our speech should ALWAYS give glory to God. Since pride comes before a fall (in the case of Herod, literally a fall), we need to honor God if our nation is to continue to be blessed. “God bless America!”…is that a command to God or a request? I’m not convinced it is a humble request.
Read Jeremiah 9:23-24 & Ezekiel 16:49-50. What advice would you give to the class about how to honor, praise, and submit our hearts, minds, and tongues to God?
Jeremiah 9:23-24 23 This is what the Lord says:
“Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the strong boast of their strength
or the rich boast of their riches, 24 but let the one who boasts boast about this:
that they have the understanding to know me, that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness,
justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,” declares the Lord.
Ezekiel 16:49-50
49 “‘Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. 50 They were haughty and did detestable things before me. Therefore I did away with them as you have seen.
My prayer for all of us is to surrender to the Holy Spirit, to help us see, observe those around us in need of the Light. That God will increase our love the each other and for the lost, that we will have gentleness, yet persistence in proclaiming the truth. That God will give us creative ways of introducing others to the Gospel and that our prayer lives will never cease. I pray that we will work with the Holy Spirit to become a supernatural community of disciple makers.
No comments:
Post a Comment