Holiness= Not getting lost along the Way

Yesterday the sermon was in Proverbs 4 and it was a discussion on "How not to get lost along the Way". The writer of Proverbs gave us 3 important points to remember about our journey in this life. First, he reminded and yelled at us to PAY ATTENTION to the Word of God and cherish it in our hearts like it is our first true love. Then the writer told us to guard our hearts, which is to guard our mouths, eyes, and feet and keep them safe for Jesus. Third, the writer told us that we should never turn off the path because that is idolatry and not actually following or loving Jesus.

My devotions this morning gave me another clue to not getting lost along the way, holiness. 2 Corinthians 7:1 says, "Let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God" (NLT). So if we are pursuing God and trying to be like Him in His holiness, we are preventing ourselves from getting lost along the way. As I reminded my faith family yesterday, to take our view and eyes off of Jesus, the one who laid out the path to follow, is committing spiritual suicide. We can praise the Lord, He helps and gives us the strength in our pursuit of holiness and our journey along the Way.

Theological review of "Transformers: Age of Extinction"

I went to see the new transformers movie today with some great friends. Overall it was a good movie filled with a lot of action sequences. As a Transformers movie goes it was right on the par. The Transformers were the main focus and they lived up to the billing. The humans and their stories were secondary to Optimus Prime, Bumblebee and their story line. The movie did not contain to much human violence and the only real thing not to like about the movie was a few language lines. Specially I only notice 2 times that cause me to cringe, both times when the f* word was dropped blatantly. I will say though be prepared it is a longer movie at 2 hours and 45 minutes.

But there are 2 important theological truths that I noticed push in this movie that I wanted to point out.

First, there is a line and discussion between Optimus Prime and Mark Wahlberg's character. The line is about faith and the human is telling the transformer that he needs faith like humans. The transformer needs faith in himself and faith that mistakes can be made and it will all work out in the end because there is always treasure inside the mistake. I find this theological idea very interesting because I agree with the human, we as humans do have faith but the question that should be had is, what do we humans have faith in? Wahlberg's character would say we as humans have faith in ourselves and that is what helps us to make it through the mistake and  problem. I would say as humans our faith need to be in Jesus because He is the only one and reason we can ever make it through THE MISTAKE (sin) and the daily problems. Faith in Jesus is what it should be, not faith in ourselves.

The second theological truth to come out in the movie I also found very interesting. Optimus Prime ends the movie with a dialogue that states there are mysteries in the Universe that might never be know and that is ok. I agree with his line there, but what he says next I disagree with. Optimus after the mystery line says though that why we were made is not a mystery, it is for our importance and freedom. That line I disagree with because we as humans were made for Jesus and His worship alone. I agree the reason humans were created is not a mystery but the reason that is given is not true. We has humans were made for God and His worship and glory and that is it.

Those are some of the theological ideas that movies can teach us if we do not go in with a Biblical mindset and are aware.

Quotable Friday

Small people talk about other people. Great people talk about God!

The Church and its government

Government

 Church government is another area that Scripture and God gives some details to but do not give a complete picture of. The Bible is clear that the faith family must have a form of leadership where certain men lead the rest of the faith community in the life of the church. The Bible identifies two offices of the church: Elder and Deacon while in the church today, in the Western world, will also need a third office of Trustee.

 Elder

An Elder is a shepherd and Spiritual leader of the local church. They are the overseers of the flock of believers that God has entrusted to them. (Acts 20:28)  The office of Elder would also include the Pastor (Ephesians 4:11-12). The Elder must meet the qualifications of 1 Timothy 3:1-7. The Bible makes it clear that the Elder are responsible to God and will answer some day for the souls of those under their charge. They are the Spiritual leaders and “little shepherds” under the big Shepherd Jesus. The Elders in the life of the church must perform many duties with the following being part of them; pray and study Scripture, lead the faith family, care for the people spiritual and also physically (through the arm of the Deacon), be examples to the rest of the faith family, teach and preach the Bible truths, refute false teachings, protect the flock of Jesus, administer discipline, develop and grow future leaders, and vision cast for the life and future of the faith family. Simply put the Elders lead by their words and example.

Qualifications

            -Lover of Jesus

            -Lover of the Church

            -Understand church membership and are a member

            - Baptized publically into the Faith

            -Humble

            -Above reproach in the church and the world

            -Temperate; not rash, brash, or out of control, self-controlled

            - Prudent and full of Biblical wisdom

            -Husband of one wife- simply put he can be divorced (repentance and grace) but is committed covenantally to wife now and more importantly controlled sexually

            -Respectable in the church and in the world

            -Hospitable; warm, friendly, and welcoming

            -Able to teach; not only in words but most importantly in actions and life  

            -Does not look like the world (addicted to wine)

            -Gentle, just, and devout

            -Generous with time, talents, and treasure- first in the faith family in generosity

            -Spiritual leader in the home and centers home around God and Bible

            -Mature, deeper faithful believer

*Scripture makes clear that men should be Elders. God holds the man responsible to Him for the Spiritual health of not only his family, but also the faith family. This shows that men as leaders can take the responsibility and manage, guide, equip, and lead others in the faith family not only women but also other men. This being said, if God has placed a gifted women in the life of the faith community (like a Beth Moore) and the Elders do not steward that gift from God, He will also hold them responsible for that. The Elders manage and guide the life and Spiritual well being and must use all the gifts that God has given to them to manage in His church (1 timothy 2:11-15).

 The best form of church government is a local body governed by multiple Elders with the help of deacons that are chosen by the congregation. The church would vote leaders to lead the local congregation but the congregation would still have a vote in major decisions by the church like hiring Pastors or building decisions. The leaders though are still beneath Christ, the Head of the Church. (Acts 15:22, I Corinthians 5:4-5, Acts 6:3-5). The plural Elder board takes the form of first among equal though as a single Elder, leads the group of Elders in meetings and is the face of the board to the congregation. The first among equals can be a Senior Pastor or a head Elder. The Elders than through their board use the right arm the deacons for the works of service and also care and lead the trustees and the congregation as a whole.

Deacon

The second Biblical group of leaders in the life of the church is Deacons. The word deacon means “servant.” The deacon is to be a servant to the Elders and to the church. He must meet the qualifications of, 1 Timothy 3:8-13. The deacons care for the members of the local church and assist the Elders in leading the family of God. The Deacons meet the physical needs and are aware of the health, wealth, and lives of the church members. The Deacons are the right arm and the much more active group of church leaders. The Deacons are out and about in the lives of the faith community and much more active in the physical needs of each member. The deacons though answer to the Elders and keep the Elders up to date on everything they are active in and listen to the instruction and wisdom that the Elders bring.

Qualifications

            -Lover of Jesus

            -Lover of the Church

            -Understand church membership and are a member

            -Baptized publically into the Faith

            -worthy of church and world respect

            -sincere and truthful in life and words

            -self-controlled

            -not greed but generous of Spirit in time, talents, and treasure

            -Must lead his home spiritually

            -Biblical understanding and knowledge of God

            -man of one wife, simply put he can be divorced (repentance and grace) but is committed covenantally to wife now and more importantly controlled sexually.

*Scripture seems to make it understood that Deacons were to be men but that women could also be deaconesses. The best structure that would suit the work and leadership of the Deacon is first, in the case of a married man, he is the deacon but his wife serves with him in the role of deacon and in the work of deacon and she must be also held to the qualifications that would fit her. In the case also a single women can be a deacon and meet the needs of single or widowed women in the faith family better, which she in turn than must meet the qualifications that would fit and suit her. Men are called to be the leaders and be held responsible but wives and women must play a significant role in this work also.*

Trustees

The trustees are not a Biblically founded group of leaders in the church but in many instances a necessary group of lay leaders, which work under the direction of the Elders and Deacons. The trustees are a group of people, could be both men and women, who care for the structure of the church building. In many churches today, the faith family meets in a specific location that must be taken care of and stewarded as a gift from God. For true Biblical stewardship to take place, on the structure and or grounds that the faith family meets as a group of people, the trustees should be asked and designated to take care of it. The trustees care for the grounds and building than by up-keep, maintaining, and cleaning, the structure and grounds so that the world can see stewardship take place and the faith family has a nice clean safe place to gather for worship and instruction. Simply put the Deacons lead by their works.

Qualifications

            -Lover of Jesus

            -Baptized publically into the faith

            -Understand church membership and are a member

            -Willing to serve God and steward His gifts

            -generous with time, talent, and treasure

            -Willing to oversee or help on bigger projects of stewardship

            *-construction, landscaping, cleaning knowledge a plus*

The Church and discipleship

Discipleship/Growth

One of the largest and most important aspects of the inward ministry of the church is in the area of discipleship and spiritual growth. This inward ministry is not only important in the life of not only the church has a whole but also in the individual believers of Jesus. 1 Peter 2:2 states that just like new born babies crave milk, believers in Christ need to crave pure spiritual milk so that they can grow in their salvation. The Bible in numerous places gives the idea and picture that once a person accepts Jesus as their Savior they must deepen their walk, mature, be sanctified, and grow more into the image of Jesus and get away from the image of the world (Phil. 2:12-13, Titus 2:12, 1 John 3:3-10). This is why discipleship and growth must take place in the life of the church. So simply put, discipleship is the members of the faith family in a church helping, guiding, equipping, and leading one another in growth more like Jesus every day.

Discipleship and growth in the church and life of the faith family happens in 2 distinct but very connected ways.

-Teaching and instructional formation

The teaching and instructional aspects of discipleship can take place in many formats and in many places. Getting the word of God in the hands, minds, and hearts of believers can take place through expositional teaching or preaching in the worship service or classroom setting. Instructional formats can take place in locations like small groups where smaller Bible studies take place. Instructional times and formats could take place and lead to growth in activities like evangelism, church discipline, membership classes, and work projects. Any chance and opportunity that the church finds in teaching the Word of God through the Gospel or Biblical theology is leading in discipleship and growth. But these intentional and non intentional times of instruction are not the only ways discipleship can take place.

-Fellowship and rubbing shoulders together as a faith community

One on one times of discipleship can also take place. Peter reminds the younger men to humbly listen and respect the older men (1 Peter 5:1-5). Paul also instructed the younger women to learn from the older women (Titus 2:1-4). These verses show and state that discipleship can and should also happen through walking together in the faith family side by side. Mature Godly faith members can show by example and teaching by action what the true pure holy Christian love of Jesus is about. Discipleship can take place as an immature believer can watch and see how the Gospel is lived on a daily basis and also in specific settings from the life and actions of a mature follower. This shows that discipleship does not always have to be intentionally taught but can also be found through living life side by side together. Jesus designed the church to be a faith community and the Christian life not to be lived on an island. The church must use the community aspects in all ways in the growth and equipping of followers. 

The Church and its roles

Tonight I want to post some of my thoughts on a very touchy and challenging situation in the modern American church. What are the roles of men and women in the life of the church and what can and should women be allowed to do. In this post I do not get to specific because I believe it is a case by case basis but the foundational truth is the same for each case. Men are held responsible before God for the life and spiritual health of the church.

Complementarian

 The battle of the “sexes” should not take place inside God’s church. God created man and women in His image (Genesis 1:27). This also means that God has given distinct roles and jobs to both men and women. Men and women are to work together inside the family of God for the glory of God to spread His church. God has placed the man as the responsible one not only in the home (Ephesians 5:21-33) but God has also place the man as the responsible one inside the church (1 Timothy 2). This simply means just like God came calling for Adam after the sin of Eve (Genesis 3:9) so to God will come calling for the men of His church when things go wrong. God has given responsibilities to both men and women in the life of the church but it is up to the men in loving the women and serving the women to learn and follow God in stewarding the gifts of all. This difference in men and women comes to great struggles though when it comes to leadership and authority in the church. Scriptures makes clear God has ordained men to lead and guide in the church because that men are held responsible by God. Pastors, Elders and deacons must be men who are responsible to God because the flock is God’s (1 Peter 5:1-4, I Timothy 3:2; 12). Women though can be deaconess who would assist single or widowed women.  Women are to follow Paul’s instructions in I Timothy 2:9-15. In spiritual areas, they ought not to be teaching men nor should they have spiritual authority over men because men answer to God for the outcome. But God has created women with special abilities that men do not have. In complementary relationships between men and women, both groups use the gifts and talents that God has given them to His glory. Women can use their gifts and talents for God in the church but the role of leadership over the whole church must be men because the men will answer to God for the spiritual heart and well being of the church.

The Church and Preaching/Teaching

Preaching/Teaching

The Bible is the foundation of the Christian life and also the life of the church. The most important and clearest way to get a Biblical understanding into the lives of the church is through teaching and preaching God’s word to them. This teaching of the Bible can happen in many different formats and different times, but one of the most effective times that teaching and preaching can take place is during the worship service in the teaching portion. True God honoring Biblical teaching and preaching in the church must be expository in nature. Expository preaching is a teaching time that begins at the Biblical text and explains and exposes it to the hearer so that God and His Word are glorified and understood (Nehemiah 8). Expository teaching of the Bible also exposes the Bible to the fact that it was written millennia ago but is still relevant today for the life and worship of the church (Hebrews 13:8). So when the teaching of God’s word is heard daily, through the lives of His humble servants, God gets the glory, the church learns more about God and His Word, and God’s Word is applied to life today. The Bible is the main source of life and sanctification of the church so it must be exposed regularly (Ezekiel 37:1-6). When expository preaching is used, the teacher of the word is exposed to the power of Scripture and his life must also be put under the weight of its truth. This style and format in teaching also gives a balanced diet of the Word of God to the hearers and every text, jot, and title is studied and learned from so that a fuller and more complete picture of who God is and what He is up to can be found from His word. Preaching and teaching is central to the spiritual health and vitality of the church and must always be a major part of not only the worship services but also when the faith family gathers in fellowship, service, or study.

The Church and its discipline

Discipline

The church is called to be holy as God is holy. The church is also a group of God’s children continually growing more like Jesus and less like the world. A key element in both of these attributes is the discipline of God’s children who are sinning and need to be helped in their growth. The church is also responsible to separate from believers in the congregation who will not repent of known sin (I Corinthians 5:1-2, II Thessalonians 3:15). So a member of the congregation that has committed a open grievous sin, sinned against another member of the faith family, or has committed a sin against the state must be put under church discipline and a pursuit in love for the sinning member’s soul and salvation must be had through church discipline. The church must follow the example of God the Father and help sanctify, lead in growth, and call the members to live lives that are holy and blameless and through church discipline is the best approach (Heb. 12:1-14).

Church discipline is important for 5 reasons. First, church discipline is important in the pursuit and action for the soul and spiritual health of the sinning person (Gal 6:1). The restoration and repentance of the sinner is the ultimate goal and perfect result of the steps of church discipline and is why the sinner must be pursued in love. The second reason for church discipline is the well being and spiritual health of the entire faith family (1 Cor. 5:6-8). Sin is a polluting agent and to keep an open and grievous sinner in the midst of a faith family could have disastrous and eternal consequences. The third reason for church discipline is to lead the individual church members in an understanding and awareness in the dangers of sin (1 Tim. 5:20). When sin is discovered it must be dealt with immediately so others will understand and be aware of the dire consequences that sin can have. If church discipline does not take place than members of the faith family will never understand and see and take sin seriously. The fourth reason for church discipline is for the corporate witness and public view of the church. The outside world needs to see and understand that the church is different than it and when the line is blurred because of rampant sin in the church the world will not desire or understand the relationship with Jesus. The last reason for church discipline, and along with the restoration of the sinner, the most important, is the glory of God. God is a holy God who wants His children to be holy. If the church never practices discipline holiness in the church is skewed.

There is a biblical process that should take place while a member is disciplined by the church (Matthew 18:15-17). God in His word has laid out a plan and order of the pursuit of a sinning member inside the church. This is the 4 step process that Jesus has ladi out for His church in the book of Matthew.

1. Go to the sinning person, one on one and in private and in love make the sinner aware of the sin committed and call them back through the Word of God to repentance.

2. God with 2 or 3 witnesses, still in private and even more in love, and show the person their sin through the Word of God and call this sinner again back to repentance and a right relationship with God.

3. Lay the claim before the church (whether it is the leadership or the entire church family) the sin of the sinning member and through the crying out in prayer, love, and petition call the person back from their sinful ways and into the way of godliness and repentance.

4. Finally, it no repentance is had, remove the unrepentant sinner from the faith family and begin to treat them like an unbeliever. *Treating the unrepentant member like an unbeliever means that socialization and communication can happen but not without the sin having an effect on the relationship. When the church has relationships with the unsaved, salvation and repentance is always fresh in the conversation but there is still communication and a love for this sinner at the core in the relationship. This is how the relationships should look with the now removed unrepentant sinner. Not a relationship that is no more or shunned.*

The Church and fellowship

Today I want to post some of my thought on the life and fellowship of the faith family. I had the privilege of seeing some of this first hand today as I got to spend time enjoying my newer faith family. I discovered that when we spend time together even if it is with others we might not know very well yet, a love and affection can start to grow and a deeper fellowship is born. After today I can truly tell the world again and with more affection and a deeper passion that I love my faith family.

Fellowship

Relationships in the body of Christ are often not the ones the people of God would have chosen. But this does not mean the members of the church and faith family can refrain from fellowshipping together. In the early church, fellowship was a founding act of the faith family ( Acts 2:1, 42, 3:32-34). Simply stated, when fellowship happens in the faith family, members of that body are spending time together loving one another, serving one another, caring for one another, worshipping together, reaching out to the community together, and truly deeply enjoying the company of one another. Fellowship is important in the life of the faith family because that is where the real relationships and encouragement takes place. When the faith family is fellowshipping together, learning with one another or from one another can take place. When the faith family spends time together the world will take notice when love is shared and the good of each person is found as they enjoying getting to know one another, learn each other’s gifts and passions, and a unity is discovered as fellowship takes place. Unity is found in a church that spends time together even among members that do not always see eye to eye on the same ideas. Fellowship does not always have to be with those we love and adore every time as God has ordained who is in the faith family, sometimes fellowship can take place with those that we do not always like or those we do not always know. Fellowship can take place around a meal, worship service, outreach event, birth of a new life, a lifetime achievement, or simply over a cup of coffee. But fellowship is vital and foundational to having a love for one another and God is never truly honored and worshiped by a church that does not fellowship together in unity and love. 

Quotable Friday

Here is a great line from one of my Favorite Author, Pastor, and Professor, Dr. R.C. Sproul. This quote comes from his great book I have been rereading this month entitled, Pleasing God.

"God does not require the sins of humans to accomplish His holy will. He stand sovereign over sin but is not the author of sin. He accomplished His will through the example of Judas, but that did not absolve Judas of his crime. As in the case of Joseph's brothers, they meant it for evil, but God meant it for good".

The Church and Membership

Membership

1 Corinthians 12 and 14, talk quite a bit about the body of Christ that we call the church. These chapters deal with the fact the body of Christ is many parts and each part has a responsibility to the other parts of the body to make a whole body function properly. These chapters give us the picture of church membership without stating that each person should be a member of the church. Church membership today is under fire as something that is old school. But there are 5 important reasons that the Bible gives us for the purpose and importance of church membership and making a covenant with a group of believers that gather in a particular place as a faith family.

The first reason that church membership is vital to the Christian life is the fact it identifies one as a true genuine believer in Jesus Christ (Romans 12:5, Ephesians 2:19). For a person to become a member of a good Evangelical church their testimony or faith in Christ will be asked to be shared and the reasons for their love for Jesus will become evident as they align themselves with a particular body of Christ.

The second reason for church membership to a group of particular believers is that it provides for one spiritual family to support and encourage with (Hebrews 10:24-25). No Christian can walk the hard persecuted life of loving Jesus alone and to be joined in covenant with a faith family will give strength in numbers and support.

The third important point for church membership to one body of Christ is the opportunity it allows in one place to discover and use the gifts of the spirit in service and worship of Jesus the King (1 Cor. 12:4-27, 1 Peter 4:10-11). Every believer in Jesus is given a gift from Him so that the gift can be used in service for Him in the place that is designed to worship Him the most, His church.

The fourth point and defense of church membership is that it connects believers to the place and puts them under the protection of Godly leaders (Acts 20:28-29, Hebrews 13:17). God has give some to be leaders in His church and given them responsibility as “little” shepherds under Jesus to protect the flock from the lion of Satan (1 Peter 5:8) and other wolves that are wondering about. To covenant with a church family is to fall under the protection designed by God.

The fifth reason that church membership is a must in the life of the lover of Jesus is that it gives one the accountability needed for spiritual growth (Gal. 6:1-2). No one person has the full knowledge of the Bible or the full wisdom on how to live the Christian life. The church is a place of mutual growth and where the believer can be fed the Word of God and find wisdom from others in the Christian journey.

As a church member, I find and agree with the 6 covenant statements found in “I Am a Church Member” by Thom Rainer. These 6 covenant statements should be shouted and taken to heart yearly if not weekly by every person that confesses a love for Jesus. Because, we cannot love Jesus and not love Jesus’ church, we must love both or we do not love either.

I will be a Functioning Church member

I will be a unifying church member

I will not let my church be about my preferences and desires

I will pray for my church leaders

I will lead my family to be healthy church members

I will treasure church membership as a gift

The Church and the Bible

The Bible

Has been stated already the Bible is the foundation not only for the Christian life but also for the gathering of God children in the form of the church. The Bible is the foundation of the church to stand on, the only book for pure and holy study by the church, and the authority for the church and its mission. The Bible is also the source for and definition of the relationship of God children in the faith community. The New Testament alone talks about and gives point to the relationship in the church through almost 2 dozen “one another” commands. The church family is to love one another, serve one another, be hospitable to one another, show humility towards one another and many more. These are all found in the Word of God. When the church desires to know how to worship, praise or honor God, it must go back to the Bible. When the church wants to know how to reach and what to tell the lost and broken world, the Bible is the only true source for the church to go to. And when the church wants to know how to form its government, how to fellowship together, or how to enact church discipline, the Bible is the truth that all of those things can be found. Simply put the Bible is the only book that the church needs to know how to function and live life in accordance with the will of God (1 Tim. 3:16).

The Church and World Mission

Missions

Not only is the church called to multiply itself in a local, evangelistic, person to person approach (Matt. 28:19-20) but the church is also commanded to go and reach others to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). The church reaching the ends of the earth and other places with the Gospel can happen in 3 unique but very important and effective ways. The first way the local church can reach lost people throughout the world is by connecting with and building relationships with other local churches in different places. A local church can connect and form a relationship with another local church in a different foreign location and through that relationship, encouragement, support, and equipping can take place between these 2 churches for the glory of God. The church in America is very financially well off and the churches throughout the world reaching the lost in their areas are not doing as strong financially, so a partnership and affection between these 2 faith communities can and will equip other churches to reach the lost. Another benefit beside the financial support would be a learning and growing relationship between the 2 churches, showing how God is using each church in each of its unique and specific culture to meet the need of the lost and hurting in that given culture (Acts 11:27-30)

Another way the local church can reach the lost around the world with the Gospel is by supporting and sending out missionaries to go, live, plant, and reach the foreign culture with Jesus. This could be the local church helping support a missionary through a mission organization, it could be supporting the mission organization in general without a specific missionary in mind, or it could be the church fully supporting one of its own members to go and live for a time in another location while only being connected to that local church (Acts 13:1-5).

The third way that the local church can support and reach the lost around the world with the Gospel of Jesus, is by doing their own short term missions trips. Mission trips are a great opportunity where a larger section or portion of the church can go into another culture and reach the lost by love in action and love in word. Mission trips done by a church can be work trips with given time to go out and reach the lost, they can be evangelism trips where the entire time is spent reaching out and trying to connect with locals in need of Jesus, and short-term mission trips can be a connection with a local sister church, supporting them by loving them for a time through service and word. Either way, getting the local church out into another culture in another part of the world not only is commanded by Jesus and is good in reaching the lost for Him but it is also very stretching for the faith community in the new culture on the trip.

The Church and Social Justice

Mercy

The church is not only commanded to tell others about Jesus, which is evangelism, the church is commanded to love the world through action, which is called mercy mission or social justice. To heal the heart of a broken city, God’s people would need to be equipped and understand that to love Jesus is to also love the world that Jesus came to save. No professional mission or missionary can touch the brokenness in that given culture but the church. God calls the church to love the culture and people in the place He has put them. When the church goes on mission, the kingdom of God is come to that place through the people of the church (Matt. 4:23). This means that not only must the people of God present the good news of Jesus, they must also show the love of Jesus through caring for the poor, providing help for the helpless, and freeing the captives (Luke 4:18-19). The church has two hands and the church must use both hands in its mission or the mission is incomplete. In the right hand the church has the good news of Jesus and the love of Jesus in the Gospel through words. In the left hand the church has the good news of Jesus and the love of Jesus in action. Both hands must go together because if one hand is only played the Gospel is incomplete. The church must use both words (evangelism) and actions (mercy mission) or else the Gospel has plenty of ground to be rejected on. So the church must love the others with their possessions and care for the poor in the culture (Lev. 19:9-18). The church must love the least of the people in the culture and care for others who cannot care for themselves (Matt. 25:31-46). The church must be a “good Samaritan” and look out and provide for the dying and hurting in the culture that God has placed the church (Luke 10:25-37). Lastly, the church must be a grace based generous community sent on mission to infiltrate the broken and spiritual dark culture and shine the light of Jesus through action (2 Cor. 8-9). The church must remember that faith is not only words but faith in action and love for Jesus in action (James 2).

The Church and Evangelism

Evangelism

The church is giving a distinct command from Christ in Matthew 28 to go into the world and make disciples and teach them to do what Christ has taught. So the church must be a missional body of believers living life to reach the lost bringing others into the family of Christ and also be a cultural influence for God in the lost and hurting world (Jer. 29:4-14). Evangelist Mark Cahill wrote a book entitled, One Thing You can’t do in Heaven, and the one thing that cannot be done in Heaven is tell others about Jesus. The church today is the face and voice of Jesus and the mission that Jesus has sent His church on is to tell others about Him. The church must not be a legalistic group, who wants to separate from the world and it must not also be an adapting group who become like the world. The church must be a redeeming group who glorify God in reaching the world. Jesus plants each of His church’s in a given culture, location, and time so that it can reach the lost and dying souls of that time and place through multiplication. The church multiplying itself is simply put, the core and heart of evangelism. The book of Acts constantly shows a church that was in multiplication because it was people scattered for Jesus telling others non-stop the good news of Jesus and His grace (5:42, 8:25, 13:32, 14:7, 15:35, 16:10, and 17:18). This is what the church should and is called to do today. The church should never stop telling others about Jesus and not only tell others about Jesus but also show others about Jesus by actions and love. 

The Church and spiritual gifts

Spiritual Gifts

Every human being has certain passions and things that they are good at. Many times the world calls these gifts. I find that each human created by God, both believing and unbelieving have natural gifts or talents, which are things they are good at. These gifts can be things like, athletics, music, arts and crafts, cooking, design, and landscaping. When God’s children accept Him as Savior, Father, and Lord, they are given a spiritual gift from the Holy Spirit who enters and starts to grow in His control of their lives. The spiritual gift can amplify the already natural gift or it can be a spiritual gift that is separate and useful for the Lord in other ways. The Holy Spirit gives His gifts to the believer in the church for the use in the church to glorify God in His church and further the church’s mission. Spiritual gifts are for use in the ministry of the church and are designed by God to grow the believer and be used in service of one another in the faith community.  Spiritual gifts can break down into 2 separate but equal categories; speaking and serving gifts (1 Peter 4:11). 1 Corinthians 12:8-10, 28-30, Romans 12:6-8, and Ephesians 4:11 seem to give a good list for spiritual gifts but not having a complete and full list of gifts, these verses are only a good starting place. Here from these verses is a good starting place in understanding spiritual gifts.

Wisdom

Knowledge

Faith

Healing

Miracles

Prophecy

Distinguishing between spirit

Tongues

Interpretation of tongues

Apostles

Teaching

Administrating

Serving

Exhortation

Generosity

Mercy

Evangelist

Shepherd

This list from Scripture cannot and should not be exhaustive and complete. A believer in Jesus and child of God living under the power of the Holy Spirit should seek to steward their gift from Him. Stewarding a spiritual gift is first doing something for the Holy Spirit and through service learning what gift the Spirit has given. Next, in service for the church, the believer finds ways to cultivate, grow, and strengthen their gift for service in the life of the church. Finally the believer using their gift in ministry must be willing to follow the Spirit and go out of their comfort zone and let the Spirit lead with their spirit gift no matter what direction the Spirit wishes to use this gift for His glory. Ultimately Spiritual gifts are about worship of God and [praising the gift Giver.

*I have a few thoughts concerning the “sign” gifts of the Holy Spirit. The sign gifts are considered to be the miraculous gifts like; miracles, healing, tongues, and the interpretation of tongues. These gifts were common in the early church when the new believers in Jesus were reaching out to the lost world and the gifts were used to compliment the good news of Jesus and touch peoples’ lives. I believe these gifts can be used by the Spirit today in the same way. The sign gifts can and have been used in new places that the gospel is reaching out to in the lost world, especially in the third world places. But these sign gifts are not as common and are not found in places where the gospel is already planted. The sign gifts were used mainly in evangelistic places and not used much in the edification of the church. That still applies today so we should not expect or be ready for any sign gifts today in the places where the church already is and is in need of edification not evangelistic outreach.* 

Quotable Friday

Here are a few more quotes from the book I just finished reading today called, Liberating the Laity by R. Paul Stevens.

It is how we work, rather than at what.

The church is by nature different from every other society or organization on earth.

Equipping is first repairing something, and then preparing it for something even better.

Equipping is an imitation process in which we fashion people into the image of Christ.

One hazard of the equipping ministry is to make your relationship to God a product of your ministry. This is the idolatry of ministry.

Humor is an act of worship.

We should not be afraid to be crazy for God.

Quotable Friday on a Thursday

I have been reading a great book this week for one of my Master's classes. The book is by R. Paul Stevens and it is entitled Liberating the Laity; Equipping All the Saints for Ministry. This book as challenged me, made me think, and really given me some great pointers as I start to learn what it means each day as a "little" shepherd under Jesus. I would like to share some of my favorite quotes from the book over the next 2 days and will pick back on the themes of the church on Saturday.

God does not have a wonderful plan for your life. He has something far better; a wonderful purpose.

Every educator knows that learning takes place the best at the moment a question is asked.

Unless we equip the laity to live all of life for God, Christianity will degenerate into mere religion.

Simply put, vocation or calling (they are the same concept) is what you do with who you are in Christ.

The church as the body of Christ should communicate that every member is interrelated to other members and indispensable.

Often the problem is that while we say Christ is the King of the church, we treat him, like the Queen of England, as a figurehead, a constitutional monarch who reigns but does not rule.

God sovereignty over all of life means, first, that your life is divinely ordained and significant.

The Church and holiness

Holiness

John Stott said in his book “The Living Church”, “worship without holiness was hateful to [God]” (Isaiah 1:10-19). So for the church to be a true community of worship to the God and Savior of it, it must be a church that has holiness as a main and important attribute. Holiness means to be set apart from, which in the case of the church, means the church is set apart from the world. Simply put, the church must look more and more like the Savior Jesus and less and less like the sinful, broken, and fallen world. A big part of the holiness of the church is its growth and sanctification. The church must realize it is a faith community that sin still exists in and frequently happens. The church in its pursuit of holiness must announce like the tax-collector, “God, have mercy on me the sinner” (Luke 18:13). This means that a church that is pursuing holiness must have discipline, so that the sinning member can be drawn back to God through repentance and forgiveness. A church in pursuit of holiness must be a humble church full of God’s children that are not self-righteous but self serving and full of humility. A church in pursuit of holiness must also be a faith community that relies on the grace of God and mercy of God to transform it more and more each day into the likeness of Him and remove the worldly sin and contamination that would destroy it. A church in pursuit of holiness will be a church of love, compassion, generosity, and kindness for God, each other, and the world. A church in pursuit of holiness will be a unified church that is mutually pursuing the will of God and doing battle for the souls of the members of the faith community along with the souls of those in the world around it. And finally a church in pursuit of holiness will be also in pursuit of Godliness and realize that it is only after Jesus return that true holiness and Godliness will be achieved. 

The Church and its study

Study

The church is called a pillar and buttress of the Truth (1 Tim.3:15). How can the church know what the truth is unless the church is a church that studies the Word and actions of God? Mark Dever in his book, “The 9 Marks of a Healthy Church” centers everything that a church does and knows on a Biblical understanding. God’s word is a double edge sword (Heb. 4:12) that is good for teaching, correcting, rebuking, and training in righteousness (2 Tim. 3:16). This all means that the church must be a church that studies the word of God and knows what God is call the church to do and stand for. The Bible is God’s inerrant Word (Titus 1:2) and the Bible is the first, only, and final authority at which the church must live by. That means for the church to understand God and His truth, follow where God is leading, spread the good news of Jesus, and truly worship and honor God; the Bible and God must be studied and this study must be a huge part of what the church is all about.

Also, not only must the church study God’s word and God Himself but the church must also study the world and culture which it lives in. The church is called not to separate itself from the world but to live in and be a part of the world. The church is not suppose to sin in the world it lives in but it is called to redeem the world and culture and spread the good news of Jesus (Matt. 28:18-20). This means that the church must study the culture and world so it can reject the things that are wrong and sinful, it can use and approve the things that are good and honor to God, and it can lastly redeem the things that can be useful for God and furthering His mission in the fallen and sinful world. 

The Church and giving

Tithe/offering

Everything we have including our money, jobs, houses, cars, land, investments, credit, businesses, vacations, food, and any other personal items, are from God (1 Chron. 29:14). That means our entire lives is run and provided for us by God.  Simply put, when we are thinking about tithing, giving our offerings back to God, and the topic of generosity, we are really asking how much of God’s wealth and blessings should I keep for myself. Generosity and tithing is an act of worship to God and is important for members of the church stewarding their gifts that God has given them. The Old Testament law made it clear for God’s people that they were to give over 25 percent away (Number 18:21-29, 27:30, Deut. 12:10-11, 17-18, 14:22-29, Lev. 19:9-10). This giving was not only to the tabernacle and God, but also to the priest and the poor and needy. The New Testament though focuses not on the amount that is give back to God but on the heart and generosity. 2 Corinthians 8-9 lays out some important truths for the church to think about when it comes to generosity and giving back to God what is already His. God children are to give sacrificially because giving to God is about sowing for Him and then reaping for Him. Generosity and giving to God is an act of worship that is a gospel issue. God has given many blessings so that they can make His name great through giving to others and His church. God’s people are not required by the law of the Old Testament to give or tithe back to God, but just like most everything else in the New Covenant, including the grace from God, it is shown to exceed the law standards. Therefore not only should God’s people be giving back to God for the work in His church but they should be starting at 10 percent in generosity and giving above that.

Not only should God’s people be giving generously to God’s mission and those in need, but God’s church should also be giving to missions and the needy. God’s church must be giving first to world missions and seeing the Gospel of Jesus spread to the nations. Second, the church must also be giving to the local missions and reaching the lost in the local community for the name of Jesus. And thirdly, the church must be giving in the mercy missions to the poor and reaching those in need in the local community as well. The church has a responsibility to reach the lost far and wide but also close to home through its giving and generous gifts. The people of God give to the church of God so that the name of God will be spread and His reputation will go forth with great power and love. 

The Church and Prayer

Today I wanted to jot down some of my thoughts on the church and why its communication with God is so important.

Prayer

Prayer life and communion with God is one of the most vital and important aspects of the upward ministry to God of His children (Matt. 6:9). Spending time with the Creator and Sustainer of ministry is vital and is a key aspect in our love for Him (1 John 4:7-10). Continually talking with God and then listening to what He says and how He leads is a major factor in the guiding of the church and its leaders (Matt.6:13). If we are to follow God and let Him lead the church, connecting with Him through prayer is a must. This is the spiritual heartbeat of God’s people. If His church is not talking with God and allowing time to listen, then His ministry and ultimately His reputation will not be God honoring and this will lead to destruction and idolatry (Gal. 4:6). A praying church is a wise church and follows the example of Christ and also Paul who each spent much time in prayer with God. Another important aspect of a church’s prayer life should be the time it spends praying for each other and lifting each other up in prayer. The church is commanded to love one another (1 Peter 4:8) and what better ways to show love one for another than bringing each other before the throne and bringing their needs to God, who is the perfect Shepherd. It is sung, “They will know we are Christians by our love”. I believe it is true of the church and its prayer life. You will know a true God honoring and God loving church by prayer. 

The Church and Sabbath

Today, I would like to take a look at the act of worship that church can be apart of in their observance of the Sabbath rule.

Sabbath

Rest, relaxation, and refocus are very critical to the health and ministry of God’s children. God commands in Exodus (16:23) that the Sabbath must be observed and it is part of the 10 Commandments (Exodus 20:8-11). God even gives an example of this on the 7^th day of creation when He rest from His labor and creation act. Any servant of God must observe this Sabbath too. A life of work to provide for a family or daily needs, a life of service and fulfilling God’s call to serve Him in the church, and a life of love, support, and care for those close in our lives can all be very challenging, tiring, and stressful. Every member of the family of God needs some time off to recharge the battery and also to recharge the soul. A Sabbath rest period in the life of an individual is a set period of time, preferably a day of the week like Sunday’s, that can be set aside to first focus on God, second, times for rest and relaxation, and third, for set times of fellowship and community activities with the faith family. The Sabbath day in the life of a believer is set up so that a child of God can find time away from the busy stressful times to focus on God and find rest in Him.

The Sabbath principle in the life of the church is set there so the church family can gather together as the early church did and break bread, pray, read God’s word, and spends time in fellowship and love with one another. In most cases the Sabbath as a faith family will take place on Sunday’s (Acts 20:7) when the faith communities gather to worship God in study, prayer, and fellowship together. Other activities can be included in this Sabbath time like, fellowship meals, community picnics, small groups, and or Bible studies throughout the day. The Sabbath as observed as a faith community is a set time to love one another and more importantly love God the Father by setting time aside for Him. The Sabbath at it base principle is an act of worship whether it is individual or corporately finding rest and renewal in God and all that He has provided for us. Observing the Sabbath is also an act of stewardship as the observance gives rest and helps recharge the soul for more times of service and work for God, while also enjoying God while the rest takes place.

Quotable Friday

This is a quote from the book I am currently reading, "Pleasing God" by R.C. Sproul. In the book he talks a lot about sanctification and the process that it is in this life. But I think the this line from him today is important for all of those who love Jesus to remind ourselves of daily.

"Each redeemed person is literally a masterpiece [work of art]."

The Church and it's ordinances

The worship of God and ministry towards Him has many other aspects or levels in it besides the Sunday Morning singing. One of the greatest acts of worship that the church can preform is being involved in the activities and observing the ordinances set down by God.

Ordinances

The ordinances in the life of the church are activities that give us pictures, remembrances, and opportunities to worship God.  There are two ordinances that ought to be practiced by New Testament churches: baptism and the Lord’s Supper. These ordinances are not a means of receiving special grace but are activities that remind and celebrate what God the Father provided for us through His Son, Jesus.

· Baptism is a public testimony of a person’s faith in Christ. (Acts 2:38; 41) It has no power to save. It is to be performed after one has made profession of salvation (Romans 6:1-10, 1 Cor. 12:12-13). I believe and follow the practice of many New Testament occasions; a professing believer should be baptized right away after conversion. There is no biblical evidence that supports baptizing infants. The examples of baptism that we have in the New Testament are always after profession of salvation. (Acts 2:41; 8:12-13; 10:47)

~The primary meaning of the word baptizo is “to immerse.” In the apostles’ time, the method of baptism practiced on proselytes to Judaism was total immersion. Paul also gives us a picture that baptism is a symbolic act that reminds and connects us to the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord (Rom.6:1-4 Col.2:12). Based on these facts, I believe the best mode of baptism is immersion.

· The Lord’s Supper or as I like to call it a family worship meal, is performed as a memorial to Christ’s death. (I Corinthians 11:23-26) It is to be done regularly by believers as a testimony of what Christ did on the cross for us. It is also is an act of worship and thanksgiving to Christ for His act on the cross for us and a time of fellowship with one another remembering what Jesus did for His church family. The Lord’s Supper reminds us of Jesus power, calls and compels us to repent of our sins as we examine ourselves, shows the unity of the faith family through the meal, and lastly anticipates our complete fellowship meal in the supper of the lamb when Jesus returns.

The Church and worship

For the next week I want to take a look at the upward ministry of the church or the ministry to God. The place to start is a taking a look at worship.

Worship

Everything that the church is about starts and ends with worship (Eph. 1:12) As the shorter Westminster catechism states, “the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.” This simple statement lets us know that man was created to worship God the Creator and that too, is also why the Church was created by Jesus (John 4:19-24). The first and most important part of a church and its ministry is focused on God who is the creator, sustainer and redeemer of all life. The ministry of the church is planned for and governed by God. The church serves God and worships Him with the talents and gifts He has given it. Worship is important because God deserves the glory and because He is the sustainer of the life, ministry, and mission of the Church. The sole purpose of the ministry of the Church is to honor what God has given it, through grace, to use in its ministry (Col. 3:16). So whether it is through the ordinances, offerings, Sabbaths, Governments, growth, discipline, prayer, fellowship, evangelism, and missions; the church needs to keep the worship aspect in front view at all times. Every other ministry and service that the church does, whether it is towards, God, at the other members of the faith community, or towards the lost world, worship is the base ministry.

The Sunday morning worship service, or as I like to call them a “family celebration of joy (Acts 2:46) and reverence (Acts 2:43) for Jesus”, is a great place for the worship of God to start. The Sunday worship service consists of Bible teaching (Acts 2:42), which is worship of God with our minds, singing songs of praise and adoration (Acts 2:47), which is worship of God through our hearts and emotions, and giving of our tithes and offerings, which is worship of God through our wills and desires. The Sunday morning worship service is a community and faith family gathering where we can corporately praise God and study His Word which is all aspects of worship. I believe the songs that are sung in the worship time must not only be theological in content but glorifying to God in verbiage, which sometimes does not happen when the song is too much of the I perspective and less on the God or Jesus perspective (Heb. 13:15). I also do not believe that “Jesus as my boyfriend” type songs glorify God because Jesus is our Savior (Rev. 5:12). So whether it is through singing hymns and or contemporary worship songs, exposing God’s word through sound Biblical teaching, or corporately partaking of the church ordinances and giving back to God, worship of God can take place greatly in the Sunday morning setting as a faith family.

What is the church?

Over the next few weeks I would like to write many connected post on the church. I am currently writing a paper or "philosophy of ministry for a church", not only for my ordination council but also for my own benefit so I can have written down what I believe about Jesus' church. I would like to cover everything from worship, tithing, church government, missions, and much more. The place to begin though is a question and thoughts on what exactly is the church. 

So first what is the church? I believe the church is a living organism or body of many parts (1 Cor. 12: 12-27) made up of a larger universal group, and a local individual faith community. The church that is visible is made of the regenerated believers and followers of Jesus and also the unregenerate people whom are also parts of the church. The invisible church is made up only of those whom God see as His children, which are the regenerated and redeemed people of God.  The church is describe as the bride of Christ that He came to seek and save and only Jesus can reform the church into being like Him and loving Him as the church’s Bridegroom (2 Cor. 11:2). Other metaphors for the church in the Bible are, family of God (2 Cor. 6:18), branches on a vine (John 15:5), a building (1 Cor. 3:9), living stones (1 Peter.2:4-8), and a harvest (Matt. 13:1-30 and John 4:35).  God has established the church for this age to fulfill His plan on the earth. In Matthew16:18, Christ said, “…I will build my church…” The church is God’s primary plan for the advancement of His Kingdom today and that advancement is through multiplication.

· The universal church~ The New Testament teaches that there is one large church made up of all believers of all time. Christ used the singular word “church” when he stated that He would build His church. It is referred to as the “household of God” (Ephesians 2:19), “one body” (I Corinthians 12:13), and “a glorious church” (Ephesians 5:27).

· The local church~ In most cases in the New Testament, the word “church” refers to the local church (Acts 5:11; 8:1; 11:26; 14:23; Romans 16:5). This is an assembly of baptized believers (Acts 2:41) who meet for instruction in doctrine, fellowship, and prayer. (Acts 2:42)

Are we Pharisees?

This is a post three days in the making. Luke 12 is an interesting chapter to me and it starts right away with verse 1. "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy". Ouch. When I read that it hurts. When I mean hurt, really it feels like my body shutters and  aches. That verse hits me hard. Almost immediately images and moments in my recent life flash before my mind. Times when I was a hypocrite, just like the Pharisee, show in my minds eye. I grimace in pain as I realize men in the Bible I did not like, I was like. I am a hypocrite. There I will say it again, I AM A HYPOCRITE. And even as I say it now it still hurts.

As I start to think about the times in my life I am a Pharisee (I will use this word from now on because I think it stings in a different way than hypocrite) I realize that I could split the times up into 2 groups. The first group was times I did what was right and said the right think but not with the right motive. The second group was times when I sinned in private and no one saw me, my sin was not public, my own, my precious, my private sin. Let me try and expose what I mean in each group and then finish with what I have realized with the gut check.

The first group was moments in my life when I was not necessarily sinning but I was not doing anything good. I was a Pharisee to the core. This was times when I gave money to a friend, with the thought then he would have to owe me back. Or the time I gave someone a ride when their car was in the shop but I knew that they would buy me lunch. Maybe it was the time I told someone about Christ because I knew another Christian was listening. These were the moments in my life I did something that was good or showed mercy, not because I loved Jesus but because I had a selfish motive. The more I have thought about these moments, I have come to the conclusion it is a sin, because my pride and selfish motive is driving my action, not my love for God. What should drive these moments in my life and what should push me to show love to others in word or action is my affections for Jesus, not my pride. The Pharisee's did everything for show and their pride, not for their affections for God. I am a Pharisee.

The second group of moments that flashed before my eyes is when my sin or action happened in the dark. Times in life when my sin was mine, it was my private sin that no one else knew or saw. The time when a coworker offended me in the morning so at lunch I just sat in my car festering over it thinking bad about him. The time when I became jealous over a good friend of mine getting something that I have always wanted. These were moments when I lived deep in my sin and no one else knew it. I thought about the time when I said I was going to do something, then never did and lied about it. These were moments in my life when no one but God knew I sinned. These were times when I knew I sinned and I wallowed in it because it was my sin, my own, my precious (I know I sound like Gollum but I think Tolkien was making a reference to this as the ring). And that is what the Pharisees did, they hid their sin from others. They wanted to look good and seem good, but Jesus called them white washed tombs. That would be a good description of me in these moments. I am a Pharisee.

But there is hope. I have discovered this over the last few days as these times and moments in my life keep coming back to me. The blog I read today reminded me that sanctification (or the act of growing as a follower of Jesus) is an act of God's grace in our lives. Life is a war zone, it is a battle. But the grace of God is sufficient to carry me through to the end and make me a stronger lover of Him.  That means God knows I am going to stumble and be a Pharisee but He still loves me in those moments and will love me enough to grow me to not be a Pharisee as much and fight the moments I tend to be a Pharisee. Now I am not saying that I am not responsible for the Pharisee moments and I need to not do them but I have hope that in this battle zone and fight of sin, God is on my side giving me strength to fight the moment. So yes I am a Pharisee sometimes but God will guide me through to beat them back and give me strength to be a lover of Jesus more than I am a Pharisee.

Final thoughts on John 10:16

John 10:16
"And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd."

"And they will listen to my voice"
When was the last time we as the sheep to the Great Shepherd listen for His voice. He talks, we should listen. Listening is the key to it all. Jesus is always talking. Have you heard Him? Here are a few places I have heard the voice of my Shepherd

His word
Fellow Pastors and Mentors
A sunset
My children
My wife
The wind blowing in the forest
A friend
A song
A movie
A book
My brother
In work of the world

These are a few places that I have heard the voice of my Shepherd. When we are truly listening we as the sheep will know and hear the voice and words from our Shepherd.

Also remember that prayer is a two-way conversation. We should be listening for the voice of the Shepherd, because He is always talking to His sheep.