Sermon John 21:1-18a 4-24-05
Opening:
This is one of the classic stories of resurrection. In the story, Jesus finds peter having returned to his trade. Although Jesus has already appeared to this disciples on earlier occasions, Peter is distracted from his mission and he is back to fishing. In this scripture today, Jesus asks Peter to recommit himself to feeding the sheep.
since this building opened in 1999 much has changed.
In 1999 when the building opened: There was no grace place in the gym. There was no youth room. That was no platform in the gym. There were no bathrooms in the gym and no showers. The fellowship hall was unfinished. There were no appliances in the kitchen. The choir room was not finished. The balcony and the 2nd floor area behind the balcony were a shell. In 1999 there were no elevators and there was no powerpoint in worship.
You have sacrificially gone the second mile. You have succeeded beyond my or anyone’s dreams. Who would have thought that this would happen? Yet in spite of this it is time for us to consider again the need to make room for others
[show slides-does any of this look framiliar?]
Our Foyer is packed with people every Sunday, our parking is woefully inadequate. We need more offices for staff. Our classrooms are packed and we need some large classrooms. My favorite… there is a line at the ladies room.
Because some of you had the foresight to see that these issues would arise, the building committee has been working for two years to be ready with a plan when we needed it, so that we could continue to feed Jesus’ sheep
Today I want to show you their ideas.
Master plan: second entrance, widening of Lakewood way, connecting wing, missions outbuilding, new sanctuary…..we will not tear down the old one…
Phase one: second entrance, widening of Lakewood way, connecting wing, missions outbuilding
Fellowship hall: remodel f hall for use by our children and youth programs. Small dinners, large dinners in gym
Main floor: expanded foyer, bookstore, coffee area, connecting area, new office area
Second floor: additional classrooms, one large enough for youth worship and our large SS classes. These plans are available for you in the foyer today.
Some may say….I don’t want to do this…..Of course we may all think this from time to time. Peter did… It is human nature.
But We must continue to work to create a church and a culture within our church that is about reaching out and feeding the sheep. As soon as we think we have arrived, then God’s ability to use us is over. Do you understand this? As soon as it becomes about us and our comfort, it will no longer be about connecting people to Jesus Christ.
In 1999 our building opened with 350 in attendance. Now we are averaging 950. Were not the 600 people won to Jesus Christ and his church worth the challenges of building? Of the children in our program last week ___ of the children, or / of their families were not here when this building was opened. Was the hard work worth it, seeing that so many have been won?
It is human nature to resist challenge. But Jesus continues to ask us to Take up our cross, feed his sheep and follow him.
We all know that none of this is really about buildings, or who the preacher is, or how many people we have here…
It is all about connecting people to Jesus Christ. Are we doing this?
Think with me of the stories we could tell, of missions projects, and Sunday school growth. Of upwards basketball and the dance ministry. You have adopted children, and delivered tons of food to hungry people. You are learning to give yourselves away.
I have watched you invite your friends…
The first week that Johnny cross came to church, he received 5 mugs delivered to his door.
We are not trying to be smarter than other Christians, we are trying to learn to be Christians who are giving themselves away.
Two weeks ago, you gave your names and phone numbers to
Ken Anderson wrote…It was quite an experience standing up front after the 11:15 service last Sunday. I was blown away. Out of 99 names and numbers….35 he did not even know…It just proves again what kind of a congregation we have. Such a blessing. The Church started that way 28 years ago and all that is changed over the years is that we have grown larger. Thank you for giving people a chance to express their hearts.
Dan wrote….The Head count for the phone #'s was 167 - pretty good but not near as good as the buzz of chatter it created inside the Church walls and outside the walls at the Softball fields today. What an incredible group of people we have at our church. There was a tremendous amount of Joy in the hearts of those who came to me with their phone #'s…it was Very cool! My favorite phone # and note came from a young man who wrote: my phone # xxx-xxxx PS. I can't drive yet, I'm 12, but I have a bike with pegs.
CVV church wanted new land for a parking lot…..one of you bought that land for them
Our culture
I am looking for the words to describe this woods chapel thing.
We have been sharing something here. No it is not a perfect something. But it is a very special something.
We have enjoyed it, and we have invited our friends to share in this special fellowship. It is wonderful, but not in a churchy way.
It is wonderful in a supernatural way, we have the kind of spirituality that regular people seek……and Folks, we have a responsibility to keep this going.
I wanted today to give your hearts and minds a chance to catch up with the staff and the building committee.
There are copies of these plans for you to pick up in the foyer. There will be an all church conference in the future for you to consider and approve or reject these plans.
In order to move forward we must have three things
1. a clear sense of need
1. a strong sense of focus on our mission of connecting people to Jesus Christ.
2. the financial resources
The need for parking and additional bathrooms are clear. If you cant find a place to park, and you have to wait in line to use the restroom, pretty soon you will be looking for a new church.
> 1. Foyer> Expanding our foyer will give our folks more fellowship opportunities and> more ways to get connected. They will be able to visit a connecting point> which is a "booth" or a "designated area" and find out how to get connected within our church while they are there on Sunday morning. They will enjoy a fellowship atmosphere to meet friends by visiting the coffee bar and donut area.> > 2. Children Youth & adult program Areas> As we grow we are attracting more families with children and youth. We will expand these areas so we have the room to make our Sunday School program one of the best hours of our kid's week. We will be able have a children's worship area where video and drama are used to teach this generation about how to live the Christian life at home, school and the neighborhood. The Youth will be able to worship in an area that gives them more room to grow and actually use our church as a "place they want to bring their friends. Some of our larger adult classes will have enough room to meet in and to grow in.> > 3. Missions Building> The missions building isn't about what WE want or what WE need - it is> about reaching out into our community and helping those less fortunate. It isn't about making our church more beautiful, it isn't about making our life> more convenient - it is about "Connecting People to Jesus Christ" in one of the most wonderful and powerful ways ... serving Jesus by helping His less fortunate children. Also for the first time in any building campaign there is talk of giving a portion of the funds to help our sister churches around the world.
Conclusion
The question that Jesus asked peter, he continues to ask his followers today.
Do you love me more than these things that distract you….then feed my sheep. Peter did just that. He spent the rest of his life telling people about Jesus. He gave his life, literally, to the mission. At woods chapel, our mission is not over. There are still sheep to win
But These dreams will only happen if God speaks to your hearts and asks you to reach out to others, as others have reached out to you.
I invite you to be praying with me and the building committee as we seek to reach and win other people to Jesus Christ and his church.
Please stand for our scripture reading from John 21:1-18a
1Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias.[a] It happened this way: 2Simon Peter, Thomas (called Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3“I'm going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We'll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
4Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. 5He called out to them, “Friends, haven't you any fish?” “No,” they answered.
6He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.
7Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. 8The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards.[b] 9When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread. 10Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.”
11Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. 12Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. 13Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 14This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.
15When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?”
“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”
16Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?” He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”
17The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” 18Jesus said, "Feed my sheep.
This is the word of the Lord, may God send his Holy Spirit to bless it to our hearts as we gather in his name today. Please be seated.
Opening:
This is one of the classic stories of resurrection. In the story, Jesus finds peter having returned to his trade. Although Jesus has already appeared to this disciples on earlier occasions, Peter is distracted from his mission and he is back to fishing. In this scripture today, Jesus asks Peter to recommit himself to feeding the sheep.
since this building opened in 1999 much has changed.
In 1999 when the building opened: There was no grace place in the gym. There was no youth room. That was no platform in the gym. There were no bathrooms in the gym and no showers. The fellowship hall was unfinished. There were no appliances in the kitchen. The choir room was not finished. The balcony and the 2nd floor area behind the balcony were a shell. In 1999 there were no elevators and there was no powerpoint in worship.
You have sacrificially gone the second mile. You have succeeded beyond my or anyone’s dreams. Who would have thought that this would happen? Yet in spite of this it is time for us to consider again the need to make room for others
[show slides-does any of this look framiliar?]
Our Foyer is packed with people every Sunday, our parking is woefully inadequate. We need more offices for staff. Our classrooms are packed and we need some large classrooms. My favorite… there is a line at the ladies room.
Because some of you had the foresight to see that these issues would arise, the building committee has been working for two years to be ready with a plan when we needed it, so that we could continue to feed Jesus’ sheep
Today I want to show you their ideas.
Master plan: second entrance, widening of Lakewood way, connecting wing, missions outbuilding, new sanctuary…..we will not tear down the old one…
Phase one: second entrance, widening of Lakewood way, connecting wing, missions outbuilding
Fellowship hall: remodel f hall for use by our children and youth programs. Small dinners, large dinners in gym
Main floor: expanded foyer, bookstore, coffee area, connecting area, new office area
Second floor: additional classrooms, one large enough for youth worship and our large SS classes. These plans are available for you in the foyer today.
Some may say….I don’t want to do this…..Of course we may all think this from time to time. Peter did… It is human nature.
But We must continue to work to create a church and a culture within our church that is about reaching out and feeding the sheep. As soon as we think we have arrived, then God’s ability to use us is over. Do you understand this? As soon as it becomes about us and our comfort, it will no longer be about connecting people to Jesus Christ.
In 1999 our building opened with 350 in attendance. Now we are averaging 950. Were not the 600 people won to Jesus Christ and his church worth the challenges of building? Of the children in our program last week ___ of the children, or / of their families were not here when this building was opened. Was the hard work worth it, seeing that so many have been won?
It is human nature to resist challenge. But Jesus continues to ask us to Take up our cross, feed his sheep and follow him.
We all know that none of this is really about buildings, or who the preacher is, or how many people we have here…
It is all about connecting people to Jesus Christ. Are we doing this?
Think with me of the stories we could tell, of missions projects, and Sunday school growth. Of upwards basketball and the dance ministry. You have adopted children, and delivered tons of food to hungry people. You are learning to give yourselves away.
I have watched you invite your friends…
The first week that Johnny cross came to church, he received 5 mugs delivered to his door.
We are not trying to be smarter than other Christians, we are trying to learn to be Christians who are giving themselves away.
Two weeks ago, you gave your names and phone numbers to
Ken Anderson wrote…It was quite an experience standing up front after the 11:15 service last Sunday. I was blown away. Out of 99 names and numbers….35 he did not even know…It just proves again what kind of a congregation we have. Such a blessing. The Church started that way 28 years ago and all that is changed over the years is that we have grown larger. Thank you for giving people a chance to express their hearts.
Dan wrote….The Head count for the phone #'s was 167 - pretty good but not near as good as the buzz of chatter it created inside the Church walls and outside the walls at the Softball fields today. What an incredible group of people we have at our church. There was a tremendous amount of Joy in the hearts of those who came to me with their phone #'s…it was Very cool! My favorite phone # and note came from a young man who wrote: my phone # xxx-xxxx PS. I can't drive yet, I'm 12, but I have a bike with pegs.
CVV church wanted new land for a parking lot…..one of you bought that land for them
Our culture
I am looking for the words to describe this woods chapel thing.
We have been sharing something here. No it is not a perfect something. But it is a very special something.
We have enjoyed it, and we have invited our friends to share in this special fellowship. It is wonderful, but not in a churchy way.
It is wonderful in a supernatural way, we have the kind of spirituality that regular people seek……and Folks, we have a responsibility to keep this going.
I wanted today to give your hearts and minds a chance to catch up with the staff and the building committee.
There are copies of these plans for you to pick up in the foyer. There will be an all church conference in the future for you to consider and approve or reject these plans.
In order to move forward we must have three things
1. a clear sense of need
1. a strong sense of focus on our mission of connecting people to Jesus Christ.
2. the financial resources
The need for parking and additional bathrooms are clear. If you cant find a place to park, and you have to wait in line to use the restroom, pretty soon you will be looking for a new church.
> 1. Foyer> Expanding our foyer will give our folks more fellowship opportunities and> more ways to get connected. They will be able to visit a connecting point> which is a "booth" or a "designated area" and find out how to get connected within our church while they are there on Sunday morning. They will enjoy a fellowship atmosphere to meet friends by visiting the coffee bar and donut area.> > 2. Children Youth & adult program Areas> As we grow we are attracting more families with children and youth. We will expand these areas so we have the room to make our Sunday School program one of the best hours of our kid's week. We will be able have a children's worship area where video and drama are used to teach this generation about how to live the Christian life at home, school and the neighborhood. The Youth will be able to worship in an area that gives them more room to grow and actually use our church as a "place they want to bring their friends. Some of our larger adult classes will have enough room to meet in and to grow in.> > 3. Missions Building> The missions building isn't about what WE want or what WE need - it is> about reaching out into our community and helping those less fortunate. It isn't about making our church more beautiful, it isn't about making our life> more convenient - it is about "Connecting People to Jesus Christ" in one of the most wonderful and powerful ways ... serving Jesus by helping His less fortunate children. Also for the first time in any building campaign there is talk of giving a portion of the funds to help our sister churches around the world.
Conclusion
The question that Jesus asked peter, he continues to ask his followers today.
Do you love me more than these things that distract you….then feed my sheep. Peter did just that. He spent the rest of his life telling people about Jesus. He gave his life, literally, to the mission. At woods chapel, our mission is not over. There are still sheep to win
But These dreams will only happen if God speaks to your hearts and asks you to reach out to others, as others have reached out to you.
I invite you to be praying with me and the building committee as we seek to reach and win other people to Jesus Christ and his church.
Please stand for our scripture reading from John 21:1-18a
1Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias.[a] It happened this way: 2Simon Peter, Thomas (called Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3“I'm going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We'll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
4Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. 5He called out to them, “Friends, haven't you any fish?” “No,” they answered.
6He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.
7Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. 8The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards.[b] 9When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread. 10Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.”
11Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. 12Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. 13Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 14This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.
15When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?”
“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”
16Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?” He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”
17The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” 18Jesus said, "Feed my sheep.
This is the word of the Lord, may God send his Holy Spirit to bless it to our hearts as we gather in his name today. Please be seated.
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