Sermon notes 9-30-07 the business of God, pt 5 God calls us
Ephesians 4:7-16
7But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. 8This is why it[a] says: "When he ascended on high, he led captives in his train and gave gifts to men."[b] 9(What does "he ascended" mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions[c]? 10He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) 11It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. 14Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. 15Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. 16From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
Series: the business of God, part 5-God calls us
Traditional denominations are in decline, including the UMC
There was a time in the past if you would build a building, people would come, and they had denominational loyalty.
Not like that any more……churches are dying because they became institutionalized
The traditional view of church
God gave some to be apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors
and teachers
The pastors job is to take care of us
Story of my visit to harrisonville
The biblical view of church
Ephesians 4 : to prepare Gods people for works of service, so that the body of Christ would be built up.
The funnest part of being a Christian is being in ministry……..
The church is not here to entertain us.
God calls all of us
Some don’t want to be a part of a church that believes this. Sometimes we lose good people. But that doesn’t change the truth. Our life is Gods gift to us. How we live it is our gift to him.
Biblical examples-
Disciples called from their nets & boats to a life that follows Jesus Christ
I don’t think our problem is that we don’t believe this
The challenge that we face is
I am too busy with my own life to find the life of God
He is pulling one way, I am pulling another
Two trucks were standing back to back and a truck driver was struggling ot get a huge crate from one truck to the other. A passerby, seeing his desperate situation, volunteered to help. So the two of them huffed and puffed and struggled for well over half an hour with no result at all. I’m afraid it’s no use, panted the passerby, we’ll never get it off this truck. Off, yelled the driver, Good grief, I don’t want it off. I want it on.
demello heart of enlightened 117
Today is connecting Sunday. What is connecting Sunday
Why is it important
In a large church it is sometimes hard to get connected…..
Listening to Rachel Up, list these at a training session
9 ways you can get connected.
Litany of service opportunities.
Each member of the body is important
16From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
Puzzle pieces
The mosaic takes every piece. Ever made a puzzle and a piece was missing?
A great festival was to be held in a village and each villager was asked to contribute by pouring a bottle of wine into a giant barrel. One of the villagers had this thought: "If I pour a bottle of water in that giant barrel, no one will notice the difference." But it didn't occur to him that everyone else in the village might have the same thought. When the banquet began and the barrel was tapped, what came out was pure water.
Demello heart of the enlightened 150
Why engage in Christian service? Why engage in ministry?
· Not because god needs me
· Not because the church needs me.
· People need.
· You need. We all need. We need each other. We need to care about others. It is a deep part of who we are.
Gospel song, I love you , you love me were all apart of Gods body
A Farmer, whose corn always took the first prize at the State Fair, had the habit of sharing his best corn seeds with all the farmers in the neighbourhood. When asked why, he said, “It is really a matter of self interest. The wind picks up the pollen and carries it from field to field, so if my neighbours grow inferior corn, the cross pollination brings down the quality of my own corn. So I am concerned they plant only the very best-
Demello. Heart of the enlightened, p 133
It is impossible to help another without helping yourself
It is impossible to harm another with out harming yourself
We were created to love. To care, to be bonded.
Love heals everyone, both those who receive it and those who give it
There is something that everyone can do
So I ask you today to
Bear one anothers burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ. Gal 6:2
I invite you to go down to the gym and find a place, find a way to be in ministry, to give yourself away in the name of our lord and savior Jesus Christ.
No comments:
Post a Comment