Contagious (3)

The Church Has Left The Building!

Ephesians 3:6–10 KJV 1900

That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel: Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power. Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,

We’re talking about how and why those of us who have experienced the amazing grace of God (and we know how fantastic it is to follow Christ) want to encourage others to accept God’s great love for them too! It’s only natural we would want others to share this wonderful experience.

In this series we’ve talked about the spiritual blessings we have “in Christ” that serve to inspire us to be contagious. We’ve considered how to create a “come as you are” culture in the church by establishing the biblical truth of “no perfect people allowed.”

All of those things are essential to being contagious – but there’s still one more essential to becoming contagious Christ followers and to becoming a contagious church.

The church must leave the building!

There are two main reasons the unchurched remain unchurched.

1) Either they

Think church is irrelevant

, which is a shame because worshipping God and being a part of Christian community and getting all this great practical truth out of the Word of God together is so VERY RELEVANT!

Or,

2) They mistakenly think church is

“ONLY FOR INSIDERS.”

Instead of being critical of our friends and family that don’t worship God, do we realize why the church isn’t very contagious sometimes? Sometimes we keep the Good News to ourselves. We may not realize we’re doing it and we certainly don’t want people to stay on the outside without finding a way in. But we haven’t done what the Bible tells us to do to "go."

That haunts me because I know that God wants everyone to experience and enjoy His love and His grace and His peace. WE DON’T WANT ANYONE TO THINK THE CHURCH IS JUST FOR INSIDERS!

So what can we do to erase these misconceptions? What can we do to dispel this haunting image? How do we effectively get the message across that the church is for everyone?

One thing we know for sure is that we need to be warm and welcoming to our guests.

Of course we need to balance our efforts and not try “too hard.”

Back when you were dating, did you ever go out on a date with someone that tried too hard? We’ve all probably made that mistake. We wanted to impress this girl or you wanted to impress this guy. Instead, you came across like a stalker. And so, when you tried to get them to go out with you again they said, “I’m sorry, I think I’m going to be busy for the next twenty years.”

We don’t want to scare people away from church but we do want them to know - AS FAR AS THE CHURCH THAT BELONGS TO JESUS – THERE ARE NO OUTSIDERS! So when they are our guests we give them a warm welcome.

Besides being warm and welcoming when guests arrive, there’s another often-overlooked plan to let people know they’re not outsiders. The church has to go OUT into the world because most of the unchurched are not going to come into the church.

THE CHURCH IS GOING TO HAVE TO LEAVE THE BUILDING IN ORDER TO BE CONTAGIOUS!

That’s the reason for the title to today’s message: “THE CHURCH HAS LEFT THE BUILDING!” If the unchurched are going to know that church is relevant, and that there are no outsiders, then the church must leave the building!

This principle is really rather ironic in the first place because the Bible never employs the word “church” to describe a building. Were you aware of that? Never!

The word “church” in the Bible never refers to bricks and mortar and wood and nails and lighting and decorations. In Scripture, “church” refers to the community of believers – it refers to the people, not the place. Do you know how we know this? The first church buildings weren’t even constructed until the church had been in existence for 3 to 4 hundred years! When the New Testament of the Bible was being written, there were no church buildings!

Even today, more Christians on the face of the earth gather together to worship God without the benefit of church buildings than those of us who do!

Faith Baptist Church doesn’t actually have a “church” building – We have met in a school and a house and we were the church every bit as much in those places as we ever have been!

According to Barna Research, one in four Americans who “do” church attend a non-traditional church every week. House churches are on the increase in America. 1 in 4!

Does that mean that church buildings are wrong? Of course not. They’re very practical. It’s great to have a place to get together and worship God and fellowship and minister to others and grow to be more like Christ.

But, of the many purposes of the church (worship, fellowship, ministry, discipleship, and evangelism), the one purpose of the church that is most effective outside the church building is evangelism.

Evangelism is sharing the Good News about Jesus. And we can evangelize inside the church building but in the New Testament of the Bible DO YOU REALIZE no one ever came to Christ inside a church building? No one was evangelized inside a church building! They didn’t have them!

People made faith commitments to Christ in jails, in their homes, out in the fields, on the road, etc. One man came to Christ sitting on his chariot, and one woman came to faith in Christ standing by a well. People decided to follow Christ at work, in their courtyards, on the mountainside - you name it.

All along God meant for the church to leave the building! The church has been sent by Jesus to “go” to the unchurched and tell them the Good News! The church has been directed by the Lord Jesus to leave the building! That’s a simple instruction given by Jesus over and over again in the New Testament. Let me give you one example.

Jesus said to his followers, Mark 16:15

Mark 16:15 KJV 1900

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

Circle that little two-letter word “go.” Those are the first two letters of the Good News. There’s no Good News without someone to “go” and tell it! Jesus said go everywhere “in the world”, not “to every church building you can find.”

Most churches and Christ followers basically do evangelism backwards. We often think, “Shouldn’t we want folks to come to Church and hear the Good News about Jesus and decide to trust Him?” Sure, but how are they going to get here if someone doesn’t go to them with the Good News? Why will they come if someone doesn’t encourage them to do so?

It’s like a Billy Graham Crusade. We often think about how many people Billy has won to Christ. Billy hasn’t won tens of thousands of people to Christ on his own. Someone had to invite those folks to the crusades. Someone had to advertise. Someone had to provide transportation. Someone had to pray. Someone had to pay the bills. Someone had to direct traffic.

Sharing the Good News about Jesus starts outside the building. The church must leave the building!

Now where do we get this idea from the Bible? Lots of places. But since we’ve been in the church letter to the Ephesians for the first three installments of this series on being contagious we’re going to finish in Ephesians.

The Bible talks about God’s plan for the church to leave the building in Ephesians chapter 3.

Three steps to God’s plan for the church to leave the building. Three steps to God’s evangelism plan.

INCLUDE EVERYONE!

God’s plan is for Christians to leave the building and go to everyone. Leave no stone unturned in seeking people to tell the Good News about Jesus to. Go to everyone because we never know who might be interested in coming to God. We don’t know to whom God has been speaking.

Where do we get this in the Ephesian church letter?

Ephesians 3:6 KJV 1900

That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel:

Paul explained this because it was widely believed in his day that Gentiles were “outsiders.” Even if they did come to God they had to become a Jew first. Christ changed that! There are no outsiders any more. Everyone who wants to can come directly to God through Jesus, God’s Son. God puts the “want to” in their hearts and its up to the church to go and share the Good News.

Apply this biblical principle to the unchurched today. Just because they’ve been on the outside of the church doesn’t mean that’s where God wants them to stay. God’s wants them to come to Him – He wants them to be a part of His church.

The church needs to see everyone as a potential believer. Christ’s church is not exclusive – it’s inclusive! No one is an outsider! Everyone is welcome. All are encouraged to receive God’s grace, mercy and love. The Scriptures teach this all over the place but let me give you one quick example.

Revelation 22:17 KJV 1900

And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

Circle those words, “let him that is athirst come” There are many thirsty people all around us. Don’t conclude that just because they haven’t come to God yet that they aren’t willing to.

God is making people thirsty all the time. He is dealing with their hearts and it’s up to the church, “the bride” to say, “Come!” So INCLUDE EVERYONE. Secondly…

HAVE CONFIDENCE!

Or you could say it this way, “Have confidence in yourself because God has confidence in you.”

Some Christ followers mistakenly believe they’re not good enough to share the Good News about Jesus, or they’re not knowledgeable enough of the Bible, or they’re not influential enough. Even the great Apostle Paul could have felt that way. He had a checkered past but look at what he said.

Ephesians 3:8 KJV 1900

Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;

Paul didn’t have self-confidence as much as he had God-confidence. He didn’t commission himself. God commissioned him.

Ephesians 3:20 KJV 1900

Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,

The power for sharing the Good News with others comes from God.

Acts 1:8 KJV 1900

But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

Include everyone, have confidence – and the third step in God’s plan…

THINK BIG!

We’re going to look at a verse of Scripture here that is very interesting. Something that arrests your attention.

Paul is sharing this whole concept of sharing the Good News to the Gentiles (who were previously outsiders) and he makes this almost dreamlike, this surreal statement.

Ephesians 3:10 KJV 1900

To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,

Say what?

“What are you getting at here Paul? Are you saying that angels in the unseen spiritual world are learning something about the wisdom of God “through the church” and the church’s efforts to share the Good News with people on the outside that God wants on the inside? Are you telling us that the angels are interested in finding out something that the church knows?”

There’s something mystical about this. It kind of makes the hair stand up on the back of you neck when you talk about angels peeking over the shoulders of the church. Paul wasn’t loosing his marbles. He wasn’t alone in this revelation.

The Apostle Peter also shared this sentiment.

1 Peter 1:12 KJV 1900

Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.

We can make several applications out of what the Bible is saying. But for the purpose of our present consideration let’s understand this. ANGELS WOULD NOT BE INTERESTED IN SOMETHING IF IT WEREN’T VITALLY IMPORTANT IN THE ETERNAL, UNSEEN SPIRITUAL REALM.

THIS THING CALLED THE “GOOD NEWS” THAT WE CHRIST FOLLOWERS SHARE – IS BIG! IT’S REALLY BIG! It’s meaningful, momentous, significant, relevant, and urgent. It’s fundamental, it’s essential, it’s primary, and it’s beyond words!

Louis Pasteur, the pioneer of immunology, lived at a time when thousands of people died each year of rabies. Pasteur had worked for years on a vaccine. Just as he was about to begin experimenting on himself, a 9-year-old, Joseph Meister, was bitten by a rabid dog. The boy’s mother begged Pasteur to experiment on her son. Pasteur injected Joseph for ten days--and the boy lived.

Decades later, of all the things Pasteur could have had etched on his headstone, he asked for three words: JOSEPH MEISTER LIVED.

Our greatest legacy will be those who live eternally because of our efforts.

The biggest thing you will ever do with your life, next to placing your faith in Jesus Christ, is to leave this building, and go to the unbelieving world and tell them the Good News about Jesus!