RESOLVE TO BE THE CHURCH GOD INTENDS HIS CHURCH TO BE : MAKE AND EQUIP 2024

Introduction

Welcome….…

Story about Christmas with the families…..\

…i really love hanging out with my family and I am so thankful that we all get along and love to be with one another.

SPENDING TIME WITH FAMILY IS ONE OF THE MOST SPECIAL BLESSINGS WE HAVE IN THIS LIFE.

TRANSITION: Did you know that One of the apostle Paul’s favorite descriptions for the church is A family.

in fact he uses the term brethren or brothers over 60 times in his letters when speaking to the church.

As we begin a new year together as a church family, I believe it is good for us to be reminded of who we are and why we exist .

To Make and Equip Followers of Jesus Christ in Clear Lake and around the World.

And in order for our church to be the church God intends his church to be We must stay on Mission,

We must be a church that keeps our focus on Christ- Making and Equipping Disciples.

This morning we begin a 3 part series on being a healthy church family.

Friends, the only way that our church can be a church that makes and equips Followers of Jesus is if we act like the family God has made us to be.

But the truth is, that Just like our own families- We can let sin creep in and tare us apart.

leaving us broken and dysfunctional when it comes to being the Church God intends His church to be.

A dysfunctional family is a difficult thing to watch. We’ve all been there,

When people in a family do not get along, when their relationships start to fall apart, when walls build up and communication stops to happen,

The family no longer functions as a whole but slowly and gradually falls farther apart.

This same thing happens too often in our churches today

People stop getting along, they stop communicating, they serving one another and instead of offering grace when they disagree they become selfish and prideful and walls begin to build up, friendships cease to exist,, communication becomes shallow, and the church no longer is affective in being the church that God intends his church to be.!

Church gets messy sometimes, doesn't it? Why? because It’s a filled with a bunch of sinners, Who still do sinful things.

Friends- No Family is perfect Including the church, But just like a child who still needs His imperfect family to nurture and care for him, The Child of God needs His church family if he is going to grow up in the Lord.

Brothers and sister- understand that you cannot live a healthy Christian life without the church.

We need one another. and that means that we need to be a family that is healthy in every relationship we have in the church.

For the next 3 weeks we are going to look at 1 Thess. 5 where Paul Lays out three Relationships in the church Family that must be healthy if a church is going to be a church that is effective in Making and Equipping Followers of Jesus..

Today we are going to look at the first relationship

between the

Pastor and the People

1 Thessalonians 5:12–13 (ESV)

12 We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, 13 and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves.

The relationship between the pastor and people is essential for the church to do its work and accomplish its mission.

However, for these relationships to work, each group has to understand its specific role within the church.

and in this text we see three responsibilities the pastor with the people:

Look at our text again...…

1 Thessalonians 5:12–13 (ESV)

12 We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, 13 and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves.

the Pastors role is 3 fold to work, to lead, and to teach the people in the church.

just like in the home God has established leadership in the church.

But that leadership is not meant as a dictatorship but as a servant leader. the pastor is called to Shepherd the Flock of God the way that Christ would shepherd if he were here himself.

and the first way that he does this is to work hard among the people!

The Pastor is to Work:

The term "labor" in Greek, when translated, conveys the idea of expending energy to the extent of weariness or fatigue.

It carries with it the idea that the pastor isn’t worried about getting his hands dirty, He does the job that is required to care for the sheep he has been given to care for.

Notice it doesn’t say that the pastor is to labor over the people like he is above them, But he is to labor among the people-

A pastor who labors well is one who jumps in and helps where help is needed.

Their motivation isn't driven by monetary rewards, or benefits, or even prestige, but Rather, they understand that their ministry is a profound calling to shepherd the flock of Christ - to care for their needs.

Trans: A Pastor isn’t just called to be a hard working servant, he is also called to lead the flock of Christ.

verse 12 says that pastors are over the church in the Lord……

The Pastor is to Lead:

The word translated “over you” or “Lead” in this verse literally means “to stand Before the group” To be an example to follow……

This carries with it the idea that it is his responsibility to give direction for the church.

it’s the concept of oversight or overseer

in 1 Peter 5:1-3 Peter is addressing the pastors of the churches in Asia…

1 Peter 5:1–3 (ESV)

1 So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: 2 shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; 3 not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.

The pastor has been given the responsibility from Christ to shepherd the flock,

and just like a shepherd leads his sheep to food and water,& protects them from wolves that want to devour them, so a pastor has been given the responsibility to lead his church to the spiritual food and water from Gods word. and to protect them from spiritual harm

Practically speaking this means that :

the pastor should oversee the teaching & preaching of the Word of God, It is his responsibility to make sure that what the church is being taught is in line with the word of God

The pastor as the shepherd should care for the spiritual well being of the sheep. It is his responsibility to make sure that every one in the church is getting the spiritual food that they need in order to grow in their walk with God.

The pastor’s role as overseer is not an easy role to fill- He is called to oversee Christ’s church while Christ is away as if Christ was the one leading the church himself.

Trans: the 3rd responsibility we see from this text that the pastor has towards the church is that:

The Pastor is to Teach:

vs 12 “ and admonish you”

The Greek Word translated to Admonish means “to put into the mind, or warn”

This word carries with it the idea of confronting a sinful habit or warning someone against a behavior that is not pleasing to the Lord.

Paul speaks often of this responsibility that pastors carry.

Colossians 1:28 (ESV)

28 Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ.

Colossians 3:16 (ESV)

16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

as your pastor,It’s fun for me to encourage you and build you up when you are follow God and doing what is right, (Share Examples)

but Christ has called pastors to teach the flock of Christ and that includes times of admonition.

A godly pastor will lovingly speak Gods truth into the lives of his sheep to Correct inappropriate behavior and confront sinful attitudes becauas that is what Jesus would do if he was here himself..

Friends do you understand that one of the greatest ways a pastor can love you is to speak Gods truth into your life when you are slipping away in sin.

Paul is reminding the church in Thessalonica that their pastors have the solemn responsibility to address these things when they are present in their lives.

His point is simple -dont rebel when your pastor does the hard thing and steps into your life and offers admonition, becasue He has been called By Christ to keep watch over your soul.

Paul gives us 3 responsibilities pastors have when it comes to their relationship with the church,

They are called to work hard at serving the church to the point of fatigue.

they are called to Lead the church to the spiritual food and water they need to mature in Christ and to protect them from harm

They are called to teach the church what it looks like to be the church that God intends his church to be. and to root out sin Even when it is hard to do.

TRANS: So what is the responsibility for

the people to their pastor?

1 Thessalonians 5:12–13 (ESV)

12 We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, 13 and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work.’

Friends -a Healthy Church is a church where a pastor serves loves and teaches the body and the Body in response Honors and Respects their pastor.

So what does it look like for a church to honor and respect their pastor?

the first way I believe is to

Accept His calling.

When a church is looking for a new shepherd they should look for a man who has the gifts and character God says a pastor should have.

Look with me at 1 Timothy 3:1-7 at the qualification for a pastor

1 Timothy 3:1–7 ESV

1 The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. 2 Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 3 not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. 4 He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, 5 for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? 6 He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. 7 Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.

These are the qualifications the Bible has set fourth for a pastor.

When a church calls a man who is qualified to be their shepherd they have found a good thing

in fact in Ephesians 4 Paul calls the pastor a gift from God

look at what He says,..

Ephesians 4:11–12 (ESV)

11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,

Pastors are Christ’s gifts to the church.

Do you understand that God, in His sovereignty has given you someone to watch over your soul, to serve you, to love you, to lead you and to teach you

A Godly pastor is a gift from the Lord to his church,

When we as the church recognize his calling from the Lord we honor them and show them respect in the Lord.

We hold them in High esteem knowing that they have been given the responsibility to watch over our souls by the savior of our souls

And this means that They have been given spiritual authority from the Lord to serve, lead and teach you as the body of Christ.

A godly pastor is a gift from the Lord

And one of the best ways for a church to respect and honor a faithful pastor is to accept His calling as from the Lord and to follow Him as he follows Christ.

Trans: the 2nd way for a church to honor and respect a pastor is to…

Appreciate their ministry.

Being a pastor has so much reward.

In fact I cant think of anything i would rather do than to be your pastor right now.

I love getting to be part of what God has been doing in each of your lives.

I love sitting there as a sinner confesses His sin and gets right with his savior.

I love seeing Many of you follow the Lord in believers Baptism,

I love watching so many of you step up and serve in the church - in ways you may never have served before,

I love hearing How God is using you to take the gospel into your communities,

That’s the Joy of Pastoral Ministry.

But a faithful pastor doesn’t just get to do the joyous things- A faithful pastor is called to Admonish the church, to serve the church, to leads the church, and to Live as an example for the church to follow.

recently I was reading a 9Marks Journal where the author was asked to describe pastoral ministry for some young men thinking about the call to ministry.

“Pastoral ministry is not for everyone. It’s spiritually demanding. It’s emotionally demanding. It’s physically demanding. It subjects a man and his family to extraordinary burdens and pressures.”

and a godly pastor would say its worth it.

The point is this …There is nothing wrong with honoring faithful servants of God,

When you show appreciation for your pastors ministry you are showing honor and Respect, as the shepherd God has given you,

This is why Paul said 1 Tim. 5:17

1 Timothy 5:17 (ESV)

17 Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching.

A healthy church understand that It is dangerous when a church family takes their leaders for granted and fails to pray for them, work with them, and encourage them in the ministry.

The point here is simple A church that Honors and respects their pastor will take care of their pastor and show appreciation for what He does as their pastor.

3rd a church that honors and respects their pastor will—

Love Him as a brother.

(In Christ)

Think about it who a pastor is in relationship to Christ.

He was a sinner condemned because of his own sin- just like you

He was saved by Grace just like you

He is a redeemed Child of God - Just like you

He is a brother in the church- just like you

and He is still a sinner and growing in his walk with Jesus just like you.

We need to understand that there is only one perfect shepherd and it is not your pastor.

Every pastor you have ever had including me still battles the same temptations of sin as you do in your life.

and If pastor gets out of balance in his own life, his ministry will be weakened and possibly destroyed.

Because of this pastors need your brother love in their lives just as much as you need his .

Remember what brotherly love looks like?

1 Corinthians 13:4–8 (ESV)

4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never ends.

Friends when it comes to your pastor - choose to honor him with your love. understand that he is going to make mistakes, but chose to honor and respect him with the way that you love him as a brother in Christ.

Finally to respect and honor your pastor means to……

Obey their instructions.

If you truly believe that your pastor is a gift from God, called by God, to teach you God’s word and to lead you in your spiritual walk ,

and if you truly appreciate His ministry in your life, and if you truly love him as a brother in Christ than obedience to His instruction should be the natural outpouring from your life.

When a pastor teaches God’s word , Gods People should listen and obey.

Hebrews 13:17 (ESV)

17 Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.

Our obedience is not about the person its about the message he has been called to preach.

Friends, When God’s servant, led by God’s Spirit, calls us to obey God’s Word, then we must obey.

I want to be clear here…This doesn’t mean that we should blindly follow everything a preacher says,

Many Preachers get it wrong some times- this is why the scripture tells us to listen intently and search the scriptures on our own to make sure that what we are being taught is accurately preached from Gods Word.

The point is this, that even if your pastor makes mistakes and I can promise you Yours will, God still uses those broken men to preach his truth to his people.

when you listen to teaching and admonition from your pastor and Obey it shows him respect and Honor as your pastor.

Brothers and sisters how well are you doing at honoring and respecting the spiritual leaders God has placed into your life?

BRING IT HOME

……Brothers and sisters We cannot fulfill our mission of making and equipping followers of Jesus unless our relationships with one another in the church are healthy.

Too many times churches fall apart and become ineffective for the gospel because the relationship between the pastor and the people is broken.

It seems to me that Whenever you find division and dissension in a local church, it is usually because of selfishness and sin on the part of the pastor and leaders, or the members, or both.

RIGHT??? we’ve seen it in our own church at times,

When a pastor is too proud to humble himself when He is wrong it can destroy a church and ruin his effectiveness in ministry

and when the people’s hearts are prideful and not willing to submit and follow the pastor’s leading it will also destroy a church.

Friends, Pastors are called to shepherd the flock while Christ is away

they have been given the responsibility..

to labor hard for the church

to lead the church

and to teach the church Spiritual truth including correcting them when they need correction

And Because of this task their is no room for Pride or selfishness in the pastor’s Heart- He must humbly serve, love, and lead His Church.

And the Church in response Must Honor and Respect him as their Shepherd, as the gift God has given them even when he may fail at times in his own life.

Paul wraps up our text this morning telling us what it looks like when the relationship between the pastor and the people is healthy

He simply says in verse 12 “and be at peace among yourselves.”

Friends I believe we are at peace among our selves right now in this church and I praise God for that.

- But I also know that Satan hates it when our church is healthy and He is going to do everything He can to tare us apart.

He wants to drive a wedge between you and your pastor- DONT LET HIM HAVE IT!!!

We must understand that When the pastor does what the pastor is called to do and the church responds the way the church is called to do- THERE IS PEACE IN THE CHURCH and Satan will have no effect in our family.

Brothers and sisters- Stay strong in the Lord - and stand firm on this truth.

Today was part one of our three part series on Being the church God intends His church to be…

NEXT WEEK WILLIE WILL BE walking through the next 3 verses in this text and looking at Our relationship with one another in the church.

I want you to know that as your pastor- I love you and I am so thankful you are part of this church family. I dont take my repsonsibilty as your shepehrd lightly- I know that I will stand before Christ one day and give an answer to how I sheperhded this chruch,

if there is anyway that I have failed to serve you as your pastor please dont hold onto that pain, dont let it fester in your heart, dont let Satan use it to drive a wedge into our church family, Please come and talk with me so that we can make it right. I am not to proud to admit and confess where I have been wrong.

Lets be the church that God intends his church to be.

Let’s be a church that makes and equips followers of Christ in CL and around the world.

PRAY!

People and the People

People and the Savior