Faithful Development

There is something deeply satisfying when you watch something become better than it was. I often get pulled into these really satisfying videos that people create that show a time-lapse of the creation of art, or the growth of plants, or whatever. I don’t know. There’s just something soothing about it. Like order is being created out of disorder or something new is being created out of something that started out so small.

This is probably the greatest joy in parenting and probably the reason that people continue to be educators, even though there it’s such a difficult job. When you witness this person who you love, this person who you care for start to become the human being that you know they are capable of becoming… it’s incredible. When the lightbulb goes off and that child gets it — that’s where the magic is right?

I have a friend, who was actually my pastor for a lot of years. And one of his sons was in my youth group, and life’s been tough for him. He struggles with mental health stuff and with self esteem stuff and life just hasn’t quite unfolded for him the way that his family had hoped. The years have been really long. But just recently he was able to enroll in a career program at the local technical college and he’s learning welding.

Thursday morning I got a video sent to me of him welding, which is satisfying all on its own, but it came with a message from his dad that said “I literally cried when I saw this.” Like a sweet release, a vision of hope in a space that has seemed like such a struggle. He’s finally getting it. He’s finally found something worth waking up every morning to do.

Honestly that’s the whole reason I follow Jesus. That’s the whole reason that I’m a pastor. Because when people get it… when people’s lives begin to change… those are precious moments that I wouldn’t change for anything.

We are in a series called “This is Us” and what we are looking at here is a new mission, vision, and values for First Church that will create a vital future. Here at first church we are Flooding the Treasure Coast with the Transformational Love of Jesus. We believe that we will Create, Equip, and Mobilize 610 disciples by the year 2030 so that heaven and earth collide on the treasure coast. We want people from the top of Indian River County to the bottom of Martin County to know that Fort Pierce is a place where the love of Jesus is tangible, and we will know that we are right smack in the middle of it all.

We are going to accomplish this huge goal by leaning into our core values. Last week we talked about Passionate Worship. This week we are moving into our next core value: Faithful Development.

There is no greater joy than watching a person mature in their faith. To see them move from wherever they are in their journey into a deep and abiding relationship with Jesus is the reason that we, the church exist. It’s the reason that we follow Jesus. Transformed lives are infectious. Transformed lives are what we live for, because transformed lives influence and transform the world around them.

The Apostle Paul wrote these words to the church at Ephesus regarding growth and christian development:

Ephesians 4:7–16 NRSV

But each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore it is said, “When he ascended on high he made captivity itself a captive; he gave gifts to his people.” (When it says, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is the same one who ascended far above all the heavens, so that he might fill all things.) The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.

So Paul’s reasoning goes like this:

Christ gave us all a gift (which earlier he states is the Holy Spirit) and that gift has bestowed graces and gifting upon each person.

These gifts are that some people would be professional Christians — essentially set apart ones: Apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. Which makes me think like… wait that’s 5 different jobs. But in modernity we make 1 person the pastor and tell them to do and be all of those things. Gonna have to talk to corporate about that… but anyway. The job of these people or person — vocational Christians is to equip the saints.

And ya’ll know who the saints are? YOU. Congrats. Paul thinks you all… all y’all, Yes even you are a saint. And you got a job to do. The work of ministry for the building up of the body of Christ. Maybe I won’t call corporate because Paul just told me I have a lot of co-workers. And you heard it too.

And the purpose of our work is to bring this world into the unity of faith and knowledge of Jesus and to develop the world into mature people who are like Christ. AKA MAKE DISCIPLES.

You see how this is working?

We are all in this together. 610 disciples is a lot. I don’t even know 610 people. But there’s about 130 people who worship here every Sunday. That means that if each of you would invest in the spiritual development — from invitation to maturity — of 4.69 people (let’s call it an even 5 and blow our goal out of the water) 5 people over the next 6 years we would be in really good shape.

That sounds super easy, but trust me. You’re all humans, you know how humans are. Not always the easiest. We like taking one step forward and two steps back. A lot.

And so one of the things that we need to make sure is that we are personally on a path of maturity as Christians. And I’m sure that you’re all mature… but Christian maturity isn’t a destination so much as it’s a journey. We are always capable of growing and learning and being discipled ourselves. Our consistent connection to God is what empowers us to go and pour into the people that God is calling us to minister to.

Jesus was deep into the game of transforming lives, I mean it’s basically the entire reason that he came to live a human life. There are lot’s of stories of lives that Jesus transformed, but I want to focus on one in particular, because this guy is like worst case scenario for when you’re trying to work with someone.

He’s a man named Peter. Now Peter was a fisherman by trade, a bit rough around the edges. Also a real kind of know it all dude. But Jesus called Peter to follow him and Peter did. And Peter caused Jesus a lot of headaches. In fact, in the Gospels we consistently find Jesus withdrawing from his disciples and going to a secluded area to pray. Pretty sure that had a lot to do with Peter ok. But also, to illustrate my last point a bit… even Jesus needed to retreat and engage in some spiritual development. So you have no excuses ok.

But anyway. Peter is famous for doing some amazing things like walking on water with Jesus… and then losing faith and almost drowning. But despite all of his faults and shenanigans, Peter was the person that Jesus promised he would use to build his Church.

But even after that promise, Peter still messed up. On the night Jesus was betrayed Peter resorted to violence and cut a man’s ear off. On the day Jesus went to the cross, Peter denied even knowing Jesus on 3 separate occasions.

So that’s the kind of person we’re dealing with here… one step forward two steps back as I’ve said before. Peter’s all of us and Peter is everyone that we know or have ever tried to work with.

But here’s the deal with Peter. Peter’s story doesn’t end with denying that he was a follower of Jesus. Peter’s story was just getting started. You see after Jesus came out of the grave, Peter’s life of discipleship truly began. His mission to build the Church started. And it started with this interaction. Jesus and the disciples are eating breakfast on the beach, and Jesus turns his attention to Peter.

John 21:15–19 NRSV

When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.” A second time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Tend my sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” And he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go.” (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, “Follow me.”

And then Peter would go on to be the fiercest advocate for the Gospel — preaching to thousands and establishing the movement that would change the world forever.

Peter. The foolish one. The one who lacked faith. The one who threw Jesus’s teaching out the door at the onset of conflict. The one who hid and shamed his affiliation with Jesus in order to save his own neck. This guy. He started this whole thing that we are still devoting our lives to 2000 years later. Listen y’all. If this guy can do it, we can certainly do it.

Peter is not unique. Peter was a human being just like you and I. But at some point Peter finally got it. Sitting on that beach with Jesus Peter finally understood. The light went off. Feed my people. Develop my people. Teach them how to be like me.

So here’s the deal. We have all got growing to do. We’ve got to grow in our faith so that we can grow our church. You can’t give away what you don’t have. But aside from our own personal growth we need you to be invested in the next generation of Christians.

We need you to be pouring into the lives of people who are new Christians. We need you to be invested in starting programs here that target the next generation of Christians. You know that it’s much easier to create, equip, and mobilize disciples if those disciples are children and youth right?

Have you ever heard the adage that it’s easier to raise healthy children than to fix broken adults? Well the same principle applies to discipleship. Not that we don’t focus on the importance of adults, but the reality is that a lot of times those adults who need church have children that also really need church. And children have a way of bringing adults into church.

My family all goes to church. You want to know why? Because one day I came home and told my mom that I wanted to go to church. That was 30 years ago. She’s a disciple of Jesus.

So if we are about faithful development, it’s time that we move. It’s time that we step up. It’s time that we step into our future, create something new, and be a church that nurtures and faithfully develops disciples from the cradle to the grave. We have got to be all in on this, so are you all in? Do you believe we can do this? I do. I truly do.

This is what I want each of you to do every single day. Pray for our church to have a vital next generation ministry. Pray like you’ve never prayed before. Pray for children and families to be transformed by this church. Pray for that every single day. Set an alarm on your phone to remind you. I’m 100% serious about this. I believe that prayer works. I believe that this is that important, because our future and the future of our city depends on this. So will you do that. Will you pray with me every day for the foreseeable future? Let’s start now.