Our Mission - The Whole Gospel for the Whole Person, Locally, Regionally and Globally
Notes
Transcript
Throughout the history of the church different aspects of the Gospel message have been emphasised at different times.
Especially since the Reformation in the 1500 and 1600s we have seen a variety of expressions of the Gospel message.
Some have emphasised personal encounter with Christ, others the aspects of justice and community redemption, others the aspects of doctrine and faith.
In Baptist circles, especially since the 1950s until very recent times the major emphasis was on personal faith in the sense of a decision to follow Christ and declaring the Gospel message.
It was all about the faith decision and then leading an upright life.
The elements of justice, charity and community, while sometimes present, were quite minor in comparison.
I remember the impact this had on the culture of some of our churches because it caused me a great deal of hurt on a few occassions.
I was preaching one Sunday morning in 1998 when I was the Youth Pastor at Islington and felt led to use the theme and prepared points from our denominational missions agency.
The title of the Sermon was “Eradicating Poverty is the Contemporary Challenge of Christianity”
Now it was the 62nd sermon I ever preached and I thought it was a very good application of the Gospel message.
But what I didn’t understand at the time was that in this part of the Baptist world anything to do with social justice was viewed with great suspicion.
Social justice was seen as a betrayal of the Gospel message of personal repentance.
So much so that when Baptist Care was set up in NSW it was established as a seperate entity to the denomination because such things were seen as suspect and not really part of the Gospel.
Well as I stood near the door in the foyer after the service one old man walked past and said quite firmly to the interim pastor and elder, “that wasn’t the Gospel it was social gospel.”
I was devastated and later tried to resign, but wisely this elder wouldn’t accept my resignation.
The Gospel message is the Good News that Jesus is the Messiah come into the world, that all who repent and believe in him will be saved and spend eternity in God’s presence.
It requires obedience to Christ’s commands and includes his teachings and examples.
Sadly all to often people forget that evangelism and personal repentance is only part of the story.
Christ called us to make disciples.
Christ followers who will live out his teachings, including the bit about loving our neighbour.
There are different aspects to the Good News and we are commanded to take up all of them, not just the part that gets you the ticket to heaven.
In fact I fear that the ticket without the evidence of living out the Good News is a forgery.
Jesus said in Matthew 25:41-46
41 “Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. 42 For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. 43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’ 44 “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’ 45 “And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’ 46 “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.”
And in Matthew 7:21-23
21 “Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. 22 On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ 23 But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’
Applying Christian ethics to social problems, especially issues such as justice, inequality, poverty, crime, racial discrimination, environment, education, war and exploitation is a part of the Gospel story.
But it is not the whole story, because the danger is that if we make this aspect of the Gospel story the whole story we mistake doing good with becoming good in God’s eyes because we are transformed by Christ.
Redemption, being made right in God’s sight is the beginning of the journey, not the sum total of the journey.
The Great Commission reveals the wholeness of the Gospel
The Great Commission as expressed in Matthew 28:16-20, Luke 24:47-49, Mark 16:15-18 and Acts 1:7-8 contains a number of commands which I believe show us the wholeness of the Gospel message which we are called to live out.
Christ is Lord, forgiveness is found only in Him
18 Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth.
47 It was also written that this message would be proclaimed in the authority of his name to all the nations, beginning in Jerusalem: ‘There is forgiveness of sins for all who repent.’
We are commanded to make disciples of all peoples
19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
15 And then he told them, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone. 16 Anyone who believes and is baptized will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe will be condemned.
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
We are to teach disciples to obey all Christ’s commands
20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
The Holy Spirit is given to believers to empower them for sanctification and ministry
20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
49 “And now I will send the Holy Spirit, just as my Father promised. But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven.”
17 These miraculous signs will accompany those who believe: They will cast out demons in my name, and they will speak in new languages. 18 They will be able to handle snakes with safety, and if they drink anything poisonous, it won’t hurt them. They will be able to place their hands on the sick, and they will be healed.”
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Christ is Lord, forgiveness is found only in him
We are commanded to make disciples of all peoples
We are to teach disciples to obey all Christ’s commands
The Holy Spirit is given to believers to empower them for sanctification and ministry
There is such an incredible amount to unpack in this short summary.
But as you can see it is to easy to overemphasis one aspect over the others and therefore miss the wholeness of the Gospel
As a church we need to always be careful to remember the entirety of the message and make sure that we don’t forget any part especially the parts that are difficult or uncomfortable.
The parts that Jesus so often pointed out as evidence of genuinely being his followers.
We can’t do everything, but everyone can do something and each one has their gifting and their passions.
If your part is being an evangelist, great be an evangelist and encourage those who are not to be true to their gifting and passion.
If your part is to teach, then great be a teacher and encourage those who are not to be true to their gifting and passion.
If your part is to serve, great be a server and encourage those who are not to be true to their gifting and passion.
You get the idea.
The church as a whole is to bring the whole Gospel to the whole person.
The task is to big for any one of us but together it is achievable.
The Apostle Paul summed up this approach in Romans 12
6 In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. 7 If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. 8 If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly. 9 Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. 10 Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. 11 Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. 12 Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. 13 When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.
We each have an incredibly important part to play.
What is yours this year?
Is it to help with the community picnics, or the hampers, is it as part of the worship team, is it as part of the administration team, or the set up team?
Is it in leading or helping with a kid’s club?
Is it showing hospitality to new people, or discipling someone one on one?
Is it inviting people to events?
Some people need to see our love in practical action to hear the Gospel.
Some people need to hear our words of explination to hear the Gospel.
Some people need to simply be loved in friendship to hear the Gospel.
Some people need to hear our challenge to accept Christ to hear the Gospel.
When we see someone do we see the whole person and do we think to see what part of the Gospel they need to experience in order to be open to receiving the core message that Christ is Lord and in him alone is the forgiveness of sins?