When We Gather

Poll: How many of you would agree with the statement: “God used the ordinary, weekly gathering of the church, like this one, to lead me to salvation?”

Maybe you didn’t come to faith in a church service, on Sunday morning.

Maybe it was a revival, a youth camp, VBS, or at home with your parents, but the public gathering of the church; the singing, preaching, and praying together of the people of God, had a part to play in most of our conversions.

It was the case for me.

Seeing and hearing people sing out to the Lord and engage with the Word.

Hearing the preaching of the Word and the power of the Holy Spirit in convicting people of sin and drawing people to faith were the factors that contributed to me seeing my sin and my need for a Savior.

Here’s the case that doesn’t need to be made: What we are do every Sunday when we gather together for Worship is a powerful evangelistic opportunity.

That case doesn’t really need to be made, because we really already know that don’t we?

Of course, evangelism (of the telling of others about Jesus and calling them to trust Him for salvation) isn’t the ONLY reason we gather.

We gather to be strengthened, challenged, and encouraged as believers.

And we gather to praise and worship the Lord together with our brothers and sisters in the faith.

And we gather to learn more about Him and practice the ordinances of the faith, baptism and communion.

But even those pieces of our service have an intended purpose to present the glory, goodness, greatness, and grace of God to those who do not yet know Him.

We kind of know that don’t we? Since those very things were used to draw us to Jesus.

Here’s why this case needs to be made.

We don’t really grasp that God designed for us to gather and that one of His main reasons for our gatherings was to that those on the outside would witness our worship and be drawn to our Savior.

Let me show you:

The Church Gathered as a means for promoting the Gospel

Throughout the entire bible, God has been clear about His mission for His people, they are to be His witnesses to the nations.

The book of Psalms was given for the people to come together to praise God in earshot of the those to do not yet believe.

The Jewish Temple was designed with a Gentile court and was a place for non-Jews to witness the praise of God as the people of God sang the Psalms in praise.

God’s desire was for His people to gathered together in order that to proclaim His glory to those listening in.

The coming of Jesus didn’t change that desire and mission of God, rather is honed it and broadened it.

Listen to Paul’s Words in Romans 15:7-18

Romans 15:7–16 CSB

7 Therefore welcome one another, just as Christ also welcomed you, to the glory of God. 8 For I say that Christ became a servant of the circumcised on behalf of God’s truth, to confirm the promises to the fathers, 9 and so that Gentiles may glorify God for his mercy. As it is written, Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles, and I will sing praise to your name. 10 Again it says, Rejoice, you Gentiles, with his people! 11 And again, Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles; let all the peoples praise him! 12 And again, Isaiah says, The root of Jesse will appear, the one who rises to rule the Gentiles; the Gentiles will hope in him. 13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you believe so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. 14 My brothers and sisters, I myself am convinced about you that you also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, and able to instruct one another. 15 Nevertheless, I have written to remind you more boldly on some points because of the grace given me by God 16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles, serving as a priest of the gospel of God. God’s purpose is that the Gentiles may be an acceptable offering, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.

In quoting passages from Psalms, Deuteronomy, and Isaiah, Paul is connecting the mission of inviting the Gentiles to join in singing praises to God with the Churches mission and purpose.

romans 15 15-16

Romans 15:15–16 (CSB)

15 Nevertheless, I have written to remind you more boldly on some points because of the grace given me by God 16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles, serving as a priest of the gospel of God. God’s purpose is that the Gentiles may be an acceptable offering, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.

“Understand your purpose brothers and sisters when you come together to sing and worship God, that those outside the faith might be welcomed and witness your praise.”

This verse is connected with 1 Peter 2:9

1 Peter 2:9 CSB

9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his possession, so that you may proclaim the praises of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

Peter is writing to a persecuted group of Christians, gathering together as has been the custom of the Church since the moment we came into existence.

And Peter wants them to understand who they are TOGETHER.

They are a “Chosen Race”- not a particular skin color or nationality, but a people who share Father and who are a part of a bigger family.

They are a “royal priesthood”- a people who acts as a mirror to the nations of the Glory of God and to mediate God’s blessings to the nations.

They are a holy nation- A people set a part for the Lord, enjoying his special presence and favor.

And all these identifiers have the single purpose “so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”

The word “Proclaim” is not just preaching necessarily, but is a liturgical term coming straight out of the OT description of Israel's public praise.

Peter is speaking to the gathered church about the purpose of their gathering to praise.

The Bible gives a significant place to the normal gathering of God’s people as a means of declaring God’s truth to the world.

So here’s the point, what we do here on Sunday mornings is vitally important to the mission of leading people to Jesus and making disciples.

This doesn’t replace or usurp the importance and the responsibility of sharing the gospel as individuals as we talked about last week,

But we must understand the significance of a simple invite to a church service.

Now for the second part of my sermon.

6 Commitments I want to challenge us all to this year in view of this:

Six Commitments

1) INVITE intentionally

Research by sociology professor Rodney Stark shows that one of the key reasons evangelical churches grow is that their members simply “invite their neighbors to church”

I shared a few weeks back that there are more that 19,000 people in Ohio county that are not attending a Christian Church on Sunday mornings.

Right now there are some 19,000 people sitting at home, and many of them to not have a saving relationship with Jesus.

Some of them are you coworkers, some are your friends, some are the kids and parents your kids play sports with, and some are your own family members.

I am not giving you an easy way out of sharing the Gospel, but what I am challenging you to is, in addition to praying for and looking for opportunities to share Jesus, be intentional about inviting people you suspect are far from Christ to come to church with you.

We have invite cards and are working on a new website that should launch in the next week or so.

Send someone a text TODAY inviting them to church NEXT WEEK!

Send them our facebook page, our website (when it is done), and let them know when our services are.

Intentionally invite people to experience who we are here.

2) ATTEND consistently

If you are inviting someone to church then one of the most important commitments you can make is BEING HERE.

One of the most impactful things for guests is seeing a familiar (and friendly) face when the walk into a church service, especially the one that invited them.

Your presence here isn’t just for YOU, it is for those around you, both believer and nonbeliever; seasoned saint or recently saved.

We need one another, so we should all make the commitment to be here, “not neglecting to gather together as some are in the habit of doing.”

Make this time a priority.

3) PARTICIPATE enthusiastically

And don’t just show up…participate.

I want this to be really practical so I am going to go there.

I look around a lot during the singing and I notice a lot of you men aren’t even mouthing the words of the songs.

Even if you repeat “watermelon, cantaloupe” over and over again, you will at least trick me into believing you are singing.

But here’s the thing, Psalm 96 tells us to

Psalm 96:1–3 CSB

1 Sing a new song to the Lord; let the whole earth sing to the Lord. 2 Sing to the Lord, bless his name; proclaim his salvation from day to day. 3 Declare his glory among the nations, his wondrous works among all peoples.

What we do when we sing is more than what you do in your car driving down the interstate singing out to Taylor Swift.

We are PROCLAIMING the EXCELLENCIES of God through song.

I want to challenge you to sing, to participate in what is happening.

To engage with the word.

To bring and open you bible (or phone app).

To take notes

To say AMEN when you hear something that resonates in your mind or soul.

4) WELCOME graciously

Almost every week, we have people visiting our church.

Everybody here was at one time a first-time visitor, then a second-time visitor, and so on...

It feels nice to be welcomed doesn’t it.

Maybe you aren’t the most comfortable with talking to strangers, but you stumbling through an awkward greeting is MUCH less awkward than no one saying anything at all.

A survey of spiritual “seekers” found that the top motivators for considering a church are knowing that everyone will be welcomed (32%), making friends and nurturing friendships (29%), support during difficult times (28%), and learning more about God (27%).

Just simply being a smiling face and having a welcoming word could go a LONG way toward someone feeling comfortable in what is likely and uncomfortable setting.

Find people you don’t know.

Introduce yourself

shake their hand

Ask them how long they have been coming to EHBC

and genuinely say “it is great to meet you!”

Be welcoming.

5) SERVE sacrificially

What we do every week as a church requires more than just a worship band and a preacher.

Every week we have people who serve by making coffee, welcoming people in the parking lot, welcoming people as they come in the door, providing security and safety for our kids as they check in across the street, take of the offering, and teach/lead our kids ministry from 0-6th grade.

All these things come together serve the people that come here every week.

And honestly, we really need some help.

Just last week we had a what amounted to a near catastrophe (a little exaggerated).

We were missing a couple of Sunday school teachers due to being out of town and then a third woke up sick on Sunday morning.

what was normally 3 Sunday school classes ended up being 1.

We believe what happens across the street and upstairs are important and impactful ways for us to connect with families and reach kids and their parents for Christ.

But we need help.

We need - 2 Sunday teachers for varying grades on a weekly or rotating basis.

We need SS subs who are willing to fill in when someone has to be out.

We need SS assistants who can be a help to our SS teachers and one day maybe step into their own class.

We really need to plan for growth and make space and so we need you to volunteer to serve.

There are other places we need people to help, but those are the most urgent needs.

And this isn’t JUST for the women, as if teaching kids is a woman’s task.

Men, we need you to step up as well. (I have been hard on you today, but necessarily).

If you are willing to serve, scan the QR code on the bulletin and let us know you are interested in volunteering.

6) FOLLOW-UP meaningfully

Last thing, I want to call us to commit to following up with people we meet and/or invite on Sunday mornings.

Every person who visits EHBC and fills out a card is contacted by one of us early in the week after they attend, but what if you called them up, asked them how they felt about the service, and invited them back?

Follow up is the most neglected aspect of ministry.

We feel like we did the job and now we are off the hook, but that just isn’t right.

meaningful, intentional follow-up gives us the opportunity to answer questions, encourage, and guide people as they connect or reconnect with church.

Follow-up also gives us opportunities for hospitality and, maybe even, sharing the gospel.

Closing

1 Peter 2:9 CSB

9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his possession, so that you may proclaim the praises of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

When we gather to declare the wonders of God we are engaged in promoting God’s glory to the world.

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