God’s Recipe for a Rising Church

Start timer, read, and pray.

Matthew 13:33 NASB95

He spoke another parable to them, “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three pecks of flour until it was all leavened.”

Amy McCarthy in Eater:

Considering that basically everything going on in the world right now is terrible, it’s pretty obvious why people are looking to slow hobbies that pry our eyes away from our screens…I have bought (and spilled) so much flour, scrubbed countless crusty jars, and baked more than my fair share of failed loaves. I’ve saved a ridiculous number of recipes for crackers and cookies and crepes that (mostly) use up the never-ending supply of sourdough discard that is always in my kitchen. I have become, regrettably, a Bread Bro…And yet, my brain feels calmer than it has in months. There’s an incredibly meditative appeal to the sourdough process. Once you’ve done the math — my least favorite part — and stirred together a rough dough, everything else just flows. I have come to enjoy the repetitive motion of kneading, a task I avoided almost altogether when I was only baking with commercial yeasts. I am, finally, leaving the dough alone during the fermentation process instead of fretting endlessly about its rise, and my bread is much better for it. Patience, it turns out, is a virtue.

(35m)

In God’s recipe for a rising church…

Ingredient #1: Hospitable Christians

Acts 21:7–8 NASB95

When we had finished the voyage from Tyre, we arrived at Ptolemais, and after greeting the brethren, we stayed with them for a day. On the next day we left and came to Caesarea, and entering the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, we stayed with him.

We should think more about how to use our homes to encourage God’s people.

― Rosaria Champagne Butterfield, The Gospel Comes with a House Key

“Our post-Christian neighbors need to hear and see and taste and feel authentic Christianity, hospitality spreading from every Christian home that includes neighbors in prayer, food, friendship, childcare, dog walking, and all the daily matters upon which friendships are built.”

(30m)

In God’s recipe for a rising church…

Ingredient #2: Brave Christians

Acts 21:9–14 NASB95

Now this man had four virgin daughters who were prophetesses. As we were staying there for some days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. And coming to us, he took Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, “This is what the Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’ ” When we had heard this, we as well as the local residents began begging him not to go up to Jerusalem. Then Paul answered, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, remarking, “The will of the Lord be done!”

These men and women who were prophets showed bravery with their words by speaking hard truth and bravery in their actions by going out of their way to do so.

The church didn’t give up on convincing Paul by becoming silent, they gave up on convincing God. If we want to be brave Christians, sometimes we have to be silent and declare that God’s will is best even if we have to lose people we love.

(25m)

In God’s recipe for a rising church…

Ingredient #3: Storytelling Christians

Acts 21:15–19 NASB95

After these days we got ready and started on our way up to Jerusalem. Some of the disciples from Caesarea also came with us, taking us to Mnason of Cyprus, a disciple of long standing with whom we were to lodge. After we arrived in Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly. And the following day Paul went in with us to James, and all the elders were present. After he had greeted them, he began to relate one by one the things which God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry.

Every Christian has a personal story.

Mnason - Possibly a Hellenistic Jew who would have been comfortable housing Paul’s Gentile companions. Possibly converted at Pentecost.

James - The brother of Jesus and leader of the church in Jerusalem.

Elders - Even though the Apostles were based out of Jerusalem, they handed over leadership in the church to local elders so they were free to plant churches and spread the Gospel.

Every Christian tells God’s story.

Pentecost (“fifty”) occurred 50 days after Passover. On this day, Jewish farmers began their journey to Jerusalem to offer their firstfruits at the Temple.

At Passover, God gave the Church power for life after death through Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection.

At Pentecost, God gave the Church power for life before death through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

Paul told specific stories about real people and events that took place on his journey. This was the firstfruits offering that he was bringing to Jerusalem to share with the Apostles and the original church there.

What story is God writing in your life? Are you sharing it with others?

(15m)

In God’s recipe for a rising church…

Ingredient #4: Humble Christians

Acts 21:20–26 NASB95

And when they heard it they began glorifying God; and they said to him, “You see, brother, how many thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed, and they are all zealous for the Law; and they have been told about you, that you are teaching all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children nor to walk according to the customs. “What, then, is to be done? They will certainly hear that you have come. “Therefore do this that we tell you. We have four men who are under a vow; take them and purify yourself along with them, and pay their expenses so that they may shave their heads; and all will know that there is nothing to the things which they have been told about you, but that you yourself also walk orderly, keeping the Law. “But concerning the Gentiles who have believed, we wrote, having decided that they should abstain from meat sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from fornication.” Then Paul took the men, and the next day, purifying himself along with them, went into the temple giving notice of the completion of the days of purification, until the sacrifice was offered for each one of them.

Some of the Jewish believers still wanted to keep the Jewish Law and customs because of their heritage and not for salvation. Paul sets an example for what he teaches in Romans:

Romans 14 NASB95

Now accept the one who is weak in faith, but not for the purpose of passing judgment on his opinions. One person has faith that he may eat all things, but he who is weak eats vegetables only. The one who eats is not to regard with contempt the one who does not eat, and the one who does not eat is not to judge the one who eats, for God has accepted him. Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand. One person regards one day above another, another regards every day alike. Each person must be fully convinced in his own mind. He who observes the day, observes it for the Lord, and he who eats, does so for the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who eats not, for the Lord he does not eat, and gives thanks to God. For not one of us lives for himself, and not one dies for himself; for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and lived again, that He might be Lord both of the dead and of the living. But you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you regard your brother with contempt? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. For it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to Me, And every tongue shall give praise to God.” So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God. Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather determine this—not to put an obstacle or a stumbling block in a brother’s way. I know and am convinced in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself; but to him who thinks anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean. For if because of food your brother is hurt, you are no longer walking according to love. Do not destroy with your food him for whom Christ died. Therefore do not let what is for you a good thing be spoken of as evil; for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. For he who in this way serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men. So then we pursue the things which make for peace and the building up of one another. Do not tear down the work of God for the sake of food. All things indeed are clean, but they are evil for the man who eats and gives offense. It is good not to eat meat or to drink wine, or to do anything by which your brother stumbles. The faith which you have, have as your own conviction before God. Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves. But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and whatever is not from faith is sin.

As Christians, we are a multicultural people. We all have different ethnic backgrounds, customs, foods, and worldviews that are different. God’s people have a particular culture as well.

We show humility when we honor the different cultures that our brothers and sisters come from without dishonoring our shared Christian culture.

The goal of enculturating a new believer in God’s church isn’t to remove their previous culture, but to sanctify it.

Sin must go, but other things can stay.

On racism…

The Devil has been promoting racism for thousands of years, but the lie behind racism is the idea that there are different classes of human beings. True Christianity categorically denies racism, because God has only made one human race.

People may have different cultures and characteristics, but they do not have different values.

We show humility by treating another person’s conscience as more important than our own.

We show humility by investing in things that others feel are important.

(5m)

CONCLUSION

Which one of these ingredients do you need more of in your life?

Hospitality - making people feel at home on Sunday mornings and throughout the week.

Bravery - having the guts to speak truth to people in a loving way, and trusting God’s plan.

Storytelling - thinking more about God’s story in the Bible and in my own life and telling others about what He’s done for me.

Humility - putting other peoples’ desires over my own and supporting our differences without compromising on scripture.

It won’t be perfect, but…

“Because you’re dealing with variable factors like humidity…sourdough is not a process that will bend to your will. Even control freaks will be humbled by sourdough’s unpredictability, and that’s a good thing. You can do everything “right,” and your loaf might still collapse into a dense, misshapen mess in the oven. But even if your bread is ugly and a little burned on the bottom, it will probably still taste pretty…good. Realizing that even if you “fail,” you have still succeeded, is a beautiful thing.”

Pray