The Church of Jesus Christ
Notes
Transcript
Jesus Is The Foundation
Jesus Is The Foundation
When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others, Elijah; still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
“But you,” he asked them, “who do you say that I am?”
Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus responded, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will have been loosed in heaven.” Then he gave the disciples orders to tell no one that he was the Messiah.
As Jesus speaks to Peter and tells him that He would build his church upon “this rock” Jesus is not saying that Peter would be the foundation of the church.
The founder ad the head of the church is Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ alone. However, Jesus does say something powerful here to Peter. Essentially saying, Peter you are far too faulty to have arrived here on your own. Thus asserting how the Holy Spirit works in the hearts of His servants.
It took the guidance of the Holy Spirit to have revealed this to you. While Peter was not the founder of the church, he was told that he would be a stone in the foundation of the church. But, the work of the Spirit in Peter was a qualifier to hold this position. So it is with us today.
Our church, both capital C and lower case C should be led by God who established the church, Jesus, who died for it and the Holy Spirit who sets it on fire. It’s this explanation given by Jesus and his proclaiming what the Holy Spirit was doing in Peter whereby we can say that if anything is guiding the church other than God, his Holy Spirit and therefore Spirit Filled leaders leading cross bearing disciples, this is where we encounter problems.
How many of you know that when people take power for themselves that rightly belongs to the Lord, that usually doesn’t end well. I pray that I would always be a Spirit filled leader who understands the task before me and respects the burden of my calling.
The Holy Spirit is an agent of the truth, he never operates outside of the truth of scripture. He never operates in secret. The will of God is that more people become aware of the works of the Gospel here on earth.
The truth is given to us in his word. A church is to be led by Spirit filled leaders who never operate outside of the Living Word of God. When leaders operate outside of the good order scripture, we drift into darkness.
A Firm Foundation church is one that knows that the Word of God leads us to faith and prayer.
The word of God says that His house is to be a house of prayer. Don’t know what faith looks like for you? Faith is trust that God is as good as he says he is. Hurt, loss, abuse can cause us to doubt the promise of God, amen? Can we be honest and real meeting in a tent? My trials have caused me to doubt God’s goodness. But, God is so good to draw me back to faith and demonstrates his love for me in that while I was still his enemy, he loved me enough to die so that I might be saved.
Therefore, since we also have such a large cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every hindrance and the sin that so easily ensnares us. Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For the joy that lay before him, he endured the cross, despising the shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
For consider him who endured such hostility from sinners against himself, so that you won’t grow weary and give up.
The Church of Jesus Christ is to be made up of spirit filled, praying people of the word.
These things lead us into faith and we are therefore promised that he will do the perfecting work of our faith. A faithful church is to be composed of people of prayer and people of the word. It’s in this that the individual discovers the highest truth (Truth Summit) that obedience to God always brings about life and therefore sin or disobedience to God will always bring about life.
It was true in the garden and it was true when I lose my patience with my children. It was true when Moses struck the rock after God had given him very specific instructions and it’s true when I allow the approval of men to determine my steps instead of God.
In like manner, it’s true when a steadfast dedication to scripture and prayer lead to a life filled with God directing our steps. As Psalm 119:133
Make my steps steady through your promise;
don’t let any sin dominate me.
Finally, the church of Jesus Christ is to be a united church. We need each other.
For just as the body is one and has many parts, and all the parts of that body, though many, are one body—so also is Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and we were all given one Spirit to drink. Indeed, the body is not one part but many. If the foot should say, “Because I’m not a hand, I don’t belong to the body,” it is not for that reason any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I’m not an eye, I don’t belong to the body,” it is not for that reason any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But as it is, God has arranged each one of the parts in the body just as he wanted. And if they were all the same part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” Or again, the head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” On the contrary, those parts of the body that are weaker are indispensable. And those parts of the body that we consider less honorable, we clothe these with greater honor, and our unrespectable parts are treated with greater respect, which our respectable parts do not need.
Instead, God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the less honorable, so that there would be no division in the body, but that the members would have the same concern for each other. So if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.
Now you are the body of Christ, and individual members of it.
The church, this church, your church needs you. It needs you to be intentional to know your gifting (Romans 12:6-8
According to the grace given to us, we have different gifts: If prophecy, use it according to the proportion of one’s faith; if service, use it in service; if teaching, in teaching; if exhorting, in exhortation; giving, with generosity; leading, with diligence; showing mercy, with cheerfulness.
(Left hand illustration and all my injuries.)
Have you been hurt by the church? Same.
However, I refuse to build our future ministry on anger, resentment, retribution and other things that do not honor God and are not worthy of my calling as an undersheperd.
The fact that I’ve clumsily smashed my hand over and over can’t mean that I will never pick up a tool again. I’m a homeowner, i’ve got things to do. Us, together…are workers in our father’s vineyard and we’ve to work to do yet and an injury can’t be the reason we don’t show up for work.
I wanted to leave the work of the Gospel. I tried to negotiate with God. And now, I disciple homeless recovering addicts and lead them to know the highest truth about God, Jesus and what He desires for their life. And here’s what I perceive God to be teaching me…I now closely identify with Jonah. Don’t miss the fact that Jonah was willing to jump out of the ship in the middle of a storm rather than obey God and head to Nineveh. Swallowed up by a large fish, still took this stubborn man a bit to repent and accept the call to Nineveh. Then he was spit up on the beach. Do you know that sometimes we have to spend time
INever underestimate how God will rebuild you. He’s the potter, we are the clay and it is his divine right and prerogative to smash it and rebuild it.
If we get hurt, disenfranchised, cut off, unfriended on facebook or unfollowed on Instagram…none of those things give us the biblical authority to write off the church. Jesus died suffered to purchase the church, we’re probably going to have to endure and push through some hurt to love His bride again. It’s ok to feel the pain of loss. It’s a part of living in this lost and fallen world.
If you’re here today…you took a risk. At some point you probably asked yourself…am I really about to go to church in a residential area, under a tent. You probably asked the question… “did I really just take communion eating a cracker from Costco and welches grape juice? “ It’s all so unorthodox to us in a 21st century context but, this I promise you, we’re not the first Christians to take communion in a tent.
If God gave you the ability to serve, you are a steward of that gift…what gives us the right to withhold it
Trust him again.