Year in Review!

1 Corinthians 9:19–23 NIV

Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.

We are here to live for the gospel for the rest of the world

2 Corinthians 4:5 NIV

For what we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake.

This is the primary goal of the church. This is the ‘GREAT COMMISSION’.

That means

Adapting the METHOD to preserve the MESSAGE

The problem is, there’s so much clutter and so much noise.

And the world is so much different than it used to be.

It’s hard to communicate to someone when you speak a different language or have a radically different set of priorities or understanding

Teaching the world about Christ is about

Know the truth and know how to speak the language

This IS what Jesus did.

He spoke in many parables - he told stories using examples people knew, language they understood

He said - here’s what you know, here’s how what you know tells us something about God that you SHOULD know

But the WAY we do things - unless they’re carved in the pages of the bible itself, they’re just tools. And if they place a hurdle between us and a new person understanding God - are they actually worth it?

We may like certain things, we may have even grown up with certain things and it may be what we’re familiar with

But the point isn’t our comfort - it’s their rescue

In one story in the gospels, Jesus dons the garbs of a servant and washes the disciples feet

The cross wasn’t a comfortable experience

Hebrews 11:32–38 (NIV)

And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah, about David and Samuel and the prophets,

who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions,

quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies.

Women received back their dead, raised to life again. There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection.

Some faced jeers and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment.

They were put to death by stoning; they were sawed in two; they were killed by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated—

the world was not worthy of them.

The Gospel may take us to places that seem amazing in our own eyes, and it may ask everything of us.

But no matter what - when we respond to it, we’re in that category of people that Paul says ‘the world was not worthy of them’.

The point isn’t to be better - the point is to understand what’s really valuable

We aren’t here for us - we are here to

Prioritize the Gospel Rather than our own rights

1 Corinthians 10:33 (NIV)

For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.

This takes discipline.

Discipline means Voluntarily relinquishing our rights

Paul likens it to being a runner in a race. We want to see the win (the people around us knowing Jesus) - that means we need to do the prep.

FRIEND’S CHURCH, mostly new believers, had to aim low. Older christians were happy to see new life

Notice, the process started with Paul

He didn’t wait for someone to call him out, or miss something, before he was willing to change. He was, first and foremost, trying to actively find situations and ways to give up his rights

Walking down the street, seeing a homeless person vs actively donating to charities to see change made vs changing your lifestyle so that you can make the most opportunities to help people

Discipline means putting ourselves into strict training

Here’s a truth - you’ll never become a mature christian just sitting here listening to me.

Not a dig. You’ll have the same experience with the best preacher in the world.

But Christianity is more than just information, and being a christian is more than knowing the answers to test questions

Being a christian is about a radically changed lifestyle, a brand new set of god-and-other-focused priorities, and a drive to reach the rest of the world

Runners don’t just know the best way to run. They practice it, repeatedly, until it becomes a very part of who they are

The world class athletes aren’t simply the people who are naturally the best. They are the ones who have sharpened their body into an edge, a machine, with the aim of accomplishing their goal

As a christian, we need to be both learning and practicing

Learning means more than just sunday preaching

Practicing means more than just showing up

Our Vision is to reach everyone we can by any means necessary

Paul described this as ‘all things to all people so that by all possible means we may save some’.

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NOT FOR PREACHING BUT FOR CONSIDERATION

Best to spend less time in church, and more in the world - so long as that doesn’t reflect a lack of commitment

How could we do that in 2025?