What’s Next?

Intro

Wow! What a day, what a special time to set aside and celebrate what the Lord has done through this church over the last 32 years.

Praise God for His faithfulness to us through each year!

Over the last 32 years, many of you know this, we have seen many ups and downs as a church. Just in the 26 that I have been alive and attending here, I have seen the enemy attack us, people come and leave, but I have also seen the Lord bless us in mighty ways!

Since taking the pastorate in 2022, I have seen God move in this church in ways I cannot explain, and I praise God for that.

As we work for the Kingdom of God and His glory, and after doing it for so long, we can be tempted to ask, what’s next?

We have done about all we know to do some days it seems. We have tried all there is to try.

So, after 32 years, do we just pack it in?

Do we just say “It’s been a good run, time to go home?”

Surely not!

So, what’s next for Genesis Church? What can we do from here on out?

Hebrews 12:1–3 “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.”

Simply put this morning, what do we do now? We keep on!

We Keep On!

At times, we can feel discouraged that events or plans didn’t quite go the way we thought they would. Events didn’t lead to growth, growth happened but wasn’t sustained, things don’t go our way, and we feel down about it.

However, when we do that, we can forget what the main priority of the church is: keeping on.

What do I mean by that? What do we keep on doing?

Run with Patience

In the words of the write of Hebrews, first things first, we put aside the sin that besets us, we lay aside the weight, guilt, and shame of our sin, and we run with patience the race that is set before us, looking only to Jesus as the end goal!

We keep running the race individually and corporately.

We keep doing what the Lord has called us to collectively and personally.

As we run with patience, we must remember what patient running looks like.

So often in the Christian faith and in the Church, we want to run sprints. We want to do everything all at once, see our local church grow to the largest in the county, and then keep climbing.

But, this isn’t running with patience.

Running with patience is a marathon. It is long. It lasts a lifetime. And, when you get to the quarter mark, the midway mark, the 32 year mark, things can at times see tough. There aren’t as many people cheering you on, the tables with water are few and far between, you may even be by yourself at that time.

But, you know what awaits, you know the finish line is just up ahead, so, you keep running. You keep your eye on the prize, on the crown of eternal life, on Jesus, the author and finisher, beginning and end, alpha and omega of our faith!

Church, as you run with patience, there are a few specifics that we as a church need to keep doing at a good pace.

Serving

The first is serving.

May we never forget that a primary responsibility of the church is to serve each other and the community around us. Our church serves. Keep serving.

Serving is draining and exhausting at times, but it is the duty to which we are all called. To sacrifice self, finances, time, and energy in order to serve others and put them first and foremost.

Help the needy, serve the community, clothe the naked, feed the hungry.

These are all New Testament tenets to which we are all called.

Serve like Jesus served.

How else can we keep on and run with patience?

Worship

“Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.”

Keep on worshipping!

Come on Sunday and Wednesday and worship God collectively, come expecting something good to take place, participate in worship!

Sing the songs with your heart, listen to the message with attention, teach and learn!

God is worthy of our constant and continual worship, so worship!

However, worship cannot start Sunday morning and end Sunday morning.

You must worship through the week! You really want worship to be meaningful right here? Worship at all times! Worship with your music, your reading, your tongue, your heart, your attitude.

Worship at home, at work, in your car, at the store.

Worship God by living a pleasing life unto Him.

Worship at all times!

In the words of the Psalmist, proclaim

Psalm 34:1 “I will bless the Lord at all times: His praise shall continually be in my mouth.”

Spread Jesus

Finally, how can we keep on running with patience? make it a life practice to lead souls to Jesus.

This goes right along with worship, as the best form of evangelism is to live our Christ in a way that shows Him to even the person you like the least.

Individually and corporately, you must spread Jesus and His Gospel to the uttermost, the least of these, the neighbor, the coworker, the cashier, the bank teller, the person who cut you off in traffic.

How? Do we have to recite Scripture or super-spiritualize every conversation? No! We just have to live and love like Christ did.

Each person you come in contact with is a person Jesus died for, remember that. Hold to that truth even when you are fuming with someone.

If Jesus died for me, and He died for them, then I can and should love them entirely.

Keep on!

Conclusion

After 32 years, what is next? What vision does the church have? How does the church continue?

We keep on!

We keep on running the marathon with patience, looking to the end, looking to Jesus, looking to eternal life with Him forever.

We keep on serving

We keep on loving

We keep on worshipping

We keep on spreading the Good News of Jesus

When times seem gloom and doom, the church plateaus again in growth, we don’t know what is next, just keep on.

Just trust God to continue to work in and through each of you individually and collectively as Genesis Church.

Put into personal practice the life of Christ and keep on serving Jesus.