Encouragements and Charges

Recently I had someone comment to me: I was thinking about you and your situation and thinking to myself, if I was in Kenn’s shoes, what would I say on our last Sunday? And I didn’t come up with anything. What do you plan to say?

What does one say on a day like today? What does one preach?

I was thinking about several of Paul’s letters. Often he has a long, logical, connected letter, moving from topic to topic, building an argument and driving home application. Then at the end, he more or less gives final charges almost in a bullet pointed list.

Well, I am certainly far from an apostle, but I do kind of think that the things I will share with you now are more or less bullet pointed in that way.

Remember: God does not stop being God

This is essentially my sermon last week. God’s grace is sufficient for this.

God’s character and nature remains the same. His love for you is a great as it’s ever been.

His Word endures forever.

His Church in unconquerable.

Be encouraged: God does not stop being God.

It’s okay to mourn and grieve

I certainly have. Mourning and grief are normal and expected realities with the closing of our church. We have worshiped together, dined together, prayed together, served together, served one another, evangelized together, attended each others birthday parties, funerals of loved ones, graduation parties, etc. We’ve done life together and have loved each other.

We often hear about the concept of a church family, and it can so cliche for us, but I hope that you have felt that this really is a church family.

So when the doors close and we are nor longer functioning as a church, and the prospect of the Lord moving us to new church homes and we may not all end up in the same places, it is only natural that we are sad, we mourn, we grieve. You all have witnessed some of my own tears. These are tears borne of love and care for you all.

In our tears, I pray we can all find the moments of rest and trust in the Lord.

Though challenging, we must live with the tension that Solomon identified in Ecclesiastes 3.

There is a time to give birth, and a time to die, a time to plant, and a time to uproot what is planted, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, etc.

He concludes that section with these words

Ecclesiastes 3:11 LSB

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end.

God is accomplishing things beyond our comprehension, his providence oversee it all, His goodness governs it all, so that, in the end, even though painful, we will come to see the reality that God has made all things beautiful for their time. We may not see it in this life. We may not find out the work of God from the beginning to end, and yet there will be a day when we will see and understand. Ah. Now I see what you were doing. I hated it at the time, but wow it truly is beautiful.

Thus we can be as Paul says, sorrowful, yet always rejoicing.

It is good to avoid certain temptations that I think are common when a church closes it’s doors.

Beware of Common Temptations

1. Thinking of this as a failure.

From a strictly human perspective, some might classify the closing of our church as a failure. I don’t believe it is. To the degree that we were faithful in carrying out the ministry that the Lord has entrusted to us and commanded in his word, this ministry has been a success. The word of God has been proclaimed. The Gospel was spread. Your lives are different today because of the work of the Lord in and through you and those around you at this local assembly.

In Romans 9, Paul begins the chapter by lamenting the rejection of the Messiah by the Jews and wishes that they would be saved, even expressing that he was willing to be accursed himself if it meant that others could be saved.

But they remained in rejection. How do we think about this??

Paul says this:

Romans 9:6 LSB

But it is not as though the word of God has failed.

It is is not as though the word of God has failed.

Brothers and sister, the closing of our church does NOT mean the Gospel has failed!

The Gospel does not fail! The Word of God does not fail! As surely as the rains water the earth, so to does the word of God accomplish its purposes where it is sent!

The closing of this church does not stop the Gospel of Christ, and you and I must not be discouraged from proclaiming the glories of the Gospel! The Gospel must go forward!

It is as not as though the Gospel has failed.

It is not as though the church has failed.

Jesus promised that He would build His church and the gates hell would not prevail against it.

Matthew 16:18 LSB

I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.

This was not a promise that every individual local church would continue in perpetuity, but rather a promise that His global church would not fail to accomplish her mission before being called home in the rapture. The closing of our church does not mean that the Church has failed, because the church cannot fail, because Christ Himself is building and sustaining it!

I would like to share with you a text of Scripture that was immensely encouraging to me as we navigated these thing.

Acts 16:6–7 LSB

And they passed through the Phrygian and Galatian region, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia; and after they came to Mysia, they were trying to go into Bithynia, and the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them;

Paul was forbidden to go to Asia. Weren’t there lost people in Asia who needed Jesus? Yes. God has other plans for Paul.

Paul was not permitted to go Bithynia. Weren’t there lost people in Bithynia who needed Jesus?? Yes. God had other plans for Paul. What about all those people??

Not for Paul to worry about. He had to go where the Lord was leading him.

We don’t hear anything else about Bithynia until years later as Peter writes his epistle:

1 Peter 1:1 LSB

Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who reside as exiles, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia

Where? Asia. Bithynia.

Paul didn’t minister there. But someone else did, and there were believers, there was a church, in Asia, in Bithynia, and other places.

Brothers and Sisters, I hope you see the significance of this.

We know that Jeffersonville, New Albany, Clarksville, and all Southern Indiana need good churches. It may not be us. But that doesn’t mean God won’t use someone else.

This is not a failure, even if it is a redirection. Your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

I also want to let you know that we do not regret coming to Jeffersonville. We do not regret our time with you. Hindsight always reveals how we would do things differently. Impossible to know if those would have made a difference in the life or death of the church. But regret isn’t on the table, because this was not a failure. I’m sure if we gave you the opportunity, each of you could share how the Lord used this church in your life to grow you. Some of you have shared some that of with me already. I’d love to hear more.

2. Neglecting to find a new church home

We might be tempted to want to chill out for a few Sundays. We are going to feel discouraged and sad. My encouragement to you is not to take any Sundays off.

Heb 10 still applies. Do not neglect the assembling of yourselves together and all the more as you see the day drawing near! We talked about this on Wednesday evening.

You might be tempted to just visit around forever and never really “land” in a new place. Brothers and sisters, you and I don’t have that option! The local church is God’s plan for your life in this present age. We must not neglect to find a new church home.

3. Seeking the “perfect” church

Another temptation is to go out looking for the perfect church.

As if Pillar was that! You’ve all heard what to do when you find the perfect church. Stay away, because you’ll ruin it!

But this is a good time for a reminder: Other churches do things differently than we do. That’s okay. Other’s have different convictions in some areas. That can be okay. Some places sing different songs, observe the Lord’s table monthly or quarterly, preach shorter, even preach longer, if you can believe that!

If you approach this process like the rest of the consumer-driven market of our time, you are only contributing to the problems that plague our country when it comes to how we view church as a society. So don’t walk in asking “what can this church do for me?”

There are the primary things to keep in mind:

Is the Gospel proclaimed here? Is there clarity on the Gospel message?

Is the Word of God taught here? Will I find spiritual nourishment here through the unabashed exposition and application of the Scriptures?

Can I see myself serving with and for these people?

It might be helpful to review the definition of a local church that I have taught here on several occasions. I’ve included that on your handout.

You will not find a perfect church, but you will find imperfect church with an imperfect pastoral team, and pews with imperfect people occupying them. You’ll fit right in.

That doesn’t mean that you mustn’t be discerning. You need to make sure the Primary things are present! But, here is the next temptation:

4. Allowing a Spirit of discernment to give way to a spirit of pride

I will tell you right now. There are things you are going to disagree with at your next church. It is good to be discerning, don’t stop being discerning. But don’t allow a spirit of discernment to give way to pride.

Pride that says “my way is best” Pride that says “I know more than you”

Approach the search process with discernment, yes. But a humble discernment.

Finally,

Think of this as a Commissioning

When individuals are raised up to go to the mission field, their church will often commission them as they send them off.

I would like us to think of today as like that.

You have been equipped here. You have grown here. You have been taught here. You are an unusually mature and theologically savvy group of believers. A few months back, a pastor mentioned to me how desperate he is for mature believers to come to his church to help disciple the baby Christians. Who knows. Perhaps you are one of those believers he needs.

As we go out from here, you now have the opportunity to go an be a blessing to those church. God has given you spiritual gifts for the edification of the body. There is a church in our area that needs someone gifted as you are. This is now a commissioning service to send you to that church in order to bless them, encourage them, disciple them and be discipled by them.

And so I close with the words of Romans 12, as Paul wrote about Spiritual gifts and how we are conduct ourselves in the body of Christ.

Romans 12:9–13 NASB95

Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor; not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer, contributing to the needs of the saints, practicing hospitality.