Disciples Making Disciples Part 2

Welcome! It’s so good that you have come today. 😊 (If we have guests) If this is your first or second time with us, welcome! We are so glad you are here with us today. My name is Brian and I am the Senior Pastor here at CBC. If I did not already get the chance to meet you this morning, I hope you will have time to drop by our connection tables after the service this morning. I will be there with Gloria, my wife, and we’d love the chance to meet you. And maybe answer some questions you may have about us. Or if you won’t have time to stop and chat, you can use the connection card that is inside the trifold bulletin you should have received as you entered the building. Just take a few seconds during the service and jot down your contact information, and we will be happy to reach back out to you sometime this week. Let me just encourage everyone here today to use the connection card. You can list prayer request, or request information about our ministries. It’s simple to fill it out and drop it at the connection table on your way out. << show announcement slide>> VBS (June 6-9) Please PRAY for God's Blessings • Food Drive at Heritage Hills, Saturday June 16th AM (need trucks and runners) • Now Concerning- What Should International Missions look like in the next generation? If you’re not connected with any of our groups, let me encourage you to stop by our connection table. You can request information on any of the groups that meet. Ladies’ Group, Teens, Men’s Group, even Small Group Bible Studies. Let me just remind you that our usual Sunday Night Bible Study will begin Tonight. We will be continuing our Discussion Panel Format, where we encourage feedback from the pew. We have some very special guest on our panel tonight. We will be discussion how to create and sustain a multi-generational church. Whether you are a guest, a member, or somewhere in between, we are here to worship our Great and Awesome God. So let’s all stand and begin our worship with the reading of God’s Word together. Today’s reading comes from Hebrews 4:12-16 <<Responsive Reading>> “Remain Standing as we lift our voices in Song: Congregational 1- “This is Amazing Grace” Congregational 2- “Nothing But the Blood” Lord’s Supper The Lord Jesus the night before He was crucified gave instructions to the church to hold a memorial service that commemorated the sacrifice He was about to make. We call it the Lord's Supper or Communion.   In just a minute we are going to pass out pieces of broken bread and cups of grape juice.   The bread symbolizes the body of Jesus that was crucified for us. The grape juice symbolizes His blood that was shed for the remission of our sins.   Receiving the bread and juice, is a memorial. It does not impart any spiritual grace. It does not make one a Christian, nor secure their place in God's Kingdom.   It is a memorial for those who have already been given assurance of these things. When you take the bread and juice you are remembering how Jesus saved you.   By remembering this, we will be expressing our gratitude for our salvation. We will remember how we were saved by grace, and did not earn our way into God's favor.   In this remembrance we will be able to lay aside our differences. Put down any pride, or anger, or grudges we may have towards one another.   In this remembrance we please the Lord by living together in unity and love.   So as the elements are passed think on these things.   Lords' Supper Bread- 3:15  Read 1 Cor. 11:23-24  As the elements are passed please hold on to it until we all have one and I will pray for us all.<Pray>  Lord’s Supper Cup- 3:15  As the elements are passed please hold on to it until we all have one and I will pray for us all. <Pray> Corporate Prayer Congregational 3- “Our Great God” Special ? Sermon Intro Zack was a preacher’s kid, with a talent for music… “Dad, I’m bored with the music in the church” Dad says, “So do something about it, write some new songs” There was shock at first. Such music had never been sung in church before. But Zack’s father did not relent. He kept the music in the church. As Zack’s music begin to spread, the tension in the churches increased. Tempers frequently flared, and some churches actually split in the heat of this decidedly inharmonious musical conflict. In some churches a compromise was reached. The {traditional music} would be sung in the early part of the service with a the new music used at the close, during which time the parishioners could leave or simply refuse to sing. Many apparently did decide to walk out. So, in response to this, young Zack added these pointed words to the second line of a new song he had written. “ Let those refuse to sing who never knew our God; but children of the heav’nly King may speak their joys abroad.” (show the rest of the song) Reveal that “Zack” is actually Isaac Watts The church has actually been through 4 major conflicts regarding the worship music of the church. The first occurred in the early 1700’s. The Second came in the Mid 1800’s, with the works of Fanny Crosby, and Ira Sankey “All the Way My Saviour Leads Me”; “Blessed Assurance”; “I Am Thine, O Lord”; “Jesus, Keep Me Near the Cross”; “Rescue the Perishing”; “Tell Me the Story of Jesus” and “To God Be the Glory” The Third in the 1920-60 1980’s to today- “Contemporary Christian” music   NEXT SUNDAY- I’ve asked our youth to lead us in worship. Like Isaac Watt’s dad, I am concerned that their will be some shock, grumbling, maybe even a walk out or two. I’ve forewarned the kids not to take it too hard. But, remember the story of Isaac Watts, and that if His father had refused to go against the dissenting voices of tradition, we would not have the great songs that are in the Hymn books today- We might not even have “Joy to the World” So, what does all this have to do with Discipleship? That’s supposed to be our topic. This is our topic. Turn to 2 Timothy 2:1-2- (read those passages) Paul is very concerned that Timothy pass the Gospel on to the next generation IN SUCH A WAY that they will be able to pass it on to the next generation who will in turn pass it on from there. Did they succeed? Contrary to some of the Christian cults they did! And the Gospel will continue to be passed on. The only question is who it in such a way will do that the next generation can pass it one. How this ties in to worship music ? What we are to pass on to the next generation are the truth’s of the Gospel. Those must be kept pure and unchanged. But, how we experience church life, will be constantly changing. Because the world in which we life changes with each successive generation. Peter Drucker noticed that civilization under goes a massive shift every few hundred years. When the changes begin, it only takes a few decades and the world is completely different. This is why us old folks shake our heads at the present condition of the world. This change will occur and no matter of wishing or pining away about the good ole days will stop it. But that’s okay. The Gospel is transcultural and transgenerational. Everything about a culture can change. Dress, Food, Music styles, you name it, but the Gospel will always find a way to express it’s power. IF we are to be a church that succeeds in passing the Gospel on to the next generation we will need to focus on passing on the core truths of the Gospel. We must be willing to let go of our traditions, our programs, our music, our whatever, if it is no longer achieving the purposes for which they were created. The church is and has been in the center of a great societal change for some time now. It’s not a time for nostalgia, and stubbornly clinging to our comfort zone. The church is not about us anymore. It probably never was. It’ God’s church and He wants to reach our children and grandchildren generation. And it looks like He’ going to use our children and grandchildren to reach them. SO, this is where we need to look at Paul’s first statement to Timorthy in our Text: “Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.” (2 Timothy 2:1–2, KJV 1900) If we are going to succeed at making disciples. We are going to need the strength that comes from the Grace that is in Christ Jesus. Some of us really need to focus on the word “Grace” there. Remembering how unworthy we are to carry the name of Christ- but He chose us anyway. Our Younger generation needs to understand Grace, and they will understand it much better when they see it in us. We are asking to go into this culture that we are so afraid of and find a way to bring the Gospel to them. They are going to need a holy boldness and a willingness to endure all the persecution that comes from the name of Christ- Much of that criticism is warranted- because of the moral failures of our Fundamentalist Leaders. They need us to pass on pure Gospel in such a way that they can make it make sense to their generation. Next week – I want to show you how we can start to do that.