Unity without Uniformity

Actions or Outcomes?

You can choose one or the other, but not both.

Outcome: Comfortable and active retirement.

Actions: Save money and exercise and eat healthy

Or,

Actions: Buy nice stuff now and eat everything in sight.

Outcome: Die young and broke

For our children and grandchildren:

Outcome: Don’t get pregnant until married

Actions: (Do I need to explain?)

Or,

Actions: Party, live it up, no restrictions

Outcomes: Wrecked relationships in your wake (divorce) , pregnancy, child or an abortion, STD, underdeveloped emotional attachments (b/c things got intimate too fast).

Outcome: No DUIs or drunk driving accidents

Actions: Don’t drink. Or, at least don’t drink and drive.

Or,

Actions: Party and drive.

Outcome: DUIs, lost driving privileges, accidents, vehicular homicide.

Outcome: “Till death do us part”

Actions: Faithful, sacrificial love

Or,

Actions: Selfish pursuit of pleasure. If it moves, chase it.

Outcomes: More than one marriage and divorce. Or, dead b/c you were murdered by your wife.

Wife doesn’t believe in divorce...

Action: You can give your kids everything they want

Outcome: Spoiled adults

You see how this goes. It works in every area of life. You have to decide which is most important.

Once you decide and pick either, the other is determined for you.

Don’t kid yourself, or you family, this is a truism. You can’t have it both ways.

Churches can have a problem w/ this truism.

Actions: Nothing changes for years and years

“I’m all for progress so long as nothing changes.”

Outcome: The church dies.

Outcome: Reach new people, ppl who aren’t coming to church now.

Action: Do something different.

But,

Actions: Do different things for the sake of different things.

Outcome: Chaos. Adrift.

There has to be a specific desired outcome.

The first church I was a part of in ND was a fairly conservative church. Their worship every Sunday was very similar to our summer Sunday mornings. Hymns accompanied by an organ, a grand piano, choir in robes.

We pressed to get a little more contemporary. Our piano player was young and incredibly talented and willing to play some newer music.

We got pushed back on hard. No electronic instruments and no drums. No cords and no percussion.

We had to think creatively w/out being disrespectful.

We could have pointed out that the organ was electronic and had a cord, but that would just be picking a fight.

Here’s what we did do.

We had a student in the youth group who grew up in the church. His dad was a regular board member and his mom very involved. Leaders. His name is John.

John is a talented pianist and keyboard player.

But, we only had 1 piano and a very talented pianist already.

B/C we were involving a beloved student from and prominent family in our adult worship we were allowed to let him play his electronic keyboard w/ our pianist for our hymns.

And, when we did there were so many compliments that the music never sounded better. The ppl loved seeing young John on the stage using his talents to lead us in worship.

What the ppl didn’t realize as they complimented the music was John pre-programmed percussion into his keyboard that he played while we sang.

So, both electronics and percussion.

A more contemporary sound to the same old beloved hymns.

Our desired outcome was to reach people who weren’t currently going to church. The mission.

Our actions were determined for us that we needed to change things up a little and get a little more contemporary without offending and losing our current membership.

There were some in the church whose desired actions were to not change anything.

The outcome would have been that we could only reach our own membership and those exactly like them and in a generation the church would be gone.

I learned a lot about this indirectly as I went on mission trips to other countries.

What do I do in a worship service where they don’t have access to instruments I’m used to and like? My version of the bible? Suits, ties, dresses? A/C?

Am I excused from worshiping God that day? No.

So if the desired outcome is genuine worship of God.

My actions are determined for me that I will express God’s value to me regardless of the environment I’m in.

But, if my actions are I’m only worshiping w/ the instruments I like, songs I like, preaching I like, a chair I like, etc.

Then my outcome is I’m never really worshiping b/c I’m saying these things are more valuable to me than God.

Our culture here. We do things, for the most part, the way we all like it and want to.

But, honestly, every one of us probably has something that we wish were done differently.

When all of you are in the valley you attend so many different kinds of churches. And, when you’re up here this is who we are.

God has called us as a church, and every other church on the planet, to be unified; at peace w/ one-another.

He did not call us to uniformity. It’s okay to do things differently in different churches in different cultures.

That is, as long as we are all intent on accomplishing the right outcomes.

We unify around the same fundamentals though we may accomplish them in different ways.

So, our responsibility as individual believers is to commit to the fundamentals no matter how your local church gets you there.

This is His Old House. And the fundamentals of every wing of it are the same.

Outcome: Be part of His Old House.

Actions: Fulfill His Mission.

If a church is not fulfilling the mission they aren’t part of the house. They may be a nice group of people but they are part of a different house.

Outcome: Make disciples.

Actions: Be witnesses. Tell your own story.

Outcomes: Maturity, Identity, Humility, Community

Actions: BS, prayer, service, recreation together

Our core values and primary means all based on what the bible says about being part of God’s house.

This is the message, and the challenge for the c1 church described in .

This passage is a key transition in the development of the church.

Transition from Peter to Paul as the central figure and leader.

Transition from the church in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria to the church in the rest of the world.

As new leaders are recruited and trained to lead in new cultures they don’t do things the same way.

The first church would have resembled a typical synagogue.

They all used t/b Jewish. That’s how it’s always been done.

But, they’d talk about watching for the Messiah and keeping the law.

Now, they new Who the Messiah is and the law is no longer in effect. Don’t have to slaughter animals any more.

What do we do w/ all that extra time in worship?

Dismiss early? Get to lunch?

And, what do the people do in these new cultures that never experienced worship in the temple or synagogue?

Is God at work? Is it really a church?

This is what the c1 church faced and had to decide how they were going to respond to it.

Powerful Communication

Acts 11:19–21 NIV

Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, spreading the word only among Jews. Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.

Acts 11:

Luke ties this directly to Stephen’s stoning. The persecution was most intense among the Greek Jews.

Stephen was one of 7 chosen to serve their widows.

So, most who scattered were Greeks who had been Jewish but came to faith in Jesus as the Messiah.

As the ppl ran from the persecution, most settled in primarily Jewish communities.

But, many others ran to their roots. They were Greeks by birth. Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch were outside Samaria and in Greek regions.

Antioch is located in where is not SE Turkey.

It was a know for its spiritual and religious climate.

Only about 25% Jewish and the rest worshiped the many Greek gods like Zeus, Apollos, Poseidon, and Adonis.

It was also knows for its immorality. The Greeks were very sexually active in their social and religious lives.

They probably had family in the area. It was somewhat familiar. And, they took their faith with them.

The church would have been extremely counter-cultural. Only 1 God. No adultery and no animal sacrifice.

But, the Lord’s hand was w/ them.

Meaning, the power of God was at work.

The Christians didn’t just receive information from God. But this information came w/ power.

They heard from God regarding where to go, what to do, and what to say.

They prayed and God showed them their new ID.

Your ID is involves what you are capable of.

Carpenter, bible teacher, home group host, servant, singer, worship leader, etc.

God gifts you to do what He wants you to do.

Where do you go and what do you do when you get there?

You go where your gifts and talents can be used and use them.

Christians who became citizens of Greek communities and were committed to the mission and knew their role in it.

And, b/c the Lord’s hand was behind it they were successful in the mission.

Identity. Who did Jesus create you to be?

Identity. Who did Jesus create you to be?

It was the same mission for the church in Jerusalem. The Antioch church just did it in a different way.

And, at first, that concerned the Jerusalem church.

Common Mission

Acts 11:22–24 NIV

News of this reached the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.

The Mother church hears of the expanding work in Antioch. Up to this point there hadn’t been much Church activity that far away.

What activity nearby was going on was easy to monitor to make sure the main things were maintained as the main things.

The fundamentals. The right outcomes and actions.

The planters were Jewish. But the new believers from Antioch were strictly Gentile. Would their Greek, Gentile, culture overly influence this new organization and would they miss the mark on their mission?

At the very least, if they were committed to the old mission they would accomplish it in a new way.

They’re not doing like we do it. Is that okay?

They sent Barnabas to investigate and evaluate.

We’ve already been introduced to Barnabas. He was familiar w/ Greek culture as he was a Jew from Cyprus.

He was generous, gracious, and a great influence in Saul’s life and ministry.

He witnessed God’s work, God’s favor among the people.

Only God could be credited w/ the results of the work being done there.

The power involved. Lives were changing.

He encouraged them to remain true to the Lord.

That is, steadfast. Resolute. Committed to one purpose, one mission w/ all their hearts.

“Ekklesia” is a gathering of ppl who are committed to the same purpose.

True to the Lord. The mission they are to remain committed to is the one the Lord assigned them.

As a result of their commitment to the mission, a great number of people were brought to the Lord.

They were saved. They believed in Jesus as their Messiah.

B/C of their shared commitment to the mission w/ the church in Jerusalem, even though they would have done things differently, his report back to the mother church would have positive.

It’s all good b/c they shared the same desired outcome.

This was their primary desired outcome. Shared mission. Leading the people in Antioch closer to Jesus. If they didn’t know Him, they would introduce them. If they already knew Him, they led them closer.

Barnabas knew this was a great opportunity. So, not only did he make plans to stay, but he sent for a trusted partner to help him.

Barnabas and Saul a great relationship and it would have been a great example to the people there of how to work together.

Consequential Relationships

Acts 11:25–26 NIV

Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.

Acts 11:25-

Barnabas relied on his relationship w/ Saul from their earlier partnership in ministry.

They shared a common purpose, significant work, sacrifices, and results. Which led to a significant relationship between the two of them.

The fellowship they shared was deep and produced life-changing results in the lives of those they served.

This, then, an example for the new believers in Antioch where they spent a year among them.

Not just a touch and go.

Involvement in the lives of the people for an extended period.

They modeled it and taught it.

For the year they were there they taught a lot of people in this community what being a Christian was all about.

Christian Instruction

Acts 11:26 NIV

and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.

Think about what they taught.

This was Saul, who hadn’t been renamed Paul, yet. He hadn’t written anything.

He hadn’t traveled at all to plant churches anywhere.

Eventually, he will go on 3 journeys and plant a number of churches. Then, he will go on to write letters to the churches to encourage them, confront them, and answer their questions.

These letters make up a lot of our NT.

Mark hadn’t written, yet. Mark will first be recruited by Paul, then mentored by Barnabas before he writes his book.

Luke hadn’t written anything, yet. Acts is his second book after traveling w/ Paul and learning from him.

None of them had.

They taught the OT and what Jesus taught Saul directly when he was in the wilderness trying to figure out how he missed Jesus the first time.

Instruction like this, Bible study, even only the OT, teaches people about the character of God. So, they know what to expect of Him and what He expects of them. Then, they can take His characteristics on themselves and be more like Him.

That’s spiritual maturity. The more like God we are the more mature we are.

In Antioch, this is the first time they were called Christians.

It was a Greek term, not Jewish.

It was given by outsiders as an insult.

The ‘ian’ means ‘group of’.

IOW, they were a group of people who believed Jesus is the Christ, the only Savior.

Those dummies only have 1 God. We have a bunch.

Zeus, Apollos, Poseidon, Adonis and so many other.

They used Christian as an insult.

We wear it as an honor.

We are a group of people who are committed to Jesus and the purpose He came to earth to introduce and assign us once He was gone.

We are children of God. Saved. Alive. Eternally secure.

We are one church, w/ many locations. One old house w/ many rooms, wings, and additions.

And, as once church, we look out for each other.

We serve each other, care about each other and care for each other.

Caring Community

Acts 11:

Acts 11:27–30 NIV

During this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them, named Agabus, stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. (This happened during the reign of Claudius.) The disciples, as each one was able, decided to provide help for the brothers and sisters living in Judea. This they did, sending their gift to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.

Agabus, one of several prophets comes to visit and accurately predicts a severe drought would cripple the region.

The prediction here occured in ad 39-42. And it hit the hardest in the mid to late 40s.

Judea and Jerusalem were the bullseye of the famine.

The church in Antioch could have just ignored the need.

The Jerusalem group was old fashioned. Their problem. If they were doing things right they wouldn’t be in trouble. God blesses obedience.

That, and, God sends disciples into storms to learn to trust Him. He will provide, maybe thru unconventional means.

One church, multiple locations. When one is in trouble we all hurt. We will send help when they need it.

Remember when the Jerusalem church members sold their property to help other members in need. Now, that entire church had needs and needed help from outside.

The church meets needs across geographical and ethnic boundaries.

Humbly serving. The church in Antioch made significant monetary sacrifices to help their matriarch church in Jerusalem when they were in serious need.

Here is the emergence of another key community engaged in mission, instruction, prayer, relationship development and service.

Unity without uniformity. They can do things differently as long as it leads to the accomplishment of the same mission and fundamentals.

So, as individual Christians, our commitment has to remain strong to Jesus’ mission and the fundamentals that help us succeed.

Then, as a church, we organize accordingly.

This model was established immediately after Pentecost and we are still committed to it today.

Your commitment has to be our commitment. The only way we succeed is if we remain committed to the same thing.

Are we?

Applications

Mission

Our mission as a church, not just mine, not just the elders, but ours collectively.

Is, to lead the people closest to us closer to Jesus.

That’s why this church exists. Why we are here in MP.

We can’t lead anyone where we’re not already going.

We can’t share what we don’t have. So, we have to stay close to Jesus ourselves.

Are you close enough to lead someone else closer?

What do you need to do to get closer to Jesus yourself?

Values

Maturity - We are committed to growing deeper in our faith by learning more about God.

Identity - We are committed to letting God show us who He created us to be and fulfilling our purpose here.

Humility - We are committed to serving each other and meeting everyone else’s needs before our own.

Community - We are committed to building and maintaining special relationships w/in this church w/ those who share our common purpose.

Where are you strong in these areas and where do you need growth?

Means

Each core value has one primary means to accomplish it.

Bible study is the primary means of maturity.

Prayer is the primary means to discover your ID

Service is the primary means to develop humility

Recreation is the primary means to develop our community.

We study to maturity.

We pray in identity

We serve with humility

We play for community.

If there is a core value that you are weak in, then recommit to the means that leads to that value.

What do you need to do to move forward in your walk w/ Jesus?

We are united in purpose w/ every other church. How we get it done is unique to us.

We are united w/ every other church who is committed to Jesus’ mission. But, we are not uniform w/ them.

Even w/in this church, we are united w/out uniformity. We are all different.

God has called us as a church, and every other church on the planet, to be unified; at peace w/ one-another.

He did not call us to uniformity. It’s okay to do things differently in different churches in different cultures.

That is, as long as we are all intent on accomplishing the right outcomes.

We unify around the same fundamentals though we may accomplish them in different ways.

So, our responsibility as individual believers is to commit to the fundamentals no matter how we get there.

This is His Old House. And He is building it using us to do it.