May 12, 2019 - CHURCH PLANTING

Well, good morning. I want to tell you what a privilege it's been to be here this weekend and I really need not speak a lot of churches. And when I walk into church, I can pretty quickly pick up the temperature of the church are there's just something that you know what this is like right you walk in the church doors and you can just pick up what the spirit is there and I've just been so blessed by the spirit of his church and I do thank you for inviting me. It's it's been an absolute honor to be here you refreshed me and so I'm half of Charlene and I thank you for hosting us today that I want to lay my cards on the table because I have an agenda with my message this morning and my agenda is this it's too argue that all of you individually and together as a church that it's incumbent upon all of you and me as well to be involved in church planting. Let me tell you what would be going through my head if I were sitting in your place right now cuz I heard that. Some guy gets up that you don't know and he says it'll all you need to get excited about something that I'm excited about. And what would go through my head is is not cute. You don't we met that guy, right? He he can't talk about anything. But badminton you just talk about anything and within about three sentences. He's like and going on. I don't know what it is. It's it's like the most obscure things and I kind of get that. It's a what what my goal is actually to argue that this is the case, but let me just explain what I hope will happen and I hope it's not a personality Quirk. I hope I can show you it's it's both biblical its strategic and it's it's actually where I want to spend most of my time is what you'll miss out on the joy of this. Here's what I think happens to get over here completely unaware that church planting is even a thing. And I spent a lot of years there. I mean it never occurred to me that the church's I was in somebody started. They I mean honestly, I don't know how I was ignorant of this but I was completely ignorant of church planning while being in a church that somebody planted and but that's where we begin then we move over here where we actually believe that church planting we understand it to thing church planting by the way. It's kind of a weird term when I became a church planter, you know, people would say, what are you doing? And you know, I'm a teacher planner and they like like you're a gardener at a church or like help me understand here. No, no, sorry. It's actually starting to churches. And I remember the first time I friend Palmerton that you know, I was pastoring a church a little bit like this and Paul planted a church. And I remember feeling sorry for him. He was in a group. He had a group of I think about 8 or 10 people in his basement of his home and he began to plant the church and she had moved from being ignorant of church planting understanding that you're planning is nothing but here's what I honestly thought. I thought the church planting was for. You know those people that can't quite fit socially within the established church. They're a little bit. I mean just difficult and I thought church planning was actually for them. I thought you don't because they're a little bit maybe socially maladjusted. The reason that church plants exists is because they can't quite find their place and we need to move them out somewhere where they fit. The interesting thing is when I prescribe that before in front of church Planters a lot of their kind of go. Yeah sounds about right actually. I think there's a bit of Truth to that and this is where I hope to get you today, which is this the seat of church planting is just normal Christianity, but it is and this is what actually I'm going to just hold out to get to there is just normal Christian it is what every Christian and every church should be about and I'm hoping I don't think I'll get all of you here, but I'm hoping that I'll get some of you to the Final Phase, which is actually I'm ready to invest in church planning to let me just pause here and say and I love this. I'm a church planter. I am not looking for you to get involved with my church planned today, except actually, there's one thing pray for me, please if it if I walk away with some of you. I have not looking for any of you to begin financially supporting me and back if you start I will kindly and respectfully turn it down redeploy you to another church plant. So I have not self-interested amidst. I want you to pray for us if you think of us, but here's what I want. I want three levels of commitment from you today. First is to pray for church planting. Secondly, I would really love for some of you to get to the point where you're like we need to actually it could be that some of you were going to get personally involved for church planting. I really believe there's somebody here and one of these two services at least one person who's going to be a future Church planter Valley planter, but they're going to be many of you that might be part of a church planting team and I really believe that all of us ought to financially pray about supporting and investing in truth planning and wide world it is they got you from you know, maybe one or two to actually three People leaving its normal Christianity and some of you even afford to say I'm in like we just need to get going. Let me tell you about my attorney and I quickly get to God's word church planning was weird. And then I think about 2012. I came across an article by Tim Keller called by plan churches and he said this address continuous planting of new congregations is the single most crucial strategy for number one the numerical growth of the body of Christ in the city and number to the corporate continual corporate renewal and Revival of existing churches in the city and the people he said nothing else and you listed all the things not Crusades not every programs not / Church Ministries not growing mega churches not congregational Consulting not Church renewal processes will have the consistent impact of Dynamics. Church planting this is an eyebrow-raising statement. But to those who have done any study at all. It is not even controversial and I thought in my head that I began to eat away at need to realize church planning is actually the best way to reach Los people it is the best way to actually revive existing churches. It is it is essential. I did a dangerous thing. I began to pray that God would raise up your planters. That was very stupid because you never noticed it when Jesus said to the disciples pray for workers to go into the Harvest Harvest plentiful like begin praying for workers Mets versus like hey guys, I'm sending you. Thank you for praying. Guess what God to answer prayer and he sends them running is amazing. She really is amazing and I at the age of you know, we had a comfortable income and as comfortable as can be one day and I said to her hey, what about giving up our steady income? What about moving to a more expensive area? What about starting something that probably is going to stay at what's probably not going to succeed. And by the way, we're a lot older than the church Planters who do that. So what do you think and only a cuddly and long-suffering wife would ever go? Yeah, let's do it and it went from being this. Completely unaware that actually I was sold in what I want to do is I don't want to actually build a Biblical case for church planting. I'm very tempted to do that, but I'm going to skip that but I just want you to trust me that it is normal Christianity all through the New Testament. You might say I've searched I can't find church planting. I've got my destroyed my concordance. I would I can't find it. Once it is everywhere in the New Testament ask you to open up to Philippians. Cuz what I want to do is actually just asked you to trust me that and I'll show you a little bit that it's normal Christianity. But today what I want to do is actually talk about some of the blessings of church planting.

Cuz my goal today is to fold. I've already given you my goal which is to get you involved in church planning by you know, my goal today is I would feel horrible if anybody walked away today more excited about church planting than they were about Jesus. It's a part of my goal today is just to say you know, what would compel us to go in this Venture church planning. I actually don't think it is a passion for church planting itself. I think it's a passion for Jesus today. I hope that even as we look at this passage the thing that will strike you most is not how great church planting is, but how great Jesus is, you know, he is the one that satisfies. I'll see you when you get a grip on Jesus when you see the beauty of Jesus everything flows from that and I think we're going to see that In this passage, but the other thing I want you to do is I don't need a man with the blessings of having this passion for Jesus work itself out practically speaking as we plant churches Philippians. 4980 Pagosa Phillipi, he doesn't seem to stay there very long as Paul tends to do we end up in jail that you know, it's it's almost like a Paul where you staying like did you check in a hotel is a habit? You know, what the heck you're packed cuz I think I will only give you a couple nights like probably day three were in prison and that's what happened to Philip. I unplug there long enough that other the Jailer when he gets put in prison becomes a Believer and he leaves the he leaves Phillipi he gets out of jail when he leaves 10 years later. He writes this letter so this is a letter From a church planter to a church plant and this is 10 years in a very young Churchill. Anna verse 3 of Philippians 1 Paul says that's I thank God in all my remembrance of you. Always in every prayer of mine for you making all my prayer with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now we're away from 2nd Corinthians that this was a very impoverished church. This was a church without a lot of financial resources. And Paul says that they gave to Paul's Ministry actually in that case to support the Judy and church out of their extreme poverty and they gave actually more than they can afford and what Paul mentions here is to this church that supports his ministry. Paul says, he's writing a thank-you letter from a church planter to a church plant sing. Thank you. And I want you to see this split pants is actually if you've ever donated to a Ministry and received a thank you letter to thank you for the gift. That is what Philippians is. Its thank you letter from a church planter to a church. Thanking them for their partnership. Just assuming that I mean there's an assumption here that this is normal Christian and Paul doesn't take it for granted. He says thank you for being part of my church planning Ministry, but I want you to turn to Philippians chapter 4, and I really want to highlight because Paul wraps up this. Thank you letter

inverse tan of chapter 4 he says this I rejoice in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived her concern for me. What was being very delicate here, you know what he saying? He's saying thank you for sending a financial gift to support my church planting Ministry. He says you were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity. Not that I am speaking of being in Need for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low. I know how to abound in any and all circumstances. I learn the secret of basic plenty in hunger abundance indeed. I can do all things through him who strengthens me, you know, we always quote that verse I can do all things through him who strengthens me. I think it has white application. I actually find it very interesting that the context in which Paul originally wrote. It was a struggling Church planter who didn't sometimes didn't have enough money to pay the bills, which is very interesting. So Char tonight we moved into church planting and God's been so good to us. I want to talk about that. But you know, there's been days where we didn't have we didn't know where the next money was going to come from to pay the bills of the Church Plant. I could tell you stories about the Church of scientist salary. Maybe I went to the bank to get a mortgage for a new condo and I have this letter from the church showing my salary and I have this weird feeling of like this is not worth the paper. It's written on like this is what the church is promised to pay me, but the church has nothing and there were days when the church would write out the Jackson and I would have a pile of them sitting on my desk because I couldn't cash any of them. There was no money for them. And it said dressing Paul was in that situation and Paula says it's in this context that I learned contentment like when the bills are paid and when the bills are paid it is a ride and it is worth it because of Jesus but let's go on cuz Paul says in verse 14 yet. It was kind of you to share my trouble. And you Philippians yourselves know that at the beginning of the Gospel when I left Macedonia, which is kind of cool giving a slide that we just saw no church entered into partnership with me and giving and receiving accept you only even in thessalonica you sent help for my needs once again, and here is the first benefit of church getting involved with church printed the first blessing that I don't want you to miss out on in verse 17. He says this not that I seek the gift, but that I seek the fruit that increases to your credit. Here's the first blessing the Paul mentions when you get involved with your planning, I don't even miss out on this. When we get involved in church planting we share an interest that compounds to our account that Paul says I don't need your money.

Which is really an odd thing for a church planter to say, isn't it? Pulsar is actually my interest in you getting involved with church planting has nothing to do with you meeting my needs. He says 17, here's what I this is the reason why I want you to get involved financially and in this case is I'm talking to you in other ways. I seek the fruit that increases to your credit. I get these ads from tangerine. Tangerine says do you invest your money if you open up a new savings account with us? He will get 2.75% and I'm always like that's it. Yeah, I remember the days when you get a whole lot more than that. What they're saying is look if you invest your money with this you will get a return that you won't get elsewhere. If a pulse is here is it is really a financial term uses. When you take your limited resources, and when you invest them into the expansion of the Gospel through the planting of new churches you share. I bet there's some sort of benefit that compounds that makes had a better investment than anything else that you can invest in. Really? I See You In this passage a bit of a idea of a share that you're buying shares in a Ministry. You know Paul was the impact of his ministry was amazing by the time his life was over there were churches from Jerusalem to Northern Italy that would injure four centuries of Empire wide significance. I don't know if there was a greater evangelist than the Apostle Paul the impact of his ministry. I still think we here today are beneficial with your of his ministry that are churches were planted by churches that were planted by churches that were planted by churches that you can trace the lineage of this very Church all the way back to the Apostle Paul. What Paul says here is he knows I'm at preaching as I'm owed in prison is I'm being you know, I'm waiting for my life. You know, I'm doing all these things on the front line, but he says to the Philippians you get part of the fruit for my Ministry you get part of that it's interest. It's compounding to your account. Know what exactly does he mean here? I think that this is the threefold return that we get. Giving helps the church planter. It helps the church planter in his ministry it giving it in participating and it is Ministry also helps people hear the gospel.

But what Paul saying here is participating in church planting actually blesses The Giver and pull doesn't want you to miss out on the blessing of being part of this ride. One commentator says this the picture painted by the accounting metaphor is of a compound interest that accumulates all the time until the last day the day that Jesus comes the Apostle is employ this commercial language to show that he set his heart on an ongoing permanent game for the Philippians in the spiritual realm the advantage that accrues to them as a result of their generous giving is God's blessing in their lives by which they continually grow in The Graces of Jesus Christ until his appearing. This is a blessing that you have as you

I'm so grateful that this church is beginning down the road of I think about church planting.

And I wish think there's an element of like what are we giving up as we go down this road, right? Like the thing is if you go far down this road, I'll just warn you it's going to be costly.

Call Martin again later on. He is Church Brew and he sent out a church, Julian. And so the day that he sent her Julie and they sent 30 or 40 of their best people. I said to Paul like I might have been so exciting right finally, you've watched the new church has started you sent to Julie and you've said it all these people I would you preach on and Paul said I'll never really said I preach a Psalm of lament that day. And I asked what could I make this make sense? Right like what you've just done is very costly for you church planning a scary Paul just hurt looked at his church and sent 40 of his best people and his right hand man, and they're all gone now it it was costly. What Paul here says is there's nobody that benefits really from that more than the person who does that who releases the people it's costly but that is an investment that you're sending out that's going to prove interest to your account. It is worth it. It is worth it even from a position of self-interest but there's another metaphor that Paul gives this here's the Second Blessing of church planting. We get to know that our involvement is pleasing to God in verse 18. He says. I have received full payment and more.

I am well supplied. Okay, just again pause here. Have you ever had a church planter missionary write a letter to you saying? I don't want again the previous person says I don't want your stinking gift. I have received full payment. I'm well supplied have you ever had that happen? I really love that Paul. Did this and Paul is a saying like look, it's not about you giving me money. But Paul says I principal payment and more. I'm well supplied and here he says having received from App aphroditus the gifts you sent and listen to this a fragrant offering.

Sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God a fragrant offering a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God. What he says here, he switches metaphors the first metaphor he gave was that you're involved in church planting is an investment that accrues to you and Harry switches from a financial kind of image to the image of sacrifice. He uses 3 sacrificial turns here to emphasize the value of our giving to church planting. He says that it is really something that is an act of worship to God that the joy that we have is actually offering something significant to God that's pleasing to him that God Delights in every time we do it. I go to the Post Office on Queen Street in Toronto. And I do it every Thursday to take Fridays off and I open I have the little key and I open that safety deposit box and I open that box. And usually there is like junk mail in there and I take that you don't pass it as soon as I can but then I I go through and quite regularly there is A check from somebody has remembered us in our ministry. The ones that really get me some time to the checks from I know people who just don't have the money and they've written the check for us a $25. I think of one guy who does his regular and I open it up and I got to my car I have to confess sometimes I'm like I got to get back cuz I haven't pay for parking. I'm just running in and getting this so I'm at a time. I'm holding these, you know, I want a hand holding a stack of envelopes. And I try to remind myself as I'm doing so I'm actually holding a stack of envelopes. I'm not actually even holding maybe two or three checks that don't add up to very much at all. What I'm holding in my hand at that moment our sacrifices. Offered by God's people not to our church plant, but actually offered to God. We have a lady her name is Aurora. She is she comes out not every week cuz she's involved with so many churches and here's how I know that she's there. She comes, you know, that the bus pulls up across the road from us, and she she. I've never seen her walk. Like she's one of these people that's running. She's trying to get to the next within and she shows up to take comes running. She got a little cart and I don't even know what's in our car but he's always got this little we don't fall apart and she gets in and it's like we're there or go cuz next thing I hear I hear this distinct sound, you know, what a Windex bottle sounds like she's got a rubber gloves on end. Like it's like I just want to shake her hand before she gets in but you can't because she gets by and she's got the Windex bottle and she's spraying the windows and then she's down in the bathrooms and she's changing the you know, she's And I try to remind myself when she does that. I'm not seeing somebody. Run from the bus into our church plant just simply to clean what I'm seeing at that point if somebody offering sacrifices to God, I've seen somebody who's so heart is so moved by the love of Jesus in her love for Jesus that that she says if I can just have the joy of cleaning bathroom so that this church plant can go that is what I will do.

It's okay, and I could go on and I've got so many examples sometimes I I think I hope I never miss what's happening there cuz it's so easy to think in terms of you know, what is what is happening? And what's really happening. There is something deeply spiritual that is way to invest in in reaching people in and going into communities where there are no churches and preaching the gospel. We are not simply reaching people that that is an act of worship to God.

We can know that our involvement brings a great pleasure to God. It is is worshipful as anything we could possibly do. It's one more blessing. I don't want you to miss out on it and it's best in verse 19. What are the blessings of church planting while that we get interested a crease or account that we get to know that our involvement is pleasing to God. It's an act of worship to God verse 19 here is the final blessing that Paul Gibson this passage God promises to meet all our needs again. This is one of those verses that we quote to laughing. But verse 19 says and got my God Will Supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Don't you sometimes wish that the Bible was a little bit more careful and how it stated things. As I read this passage and verse 19. I almost hear a Prosperity preacher saying, you know here it says that if you give to church planting that this is a way for God for you to know that God will supply all of your needs. Or when Jesus says in Luke chapter 6 38 give and it will be given to you or in Paul and 2nd Corinthians. He says you will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way. You know what? I sometimes think actually we let false teachers Rob us of legitimate biblical promises that are true and that are our Birthright do not let Prosperity preachers rob you of the truth In this passage that there is a general principle that generous people and I've seen this over and over that it's a Biblical teaching generous people tend to be blessed by God so that they can continue to be more generous at churches that are generous with their people and resources Tend to be blessed by God to be more generous so they continue to bless other churches.

I am sitting in my office. I told you that when Paul Martin started the church as I call pork, I like and I was sitting I still remember the day. I was sitting in my office on the second floor a large church building and we had a ghetto basically all the accoutrements of church and there was a friend of mine starting in a church basement with a people and I still remember thinking poor. Like he's got nothing and I think this is awful Isn't it? I was kind of thinking and look at this like that would like this is what it's all about. He's got nothing. What a course of 10 years. I watched his little Church of 8 people grow into a church that matched in attendance the size of our church. And what's more than that it began to see him plant other churches and as he planted other churches it was hard. But what was interesting is God began to fill even his church with even more people Emily continue to plant more churches. And I wonder if you know what I mean, that could just be Paul Wright Paul might this be one of these unusually gifted leaders. And I was in my role. I got to see a lot of different churches. And here's what I've noticed. Is that generally speaking. This is a rule. The churches who refused to clean onto all their resources for themselves churches that actually are generous and send their best people out to plant other churches. God somehow seems to continue to bless those churches and meet their needs. They continue to be generous. Others. How did God provide for the Philippian church and 2nd Corinthians 8 Paul says this he promises to the Corinthians that God richly supplies material needs he gives us what we need. We never have to worry about God meeting our needs. Our wants might be different but our needs he has them. In this passage says in in Philippians in chapter 1 it says in their present suffering in the face of opposition God will richly Supply what is needed he will get them step dad fastness. Joy and encouragement. Inner need to advance in the Faith with one mindset in chapter 1 and chapter 2 and chapter 4. God says he will richly Supply the grace and humility necessary for it. Enter the place of both grumbling and anxiety. God will be present with them as the God of Peace. God gives them everything they need as they get on board with their mission.

I want to close this by saying this. Church planting has been incredibly costly for us. We've been through I think more hardship in the Attic. It's been about six and a half years of church planting and I've been pastoring for a long time. Now, I'm always embarrassed when I say, I think it's been like a 28 years this year and it's been about seven years of church planting. Yeah, I'm old so Honestly in in church planning, we've been through more hardship than in any other Ministry we've ever been involved in. But I'm here today to tell you I am absolutely convinced. But I'm not in church planting and I'm not here speaking about church planting simply because it's a personal passion. I'm here to tell you that number one it is I'm church planning and I'm passionate about church planting number one because of Jesus. Cuz I want to go to places like Liberty Village where nobody is reaching them. There's no Church's there until we got there. I'm passionate about going there not because of church planting but because I'm passionate about Jesus. And I'm here to tell you that I think that you can make a case. There's a strong biblical responsibility to get involved in church planting, but this is for everybody. Here's what I want to tell you. I've said that your planning was hard. distance week Charlene turn to me and she said

I'm so glad we did this hardest six or seven years of my life. And she said to me I would not have wanted to miss out on the blessings of this for anyting.

It today, that's the message. I want to leave with you. Yes, there is a responsibility.

We're friends. I don't want you to miss out on the Privileges of being a church planting church and being it personally invested in church planting for anything. Paul says here. the guy tends to blast generous people in churches The God gives you these incredible privileges that the Returns on your involvement will compound for eternity and a God in the meantime will meet all of your needs as we invest in his kingdom in the expansion of his kingdom to church planting father. I thank you for this church.

We're already just being here this weekend.

I kind of came here praying that you would allow me to bless this church. Somehow you off and do this.

You just turn things around so that this church has been a blessing to me. Lord I want to thank you for West London Alliance. I think you for Judy. Thank you for the other past. But thank you for the many people I've met here. I pray that you would pour out your blessing on this church Lord. I pray that you would continue to allow this church to thrive.

Father my prayer today is I want this church to experience the blessings of being a church planting Church. Floridian in whatever form I pray that you would nurture this this vision. I pray Lord that you would move them on and I pray in the coming year is that they would be interested a cruise to their account? Pray that their involvement church planning would be an offering that is pleasing to you. But I pray would you meet all the needs of this church father that the impact of of their investment in church planting in a Ministry would Ripple throughout Eternity for your great glory and for your name. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.