Prepare to Launch: Team Work

Intro:

We are starting a new series called, “Prepare to Launch.” We are a little over a month away from our expected time to start gathering for in person worship service

For some, that is an exciting prospect. It’s been around 4 months since we gathered in person and we really get charged when we are around like minded people, worshiping God with all our hearts. Sunday morning is a big charge and though the way we’ve been doing it has been good, it is exciting to think we are going to get back to services, no matter what they look like in our new reality

For some, the idea of getting back together is a bit of a concern. You want to get back together with others, but there are factors that make it seem daunting. Maybe your immune system is compromised and the idea of being others makes you nervous. Maybe you struggle with social anxiety and being around people in general is tough for you. And maybe the idea of getting up, getting ready, and leaving the house is not quite as appealing as staying in your pajamas and watching church from your lazy boy with your favorite mug of coffee. There are challenges that we face.

The other really honest challenge is knowing what the restrictions are going to be come September. With the latest spike in COVID-19 cases, we really don’t know what gathering is going to look like for churches in Saskatchewan.

The reassuring thing in all of this is that God is not surprised by anything, and what may seem impossible to our natural eyes is not impossible from his perspective. The questions we are asking, God already has the answers to.

So with that in mind, we are going to remain faithful in this season and do everything in our power to get ready to open. WE are putting our faith in the LORD God Almighty and believing for something miraculous to happen in our province. I hope you’ve been following the prayer schedule on Faithlife. Everyday we pray against the coronvirus and ask God to heal our land in a way only He can.

So how do we get ready? Well, over the next number of weeks we will look at the various ways we all play our part in getting ready for opening. Some of the work that needs to be done is spiritual, some of it is hands on, but all of it is practical, and all of requires all of us to do our part.

Question 1: Have you ever been on a sports team? What did you play and how successful were you?

the town I grew up in was the size where if everyone didn’t play a sport, the sport didn’t happen. So I played everything; volleyball, hockey, curling, badminton, track and field, although that one was more to have a day away from school then for the sport, touch football. I played it all. I wasn’t exactly the most talented or most motivated athlete on any of those teams, except maybe curling, but I played.

When I was thinking about this question, I thought of hockey, and the difference between the success, or lack there of, that I experienced in hockey, and the success that my brother experienced. We both played in the same town, both played in the same league against the same teams. However, his name is on a league championship banner and mine is not.

When I think about the difference, I remember on the teams I played on, there were a few gifted athletes and we all knew it. They played more minutes, while the rest of us wore impressions of our butts on the bench. My brother’s team, however, everyone played. Everyone gave it their all; it was the epitome of what a team effort looked like. And in the end, their ability to come together as a team made them better then teams twice their size from much larger communities.

I’m sure we’ve all seen this in sports, whether it is teams we’ve played on or watched; the teams that have the most success are the ones that work together best as a unit.

Paul describes the unity of the church in a similar way, but he uses the analogy of the body.

1 Corinthians 12:12–27 CSB

For just as the body is one and has many parts, and all the parts of that body, though many, are one body—so also is Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and we were all given one Spirit to drink. Indeed, the body is not one part but many. If the foot should say, “Because I’m not a hand, I don’t belong to the body,” it is not for that reason any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I’m not an eye, I don’t belong to the body,” it is not for that reason any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But as it is, God has arranged each one of the parts in the body just as he wanted. And if they were all the same part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” Or again, the head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” On the contrary, those parts of the body that are weaker are indispensable. And those parts of the body that we consider less honorable, we clothe these with greater honor, and our unrespectable parts are treated with greater respect, which our respectable parts do not need. Instead, God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the less honorable, so that there would be no division in the body, but that the members would have the same concern for each other. So if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and individual members of it.

you are the body of Christ. Now if you’ve been in church for a while, I’m sure you can almost quote this scripture from memory, and some of you could do it in King James old English. But consider the context of this passage.

All throughout 1 Corinthians, Paul is writing to a church that has got some issues with division. Some people are aligning themselves with former pastors of the church. Some are arguing over what food is appropriate and not appropriate. There are teachers that are trying to convince the church of a gospel that is contrary to gospel that Paul taught. Some are even slandering Paul because he came in humble and they wanted a strong leader. There are issues going on and Paul finally gets to chapter 12 and says enough is enough!! You are the body of Christ. Put your petty differences aside and start working together because there is a whole world out there, full of people who don’t know Jesus and haven’t experienced the forgiveness, grace, and new life that are found in Christ and Christ alone. There are bigger fish to fry!!

So he says this about the church. You are a body, and though there are many different parts, all work together to accomplish the same goal

In the same way, we all have different gifts, talents, interests, and sphere’s of influence, and all these differences come together to accomplish a mission that is so much bigger than all of us.

Question 2: Have you ever felt you weren’t part of the team? Why did you feel that way?

there are so many reasons to feel like we have nothing to contribute to the cause of Christ or the mission of the church. Paul actually addresses a lot of the reasons we feel disqualified.

The first way is that we feel our gift doesn’t have a place.

1 Corinthians 12:15 CSB

If the foot should say, “Because I’m not a hand, I don’t belong to the body,” it is not for that reason any less a part of the body.

I’m not a hand, so I don’t belong. So often within church or business, certain gifts get elevated above others. If you can sing, preach, or have some natural ability to lead, those are the gifts that you need to play a part and all others don’t matter. The truth is a singer is only as good as the guy running the sound board, a preacher is only as good as the team praying for him or her, and a leader is only as good as the support cast around him. Just as a body needs hands, feet, knees, ribs, and all the parts, the part God has given is just as vital as any other. It may not be as showy, but it is every bit as important.

The second way Paul talks about is someone making us feel like we don’t have a place.

1 Corinthians 12:21 CSB

The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” Or again, the head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you!”

if anyone has ever made you feel like you don’t have a place on the team, I’m sorry for that. We need your gifts and talents to make this work. Just as God has placed the hands and feet and organs in just the right place to make the body work, God has put you in this church in just the right spot for just the right season to make this thing work.

Paul goes on to say the weaker parts are indispensable. When he says weaker parts, he’s talking about things like the brain, the eyes, your organs. You know, those highly sensitive parts that are vital for everyday function.

You are part of this body. You may have a gift that no one knows about, no one has, and possibly a gift no one even knows how to utilize in church or business. That actually really exciting because that means you get to break new ground and do something that has maybe never been done before. Don’t shy away from the opportunity; embrace it, step into, and go on an adventure to discover its place. You could break ground for others who have unique gifts and find creative ways to apply them.

I want to explain why I started this series here:

Statistically in church, we find 20% of people doing 80% of the work.

we see this in most churches. This isn’t a new stat, but it seems to be one that just won’t go away. Part of the struggle that churches and society in general are wrestling with is that people are committed until something better comes along. What makes something better? That really depends on the person, which makes it even tougher to anticipate how involvement is going to be affected.

The reason I bring this up is that this stat applies to churches that are plateaued or in decline. The churches that are growing and thriving are full of people who have decided in their hearts that there is nothing better then church. They are full of people who don’t wait to be asked to get involved, they see an opportunity to get involved and they jump at it.

I believe that this September could be the best fall kickoff we’ve ever had at OneChurch, and you can quote me on that. But it is going to take all of us. 100% of OneChurch doing 100% of the work to see our communities radically transformed by the love and grace found in Jesus Christ.

You are a part of this body, a member of this team, and we need you to jump in with both feet and commit to making this happen. God has placed you here for such a time as this. Don’t miss out on the opportunity that is before you.

Question 3: Are you ready to play your part? Will you be a part of the 100%?

Let’s pray.