Come Together

Pray

Introduction: Do you remember that little nursery rhyme where you use your hand. Here is the Church there is the steeple open the doors there are all the people? I'm not sure where that came from or who created that but it is so true the church is the people.

Joke: Joe you should be in the Lords army? I am in the Lord’s Army? I’ve never seen you in the church? Joe says I’m in the secret service....there should be no Christians in the secret service.

Church is Spiritual Family:

Spiritual Family, we mean that here at Church on the Rock we are just as dysfunctional as the rest of your families. lol

No but seriously God is a God of relationships and he created the church and orchestrated the church to be the place where believers gather and learn grow and show support to each other.

Discipleship not Membership- Disciple Discipline

Discipline is not alway for bad stuff it can be to change the way we behave. Self discipline- nutritionist. Learning to live a new way in the way that i eat. There are different disciplines of study....etc. It is all related to being a disciple of Christ and how we have work ahead of us being a true disciple.

1. The Church is the assembly

The Church is not an organization although it is organized.

It’s not a club although there are members.

Bishop used to say the Abilene was like Baskin Robbins what flavor or Church do you want

Abilene Texas used to be in the Guinness book of world records for having most churches per capita in the United States but we are not anymore but still if you drive around the city most of the time there is a church on every street corner. When i looked it up for this sermon it is no longer in the running lol

We talked about last week how God sets all the members as he wants in the body. The bible sets up the Body of Christ which is the church.

The Apostle Paul Spends many letters to churches guiding them in the things that they are supposed to do as he set out to build and make churches.

The main form of evangelism for the first Apostles was to set up and establish Churches.

The Apostle Paul was sent out on missionary journeys by the Holy Spirit to establish churches.

That’s the simple version. Paul and Barnabas got sent out to be missionaries to the Gentiles and spread the gospel and the natural thing for them to do as the people got saved was to establish a church as they left to keep disciplining and teaching the people they left behind as they continued on their journey.

Acts 13:1–3 NKJV

Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away.

The word church in the New Testament is Ekklesia and it means- a gathering of citizens called out from their homes into some public place an assembly.

-assembly, gathering, company of Christians.

The original meaning of the word does not mean a building, an organization, or a club. Its a kingdom. A backwards kingdom

This is not like a country club, there are no benefits to this membership.

You become a slave/servant to all

Mark 10:44 NKJV

And whoever of you desires to be first shall be slave of all.

Matthew 20:16 NKJV

So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen.”

Matthew 16:25 NKJV

For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.

And there are many more examples of these things in your bible where the kingdom of heaven is contrary to the world and that what you do in the world to get a head and succeed does not show or merit the same success in the kingdom of heaven.

2. The Church is an Embassy.

We are a representation of Heaven on Earth and God placed overseers and set up the structure in his word so that his kingdom would be represented on earth as in Heaven.

We are all ambassadors for Christ working out of the home office to spread the gospel to the world bringing the things of heaven to earth.

The church is a gathering place to worship God and be discipled so that we can share the gospel with the world and be a living testimony of the Word of God.

The Church is supposed to influence the world

but the word has much more influenced the church. There are some churches that have adopted things to be okay that the bible says is not okay with our Holy God.

1 Corinthians 14:40 NKJV

Let all things be done decently and in order.

In this letter Apostle Paul addresses how spiritual gifts are to be used in the church and at the end he says decently and in order. There is an order in any kingdom and God’s kingdom has an order too. A standard if you will as to how we are supposed to behave and respond to authority as a part of that kingdom.

We the church the elect of God are supposed to act in certain ways toward one another.

Apostle Paul writes to the Colossian Church on how to conduct themselves one to another.

Colossians 3:16 NKJV

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

Hebrews 13:17 NKJV

Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.

God gives titles of authority in our churches.

Such as the 5 fold ministry but they are also the overseers of the body of Christ.

Apostle, Pastor, Teacher, Evangelist and Prophet

There are also assigned Deacons and Elders Bishop Priests Ministers

All these titles are used or addressed as positions of Authority in the bible.

If the church was a sporadic free for all where we could just be lead as we pleased by “ Holy Spirit” why are there so many titles that are specifically spoke to and defined in the word of God.

I’m not saying I’m just saying.

3. Fans not Followers

A lot of Christians in our world today believe if they know Jesus Christ as their Lord and savior and they maintain a relationship with him on their own that they are just fine.

And take scriptures like this to justify not going to church and not being in fellowship with other believers under a church home.

Matthew 18:20 NKJV

For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.”

When really this Scripture if you read it in context is about not just the spirit of God being present but it is about the church being gathered in the verse above it is talking about your brother sinning against you and it says in verse

Matthew 18:16–17 NKJV

But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.’ And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector.

Here you can see the Church is the final authority between two christian brothers but i have heard people use this verse to have a couple of people or even just their families at home and say we are the church at our home we are gathered. I can stay home cause there are two or more Christians in my home and we love Jesus and we hearing from God etc.

Even in the New Testament Days Christians must of had this misconception about church. It’s nothing new that we are dealing with.

A lot of Christians are deceived into being fans not followers.

They love Jesus he’s a great guy. Wonderful teacher but they are not following him. Jesus loves me no matter what.

We should be apprentices in the house of God learning from those put in authority above what we should do to be more like Jesus. In an apprentice ship you are learning the craft so one day you can do the job unsupervised.

The church is to train you to the point that you can stand on your own and not stray from the truth of God’s word.

When we say our “personal walk with Jesus this isn’t walking side by side this is following him and everything the word says.

Christianity is about denying yourself

Christianity is not about the pursuit of happiness but the pursuit of Jesus and being obedient to him.

If you want to live for yourself then Christianity is not for you.

Hebrews 10:24–25 NKJV

And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

Why shouldn’t we stop assembling?

Stir up love and good works

Exhorting one another

We need each other this life is hard, we have a true enemy that masquerades like and angel of light and leads our brother’s and sisters astray making them believe that they are doing just fine and hearing the truth.

If we aren’t around our brothers and sisters in Christ if we aren’t in the army so to speak we can’t be ready for battle and we won’t be protected.

4. I’m here

Conclusion: So you might be saying to yourself. Well I’m here I’m in Church.

That’s not a problem for me i know i need to be in Church. I know those scriptures say that i know we need to meet together as a body.

So I am applying it to my life. I’m all in serving for Jesus pursuing him not matter what and not for my own happiness but being obedient to Jesus.

What is the point ? So glad you asked.

Just like the Apostle Paul we are sent out by the Holy Spirit to build churches to spread the gospel.

Pastor Deadra I’m not a church builder or and evangelist.

Oh, but you are those things.

The way the body is drawn to gathering is not just by holding these services and opening the door. Not just by Bishop or Pastors or Teacher.

They come into the gathering place because you invite them and because you can speak on their level in a way I can’t. I’m supposed to miss them when they aren’t at church and i do.

I’m supposed to want them to come to church and i do.

But to them it’s my job as a Pastor my life is ministry and Jesus and I’m supposed to love everyone and be nice and sweet and loving....lol

Oh but if you do it is so different.

And when they say I do my own thing and i talk to God and I spend time with God on my own

and my relationship with God is personal and i don’t share that with anyone or got to church.

You now know what to say to that believer who needs to come visit or join a church body.