KCC Preview Service / Worship Night / #1 / Mission

Mission

Dave Ramsey has a great quote about what I want to tell you tonight. It says this. “Without a mission statement, you may get to the top of the ladder and then realise it was leaning against the wrong building” I have climbed a lot of ladders in my 31 years, not nearly as many as others, but its frustrating to be going up and down and up and down, bringing tools back and forth to only see that you are nt in the right place. Some of us do things like this all the time. I certainly do. Here is how I do it. My wife of almost 8 years will often say, “Can you run to aldi and get ______” (You all know where this is going dont you). You get in the car, you head to the store, you get inside and......then its like you are in another body. “OOOHH look at these grapes, ooh the special aisle at ALDI where I can get a pressure washer, toys for the kids, 5 candles, and an ab roller” “Lets get all of it”. Then I head to the aldi finds aisle, “ Whoah a new pizza oooh those are on sale etc..... and before you know it I am checking out and so proud of all I have gotten.” I get in the car head home and I walk in the door. My wife rolls her eyes and is wondering why I have all this stuff and she asks simply this, “Wheres the milk?..........” My stomach drops and I realize I forgot the whole purpose and the mission that I was sent on....

Guys, I have been around and worked in a church my entire life. I have been a part of great places and great things. So many churches are doing so many things and I do not profess to have all the answers. But in all of our doing and in my life as a believer I have gotten carried away with “DOING MINISTRY” and I am terrified that many churches and myself included may get to heaven with bags full of stuff and Jesus will look at us and say, “Where’s the milk?” I can think of nothing more discouraging for a church than to forget its original mission that Jesus leaves us all and that is to make disciples. The mission at KCC is TO MOBILIZE A COMMUNITY TO MAKE DISCIPLES.Its a simple but packed statement. This will be at the core of everything we do. If it does not align with this DNA then it will not align with KCC.

The very first part of our mission is critical. What does it mean to mobilize something? It means to prepare and equip something to go. You may be here tonight and you are already a disciple. You may then think that KCC must not be for me. While there are so many things I could say to that, pay attention to that first word. MOBILIZE. We are equiping believers to go and make more believers. Thats how this works. It doesnt work if a group of people expect the pastors or leaders to do all the discipling. If you are a believer you have been called to be a discipler.... and here is where it steps on my toes and one of the reasons we planted KCC.....if youre a believer and you are not disicpling then you arent obeying......you forgot the milk.

So the first part is to mobilize, mobilize to do what? to make disciples. making disciples is a term used by many. and I fear we have so over complicated the process that many people in the church do not know what it means. The good thing is that God sent His Son as a “how to guide” for us when it comes to making disciples.

Go to people where they are. Its time we stop telling people to come and see Jesus and we start to go and show people who Jesus is. THEY WILL NEVER COME AND SEE IF SOMEONE DOESNT FIRST GO AND SHOW. Where do i do that? At work. in homes. at the ballpark, at the gym. at the garage. at the hospital. at the funeral home. at the bar. at the football game, and in our neighborhoods. This idea of spiritual life verse secular life is falce. It doesnt work that way.

Love people as they are: So does this mean everybody? People were always asking Jesus this. Yes it means everybody. People you like and people you dont. People that believe differfently and people that hate you. gay straight democrat republican pro life pro choice yes everyone love them. It is not our job to condemn this world. Jesus didnt even do that but he came to seek and save the lost.

Let the Spirit of God show them who they are: see as a disciple maker you are just an assistant. You dont hold the keys to the kingdom and you do not have the ability to save anyone. It is only by the spirit of God to reveal sin to the hearts of man so that they can see their need for Jesus

At KCC we are serious when it comes to making disciples and when it comes to seeking the lost. You say “how serious”…let me end with this story. In Luke 15 Jesus tells a story about a lost sheep and a shepherd. Now we always equate Jesus with this shepherd but if we do we miss the point of what Jesus was saying. Jesus is indeed the great shepherd but not in this story. how do we know? just look

Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

Story of Henley