The Church

The Church

Part I Ministries

The last couple of weeks we have been talking about the Primary Purpose… The plan that Jesus gave to us in Matthew 28:19-20. My prayer to God was that as a family we would recognize the importance of being available to God, listen to His call and that each of you have talents that are designated as a part of the Body of Christ. You have a purpose.

To worship God, and glorify His name when you are in the quiet of prayer or in His word. Savor the words of God, and let your heart sing to God.

We must submit to God… His will be done in our lives, and the only way that happens is if we are obedient to His commands. This comes from a relationship with God, and as your relationship builds your faith builds. And then… the Power or your faith becomes evident because you are a light of the world. We are no longer the old self that followed the temptations of the flesh. You have been filled with the Holy Spirit, and you are new!

[2 Corinthians 5:17 NKJV] 17 Therefore, if anyone [is] in Christ, [he is] a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

So, now that we have studied the Primary Purpose; how does that look in the church? The church is not this building… it is the new self, your new image… at way of life… in our obedience we minister to the world, and focus on teaching the world of the good news the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Coming together on Sundays or any other day has a tradition of being called church. This is important for us to do. Coming together for fellowship like today we will have a potluck after services. Talking and sharing and praying with other saints. Other members of the body of Christ. This is important. But this is only church by name…. You are the church.

Now we are going to see how the bible teaches us about the structure of the church. This is vital and important for us as we grow as a family to understand the principles in God’s word to guide us as we grow in the ministry that God has called our family for. The key word here is family. No one should ever attempt to walk alone. That is not how a body works…

[1 Corinthians 12:12-14 NKJV] 12 For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also [is] Christ. 13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body--whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free--and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. 14 For in fact the body is not one member but many.

Our bodies work better when we feed them properly. Coming together on Sunday for instance in our family you will be fed the word of God. This is healthy for the body of Christ. And for you and how you fit in for the calling God has given you.

When we eat healthy food, and avoid things like over indulging in sweets, and deep-fried foods. Even though they taste good they are not very good for us. When we do too much of this the body becomes weaker, and we start losing the effectiveness of how our bodies were designed. This is the same with how we work as the church body.

Each of you are designed for a specific God given purpose. You are designed to fit as an integral part of the body of Christ the church. Integral means that you are essential. You are needed. You are loved, and with proper feeding you are stronger. The feeding you need is from the Word of God.

Exercise is good, but exercising the power of the Holy Spirit is more profitable…. Just saying…

[1 Timothy 4:8 NKJV] 8 For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come.

Just as with the physical food you eat and how it impacts your body, our bodies react the same to being ministered to by the Word of God. The truth of the word of God overcomes the lies of the world. God’s word is the moral compass we need in our daily walk with God.

Stay with me on this for a moment. Have any of you ever seen a virus attacking your body? Of course not. And, if you did you would have been using all kinds of disinfectants to destroy it before the virus entered your body. Right?!

Our enemy Satan is subtle and almost guaranteed you will not see his attack on you as part of the body of Christ. Not until it is too late and you are down the road a bit and realize what has happened. The devil will try to make you feel insignificant and meaningless. Some may not come to church because you do not feel a part. When you isolate yourself for this reason the devil wins that battle. It is how he picks and chips at the foundation of the body of Christ the church. One person at a time… chipped away.

When you study and read the Word of God you become stronger and when you come to church for the fellowship you become stronger by getting the encouragement you need. The support you need, the prayer you need, and to know you are loved.

The enemy Satan and his minions do not want you to feel loved, they don’t want you to feel a part of a family, they don’t want you to receive encouragement, and prayer.

[Rom 12:5 NKJV] 5 so we, [being] many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.

[1Co 12:12 NKJV] 12 For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also [is] Christ.

We are all part of the body of Christ. This is to every living being in the world regardless if they realize the importance of how God created them or not. The obedience we have when we come to the cross edifies the body. You become stronger because you are following the direction God is giving you and the body grows because you are doing what you have been called to do.

The position you play in the body is what you are called to be. God created you with talents that are unique to what His plan is for you. Not everyone of us is a good singer, or a good speaker. Or, even having the ability to take care of children. That is a talent! There are some that have it, and others that don’t.

Elders

The ultimate foundation the body of Christ is built is love. Jesus was the greatest example of love in all of His time with us on earth up to the tomb He was laid in being empty. When Moses was in the desert he was trying to do all things on his own. He was sitting with the people from morning till night fall on all their inquiries. Jethro his father in-law said to Moses:

[Exodus 18:17-18 NKJV] 17 So Moses' father-in-law said to him, "The thing that you do [is] not good. 18 "Both you and these people who [are] with you will surely wear yourselves out. For this thing [is] too much for you; you are not able to perform it by yourself.

And today for the body of Christ let’s read Ephesians 4…

[Eph 4:11-13 NIV] 11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, 12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

Now stick with me on this… The design of the church is to “Equip”, and what is equipped? His people! For “Works of service”! You have a purpose, and a service you have been “Called” for.

And why are you being equipped? “So that the Body… of Christ… will be “Built up”. And finally, what are we built up for? To “Reach a unity in the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the WHOLE MEASURE of the fullness of Christ.”

You all have a calling… that was given to you by Christ himself.

These positions are calledpositions. Apostles are like an attorney, an advocate who promotes your cause for Christ. Prophets are filled with the Holy Spirit to give us inspiration from God. The evangelist is called with the ability to bring people to the foot of the cross and confess and give their lives to Jesus Christ.

Elders to be the spiritual leaders of the body. They set the example and teach the family how to live a life worth of the Gospel.

[1Pe 5:1-3 NIV] 1 To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ's sufferings who also will share in the glory to be revealed: 2 Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care, watching over them--not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve; 3 not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.

You see this is a calling. “Not because you must, but because you are willing” “Eager to serve”.

Here are the requirements of receiving the title of Elder:

[1Timothy 3:1-7 NIV] 1 Here is a trustworthy saying: Whoever aspires to be an overseer desires a noble task. 2 Now the overseer is to be above reproach, faithful to his wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 3 not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. 4 He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him, and he must do so in a manner worthy of full respect. 5 (If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God's church?) 6 He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil. 7 He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil's trap.

Having humility and love so not to lord it over the flock. This is the mystery of that Jesus spoke of. The depth of love to be true leaders.

[1Peter 5:3 NIV] 3 not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.

So, what does this mean to me? As we build this church family the foundation is being set to stand firm. As a pastor my responsibility is to protect the flock and to teach the flock in the knowledge of the Son of God. To bring the church family to a unity so that we can grow and provide a safe place for anyone who walks through these doors. To wear my knees out in prayer for each of you.

The Integral Blessing

I cannot do it alone. As your Pastor I pray for each of you see’s God’s will and the calling each of you have. What part of the body of Christ are you to be fulfilling? Each of us has talents. Each of us are special and unique. Each of you has a calling that when you start doing it the power of God will explode in you and just watch how God will make you feel!

I was talking to a very close brother the other day. When we are walking with God, and being obedient reading the Word of God, praying, studying, getting connected with the local church there is an aroma that starts to come from you that is attractive. This comes from the love of God, and the Holy Spirit being activated in you. When you accepted Christ as your savior you were filled with the Holy Spirit as the integral blessing.

This blessing which when fed by the Word of God, prayer, and study permeates an odor that attracts people to you. It is most noticeable when you are fulfilling your calling the God has given you as you walk with Him. The foundation of this calling is love. And this is what overcomes the enemy.

I am challenging you to pray for what God wants you to do as part of this family. Be here to receive the teachings on Sunday. Help us develop more teachings during the week. There are so many areas that we need to build as we grow. Working with the audio-visual team in preparation for the services. We want to build a worship team. We want to build a welcome team. These will be the people that when we have a new visitor to feel the love of the family. We need to build Childrens ministries, mens ministries, women’s ministries, and youth ministries.

There is so much to do, and the need is for you to pray on what you are called to do. Don’t fail to fulfill your calling. Stand on the foundation of the church the body of Christ. Pray for me. This morning I received a scripture from a beautiful sister in the Lord. And this is what I will leave with you today:

[Colossians 3:23-24 NIV] 23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, 24 since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

God bless you all!