Vision 2022

After our service today, we’ll have our annual business meeting and discuss the in’s and out’s of our church’s operations, our budget and plans for the next year. We hope that all of you would stay and participate in the conversation whether you are a member or not.

These four words: Worship, Serve, Grow, Tell summarize what we believe are the central things that a church should be about and should be doing. This list is not a list for our leadership team, it is a list for all of us, as we’ll see this morning, God’s Word is full of references to these 4 activities.

We are pausing this week from a series of messages about awakening and revival. We’ll pick that message series up in two weeks. My prayer, the prayer of our elder board and hopefully the collective prayer of this church is that both would happen. First revival in our personal lives and our churches and then awakening in the culture.

Just so we don’t lose sight of the 5 signs of true God centered revival, here is the list:

When esteem for the true Jesus is raised

When Satan’s kingdom is attacked (sin and worldly lusts)

When people come to love Scripture more

When men are led away from falsehood to truth (sound doctrine)

When there is an increase of love to God and man

As we look at our four pillar areas of our church’s vision, you’ll see some parallels:

Worship God and Jesus - #1

Serve Those in Need - #5

Grow in Faith Together - #2, 3, 4

Tell others about Jesus - #4

Worship God and Jesus

In the old testament, there are 2 Hebrew words that are translated into our word worship:

bd (O-vad (50 of 172) - 285 total in OT

to work or cultivate

serve/work for a master as a slave

do service, perform rites for

More than worship, this word is translated to serve as in

Joshua 24:14 NIV

14 “Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord.

The other word most often translates worship in the OT is

hwh (head-va-feh) (70 of 172) - 170 total in OT

bow down deeply

pay homage, worship, adore, revere, honor, submission, respect

Nehemiah 8:6 NIV

6 Ezra praised the Lord, the great God; and all the people lifted their hands and responded, “Amen! Amen!” Then they bowed down and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.

More than half of the root meaning of worship in the old testament is summed up in these 2 Hebrew words that mean to serve and to bow down.

In the New Testament, the Greek word most translated into worship is the word proskyneo. The literal meaning of this word is to bow down. It is a term that describes a physical posture or position. Jesus even makes a distinction about worship when he speaks with the woman at the well. She bring up worship and here is what He teaches:

John 4:21–24 NIV

21 “Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

vs 21 - bowing down won’t happen on a mountain nor in Jerusalem

vs 22 - Samaritans bow down to what they do not know, but Jews worship and bow to the one true God, but there is a transition coming…a new teaching from Jesus about worship...

vs 23 - From the time of Jesus and ongoing, worship will happen in Spirit and truth because...

vs 24 - God is spirit - the bowing down happens within our spirit and it happens in truth.

The world worships worldly things and “bows” down to them with their time and effort. A priority is placed on those things as that is what is perceived to have value. The things the world worships is things that can be seen.

Even the Jews worshipped what they could see…the temple, the ark of the covenant, but Jesus says that worship will happen in spirit.

Spirit cannot be seen and Jesus is talking about a time that true worshippers would worship that which they cannot see.

The world worships lots of things they cannot see…comfort, power, significance and so on, but those things are not truth.

Only Jesus is the truth that the Father sent to us. In John 14:6 He says

John 14:6 NIV

6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

As worshippers in Spirit and in truth, we worship that which we cannot see, but that which is the Truth.

So how do we worship like this? First let me remind us of the root meaning of the words translated worship in the Bible:

Serve, work, revere, bow down

And Jesus tells us to do these things in Spirit and in Truth.

So anytime we serve, we work, we revere or spiritually bow we are worshipping. This is happening right now as we set aside time to work through his word to us. Worship happens when we stand and bow within our spirit and sing of his goodness, when we sing that there’s nothing better than Him. Worship happens when we serve one another and the world around us.

That brings us to the second thing that we do as Crossroads Christian Church.

First we

Worship God and Jesus

Serve Those In Need

Jesus spoke of the importance of this in Matthew 25. Turn there with me if you have your Bibles. He separates out those who did this from those who did not. When we have a faith in Jesus, we can’t help but to serve those with a need. Let’s read starting in verse 35:

Matthew 25:35–40 NIV

35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

So many times Jesus went out of his way to help those he saw in need. We don’t have to look far to see where people are in need. Here are just a few I jotted down:

Food

shelter

Provisions for work/school

help with taxes and paperwork

physical help around the house

help with relationships

At Crossroads we want to be a church that sees a need and does something about it. We can’t always meet every need, but we want to serve where we can as often as possible.

At Crossroads, We -

Worship God and Jesus

Serve Those In Need

and

Grow in Faith Together

Hebrews 11:1 defines faith as:

Hebrews 11:1 NIV

1 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

If we are growing in our Faith together, we are growing in our confidence of what we hope for - Jesus.

How do we grow in our faith together? I have 2 main ways in which our faith is challenged and as a result will grow:

Prayer - This is the exercise of our faith. We cannot see God, yet we talk to him because we have assurance that He is there. Jesus told us to ask in His name and believe. Prayer is the exercise that will grow our faith

Study God’s Word - God’s Word tells us His promises for us. How can we know those promises unless we read them? By reading God’s Word together, those who are strong in faith can mentor and walk who are not into a deeper understanding and level of faith. As one teaches, he grows, as one is taught, he grows.

These can certainly be done on our own and they should, but this should also be done together. Both prayer and study when done with others are ways in which we grow in our faith together.

Worship God and Jesus

Serve Those In Need

Grow in Faith Together

Lastly, but not least

Tell others about Jesus

If you have, as Romans 10:9-10 tells us, have confessed and believed you have received the greatest single gift in all the world.

Romans 10:9–10 NIV

9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.

Jesus is the hope that people are looking for. Jesus is the answer to many of people’s questions and struggles. Knowing Him and being known by Him is the most rewarding thing a person can experience this side of heaven. Why wouldn’t we want everyone to know? Here are a few passages that tell us the importance of Telling others about Jesus:

Mark 16:15 NIV

15 He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.

1 Peter 3:15 NIV

15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,

Acts 1:8 NIV

8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Matthew 5:16 NIV

16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 28:19–20 NIV

19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Colossians 4:6 NIV

6 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Romans 10:14 NIV

14 How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?

Tell Others About Jesus

These are just a few verses that challenge us to share the good news of Jesus and what He’s done. I don’t think it is an option. There are several ways this happens:

It happens in direct conversation: “Let me tell you about Jesus and what He did”

It happens over time while building relationships and conversations happen at kitchen table or at a soccer game.

It happens with our actions and testimony: “I am doing this because of Jesus in my life.”

What is clear from scripture is that telling others about Jesus is not an option.

Vision 2021

When I think about what a healthy church looks like, I think of these four areas.

In a few minutes, we are going to have our annual business meeting. Hopefully you’ll see these four areas in what we’ve done and what we plan to do. If God’s given you a specific idea on how to better accomplish these four areas, please don’t keep it to yourself. The church is made up of many members who need each other as we fulfill the collective call on our lives. We need each other. Let’s pray:

Pray for wisdom

Pray for breakthrough in each area.