Pilliars

Last two weeks we have been talking about priorities. I believe everyone needs to have priorities. If you don’t have priorities than everything will fill your time.

What your prioritize will take up the majority of your time

Well Pastor I don’t have priorities. Yes you do. You may have not acknowledged them. You may have not written them down. You may not even like them. But you do have priorities.

Priorities are important because there isn’t enough time in the day to do all things. So all of us determine what we find important and we give our time to that. We determine what will be put off for tomorrow. We determine what gets our attention today. We determine who we reach out to and who we talk too. We give our life hours to what we believe matters.

The same is true for the church body. There are as many churches as there are personalities and each church body, including this one, has priorities. We, weather we know it or not, find a church that meets what we believe to be important and we attend that church. Why the Bridge over the United Methodist or the Presbatiyan. Why this church over Clarks Green?

Some would say ell because God called us here: But I would argue God knew your priorities and your talents and called you to a church that matches those.

Over the next few weeks we are going to be discussing What we call

Pillars

Pillars are our priorities. The place where we will focus the majority of our energy. It is impossible for a church our size to reach every demographic known to man. It would be impossible and unnessicary.

You may ask how we came up with these pillars. Well a long time ago 7 years now. I did some research on this church. I believe every church is planted with a calling and that calling doesn’t change. How we achieve that calling changes, but the calling itself doesn’t change.

Then I pulled demographics and such to tell me about Nicholson and it’s surrounding areas. I looked into every church and found where those churches are reaching people and where they aren’t.

I found the holes. I focused on those holes. Then about 3 years ago a group of us embarked on a journey to write out our mission as a church. Some of those people aren’t here, but those who are were myself, my wife, Ruth Scudder, and Sandy Nally. And we worked for over a year to write out what we believe the church pillars are.

These pillars you see up here determines everything we do. If you come to me and say Pastor I want to start this ministry. I am going back to these pillars to determine if they fit. If they do. Then Yes. If they don’t then No. These pillars took much prayer, fasting, and leading from God to write out and determine. It took a lot of work to determine what is important and where God was going to use us to reach his people.

These pictures are the definition of the Bridge Community Church. This is our identity.

First You’ll notice two things

The banner in the back. That’s our mission statement.

Love God, Love People, Reach the World.

If someone asks you who we are and what we believe in as few words as possible. That’s it.

2. The painting above the door as you walk out.

Saved People Serve People

In as few words as possible that’s what we do.

When asked How do we Love God, Love People, Reach the World.

We serve.

Talking about the final judgement when all will stand before God to be Judged and asigned their eternal resting place God said.

Matthew 25:32–46 ESV

32 Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ 41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ 44 Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ 45 Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ 46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

First thing we need to understand about the Kingdom of God and This Church body:

Words Don’t Matter

Saying a prayer doesn’t save your soul. Nowhere in the bible does it say. If you say you recieve me you will enter the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 7:21 tells us that not everyone who says Lord, Lord will enter the kingdom of Heaven.

Actions Matter

We are a church of action. We serve through action.

James 2:14–17 ESV

14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

In other words Faith without action is useless.

Also the adverse is true.

Action without faith is futile

You have to have both to please God. You have believe, but you also have to serve.

Jesus’ entire life and ministry was a testimony to this very attribute. Now what we aren’t going to get into today is giftings. That will be another series maybe after this one, but we are all gifted differently. Understand: Just because someone doesn’t work like you doesn’t mean they aren’t working the way Jesus called them to.

one of the biggest attitudes that almost killed this church was this:

They don’t serve like we do so they must not be saved.

This definition came out in many different sentences, but this was the core of what was being said.

Some people their gift is business. To make money and sow into the Kingdom of God. You may not see them at food pantry, but you may se their donations and not even know it. There is a place in the church for every gift God has given and through this series we will discover just that.

We will break down everyone of these pillars. We will look at scripture because every pillar is back by scripture. Properly exegeted to make sure we didn’t twist and put into practice.

My prayer is through this journey if you are a sitter you become a doer. Whatever that looks like and however God has called you there is a place for you in this church and in the body of Christ to Serve people and reach the world.