M.S. Pt 2: Send them out and Spread Far and Wide

Welcome

Well, good morning Forest Glen! Good to be with you here today. My name is Dan and serve as one of the Pastors for Park | Forest Glen and we are glad your here today.

Introduction

We are taking the month of January to talk through our new Vision and Mission statements for Park Community Church; laying out what we believe God has called us to be and be about as a local church in Chicago. Two weeks ago, we looked at our Vision Statement:

Vision Statement: Proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all people until there is no place left.

And what that means is want to be a kind of community that recognizes we exist for more than just our own survival! We are a community that wants to be out and engaged in the world around us with the good news about Jesus…and to see the message and fame of Jesus go from right here in a small pocket of the NW side of Chicago and reverberate around the city and world…until there is no place left on earth where Jesus is not named or known.

That is our vision. To be community proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ to all people until there’s not place left.

Now how do we do that? What does it look like for us to be engaged in that kind vision? This is where our mission statement comes in…because our mission statement is designed to call out four priorities for us as we go about to accomplish the vision.

Here is our mission statement:

Mission Statement: We Exist to make disciples, equip the saints, send them out, and spread far and wide.

Last week, Brenton Smith, one of our other pastors, did a fantastic job digging into those first two aspects. Making disciples and Equipping the saints.

That we are helping others follow Jesus....and being trained and equipped to use the gifts God has given us to serve one another. If you missed that message, you can head back and find it on our YouTube channel.

This week, we are going to look at the second half of the mission statement: Send them Out and Spread Far and Wide.

And the reason we’re taking the time to talk about this is because we don’t want these to just be words we throw around at Park. We want the Vision and Mission statement to capture what we’re actually about and in that…we want you join in what God is doing here. We see this as what God has called us to as a church…it’s what he’s called us to be apart of in this local church…apart of the greater work that he is doing in Chicago and around the world! And the invitation is us drop what we may be holding on to…and follow Jesus.

So let me pray, and then we’ll get started.

PRAY

The Movement of the Gospel

Alright, let’s get started.

The story of Christianity is the story of how the message of Jesus spread from a small group of no more than 70 followers to the far reaches of the world, with billions throughout history who have become followers.

It’s interesting that each of the Account of Jesus life, along with the book of Acts talk about this kind of movement of Jesus message…expanding far beyond the bounds of a small, almost forgotten, region of the Ancient Roman empire to rest of the Globe.

Some of these are very familiar.

Jesus words to His followers of his resurrection from the dead in Matthew 28:19.

Matthew 28:19 (ESV)

19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

Mark 16:15 (ESV)

15 And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.

In the Gospel of John…

John 20:21 ESV

21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.”

And the last thing he said to his followers:

Acts 1:8 (ESV)

8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

And I think there we see most clearly this kind of expansion Jesus is talking about…that the vocation of those who follow him…of all those who follow him…their calling, their job…who they are… is witnesses TO and ABOUT Jesus....in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

For us that would be like Jesus saying, you will be my witness in Chicago, Cook County and Illinois, and to the ends of the earth. These are the words Jesus speaks to each and every one of his followers.

Running its way through the entirety of the Biblical story is that God calls people, saves them, and sends them out has his ambassadors…his representatives in the world! Christianity is not a monument…something that is supposed to stay still and look nice…but it is a movement. We cannot understand the Christian story outside this movement idea…in fact, we cannot rightly understand what it means to be a Christian and follow Jesus with out seeing we are apart of a movement of the Gospel…begin in Jerusalem and moving to ends of the earth.

River Rafting: I don’t know if you’ve ever done of of those kind of river floats or kayak trip kind of thing. We’re you get in the river and either just float down on the tube or paddle down to another point. There is a current when you get in the water…the water is already moving somewhere and going somewhere. The easiest thing to do on the river is go along with the current…to follow the natural movement of what the water is already going. It’s harder to not move…you have to put in all this effort and energy to not do the very thing you’re supposed to…harder still is to trying to fight against the current and go upstream. In the same way, following Jesus is like following him into the river. There is a current that naturally pulling at us as we follow him. But when we fail to see ourselves as Christians as part of a movement…when we fight the current…that’s why for so many people Christianity doesn’t feel life giving…or it feels like it’s hurtful to us…it’s because we are trying to fight the current. We’re trying to push back agains the very thing that is supposed to happen in the river!

To follow Jesus is necessarily to be apart of movement of the Gospel, as Acts 1:8 puts it, “From...

Acts 1:8 (ESV)

8 ...Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Transition

So how does this connect with our Mission Statement?

Let me put in on the screen again.

Mission Statement: We Exist to Make Disciples, Equip the Saints, Send them Out, and Spread Far and Wide.

Send them Out

Send them out means we, as Park | Forest Glen…a community of followers of Jesus...composed of individual believers in Jesus…we recognize we are sent out as apart of the Movement of the Gospel we just talked about.

Here is the language we’re using to explain this.

Send them Out: Success in the church is not merely determined by our seating capacity, but our sending capacity. As members grow and become more like Christ, we can’t help but to share and show the good news of the kingdom. So, we proclaim the gospel to our neighbors in word and deed, plant churches, and go to the nations.

And I love that… “we can’’t help but share and show!” That means those of us who know and have experienced the message of Jesus as good news…have a growing desire to share and show that good news to those around us!

And this is right in line with one of the passages we looked at above, John 20:21

John 20:21 ESV

21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.”

I’m hearing stories of that right now in our church of a few folks who recently became followers of Jesus and to hear their excitement about going back to talk with family and friends about what they’ve experienced is beautiful…that’s what should be growing in us as we follow Jesus!

And you’ll notice two domains where we are sent out: locally and globally.

Sent Out Locally

At the end of our services, almost every week, I use the same words as a reminder to us all that we are sent out from this place when I say, “May the God who brought you here fill you with the Holy Spirit to make much of Jesus Christ to the Glory of God the Father in what in whatever space or place he’s called you. Go now, to proclaim the good new of Jesus to all people until there is no place left!”

And I do that to remind us that when we step out of this building and go back home…back to work…back to life as we know it…we do not go having just experienced a religious blip at the end of the week. We are sent out on mission. To be his witnesses on our front yards, on our blocks and in our neighborhoods. In your office, at the park, at the dinner table, the party, and wherever else you might be.

Now, saying that we are ‘sent out’ does not mean the only thing we ever talk about with other people is Jesus.

It doesn’t mean we’re supposed to try and have heavy, deep, and real conversations with every single person we talk to.

One of my favorite pastors and authors, Tim Keller, talks about it like this. And at first this is gonna sound strange, but hang in there with me.

He says following Jesus is like wearing a suit or set of clothes that just a little too big on you. You imagine that for a moment. There’s a bit of an awkwardness to wearing clothes that are too big. But, he says, the secular worldview is like wearing a suit that’s a little too small.

Now when a crisis moment hits…the loss of job…the end of a relationship…the death of loved one…anything that is some kind of jolting experience…those things tend to cause all of us to jump. This is when the size of the suit matters. If it’s a little to big…you can jolt around and the suit is okay…there’s room to move around a bit…it moves with you. But when it’s too small…it rips.

And then he makes the point that being sent out as a Christian means you are there when your neighbor’s suit rips. You’ve been living in such a way that they know you care about them They know they matter to you. And it’s in that moment when you have incredible opportunity to genuinely show and share the love of Jesus with them. And there are little things we can work on right now.

How many of us don’t the names of our neighbors? Even if we’ve lived next door for years?

Step one, pray for a chance to bump into them. And start a conversation.

Get out early and shovel their part of the sidewalk.

Have a little cookout when the weather gets nice.

We can find even small ways to get to know the people around us and be in their lives having shown we care so that we are there when the suit rips.

We are set out here and now locally.

Sent Out Globally

But there is also a part of this that is much bigger than just the city of Chicago.

Think of our vision statement again.

Vision Statement: Proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all people until there is no place left.

Yes, no place left includes our block and our neighborhood and the world right around us, but it extends to far reaches of the rest of the world.

And we need to recognize that no place left includes those parts of the world where Jesus is not known really by anybody.

We need to know the GLOBAL STATE of CHRISTIANITY.

Let me explain.

We know there are at least 16,000 distinct people groups today with specific cultures, languages and customs, but we also know that of these 16,000 there are around 7,000 of them that are considered UNREACHED…which means less than 2% of the population would identify as Followers of Jesus. But beyond that, around half the Unreached People Groups are what we call UNENGAGED…which means there are NO known followers of Jesus there at all and there is NO effort directed at bring the Gospel to them.

3,500 people groups who have NEVER heard of Jesus. That is the Global state Christianity. Millions of people who have never heard the Good News! So what’s our role? II Corinthians 5:20 says this,

2 Corinthians 5:20 ESV

20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.

As Christian, this reminds us that because of what Jesus has done for us…we have become His ambassadors…His representatives to the world... as we go out with the message of Jesus! As followers of Jesus WE ARE SENT OUT! And friends, there is still A LOT of work to be done!

Senders:

For us to be a sending church means we pray for more of our members to be sent out—to the nations…to the ends of the earth...specifically to those places where people have never heard the name of Jesus!

Our Global vision is to mobilize, send, and sustain 100 followers of Jesus to these Unreached people groups. We’ve sent and are actively connected with 41 global partners an and by God’s grace are looking to send 8-10 early next year. 100 people to go and proclaim bring the Good news of Salvation in Jesus! And let me remind you that, God willing, the five who will be sent early next year, are from Park | Forest Glen! Nathan and AnnaMarie Ghantous Michael and Whitney Bryant Nathan McKinney Ben and Noelle Carr’s

And by God’s grace, there will be more who will go from this church.

I’ve shared this before, that have been praying there would be 15 from Park | Forest Glen who Go to the nations to be part of the Park 100. And there will be some of us who stay here and support. We will hold the ropes...we will encourage through prayer and financial support!

Part of our role here and now is to recognize that God has way for each of us to be Globally minded Christians!

One of the best first steps for any of us is the Perspectives Course. Perspectives is a 15 week class that will change the way you view the world around you. In it, you will have your eyes opened to the heart and purpose of God, and how you can take part in His work all over the world, from the urban streets of America to the rainforest and deserts of distant lands. A fantastic array of pastors, theologians, international missiologists, and mobilizers will challenge and inspire you to see just how big God is, and how much He desires that all might come to know Him. Whether you are single, married, a student, a stay-at-home parent, a professional or retired, Perspectives will bless and challenge your life and direction. And we offer this class every year! If f you have any questions about Perspectives, stop by after the service and talk with our Global Team leader, Lindsey Rice!

Park, imbedded within our identity as Christians is a missional burden, a Global task, to be sent out…to be those who proclaim the the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all people until there is no place left.

Spread Far and Wide

Finally, let’s quickly look at the last piece of our mission state.

Spread Far and Wide: We believe we’ll go farther, if we go together. As disciples make disciples, as churches plant other churches, and as global partners are sent out, we have resolved to share all that we have with one another as a movement which sparks other movements of sharing and going together until there’s no place left.

Friends, the task God has called us to is way bigger than Park Community Church…but it requires us to see ourselves as parter of a larger, and better story; to see that God is working with other churches, other groups, other ministries, and other people all across the world. And our role is not to franchise out the Park model or the Park way of doing things. But we must be convinced that we, Jesus loving, bible believing, people can and need to be working with other Jesus loving, bible-believing people and churches!

Conclusion

I’ll close with this.

Really within the last several years, that has been this really interesting trend in the produce world that I know at least my kids totally take for granted.

The Seedless revolution.

You know, like seedless water melons, seedless oranges and cuties (if you don’t have kids, cuties are super easy to peel clementines) seedless cucumbers…seedless grapes. That kind of things.

And the beauty of these foods is the easy of them, right? Like I don’t have to scare my kids by telling em that a Watermelon is gonna grow in their bellies if they don’t spit out the seeds! It takes away this pretty serious choking hazard. You’re not going to chip a tooth on a grape seed. They are incredibly convenient! They are exactly what we’re looking for...

Except that they can’t reproduce by themselves. They have to be genetically created. They’re real, but not in they way they’re supposed to be…there’s something artificial about them.

And in the same way…a church can become just like one of those seedless fruits. It’s convenient, it’s easy, no risk.

But they can’t reproduce. And they die off...

Friends, we cannot be a seedless church.

You see, what we are trying to call out in our new Vision and Mission statement is that we are the seed. You follow Jesus? You are a seed! And our role is be scattered and grow and be useful wherever God places. And in doing so, we would be a church proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all people until there’s no place left. Making Disciples equipping the saints, sending them out and, by God’s grace, spreading far and wide.

Let’s pray.

PRAY