If We Are the Body...

This evening we are preparing to spend time in prayer and worship, and I felt led to target our prayers in a very specific way this evening.

I try not to be a current events preacher… but sometimes, certain seasons require targeted prayer. Our prayer focus tonight is not going to be targeted outward… but more inward regarding some urgent needs.

God has BIG things in store. This is true on both a personal level and a corporate level.

God has a plan for you. And His plan is a good plan.

He desires to work in you and through you. He desires to use you for His glory. He desires to fill you with His presence and Word that you might share His love and truth with others.

God is on the move! Our level of commitment to Him will determine how much or how far we will move with Him.

God has a plan for this church. And His plan is a good plan.

He has strategically located HWC to be a beacon of His light to multiple communities throughout the heartland. We have a centralized worship facility, but I believe God desires to mobilize His church. This building is NOT the church. You ARE the church!

God is going to use this place as a spiritual refueling station. He is sending the church back to the surrounding communities to transform the heartland through community care and discipleship. God is calling us to be the church to the communities in which we live. Our level of commitment to Him will determine how much of an influence we will be in our neighborhoods and towns.

In both scenarios, God is calling us to be the hands… to be the feet. The church is identified in Scripture as the body of Christ. The church is literally to be an extension of Jesus’ ministry on earth until He returns.

That ministry will require not some… but all of the parts of the body of Christ to be in motion. That ministry will require for every believer to get back to the heart of the Great Commission.

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.”

This commission is for ALL believers. No Christian is exempt from being a part of this commission. To sum up the call, I like to say it this way: Everyone a missionary; everywhere a mission field.

God’s people are to be a missional people. God’s people are not here to just take up space, we are here to serve Jesus by serving others. We are here to reach and to save the lost. That means, the missional people of God are to be a body in motion… a body that is moving and responding to the leading of the Holy Spirit

God has empowered His church through the baptism in the Holy Spirit to carry out the mission at hand. The mission given to us is a God-sized mission. It will require a God-sized power to get it done!

So why the review regarding who God has called us to be as a church? Because we are at a cross roads and God is looking for His people to step up.

As we are aware, we have some ministry needs within the church that we are trying to fill.

We need a youth pastor. We need a worship leader. We need a children’s church pastor. We need additional volunteers in our ministries. We need… ALL parts of the body to be in motion.

And with all this… WE NEED THE EMPOWERMENT OF THE SPIRIT TO ANOINT OUR MINISTRIES AND LEADERS. I am thankful for each and every volunteer and helper. I am not trying to indicate a lack of anointing upon any of them. But as the challenges of the day increase, so must our dependency upon the Spirit and His power increase!

So in a moment, we are going to pray and ask God to help us with our ministry needs. We are going to ask for direction, we are going to ask for volunteers, and we are going to ask for the Spirit’s empowerment. But there is something I want us to consider as we pray.

I do not want us to pray to God and ask for others to step up.

I want us to pray to God and ask how we individually can step up as members of the body of Christ.

I believe God is going to speak to hearts tonight. I believe God is going to rearrange some schedules tonight. I believe God is going to call some folks to ministry tonight.

He might absolutely turn your world around tonight! And with that I say Glory to His name!

How committed are you to seeing God’s plan for your life accomplished?

How committed is the body to being the influence God is calling us to be in the communities in which we live?

SINCE we are the body… we need to be reminded of what it means to be the body.

SINCE We are the body.

1 Corinthians 12:27 NIV

27 Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.

You are a part of the body of Christ. God has gifted you, has equipped you, has called you to fulfill a unique role within the ministry of the body right here in the heartland. EVERY BELIEVER under the sound of my voice has a part to play and NO PART is less than or greater than the others.

For instance, it might be easy to consider a more seen ministry as more important than the unseen ministries within a church. But those unseen ministries serve as a support system to the seen ministries. In many if not all cases… the seen ministries would struggle to operate without the unseen support!

Maybe God is calling you to be a Sunday School teacher or a youth sponsor. Maybe God is calling you to help in Ranger or Girls ministry or to be a greeter. OR… maybe God is calling you to help in the kitchen or to help provide snacks for the kids. Or maybe God is calling you to be a prayer warrior… to pray for our church and its ministries.

Whatever part God has you serving as… it all goes back to the mission at hand. EACH AND EVERY PART makes a BIG difference in our ministries at HWC!

And… our service also makes a huge difference in the plan God has for us individually. Wherever God takes you… wherever His Spirit leads you to go, I pray you will choose to operate according to His will for your life.

The question is not whether or not we are the body of Christ… the question is, since we are the body of Christ… are we willing to be a body in motion?

Are we willing to roll up our sleeves and serve where God would lead us to serve? Serving God will look different for each part of the body, but there are two common things you can be sure of:

Our service needs to be empowered by the Spirit of God. God’s Spirit MUST be our source of power.

Our service will be active, not passive. Service requires we move accordingly. Service requires we do in response to who we are in Jesus.

Call to Prayer

We are in a season of need at HWC. We need every member of the body of Christ to step into the role God is calling you to take.

And hear me clearly… this is NOT about forcing or manipulating anyone to do something God is not calling you to do. If we forcibly place the wrong people into the wrong positions we risk doing more damage to that ministry AND to that person.

The key tonight is seeking what THE LORD would have us do. The key tonight is seeking what God would lead you to do. But I caution you… God ALWAYS answers prayer. God is going to guide you and lead you. There is plenty to be done in the kingdom! So be ready… because I believe the Lord is going to move on some hearts this evening.

If we desire to see God do amazing things in and through this body of believers… then we must be a body of believers who are open and receptive to moving with God.

Passivity has no place in the body of Christ. God is calling all to the harvest field… for they are white and ready for harvest. Are you willing to hear form God this evening? Are you willing to to pray for our ministries… and to pray for how God might use you to fulfill His Great Commission here in the heartland?

Prayer Points

God, bless my ministry in my home, my workplace, my neighborhood and community. Help me to be the light you have called me to be.

God, bless our ministries at HWC. Show me how and where to serve. Help me be the part of the body you have called me to be.

God, pour out your Holy Spirit on our volunteers and ministry teams. Fill us with your strength and power as we work together to reach the lost of the heartland.

God, fill our open ministry positions. Help our ministries to move forward according to Your plan for this Your church.