Leave Nothing to Chance

This morning we begin a very timely journey on the heels of our last series, “New Normal,” that is going to challenge us and encourage us in a very specific part of who we are at HWC.

What we are going to talk about the next several weeks is… discipleship process. I know, it may not be a very catchy phrase or creative title… but it is one of the most important duties of the church in general… and it is high time we examine our process… or the lack thereof.

As we dive in, in no way am I suggesting that the church has failed or fallen short in this area. However, I do believe God is calling us into a season of growth.

That growth is twofold:

One, I believe God is calling every one of us in this room and watching online to take our walk with Him to the next level. No matter where you are in your journey with Jesus, I believe God is calling you to go deeper in your relationship, to fall more in love, and to serve a little stronger.

Two, I believe God is calling every one of us in this room and watching online to help others take their walk with the Lord to the next level. This includes helping those who do not have a relationship with the Lord. As disciples of Jesus, we need to be engaged in making disciples for Jesus. What does that process look like? How is this going to be achieved?

Those are questions we aim to answer today and yes… it goes beyond a simple invite to church or wearing a Christian t-shirt or hat from time to time.

This series, simply called Next Level Discipleship, is going to challenge us to do one thing… and to do it very well. What we are going to talk about is becoming more INTENTIONAL in our discipleship process. Today I am going to encourage you to leave nothing to chance when it comes to your walk with the Lord AND when it comes to leading others to discovering who Jesus is.

I want to start off with a simple illustration… an illustration that simply talks about getting from point A… to point B.

Point A represents where we are. And where we are can be different for every one of us today. Where we are consists of multiple elements we need to consider.

This includes EVERYTHING regarding your journey through life up to this point. No two journeys are the same. This is your reality made up of your emotional experience, your psychological experience, and your spiritual experience.

Point B represents where we want to be. Point B represents where I believe everyone wants to be - but not everyone knows this yet. Point B represents coming into relationship with Jesus Christ… coming back into fellowship with God the Father.

I understand that some may argue today and say not everyone is looking for that. I would beg to differ… because I believe everyone is looking for what comes through having that fellowship restored… they simply do not understand that the answer they have been seeking is God.

So let’s run with that for a moment and say the person at point A does not know the Lord. Life experience has brought them this far… to this point. No matter their position or status, they are still trying to find what they feel is missing inside.

So how does this person get from point A… where they are… to point B… where God is calling them to be? I’ll answer that question with another question… how was it that you, the believer, got from point A to point B? SOMEONE INTENTIONALLY LED YOU THERE.

I want you to see and understand something. As a person is standing at this point, they are being bombarded with numerous options on which way to go from all directions.

For instance, if we decide to limit our evangelism to Facebook posts, radio commercials, flyers on a wall, newspaper ads, and t-shirts with our name, logo, and website on it, we are settling with leaving the work of the Great Commission to chance. The church is NOT the only option advertising through these types of means. Our message is thrown into the pool along with every other message the world is trying to offer.

Yes, people see and hear about the church, but all that they see and hear is mixed in with everything else that is trying to get them to go another direction. Think of it as billboards along the highway. You pass by them at high speeds, get a quick glimpse but not much information, and you keep going. SOMETIMES… you see something that grabs your attention that causes you to exit and visit the attraction. But you don’t stay there. You get back on the road and keep going.

I am concerned that the evangelistic efforts of the church have been reduced to random advertisements we hope people will connect with causing them to exit on their life journey and check out Jesus. This is happenstance, accidental witnessing. These things certainly have their place… but our efforts should expand way beyond an advertising campaign.

So what is the answer? The answer is the church can no longer afford to leave her evangelistic efforts to chance. We must become more intentional in leading people to Jesus AND making disciples.

Now, let’s talk about that aspect for a moment… making disciples. So far we talked about helping others grow in their walk with the Lord, but what about believers? Again, every one of us should be working to take our walk with Jesus to the next level.

So once again, point A represents where we are… but as believers, it now includes our new identity in Jesus. Point B represents a deeper and closer walk with Him. How do we get from point A to point B? What steps do you take, disciplines do we need to implement, and what priorities should we focus on?

These are all things we should be considering as we aim to grow in our walk with the Lord. I believe everyone here desires such growth and one of the steps you have taken was to be present for Sunday School and for morning worship. These are great steps to take!

But then what? Then Monday through Saturday happens. What steps are you intentionally taking then? What steps are we encouraging you to take as a church? What opportunities are we making for corporate growth that will prayerfully inspire personal growth as well?

How are we connecting the dots between the various ministries we have to offer for you and your family? Do we have a clear plan in place to help people move from where they are… to having a closer walk with Jesus?

I’ve got it! I know what the answer is! This is why we have a pastor! It’s the pastor’s job to make sure these connections are happening in our community and within our church!

Yes, the pastor is to be engaged in discipleship activities true enough… but the charge or commission to go and to make disciples of all nations, as seen in Matthew 28:19-20, was given to ALL believers… not just pastors.

Pastors do have a very specific job to do… and that job description can be found in Ephesians 4:11-13

Ephesians 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.

I am here to build you up in the Lord… so that you can build up others in Christ Jesus. It takes the body of Christ to build the community to Christ.

And this building… cannot be left to chance. Thus… we must be intentional in our efforts. There needs to be a clear and well-developed process.

The Process Begins With One Simple Name.

(DISPLAY JESUS SLIDE) Jesus is that name. His name is central in our growth and walk of faith.

And I realize this seems extremely elementary but hear me out. Sometimes things can become so complicated and overly thought through that we miss out or become distracted to what… or rather WHO is at the center of all this.

So with this in mind, I want to put an image on the screen… an image that is intentional in every way.

At the front and center we see the name of Jesus - the name that is above ALL names.

Below that name we see a field that is ready for harvest.

In that field we see a road leading to the name of Jesus.

Here we see the goal, the work, and the path to get us there. But without Jesus, none of this would ever come together.

Jesus Himself somewhat laid out process when it came to becoming a disciple of Christ.

I want us to look at what took place when Jesus began to call for His disciples to follow Him.

Matthew 4:18–22 NKJV

18 And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. 19 Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” 20 They immediately left their nets and followed Him. 21 Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them, 22 and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.

I want to start by looking at Jesus’ direct quote - “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” I’m sure many of us have studied this before… but I want us to look closely at how Jesus presented this calling.

First, Jesus was talking to average ordinary people - fishermen to be exact. They were doing what they had always done. They were at point A, in their boats, casting their nets, going through the motions.

Jesus invites them to to do something else. He presents a new destination… He presents a new “goal” if you will, for the fishermen to achieve… and no, it is not what you might be thinking. The ultimate goal was NOT to become fishers of men… the goal was JESUS. The first thing Jesus invites these guys to is HIMSELF!

That relationship would come through following… this means Jesus would lead while the guys would follow. The way of getting from where they were to where they wanted to be was through following. This meant they had to leave their boats, their nets, their daily routines, and FOLLOW Jesus.

In that following, Jesus said He would make them fishers of men.

As they drew closer to Christ, Jesus would teach them to help others to make the same decision.

What we see here in action is:

A CALLING or an invitation offered.

A REALIZATION of a new and needed goal - Jesus

A DECISION to leave behind the old and to follow Jesus

A COMMISSION to lead others to the new and needed goal - Jesus.

We see an intentional step by step process.

Now please, do not hear me wrong today and make the mistake that I am limiting the works of God to a formula or a 4 step plan. “Do these things and we guarantee life-changing results! And if you are not satisfied in 30 days, we’ll give you your money back!”

The LAST thing we need is another gimmick! The LAST thing we need is another universal church model that is advertised as one size fits all! HOWEVER… If Jesus saw the need for intentional process in the development and growth of His disciples, then I pray we would realize two things:

One - we need to be engaged in that process ourselves.

Two - we need to be leading and encouraging others in that process!

These disciples left behind point A in order to reach point B. THEY FOLLOWED AND TRUSTED JESUS IN THE PROCESS.

Are we willing to do the same today? Are we ready to encourage others to do the same today?

The process begins with the name of Jesus at the center of ALL things. He was central in His calling of the disciples, and He must be central in our desire to be and make disciples.

So with Jesus at the center, I want to talk about three action points that make up the intentional process we are introducing at HWC.

The Process Continues by Taking Intentional Action.

When the guys in the boats heard the call given by Jesus, they had to take intentional action in order to respond. If they desired to follow Jesus, they would have to get up out of the boat and physically follow Him. They had to leave where they were to get where He was leading them to go.

In one case, the guys left behind their nets started walking.

Now, consider this - how important are the nets to a fisherman’s trade? If you have no nets, you won’t catch no fish!

For the farmer it would be like leaving behind your combine.

For the mechanic it would be like ditching all of your tools.

For the nurse it would be like losing your stethoscope, thermometer, and blood pressure cuff.

For the truck driver it would be like abandoning your rig midway through your route.

Those nets were how they made their living! But they knew in this moment… it was either go… or stay attached to what they had always known.

In the case of James and John, they left their boat, their nets, and their father who was with them in the boat! They walked away from it all!

It wasn’t that dear old dad was no longer important to them, but this was Jesus calling them. For these guys to follow Christ as He walked this earth, they had to leave EVERYTHING behind.

Talk about a commitment to spiritual growth and life! And it was not a commitment that would bear any fruit UNLESS these guys actively stood up and followed Jesus.

Church, when it comes to developing and deploying an intentional discipleship process for both your life and church, passivity will have NO PLACE within that process.

Passivity leaves things to chance. Passivity says, “Let’s pay for some radio spots, Facebook ads, newspaper space, t-shirt designs, and colorful poster and hope they will be enough to encourage people to visit the church.” Again, this is accidental evangelism. This is placing hope in happenstance.

Nothing Jesus did on the day He called those disciples was accidental or left to chance. JESUS WAS INTENTIONAL IN HIS PURSUIT AND HIS INVITATION. And the results are an example of what can happen when we intentionally invite people to come to know the Lord. And we need to understand that… the process only BEGINS at the invitation.

Intentional discipleship is active discipleship. What we are talking about, Next Level Discipleship, is making the choice to drop any and all passivity and ideas of accidental or happenstance growth, and become more active in our decision to know, grow in, and serve… JESUS!

And those three steps become our intentional action points regarding our personal and corporate discipleship journey.

First is KNOWING… knowing Jesus.

We cannot grow in or serve if we do not know. Knowing Christ comes by way of having a personal relationship with Him.

Knowing Christ is MORE THAN knowing about Him or being told stories about Him. Knowing Jesus goes much deeper than that.

We are going to unpack this truth for the next couple of weeks. But the point we need to remember is our intentional discipleship journey BEGINS by knowing. Knowing is FAR from the finish line.

We are going to learn the importance of knowing Christ personally AND the importance of leading others to know Him.

Second is GROWING… or GROWING IN JESUS

Our knowing Jesus leads us to the next step which is GROWING IN Jesus. This part of the process is choosing to engage in spiritual disciplines that result in the maturing and growth of our faith.

Paul likens this part of the process to the steps an athlete would take before competing for the prize. He calls it “strict training” to make sure a person is able to run in such a way as to get the prize.

Our “training” or growing in Christ is extremely important in our every day life in Christ.

We are going to talk about the importance of growing in Jesus AND we are going to talk about its strategic placement as step 2 in the discipleship process.

We cannot claim to know the Lord through personal relationship if we are not growing in the Lord.

We cannot serve the Lord and not grow in the Lord. Growing leads us to serve, but serving also causes us to grow.

Third is SERVING… Jesus

Serving Jesus looks like how Jesus served others. Our service to the King needs to be of surrender, sacrifice, and compassion.

As knowing leads to growing.... so does growing lead to serving. We cannot claim to be growing in Christ is we are not serving as He desires for us to serve.

Jesus came not to be served but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many. If our desire is truly to be Christ-like (the very definition of what it means to be a Christian) then we must be like Him in our service to God and to others.

So as we consider these three action points and who they are centered on, we get this image that brings it all together (DISPLAY JESUS KNOWING GROWING IN SERVING SLIDE).

His name the destination. His harvest the work to be done. His way the only way. And we ACTIVELY become a part of journey as we choose to know, grow in, and serve JESUS!

Will You Take The First Step?

The first step might just be the most difficult step to consider. It is the same step the guys had to take as they were mending their nets and fishing in the sea. The first step I am talking about is the first step away from where you are… to where Christ is calling you to be.

It is the choice to begin the journey to the next level God has for you through His Son, Jesus.

The point you find yourself in is unique to your past and present circumstance.

For some, this point might include a relationship with Christ. It might include serving in the church, attending one of our discipleship classes, etc. But if you are still breathing… you still have room to grow in your relationship with Him!

For others this might be a point where you have yet to give your life to Jesus. You may not have a relationship with Him. You know something is missing… you haven;t found what you have been looking for in the world. Hear me clearly today: WHO you have been looking for is Jesus.

Everybody will have a unique point A… but point B is something we all share… it is the intended goal - a genuine wholeheartedly pursuit of the One who gave His life for you.

So here you are… right here. Maybe you just got here… maybe you’ve been here for a while. No matter the case… this is where you are.

Are you willing to step out from where you are into a new journey with Christ… a journey that will lead you to know Him better, to grow in Him deeper, and to serve Him with all of your heart?

This step, is a step of surrender and love. This requires a commitment to the next step and so on.

This is NOT about going back from where we came… it’s all about moving forward into what God has for each one of us!

It’s time to make the choice.

If you’ve not had the opportunity to start a relationship with Jesus, we want to give you that opportunity today.

PRAYER - Salvation

If you are ready and willing to actively and intentionally take the next step in your discipleship journey with Jesus, I want you to stand.

PRAYER - help us Lord as we commit to following you in the days, weeks, months, and years to come.