This week we are looking at a section of an account
of Jesus life in the Bible where Jesus made a statement that revealed for us a
timeless goal for us as followers of Jesus and as a church. Yesterday, we
talked about the reality that the church is the only organization that does not
exist for the sake of its members. Instead, the church has been divinely
designed to be the vehicle that God uses to reveal His Son Jesus to the world.
And God places the local church in distinctive
environments to be distinctively different. God has placed City Bible Church in
Bullhead City to be a city within a city that loves and serves those around
us. And when we love and serve others in
a way that reveals and reflects Christ, the result is that we glorify God in
Heaven.
And that is why we believe and are focused on the
goal that God has given us as a church to be a city in a city that is striving
to reveal and reflect Christ as we love and serve the city. We believe that as
we live life together in community with a focus on engaging those in this city
in a way that reveals and reflects Christ by loving and serving those in the
city, we will be the vehicle that God uses to advance His kingdom mission and
bring Him glory.
Now you might be wondering “well that’s great Dave,
but how do we reach that goal as a church? And how do I get to a place in my
life where I am following Jesus is a way that reveals and reflects Christ”? If
you are asking those questions, I just want you to know that they are great
questions to be asking.
And my answer to those questions would be this; when
we read the Bible, we consistently see that followers of Jesus who are involved
in a growing and maturing relationship that reveals and reflects Christ invest
their lives in three specific ways. First, we see that those who are involved
in a growing and maturing relationship with Christ invested their time with
other Christians as they gathered corporately for regular weekly worship
gatherings and as they scattered to experience community in homes throughout
the week.
Second, we see that those who are involved in a
growing and maturing relationship with Christ invested their talents serving
God by serving others through the exercise of their spiritual gifts. Third, we
see that those who are involved in a growing and maturing relationship with
Christ invested their treasure to support God’s kingdom mission through regular
and proportional giving.
And we believe that as individual followers of Jesus
consistently invest their time by being involved in a regular worship gathering
and a community group; as individual followers of Jesus consistently invest
their talents serving God by serving others through being a part of a ministry
team; and as individual followers of Jesus consistently invest their treasure
in order to help create environments where people can explore and grow in their
faith while experiencing community, we will continue to be a city in a city
that is striving to reveal and reflect Christ as we love and serve the city.
We desire that we would be a church that creates
environments where people grow in their relationship with Christ and are able
to move from being consumers who view the church as a place where they receive
spiritual goods and services to being investors who embrace and invest their
time, talent, and treasure to advance the kingdom mission that God has given
us.
And, because followers of Jesus grow and mature in
their relationship with Jesus when they
are investing their time in a community group, their talents in a
ministry, and their treasure in a way that reveals and reflects the generosity
of Jesus, as a church, we believe God calls us to plan for the future with
three specific goals that will help you grow in your relationship with Jesus
from being consumers who are searching and shopping when it comes to Jesus to
owners who own a genuine and authentic relationship with Jesus to investors who
reveal and reflect Christ in their character and conduct and who have fully
embraced and are fully engaged in God’s kingdom mission.
First, we have set as a goal for the future that
every regular attender is investing their time, in addition to attending one of
the three worship gatherings that we have on Sundays, in a community group. We
feel strongly about this goal because we believe that transformational
spiritual growth occurs in circles, not rows. And community groups create those
transformational environments where people can develop loving and supportive
relationships that challenge us to take that next step when it comes to our
relationship with Jesus.
Second, we have set as a goal for the future that
every regular attender is investing their talents serving God by serving others
as part of a ministry team. We feel strongly about this goal because we believe
that transformational spiritual growth occurs when we are leveraging the
spiritual gifts, talents, and abilities that God has given us in a selfless way
that serves others. We encounter God as we use the spiritual gifts we have been
given to help others encounter God. We experience God’s transformational
activity in our lives as we help others experience God’s transformational
activity in their lives.
Third, we have set as a goal for the future that
every regular attender is investing their treasure in a way that reveals and
reflects the generosity of Jesus. We feel strongly about this goal because we
believe that transformational spiritual growth occurs when we are leveraging
the treasure that we have been given to create environments where people can
explore faith, grow in their faith, and experience genuine and authentic
community. As followers of
Jesus Christ, we are to be generous because Jesus Christ is generous. And when
we reflect the generosity of Jesus by being generous, we reveal and reflect
Jesus to others.
So, as a church, we are
inviting you to join us in the kingdom mission and vision that God has given us
by planning for the future in three specific ways with three specific goals. As
a church, we are not inviting you to commit to more than this, but we are not
inviting you to commit to less than this.
We are inviting you to plan for
the future by partnering with us in the kingdom mission that we have been given
as a church by investing your time in a community group, your talents in a
ministry, and your treasure in a way that reveals and reflects the generosity
of Jesus. We are inviting you to embrace these goals not because we want
something from you. Instead We are inviting you to embrace these goals not
because we want something for you, which is to experience a growing and
maturing relationship with Jesus.
So here are some questions for
you to consider as we launch into 2015: Where are you at when it comes to a
relationship with Jesus? Are you a consumer who
views the church as a place where they receive spiritual goods and services?
Are you a consumer who is shopping when it comes to a relationship with Jesus
because you are searching, seeking, or skeptical?
Are you an owner who owns a genuine and authentic
relationship with Jesus but is simply treading water when it comes to your
relationship with Jesus and are not investing in the mission He has given us?
Or are you an investor who is embracing and investing their time, talent, and
treasure to advance the kingdom mission that God has given us?
And based on
where you are at when it comes to your relationship with Jesus, what is the
next step that you need to take in order to take the next step in your
relationship with Jesus? Is that next step to invest your time in a community
group? Is that next step to invest your talent in a ministry? Is that next step
to invest your treasure in a way that reflects the generosity of Jesus?
No comments:
Post a Comment