My church and I
The Body, The Bride, The Blood, and The Bunch
Introduction: My burden, passion and focus the next few weeks will be on the ‘Body of Christ,’ ‘The Bride,’ ‘The Church.
There are two things:
The Body of Christ
The Local Church
I mentioned last week that I believe in the ‘local church’ and the necessity / critical role that it has been established to be. My heart has always been connected to the ‘local church’ and I have a compelling commitment to it and it’s success and purpose.
Hebrews 10:25, ‘Do not forsake the assembling…’
1 Timothy 4:13, ‘And they devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.’
Question: Why?
The role of the local church:
I. Worship
‘It is more engaging to do worship together as a group.’
Illustration: You can listen to music by yourself and enjoy, but there’s a special energy and enthusiasm when you go to a concert and hear live music with other fans.
‘When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue. Or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up’.
‘Be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart’ (Ephesians 5).
Matthew 18:20, ‘Where two or three are gathered together in my name…’
Transition: Let me point out a second function that the church is responsible for.
II. Discipleship & Equipping
Matthew 11:28 ‘Go and make disciples…’
Ephesians 4:12 ‘to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all atain…
Transition:
III. Protection against Falsehood / Teachers / Deception
Too many false prophets, bad doctrine, ‘rouge’ groups.
Protection of ‘sound teaching.’
Transition:
IV. Religious Function
Weddings, funerals, baptisms, communion, corporate prayter, etc..
Transition:
V. Social and Community Function
‘Do not forsake the assembling together…’
Fellowship, Community helps / outreaches.
Reminds us that we are not alone!
Conclusion: Neither a ‘take it or leave it’ either. I / we are not going to
The Increase
Introduction: Last week’s recognition (maybe read the letter). MH – From the bottom of our hearts, we want thank you for this overwhelming kindness and recognition. To stand here and receive your appreciation and love for what we have accomplished together fills me with crazy gratitude. I hope all of know and understand that: congratulations…
Adding Stones
2 Peter 1:5-7 Intro: Virtue: Moral excellence and integrity. “Virtue at its finest” can refer to different concepts depending on the context, but a strong theme is the application of virtue during times of testing. C.S. Lewis famously described courage as the “form of every virtue at the testing point,” meaning that virtues like honesty…
The Sower, the Seed and the Soil
Mark 4:1-20 Intro: The Parable of the Sower (also known as the Parable of the Four Soils) is found in Matthew 13:3-9; Mark 4:2-9; and Luke 8:4-8. After presenting this parable to the multitude, Jesus interprets it for His disciples in Matthew 13:18-23; Mark 4:13-20; and Luke 8:11-15. Question: What is a Parable: A parable…
When Things Go Missing
Methods of Evangelism Evangelism can take many forms, adapting to the audience and the individual: Personal Witnessing: Sharing personal experiences of faith and the teachings of Jesus in one-on-one conversations. Public Preaching: Delivering sermons and messages to larger groups, often within churches or religious gatherings. Media and Literature: Using various media and written materials to…
A Whitened Harvest
Methods of Evangelism Evangelism can take many forms, adapting to the audience and the individual: Personal Witnessing: Sharing personal experiences of faith and the teachings of Jesus in one-on-one conversations. Public Preaching: Delivering sermons and messages to larger groups, often within churches or religious gatherings. Media and Literature: Using various media and written materials to…
Just For You
Mark 2:17; Luke 19:10; Matthew 9:38 Introduction: Here’s a list of individuals and groups that Jesus personally took time to minister to, based on the accounts in the Gospels. This includes one-on-one encounters and instances where He intentionally reached out to specific people. The Paralytic (Mark 2:1–12) – Lowered through the roof by friends; Jesus…
A Whitened Harvest
Whitened HarvestJohn 4:27–38 Introduction – After Jesus spoke with the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s Well, her life was transformed. She shared her story with her neighbours, and her testimony drew many people to Jesus. Her willingness to speak about what God had done in her life became the spark that led others to seek Him.…