Open
Welcome
to KICK OFF Sunday at the BN Vineyard! And as you know, my family is a football
family… Zeke… Ethne… Saturdays… So much that we appreciate this sport for its
applications to life… offense, defense, special teams… not even on the field…
must trust your teammates!
·
STORY: Quarterback/Offensive Line
Today,
we want to talk not just about the fact that Church “matters.” We actually want
to talk about the fact that we
“need” the Church. As believers, we actually are not meant to do this
all on our own… It’s actually a lie from the enemy to work harder, try harder,
work on self, become a better person, work through your stuff… in isolation.
But
most of us have exchanged the truth of community for a lie.
DILEMMA – When we have struggles, hurts, pain,
difficulties in life… we retreat.
Think
about it. When our bank account is empty… when our marriage is a mess… when our
kids are acting like heathens… when our job is terrible… when we keep going
back over and over to that addiction/sin that we know we aren’t supposed to be
doing… when our LIFE IS NOT PERFECT…
What
do we do? Most of us, if we are honest, run from the company of others… we try
and work through things… we want to work stuff out before we face sometimes
even our friends…
OR
even worse we tell ourselves “this
is between me and God.” WHAT?! We convince ourselves that He’s big
enough to help us through everything… and of course He is… but HE TELL US that
we aren’t supposed to do it on our own… HE TELLS US to involve the church.
God
designed a much better plan that we realize… Let’s pray and then we’ll talk
about it together for a few minutes.
Prayer
We’ve
been exploring this important question “Does Church Matter?” over the past
month.
1. We’ve realized that only TOGETHER can we
change the world
2. We’ve realized that only GATHERING gives
us the power we need to SCATTER.
3. We’ve realized that only the church is
the HOPE of the World.
Today,
we want to unpack the idea that not only does the church matter for our world,
but actually the church is
something that every believer NEEDS both for personal and corporate
growth.
Word
1
Corinthians 12
12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the
members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For in one Spirit
we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or
free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.
Do
you realize that when we place our faith in Jesus (the head of our
body/church), we are saying yes to His family, His bride, His Church? …we are
saying yes to being a part of the community of God.
There
are many things that might distract us from either believing this or putting it
into practice in our lives:
·
We
have all grown up in the Billy Graham era of evangelism… personal salvation.
·
We
have believed the lie that its ONLY about… personal relationship (yes
important, but not the only relationship that matters).
·
We
have been influenced by our Western Culture that touts this idea that
individual expression is more important than the greater good.
But,
the church is counter to culture! In so many things. The church is one body… it
is an idea that believes that we actually NEED EACH OTHER to do faith the right way!
21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the
head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 22 On the contrary, the parts of the body
that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and
on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater
honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, 24 which our more presentable parts do not
require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part
that lacked it, 25 that
there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same
care for one another. 26 If
one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all
rejoice together.
We
tend to say, “I don’t need you” to the church. We have a propitiation to focus
in on self and personal growth… forgetting that we are connected to a body… a
severed limb is not only gross but USELESS.
Why would we want to AMPUTATE ourselves
from the body if we don’t have to?
When
we are going through “STUFF” and we feel like we are unimportant, broken or
confused about our role in the body… we should NOT pull away from Church… in
fact, the rest of us “Suffer” when you are not engaged. We need you in all of
your brokenness to be a part of the body…
Imagine
what would happen if people only came perfect to the body? How would those with
gifts of prayer, healing, prophecy BE WHO THEY ARE MADE TO BE?
Imagine
the boring “church” we’d have if we had no stories of Holy Spirit resurrecting
hearts, minds and bodies to their fullness in Jesus.
Or
maybe your excuse is something like “I can’t do what so & so does.” I’m not
gifted like them… Holy Spirit does this through them…. God uses them, but not
me…
14 For the body does not consist of one member but of many. 15 If the foot should
say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not
make it any less a part of the body. 16 And
if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,”
that would not make it any less a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would
be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the
sense of smell? 18 But as
it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he
chose. 19 If all were a
single member, where would the body be? 20 As
it is, there are many parts, yet one body.
Again,
don’t believe the lies of the enemy!
If
everyone was a preacher, then no one would hear the word. If everyone was a
worship leader, then no one could join in the singing. If everyone was a prayer
warrior, then no one would receive prayer. If everyone was a childcare worker,
then no one would lead a small group. If everyone was an admin, then we’d get
lost in the details. If everyone was a caregiver or pastor, then no one would
practice evangelism.
Don’t find yourself lost in comparison…
Intern
STORY: Organizational Genius –
When I spoke Jesus showed up…
For the church/body to
“function,” WE NEED EVERY PART!
We
need you… your gifts, your talents, your passions… In fact, the church is a
lesser organization when everyone doesn’t use the things that Holy Spirit has
given them.
7 To each is given the manifestation of
the Spirit for the common good.
In
the Vineyard, we have long said that “everyone gets to play.” In my heart, I
like this sentence because it shows us how vital it is that everyone is
important. It also shows that the pastors are not the only ones who do the work
of the church. As we equip you, we release you to PLAY in the church and in our
community. So, I like to say,
“We NEED everyone to play!”
When
you play your role in the church, we ALL benefit… from the big toe to the arm,
from the kneecap to the abs (lol)… think about your body… when everything is
healthy and working, LIFE IS BETTER!
Close
Let
me end with one more idea that I believe we haven’t considered yet in this talk
or series… and it’s this:
We need the offices of the church to equip
us & to release heaven over our lives.
In
1 Corinthians 12, Paul begins to play this out through his last verses of this
chapter. He exhorts us that we ARE the Church and that we all have a role to
play. He also shows us that the Spirit has created something amazing in His
system:
27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of
it. 28 And God
has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third
teachers, then miracles, then gifts of
healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are
all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30 Do
all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? 31 But earnestly desire the higher
gifts.
God
has appointed his apostles, prophets, pastor-teachers, and evangelists to lead
his people into something amazing (Ephesians 4 – equippers – Happy’s sermon).
He has released these groups to help you walk into the fullness of your role in
the church…
And
if you are not connected to their leadership, how will you ever find your
place?
Bill
Johnson of Bethel says that the only way to create a “supernatural culture” and
a “funnel” of the stuff of heaven is to have all of the leadership offices
functioning well in your body/church.
In
fact, I’d say that you will never find the fullness of your place in the body
unless you put yourself in relationship with the people who operate in those
leadership giftings!
Listen
to how the book of Ephesians (2:19-20) explains this truth:
19 So then
you are no longer strangers and aliens,[d] but
you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household
of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and
prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone.”
When you join the church, we become members of
the body… kids in the fam J
But our continued connection is through Holy
Spirit’s leaders and Jesus Himself.
Action
So,
what do we do with all of this? Let me encourage you to begin practicing the
following:
1. Prioritize connection over isolation
2. Realize our need for our leaders giftings
to both equip and empower us
3. When/if we feel ever feel disconnected,
press IN MORE!
