Moving Forward for the Kingdom
Hebrews 13:20-21
May 17, 2009
Me: I was working on what I thought was going to be the message for today, which was kind of a “state of the church” message like I did last year.
But as the weekend drew nearer, I became convinced that God wanted a different kind of message, and I felt that what He wanted wasn’t just another message like what I’ve been doing.
I think God wanted me to simply share a bit of His heart about what He wants for this church.
So even last night I was begging God, “What word do you have for us?”
And I was searching the Scriptures looking for what I thought God wanted to communicate to us, and I believe He gave me something that I’ll share in a bit.
We: One of the things that excites me about this church is that we are moving forward on so many fronts.
I look back and see what has happened, the great things God has done in us and through us, I see the great people who are part of this family, and I just have to stop in awe and wonder.
God is moving in us and through us, which has been my prayer since the first time I stepped into this building.
I believe God loves this church and has huge plans for it, and I hope I get to be here for more of what He’s doing.
And I pray that we, as a body will glorify Christ more and more as we move forward, particularly over this next year.
God: Here is the passage that I believe the Lord laid on my heart last night for today:
Hebrews 13:20-21(p. 854) –
20 May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, 21 equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
* We need to be equipped to do HIS will.
This is more than just “having church.”
What is His will? To restore relationships with Him through Christ.
To help people find forgiveness of sins through Jesus so they can go to heaven when they die, and so they can find healing, wholeness, significance, security, meaning, and purpose until then as they live for Christ.
The will of Christ is for us to bring as many people as we can to Christ and keep as many people as possible from hell.
The will of God is to help the family of God grow deeper in their relationship with Christ so they can not only live for Him themselves but help others live for Him as well.
Colossians 2:6-7 –
6 So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, 7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
The will of Christ for the church is to be filled with unity in our love for Christ. We come together because we not only believe in Him but we believe in His purpose for the church – outlined by these banners on the wall.
And we have unity because we believe that Jesus is the King and owner of the church, not us.
That’s not to say we won’t disagree at times. But even in our disagreements, we need to be loving each other and Christ, wanting only to serve Him and bring Him honor, not to grab power for ourselves and our agendas.
I’m good friends with a number of pastors in this area from different denominations and different theological perspectives on different issues.
But you know what? We love each other and we work together.
Why? Because we have unity on the things that are essential. We can disagree about other things like whether or not a person can forfeit their salvation, or whether or not you need to speak in tongues to show that you’re filled with the Spirit, or which English Bible version is the best.
Those are all secondary issues compared to the essential issues of Christ and the Scriptures as the Word of God.
And here’s something else from this part of the verse that I just love:
He will give us everything we need to do His good will.
I love that.
He says, “Do my will – and here are the tools to do it with.”
He’s given us everything we need: People, resources, but most of all He’s give us His Word and His Holy Spirit to help us put it to work in our lives.
* We need Him to work in us what is pleasing to HIM.
All of us have areas of life that need work if we want to be people who love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength and love our neighbor as ourselves, and who can be most effective for the Kingdom of God.
But I think that if we would ask the Holy Spirit to grow some specific things in our lives, He would not only grow them in us, but use us in huge ways.
Most of you are familiar with this list, but here it is anyway, from Galatians 5:22-23-
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
These are great things, right? But do you notice some things that are not on that list?
Bitterness, unforgiveness, malice, divisiveness, anger, jealousy, envy, power-grabbing.
None of those are part of the fruit of the Spirit. Why? Because they’re sin.
The Spirit is holy. And He’s not going to grow sinful fruit in us.
We do that enough on our own when we put ourselves ahead of Christ and others.
When we finally come to a point when we say, “Okay God. I’m done trying to run my life on my own. I’m done trying to convince myself that I know better than you,” then the Spirit can fill us and work in us what is pleasing to Christ.
That’s one of my prayers for all of us – that we would set ourselves aside, crucifying our selfishness and taking on Christ so He can work in us and through us.
I want to encourage the people of this part of the family of Christ to allow the Spirit to work in us what is pleasing to Christ so we can move forward for the Kingdom.
Lastly…
* The glory is supposed to go not to US, but to CHRIST.
We won’t be able to brag to Christ about what we’ve done for Him.
John 15:5 –
5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”
Just like there is no “I” in team, there is no “I” in church. Church isn’t even a team. It’s a Body – the Body of Aberdeen Wesleyan? NO! The Body of CHRIST.
That’s who we owe our allegiance to. That’s who we owe the great things happening in our church, and that’s who we have to trust during the hard times.
Folks, are we more concerned about our own glory, more concerned that we can have bragging rights about certain things in the church, more concerned that people recognize our efforts, or are we more concerned that Christ gets the glory?
Can we say with John the Baptist –
“He must become greater; I must become less?”
Folks, this church doesn’t exist for you – it doesn’t exist for me. It doesn’t exist for the denomination. It exists for Christ and His glory as He uses us to advance His Kingdom.
You: Here’s the application for today:
Commit or re-commit yourself to living only for Him and His glory, asking Him to work in you and through for the advancement of His Kingdom, whether it’s through Aberdeen Wesleyan or some other church.
We: We’re going to pray a prayer of commitment, and it’s a simple prayer.
In fact, what we’re going to do is pray this Scripture passage, and we’re going to modify it to say “me” instead of “you” and make it personal. I would ask you to join with me in praying this right now in your heart, as I pray it aloud.
“God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus,…
…that great Shepherd of the sheep, I ask you to equip me with everything good for doing Your will,…
…and may You work in me what is pleasing to You, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.”
Commitment
Today I’m going to ask you do something I’ve never done.
I’m going to ask you to stand up. But don’t do it yet.
Here’s what I want.
If you’re willing to commit to allow God to work in you as this Scripture says, then I want you to stand up and show this body that you’re serious.
Don’t stand up to please me, or because you think others will think less of you if you don’t stand.
If you’re not sure you’re ready to make that kind of commitment, then be honest with yourself and God and stay seated.
Because after you’re standing I want you to look around and see who else is standing.
Why? Because I want you to encourage each other in that commitment and hold each other accountable.
Ready?
Stand if this Scripture is the cry of your heart for this body of Christ and for yourself. Let’s pray.
