Last week we introduced the question, “What is church?” and the answer last week was, “the church is a people group.” This week we are continuing to ask the same question, “What is church?” but this week we add to the answer, “it’s a people group whose essential business is to love others as Jesus loved us.” We summed up our discussion last Sunday with Acts 1:8; Jesus told his disciples before he ascended back to His Father, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
If we think of Weymouth as Jerusalem and Nova Scotia as Judea and the Maritimes as Samaria and the rest of the world as the ends of the earth, we could read Jesus words to us like this: And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere, in Weymouth, throughout Nova Scotia, in the Maritimes and to the ends of the earth.
We are a people group with the privilege and the honor of living the Word of God as witnesses. I believe that if we start accepting ourselves as the people group of heaven who are in place on earth to share the Gospel of Jesus as we are empowered by the Holy Spirit to engage this mission; our lives, this church, our worship will be anything but boring.
And I asked this question last week and I want to ask it again as we discuss the question, “What is church?” And that question was, “Are you living as a witness for the gospel?”
Why this question is important and what the answer means for you is really what we’ll be talking about today. Love is the motive, the driving force behind your witness of gospel of Jesus. Love, according to Jesus himself, is at the core of every follower.
We’ve already discussed some nuts and bolts of how to live as a Christian person. A couple of months ago in a sermon called “Life is Never Perfect” I pointed out that The New Testament teaches us that there are a few things Jesus followers should always be prepared for.
We should be prepared to do good - When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them.
Always be eager to practice hospitality. Romans 12:13 Remind the believers to submit to the government and its officers. They should be obedient, always ready to do what is good Titus 3:1
We should be prepared to do God’s Work - If you keep yourself pure, you will be a special utensil for honorable use. Your life will be clean, and you will be ready for the Master to use you for every good work. 2 Timothy 2:21 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. Ephesians 6:14-15
We should be prepared for Jesus return - “So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming. Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken into. You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.` Matthew 24:42-44 And now, dear children, remain in fellowship with Christ so that when he returns, you will be full of courage and not shrink back from him in shame. 1 John 2:28
The motive that drives our preparation for our work in the Lord is love. The church is a people group whose essential business is to love others as Jesus loved us.
I want you to picture an NHL hockey game. The stands are filled with fans, the ice is ready, both teams are dressed and geared up. The sportscasters are making their predictions about the game and discussing their talking points about each team. But you notice something weird. Only one team is on the ice ready to play. The ref is at center ice ready for the face off but only one team is ready to play. Then the head coach from the opposing team heads out to center ice and takes his position for the drop. He’s alone on the ice. The rest of the team is sitting in the box. They’re dressed, they look like they’re ready to play the game but they’re just sitting. Obviously you want to know what’s going on. “Why is the head coach on the ice while his team is sitting on the bench?” That’s the question on everyone’s mind. The crowd is stunned and silent, even the broadcasters can’t explain what’s going on; So the team captain decides maybe he should address the crowd to fill them in on what’s happening here. He doesn’t have to go far for a microphone, several TV reporters are there shoving them in his face, shouting their questions “Why aren’t you taking the ice? What are you guys doing on the bench? Why is the coach playing? “ The captain holds up his hand for silence and he gets it.
“In our team meeting last night” he began, “we discussed how our coach knows so much more about this game than we do. He has taught us more about hockey than we thought we could ever know. He knows the fundamentals, he knows the strategies, he organized our playbook, nobody can do a better job at playing this game than he can, so we figured we would be better off letting the expert do his thing.”
Can you imagine what would happen if a NHL coach tried to play on the ice by himself against an opposing team? Can you get a word picture in your head of what that would look like? He wouldn’t stand a chance.
I know a lot of ministers who were on the ice, who were in the game, and they were alone doing the work while the rest of the team sat on the bench cheering him on. Ministers in churches like this burn out, they get beaten, outscored, outplayed, they can’t seem to find a win and so they quit. As ridiculous as this scenario is for a team sport, this scene is played out every day in churches all over North America. Last year when I was pouring over job descriptions on job boards listed as ministry opportunities many of these descriptions included a sentence like this: Prepare and deliver sermons. Visit the sick, shut-ins and hospital.
Now there is nothing wrong with a minister preparing and delivering sermons or visiting the sick, and the shut-in, but, there is something inherently wrong with the expectation that the minister alone is going to be responsible for doing these things. One reason that Kristi and I chose to move here to work with this church was that we were told by the leadership team the expectation of this church was that we would all work together as a body. I was coming in as simply another team member. I like that. I believe that to be Biblical. I believe that as a church we have this understanding and it’s refreshing.
Paul writes in Ephesians 4:11-12, “Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ.”
I believe the Holy Spirit is moving in our church. I see God working in our lives in a variety of different ways and I’m not going to be specific because it would mean sharing details that I’m not at liberty right now to reveal. Suffice it to say there are lives being transformed among us. I will speak to a couple of general examples of how I see God doing His work in us.
The Wednesday Night class decided a few weeks ago that instead of doing another Bible study they were going to spend some time making visits during the week and then on Wednesday they are praying and discussing ways to serve those that they have made contact with. This is Ephesians 4:11-12 in practice. This is Jesus work. Is it good to study the Bible, of course it is, but is there also a time to put into practice what we learn? Obviously, and doing Jesus work together is how God designed us to operate. The church is a people group whose essential business is to love others as Jesus loved us. Another example are the teens and young folks we’ve baptized here over the last few months. It’s not a coincidence that we have young people seeking after Jesus. These young minds and hearts need mentors. I’m reminded of Pauls words at the end of 1 Corinthians 10 and the first verse in chapter 11 he says, “I don’t just do what is best for me; I do what is best for others so that many may be saved. And you should imitate me, just as I imitate Christ.” We need older followers to offer lives worth imitating. Are you doing what is best for others so that many may be saved? Our kids should be surrounded by lives like this. We need to be offering them mentors, guidance and counsel.
The excuse I’ve heard most as a youth minister from older followers that I asked to be involved in some way in the lives of kids was this, “I did my time.” Or “I’m retired from youth work; I’m just too old to keep up; I don’t have kids that age anymore.” You get the idea. We’re all on the ice. If you go sit on the bench because you’re too tired to play anymore, then you’re not in the game. Jesus said you can’t serve two masters. In other words, you’re in the game or you’re not. He also said in Revelation that followers who sit on the bench make him sick. Ok, he didn’t specifically say that, but he said lukewarm followers make him want to throw up. I believe he would agree that someone who would rather sit on the bench rather than play the game is lukewarm. It’s not enough to be suited up and ready to play. Jesus expects you to be in the game. Maybe this is where the sports analogy breaks down a little bit, because on any team there are the starters and the backups. The guys who start the game and who play the majority of minutes, but, there are those who come in periodically to give the starters a break or a breather. But unless a starter is seriously injured the bench players don’t stay in the game. In the church as God designed it, there are no bench replacement players. Everyone is a starter. Everyone gets maximum minutes. So maybe your area of service and ministry isn't with kids or teens maybe it's somewhere else, but, there is no such thing as retiring from work of God.
Listen to the words of Jesus. “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. “ Our Savior defines for us what our primary motive is. This is why we do what we do. We serve others because we love them as God loves us. This is the directive that Jesus gave to His church, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” He also said it this way, “Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Jesus said basically the same thing but in a couple of different ways. The concept is; Go, Share and Serve in the name of Jesus. And the motive, the driving force behind our going, sharing and serving is that we love others as Jesus loved us.
Paul says it this way in Romans 12. “Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.”
This sums up everything that we’ve discussed this morning. Be genuine in loving others. Love is the motive that drives everything we do as a church. Serve the Lord enthusiastically. The word that Paul uses in Romans 12:11 is zeontes which means “I am boiling.” I’m not sure there is a word in the English language that really provides an effective translation. Paul is saying to be so hot in your desire to serve and to work for Christ that you’re boiling. And yes, you can reference this to Revelation 3:16, “But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth!” We don’t want to be lukewarm. And it’s really not enough to be hot, God expects us to be boiling over with compassion and love.
Recently hurricane Sandy ravaged New York and New Jersey. I have friends, Israel and Angela De La Cruz who live and minister on Staten Island. Yesterday Angela posted this status update:
for those of you who have been asking about how to help or what to send...WAIT... Collection sites are overwhelmed at the moment; which is a good problem. However, FEMA is not allowing them to make the deliveries into areas directly hit, or to the specific families they are aware of from their personal congregations...There are some larger churches in the area who are still taking some donations because they have the actual space to store such items..PLEASE be praying for the communications between the local churches/ outreach organizations and the gov't that the help would not be stifled due to red tape and together those who are in greatest need will be able to get it. We will keep you posted as we discover more..I'm sure as some return to school on Monday we will learn of more friends in our children's classes who were affected. Also be praying for the gasoline and fuel oil(what heats majority of homes here in the east coast), the free gas -- won't reach-- it is for the emergency personnel; and pray that the nor'easter being forecasted for our region doesn't add more "salt" to the open wounds in the area.. There will be much to do for weeks/months to come...stay posted.
We are a people group whose essential business is to love others as Jesus loved us.
What are we going to do to help our church family in need? If you want to pray with me this morning about our church family in Staten Island, New York and in New Jersey, I’ll be in the front this morning to pray. Also I want us to brainstorm ideas on how we can be of help to them. So after the worship team has led us in this last song this morning, if you want to join me in praying and coming up with ideas to help meet me here.
For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead.
Colossians 2:12
Are you living as a witness for the gospel of Jesus?
