Faith Church
Philippians 1:27-30
Many times over the years I am asked what kind of church do I want to pastor or what kind of church is Gap Creek. Sometimes that question is asked because to be a great church requires a lot of change. Most churches are unaware of what needs to change in order for them to go from a good church to a great church.
My response often catches people off guard because it’s so simple and yet so under utilized. I just want us to be a church of faith. Not in a religious sense but in a real daily practice. Many times people will say we are a people of faith and what they mean is we practice religion. I want to be a person who exercises faith.
Where faith is a way a life that means we trust God no matter what the circumstance. Faith means believing what we cannot see so even if the way looks filled with trouble the life of faith says God is bigger than the situation.
"Faith enables us to understand what God does. Faith enables us to see what others cannot see. As a result, faith enables us to do what others cannot do." Warren Wiersbe
I want us to be Faith Church a church that really believes God and trusts God.
Paul was in prison. He faced a capital crime and there was a strong chance he might be executed. He did not think so, but there was a possibility. He was not sure if he would ever see the Philippian church again, so he sat down and began to write to them. What would you say if you were writing to a group of God’s people for the last time? One of the subjects that concerned Paul was the subject of this passage: the marks of a great church. The Philippian church was a great church, and Paul wanted it to remain great. Therefore, he reviewed with them the marks of a great Christian church.
What then makes a church great? I mean if the church across town is doing program and people want that then does every church in town need to do that? Do buildings make a church great? If we were running 1,000 in worship would we be great then? What if we had no debt or what if we had all Senior Adults or all young adults or what if we sang nothing but those types of songs would our church be great then?
I don’t believe any of those things make a great church. I believe what makes a great church is the faith that the church has no matter what size they are. If we were a church of 40 or 4,000 Jesus smiles when we trust Him to do what we cannot do. So let me give you today the marks of a great church.
**v.27 again**
I. A Testimony of Consistency (v.27a)
A church of faith is consistent in their testimony regardless of the situation. No matter what we face we stay on a constant plane emotionally. We don’t worry over the little things we trust that God will make a way.
“Einstein said that the reason he could construct the theory of relativity was because there is one thing in the world that is unchangeable. That one thing—the speed of light—is the only constant in this physical, material universe.
Light travels at the rate of one hundred eighty six thousand miles per second—seven times around the world at the tick of a clock.”
A. Our Citizenship—“conduct” The word “conversation” or “conduct” is significant. A.T. Robertson points out that this word is used only twice in the New Testament (Acts 23:1; Phil. 1:27) It means conduct and behavior, but more accurately it means the conduct and behavior of citizenship, of a person who is the citizen of a great nation. The Philippian church knew exactly what Paul was saying: they were citizens of heaven. They were to speak the clean and pure language of heaven
• bear the title of Christian, and do so proudly.
• allow no infiltration of worldly influence whatsoever.
• live and conduct themselves as a heavenly colony within a polluted and dying environment.
We are citizens of Heaven and therefore must look, act, and talk like representatives of God’s Heavenly land.
The Bible says in1 Peter 2:11-12, “Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.” (NIV)
B. Our Standing—“worthy of the gospel of Christ” The word worthy means to fit, correspond or be suitable. No church and no believer within the church is to bring dishonor to the gospel. If a person professes the gospel he is to live worthy of the gospel. His conduct and behavior is to fit and correspond to the gospel he professes.
Lehman Strauss points out that this is the picture of clothing which is so often stressed by Scripture. We often say that some piece of clothing is becoming to a person. What we mean is that the clothing matches and enhances the person’s looks and personality the same with the gospel of Christ. If we put on the gospel, we are to wear the gospel.
A story of a seminary professor who taught the Christian graces of love and patience for forty years until he retired. Occupying himself in his retirement years, he poured a new concrete driveway to his house. Finished, he went in to rest and get a glass of ice tea.
Returning later to view his proud achievement, he discovered that the neighborhood kids were putting their footprints all in the wet concrete. The angry professor chased the kids down in a rage and beat the tar out of the ones he could catch.
Hearing the commotion, the professor’s wife rushed into the yard, saw the angry professor thrashing the kids, and began to reprimand him: "What a shame," she said. "For forty years you have taught love, forgiveness and patience. Now look at you. You’ve lost your testimony." To which he replied: "That was all in the abstract. This is in the concrete."
Our testimony must be consistent in word and deed.
II. A Testimony of Cooperation (v.27b)
Here at the end of v.27 Paul says if I’m with you or not be of one spirit and one mind. One spirit means that all the members must be committed to the Lord Jesus Christ. They must all have a heart given to Him. One mind means that all members must be set upon the same purpose; they must all be focused upon the purpose of Jesus Christ.
The point is this: the world—may be split and divided, arguing, fussing and feuding, fighting and grasping for all it can get; but the church is not to live that way. The church is to be unified; it is to be one in spirit and one in mind; one in heart and one in purpose.
In a world that is divided the church must:
A. Stand Strong—“stand fast” stand firm or keep one’s standing—a testimony of faith. We must not waiver from our faith in Jesus Christ. No matter what the world says or stands for we must stand up stand up for Jesus.
David Livingstone, the pioneer missionary to Africa, who walked over 29,000 miles. His wife died early in their ministry and he faced stiff opposition from his Scottish brethren. He ministered half blind. His kind of perseverance spurs me on. As we go, remember the words in his diary: Send me anywhere, only go with me. Lay any burden on me, only sustain me. Sever me from any tie but the tie that binds me to Your service and to Your heart. Joseph Stowell, Through The Fire, Victor Books, 1988, p. 150.
B. Stand Together— “striving together” is the word taken from an athletic contest. It is the picture of a team working and struggling together against strong opposition (compare a football team). The church—every member of it—is to strive for the faith of the gospel: strive, work, struggle, push, exert all the energy possible; everyone cooperating together, not a single person letting up or turning aside or walking off the field. The opposition is difficult; therefore, the faith of the gospel needs every member working and struggling together.
The year was 1630. The place was the Massachusetts Bay along the Atlantic coast near the place known as Plymouth Rock.
On board the ship the Arabella John Winthrop, the governor of the Massachusetts Bay Company challenged the Puritan settlers to establish a new kind of Christian community.
Winthrop said: “We must be knit together in this work as one man, we must entertain each other in brotherly affection. . ., we must delight in each other, make others’ condition our own, rejoice together, mourn together, labor and suffer together. . ., our community as members of the same body, so shall we keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace, the Lord will be our God and delight to dwell among us.”
Winthrop knew that they were in this thing together; no one could go it alone.
III. A Testimony of Confidence (v.28-30) We can be confident regardless of the situation. Dr. James C. Dobson of Focus on the Family once said, “ When I think of parents today, I’m reminded of a photograph of an elegantly dressed woman who is holding a cup of coffee. Her little finger is cocked ever so daintily to the side, and her face reveals utter self-confidence. Unfortunately, this woman does not yet know that her slip has collapsed around her feet. The caption reads, ‘Confidence is what you have before you understand the situation.’”
Too many times we try to figure it out that is why our confidence is not in the situation but in God who controls the circumstances through the situation. Notice two truths here:
A. There Will be Opposition (v.28a) The enemy is going to come against the church. There will be tough decisions and changes that a church must face but also there will be outright opposition when the church is becoming a great church.
“Opposition or obstacles do not necessarily mean that a certain course of action is not Gods will for us.” John Benton
“The door to the room of success swings on the hinge of opposition.” Bob Jones, Sr.
Opposition often times enhances growth spiritually and numerically. But through opposition we see the second truth:
B. There Will be Opportunity (v.28b-30) Last week attendance was down and it is in all churches through the Summer months. But we had eight people join the church family and one sweet little girl give her heart to Jesus. Even when we don’t know what God is doing or expect nothing big to happen God is doing great things.
A man named Mr. Jenner stood on a George Street in Sydney, Australia, and asked people where they would spend eternity.
1. British pastor, Francis Dickson, found nine people from five countries who were led to Christ by Mr. Jenner.
2. When he met Jenner, he told them about those nine people.
3. Jenner, “I have shared the gospel with thousands of people on George Street in Sydney, but this is the first time I have ever heard of anyone who came to Christ through my testimony.”
I have seen God do great things through our church family. I’ve heard and seen first hand the testimony in the community about what god is doing here. God is using us to be a church of faith and we have a tremendous opportunity to see a major move of God.
Conclusion: Jim Cymbala, in his book “Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire”, details the miraculous growth of the Brooklyn Tabernacle because of its dedication to prayer. In 1972 he was asked to pastor part-time a small church in a shabby two-story building on Atlantic Avenue in New York City. The location was bad. The people were few. The facilities were falling apart. In fact, he tells about how a pew broke one Sunday night, spilling several people onto the floor as he preached. As he prayed one day about what to do, Cymbala writes that he sensed God speaking: “If you and your wife will lead my people to pray and call upon my name, you will never lack for something fresh to preach. I will supply all the money that’s needed , both for the church and for your family, and you will never have a building large enough to contain the crowds I will send in response.”
He went back to the church and told them that from that moment on the health of the church would be measured by its Tuesday night prayer meeting. That first night 15 people came. God began to move. The church grew. The prayer meeting became larger. They were forced three times to seek larger facilities. By 1985 they were running 1600 each Sunday service. Hundreds came to the Tuesday night prayer meeting. God brought miraculous conversions. Today, besides the Tuesday meeting, there is a prayer ministry in which each hour of each day of the week, someone is in prayer for the church and its pastor. Its choir is world famous. Its pastor is asked to preach all over the world. But most importantly, lives are being drastically changed by the power of God.
What kind of church will we be in 2, 5, 10 or 20 years? What kind of Christian are we today? Do we have a:
1) Testimony of Consistency? Are we living as Citizens of Heaven? Is our conduct worthy of the gospel? …………….Do we have a……
2) Testimony of Cooperation? Are we standing strong in our faith? Are we standing together with one purpose and direction? ……Do we have a……..
3) Testimony of Confidence? We will face opposition as Christians and as a church. The enemy hates a growing church and Christian. Church we have a tremendous opportunity to spread the Gospel are we ready?
PRAY
