A few weeks ago a woman called the church office. She said she had heard some real good things about our congregation and was interested in attending, but she had one concern. Someone had told her that you had to pay money, annual dues, if you wanted to come to this church. Barb, the church secretary, explained that this was certainly not the case, and I hope this individual does start attending our church, even if she never puts a penny in the offering plate. That phone call reminded me how the church, including sometimes First Baptist Church, is often misunderstood by people around us. Even folks who have been active in a church for many years can forget, or become confused, as to "why we are here" and what our purpose is as a church. For example, some see it primarily as a social club. Dr. Laura and Dear Abby often encourage single people to go to church to meet potential dating partners. A few folks see it as a great place to make business contacts. Others view it as a piece of family history. This is the place where my parents were married, my grandparents were buried and where I was baptized. Some see it as primarily an extension of the county welfare program, which houses soup kitchens and clothes closets. Or, as Mark Twain once said, "The church is a place where a nice, respectable person stands in front of other nice, respectable people and urges them to be nicer and more respectable." Now, that probably is a fairly accurate description of some congregations, especially here in Minnesota. It may also be what some folks would like a church to be, but there certainly should be something more to the church than that. So, what we are going to do for the first few Sundays of the new millennium is try to clear up any confusion. We are going to explore what the Bible says the purpose of the church, specifically First Baptist Church, ought to be, and we will be looking at very practical things the church should do to fulfill the purpose to which the Lord has called us. Let's pray that God would speak to us through His Word today.
I want to start with quick answers to a couple of preliminary questions that might be asked. First: Why look at the Bible to see what the purpose of a church should be? Well, we go to the Bible because it is God's Word. The church belongs to God, and the Lord Jesus is the head of the church. The most important question is not what do we want our church to do, but what does God want our church to do? "But," you might say, "that Book is 2000 years old, and the church's purpose has certainly changed in that time, hasn't it?" No, I don't think so. In the Bible, the Lord spells out the purpose of the church from Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples in Acts 2, to that day when Jesus Christ returns to establish His Kingdom. Yes, 2000 years have gone by, but remember, 2 Peter 3:8 says that with the Lord a thousand years is as one day. Besides, if Jesus is the head of the church, no one else has the right to re-define what the church is about. You can't get a focus group together or take a survey of the American people to figure out what the church should be doing. You can't call church leaders together every ten years and have them come up with an agenda for the next decade. No, as Ephesians 2:20 says, the church is "built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone." It is the apostles, prophets and Jesus Christ Himself who determine what is the church's purpose. They speak to us through the Bible, and that is why we look at this Book to determine why we are here as a church.
The second questions is: Are we going to be talking about just why First Baptist Church is here, or about what the purpose of every church should be? Both. I suspect almost everything I say would apply to any Christian church. However, I have no intention of pointing fingers at other congregations. My primary concern is that we at First Baptist Church would be doing what God calls us to do. Now, I think in most ways we are doing that. I received a note a couple of days ago from the Eberts, a couple who moved from here a few months ago, and they said that in their city, with a couple of dozen evangelical churches, they did not know if they would find one which is as good as First Baptist Church of Chisholm. That is a wonderful compliment. However, even though the Eberts are wonderful, godly people, it is God's evaluation of a church, not theirs, not mine, not yours, which really matters. If I were to speculate, I think the Lord would say First Baptist Church is doing a good job in the community. But, there is a lot of room for improvements. So our focus will not be on what they need to learn, but on what we need to learn.
OK, why are we here? It would be correct to say that the purpose of the church is to glorify God. That is, of course, what the purpose of every human being is, "to glorify God and enjoy Him forever." 1 Corinthians 10:31 tells us, "...whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." 1 Peter 4:11 says that those who serve in the church should do it "so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ." The church should glorify God, and I believe we learn how to do that in two Bible passages which sum up what God expects of us as a congregation. The first passage is Matthew 22:37-40 where the Lord defines the Great Commandments. In Verses 35,36, we learn that the Pharisees were trying to trap Jesus and get him into trouble. One of them asks Jesus this question: Matthew 22:36 "Teacher, (Jesus) which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Those of us who have read the Bible, especially the Old Testament, realize it contains many different commands. The Ten Commandments are just a portion of the instructions God gives to us. Even though the Pharisee was asking what he thought was a trick question, in many ways it was a good one. Is there any way to prioritize all of these commands? Jesus gives a very good and very true answer: 22:37-40 Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." In other words, Jesus says all the commandments in this whole Book can be summed up in two -- love God and love other people. It is that simple. These are universal commands. God expects all people at all times and all places to obey them. So it is no surprise that, as we read through the New Testament, the Lord expects the church to show love for God and for other people. Part of the reason the church is here on this earth is so that we might express our love toward God and others.
The second passage which is a key in understanding the purpose of the church is what is called the Great Commission. Jesus is meeting with His disciples following His resurrection and just before His ascension into heaven. Matthew 28:18-20 Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the end of the age." There have been those who have suggested that Jesus was giving this commission to the eleven disciples. Remember, Judas Iscariot is no more and Matthias has not yet been chosen as his replacement. There are a couple of things, however, which clearly show that is not the case. The first is the fact that Jesus says, "...surely I am with you always, to the end of the age." He did not say "until the end of your lives." The end of the age is still to come. I would also point out that when we read the Book of Acts and the New Testament Epistles, we see this commission being carried out, not just by the eleven apostles but by a lot of other folks as well, including apostle Paul who was not there when the Great Commission was given. People like Apollos, Priscilla, Aquila, Barnabas, Silas, Timothy, Epaphroditus, all worked to help others become disciples of Jesus Christ.
From these two Bible texts flow what I understand to be a four-fold ministry of the church. The traditional protestant definition had three parts. People like Luther and Calvin said a true church was a place where the Word of God was clearly proclaimed, where the sacraments were faithfully administered, and where church discipline was exercised. I would agree that these should all be characteristics of a Christian church, and I trust they are happening here, but I believe my four-part summary encompasses the purpose of the church more completely. So, why is First Baptist Church here?
First of all, we are here to worship God. We have been commanded to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, and worship is our expression of that love. Yes, we can worship God in lots of different ways and places, but for a church, worship occurs primarily when we come together and express our praise to God for Who He is and what He has done. The Sunday morning gathering like this is the most important time of doing that, but it happens at other meetings as well. We use songs, prayers, Scripture readings, offerings, baptism and communion to express our love to Him. I am afraid we sometimes fail to appreciate what an important privilege and responsibility worship is. Some tend to view what happens in the first part of the service here on Sunday morning as preliminaries to the main event, or as the pre-game show. We sing a few songs as a warm-up for why we are really here -- the sermon. Now, certainly preaching a sermon should be an act of worship on my part, and listening to a sermon can be an act of worship on your part. Longing to hear God speak through His Word is a true expression of love. But singing a praise song, listening to the choir, or reading the Bible text responsively can be just as important as a sermon as we seek to express our adoration and gratitude to Him. The Psalms contain lots of exhortations for God's people to worship the Lord with gladness and to come before Him with joyful songs. In Ephesians 5:19 Paul commands the church to Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord,... Friends, we are here, First Baptist Church is here, to worship God.
Secondly, we are here to show love for others. That flows out of the second great Commandment, love your neighbor as yourself. One of the things this means is that it is our job to show love to anyone in our community with whom we come in contact. It doesn't matter if they are an alcoholic, an atheist, or a homosexual. It doesn't matter if they go to another church. It doesn't matter if every other word out of their mouth is a cuss word or if they have not taken a shower or bath in two months. Every person who comes in contact with this church should be treated with kindness and respect. Now, this doesn't mean we necessarily condone someone's beliefs or lifestyle -- often love demands that we confront others about their sin -- it simply means that we are concerned about the welfare of other people. Oh, it's not easy. Some folks seem to naturally like everyone they meet. I don't know about you, but that is not me. There are numerous folks who just kind of rub me the wrong way -- not anyone in this room, of course, but those folks are around. And, frankly, I think Jesus expected that is how it would be, because He has told us, Matthew 5:44, to love our enemies. So, if someone really irritates me, if someone really bugs me because he keeps taunting me about the Packers not being in the playoffs, I have a specific command from the Lord to love that individual. And as a congregation, we have a specific command to love those who oppose the Lord's work. But, though we as a church need to have a strong love for the folks out there, we need to have an even greater love for those in here.
Listen to Galatians 6:10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. Friends, if you are a part of this congregation, this church is your home, your family. When you goof up out there, and everyone is down on you, this is the place where you should be able to come for shelter because the people love you. Oh, that doesn't mean they excuse your sin. No one will smile at you and say, "Oh, you have been watching X-rated videos this week, isn't that wonderful?" But there should be support, encouragement and help available. It comes in a variety of ways. Often I have the privilege of going to people and saying, "I know you guys have been going through a hard time and the church wanted me to help you by giving you this check." Sometimes people are hesitant to receive that gift, and I say, "Well, it is my job to give the money to you. If you think someone else needs it more than you do, give it to them or put it in the offering plate. But remember, we are your spiritual family. We are supposed to be taking care of each other. That is one of the reasons why we are here. Please don't let pride keep this church from doing its job." Friends, this love for one another, sharing life together, is what the Bible speaks of as fellowship. For some reason, we usually associate fellowship with eating. Yes, those times we have coffee and bars after a church service are part of fellowship, but there is much more. We are here to love each other. That includes lots of hugs and hearty handshakes, but most importantly it means putting that love into action and really serving one another.
Thirdly, we are here to proclaim the gospel. The Great Commission contains one command, "Go and make disciples." But there are two parts of doing that. The first is to tell people who are not Christians who Jesus is and what He has done, and encourage them to trust and follow Him. We often call that evangelism. The message we are called to share focuses on Jesus' death and resurrection. It culminates with the promise that all who, by the power of the Holy Spirit, put their trust in Jesus as Lord and Savior, then become God's children and receive eternal salvation. We are to share this message with both those in our own community and with people who live in other places. The Biblical phrase is "...in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." For us, that means we have a Club program here on Wednesday evenings so folks of all ages in this community can come and learn about salvation through Jesus Christ. It means we spread that message across the Iron Range on cable access TV from Nashwauk to Hoyt Lakes. It means we support missionaries like Juan Felipe who is sharing the gospel with Hispanic people in Northwestern Minnesota. It means we support missionaries like the Jahnkes who represent Christ in Japan. Many Sunday mornings it is kind of crowded here in this room, and maybe you are tempted to think, "Well, I guess there are plenty of Christians. If other people don't want to worry about God, or if they have another religion, I guess that is OK." Like God, the church should desire that all people would repent and put their trust in Jesus Christ. We are here to encourage folks to do just that.
Making disciples, though, includes more than just encouraging people to turn to Jesus Christ. The Great Commission says it includes baptizing them and teaching them to obey everything the Lord has commanded us. That means, #4, we are here to help Christians grow in their faith. We are here to help those of you who are a part of this congregation to become the people God has called you to be. The essence of teaching Christians to obey what the Lord has commanded is to teach the Bible. That is why Bible studies, Sunday School classes, the Club program are a big part of what we do. That is why most sermons are devoted to teaching what the Bible says and what it means for us. Yes, this sermon is part of worship, but it is also part of the making of disciples. As you leave today, my hope is that you will have a clearer picture of why this church is here and what the Lord expects of us. As an evangelist, Billy Graham's job is to share the gospel with people and encourage them to become believers in Jesus Christ. That is basically where his responsibility starts and ends. But, when someone professes faith in Jesus, he encourages them to become involved in a Bible-believing church. It is the church's job to take that new believer in Christ, a spiritual babe, and help him or her grow to maturity by teaching that individual to obey all commands and promises the Lord has given to us. That is why we are here, to help Christians grow in their faith.
OK, what are the practical implications that flow out of these four responsibilities we have as a church? Well, we will be talking about that for the next few weeks, but I want to mention just two today. #1) Though these four purposes are a big umbrella which covers a lot of different activities, it doesn't cover everything. Maybe there are some things that you see other churches do and you wonder why we don't do that at First Baptist Church. Well, maybe we should do that thing, or maybe we don't do it because it is not part of our purpose; it is not why we are here. For example, some churches have big church bazaars once or twice a year. We don't do that here. Is there something evil or wrong about having a bazaar? I don't think so, but I don't believe that is why we are here. I don't think it is the best way to raise money to support ministry, and I don't believe it is a wise use of our time and energy. We have a lot of work to do, and organizing a church bazaar just has never made it near the top of my priority list. Friends, if you have an idea of something you think would be good for our church to do, great. I'd love to hear it, but before you share that with me or someone else in the church, ask yourself, "Is doing this what our church is about? Is this why we are here?" If the answer is "yes," great! If the answer is "I'm not sure," let's talk about it, but if the answer is "no," keep thinking and dreaming.
#2) I believe a good church keeps all four of these purposes in balance. I know some churches will say, "We focus on evangelism or on worship and let other churches specialize in something else." I don't know if that is healthy. I believe these four purposes are like four wheels on a car. If one tire is flat, the car doesn't drive very well. God has called First Baptist Church to be a full service church. And that means if you are involved in one aspect of this ministry, please don't forget that all four parts are important. College students often complain that instructors think their course is the only class a student has. A professor assigns 200 pages of reading due in two days, forgetting that many of the students are taking four or five other classes which have other assignments. In the same way, many church conflicts happen because someone forgets that the church is about more than their ministry. There have been times when a youth leader has come to me and asked, "Is it OK if we take the kids to a concert on Sunday night?" In my mind I probably think, "Well, we have a service here Sunday night. They should be here learning from what I have to say." But, before I open my mouth and say something dumb like that, the Lord has always reminded me that I'm not the only thing around. Maybe this concert can reach some of these kids in a way I never will. Please keep in mind that all the ministries of the church, including the ones you are not involved in, are a very important part of why we are here.
Friends, my encouragement for you today, and in the days ahead, is to do your part to make this church what God wants it to be. We each have a different role to play, but we all do have a role. May God by His grace, truly use First Baptist Church for His glory!
Go to www.life.1stbaptist.org/sermons.htm for Pastor Dan's full text Bible based sermon site
