TEXT: MATTHEW 16:13-19 (Don’t read yet)
TITLE: “FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH HAS A FANTASTIC FUTURE!”
INTRODUCTION: A. Human beings are not very good at predicting the future
--Just listen to some of these predictions made by people who thought they knew what they were talking about:
1. “I think there is a world market for maybe five computers.” - Thomas Watson,
Chairman of IBM, 1943
2. “This ‘telephone’ has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of
communication. The device is inherently of no value to us.” - Western Union internal
memo, 1876.
3. “The concept is interesting and well-formed, but in order to earn better than a ‘C,’ the
idea must be feasible.” - A Yale University management professor in response to Fred
Smith’s paper proposing reliable overnight delivery service.
--Smith went on to found Federal Express Corp.
4. “There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home.” - Ken Olson,
president, chairman and founder of Digital Equipment Corp., 1977
5. “Who [in the world] wants to hear actors talk?” - H.M. Warner, Warner Brothers,
1927.
6. “I’m just glad it’ll be Clark Gable who’s falling on his face and not Gary Cooper.”
--Gary Cooper on his decision not to take the leading role in “Gone With The Wind.”
7. “We don’t like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out.” - Decca Recording
Co. rejecting the Beatles, 1962.
8. “Stocks have reached what looks like a permanently high plateau.” - Irving Fisher,
Professor of Economics, Yale University, 1929.
9. “Everything that can be invented has been invented.” - Charles H. Duell,
Commissioner, U.S. Office of Patents, 1899.
B. The future is something that Jesus warns us not to worry about:
--Mt. 6:34 – “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about
itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
C. However, we have entered a transition phase here at First Christian
1. Today is my first Sunday as your preaching minister
a. My family and I have moved almost all of our belonging to a house on NE 17th
St. here in Washington
b. It’s time to make preparations to move upward and onward
c. It’s time to prepare for the future
2. What kind of future do we have?
a. Jesus warned one congregation that their future didn’t look very bright
b. Church at Ephesus in Rev. 2:4-5 – “Yet I hold this against you: You
have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you
have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not
repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.”
3. What is the guarantee that the future of the First Christian Church will be
bright?
I. WHY FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH CAN LOOK FORWARD TO A GREAT FUTURE
I can guarantee you today that First Christian can be a great church with a fantastic future!
*How can I do that?
**How can I stand here today and guarantee a great future?
***TEXT: MATTHEW 16:13-19
****Based on the word of God, I want to tell you three reasons that First Christian can look forward to
a great future
A. The first reason for believing that First Christian can have a fantastic future: God Delights in Using
Imperfect People
1. When God builds a church, He always uses weak and imperfect people
--People we probably wouldn’t have chosen for the job
2. If we were going to choose people for a great task, we would probably look for someone who has
accomplished great things; someone with proven skills.
a. An entrepreneur who has been successful at building a thriving business
b. A politician who has been successful building a great society.
c. A great humanitarian who has been successful at alleviating great need.
d. An athlete who has been successful at accomplishing great feats.
e. At least someone who shows great potential in one or more of those areas.
3. But God has chosen a different method
--1 Cor. 1:27 & 28 – “But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose
the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the
despised things – and the thing that are not – to nullify the things that are.”
4. Can Jesus use those who have accomplished great things in other areas for His kingdom?
a. Most certainly can
b. He just chooses to use those of us who are imperfect so that He can teach us what we can do
through Him
c. He does it to remind us that “what is impossible with man is possible with God.”
5. God can use you in the process of “building the church”
a. Help me with a little demonstration:
(1). Take a look at the person on your left
(2). Now, take a look at the person on your right
(3). Now take a look at the person sitting in front of you
(4). Now take a look at the person behind you
(5). Now take a look up here
b. Would you use any of these people to build the church?
c. God can use all of us
-- 2 Cor. 4:7 – “But we have this treasure (meaning the Gospel) in jars of clay (referring to our
frailty and unworthiness) (why?) to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not
from us.”
d. All God wants is normal, weak people who will place themselves at His disposal and allow the
empowerment of His Holy Spirit to work in their lives.
B. The second reason for believing that First Christian can have a fantastic future: Christ is building the
church
1. Look at vs. 18 – “…on this rock I will build My church…”
2. Two great truths here:
a. 1st truth: Jesus is building the church
--Not just a prediction or a promiseIt’s a constitutional declaration!
(1). Jesus will handle the building process
(2). He does use us as His instruments but it is Jesus who is building the church
(3). Paul reminds us in 1 Cor. 3:6 – “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it
grow.”
b. 2nd truth: It is His church
(1). We forget that fact sometimes, don’t we?
(2). We find ourselves talking about our church and their church and this church and that church
but if it’s THE CHURCH, it belongs to Jesus Christ.
(3). Jesus Christ is the one who paid the price for the church
Acts 20:28 (Paul called elders at Ephesus to meet with him on Miletus) – “Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which HE bought with His own blood.”
3. Those two great truths take a lot of pressure off of us
a. We wouldn’t know how to build a church if our very lives depended on it.
b. Ps. 127:1 teaches us – “Unless the LORD build the house, its builders labor in vain.”
c. Jesus must be the one who builds the church.
d. If Jesus doesn’t build the church, we’re all in trouble!
C. The third reason for believing that First Christian can have a fantastic future: The Gates of Hell Will Not Prevail Against It.
1. Jesus promised the He would always cause His church to triumph over Satan and his army
2. One other thing I want to point out from a particular phrase is Jesus’ statement:
a. We have confused the positioning of the church and the gates of Hell
b. I used to think this verse meant that the church was taking a defensive position against the onslaught of the gates of hell
c. I finally realized a number of years ago that the church is not on the defensive but on the offensive.
d. When you have a walled city, as in Biblical times, the gates were not primarily to let people in but to keep them out.
Therefore, along with the walls, gates were defensive
e. Jesus is telling us that it is the church that should be attacking the position held by the minions of hell and that in this attack, we will be one day guaranteed victory!
II. HOW FIRST CHRISTIAN CAN GUARANTEE A GREAT FUTURE
A. Keep the main thing the main thing
1. The mission statement of FCC is: “As a New Testament Church, we are committed to sharing with all people the peace, the love, the joy and the eternal rewards of knowing Jesus Christ.”
a. How many of you know that mission statement backwards and forwards?
b. If I asked you to repeat it back to me, how many of you could do that without looking for a newsletter or other piece of paper?
--Please understand that I’m giving you fair warning: Expect that at sometime in the near future I
will ask you what our mission statement says. I will expect
2. I believe Rick Warren’s statement is true: “A great commitment to the Great Commandments and the Great Commission will produce a great church.”
a. The Great Commandments: love God with all heart, soul, and mind and love neighbor as yourself
b. The Great Commission: seeking to make others disciples of Jesus Christ through baptism and teaching.
c. According to latest statistics, 43% of Daviess Co. claims no religious affiliation
--Other factors involved in that number that moves that to around 50% (15,000 people)
2. Don’t get sidetracked into thinking you’re doing what God wants you to do by just preserving
certain traditions or by just attending church
3. Keep the main thing the main thing
Everything else is trivial
B. Always let the Bible be your guide and rule of practice in everything
1. The early Restoration Movement people were known as “people of the book”
2. One of their teaching statements put it this way: “Where the Bible speaks, we speak. Where the Bible is silent, we are silent.”
3. Heb. 4:12 – “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double--edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
C. Protect the unity of this congregation vigorously
1. Tonto and the Lone Ranger were riding through a canyon together when all of a sudden both sides of the canyon walls were filled with Native American warrior on horses, dressed for battle. The Lone Ranger turned to Tonto and asked, “What are we going to do?” Tonto replied, “What you mean by ‘we’ Whiteman?”
2. Listen to some of the “one another” passages in the N.T.:
a. Jn. 12:34 – “Love one another…”
b. Rom. 12:10
(1). “Be devoted to one another…”
(2). “Honor one another…”
c. Rom. 12:16 – “Live in harmony with one another
d. Gal. 5:13 – “Serve one another
e. Eph. 4:32 – “Be kind and compassionate with one another…”
f. Just a partial listing
Get the idea that unity is important?
D. Realize that repentance is not just for non-Christians
1. Understand that if you want God to bless this congregation that you have to diligently search your own life and see if there is anything in your own actions or attitudes that God needs to change.
2. Ps. 139:23-24 – “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
E. Offer forgiveness freely to any you feel have wronged you
1. An unforgiving heart is a barrier between you and God
2. Mt. 6:12 – “Forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors.”
3. If you want God’s blessing on this congregation, you need to understand that God will not bless a place that claims to belong to Him if it is not a place of forgiven people who freely offer forgiveness to others.
F. Focus on being a people of faith
1. 2 Cor. 5:7 – “We live by faith, not by sight.”
2. Don’t ever think there is anything too big or too overwhelming to accomplish
3. A primary principle in scripture: With man this is impossible but with God all things are possible.
CONCLUSION: A. A lot has happened during the history of First Christian Church
1. A whole lot more can happen between now and whatever time God gives for us on
this earth
2. If First Christian will just follow Jesus Christ and be faithful to Him, she will have a
fantastic future
B. Alfred Nobel, a Swedish chemist, made his fortune by inventing powerful explosives
and licensing the formula to governments to make weapons. One day Nobel’s brother
died, and a newspaper by accident printed an obituary for Alfred instead of the
deceased.
It identified him as the inventor of dynamite who made a fortune by enabling armies
to achieve new levels of mass destruction. He had the unique opportunity to read his
own obituary and to see how he would be remembered. He was shocked to think that
this was all his life would add up to: he would be remembered as a merchant of death
and destruction.
So he took his fortune and established the Nobel Peace Prize; considered to be the
supreme award given to those who have made an exceptional contribution to the
betterment of the world. He also established other Nobel prizes that are given to those
who have made outstanding contributions in the arts and sciences.
He took his money and established a legacy: giving awards fir accomplishments
contributing to life rather than death. And today, indeed Alfred Nobel is remembered for
his contribution to peace and human achievement – not explosives.
1. How about you? What does your future hold?
2. Are you sure about where you will spend eternity?
--The only guarantee of eternity in heaven is a real relationship with Jesus Christ
3. Like Alfred Nobel, you have the opportunity to change your future if it’s going in the
wrong direction
