UNSTOPPABLE
various, beginning with Matthew 28:18-20
S: Purpose of Church
C: Making Disciples
Th: The Unstoppable Church
Pr: WE CHANGE THE WORLD.
?: How?
KW: Ways
TS: We will find in our study of Scripture three ways the church moves to change the world.
Type: Propositional
The ____ way we change the world is by
I. MAKING DISCIPLES (Matthew 28:18-20)
II. IMPACTING THE WORLD (Acts 1:8)
III. BEING ORGANIC (Acts 9:31)
PA: How is the change to be observed?
Version: ESV
RMBC 05 June 05 AM
INTRODUCTION:
ILL Survive: Solitaire
Dan Richbart was teaching his Battalion about survival in the Alaskan wilderness.
"What are the three most important things you should bring with you in case you get lost alone in the woods?" he asked.
Several hands went up, and many important things were mentioned, such as water, matches, etc.
Then one young man in the back eagerly raised his hand.
"Yes, Dan Kaminksi, what are the three most important things you would bring?" asked Captain Dan.
Dan replied, "A compass, food, and a deck of cards."
"Why’s that, Dan?" the Captain inquired.
"The compass is to find the right direction, and the food is to maintain you during the rescue."
"And what about the playing cards, Dan?"
“Well, as soon as you start playing solitaire, someone always walks up behind you and says, ‘Put that red nine on top of that black ten!’”
Well, that’s one creative attempt at survival.
Most of us would probably consider survival a good thing.
But I desire to introduce to you this morning a different understanding of survival.
For…
If the church’s purpose becomes to survive, we have lost our way.
I believe that the church is not designed to survive.
I believe that the church is designed to do much more than thrive.
In fact, I believe the church finds her strength and reason for being in service.
The church is designed to serve.
We are designed to make a difference in this world that is both revolutionary and transforming.
TRANSITION:
There is a time in the life cycle of a church that it is vulnerable.
Interestingly, it may not be when you think.
For…
1. Churches decline when things are going well.
Success can become our enemy.
For when we are successful, there is a great pull to play it safe and stay where we are.
The problem, though, is that success is not attained by playing it safe.
It is attained with risk and innovation.
But when we become afraid to lose the success we have achieved, we abandon creativity in order to preserve what we have.
And you know what?
It doesn’t work.
In the name of being committed to the purpose of the church, we end up not doing so, for in action, we commit to the institution instead.
We stay with standardization over uniqueness.
We prefer predictability over surprise.
We covet comfort over service.
We choose convenience over sacrifice.
And because we have chosen preservation, we close ourselves to the outside world (unless they agree to come in and be just like us).
ILL Church: hut is where I used to go
A man was stranded on the proverbial deserted Pacific island for years. Finally one day a boat comes sailing into view, and the man frantically waves and draws the skipper’s attention. The boat comes near the island and the sailor gets out and greets the stranded man.
After awhile the sailor asks, ’What are those three huts you have here?"
“Well, that’s my house there."
“What’s that next hut?" asks the sailor.
"I built that hut to be my church."
“What about the other hut?"
"Oh, that’s where I used to go to church."
We are a bit finicky, aren’t we?
It is interesting how we view church as something that should satisfy us according to our likes and dislikes.
Each one of us needs to be confronted by this (me included).
When we fall into that type of thinking, we so much miss the point, because…
2. The church is not about customer service.
Too often (and once would be too often), I have been told, or it has been insinuated, that I should take the church the way they want it to go, or else they are going elsewhere.
This is a real problem for the American church.
It is too easy to pick up and leave.
Whenever something happens a person doesn’t like, it is too easy (please forgive this overused metaphor) to “pick up your toys up and go home.”
So, if you are looking for me as a pastor to do what a pastor is supposed to according to the way you think it should be done, either you or I are in the wrong place.
If you are looking for me to satisfy you as a person, either you or I are in the wrong place.
If you are looking for me to display a product tailored for the typical parishioner (you), either you or I are in the wrong place.
When the focus of the church is the satisfaction of the individual, it is a tragedy.
It is a tragedy because the church loses its reason to live.
I am concerned about us as God’s people at Randall.
For months now, my heart has become heavier in its unease that we are holding back the Holy Spirit from doing in us what He needs to do.
I have a growing, and an even ominous concern, that we want our church to be a safe place to be.
But please remember this…
3. If you think the church is to be safe, remember that our central metaphor is an instrument of death.
The cross was a place for execution.
So, if we truly take up the cross that Jesus has assigned to us, it means that our life as a believer is not one of ease (a joy, yes; an ease, no).
If we truly offer ourselves as “living sacrifices” as Paul exhorted us to do, it means we give up our way for the Lord’s.
We die to our wants and desires in order to serve the Lord Jesus Christ.
Unfortunately, the evangelical church tends to be overweight.
We are too much about getting fed (which is safe).
And we are too little about exercising faith (which is dangerous).
I want to propose to you today that we cannot let ourselves fall into these categories.
The church has a purpose that we are not to lose sight of.
And it is this…
4. WE ARE TO CHANGE THE WORLD.
You see…
I believe it is the very nature of the church to bring about change.
Change occurs to us individually when our Lord is at work in us.
When that occurs, inevitably, change happens to us as a church body.
When that happens, the church changes the world, and we become unstoppable.
But before I speak any more about that, let’s discover the “how” to this proposition.
How do we change the world?
Well…
5. We will find in our study of Scripture three ways the church moves to change the world.
OUR STUDY:
I. The first way we change the world is by MAKING DISCIPLES (Matthew 28:18-20).
And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
1. Our task is always to bring people into a closer and more mature relationship with God.
Now, if you have heard me speak on this set of verses before, and particularly verse 19, you know that though there are many verbs in this section, there is only one command in the Greek.
It is…making disciples.
This is our assignment.
I want you to think of our stage, from left to right, as a continuum of an individual’s life.
Here on the extreme left is a person with no knowledge of God.
Here in the middle is an exciting part – it is when a person receives Jesus as His Savior and Lord.
Down here on your right are our resurrected selves, glorified bodies, with Jesus in heaven.
Considering this continuum, what is our responsibility when it comes to making disciples?
It is simply this…to bring each person God brings into our lives further down the line.
For the person who does not believe there is God, we introduce God.
For the person who does not believe in prayer, we introduce prayer.
For the person who believes in Jesus as a person, we now introduce Him as Savior and Lord.
For the person who is now a believer in Jesus, we take them further down the line, introducing faith, loving one another, holiness…
Wherever the person is, we bring them further down the line.
This verse does tell us some important aspects of making disciples.
First, to do it right, we must go.
In other words…
2. Making disciples is not a stationary act.
It is the nature of the Christian to be on the move.
We do not…sit and stay.
ILL Church: 911
A paramedic was asked on a local TV talk-show program: "What was your most unusual and challenging 911 call?"
"Recently we got a call from that big white church at 11th and Walnut," the paramedic said. "A frantic usher was very concerned that during the sermon an elderly man passed out in a pew and appeared to be dead. The usher could find no pulse and there was no noticeable breathing."
"What was so unusual and demanding about this particular call?" the interviewer asked.
"Well," the paramedic said, "we carried out four guys before we found the one who was dead."
Let’s not be caught dead in the pews.
It is not the true nature of the church to think that sitting in a pew once a week is what identifies us as a Christian.
The evidence that we are Christians is that we are active and on the move.
In addition…
3. We are to teach the truth about how to live.
Being a Christian means that we obey the teaching of Jesus.
And being a maker of disciples means that we point people to follow our example.
The apostle Paul said, “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.”
We must demonstrate the same willingness and attitude.
And…
4. We follow Jesus.
When a person is baptized, it is a public declaration of an inside reality.
They are following Him in their now, and have committed to continue following Jesus.
II. The second way we change the world is by IMPACTING THE WORLD (Acts 1:8).
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
This verse, gives a bit more meat to the going part of making disciples.
First…
1. We are responsible for those closest to us.
This is our Jerusalem.
These are the people that we are already in relationship with.
They are your relatives, neighbors, co-workers and fellow students.
We have a responsibility to bring each one of them further down the continuum.
We are also to touch those that are near us, but we don’t know.
This is our Judea.
These are people that are similar to us.
We have a culture in common with them, but we don’t know them.
We have a responsibility to bring each one of them further down the continuum.
Then…
2. We are to reach those that are close by, but a world away.
This is our Samaria.
As the world has grown smaller, our Samaria has grown larger and larger.
There are all kinds of people in this area, from here to Buffalo, that are truly different than us, and we would be crossing cultures to reach them.
The inner city is a cultural difference.
The Hispanic community is a cultural difference.
The Roman Catholic community, in some ways, is a cultural difference.
The Muslim community is a cultural difference.
Nevertheless…
We have a responsibility to bring each one of them further down the continuum.
Finally…
3. We are to affect the whole world.
This is our uttermost parts of the earth.
You see, we are not to settle for our neighborhood or city.
We are commanded to be actively involved and participating in what God is doing around the world.
And it is much more than sending money to support those who have been called to serve cross-culturally full time.
It is also being in relationship so as to attain and demonstrate true unity in Christ.
This is the concept behind our Mexico mission.
ILL Mexico Mission
On August 6, we have a team of ten that will be leaving for Mexico to minister to the church in ... that ... work through for their translation ministry. The short term focus of this team will be meeting both physical and spiritual needs. The physical needs will be met through three dentists that are accompanying us. Spiritual needs will be met by ministering to the church family and community.
The larger purpose of our mission to Mexico is to participate in a long term relationship with the church in ... with a view to help each other grow in our understanding of Christ and fulfill His mission to a lost world. We want to continue to take advantage of opportunities the Lord provides.
The total cost of this mission is $10,000. As of this writing, $2,000 has been promised through the mission budget, and another $1,225 has been received. Please consider supporting our team: (names). . .as they look to impact our world.
III. The third way we change the world is by BEING ORGANIC (Acts 9:31).
So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.
Please understand this…
1. We are not an organization; we are an organism.
We are a living body.
We have life.
And the way we live, should reflect the life that has been given us.
ILL Life: Dead Poets Society
The movie Dead Poets Society is about a controversial English teacher, John Keating, who shakes up a New England prep school for boys in the 1950s. While at Helton Academy, Keating (played by Robin Williams) introduces his students to classic poets, teaching them to look at life from new vantage points instead of simply relying on knowledge that has been passed down to them.
Inspired by their mentor’s example, the boys resurrect a society of dead poets that Keating established while he was a student at Helton. Because of the club, a particularly shy student finds the courage to express himself poetically, and another student begins acting despite his father’s disapproval.
On the first day of school, Mr. Keating walks into his class whistling the "1812 Overture." At once, the students recognize that he is unlike any other teacher they’ve had at Helton Academy. He motions for them to follow him out into the hall where they stand in front of the school’s trophy case. A student reads aloud a famous poem about the passage of time, which Keating proceeds to interpret.
Keating says, "We are food for worms, lads. Believe it or not, each and every one of us in this room is one day going to stop breathing, turn cold, and die." Motioning them to draw nearer to the displayed, aged photographs, he continues:
I’d like you to step forward over here and peruse some of the faces from the past. You’ve walked past them many times, but I don’t really think you’ve ever looked at them. They are not that different from you, are they? Same haircuts, full of hormones, just like you. Invincible, just like you feel. The world is their oyster. They believe they’re destined for great things. Their eyes are full of hope, just like you. Did they wait till it was too late to make from their lives even one iota of what they were capable? Because you see, gentlemen, these boys are now fertilizing daffodils. If you listen real close, you can hear them whispering their legacy to you.
As the boys press their noses near the trophy case, Mr. Keating stands behind them and whispers, "Carpe Diem. Seize the day!"
I believe we need to have the same kind of attitude…
2. Our walk with Jesus must be real.
This is no time to be playing church.
This is no time to be found doing the minimum.
For if you and I are just doing the minimum, we are not walking in fear of the Lord.
When our walk with Jesus is real, we will only settle for the maximum.
Our desire is to be on fire for God.
We would rather burn out for the Lord rather than rust out, because Jesus is everything to us.
When this is what is on our heart…
3. We are to be driven by the Holy Spirit.
The word used here for “comfort” is the idea that the Holy Spirit comes alongside us and encourages us.
He gives us insight on what to do.
He tells us when to stop and when to go.
He guides and directs our heart.
When this place is filled with people that are driven by the Holy Spirit, I believe wholeheartedly we will be a place that God will multiply, because we will be an unstoppable force that changes the world.
APPLICATION:
Now, I don’t want to mislead you in anyway today.
There are some things that will never change.
It is this…
1. The message will never change.
The good news about Jesus is a truth that we can absolutely depend on.
Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever, and He is able to meet the spiritual needs of every person in every generation in every culture.
And as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become the children of God.
This will never change.
But…
2. We must acclimate to a changing world.
The truth does not change, but methods will.
Jesus does not change, but styles will.
And if reaching people for Jesus is important to us, we will adapt our thinking and our practices in such a way so that we will be effective.
The church is designed to thrive on the edge of change.
We don’t act like this, but we can adapt to anything when it is on our hearts to serve people.
This means that…
3. We must be released to do what is natural – regeneration.
Remember, we are an organism.
We are designed to reproduce.
This is what we do.
We bring people further down the continuum of belief.
And as a result, there are new believers and new communities of faith.
And…
We are preparing the next generation to do what is natural – give new life to others.
COMMUNION:
Col 1:15-23
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities — all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, 22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.
When we come to this table, we recognize that the Lord’s Supper is a memorial to the incarnate life and the sacrificial death of Christ.
He was lifted up to the cross where He draws us.
He draws us to Himself.
So as we come to the table, we recognize that he draws us once again.
He draws us to remember that He victoriously accomplished the salvation of those drawn in faith.
Those of us that know Jesus are invited to share in the elements of the table.
You do not have to be a member of this church to partake, but we do ask that you have a relationship with Jesus.
If you do not know Jesus, that is, you have not received Him as your Savior and Lord, you do not trust Him with your life, that is, you have not been changed by the message, just let the elements pass by.
Please wait until the time comes when you do have that personal relationship with the Lord Jesus.
We practice “communion” because we are to remember the death of the Lord Jesus.
We take the bread to remind us that it was by the body of our Savior that our salvation came.
He died in our place.
He became our substitute.
We take the cup to remind us that it was by the blood of our Savior that our salvation came.
He died for our sins.
He became our sacrifice.
Being led in prayer by ___________________, let us take a moment and thank Him for being our sacrifice.
(Prayer)
The apostle Paul writes, "The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me."
Let’s partake together.
__________________ will now come and lead us in prayer.
Again, the apostle Paul writes, "In the same way, after supper he took the cup saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me."
Let’s partake together.
BENEDICTION: [Counselors are ]
Don’t be afraid to change the world…because as a church, it is what we are designed to be and do; we are to be an unstoppable force impacting the world for Christ.
Now…May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.
RESOURCES:
An Unstoppable Force, Erwin Raphael McManus
Tell the World, Will Metzger
