Sermon-10/1/06-F: Family-Effectively Minister to the entire Family of God
Titus 2:1-8
Turn to mark 3
Review-Mission Statement
L-Love God, Love Others
I-Impact Our Community
F-Family of God
Part of our vision is that we desire to minister to the entire family of God.
Pray
Read mark 3:31-35- “And His mother and His brothers came, and standing outside they went to Him and called Him. And a crowd was sitting around Him, and they said to Him, “Your mother and your brothers are outside seeking you.” And He answered them, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking at those who sat around Him, He said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.” (ESV)
I. Jesus redefined family for His followers
Jesus first mention of the family of God redefined family for those who were His followers.
A. The Jewish concept of family
In the Jewish/Middle eastern culture the family was the basis of social and economic life.
-Not only that, family was the source of your individual identity. You were identified as a member of a family or clan. Your family was your life, the most important relationships that you had.
But X redefined that,
B. Christ’s new family
for X followers their life was no longer defined by their biological family and those relationships, but rather by God and their devotion to Him as the head of the divine family of God.
This would have been a tremendous comfort to those following X at the time, because for many of those believers, following X would have meant losing their earthly families.
Lk. 14:26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.”
But X is assuring them that they are not without a family, they have now become a part of a greater family, a family of faith, the family of God. Their identity is now found in this family.
Still true today, we are the family of God each and every one of us who have trusted X as Lord and Savior.
Forrest Carter, in his book the Education of Little Tree set around the great depression he relays the story of a grandfather’s explanation to his grandson his use of the phrase “I kin you”. It meant to love and understand.
“Grandpa said back before his time ‘kinfolk’ meant any folks that you understood and had an understanding with, so it meant ‘loved folks.’ but people got selfish and brought it down to mean just blood relations; but that actually it was never meant to mean that.”
That is the idea behind what Jesus is saying when he says that those who do the will of God are all His brothers and sisters. We’re kinfolk. Because of our shared relationship with and commitment to loving God and serving Him we have a love and an understanding of each other, a shared bond and sense of community that draws us together. A bond that is stronger than human blood, because it is a bond formed through the blood of X.
Ill. A few years ago a reporter was doing a story on gang violence in the inner city. He found and interviewed 2 cousins who had been raised together in the same home by their grandmother, but had somehow ended up in rival gangs. In their interviews they both said that neither of them would hesitate to hurt or kill the other if the orders of the gang required it. The dedication to the gang family would override the commitment to blood relatives. For them family was defined according to a common purpose rather than according to blood relationships.
The definition of family that Jesus gives us here in Mark is very similar: our shared commitments to God tie us more closely to each other as followers of X than our relations to our earthly families. The difference is our commitment to God and Jesus leads us to further the kingdom of God here on earth, striving always to do good and help others rather than do evil and to hurt.
That is the family of God-that is who we are and as a church that is our goal to minister to that family-all of us together
II. Our Examples
A. From Scripture
Called to reach young and old alike-mark 10:13-15- “And they were bringing children to Him that He might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them. But when Jesus saw it, He was indignant and said to them, “Let the little children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” and He took them in His arms and blessed them, laying His hands on them.
1 Tim. 5:1-2 “Do not rebuke an older man but encourage him as you would a father. Treat younger men like brothers, older women like mothers, younger women like sisters, in all purity.”
Titus 2:1-8-Leonard read
Goal never to emphasize one group over the other, rather move forward together as a family
Up w/ worship reading
Not a new value for this church.
B. From our Past
Few examples of past ministry to the whole family of God
-A History of NW Regular Baptists by John ruhlman
One of the things that it says in the book that Lifegate has always been known for is carrying on an aggressive SS program.
Some other examples from a book put together for the churches 30th anniversary in 1993
-Under the heading of ministry to children and youth:
Lifegate and neighborhood Baptist churches strove to minister to children and youth continuously through the years. In the early years the SS and DVBS summer programs were major ministries for children. Yearly SS xmas programs were highlights for both churches.
The youth programs at times were healthy with youth being won to the Lord and strengthened in their faith. In the early 80’s our youth participated in summer mission trips to mexico to minister in churches there.
Under the heading of Education and Discipleship ministry
Since our earliest days, Lifegate has been a training field for men and women planning on full-time church or missions ministries. In the first 30 years, 32 members have gone from our church to serve in full-time ministries, 5 have been ordained and Randy & Joan Pollard were commissioned to the ministry of foreign missions.
-in 1993 Lifegate completed a neighborhood bible Time that had 195 enrolled and saw 56 decisions to receive X.
That is our some of our history and as we look to the future-our goal and desires have not changed, Those are the types of things that we are praying and trusting God to continue to do through our ministry here. But as the times and the world we live in has changed how we must do this can and will continue to change. The message remains the same, but the methods will change.
III. Ministering to the family of God through:
-Blended worship
-Lifegate Kids & Youth/Adult bible classes
-Faithweaver Friends (outreach)
-Heroes Unmasked
-Christmas program
-Small groups
-flocks (your deacon should seek you out today and give you a handout outlining their goals in their ministry to you)
Appl. There was a family that had an antique vase that had been in the family for generations. One day as the parents came home from an evening out, they were met at the front door by thier teenage daughter.
She said "Mom & Dad, you know that vase that you said had been handed down from generation to generation? Well our generation dropped it."
Let’s not be the generation that drops the vase, drops the ball in terms of carrying on the ministry that God has called us to do here at Lifegate, ask Him how he would have you be involved in fulfilling our mission here. Because that what we are going to talk about next week. Every member a minister.
