Preaching Towards Revitalization

THE

CHURCH

Revitalizer A Revitalization Retreat in Every Issue

Mar/Apr 2021 Vol 8, Issue 2

“The only magazine dedicated to Church Revitalization.”

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From The Editor I am so interested in what this edition brings to the church revitalization community relating to the art and practice of revitalization preaching. Preaching is paramount when it comes to revitalization and renewal. The weekly worship services are strategic places in all of the Lord’s churches where we can begin to raise the bar of a plateaued, declining, rapidly declining, or dying church. Never has there been a greater need to keep the cause of church revitalization and renewal preaching focused on saving these churches.

Now, what does my editor’s column title of putting cranberries and nuts into your bread have to do with the subject of preaching towards church revitalization and renewal? It is fascinating that churches that are being revitalized are often wonderful examples of adding cranberries or nuts to the mixture. This issue is titled Preaching for Church Revitalization and Renewal and it is a group of sermons by the nations best church revitalization practitioners. These leaders have the ability to individually grab the hearts of those recipients of the gospel message in a way to provide the best opportunity to lead the church towards revitalization and renewal. Adding a little spice and a little protein is always helpful to any mixture.

My wife, Cheryl makes wonderful Cranberry Nut Bread each Thanksgiving for our family and friends to enjoy. The bread mix is pretty basic, but once she adds the cranberries, orange juice, and the walnuts, a plain recipe becomes something incredible. In fact, if the Israelites had this wonderful bread, they would have never complained about being in the desert.

Pastors which are stuck in the decline of their church, are often preaching just to get another week out of the way. There is little expectation from their preaching both from themselves as the preacher and from the remaining participants attending the local church. Within these churches, visitors come and go quickly, because they find nothing fresh or full of flavor for them to remain. While in college, I heard a professor share an Arab proverb, which has stuck with me. Although I cannot recall the author or even which class I was taking at the time, the proverb has remained with me for more than forty plus years. The proverb is simple: The best speaker is one who turns ears into eyes.

Stay connected, more is coming!

Dr. Tom Cheyney is the Founder and Directional Leader of Renovate National Church Revitalization Conference and Executive Editor of the Church Revitalizer.

Contents

Walk Tall in Your Leadership Bill Tenny-Brittian

Transitioning Your Church Toward Revitalization

p. 20

The (Roman’s) Road to Church Revitalization Bob Whitesel

p. 26

Tom Cheyney

p. 10

Why Don’t We Grow?

George Thomasson

p. 32

St. Patrick, St. Paul, and the Church Kenneth Priest

p. 36

Don’t Trade the Mission for the Moment Gary Moritz

p. 42

Also in this issue: The Revitalizer

Book Review Rob Hurtgen

p. 112 4

Excellence Wins; A No-Nonsense Guide to Becoming the Best in a World of Compromise

by Horst Schulze Gentle and Lowly; The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers

by Dane Ortlund

Mar/Apr | Vol 8, No 2

Revitalizing the House of God and His People

Job One David Jackson

Steve Sells

p. 48

p. 52

King of the Fence Sitters Mark Weible

Pushed to the Edge

Is Your Church a Normal or an Abnormal Church?

Michael Atherton

Tracy Jaggers

p. 64

p. 70

p. 58

The Noble Work of Revitalization Pete Tackett

p. 74

The Heart of the Problem p. 60 Jim Grant

Forward: Looking to What Lies Ahead p. 90 Chris Irving

Evangelize Without Talking to Strangers p. 72 Bud Brown

God Is in the Details p. 96 Desmond Barrett

How Are You? p. 78 Rob Hurtgen

Weak Links p. 100 Richard Harvey

The Church in Motion p. 80 Brian Thorstad

The Radical Church p. 106 Rob Myers

Do Not Be the Church of Irony p. 86 Joel Breidenbaugh 5

THE

CHURCH

Revitalizer Volume 8, No. 2

The Church Revitalizer Is published bi-monthly by Renovate Publishing Group 1906 West Lee Road Orlando, FL 32810 Email: ChurchRevitalizer.guru

PUBLISHER Executive Editor Dr. Tom Cheyney Associate Publisher Mark Weible Associate Publisher Circulation & Marketing Ashleigh Barclay

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To help churches that need to be reinvigorated and renewed effectively receive help in issues that revitalizers face everyday. Articles, resources, and information are gathered from authors all over the country who have been through, or may currently be in, the revitalization process and we want to share their knowledge.

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Transitioning Your Church Towards Revitalization

By Tom Cheyney Joshua 1:1-1:9 We are living in some of the best of days and some of the most challenging of days when it comes to American Christianity and the local church. The church life which existed thirty years ago will no longer suffice as a vibrant healthy church today. What drew the masses in the 1970’s will no longer compel potential church members to your church and ministries. I was in Oklahoma City recently speaking at a conference on church revitalization and renewal and as the final speaker of the closing evening, I asked those in attendance which made up over 180 individual churches represented, if they “loved their grandchildren and children enough to make the necessary changes within their church to bring them back to the Lord?” There was a moment of silence and eventually a long drawn out moan by some of the participants because the question actually hit too close to those in attendance and their local expression of church.

Many made expressions that they indeed would make the necessary decisions and changes to allow their local church to become more inclusive towards the younger generations. When it was all over a lady cornered me in the back of the church where we were meeting and wanted me to know that even though their church was made up of only old people, they were the ones holding true to the scripture and were the remnant clinging to the things of old and if a younger group of individuals wanted to become part of their church, they would need to adopt and adapt to what the church was already doing.

I asked if she went to a large church and she sighed that they were once quite large but now they were only a handful of participants, but they were very committed to one another. I was left with the impression from that church and this dear saintly individual that they had embraced the philosophy that stated: “Would the last one left alive, please turn the lights off?” Did you know that only 15% of today’s churches in America are healthy?

Could God be asking us to change? If so, in what areas? How do we identify what God is wanting us to change?

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What I desire of you is to not to miss the Lord in the transition. Think upon that phrase, missing God in the transition. I am swarmed by the passage about the rich young ruler when I ponder this thought. Have you missed God in the transition? Has your church been found guilty of missing God in the transition? Transition can be defined as, “The act of passing from one state or place to the next,” or “an event that results in a transformation.” As a church revitalizer one thing is clear about transition. Transition does not allow you to stay right where you and your church are. Oh, you as the pastor or church member can fight it all you want, but it will let you know, “I am here,” and until you transition to the expected state, you and I will be miserable.

Throughout Jesus’ ministry, transitioning people from one state to another was his goal, whether it be in thoughts, in deeds, in health, and in words. However, more often than not, the people missed His transitions. Jesus tells the rich young ruler, “If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven, and come and follow me” (Matthew 19:21). The rich young ruler’s response was very telling. “But when the rich young ruler heard this statement, he went away grieving; for he was one who owned much property” (Matthew 19:22). He missed Jesus’ transition because the young man focused on his property, instead of what Jesus was offering. How could this rich young ruler be grieved at the author of life when He, the author, was offering the life that the young man desired? It is easy to ask this question when we are on the outside looking in, but we are all guilty of missing God in his transitions.

There are three reasons which come to mind on how we miss God in the transition towards church revitalization and renewal.

For Some Church Revitalizer’s: The Picture is Not Clear. Most of the time when we approach God, we want Him to give us a clear picture of what our lives should be: Before I relocate, I

need to know where I will work, how much I will make, or what my house will look like. There is nothing wrong with this expectation, except God tells us to, “Go to a land I will show you,” (Genesis 12: 1) and not a land I have shown you. “Follow me and I will make you fishers or men,” (Matthew 4:19), not follow me because I have made you fishers of men. The picture becomes clearer as we follow.

For Some Church Revitalizer’s: The Assignment is Too Daunting. It is interesting how the Gospel describes the rich young ruler. He is first rich, he is then young, and he rules. To transition him, Jesus reaches to the very core of his identity: to give it all up. Yes, he could have given it up, but would he have risked being poor and not rule (I assume his money gave him some kind of power to rule), at the expense of his reputation? The assignment to do such a thing was too daunting, hence he settled, when he was supposed to have transitioned.

For Some Church Revitalizer’s: The Timing is Not Right. Many pastors in revitalization do not know how to pull the trigger and wait too long. Understand this truth, when you are 100% sure of the next step in renewal, you are too late. It has passed you and will not be repeated. We often approach life with an attitude of, “It needs to feel right” before we can make that change.

However, I am yet to come across a situation in my ministry or in the Word of God, where the timing felt 100% right. The writer of Ecclesiastes declares: “In His time, He makes all things beautiful,” (Ecclesiastes 3:11), not our time. When those who wanted to follow Jesus needed more time to finish off personal business, Jesus had this to say, “No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back is fit for the Kingdom of God.”

There are also other reasons which can be given as to why we miss God in our church transitions: lack of trust, lack of faith, fear of the unknown, the list goes on and on. But is it really worth it to miss God in His transitions of our churches because of our own insecurities towards Him, not so much the situation?

I believe it is worth the risk to go for it with God and not be afraid of the transitions your church needs to make because God’s transitions always lead to transformation.

Jeremiah states is well as he declares: “I know the plans I have for you says the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plan to give you a hope and an expected end” (Jeremiah 29:11).

I found an interesting article entitled: “Age changes things:” Who changed everything when I wasn’t looking? I’ve noticed lately that everything is farther away than it used to be. It’s even twice as far to the corner now, and they’ve added a hill! I’ve given up running for the bus; it leaves much earlier than it used to. And it seems to me that they are making the stairs steeper than in the old days, and have you noticed the smaller print the newspapers and magazines are now using? And there’s no sense in asking anyone to read aloud anymore, as everyone speaks so softly that I can hardly hear them. The material in clothes are so skimpy now, especially around the waist and hips, and the way they size the clothes is much smaller than it used to be. Why, I have to buy clothes two sizes larger than what I wear just so they will fit me right! Even people are changing.

They are so much younger than they used to be when I was their age. On the other hand, people my own age are much older than I am. I ran into an old classmate of mine the other day, and she had aged so much that she didn’t recognize me! I got to thinking about my poor dear friend while I was combing my hair this morning, and in doing so, I glanced at my own reflection in the mirror…. Really now! They don’t even make good mirrors anymore. So tell me now… Who changed things?1 You have probably heard the quote, “The good ole days were not so good.” Our memory tends to remember things in a way that makes us feel good, and maybe is not necessarily true to reality. Selective memories have a way of distorting reality. As a matter of fact, most of us think that our churches are okay.

Statistically however, we see that this is not true.

Did you know that: • There are 344,000 protestant evangelical churches from the eight mainline denominations in the western hemisphere, which are in plateau and decline.

• 95% of all churches in North America average 100 or less.

• Over 82% of American churches are in decline or on a plateau.

• Each year 3,500 to 4,000 churches die in North America (900 last year within our Denomination alone).

• Studies have shown that churches typically plateau in attendance by their fifteenth year, and by year 35 they begin having trouble replacing the members they lose.

• They have the inability to regain the critical mass necessary to regrow the church utilizing the tools and techniques they are presently employing.

• 50 – 60 churches in North America close their door every week.

So, you can see that the church today all across America is in a time of transition. A shocking time of transition.

Where I minister in central Florida, some local churches are transitioning from pastor to pastor in an attempt to fix the declining participation within their fellowship. In a day where we have some of the best and most efficient conveniences to give back time to the American populace, we have church memberships which seem unable to mount the necessary volunteers to carry on the work of the church because everyone has replaced available time with other commitments which take them away for the local church. It is a day of transition for sure. But there are some churches which are transitioning to the changes that must be made in order for us to continue to be faithful to the Great Commission.

Understanding that things change is biblical. J. Oswald Sanders writes in his book Spiritual Leadership: “A work originated by God and conducted on spiritual principles will climb above the shock of a change of leadership and indeed will probably thrive better as a result.”2 Let us look at how God’s early church embraced a change that enabled them to receive the promises of God. Open the Word of God and read with me Joshua 1:1-9: 1 http://www.agelessfx.com/funny_getting_older_jokes.html 2 Spiritual Leadership, p. 132

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After the death of Moses, the LORD’s servant, the LORD spoke to Joshua son of Nun, who had served Moses: “Moses My servant is dead. Now you and all the people prepare to cross over the Jordan to the land I am giving the Israelites. I have given you every place where the sole of your foot treads, just as I promised Moses. Your territory will be from the wilderness and Lebanon to the great Euphrates River—all the land of the Hittites and west to the Mediterranean Sea. No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live. I will be with you, just as I was with Moses. I will not leave you or forsake you. “Be strong and courageous, for you will distribute the land I swore to their fathers to give them as an inheritance. Above all, be strong and very courageous to carefully observe the whole instruction My servant Moses commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right or the left, so that you will have success wherever you go. This book of instruction must not depart from your mouth; you are to recite it day and night so that you may carefully observe everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in whatever you do. Haven’t I commanded you: be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.3 I would like to draw your attention to the five things that must be done as you transition your church towards revitalization: I. A church in transition must deal with its past (vs. 1-2).

Max Lucado in his book In the Eye of the Storm tells a story of Chippie the parrot.

Chippie was just purchased by a proud owner. She wanted to take good care of Chippie. To show her love she decided to clean Chippie’s cage. She started from the top and worked her way down to the bottom. She started cleaning the bottom of the cage using a vacuum cleaner. The phone rang and instinctively she answered it. Paying no attention to her hose on the vacuum. When she heard whoosh. She looked, and her worst fears were confirmed.

She had sucked Chippie into the vacuum. In a panic she turns the vacuum off, opens it up to find Chippie in the middle of the bag covered in dust and dirt. Immediately she picks him up and rushes to the bathroom sink. She turns on the water and immerses him. Believing she has done the right thing to clean him up, she now looks at him and realizes that he is shivering and soaked.

Realizing where she is and recognizing what is available, she picks up her hair dryer and turns it on high. A reporter gets wind of the incident. After the interview he asks, “So how’s Chippie?”

The owners reply, “Chippie doesn’t sing much anymore.”4

Neither do we when we have been “sucked in, washed up, and blown away.” We all have been. However, when this happens to us, it is important that we become like the jockey hired by a Kentucky horse farmer.

You see there were these two Kentucky horse farmers who raced each other once a year. This race very competitive and they both wanted to win so badly. One year one of the farmers found a jockey to ride his horse. This professional jockey filled his farmer so with hopes of winning the big race. The race was 3 The Holy Bible: Holman Christian Standard Version. (Nashville: Holman Bible Publishers, 2009), Jos 1:1–9.

4 http://gcfirst.org/2012/10/08/my-favorite-max-lucado-story-chippie-the-parakeet/

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off and running. It was a muddy day. They were neck and neck all the way until the last turn. That is when one slipped knocking both horses to the ground. The professional jockey gets back up, gets on the horse, does everything within his power and expertise as a jockey and wins the race.

He rides over to the owner who is mad. The jockey is so excited and says, “We won!” The owner says, “You don’t know what you did do you?” The jockey replied, “I know that I fell. That happens, the important thing is that I got back up and, on the horse, finished the race and we won!” By this time the owner is mad enough to bite nails and screams, “You got back up and, on the horse, alright, but you got on the wrong horse!”

When we fall we often get back on the wrong horse.

You have been there and so have I. There is the horse of anger.

There is the horse of jealousy. There is the horse of pride. Some struggle with horse of wealth. Yet what we need to do is stop looking over our shoulder towards the past and get back up on the horse of God’s leading towards victory and success.

Israel had to deal with its past. “Moses my servant is dead.” Can you imagine the Israelites feelings? Here is their great leader Moses who has led them time after time after time for forty years out of the challenges they faced and he is gone.

Here is the leader the Lord God used to release them from their Egyptian bondage and he is no longer there to lead the people.

Here is the one who supplied their most basic of needs and fed them daily has past. The great and influential leader Moses who was led by the Lord God in heaven to do all kinds of incredible miracles is now dead. Yet even in the midst of this reality and challenge, God declares it is time to deal with their past. For if you look clearly and sense God’s divinely inspired word, the Lord was declaring in this moment in time: “Hear me my dear children of Israel, it was not the mere man who was leading, it was I, the Lord your God who lead you, provided for you, and protected you all of those years.”

Church members tell me all over the country that their best days in a church were when Pastor Mighty was their pastor.

It was almost as if they knew for sure that he had a great big “S” tattooed to his chest because they viewed him as their super pastor. He was able to leap tall buildings in a single bound and on it goes. But, have you ever stopped to consider that the work of Lord is not hindered by the decease or transition of His servants? No matter how well known that minister might be. No matter how long he has served as your pastor. No matter how the Lord has chosen to bless you and your church through this leader, when the local prophet of God is removed, God still has a plan and a way for you and your church to move forward to accomplish the tasks he has called you.

Matthew Henry in his commentary declares: Honor is here put-upon Joshua, and great power lodged in his hand. God gives him wisdom, instruction, and encouragement.

As the Lord had before spoken to Moses concerning young Joshua,5 but now he speaks to him, perhaps just as He spoke to Moses.6 The Lord speaks to him quickly.7 5 C.f. Numbers 27:18.

6 C.f. Leviticus 1.

7 Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume (Peabody: Hen-

Warren Wiersbe stresses that: The point to be realized here is that God will change hands to show that whatever means He uses, He is not tied to any single channel. Leaders do not lead forever, even godly leaders like Moses. There comes a time in every ministry when God calls for a new beginning with a new generation and new leadership.8 Excluding Joshua and Caleb, the old former generation of Jews had completely perished during the wanderings of Israel in the wilderness. Now Joshua is commissioned to lead this new generation into a new challenge. It is the challenge of coming to and the conquering of the Promised Land. The scripture announces, “God buries His workmen, but His work goes on.” It was the Lord God who had selected Joshua, and everybody within Israel knew that Joshua was indeed their new leader.

It is a sad statement about any local church when its membership depends so greatly on their leader, the under-shepherd of God, that when a transition takes place the church is crippled for a time. Over the years I have visited many churches which were floundering and practically destroying themselves in their pointless attempts to preserve the past and escape the future.

What we need to be depending on during those times and any time for that matter, is a God who is seated in the Holy place and ready and able to lead his children to great and greater victories. What I have often seen is when a leader leaves, church members often create a crisis of unbelief because they no longer have a shepherd. Yet, if you notice here within this passage, the Lord God continues to call his children onward into the “promised land.” Now notice all that the Lord God had already done: • God had led Israel from Egypt to the desert.

• God had led Israel from the desert into the wilderness.

• God now wants to lead them from the wilderness to the crossing over of the Jordan River.

What I have noticed and I prayerfully hope you will notice is that all throughout this wonderful Book we know as the Word of God that God is leading His church to new horizons and new victories all the time.

One thing is clear and certain. Just like the Israelites, we cannot stay in Egyptian bondage and still cross over to the victories offered within the Promised Land. Listen dear child of God, it is when we look to the past and live in the past, that the past can actually defeat us and keep us from experiencing the great and wonderful blessings God has for each and every one of us in the present. The first charge was to cross the Jordan. Verse 2 reads literally, “Now arise, cross …” In my everyday jargon it means get moving and cross over immediately, stop delaying. It is the Lord Jesus Christ which lovingly commands this church and any church for that matter to follow.9 It is when we are following that there is no room for procrastination.

If we are going to be obedient, we must follow God completely. I would tell my son a vital lesson I learned as a young drickson, 1994), 289.

8 Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Strong, “Be” Commentary Series (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 21.

9 C.f. Luke 9:59 - 62.

minister, which is eighty percent obedience is still disobedience.

That means we cannot stay where we are, we must faithfully move forward. Often, I have prayed with and for godly Church Revitalizers who were criticized, persecuted, mistreated, and attacked simply because, like Joshua, they had a divine directive to lead a church into new fields of conquest and victory; but the people just would not follow. More than one renewal pastor has been offered as a sacrificial lamb because he dared to suggest that the declining church make some necessary changes. I usually ask congregations if they love their grandchildren enough so they would be willing to make the necessary changes to bring them and their parents back into their church.

There are many which the Lord is beckoning to move forward, yet it is their past, which is tying them down, holding them up, burdening them beyond measure and they need to deal with it. Mourning the death of a great leader is natural and it is the grace of the Lord which allows us to deal with such passing. We are allowed those moments of grief and sadness. We are able to mourn our past times where we were out of proper fellowship with God because of our sins. But, there comes a time when the Lord wants us to deal with all of these and move on.

Now you might know that Joshua was from the tribe of Ephraim,10 and lived 110 years.11 In the Book of Numbers, Moses renamed young Joshua from Hoshea.12 The name Joshua means “The LORD is salvation.” The name later became yēšûa where in the Greek we get Iēsous, and the English, ‘Jesus’. In this passage of Numbers Chapter 13 thirty-eight years earlier Joshua had explored with the other eleven spies this land and declared it good and fruitful. I see remembering in his mind just how beautiful and fertile the land was. But now, Joshua has a new charge and a new challenge. He will lead the Israelites to conquer this very land, which the Lord promised. It is in this very commissioning of Joshua that he is challenged and charged to accomplish three things. He is to lead the people into the land. He is to defeat the enemy they encounter. He is to claim the inheritance; which God had promised so long ago.

When you stop for a moment to think about it, God could have done this in many other ways. The Lord could have just in a snap of a finger carried out all that was required for Israel to possess the land. God could have chosen to rain down thunder so loud that the enemies fled for their lives. The Holy One could have sent one of His angels to accomplish the task. But the Lord our God chose to use a man by the name of Joshua instead.

All of the powers necessary to accomplish the task were made available to this new leader for all to see. A church in transition must deal with its past.

II. A church in transition must develop His plan (vs. 3-6).

President Ulysses S. Grant was taken to a golf course one day. A golfer wanted him to experience what golf was all about. The golfer went into extensive explanations of the swing. Then he wanted to model the golf swing for President Grant. He teed up the ball, swung, and missed the ball completely taking a huge divot and leaving the ball in place. He repeated these 10 C.f. Numbers 13:8.

11 C.f. Joshua 24:29.

12 C.f. Numbers 13:16.

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three times. On the third time the President said, “This game seems exciting, but I am not sure what the ball is for.” 13 We need to discover what the ball is for and understand the plan. To develop God’s plan, we first must: Find His strategy and plan (Joshua 1:3-4).

I have given you every place where the sole of your foot treads, just as I promised Moses. Your territory will be from the wilderness and Lebanon to the great Euphrates River —all the land of the Hittites — and west to the Mediterranean Sea.14 Since Joshua had a threefold task to accomplish, God gave him three special promises, one for each task. First, God would empower Joshua to cross the river and claim the land. Secondly He would embolden Joshua so he could defeat the enemy. The last of the three special promises God gave Joshua was that he was to allocate the land to each tribe as its inheritance. God did not give Joshua explanations, He expected, that when one trusts God’s promises and steps out in faith, one could be sure that the Lord will give them the directions needed when they need them.

The Lord within this passage of scripture had already given them the territory. But they had not discovered it yet. They had to find where God was working. Listen my dear Church, God has already given us things, but we still have to find them and develop them.

Secondly, we need to finish His design and plan.

No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live. I will be with you, just as I was with Moses. I will not leave you or forsake you (v.5).15 They were promised, “No man shall be able to stand…” Did this mean that there would not be a war? No. It meant that God would provide victory! Forty years earlier, the people of Israel wavered in faith because their spies had seen great warriors in Canaan. Now those warriors had not gone away and had not lost any of their military powers. But Joshua and Israel would have success against them, because the Lord was promising that He would cause them to flee. The enemies of Israel could not succeed because God was greater than those enemies. Listen dear church, just like Israel’s enemies would be ineffective, (vs.5) the world will be ineffective if we walk closely with the Lord.

As God was with Moses, so He would be with Joshua: “I will not leave you nor forsake you” (v. 5).

Did you know that this very promise was repeated to others in the scripture? It was promised to Solomon in 1 Chronicles 28:20: 13 http://thegolfguru.hubpages.com/hub/Golf-Quotes---US-Presidents 14 The Holy Bible: Holman Christian Standard Version. (Nashville: Holman Bible Publishers, 2009), Joshua 1:3–4.

15 The Holy Bible: Holman Christian Standard Version. (Nashville: Holman Bible Publishers, 2009), Jos 1:5.

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Then David said to his son Solomon, “Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Don’t be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD God, my God is with you. He won’t leave you or forsake you until all the work for the service of the LORD’s house is finished.”

It was given to each one of us in the New Testament. For in Hebrews 13:5-6 it says: Your life should be free from the love of money. Be satisfied with what you have, for He Himself has said, I will never leave you or forsake you. Therefore, we may boldly say: The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?

What we need to understand is that leaders do change and times they are changing. But can I tell you the greatest news today? The greatest news for each and every one of us is that God changes not. As a believer we are told we should have courage (vs. 6–7, 9). The exciting thing about this requirement is that the great provider through the Word of God provides this much-needed courage.

This book of instruction must not depart from your mouth; you are to recite it day and night so that you may carefully observe everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in whatever you do (Joshua 1:8).

For you see the commands and promises found within verses 2–9 set out the covenant relationship between God and His people. On God’s side, He chose Israel to inherit the land (v. 6).

On Israel’s side, they must now by faith claim the gift (vs. 3–4).

It is not so much a matter of obedience to cross the Jordan, important as that is, as a matter of trust in God (vs. 6–7, 9). The Lord gives the Israelites a reason to trust Him. He promises His divine presence will be with them (vs. 5, 9b). Likewise the trusting church obeys our Lord’s command to evangelize the world: Then Jesus came near and said to them, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 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 everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew. 28:18–20).

We are not promised peace as the world knows it, but we are promised the peace of God in the midst of any crisis. Our calling is not one of ease, but one of endurance. The lesson for God’s people and His church today is clear: God has given us “all spiritual blessings … in Christ” (Eph. 1:3), and we must step out by faith and claim these blessings. The Lord our God has set before His church an open door that nobody can close (Rev. 3:8), and we must walk through that door by faith and claim new territory for the Lord.

It is impossible to stand still in the Christian life and service for when you stand still, you immediately start going backwards. “Let us go on!” is God’s challenge to His church (Hebrews 6:1), and that means moving ahead into new territory. In other words, the writer is not talking about self-effort; he is ap-

pealing to use to yield ourselves to the power of God, the same power that upholds the whole universe. How can we fall when God is holding us?

What more could we desire than what God has said to you in Joshua 1:5? If God be for you, who can be against you?

Look away from yourself, from your enemies, from your difficulties, unto Him who hath said “I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.” As Christ followers we can count upon Him, and His strength will displace our weakness. His strength will displace our fears and replace it with courage.

III. Have Faith in His provisions and plan (v. 6).

Moses’ greatness was not due to Moses, but to the Lord. In the same way Joshua had nothing to worry about with Moses gone, because the Lord was not gone. It is no accident that the Lord told Joshua to “be strong and of good courage” immediately after promising never to leave nor forsake him (vv. 5–6).

Joshua could be strong and of good courage because God is with Him and God is giving this land to Israel. Joshua must have unwavering faith in God’s plan. When we start implementing God’s plan, the going will get rough. We must have faith that God will do what He said He would do.

Before God could fulfill His promises, Joshua had to exercise faith and “be strong and of good courage” (1:6). God’s sovereign Word is an encouragement to God’s servants to believe God and obey His commands.

The lesson for God’s people today is clear: God has given us “all spiritual blessings … in Christ” (Eph. 1:3), and we must step out by faith and claim them. He has set before His church an open door that nobody can close (Rev. 3:8), and we must walk through that door by faith and claim new territory for the Lord.

It is impossible to stand still in Christian life and service for when you stand still, you immediately start going backward.

“Let us go on!” is God’s challenge to His church (Heb. 6:1), and that means moving ahead into new territory.16 As Charles Spurgeon put it, Joshua: “was not to use the promise as a sofa upon which his idleness might indulge, but as a girdle to gird up one’s loins for future activity.”17

In short, God’s promises are prods, not pillows. God’s promises are given to encourage us to do with all our hearts and might whatever He has called us to do. A church in transition must Deal with its Past. A church in transition must develop His plan.

IV. A church in transition must discover His power (v. 7).

The end of verse 7 says, “that you may prosper wherever you go.” Joshua discovered God’s power. God prospers His people by allowing them to experience His power. How do we prosper?

We prosper when we do what Joshua did. We prosper when we 16 Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Strong, “Be” Commentary Series (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 24.

17 Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, vol. 14, p. 97.

obey God’s word, and we do not turn from it at all! God told Moses what to do, God told Joshua what to do, and God will tell each and every one of us what we are to do!

V. A church in transition must determine His doctrines and principles (v. 8).

This book of instruction must not depart from your mouth; you are to recite it day and night so that you may carefully observe everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in whatever you do.18

Israel was able to determine God’s principles. The Lord’s promises to Joshua did not mean that he and the people had no responsibilities. In these verses, the Lord strongly cautions Joshua to “observe to do according to all the law.” He was not to deviate from it in any way (v. 7), but rather was to keep it in his mouth and on his mind (v. 8). Furthermore, he was to do “all” that was written in the law (v. 8). We need to remember that in the world in which we live, that the Lord our God is not satisfied with only partial obedience!

The Lord explicitly tied obedience to success in these verses (v. 8b). The God who had promised to give the Israelites the land would not do so apart from their total obedience. The experience of their fathers forty years earlier gave grim testimony to the importance of obedience. There can be no doubt that Joshua was possessed with a spirit of obedience to the Lord.

If we desire to discover and determine God’s principles we must: 1. Grasp His word. “This book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth.” In order for us to determine God’s principles we must spend time in His word. We must read it in order to understand it.

2. Ponder His word. “Meditate day and night.” The second step is to meditate. Meditation causes us to think about what God is saying. To take it to heart, allowing our minds to be transformed and renewed.

“But thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein” (Joshua 1:8 KJV) Meditation upon the Word of God is one of the most important of all the means of grace and growth spiritually, there can be no true progress towards godliness without it.

Meditation on the divine things of God is not optional but required. It is something, which the Lord has commanded us to do. The command from the Lord, which Joshua received, was not restricted to Joshua alone, but it was addressed to all of God’s people. Notice from the Word of God that this was not a one-time recommendation or command from the Lord.

18 The Holy Bible: Holman Christian Standard Version. (Nashville: Holman Bible Publishers, 2009), Joshua 1:8.

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Deuteronomy 32:46 says we are to: “Set your hearts unto all the words which I testify among you this day.”

a necessary part for his lifelong journey towards the prize (Philippians 3:13-14). They force us from the familiar and into the unknown.

Proverbs 4:26 declares: “Ponder the path of thy feet.”

There are three major mindsets that keep us from transitioning into something new.

Comfort keeps the church from transitioning: This is especially prevalent among Western Christians. Know that in order to transition, they will have to get off the couch and play the game. They refuse to move forward choosing to remain in their comfort zone.

Haggai the prophet says: “Consider your ways” (Hag. 1:7).

Luke 9:44 cries: “Let these sayings sink down into your ears,” which they cannot do, unless they be frequently turned over in our minds.

Philippians 4:8 pronounces: “Whatsoever things are true, venerable, just, pure, lovely … think on these things.”

Romans 12:2 shouts: “Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.” 3. Apply His word. To determine God’s principles is totally meaningless if we do not apply them to our lives. It is an act of futility unless we carry them out. James says: “be ye doers of the word and not hearers only.”

VI. A church in transition must develop through His purpose (v. 9) Have you ever noticed in scripture that when God gives a command, He often accompanies it with a promise? Here the Lord assures Joshua a lifetime of continuous victory over his enemies, based on His unfailing presence and help. The words “I will never leave you.”

(Josh. 1:9) may be rendered, “I will not drop or abandon you.”

Listen my dear church, God never walks out on His promises and His faithful churches. Our purpose as a church and as Christ followers is to be motivated by the Lord’s command. Who is sending us? “Have not I commanded you?” The Israelites were not merely motivated by Joshua, it was God who was inspiring, stirring, and moving them.

1. Our purpose as a church and as individual Christ followers is strengthened by His commission.

“Have not I commanded you?” For remember it was Jesus who said, “Go into all the world.” Dear church family we are not nor should we ever be affected by what others in the world and not in the church say or think.

2. Our purpose as a church and as individual Christ followers is solidified by His Company.

Who is with us? When we gather, we unite in the promise that, “if God is for us, who can be against us?” This church and every other Bible believing church becomes motivated by His presence and for the Lord’s purpose! Yet, before we move away from this idea may I ask you a personal question this day: Have you dealt with your past? Have you developed His plan? Have you discovered His power for your life? Have you determined His principles? Do you have His purpose? You can experience all these and even much more today!

When I ask church leaders how they and their church are doing, I hear many people respond, “we are in transition.” I think that is code. It is code for, “My church is falling apart and I do not know what I can do about that!” Transitions for churches and church leaders are not always easy. In fact, most of the time they are painful.

But transition is also necessary. Paul understood that transition was

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Fear keeps the church from transitioning: People are afraid of the unknown. What makes a movie suspenseful is not knowing what will happen next. After you have already seen the movie, the scenes lose their ability to frighten you. When transition comes, because it carries an element of the unknown, people shrink back in fear.

Sentimentality keeps the church from transitioning: Some people do not transition because they would rather live in yesterday’s familiar revelation than search for a new one. They are content to live in yesterday’s victory rather than having to fight for a new one today.

My closing words to you and your church are: Accept that transition is inevitable. It is going happen whether you like it or not so you might as well make the best of it. Embrace the risk. Risk is an inevitable part of the transition process. See this time as an opportunity to display your faith. See it as God’s way of surprising you with something better. Expect negative consequences.

It’s going to happen. Don’t let this catch you off guard. People are going to be critical. There will be a time of chaos when you are traveling between has, was, and what will be. Expect some anxiety and confusion to try to sneak in. This is all a necessary part of the process. Without these things there would be no victory. Move forward in spite of it all. There’s only one way to go through church transition – and that is to go through it! Never stop. Never give in. Keep going. One is reminded of the repetitive words of Winston Churchill he once gave in a speech, “never!” Those are good words when you are going through church revitalization and transition. Young men, never give up. Never give up! Never give up!! Never, never, never-give up in Jesus’ name God bless you.

Tom Cheyney is the Founder & Directional Leader of the RENOVATE National Church Revitalization Conference (RenovateConference.org). Some of Tom’s books include: The Church Revitalizer as Change Agent, Slaying the Dragons of Church Revitalization: Dealing with the Critical Issues that are Hurting Your Church; and Church Revitalization in Rural America: Restoring Churches in America’s Heartland. Tom lives in Orlando, Florida with his wife Cheryl and travels all over North America assisting declining churches by bringing revitalization and renewal to the congregations.

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Walk Tall in Your Leadership

By Bill Tenny-Brittian Last week, I closed our conversation by making a comment that our nation is very divided right now – we’re divided on all levels and in all sectors. Our government is divided left and right and there’s no middle ground. There doesn’t seem to be any consensus. Education is up in the air. Health is up in the air. All the isms are on the front burner. There are serious divisions across our nation. And if ever there was a time that we need strong leaders, it’s now. But there’s a huge leadership vacuum. We’re only hearing the loudest voices crying out, trying to gain and garner power in order to pull people in as if they believe that if they’re loud enough that people will follow them.

The reality is that loud doesn’t mean influential.

Loud doesn’t mean leadership. And loud might doesn’t necessarily mean it’s right. And loud certainly doesn’t make for great leaders.

I’ve been studying leadership for literally decades. The books in my library are fairly extensive and continues to grow. And I’m not the only one here. There are many of you who have studied leadership or continue to study leadership. With all the study, with all the reading, and with all the experience that I’ve had, let me share my personal definition of leadership with you:

Leadership is influence.

It’s having the ability to influence others to get things accomplished. To put it rather crassly, leadership is getting others to do what you would like them to do.

Leadership is nothing more and it’s nothing less than that. It’s influence. But let me add a caveat to that.

It’s important that we don’t confuse influence with forced compliance: “You’re going to do it my way

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otherwise I’m going to fire you.” That’s not effective leadership. It’s certainly not great leadership. It’s just forced compliance. It’s bullying. “You have to do because I can hold something over you.”

We also don’t want to confuse leadership with the manipulation. Manipulation is the art of convincing you one way or the other to do what I want you to do. When I think of manipulation, I think about advertisers and marketers. “We only have five left. You need to get down here quick because we have limited supplies.” That plays to our FOMO, our fear of missing out. There’s are many ways leaders try to manipulate us.

For me, the only truly great leadership is using a positive influence to help people consider and hopefully adopt your point of view so that in some way they understand that your view is advantageous for them, for others, and or for the organization.

You may have noticed that the Bible is filled with plenty of examples of leaders.

There are the great ones. There are evil ones.

There are manipulative ones. And there are ineffective ones. And then there are the leaders who don’t lead at all.

They just sit back and say, “Well, whatever!”

In the end, there was only one perfect leader in the Bible, but to be honest, there are a few scholars and theologians who have looked at Jesus’ leadership and concluded that, in the end, his strategic leadership plan on earth completely failed. Let’s think about it. He grew his church, if you will, to thousands and thousands. But once the explosive growth came, he wasn’t able to hold on to it.

It’s as if he wasn’t able to scale his company, so he lost it all, or almost all of it. In fact, he ended up with twelve follow-

ers, and really, it was only eleven. Let’s be honest, though.

None of them were what you would call faithful. No one, when the chips were down, had the moxie to stand up with their fearless leader and say, “Hey, we’re with you to the end, Jesus!”

On the other hand, all I can really say about Jesus as leader is that, hey, you’re here today. And ultimately, Jesus’ influence has touched us all in a very real and in a very long-lasting way.

Today, though, we’re not going to talk about Jesus as leader, but about his great, great, great … well, there are a lot of greats … grandfather. When it comes to great leaders of the Bible, we can’t go too wrong with taking a good hard look at King David.

Now, to be fair, David was a far cry from perfect leader, but I believe King David walks taller than most leaders then and now. He wasn’t perfect by any means, and we’re going to look at his leadership failings next week.

But today, let’s look at some of the ways he led through influence – how he influenced others to accomplish some great things.

So, let me begin with the setting for our first scripture reading. Saul, the first king of Israel, is hunting David down like a dog because David’s been anointed as the next king of Israel. King Saul is a little less than thrilled about being replaced – he simply doesn’t think that’s okay! Coming into this passage, we see that he’s trying to kill David to prolong his monarchy and protect his legacy.

I guess it’s not surprising then that David goes on the run. In fact, he’s been running hither and yon across the region trying to stay at least one step ahead of King Saul. He tried staying in the city of Gath, but the king heard about that, so David took off again and finally finds a cave called Adullam out in the middle of nowhere to hole up into. And that’s where he set up as a base of operations.

1 Samuel 22:1–2 1 David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam.

When his brothers and his father’s household heard about it, they went down to him there. 2 All those who were in distress or in-debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their commander. About four hundred men were with him.

You might be wondering “Why would his whole family decide to go on the run and join Team David?” but they had good reason. Remember, David’s in the crosshairs of King Saul. Back in those days, when it comes to how the culture operated, if King Saul successfully offed David, the next step would be to take out the family so there would be no one in David’s family with any sort of claim to the throne. Of course, David’s family knew this. In fact, every-

body knew this because that’s just how things worked back then. So, David’s family fled and went into hiding with him as well. It wasn’t a lot of folks, but he’d gone from an army of one to an army of twenty or thirty. But David didn’t stop there. Notice the scripture said “All those who are in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him and he became their commander. About 400 men were with him.”

1. Leadership is influence, nothing more and nothing less.

As I read this passage, the question that crossed my mind, was “What in the world influenced these people – these who were in distress, in debt, and discontented – why would they gather around, David?” Why would they leave their country and go and hide out in the middle of nowhere with this would be king?

It turns out, there were some very good reasons for their decisions.

First off, David already had a reputation. Let’s remember that he was one of the commanders of King Saul’s Army. In fact, he had already led in at least one battle for the king and was so victorious that when David and his soldiers paraded back into town, the people greeting him were chanting, “Saul has killed his thousands and David has killed his ten thousands.” In other words, David was already considered a pretty mighty warrior. So, if you’re discontent and you’re looking for someone to throw your lot of life in with, then David might not be a bad choice, especially if you’re a professional soldier or if you want to be a professional soldier.

But I want you to look a bit more closely at those three characteristics the passage says these people were experiencing: they were in distress, they were in debt, or they were discontented.

You know, we have no idea what these folks were distressed or discontented about. Maybe their distress had to do with their personal lives or something else that was going on. Maybe they thought their taxes were too high. Maybe they were unhappy with Saul’s leadership or with Saul’s folly of going out and chasing after David. We just don’t know why they were distressed or malcontents.

But debt … now, that’s another matter. If you were in debt to the government, if you owed back taxes, then you might flee the country and look for another leader, especially if you thought the taxes were oppressive.

But wait … if it was you, would you think these people were the kind of people you would want to build an army with? And yet David took them in. Why?!

Why did they come to him?

Why would they stay with him?

Why would they train with him?

Why would they put their lives at risk with him?

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I think David looked at this ragtag group and he didn’t see them as they were … instead, he saw their potential. He saw what they could become … … with some training … with some discipline … with some loyalty … with some call to duty, if you will.

David saw past their circumstances and believed they could be an incredible militia, which is exactly what he built. He’d built his own personal army. A small army. An elite fighting force. And it all began with these 400 that nobody else believed in.

2. Great leaders see people’s potential.

But they don’t just see their potential, they help them reach it.

David got down to it and he trained these men.

Over the next eight chapters of 1 Samuel, we see these men repeatedly go into battle and come away victorious, often with no losses to their own. David saw their potential, he took them under his wing, he trained them … and I suspect he trained them hard, and he helped them reach their potential.

So, eight chapters later. David and his army are growing. There’s now 600 of them and they’ve outgrown the Adullum encampment. David does a deal with the leaders of the Philistine nation, the nation just to the west of Israel. The Philistine leaders allowed David and his men to live in the city of Ziklag in exchange for military support when needed. Well, one spring afternoon that support was needed, so David and his men marched out to support the Philistines. When the met up with their army, there was a disagreement between the Philistine leaders and they decided to send David and his army back to Ziklag.

Like the old Western movies said, “Meanwhile back at the ranch” a marauding group of bandits attached the undefended Ziklag. They burned the town to the ground and made off with all the wives and children and wealth of the city.

You can imagine the state of the army when they arrived home. No hero’s welcome … in fact, no welcome at all. Their wives and their children were gone and the men distraught. In fact, 1 Samuel 30:4 says that the men wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep.

The decision’s made to hunt down the bandits, but let’s remember … they’ve already been marching for days and days to meet the Philistines and then to return.

They’re all seriously physically exhausted and not they’re emotionally and spiritually exhausted. But there they go

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again, marching off to war. They get about a day’s journey or so out and about 200 of them are either older or they’re out of shape and they just can’t go any farther. So David and his 400 leave much of their armament and much of their supplies with these men and gives them instructions to guard the supplies and to await further orders.

And they go off the 400 to take on the bandits and they’re successful. Not only do they rescue every man, woman, and child who’d been captured, they got the plunder from all the raids the bandits had been on. Each of the soldiers is probably tallying up their part of the take as they turn for home, but then they get to where they’d left the 200.

1 Samuel 30:21–24 Then David came to the two hundred men who had been too exhausted to follow him and who were left behind at the Besor Valley. They came out to meet David and the men with him. As David and his men approached, he asked them how they were. 22 But all the evil men and troublemakers among David’s followers said, “Because they did not go out with us, we will not share with them the plunder we recovered. However, each man may take his wife and children and go.”

And so rumbling starts in David’s side of the camp. “Why should we share with those slackers?” they want to know.

It didn’t seem right that the supply troops should get the same portion that the fighting troops got. “Give ‘em their wives and kids and nothing else.”

But remember, David respects his men … ALL of his men.

1 Samuel 30:23–24 23 David replied, “No, my brothers, you must not do that with what the Lord has given us. He has protected us and delivered into our hands the raiding party that came against us. 24 Who will listen to what you say? [you will lose all influence!] The share of the man who stayed with the supplies is to be the same as that of him who went down to the battle. All will share alike.

Notice that right off the bat, David says the Lord has given this to us. He doesn’t claim that they conquered in their own strength – remember, they were exhausted! In spite of that, even though the odds were against them, they had routed the bandits and not only did they not lose any of their soldiers, not a single person who’d been kidnapped had been lost. In other words, look what God’s done for us.

But then David offers them a key leadership les-

son. He says, “If you do this, if you shortchange those who guarded our camp and ours supplies, who were there as reinforcements if we needed, then you’ll lose their respect, but worse, you’ll lose your influence with these men forever.”

Now, what do you think was the effect on his men?

How do you think the two hundred responded to David’s leadership, to his respect of what they had done? David showed his respect for their abilities and what they had done and for their part in it all.

But imagine the effect it had on the 400 as well.

Sure, there would probably have been some grumbling, but don’t you know there were some who understood, who realized, “Oh yeah, that’s how it should be. You support the support troops too.”

That day, David demonstrates incredible leadership skills and as a result he increased his influence among his own army.

One last thing. Skip down to verse 26.

1 Samuel 30:26 26 When David reached Ziklag, he sent some of the plunder to the elders of Judah, who were his friends, saying, “Here is a gift for you from the plunder of the Lord’s enemies.”

Although David had great influence over his own army, David understood the value of expanding his influence.

The reality is, it’s possible that the elders of Judah knew that King Saul was on his way out. Or perhaps they didn’t, but David knew he would one day need these elders’ support to be the king over Israel. So he greases the skids, so to speak. He sends them a gift to help them remember who he was and what he was capable of as a leader.

And how did the elders respond, well, let’s skip over to 2 Samuel for the rest of the story:

No, David was a great leader because it all came down to his understanding of influence.

And that’s, as I’ve said, the definition of a leader: someone who influences others. The question is, how will you use your influence? As I started off with this conversation today, I talked about our nation and how divided it is. We need more leaders and we need great leaders. But here’s a truth: every one of you is a leader, whether you realize it not. Whether it’s your children, your spouse, your coworkers, or your neighbors, there are people watching you and taking note of your actions. As you model the faith, and every decision you make is a reflection of your faith, people are looking and taking their cues from you.

They’re looking for leaders, but not just leaders … they’re looking for great leaders. And our families, our neighborhoods, our community, our nation, and our church needs every one of you to be a great leader.

This week, I want to invite you to consider what you will do to be a positive influence on your neighbors, on those around you – not just with those you know that you’ll have influence on, but those who are watching from afar, whether that be on social media or on the Internet or picking up the phone or having a conversation. What will you do this week to bring a positive influence on your neighbors?

Bill Tenny-Brittian is the managing partner of The Effective Church Group.

For over thirty years, The Effective Church Group has been equipping churches and church leaders so they can be successful in reaching their mission. He is the co-author of The Role of the Senior Pastor and also teaches Pastoral Leadership for Phillips Seminary with an emphasis on leadership.

2 Samuel 5:1–3 1 All the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron and said, “We are your own flesh and blood. 2 In the past, while Saul was king over us, you were the one who led Israel on their military campaigns. And the Lord said to you, ‘You will shepherd my people Israel, and you will become their ruler.’”

Saul had his thousands, but David his ten thousands. The leaders. The people. The whole nation came to David and crowned him king. It wasn’t about being the loudest voice in the media. It wasn’t even about being the most popular.

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Let’s Cover the Land in

Thank You Jesus Signs!

How it all started...

In 2016, a young teenager named Lucas Hunt prayed for help to display Easter signs in his hometown of Asheboro, NC. Also, he prayed that these efforts would have a giant impact on the Kingdom. A few weeks later a board member at his church, Connie Frazier, sought the Lord’s direction concerning an Easter project for their congregation.

Lucas and Connie were unaware of each other’s prayers and desires. Then, God spoke very clearly to Connie instructing her to design a Thank You Jesus yard sign that would be distributed nationwide.

Thank You Jesus signs were embraced and the wave of gratitude took hold.

Lucas’ prayers and vision, support from Lucas’ parents and Connie’s design and business background led to the creation of the Thank You Jesus signs. This project, with its roots in a small rural church, has turned into a 501(C)3 that receives royalties from the artwork to invest in sharing the Gospel. The investments include grants to spiritual non-profit organizations that seek to share God’s love and the many reasons why we Thank Jesus.

Over 250,000 signs have been sold along with car magnets, gar den flags and bracelets. Hundreds of people have been led by the Lord to purchase and display the signs as a ministry of sharing God’s goodness through Jesus Christ. Become part of the Thank You Jesus movement as it spreads throughout the country!

t r a p e m Becof the o T!

N E M E V MO

www.thankyoujesussigns.com

The (Romans) Road to Church Revitalization

By Bob Whitesel When people learn I teach a doctoral course on church revitalization, they often ask, “What is the most important tool for church renewal?” Before I answer, I ask them a question, “What do you think?” Mostly they discuss small groups, various styles of worship, engaging preaching or becoming a more diverse congregation. And while all of these are important, there’s one tool I’ve found in my 30+ years of consulting that is tied to church revitalization more than any other. That is the ability for the average congregant to share their faith clearly and biblically with their friends and neighbors.

There is biblical precedent for this of course. We find it in 1 Peter 3:15: “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,” (NIV).

To “give a reason for the hope that you have” is straight forward, but still The Message Bible makes it even clearer, “Be ready to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you’re living the way you are, and always with the utmost courtesy.” 1 Peter 3:15 MSG.

This mandate was written by the Apostle Peter. If anyone understood the proverb, “actions speak louder than words” it was Peter. He often let his emotions get the best of him. In John 18:10 Peter impulsively tried to kill the servant of the high priest. And in John 21:7 when Jesus appeared as the disciples were fishing on the Sea of Tiberius, Peter “wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off ) and jumped into the water” (John 21:7 NIV). Then after Jesus’ arrest when Peter was identified as a follower, he “began to call down curses, and he swore to them, “I don’t know the man!”

(Matthew 26:73-74 NIV).

In ancient times, as well as today, a person’s former habits may cloud people’s current view of them. People who don’t know how God works won’t understand that God changes people. We have a theological word for that: sanctification. And so many a reader of Peter’s first letter would take

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notice when the impulsive and brash Peter said, “Be ready to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you’re living the way you are, and always with the utmost courtesy.” 1 Peter 3:15 MSG

So as God changes you, Peter reminds us “to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you’re living the way you are…” But how do we speak up in a manner that clearly explains how God changes people? The best place to start is scripture. But which scripture?

We will look at five scriptures that explain this best.

The last three are from the Book of Romans and form a progression. This progression is often called: “The Romans’ Road.”

When I was a new Christian I was trained by Campus Crusade for Christ (now called “Cru”) to share my faith through “The Four Spiritual Laws.” Today however, the younger generations tend to think that a “law” metaphor sounds overly mechanistic. Generations under 40 tend to prefer imagery that carries movement and progress. So, the metaphor of a journey down “The Romans’ Road” becomes a wonderful way to explain our spiritual journey and the spiritual waypoints we pass through.

Each of the following points or waypoints are based on a Bible verse. And every Christian should memorize each.

So, what are the five verses? And why is their order so important? Let’s look at the five verses that will explain, “why you’re living the way you are” and that will do it “with the utmost courtesy.” 1 Peter 3:15 MSG 2 Principles That Guide Our Journey John 3:16 This may be the most quoted scripture in the Bible. But most people only catch the first part and overlook the second part.

The first part tells us “why” Jesus died for us. But the second part tells us “the purpose” of Jesus dying for us. Let’s look at it.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16 NIV) “God so loved the world….” The entire verse is based upon God loving and caring about us. It’s not about God having a set of rules and wanting us to do things his way. God loves the world and so he wants us to do things in a way that will benefit us and others. When you are sharing the Good News with someone it must begin by talking about the love behind God’s actions.

“He gave his one and only Son…” Next we see that God gave his only unique son. He doesn’t have another son.

Jesus is the only one. And even though he’s the only one, he gave him as a sacrifice to pay the penalty for our wrongdoings.

“That whoever believes in him…” Then if we believe, we will reap the reward! Belief is having faith that what Jesus did what is sufficient… that is was enough for all the heinous things you and others have done.

“Shall not perish but have eternal life.” And the outcome, the destiny behind this sacrificial action of God, is that we would receive “eternal life.” That part of the verse often gets neglected. But it shouldn’t. It is the purpose behind God’s sacrificial action! I’ve noticed that people often leave out the last part of this verse. They often talk about how God loves the world and gave his only, unique son. But when they get to the part about “shall not perish but have eternal life,” they often leave it out.

But here God is offering an opportunity for every person. It is the opportunity to have life forever. We need to talk more about heaven and life forever. We must talk about the place where there’s no tears or pain (Rev. 21:4), perfect peace (Isaiah 65:25) and our bodies will be free from pain, disease and death (1 Cor. 15:40-49).

It is important to remind people that the purpose, the rationale, behind God’s love is so that we can live forever in fellowship with him. Today heaven is often downplayed, at least until one is nearing death. But it needs to be something we talk about frequently and regularly.

Summarizing our first scriptural principle: John 3:16 allows you to explain to someone that God loves them, has given his only son to pay the penalty for their wrongdoings … so they can have eternal life.

But, at this juncture listeners often start thinking that they can get into heaven by just being good. Yet this next foundational verse is crucial, because it reminds us that there is only one way.

John 14:6 This is another regularly quoted verse. But again, the first part of the verse gets most of the attention. Let’s turn to this verse.

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6 NIV)

“I am the way and the truth and the life.” Jesus begins by telling us that through him we find the path forward, that this route is true and that it brings a new life. Everyone wants this, so this part of the scripture is not very controversial.

“No one comes to the Father except through me.”

This is a reminder that we can’t get to heaven through other belief systems or even one of our own making. This bothers some people and so they ignore it. But this scripture is clear and straightforward. This is also clearly taught in Acts 4:12 and 1 Timothy 2:5-6.

A recap of the two principles that guide our journey.

John 3:16. It’s important when talking about the Good News that we begin here, establishing what Jesus did for us and the purpose (“to have eternal life”) behind it.

John 14:16. It is then equally important to then follow with this verse and especially not to gloss over the second part of the verse, “No one comes to the Father except through me.”

(John 14:6b NIV). It’s important when you’re sharing the Good News that you help listeners understand there is a “one way” aspect to Jesus’ message and we humans can’t alter that.

The Romans’ Road With those two scriptures guiding our journey, we now begin a trip through three scriptures in the Book of Romans. Some have called this, “The Romans’ Road.” Together they explain in order what we must to do to receive salvation AND eternal life Romans 3:23 Let’s turn to this verse. Here it says, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God….” It is a scripture that emphasizes that everyone sins. Everyone has made mistakes that they regret. And when you sin, you fall short of God’s ideal for you. But not only that, your sins deserve punishment. And because God is a just God, he has to delve out punishment for wrongdoing. So, everyone is in the same boat and needs help.

That brings us to the next scripture on our Romans’ Road.

Romans 6:23 When you turn in your Bibles you will find, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (NIV).

“The gift of God…” This Bible verse reminds us that the solution for the punishment we deserve - is a free gift from God. As a free gift, he gave his son to die on our behalf. And when he did, Jesus paid the penalty for our wrongdoings.

I like the way Rick Warren says it, “The Bible says God came to Earth in human form in Jesus in order to forgive ev-

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erything that’s ever been done wrong. He paid for those wrongs, so we don’t have to. That’s Good News.”

Again, we discover the eternal aspect of our message is central: “the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Eternity is basic to our Good News. Eternity was central to the first verse we memorized (John 3:16b). Now notice how it continues through the road we go down … because eternity is our destiny at the end of the road we travel.

Before we look at the last verse, I encourage you to memorize all of these five verses. If you do, you won’t need to talk much about the theology or history. Simply sharing these verses gives people a progressive theology of the Good News.

Romans 10:9 This verse explains how humans must respond to take God up on this eternal offer

All previous verses describe what God has done for us. And that’s important because it helps people understand that most of our message is about what God has done. But now in this last section - it’s what we must do to take God up on his offer.

Let’s read it, “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9 NIV)

“Believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead…” First we must believe in our heart. This literally means to believe not with scientific data nor with your head. It tells us we must believe with our hearts, where our emotions reside. It’s a belief, deep inside of you. You just sense in your core that it’s true. This is what faith is made of. It’s made of feeling deep down inside that’s what Jesus did actually happened and what he proclaimed is the truth.

Sometimes it takes people a time of study and prayer before they believe in their heart. Sometimes it can take place very quickly. But it always takes place very deeply.

This belief in our heart means that you accept that you are a sinner and that Jesus has paid the penalties for your many wrongdoings. It’s a deep inside knowing that you’ve made mistakes, but that Jesus has created a solution.

“If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord…”

Notice that this verse begins by stressing, in no uncertain terms, that we must let people know – declaring it publicly.

Here is how I described my own story in the book “Spiritual Waypoints.”

“I was baptized at age 12 because of peer pressure, not passion, “ recalled Bob. “I was in the church youth choir, and my teacher asked me if I had been saved? I knew I wanted to go to heaven, but beyond that I was spiritually naïve. So, I didn’t reply. When it came time for the next baptism service I signed up. At a meeting with the pastor, I was asked when I was saved, so I gave him the date I signed up for baptism. I guess I was saved from peer pressure, not my sins.”

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Needless to say, Bob’s life changed little. “I grew interested in music, joined a rock-and-roll band, and played music though out high school and college. I joined the largest and most prestigious fraternity at my college, and on the outside it looked like that I was living the successful college lifestyle. I studied psychology and became a political activist so I could make the world a better place. But deep down inside I felt powerless to really, and permanently change the world.

While Bob lived his college dreams, Fern prayed fervently for her child. Slowly Fern’s prayers were answered through Barb. Though they had never been romantically involved, Barb and Bob shared a passion for rock-and-roll and marijuana. “You can imagine my surprise when Barb declared she was no longer going to do drugs with me,” recounted Bob. “She said, ‘I’ve become a Christian and I’m not doing drugs anymore. Jesus changed me, and He wants you to change you too!” That was something Bob had never heard from someone in his rock-and-roll culture. Not wanting to lose a friend, Bob protested, “I’m a Christian too, because I believe in God.” To which Barb responded with a Scripture he had never heard before, stating, “Agreeing with your mind is not enough. You have to follow too. James 2:19 says ‘you believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.” “Suddenly it dawned on me,” remembered Bob, “believing was not enough. I had to live a life consistent with that belief.”

Barb’s words haunted Bob that entire week. On Thursday night, before a big psychology test, Bob was studying late at night. Suddenly, it was clear to me! I saw that Jesus died for my sins and to give me a new lease on life. I made a decision right there, in the library, to accept Jesus’ salvation and to turn my life over to him. I had no idea the hardest part for me, a declaration, was still coming!

“I’d been a political activist,” remembered Bob. “But now I was ready to be an activist for Christ. On the way back to my fraternity I told God I would go wherever He sent me.

‘I’ll go to India, to Africa, to wherever you want me to go,’ I declared. And God replied, ‘Go to your fraternity, and minister to your brothers there.’ This was the worst possible scenario! I had no problem telling strangers about Jesus, but my fraternity brothers were another matter entirely. I had worked hard to be accepted into this large and prestigious fraternity. My fraternity brothers looked up to you because of your social standing. Religion was not looked upon favorably … partying and drinking were. I pleaded with God to send me overseas. But He kept telling me, ‘Go to your fraternity brothers. That is your mission field’.”

As Bob drove back to the fraternity house, God made His expectations even clearer. “‘Declare your love for Me when you arrive,’ He said. I sensed what that meant.

There was a large 4 by 8 foot blackboard next to the main entrance where bothers would post messages, such as someone had a couch for sale, or there was a party on third floor. God told me, ‘Write Jesus is my Lord on that black-

board and sign it.’ Again, I pleaded with God to send me to some nondescript alien culture, where my declaration for Christ would only be witnessed by those I did not know. But He persisted and I relinquished as I pulled into the parking lot. ‘After all,’ I reasoned, ‘the blackboard is usually filled with notices and there will probably only be a small gap near the bottom where I can scrawl ‘Jesus is my lord” in tiny lettering.

Imagine my surprise upon entering the fraternity and seeing the blackboard had been wiped clean with a wet towel!

Not a chalk mark was on it! It lay there empty, ready for me to proclaim my allegiance. And I did, writing in large letters ‘Jesus is my Lord, Bob Whitesel.’ I’ve never looked back.

Later I became an author, consultant and professor of Christian leadership and evangelism. But I’ve never lost my passion for my fraternity brothers. I realized that to have an impact upon the people I lived with, I had to live a Godly lifestyle. I led Bible Studies in my fraternity and always tried to be authentic and loving. I was respected by my brothers because I daily lived out my Christian faith. Eventually I was elected president of my fraternity alumni association, serving the second longest tenure as chapter alumni president in Phi Kappa Theta history. But it was not just repentance I experienced that night in the library, though I am grateful for that. But I also experienced a new understanding of Jesus Christ, that he would use me to tell others about His Good News, and that it starts with right living, and it starts right where you live.

As I discovered in the above story, to “declare with your mouth” means telling people that Jesus is now your Lord. It means no longer making decisions based upon what you want to do or what others want you to do. You are no longer your own lord. And others are no longer your lord either. Jesus is your lord (and his instructions are written down in detail in his Word).

If people ask you why you did something kind, honest or generous - you tell them it’s because you follow Jesus. You could say, “Jesus is the one who taught me to live like this.”

The key is to draw the listener’s attention back to the one who made the sacrifice on your and their behalf.

And it’s that simple to share the Good News. Just five verses.

Memorize each and as the Bible says, “Be ready to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you’re living the way you are, and always with the utmost courtesy.” 1 Peter 3:15 MSG. A Recap 2 Principles John 3:16 is the most quoted verse in the Bible. And it tells us that God loves us and gave the thing he loves (his own, unique son) to pay the penalty for the bad things we’ve done. But it doesn’t stop there. The verse goes on to say, “that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16 NIV). Eternal life must be emphasized.

John 14:6 reminds us that Jesus is the route to eternity and also the “only way.” It reminds us that God’s words are the truth about what faces us on the other side of death.

And it reminds us that Jesus creates a new person. Still, the last part of that verse must not be overlooked, nor downplayed. It states that there’s only one way to heaven according to Jesus’ own words.

3 Waypoints on the Romans’ Road Romans 3:23 reminds us that everyone has made mistakes and God‘s holiness and glory means that punishment will always take place.

Romans 6:23 states that God made a plan for that punishment to be taken by his son Jesus. This is a free gift he gives to all him humans through the sacrificial death of Jesus. Remember, when sharing this don’t ignore the eternity aspect. The verse concludes by emphasizing, “but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (NIV, emphasis mine).

Romans 10:9. On the final stop on the Romans’ Road we discover what actions we humans must do to take God up on this offer of eternity. We must believe deep down inside what Jesus said and did. And, then we must speak out clearly that Jesus is our Lord. Keeping the Good News to yourself will never help others.

Write those five scriptures down.

Read them every day.

Memorize them.

And you will be ready to share them when asked: “Why are you living the way you are?”

Bob Whitesel is an award-winning author/consultant on church health and growth.

He has been called “the key spokesperson on change theory in the church today” by a national magazine, co-founded an accredited seminary (Wesley Seminary at IWU) and created one of the nation’s most respected church health and growth consulting firms: ChurchHealth.net

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Why Don’t We Grow?

By George Thomasson 1 Corinthians 3:1-3 A tourist visiting a quaint town in the northeast asked an older gentleman, “Have any great men been born here?” The wise man said, “No. Only babies!”

I heard about a man who had just attended his 40th high school reunion and was sitting in the airport awaiting his flight home. As luck would have it, he saw a classmate waiting for the same flight. He asked his old friend what he thought about the reunion. His friend appeared dejected and even depressed.

He said, “I’m not sad over what happened at the reunion, but what didn’t happen. Almost everyone I talked with had not really changed. Oh, they had gained weight, looked a lot older and had various jobs. But they still had their same old attitudes and childish habits from high school. It was tragic to me. It was as if they chose to resist change!”

He looked his friend in the eye and said, “I never want it said of me that I have stopped growing and developing. Life is too precious to waste. If you ever see that I am becoming stagnant, I give you permission to give me a ‘swift kick’ for Christ’s sake. I want to always be growing in my faith and walk. I hope you will love me enough to help me keep moving forward.”

Depending on what research you read, anywhere from 60% to 80% of our Evangelical churches in America are plateaued or declining. They have stopped growing and most are in rapid decline. The explanation for this decline is not simple. There are, however, some biblical insights relating to individual believers and their lack of spiritual growth that may inform and inspire our churches to address the critical need for revitalization.

This is the first in a four-part sermon series entitled, “Growing Together.” The messages are: “Why Don’t We Grow?”

“What Does it Mean to Grow?” “How Can We Grow?” and “Will We Commit to Keep on Growing?”

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At this point, a warning may be in order. For some who read this message, “Why Don’t We Grow,” you may receive a “swift kick”! Why? Because pastors love you enough to challenge you to keep on growing.

In 1 Corinthians 2:14, 15 Paul references two kinds of people, the “natural man” and the “spiritual man.” The non-Christian and the Christian. Now, in chapter 3 he goes further contrasting two kinds of Christians-the mature and the immature. You expect a new Christian to be immature, but you should expect maturity to take place in a Christian’s life as he or she grows. This was not the case for the Corinthian Church.

Paul had devoted approximately 18 months teaching and discipling them. He was their spiritual father. He said in 1 Corinthians 4:14, 15, “I do not write these things to shame you, but as my beloved children I warn you. For though you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel.” In 1 Corinthians 3:1-3, Paul answers the question of our message, “Why Don’t We Grow?” He gives at least 3 reasons: 1. We are not growing because we only comprehend baby talk. V. 1 “And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ.”

All of us start out as babies spiritually. We should develop through a natural process of growth. Here Paul contrasts those who are spiritual with those who are still carnal.

The word translated “carnal” is the Greek word sarkinois meaning consisting of the flesh. The NIV translates the word as “worldly.”

He was telling them that they were saved because they had received Christ as their personal Savior, but they were not making spiritual progress. As a result, he could not speak to them as maturing Christians, but still as spiritual babies. They could only comprehend baby talk.

Our two children began talking very differently. Our 11-month-old daughter, Angie, was in my arms at the state fair, when out of nowhere she shouted out… “HOT DOG.” We were assuming that her first words would be “da da” or “mommy.” But no…she perfectly articulated what she had just heard from the lips of a vendor- “HOT DOG!” That unplugged a flood of communication that never seemed to stop. In fact, her 2nd grade teacher had to tape her mouth closed on one occasion! On the other hand, our son Greg, didn’t manage a full sentence until he was almost 3 years old. The only word he spoke was “nummy.” Strangely, only Angie could understand what he was saying. She may say, “Mommy, he wants a drink of water.” We concluded that Greg may not have felt the need to talk for himself. Angie said enough for both of them! So, he took the easy route and just settled for baby talk.

Paul wanted to share the deeper things of the Lord with his Corinthian brothers and sisters, but they could only comprehend baby talk. How about you? Do you need a loving “swift kick” to keep on growing? Does your Christian experience still consist of baby talk? Are you serious about making progress in your spiritual development or are you satisfied to just say “nummy, nummy” and let others go deeper with God? There may be a second reason you are not growing.

2. We are not growing because we only consume baby food.

V. 2 “I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able.”

You can identify a mature Christian by his or her diet.

The immature Christian is on “milk,” the easy things of the Bible. They read the stories of what Jesus did on earth.

The maturing Christian eats “solid food”, what the Bible teaches concerning the more difficult doctrines and how they apply to our lives now.

Listen to what the writer of Hebrews says regarding this issue.

“Called by God as High Priest according to the order of Melchizedek, of whom we have much to say, and hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. For though by this time, you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But solid food belongs to those who are of full age (mature), that is, those who by reason of use (practice) have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”

Hebrews 5:10-14

The writer of Hebrews had the same dilemma as Paul. He wanted to teach them deeper truths about Jesus Christ and His great high priesthood, but he could not because of their spiritual immaturity.

The Bible is a spiritual book and it offers a balanced diet!

Just as a person needs a balanced diet to experience healthy growth and development physically, so the inner person, the spiritual man needs a balanced diet of spiritual food. A baby in nourished in the beginning with milk. But soon they develop teeth and move on to solid food.

Let me mention our daughter, Angie, again to illustrate. She obviously began with milk, but before long (much sooner than the doctor advised) it became obvious to us that she was so hungry that just milk would no longer satisfy her. We began mixing cereal with her milk, then strained veggies. She still cried between bites!

She was progressing so rapidly that we had to feed her solid food.

That was the case spiritually for me. I received Christ at age 20 having not been exposed to the gospel until then. The men in my Bible class gave me a modern translation of the Bible.

I couldn’t get enough. I was like Angie, crying for more between bites! I started writing down Bible references with short phrases in the blank pages at the back of my Bible. One evening in frustration, I said to my wife, Sandra, “What am I going to do now?”

“What do you mean, George?” she asked. “I have filled up all the pages in the back of my Bible with verses I want to remember.

I’ve run out of room to add more.” “Why are you doing that?” she asked. “When a verse speaks something special to me, I write it down so I can find it again.” She asked, “Why don’t you just use your concordance?” I then asked, “What’s a concordance?” That may be funny to you. But I had never seen a concordance and didn’t even know what one was! However, as a new follower of Christ I had an insatiable appetite for God’s Word and I was growing by leaps and bounds.

Get ready. Here comes the “swift kick” again! If you are still consuming spiritual baby food and know very little about the present transformational ministry of Jesus in your life; if you know some of the facts of the Bible but you aren’t experiencing the fullness of the Holy Spirit as you walk by faith in the facts of the Word of God, you are still consuming baby food.

Listen to what Paul says in the previous chapter to the Corinthian believers.

“That our faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written: ‘Eye has not seen nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him. But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.” 1 Corinthians 2:5-10

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You may be living on Bible stories not the deep doctrines of the Word. If you are not careful, you will want to be entertained not enlightened. It is time to graduate from baby food, from milk to solid food, to the meat of the Word.

There may also be a third reason to consider.

3. We are not growing because we conform to baby actions. V. 3 “For you are still carnal, for where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?”

A careful examination of the text reveals that Paul moves from sarkinois to sarkikoi. He stated that the Corinthian believers were not growing because their diet was worldly instead of biblical…BABY FOOD. Now he blatantly proves they are not progressing spiritually because they are controlled by their human nature not the Holy Spirit.

His proof is clear. Look at verse 3 again. “For you are still carnal (sarkikoi), for where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and BEHAVING LIKE MERE MEN?” BABY ACTIONS. Early in their Christian lives they were largely worldly in their behavior. That was understandable. They were still in the infant stage spiritually speaking.

In some ways they couldn’t help it. They were BABY CHRISTIANS! But look back at the last phrase in verse 2: “…and even now you are still not able (to consume adult food).” It was high time that they were maturing in their faith.

They should have been growing in their interactions with one another as spiritual adults; but their baby actions were a dead giveaway that they were still spiritual infants.

Paul delivered another “swift kick” to the Corinthians. He asked two questions.

(1) Are you not carnal (sarkikoi)? They were operating in the flesh and it was obvious--envy, strife, divisions. Envy and strife always result in divisions because these baby actions come from baby intentions--they are designed to lower others to exalt oneself. They had their own agenda and like spiritual babies they cried till they got what they wanted.

(2) Behaving like mere men? Mere men are controlled by their own human nature or self. I like to quote Bill Bright and say that self is on the throne. When followers of Christ are not growing spiritually and they only comprehend baby talk, consume baby food and conform to baby actions, there is no apparent difference in their lives than others who do not know Christ. They just have a different habit on Sunday. Their non-Christian neighbor plays golf on Sunday and they go to church! They behave like MERE MEN. I have found that the length of time a person is a Christian is not always synonymous with spiritual maturity. When trying to lead a declining church toward revitalization, I have often experienced the greatest resistance from older church mem-

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bers. In reality, they should be leading the charge for church revitalization. They should be willing to do whatever it takes to bring the church back to health and vitality. They should have a burning passion to see their church significantly impacting their community and the world with the life-transforming gospel. Instead, they so often become part of the problem and not the solution.

Why? It seems that the church and how it functions is all about them and their preferences, not what it will take to become relevant to the lost community around them. How do we know this is often true? They are sadly characterized by BABY TALK, BABY FOOD and BABY ACTIONS!

If you are uncomfortable or even offended by this message, I want to say two things. First, when you throw a rock into a pack of dogs, it’s always the one who gets hit that yelps! It just may be that the Spirit of God is convicting your heart and you need to make some serious adjustments in your spiritual life. Second, it is the caring pastor-shepherd who loves his flock enough to speak the truth in love to them.

When addressing the church in Rome, Paul boldly said, “And do not be conformed to this world (behaving as mere men) but be transformed by the renewing of your mind (growing spiritually), that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” (Rom. 12:2)

An old farmer, Mr. Jones, once described his Christian life to his neighbor this way--“I’m not progressing but I’m content to be well established.” On a spring day the same farmer was hauling a load of logs in his wagon and got stuck in the mud up to the axles. His neighbor happened to come by and observe the farmer’s dilemma. He said, “Well, Brother Jones, I see that you are not progressing. You must be content though, because you seem to be well established!”

Please don’t fall into the muddy rut of the farmer. Don’t be content to be established but be committed to grow. Ask the question, “Why don’t I grow?” and do something about it. Accept this “swift kick” in the spirit it is given and become a part of the solution not the problem.

The desperate, depraved community around you is in dire need of a revitalized, relevant church that will love them and lead them to Jesus.

George Thomasson is a native of Arkansas but spent most of his ministry in Florida and Texas. He holds degrees from Palm Beach Atlantic University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He presently serves as Mobilization Pastor for Christ Place Church in Flowery Branch, Georgia.

Available in Paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com

St. Patrick, St. Paul, and the Church

By Kenneth Priest The following is taken from George G. Hunter III’s “The Celtic Way of Evangelism” with some additional commentary from me.

In the late fourth century (or early fifth century) A. D., Patrick was growing up in (what is now) Northeast England. His people were “Britons,” one of the “Celtic” peoples then populating the British Isles, though Patrick’s aristocratic family had gone “Roman” during the Roman occupation of England. So Patrick was more Roman than Celtic; his first language was Latin, though he understood some of the “Welsh” spoken by the lower classes. His family was Christian; his grandfather was a priest. Patrick had acquired some Christian teaching, and he undoubtedly knew the catechism, but he became only a nominal Christian; he ridiculed the clergy and, in the company of other “alienated” and “ungoverned” youth, he lived toward the wild side.

When Patrick was sixteen, a band of Celtic pirates from Ireland invaded the region; they captured Patrick and many other young men, forced them onto a ship, sailed to Ireland, and sold them into slavery. (Interesting note, Debbi and I did the 23andme DNA testing during Christmas. When the results returned, my lineage ties back through the haplogroup connecting me to Niall of the Nine Hostages. He apparently was King of Tara in Northern Ireland in the late 4th Century. And apparently, whether the lore is true or not we do not know, but Debbi in her brief research found it is believed Niall might have been the one who captured Patrick and sold him into slavery. Maybe this is why I have an affinity to this story, some sort of penance for needing to right the wrong).

Anyway the pirates sold Patrick to a prosperous tribal chief and druid named Miliuc moccu Boin, who put Patrick to work herding cattle.

During his years of enslavement, Patrick experienced three profound changes. First, the periods when Patrick was isolated in the wilderness herding cattle connected him with what theologians call the “natural revelation” of God. He sensed with the winds, the seasons, the creatures, and the nights under the stars the presence of God; he identified this presence with the Triune God he had learned about in the catechism. Patrick says this:

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After I had arrived in Ireland, I found myself pasturing flocks daily, and I prayed a number of times each day. More and more the love and fear of God came to me, and faith grew and my spirit was exercised, until I was praying up to a hundred times every day and in the night nearly as often.

Patrick became a devout Christian, and the change was obvious to his captors.

Second, Patrick changed in another way during the periods he spent with his captors in their settlement. He came to understand the Irish Celtic people, and their language and culture, with the kind of intuitive profundity that is usually possible only, as in Patrick’s case, from the “underside.”

Third, Patrick came to love his captors, to identify with them, and to hope for their reconciliation to God. One day, he would feel they were his people.

One night, after six years of captivity, a voice spoke to Patrick in a dream, saying, “You are going home. Look! Your ship is ready!” The voice directed him to flee for his freedom the next morning. He awakened before daybreak, walked to a seacoast, saw the ship, and negotiated his way on board.

When he returned to his people in England, he trained for the priesthood. His training immersed his mind in the scriptures, and grounded him in the basic orthodox theology. He then served for years as a faithful parish priest in England.

One night, at the age of forty-eight, Patrick experienced another dream that was to change his life again. An angel approached him with letters, he “imagined in that moment that he heard the voice of those very people who held him in slavery in his past; and the cried out, as with one voice ‘We appeal to you, holy servant boy, to come and walk among us’.”

When Patrick awakened the next morning, he interpreted the dream as his “Macedonian Call” to take Christianity’s gospel to the Celtic peoples of Ireland. He proposed, to his ecclesiastical superiors, that he be sent on this mission.

The bishops of the British Church, probably with the strong encouragement of Pope Celestine, affirmed Patrick’s vision.

Patrick was ordained a bishop, and appointed to Ireland, as

history’s first missionary bishop. He arrived in Ireland, with a moderate entourage of priests, seminarians, and others, in A.D. 432.

It is this Macedonian Call we want to focus on today. If you have your Bibles, let’s turn to Acts 16, beginning in verse 6.

Read Acts 16.6-10.

You remember the story here. Paul and Silas are on the second missionary journey. They arrive in Lystra and come across Timothy, apparently converted during Paul and Barnabas’ first journey. Now you remember the story of Lystra right, this is where during Paul’s first journey he was stoned and left for dead. So we see here Paul’s boldness, going back to a place that had once tried to kill him. Patrick’s journey could be compared to this, as he goes back to a place that had enslaved him; and technically, due to his sneaking away, they might would have attempted to re-enslave him. Nevertheless, back to our story – here, Paul and his team pick up Timothy. Luke tells us that Timothy is well thought of by the believers in Lystra and Iconium. Paul wants Timothy to continue the journey with he and Silas; so the three of them complete the journey.

So we are in verse 6, the team has finished visiting the churches from the first missionary journey and are heading North to Asia. Along the journey, Paul is stopped by the Spirit from going to Asia. So their journey takes a detour. We see in verse 7, Paul intended to go to Bithynia but yet again was stopped by the Spirit. So they change directions again.

This time, Paul sees a vision in the night, a Macedonian, calling out for him to come. Confirmation from the other two, sets them on a journey to minister in Macedonia. At this point in the text, we see by the inclusion of the word “we” that Luke joins up with them for the trip to Macedonia, therefore the team is now four.

The remainder of Chapter Sixteen deals with the ministry in Philippi. The importance of the text for our purposes today, is three-fold. First, magnify the Holy Spirit. Next be sensitive to God’s leading. Last, we must be faithful to follow when and where he leads.

MAGNIFY THE HOLY SPIRIT Often times in Southern Baptist life we shy away from the work of the Spirit for fear of being called charismatics or something. The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Triune God. He is not merely a vague, impersonal, ambiguous force.

He is alive. The Holy Spirit is God and thus when we magnify the Spirit we are magnifying Jesus.

The term Holy Spirit occurs only twice in the Old Testament, Ps. 51.11 and Isa. 63.10-11. But the references to His work are plentiful, from the point of creation in Gen. 1.2 forward. Now in the post Resurrection age, we know Christ sent the Spirit to indwell believers, give life to our physical bodies, give us an inner assurance that we are heirs of the kingdom of God.

The book of Acts begins with the promise of the Spirit and the descent of the Spirit at Pentecost. 1 Cor. 12.13 says “For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body.” We are the body of Christ. So we begin by magnifying the Spirit.

Our next step is: SENSITIVE TO GOD’S LEADING The church must come back to an understanding of what God would have her to do. Since Christ established the church, His calling for her has been that of being faithful to the Great Commission. This means a local congregation, must have a plan for how she intends to make disciples in its unique context as it shares the Good News of Christ. The question for the church today, specifically for your church is, who are you reaching?

Eighty percent of Southern Baptist churches are in a state of decline? I believe this is in part to the not knowing what we need to do as a church to be faithful to our calling.

Every church must determine this for themselves. When you discover your Great Commission Strategy, you must then seek God’s leading. This is done through personal spiritual practices. The people of God, returning to the practices of God. In a very simplistic way, we can find these practices throughout Scripture; spending time alone with God, Ps. 46.10; praying and seeking God’s direction. Reading and studying God’s Word; Dr. George Guthrie released some material in the past few years entitled, “Read the Bible for Life”. The course of study is on how to effectively read the Bible. We are not talking the literal, I read the Bible; we are talking about the effective spiritual transformation of reading the Bible. The ability to read God’s Word and know that you are being transformed by it.

This may not happen overnight, or over the course of several weeks or months, but if you commit to the process, be faithful to seeking out God through His Word, this transformation occurs. He is faithful to reveal to you His specific plans for this particular time in history.

Additionally – spend time with the people of God; Hebrews tells us to not neglect the gathering together of the saints. Spending time in community – Acts 2 demonstrates the early church model for this.

We must return individually to God, so we can see Him work corporately through our church. Paul teaches this in the unity of the body passages in Corinthians.

Our text here tells us in verses six through nine, that the missionary team was moving about the countryside. Trying to go to places they thought were good places to go. But God had a plan of the better place to go. I believe the example for this is our churches, your church, might be doing some good things. But are these the best things for you to be doing.

In our illustration at the beginning. Patrick was doing good things. He had escaped slavery. He had committed his life to the priesthood. He was serving God faithfully. These are all good things. But God had another plan. God had the best thing in mind.

Now think about this for a moment. God calls Patrick BACK to the people who had literally kidnapped and enslaved him. God gives him a vision of these people, having a foreknowledge that he was a servant of God, crying out to him for salvation that he could show them through the work of Christ. Remember the story at the beginning. They had seen a change in him. Knew he was different because of his follow-ship with Christ. And in this vision, they wanted and desired that difference for themselves.

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How hard would this be for you?

Has someone wronged you in the past?

Do you have a story of betrayal?

Has God called you to be the one to go back to a person or group of people and walk with them across the line of faith?

I think this would be hard. I know it would. Paul and Patrick’s story differ here; Paul was being sent to a people who needed Christ, but where Paul had never been. Patrick on the other hand was being called to a people where he had been. The interesting point is, remember the story, he had come to understand these people while he lived there, and came to love them and desire for their reconciliation to God. God burdened Patrick, while still in captivity, to have a desire to see these people come to a saving relationship with Christ. He wanted them to have what he had. And in the fulfillment of God’s time, God called Patrick back to these people. To be one of the instruments of reconciliation for God’s glory.

Now, we do not know exactly what prevented Paul and the team from going to these other places, we just know the text tells us they were prevented. What we can say is it was an issue of timing. God’s timing will not be delayed, so whatever prevented the expansion of the gospel at this time for Asia and Bithynia, God’s timing was set for Macedonia.

Now the final point: FAITHFULNESS TO FOLLOW In our text, verse ten tells us that Paul and the others, now joined by Luke, were faithful to go to Macedonia. They began a ministry of witness to the people of that region. We see later in the text how entire families receive Christ and are baptized demonstrating an obedience to a changed life. Once the team determined where God was leading, they followed.

Without reservation or hesitation. It was time to move.

Patrick has the same story. While in captivity he had a vision to leave, get up and go; and he did. Now that he was free, God gave him another vision; one to go back. Not immediately, notice some time has passed in the story; time for him to prepare for the work which was to come.

The question we each should be preparing to answer now, in the life of the church, at this particular time in history is: what is God uniquely calling me to do? Right now!

What would God have this local body of believers involved in that is reaching out with His Good News?

Patrick returned to the people of Ireland. They became his people. He lived and ministered in a new way for their era. He changed the mind-set of those on his team; they shifted from a come and see, to a go and get. They were active among the people of Ireland. This is what needs to happen in your community as well. This is your community. These are your people. Within 3 miles of this church is over ###### people. We believe that 68% of them are lost; so ##### people within a three-mile radius need Jesus. The populous is ##% Anglo, ##% Hispanic, ##% Black and ##% Asian and other.

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Are you prepared to reflect your community?

Do you have a heart for them?

Do you have a burden that they should not perish, but have the chance at eternal life?!

Has God given you a heart for your people?

If not, you might stop and ask yourself why not?

Have you come to a point in your life where you have accepted Christ as your personal Lord and Savior?

Have you come to a point where you are being faithful to God’s leading in your life?

Are you ready to be faithful to follow?

We move to a time of invitation. There may be some here who do not understand what it means for God to call them out and be faithful to follow. That’s because you haven’t responded in the past to God’s calling. He desires for you to walk in a right relationship with Him. This can only be done through the accepting of Christ as your personal Lord and Savior; just as Patrick came to the realization in the field, you must come to a point of knowing you need a Savior. Then you must act upon it. We are at the alter today to talk with you about this opportunity to understand God’s call. Others here may have received Christ, but you have not followed after Him. Taking that first step of obedience and being baptized. Now is the time to get obedient. Still others are in need of a church home. This may be your first time in this church, you may be a regular attender and simply have never committed to partner with this church to be faithful to the Great Commission. What better church to join, than one that is moving forward with finding what God would have her to do? A church seeking to be faithful.

Now’s the time. Now’s your time. As we sing, come.

Kenneth Priest serves as the Director of the Center for Church Revitalization with Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Fort Worth, TX. Kenneth has been leading revitalization/turn around endeavors since 1997 in various consulting roles. He holds a Doctor of Educational Ministry degree with an emphasis in Church Revitalization from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Kansas City, MO. Please contact Kenneth at kpriest@swbts.edu.

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Don’t Trade the Mission for the Moment

By Gary Moritz It seems that a global pandemic season has brought about accelerated change, adjustments, and continual pivots for church revitalization. It also appears that people are growing more and more tired of the unrest and inconsistency that is swirling around them. Many pastors are unsure on which end is up because the road they were traveling on has been washed out.

Moments and times like these can cause us to forget why we are here and what God has called us to do. God wants you to dream again.

No matter what season we find ourselves in, we must never trade the mission God has called us to for the moments we are experiencing.

Think about a time when you got so caught up in the moment that you completely forgot about the original reason why you were there or why you were doing something. Men, we do this all the time. Our wives send us out for milk and bread, and we come back with a chainsaw and leaf bags from Lowes.

Revitalizers and church leaders are getting so caught up in these seasonal pivots, the day-to-day moments and stressors. They have lost focus of why they were put on this earth, the mission at hand. They have forgotten about what God has called them to do because so much time, energy, and attention has gone into maneuvering the constant pivots that 2020 brought with it. We must not forget that our job is to point people to Jesus.

There is no doubt that COVID and has shaken up the big “C” church. It has caused us to reflect, readjust, realign, and refocus on what’s truly important. I believe that it has also been a call to revitalization, renewal, and a healthy vitality for the church. Revitalization begins with us as healthy leaders. It starts with us dreaming with God for the things He wants for our churches and communities. We are not responsible for the circumstances that surround us. We are only responsible for the Gospel message within us.

We know that ministry will not get any easier in a post-Christian, post-pandemic era. However, we know that as the day approaches, the day of Christ’s second coming and return, times and culture are going to continue to get worse, and doing ministry is going to get more challenging and more demanding.

Things are not falling apart. They are falling into place.

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The Apostle Paul writes, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do” Ephesians 2:10.

In 2020, it was COVID. In the coming years, it could be something else due to the destruction of sin. But this should not discourage us, rather it should encourage us. I want to encourage you that no matter what you and your ministry face, keep the mission and God’s commands as your primary focus.

Don’t trade the mission for the moment.

Imagine if every pastor and leader during this season captured this moment to embrace the mission and what the Lord has called them to do. The kingdom would ignite with revitalization and vitality. Imagine if every community was looking to their local church for hope in their brokenness and hopelessness. Imagine if every family in your church came to you and said, “Pastor, whatever it takes to reach our community, we will do it!” We would see evangelism and care overtake the world.

Learn to capture and embrace the moment. In this season, move towards the pivots of what God would have for you and your ministry. How do we do this – how do we maneuver all the stress, worry, and situations we are dealing with right now?

How do we rivet our attention on the mission?

I believe that it happens through Revitalized Tactical Prayer!

I Believe God is going to use us in the moments to accelerate His mission.

Revitalized prayer means we are talking to Jesus in our moments and taking careful, tactical steps towards renewal.

Jesus has called us to be revitalized in prayer. He wants us to dream and hope again, but it starts with a divine conversation to seek tactical steps forward. Jesus gives us a clear outline to follow.

“Again, truly I tell you, if two of you on earth agree about any matter that you pray for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, I am there among them.” Matthew 18:19-20 (CSB)

When you are talking with Jesus in the moments… you will be: 1. …united in your prayers (v 19a) 2. …unlimited in your prayers (v 19b) 3. …unequivocal in your prayers (v 19c) 4. …unselfish in your prayers (v 20) We are tired, discouraged, worn out, zoomed out, screened out, and stressed out! You need to understand that this has been the most challenging time to lead for everyone. We have never faced a disruption like this in our time. But the Lord’s goodness, protection, and provision is shining through. These disruptions are divine moments.

For the post-COVID church and leader, it seems like things have drastically changed. I get it. Experts talk about what the post-COVID leader needs to do and what it will take to lead through and past these times. To experience renewal and vitality, we must be able to: • Pivot frequently to new pathways • Be resilient in pressing times • Deal with the rapid acceleration of technology and trends • Be humble and teachable • Be able to adapt and overcome Some experts are talking about what it means to be a hybrid leader working in both the secular business world and the Church world. Some are talking about replanting, planting, and revitalization. I agree with all of these things. And as I’ve been processing all of these strategies and characteristics and what the experts have been saying, what strikes me is that these were the same issues and situations the first church and the early Christians faced living in the minority under Roman pressures and laws. They were resilient. They pivoted and changed based on the cultural trends and rules of the time. They were humble, teachable, and willing to do whatever it took to follow Christ.

The testimony of the early followers of Christ was one where they worked in their business and preached out of it. It was a both/and. What we have been going through is nothing new.

COVID may be unique and something that we haven’t faced before but suffering and trials are not new. The church has been dealing with these things since its formation, and the only way we are going to make it through suffering and trials is through prayer.

This season is a great time to realign, readjust, renew, and revitalize ourselves and our prayer life.

There is a documented story about a trying moment where something good happened, but others viewed it as speaking against the authorities. A guy was healed, and it caused a controversy that upset the peace of the streets. Two guys were arrested, questioned, and interrogated, yet in those moments, they were ready for a divine breakthrough. They had a choice to make, do they trade the mission for the moment, or do they look past the moment to stay focused on their mission.

It is told about the early church leaders that, “When they observed the boldness of Peter and John and realized that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed and recognized that they had been with Jesus. 14And since they

saw the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in opposition. 15After they ordered them to leave the Sanhedrin, they conferred among themselves, 16sayings, “What should we do with these men? An obvious sign has been done through them, clear to everyone living in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. 17But so that this does not spread any further among the people, let’s threaten them against speaking to anyone in this name again.” 18So they called for them and ordered them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.19 Peter and John answered them, “Whether it’s right in the sight of God for us to listen to you rather than to God, you decide; 20 for we are unable to stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.” 21After threatening them further, they released them. They found no way to punish them because the people were all giving glory to God over what had been done. 22For this sign of healing had been performed on a man over forty years old.” (Acts 4:13-22, CSB).

If you are going to embrace the mission and have a revitalizer perspective, you must understand two insights.

We will face persecution.

The first insight is that we will experience persecution from an ungodly world (v 29). The most significant trait of a believer is their boldness. This boldness can only come from the Holy Spirit.

“And now, Lord, consider their threats, and grant that your servants may speak your word with all boldness” Acts 4:29 CSB “And let us consider one another to provoke love and good works, 25not neglecting to gather together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day approaching.” Hebrews 10:24-25 The theme of Hebrews is “Jesus is better than...” He came, He died, He rose, He sent, and He’s coming back. He is better than any miracle the Bible talks about because He is the centrality of the Bible. The Word of God is powerful when we are together with Him.

We know that Christianity grew rapidly during the Roman Empire, starting with a motley crew of 12 men, and by A.D. 325, there were 34 million followers of Christ.1 Christians were among the Roman Empire. Something supernatural was forming… the Church. Why? Because something happened that was unexplainable, Jesus rose from the grave. The church grew from 120-3000 and continues to this day with 2.382 billion.2 It was a spiritual explosion, not a political explosion. In light of what Jesus did, let us pursue the community of God’s people “as we see the day approaching.” As we think about revitalization, we must recognize the spiritual warfare that accompanies it.

1 http://factsanddetails.com/world/cat55/sub352/entry-5764.html 2 https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/04/05/christiansremain-worlds-largest-religious-group-but-they-are-declining-ineurope/

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As followers, we are told to, “ Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: 9 Whom resist steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.” I Peter 5:8-9 8

“Yea and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” II Timothy 3:12 Culture today is looking to accuse the Christian. In this season, be bold and listen to the voice that called you over the voices of those that accuse you.

The most common question I hear from people is, “When are we going to get back to normal?” My initial reaction to this question is the Christian life has never been normal.

Maybe we should ask the question, “What is normal?” I am started asking the question, “Are we going to get back to the first Church’s spiritually normal behavior?”

I believe the post-COVID spiritual leader needs to be: 1. Praying constantly, instead of scrolling regularly, 2. Spirit-filled, not fear-filled, 3. Standing boldly, not timidly, 4. Pointing people to the Savior, not our buildings.

These characteristics are going to revive those around us and change our communities and churches. This is why we cannot trade the moment for the mission.

Stand in Boldness The second insight is we must stand bold in Jesus’ name (vs. 2337). In this passage we find seven tactical traits of a revitalized and praying church.

1. Prayer is a priority.

In a praying church, there is a recognition for the supreme importance of revitalized prayer. Therefore, there is a spontaneous and passionate desire for prayer. (vs 23-24a) “After they were released, they went to their people and reported everything the chief priests and the elders had said to them. 24When they heard this, they raised their voices together to God” (Acts 4:23-24 CSB).

Early on in my ministry I was told that if I wanted to guarantee a small crowd at church, announce a prayer meeting. I have learned that if you desire to have a revitalized church, you need to have a prayer meeting. We need to repent of our lack of communication to our Lord and our selfish thinking that we can accomplish things without Him. We need to stand together and raise our voices to Almighty God and ask Him to move.

2. Faith is essential.

In a praying church, the eyes of faith and expectancy are revitalized towards the Lord (vs 24b-28). You need to remember your call. Remember who has called you to lead in this time. It is the

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King of Kings and Lord of Lord. No matter what happens in the season, stand with boldness.

The Bible tells us that they were threatened ...

“24When they heard this, they raised their voices together to God and said, “Master, you are the one who made the heaven, the earth, and the sea, and everything in them. 25You said through the Holy Spirit, by the mouth of our Father David, your servant: Why do the Gentiles rage and the peoples plot futile things? 26The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers assemble together against the Lord and against his Messiah. 27“For, in fact, in this city both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, assembled together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, 28 to do whatever your hand and your will had predestined to take place” (Acts 4:24-28, CSB).

Remember this promise. Jesus can do it! It’s not about, “Let me check with the deacons,” or “Let’s wait for our next business meeting.” You go to God first. Every pastor, leader, church planter, and revitalizer will give an account of the voice of God in their lives. Listening and doing are two different actions. Doing is showing God that you are willing to obey.

3. Obedience is natural.

In a praying church there is a revitalized desire to obey the Lord’s commission to evangelize the world (v 29).

“And now, Lord, consider their threats, and grant that your servants may speak your word with all boldness” (Acts 4:29, CSB).

I have found during this season that there are two types of leaders, pioneers and settlers. The pioneer has been checking out the new territory, the new dream, while the settlers have been hunkering down. I thank God for both, but the pioneer leader will be the one that breaks future ground for the Gospel in a new land. God has not said it’s time to give up and quit. But He has said the One who calls you is faithful, and He will do it (1 Thessalonians 5:24).

Leaders need to focus on this part, “And now Lord grant to us the ability to speak your word with boldness.” The question we should be asking is not how much it will cost, but who it will reach. As we stand bold for Christ, it will become a story to tell later. Make sure that you ask questions like “Who’s next? What’s next? Where’s next?”

4. Miracles are expected.

In a praying church, there is a revitalized faith to beg Jesus to work (v 30).

The story continues, “while you stretch out your hand for healing, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus” (Acts 4:30 CSB). What miracles are you praying for in the name of Jesus?

Do you believe that God can work in our church and community? What do you think Jesus would say to your church if He showed up to write an 8th letter in Revelation to your

church? We need to ask the question not what Jesus would do, but what would Jesus say. The issue is that we have become so cold to hearing the voice of God. We have boiled Sunday morning down to a Sunday School lesson, four points, and a poem.

We hop in our cars and go home. This is not the Christian life.

We need to pray that Jesus saves our neighbors and our neighborhood.

If you have too much of the Spirit, you blow up. If you have too little of the Spirit, you dry up. But if you stay balanced and dependent on Jesus, you grow up in Him. We need His Spirit to direct, inspect, and protect us as we expect Him to do great things in and through our churches. The story of your workmanship is being written. The narrative is being written in this season you are in. Stand bold and let God use you to write His story so you can see a miracle in your ministry.

5. Power is evident.

In a praying church, the Holy Spirit manifests His presence and power, which revitalizes us (vs 31a, c). There are too many churches with electricity but no power. We have churches that meet, but the presence of God is not in the building. We need to be leading our churches into the presence of God. Look at the first church, “When they had prayed, the place where they were assembled was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God boldly” (Acts 4:31, CSB). In a season where things seem to be dying, remember, the Spirit of God brings dead things back to life. Without life, all you have is death.

I can remember four years ago when I was praying during a Wednesday night prayer meeting. I was in the middle of revitalizing a church in a terrible financial situation. The church was hanging on by a thread. Many people were tied to our buildings, traditions, and memories. I prayed that God would shake us and move us from comfort to conformability, from safety to urgency, from inward to outward thinking, and to mobilizing and making disciples to multiply the kingdom of God. Guess what? Five hours later, I get a phone call from our security director at 1:30 am to tell me that our main worship building was flooded from frozen and broken pipes. We lost almost everything in the building. Things were soaked and destroyed.

In that moment there didn’t seem like there was a lot of hope.

I cried, and then I realized that God had answered my prayer.

At that point, we shifted to a being a portable church, and God answered our prayers to mobilize. Since then, we have been focusing on making disciples, reproducing leaders, and sending people to plant and replant churches.

God’s power is evident, and can God work in your church. When the early Christians prayed, the place was shaken.

If you believe what you pray, God will do it.

6. The Gospel is primary.

In a praying church, there is a mighty power in preaching the Gospel, which revitalizes the mission (v 31d). The first church “… began to speak the word of God boldly” (Acts 4:31, CSB). If your people are not preaching and proclaiming the Word where they eat, work, shop, and play, that is an indicator that your church is in decline and something is wrong.

The Gospel needs to move from the seats to the streets and from the homes to the community. It is time to rethink, realign and beg God to revitalize our hearts towards a Gospel mission so that communities can hear, follow and believe Jesus.

7. Grace is embraced.

In a praying church, there is revitalized and prioritized grace in the lives of God’s people (vs 32-37). The first Church was praying, and God was working. The Bible tells us that “Now the entire group of those who believed were of one heart and mind, and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but instead they held everything in common. 33 With great power, the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was on all of them. 34 For there was not a needy person among them because all those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the proceeds of what was sold, 35 and laid them at the apostles’ feet. This was then distributed to each person as any had need.”

As Christ-followers, we must be one with Jesus (John 17). We must be one kingdom team with one kingdom dream to see people come to Christ by the thousands.

“And great grace was upon all of them… they were giving testimony to the resurrected Lord.”

We are not Christians because the Bible says so. We are Christians because something happened over 2,000 years ago that changed the world. Jesus Christ came to this earth and died for our selfishness and disobedience and the things that make God sad. This is called sin. He went to the grave, and on the 3rd day, He rose again. Don’t forget that He is coming back for those who trust and obey Him. Obedience is God’s love language, and He is waiting for us to trust and obey Him.

Do not trade the moment for the mission. Do not focus on the specific season you are going through; focus on the Savior you are running towards. He has called you to more extraordinary things. Dream again because God will do it. Focus on being leaders who are praying constantly, instead of scrolling regularly; Spirit-filled, not fear-filled; sanding boldly, not timidly; pointing people to the Savior, not your buildings. Will you answer the call to revitalized tactical prayer?

Gary Moritz is the lead pastor of City United Church, located in Lunenburg, MA. With a church planter mindset, the Lord called him and his family to New England in 2013 to take over a church in need of revitalization through a pastoral succession. He also works for Liberty University as a subject matter expert on church revitalization and as a assistant professor in the School of Divinity, and he serves as the Director of Church Revitalization for the Baptist Convention of New England.

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Revitalizing the House of God and His People

By Steve Sells Text: Nehemiah 1-13 (Selected Passages) Thesis Statement: “God is able to do enormous things through us if we will present ourselves to the Lord and His work.”

Nehemiah was a Jew during the Jewish Exile (587-538 BC).

Nehemiah had a life-changing conversation with Hanani, and some other men who came from Jerusalem. Nehemiah asked about the condition of the city and its inhabitants. Their answer is found in chapter 1:3 “And they said to me, “The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.”

The Jewish Exile was a horrific time for the Jews.

During the Exile there was severe hardship, humiliation and mockery directed at the Jewish people. Their possessions were homes were looted and they were taken captive and carried away by the Babylonians. As a result of their disobedience to God they were scattered and homeless.

In the process Nehemiah gains favor with King Artaxerxes of Persia and becomes his cup bearer. Many theologians and historians believe he was the administrator who ran the king’s palace. Nehemiah was a prominent, professional, and honorable servant to the king and the king loved him.

However, the greatest thing that can be said of Nehemiah was that he was a godly man who feared God.

Nehemiah supervised the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem and established widespread moral and worship in the lives of the Jews. How did he accomplish this?

What is necessary for this type of revitalization to take place in the local church? Here are eight necessities to bring new life to a plateaued and/or declining church.

I. The Necessity of Understanding “Present Reality.”

Nehemiah 1:1-3 In chapter 1:2 Nehemiah had visitors to come to him at the king’s palace. He asked about the situation of the Jews in Jerusalem and the city. The visitors replied in chapter 1:34, “The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach; the wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire. And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven.”

This was heart breaking news to Nehemiah. He realized the plight of the people and the city and was moved to tears and brokenness. Even though he lived in

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the comfort of the palace he was broken under the burden for the people of Jerusalem. The Bible says he wept, fasted and prayed. He presented his burden to the Lord and God began a great work in Nehemiah’s life. This is where the “vision” was born in Nehemiah’s heart.

Is your leadership and church in general willing to face the “present reality” of the condition of the church?

You cannot fix what you don’t accept is broken.

worked hard, prayed, encountered criticism and made difficult leadership decisions. Nehemiah was a regular guy who caught a divine glimpse of what could and should be. Then, he went after it with all his heart. His story is not much different than ours.”

To lead a church through renewal and revitalization requires a “transformational leadership.” Is your leadership “transformational?”

II. The Necessity of God-given Vision – Nehemiah 1:3 Nehemiah was a leader who understood the will and workings of God and he knew where God was leading him. He was a great man who knew where he was going. He saw and understood the vision of God that he was called to accomplish. He followed the leadership of the Holy Spirit and God’s will for his life.

It must be understood that the vision for your church can only come from God. It is not some concocted idea by the pastor, staff or congregation. It is explicitly what God wants for the church. It should have no human element.

The big question here is…”What is God’s vision for your church? Is your pastor a visionary leader? Is the congregation willing to follow a God-given vision?

IV. The Necessity of Prayer - Nehemiah 1:4-11, 2:4, 4:4-5, 5:19, 6:9, 6:14, 9:5-38, 13:14, 13:22, 13:29 Nehemiah new the importance of prayer. J. Oswald Sanders said, “Great leaders of the Bible were great at prayer.

They were not leaders because of brilliancy of thought; because they were exhaustless in resources; because of their magnificent culture or native endowment, but because of the power of prayer, they could command the power of God.”

Nehemiah believed in working and praying. In the book of Nehemiah we have 14 of his prayers. In order to get a vision from God he prayed. Before he committed to do the project, he prayed. Before, during and after approaching the king, he prayed. When opposition and threats came, he prayed. Nehemiah saturated his life and work with prayer. He fasted and prayed for 4 months as he wrestled with the vision. Prayer was at the heart of everything Nehemiah attempted. Often, leaders will attempt to do a work for God without looking to God for guidance.

Sometimes we tend to rely on our own plans. At the same time, we must plan, under the leadership of the Holy Spirit, knowing that God will give us direction. As leaders we must learn to rely on God and also use the abilities God has given us. Nehemiah made prayer the center of all he worked to accomplish.

Nehemiah knew what it meant to be a servant and have a servant’s heart. He was a servant leader. Nehemiah took the challenge to rebuild the wall and lead as a servant. Under the servant leadership of Nehemiah, the walls of the city that had been destroyed for 140 years, were rebuilt in 52 days. This was a result of Nehemiah praying, planning and trusting in God for the results. Often we think that God could not use us in such a powerful way. We must remember that Nehemiah was just a cupbearer but God used him to do unbelievable things because he was willing to lead with wisdom, integrity and with a servant’s heart.

The need of the hour is leaders like Nehemiah.

Leaders who have power with God in prayer. Leaders who possess moral integrity and honesty. Leaders who fear God

III. The Necessity of “Transformational Leadership” Nehemiah 2:1-8 Nehemiah was a man of great wisdom. He appealed to the King of Persia to allow him to go to Jerusalem to rebuild the wall and city. But it wasn’t done haphazardly. He planned his approach and proved himself to be a wise leader.

Nehemiah provides for us a clear picture of a “transformational leader.” He returned to Jerusalem after learning about the condition of the city and its inhabitants.

The text clearly reveals that as a leader he was very precise in his actions and successful in his undertakings because the wall was built in record time utilizing resources and people that God provided. There is one thing clear about this book and this man…he believed his calling was not only to rebuild the structure of the wall but he saw the need to impact the lives of the people by calling them to repentance and worship. Through this he helped the people regain their dignity, their calling and their standing with God.

Paul Phillips said, “Nehemiah is an exceptional leader. One reason Nehemiah is accessible as a leader is because there are no overt miracles; no parting of the Red Sea, no visit by an angel, Nehemiah never walks on water.

Instead, Nehemiah was a man who had a passion, who

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and love Gods people enough to be broken by the burden of hurting people. Leaders who will seek a vision from God and seek to accomplish the vision as they lead the people of God. Leaders who stand fearlessly for what is right and holy. That’s the kind of leadership that moves a church from mediocrity to greatness in the Kingdom.

Is your church a praying church? Do you saturate every decision with prayer? Prayer will insure victory but prayerlessness will certainly invite defeat.

V. The Necessity of “extreme” faith in God Nehemiah 1:11-2:8 Romans 10:17 says, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” It is clear that as you obey the word of God as Nehemiah did, God does greater things with your life that you could ever imagine.

Nehemiah’s faith was fixed in God. He knew what God could do. He knew that God is in control of everything and all circumstances. He knew that God could do anything. His faith was not in people or his own ability, but was rooted in God. Nothing could harm him because of his absolute trust and extreme faith in God. Isaiah 54:17 says “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.”

Nehemiah refused to stray from what God’s calling. He stayed true to the God-given vision. He was completely focused on bringing new life to Jerusalem and its people. Because of his extreme faith he finished the work of rebuilding the wall of the city and calling the people back to a right relationship with God.

How much faith does your leadership and congregation have? Is it mediocre faith or extreme faith? You must learn to trust God when he leads. If the congregation refuses to have faith in God your church will surely die.

VI. The Necessity of a Willingness to Work Together Nehemiah 3:1-32 In any project like building the wall there will always be opinions about how it ought to be done. Some will opt out of the process because they don’t get their way about some specifics while others will choose to accept God’s plan and seek to accomplish it. In Nehemiah’s case I’m sure there were many opinions given. Obviously Nehemiah ignored those who tried to interject their opinions and he began to divide the labor into segments to rebuild sections of the wall. This is one of the most extraordinary accounts of delegating work that is found in the Bible. Paul taught the same

concepts in the New Testament when he spoke of the body of Christ having many parts but all working together.

During the process of building the wall Nehemiah experienced many enemies and opponents. Some of the enemies were from without the city but there were also a few inside the ranks of the people. He appointed watchmen day and night to ward off any enemy. The leader must be careful and watchful at all times. Listen to Nehemiah 4:9…“Nevertheless, we made our prayers unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night because of them.” Later when his own life was threatened he replied in 6:11, “Should, such a man as I flee, and who is there and being as I am will go into the temple to save his life.” Nehemiah was never afraid of threats or enemies because he knew who had called him and who was in absolute control of the project. He knew that nothing could touch him as long as he was being obedient to God’s will. God will always protect his leader when he is doing the right thing with the right motive.

Does your congregation have a problem following God appointed leadership and are they willing to work together to accomplish a God-given vision?

Will you accept the call to renew and revitalize your church with Nehemiah’s principles? Will you seek to restore life (new life) to your congregation? It is costly. It is difficult. It is even scary at times but God will see you through if you make the commitment…if you will heed the call. In Nehemiah, God used a faithful leader and faithful lay persons to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem and give the hope of a new future.

Chuck Swindoll said, “God uses all manner of people in all manner of places doing all manner of work. God has placed you where you are for a purpose. Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father Colossians 3:17).” Pray about everything, care about the things of God and remember God sees your faithfulness.

Steve Sells is the president and CEO of Operation Transformation church revitalization ministry in Salisbury, North Carolina. Steve has served in ministry for 43 years in North Carolina and Georgia. Dr. Sells is the co-author of the book With Greater Power. He seeks to help churches of all sizes experience new health and growth.

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Job One

By David Jackson 2 Timothy 4:1-5 For many years, the Ford Motor Company had a slogan. It showed up in commercials, on billboards, and in print magazines. It simply declared, “Quality is job one.” Now, for those of us who owned Ford vehicles during that time, we may have disputed that claim. Others also may have questioned its validity and doubted its veracity. But few who heard the slogan in those days can forget it; the words were clear and to the point. The statement made impact.

What is your “job one,” your top priority as a revitalization pastor? There are many, many things that you must be able to do. From pastoral care to preaching to praying, from connecting with the community to counseling those in need to communicating clearly, you must be a resourceful generalist of the highest order. Most of us, in fact, do this as single-staffed leaders, undershepherds responsible and accountable for the whole flock of God under our care. It’s a heavy burden and an awesome privilege.

So where do we start? How do we prioritize our responsibilities? Where can we make the most impact for the King and His Kingdom in our revitalization ministry?

The answer starts with realizing only some of what we do has eternal impact. Pastoral care, counseling, engaging the community…these are temporal concerns, lasting for a lifetime perhaps. But preaching and praying, these reach beyond the grave. And while the apostles made clear early on that these two priorities were to be their focus in ministry (Acts 6:4), the apostle Paul’s final words help us to decipher what is job one for the revitalization pastor.

Forty-two years ago, I was ordained to the Gospel ministry. My dad--also my pastor--preached the Charge given to me at that Ordination Service, from the final words of the apostle Paul to his young protege, Timothy. These words, found in 2 Timothy 4:1-5, reveal to us what truly is “job one” for the revitalization pastor.

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and

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His kingdom: Preach the Word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.

As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. (2 Timothy 4:1-5, ESV)

If there was ever any doubt about what Paul thought most important, these closing words to Timothy seem to put that to rest. Paul charges Timothy to be focused on one primary thing: preaching the Word of God. Everything else the apostle has to say to his young co-laborer in ministry is ancillary to this reality. In fact, Paul devotes most his elaboration in the passage to exactly when, how, and why we must do this. But he also prefaces this command with an interesting reminder, and he closes the charge with attendant attitudes and actions that will be necessary to preach the Word, as he should.

You see, when we preach the Word as Paul instructed, we prescribe the one and only essential thing needed for the church to be revitalized: a vibrant, obedient relationship with Christ, who is the Head of His church.

So, let’s look at the passage in some detail, and see what Paul is saying. Much of it is obvious and won’t need a lot of explanation to unpack and explain. And to be sure, most of us have read this passage countless times; in fact, it may have even been read at your Ordination Service, as well. But as the Scripture often does (at least with me), new truths could be surfaced here that illuminate your service for our Lord in the church where you and I find ourselves today.

First, the command: preach the Word (v. 2). This is certainly the crux of the entire paragraph, and is fairly self-explanatory. The word “preach” means to “herald,” “announce,” or “pro-

claim,” if you were to look up the word and its original meaning. While this word could be elaborated in detail, this is done elsewhere, and thus, I will not spend more time on it here, except to say “preaching” is not the same as “teaching.” I hear far too many pastors today simply teaching (and they should according to 1 Timothy 3: 2, Ephesians 4:11, see later in verse two also, where teaching appears to be a part of preaching), and never really preaching. Typically, this means too much emphasis on information, explanation, and instruction, and not enough emphasis on the three “how’s” mentioned below—reprove, rebuke, exhort—critical it seems to Paul’s understanding of what preaching is all about.

My real concern here is the object of Paul’s command, and the focus of our preaching, which is clearly, unabashedly, and completely to be the Word of God. This Word is fully sufficient for our needs. Sadly, it seems many preachers today are declaring more of a self-help mantra than a divinely-inspired proclamation, more of a feel-good encouragement than a God-ordained mandate, more of a culturally-acceptable homily than a Christ-centered Word from the throne of God. And therein lies a great deal of trouble.

If we do not preach the Word, we have abdicated our responsibility to feed and protect the flock as the undershepherd of Christ in His church (see verses 3-4 below). Your words alone will never be good enough. Society offers no solutions to life’s eternal problems, only fads and theories. No, only Jesus does this, and only His Word has the authority to stand the test of time or assaults that will inevitably come. So, this must be our first commitment: We will preach, not simply teach, the eternal Word of God alone. Nothing else. Nada. For the Word of God is truth (John 17:17) and it stands forever (Isaiah 40:8).

When? Paul says we are to preach this message “in season, out of season,” likely an idiomatic phrase, meaning ‘be ready anytime, when it’s convenient and when it’s not.” Preaching “in season,” when it’s expected, as on Sunday mornings is somewhat predictable and anticipatory. You can prepare and craft a message clearly over many hours, even days. The apostle is challenging young Timothy to recognize the priority of such Gospel-preaching when he says this. But he is obviously stating the eagerness of motivation needed to move beyond obligation or duty when proclaiming the Word of God. We must also be ready “out of season,” so that we seize the opportunities to herald God’s Word, especially when it’s thrust upon us unexpectedly.

I can still remember during my college days, attending an ethnic worship experience, perhaps for the very first time. Do you recall that I mentioned previously my father was also my pastor during my “growing up” years? In point of fact, I had no other pastor until I left for college. In this all-important experience for me, I was visiting this precious church as a newly ordained young pastor. When the pastor, who was also a classmate of mine, recognized me there in the congregation,

I was asked to come up and sit on the platform through the duration of the service “with the other ministers.” I was also asked to give a brief message to the people, so with no more than twenty minutes’ notice, I turned their attention to Titus 2:11-14, and talked about “the grace of God appearing…, and the glorious appearance of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.” There was no time earlier in the week for me to prepare this; rather, my message flowed out of my relationship with God and my prior study of His Word.

This is important; this is imperative. Speaking “out of season” speaks to the value you personally place upon God’s Word and willingness to allow the timeliness of the message speak to the hearts of the audience God intends to receive it. We must always be ready to share God’s Word when the opportunity arises.

How? The apostle goes on to indicate this preaching should be done in the following ways: “reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with all patience and teaching.” Note that two out of three of these things are “correctives” in nature, negatives that must be reversed. How many of us as revitalization pastors spend large portions of our time preaching to reprove or rebuke?

Reprove means “to correct another(s),” and is especially done gently, as a teacher or a guide might do with a pupil or follower. “Rebuke” means “to express sharp disapproval,” “to warn or reprimand,” like a parent telling a child not to touch a hot stove. Both are meant to keep the listener safe and protected on the right path of life. They make sure the listener is going in the right direction and is aware of the boundaries around him. In addition, this provides him with security and an eagerness to now be equipped to move forward and make progress in life. This is done through the role of “exhorting,” which is “to urge or advise him earnestly” to continue the journey with determination, fully equipped for what’s ahead.

Every revitalizer must proclaim all three of these elements through the regular, consistent preaching of the full counsel of God. None can be excluded, and none should be avoided. The Bible in fact seems to clearly suggest that we cannot deal appropriately with the positive, affirmative mandates for our lives in Scripture, if we have not first dealt with the negative admonitions necessary. So, neglecting to “reprove” and “rebuke” are not helpful in the long run; they fail to warn hearers of the necessary and needed repentance and discipline God’s Spirit seeks to bring to our lives.

But here’s the real key for us, as we do this: it must be done in all patience and teaching. In my Ordination Charge forty-plus years ago, I really didn’t hear this part of the charge.

But now, as a replanter and revitalizer, I understand the importance of what the apostle is saying to young Timothy.

If we are proclaiming the full counsel of God, then we must expect two things: first, it will take a long time to see the responses needed, and second, the head must be satisfied before the heart will move to action. Let’s reflect on both of these for a moment.

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First, the need for patience. Paul’s reminder is that people don’t like change, and it doesn’t come easily to them, especially when it impacts their own behavior. As a result, the revitalizing pastor especially must be one who perseveres, who is willing to endure, and certainly, one who doesn’t give up quickly. Revitalizers who proclaim a God-centered, Gospel-based message are going to be met with resistance, for the Cross is a stumbling block. It will challenge and convict all who are living apart from its claim upon their lives. This is to be expected and anticipated. So, revitalizers must be diligent, intentional, longsuffering, and firm but gentle in this process.

They must demonstrate tactical, strategic patience.

Moreover, they must do this “with all teaching” and instruction. Aside from indicating clearly that teaching is a key characteristic of preaching, but not the whole of it, the inclusion of this phrase points out the necessity for both the rationale and the call to action to be included in the full proclamation of God’s Word. By rationale, I mean to suggest the text and its command upon life must make sense. With the Spirit’s conviction and direction into truth (John 14:26, 16:8, 13), the message will find confirmation as it is explained and proclaimed. In addition, the instruction will lead to application, the subsequent way(s) this truth is to be lived out before a lost and dying world. This process helps the hearer know what to do with his or her conviction and desire to respond.

And again, we are back to the intent of God’s authoritative Word; Scripture does not exist simply to inform, but to transform, those who hear it, for “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God” (Romans 10:17).

Why (v. 3)? Paul warns Timothy that he must do this, because people much prefer to have someone who preaches simple, easy and non-indicting messages…ones that will make them feel better, but ones that belie the truth of God’s Word. We see this all around us today, as pastors and congregations compromise the Word of God in a variety of ways: liberal churches today dilute the sufficiency of the Word by ignoring it completely or supplementing it extensively with other writings or texts, implying similar authority in them; contemporary churches today twist the intent of the Word to turn it into a self-help manual to meet all of our modern and post-modern problems. Many, it seems, only want “teachers to suit their own passions…and turn away from the truth” of God’s Word.

The apostle challenges the young minister to be vigilant, even prudent, in regard to these concerns. He reminds Timothy preaching is not a people-pleasing pursuit, it is a God-exalting stewardship. We cannot simply say what we want to make people feel better; we must declare the full import of the Almighty’s message, so they can know the truth.

You see, it is the Truth that will set them free (John 8:32). Otherwise, they will fall into deception of their own liking, but deception none the less, that will at best neutralize their witness

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for Christ, stagnate their faith in Him, and leave them shackled in sin and rebellion. At worst, it will keep them from truly knowing, loving, and serving the God of the universe, who sent His Son to die on the cross that they might have eternal life (John 3:16-17).

This could come at personal cost for Timothy, as Paul knew full-well from his own personal experience. Timothy could be ridiculed and rejected, persecuted or assaulted; his own life could be in danger. But Paul insists the young pastor not compromise the Gospel message or the full counsel of God’s Word. Ignorance is no longer an excuse (Acts 17:30), and it must be proclaimed boldly and sacrificially to set men and women free from the shackles of sin.

Revitalizer, you too may experience personal loss in proclaiming the full message of God’s Word. There will be people who want to eliminate parts of the Scripture, or explain them away as though they were archaic and for another time. They may oppose you, resist you, and even try to remove you from your post. But stand firm! Be strong in the Lord and the power of His might (Ephesians 6:10). Allow Christ to be your Advocate, and His Spirit, your Solace. Herald the Word clearly, consistently, and in a compelling manner, for it is God’s Word, not your own. Do not back down; do not water it down. Be courageous as you stand firm and see the salvation of the Lord (2 Chronicles 20:7).

The Reminder (v. 1): Paul began this conversation and charge to Timothy by reminding him of his personal accountability to God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord in this regard.

Preaching is not a whimsical, trivial pursuit; it is a God-given responsibility and stewardship. We will one day stand before the Judge, the One whose next appearing ends history, and whose kingdom we serve. So, our preaching is a high and holy calling; it is a sobering joy and burden. We are God’s servants will be held to a higher account for our leadership and our teaching (Hebrews 13:17; James 3:1). This is serious work for the Master, not to be taken lightly. So, any frivolous words, any misrepresentation of God’s Word, any proof-texting to make our point (instead of making God’s point): these are things by which God will judge us when we stand before Him.

It is rightly said, we have an audience of One. As a result, we must not be blown by the wind of popular opinion, bend in the breeze of societal whims, or tossed about by the waves of cultural coolness. We must “rightly handle the Word of God” (2 Timothy 2:15). When we stand before our Lord on the Day of our Accounting, this is the plumbline by which we will be measured, the benchmark by which we will be judged.

So, boldly proclaim God’s Word in all its truth; do not be ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It alone is the power of salvation to everyone who believes (Romans 1:16-17).

The Attendant Attitudes and Actions (v. 5): Paul closes this charge to his young protégé with the staccato imperatives that are to complement the preaching to which Timothy must devote himself in his pastoral ministry. They are four in number.

Always be sober-minded.

Endure suffering.

Do the work of an evangelist.

Fulfill your ministry.

These words, in particular, are important for revitalizers to hear today. If I may paraphrase, I’d say it something like this: take all of your work in ministry seriously. It is an eternal life and death matter. Some days it is easy to let Mr. Cranky or Mrs. Gossip get to you, enough to cause you to want to neglect them and their spiritual welfare, or even worse, to write them off, eternally. Don’t! Keep eternity in view, and recognize that only the next life will reveal the investment of every ounce of your energy and efforts for their wellbeing. So take your calling seriously as an undershepherd for God. Feed them.

Protect them. Care of them. Love them. And keep all this in proper perspective, with eternity in view.

Again, I paraphrase: put up with the harsh ridicule, abuse, and hardship you suffer as a revitalizer. Remember, Jesus suffered far more; Paul also suffered far more. Be strong and brave. “Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor in the Lord is not in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:58). So, share in suffering as a “good solider of Christ Jesus, …not getting entangled in civilian pursuits, since [your] aim is to please the one who enlisted [you]” (2 Timothy 2:3-4). In other words, you can handle suffering for the sake of your Commander-in-Chief, since you seek to please him, not the ones who are opposing you.

Paul goes on to say, “do the work of an evangelist.”

What is that work? Quite simply, it’s the ministry of sharing the Good News. This must be modeled before others, as leadership is more about what you do than simply what you say.

Another way of saying it is this: your actions will illustrate the veracity of your words. But it must not simply be modeled, as the Good News must be proclaimed. Like a town crier in imperial Rome or in colonial America, the preacher must confidently declare the Good News of Jesus’ atoning, substitutionary sacrifice for sinners. He must announce this victory over sin, death, and hell. He must call the lost to repentance through faith in Christ alone for salvation and eternal life.

Moreover, he must also demonstrate the Good News of faith and life in his service to others whenever and wherever He can. It is seen in the hope by which he helps and the joy with which he relishes life.

Finally, the apostle closes with a final admonition, and again I paraphrase, “cross the finish line of the assignment

and calling you’ve been given.” Don’t quit early! Don’t give up on people! Don’t abandon the flock! Fill up to completion the responsibility you have been given. Revitalizer, you must not forsake the family of faith, no matter how feeble they may be.

Like rebellious adolescents, they may act out and behave in misguided and antagonistic ways. But what they need from you is a steadfast determination to stable, godly leadership that remains by their side to demonstrate true love, compassion, and genuine commitment, through thick or thin.

This tangible, visible anchor of relationship will help them weather the storms of life and the inner turmoil of pain with a consistent, calming presence of one who cares for them, as they truly are, but more so, who they can become, in Christ. It is this presence that will help them, and you, cross the finish line of faith, and hear the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:23).

Yes, preaching the Word in its full and manifold truth is Job One for the revitalizing pastor. But living the Word, as depicted in verse four, is absolutely crucial if the words proclaimed from the pulpit are to be actualized in the lives of God’s people. This action shouts, for all to hear, the authority of God’s Word over your life and mine.

And so forty-two years ago, my father preached these words at my ordination service, and they still loudly ring in my ears, to this very day. Preach the Word, my son… in season, out of season. Reprove, rebuke, exhort with all patience and teaching…It is a clarion call for all pastors; it is a sobering, humbling responsibility, given to us by the Almighty, and handed to us by faithful preachers from generations past.

It is the ultimate stewardship, the highest honor, we may ever hold his side of heaven.

In so doing, each weekend we give voice to God’s living Word from His written Word. In so doing, we invite men and women to embrace the Spirit’s hand for eternity. In so doing, we herald the greatest news ever given, the coming of a Savior…for you and for me.

For us, this is Job One. J. David Jackson serves with the North American Mission Board as a Replant Specialist for the northeastern region of the United States.

He is author of the book “ReNEW: Traveling the Forgotten Path,” which forges a path of revitalization for local churches. The book can be found at amazon.com. Jackson can be reached at: drjdavidjackson@gmail.com.

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King of the Fence Sitters

By Mark Weible INTRODUCTION When I pastored a church in Texas, we kept the kids in the worship service during the music and then we would invite them to come and sit on the floor at the front of the auditorium. I would sit on the steps and share a simple “children’s sermon” usually with an object lesson before the main sermon. This was done strategically because I wanted the adults to see and hear the object lesson, which always directly related to the “rest of the sermon” (pronounced with Paul Harvey-like emphasis). I did this because Jesus often used object to teach a lesson and I discovered that, for many of the adults, this was the most memorable part of the sermon.

One Sunday, I brought a pot of dirt with me with no flowers, no plant – just dirt. I explained to the children (and the adults) that we had several of these around our house and I never knew if a new plant was going to sprout in that pot or if one had just died. Then, I glanced at my wife who gave me an unapproving look but I managed to get a chuckle out of the crowd. I told the children that I found some seeds in a drawer in an un-marked package. The seeds had been in that drawer for so long that the ink had faded, and no one knew what kind of seeds they were. So, I decided to plant them in this pot.

Since I did not know what kind of seeds they were and I did not know what kind of plants they would produce, I

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had not committed to watering the seeds. I told the children that I was just going to wait for the seeds to sprout before I decided to water the plants or to pull them up and throw them away. The children responded spontaneously by saying, “No, if you don’t water them, they will not grow!”

Well, just as I had hoped, the kids made the main point of my sermon – You can’t wait to see the results before you commit to the project.

BACKGROUND In Acts Chapter 5, we read the story of the apostles of Jesus in their early days of post-resurrection ministry. Verses 12-15 tell us that the apostles gathered in the temple area known as Solomon’s Portico. We know that the apostles were held in high esteem by the people, miracles were being performed there and that large numbers of men and women were believing in Jesus. The high priest and the Sadducees did not approve of what was going on, in fact, verse 17 says that they were jealous. So, they had the apostles arrested. But an angel of God let them out of prison and gave them instructions to go back to the temple and continue to proclaim the good news of Jesus.

The apostles obliged and at daybreak, they were back in the temple teaching again. Now, the high priest and the Sadducees had intended to put these men on trial and when they sent the officers to retrieve them from the prison, they weren’t there! Look at verse 22, ““We found the prison se-

curely locked and the guards standing at the doors, but when we opened them we found no one inside.” Then in verse 25, someone came in and said, “Look! The men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people.” Now, the captain of the guard and the officers were afraid. Not, because God had let the men that they wanted to prosecute out of prison. No, they were afraid of the people. So, instead of arresting the apostles again, they persuaded them to come before the Sanhedrin.

In verse 28, the high priest began to question them by saying, saying, “We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.” Look how Peter and the apostles responded in verse 29.

“We must obey God rather than men.” When the apostles continued by proclaiming the gospel to the Sanhedrin, the council became angry and wanted to kill the apostles. Just then, a Pharisee named Gamaliel stepped in to save the day with a compromise. Now Gamaliel was highly thought of as a Pharisee.

OUTLINE: I. GAMALIEL’S PLAN a. Lessons from history (35-37) b. Leave them alone (38a) II. GAMALIEL’S RATIONALLE a. If it is a man’s plan, it will fail (38b) b. If it is God’s plan, it cannot fail (39a) c. You don’t want to oppose God (39b) III. GAMALIEL’S MISTAKE a. It was God’s plan b. Gamaliel did not support it c. People got hurt (v. 40) CONCLUSION: Gamaliel is often viewed as the hero of this story, but I don’t see it that way at all. Gamaliel is not the hero; he is the villain. Gamaliel’s inaction resulted in the Apostle’s being physically beaten and commanded not to speak in the name of Jesus again – a direct contradiction to the commands of Christ in Matthew 28. Gamaliel’s response to the gospel was not to act in faith, but to respond in fear. He feared the people and he feared his fellow Phrases. Gamaliel, at this point in his life, missed out on the blessings of God and possibly eternal life through Christ.

APPLICATION We are facing many challenges in our church today and we have a bold opportunity before us to step out in faith. Now, some of you have embraced that opportunity while some of you have indicated that you are not yet ready to accept the challenge. You have asked for time to pray and to process the information that has been presented to you and, as you agree, you have been given plenty of time. Now is the time to make a choice. You can’t just sit on the fence like Gamaliel and say, “If it is of God, it will succeed and if it is not of God, it will fail.” That is a cowardly statement.

Gamaliel had a chance to become a follower of Jesus and to join the movement that he started. However, he chose to sit on the fence and watch what happens. Just like my pot of dirt here. I have to make a commit to water the seeds and norther the plant. An if I don’t, I’ll miss out on a blessing and end up with what I have now – a dead pot of dirt.

Jesus said in Luke 9:50, that is someone is not for you, they are against you. Well Gamaliel was certainly not for the Apostles – he did nothing to keep them from being beaten and He did nothing to advance the cause of the Gospel.

Gamaliel did not even have faith the size of a mustard seed.

How about you? Where do you stand? All of the information has been presented to you, you’ve weighed the pros and the cons. What have you decided? Are you going to stay on the fence or step out in faith? There is no honor in the middle. It is either yes or no, up or down, hot or cold.

Jesus said in Revelation 3:16, that if you want to be a fence sitter, He wants nothing to do with you: “So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.” Now is your chance to do the right thing.

Mark Weible serves as the Church Planting Director of the Greater Orlando Baptist Association and the strategic Director of the Renovate National Church Revitalization Conference. Mark has a wealth of experience as a church planter and local church coach. Mark is passionate about church multiplication, renewal, planting, and coaching.

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The Heart of the Problem

By Jim Grant When looking at the various reasons of why a church has declined to an anemic state requiring drastic measures to survive, there must be the first investigation of the people in the situation. In other words, I believe that the heart of the problem in revitalization is the problem with the heart.

The preaching of revitalization can take many different courses. Often, we look at books of the bible such as Ezra, Nehemiah, Ezekiel or even the Letters to the Seven Churches in Revelation. However, I want to look at the individual believer in regard to revitalization. I have found after 25 years of ministry, that the Church [people] are the most critical variable in revitalizing a church. Now, there are many aspects of the church that could be investigated, but my thought is the spiritual dynamic of the church [believers].

Reorganization and refocusing the church on the mission is important. Strategic planning has its place. But if the Heart of the people are not affected, then we could wind up just rearranging the chairs on the deck of the Titanic! Revitalization takes into consideration both the strategic initiatives necessary, as well as the spiritual dynamics. Jerry Bridges has written two books that I believe identify the work of God in the person of God for revival and revitalization; “The Pursuit of Holiness and the Practice of Godliness.” I will use what Bridges has written about practicing godliness in this article.

There are three specific areas I want to highlight: Godliness Towards God; the disciplines of godliness, and finally our godliness in how we treat others.

To begin we first must establish a working definition of Godliness. Bridges expresses Godliness at “Devotion to God which results in a life that is pleasing to Him.”3 The focus or aim of godliness is none other than to be pleasing to God. As we discovered in earlier messages as children of God, we are to be holy, like He is holy. This holiness encompasses our relationship to God, our battle with the flesh and the strength of the Holy Spirit which enables us to be holy. But to say that you are holy without some outward expressions that such is true, holiness then just becomes a mystical religious concept. The proof of our holiness is the life we live out before others. If we put to practice the Word of God in our lives, then we will develop the character of God, and take on His attributes. A believer that is growing in holiness will develop the Fruit of the Spirit. It is important to say that godliness is not something we do, but something that we become. If we are “walking in the Spirit” the fruit of the Spirit will be manifested.4

This first part of this message looked at Godliness Towards God. The first relationship which should express our godly growth is the personal relationship with the Godhead. Godliness towards God is expressed as our devotion to God. Matthew 22:37 and Deuteronomy 6:5, which tells believers that we are to love the Lord God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength.

Bridges indicates that devotion to God is Godliness, which results in Godlikeness.5 In order to be godly, we first must be rightly related to God. Bridges explains that devotion to God will be evident in our:6

Matthew 22:37; And He said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’

1. Fear of God 2. Our Love for God 3. Desire for God

Deut. 6:5; You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.1

To be devoted to God means that we want to please Him in all things. Jesus the Son of God had such a focus. All He did was pleasing to the father. (John 8:29) Since Jesus is our example, we should strive to be pleasing in all things to the Father as well. 1 Corinthians 10:31 and Colossians 3:17 tell the believer to whatever we do in word or deed, to do it to the glory of the Father.

This challenges our very motive for service. The motive for living godly is to be pleasing to God in all things.

Devotion requires being sold out, total surrender and focusing only on the audience of one – God. Believers are to seek to please the Father. This requires awe, respect, love, and passion.

It needs to be said of every believer that which was said of David, “he was a man after God’s own heart.” 7

Now that the foundation has been laid for living holy lives; we need to understand what a holy life looks like and how this holiness translates to godly living. For this, I will be using Jerry Bridges’ book Practice of Godliness, the sequel book to the Pursuit of Holy as a guide and resources.2 Over the next three weeks I will be preaching about how our holiness translates to godly living with God, with ourselves and with others.

As we begin looking at how to live the holy life it makes sense that there should be some visible evidence that holiness is lived out. This is where the practice of godliness comes in. Specifically, I will be investigating godliness as it relates to God, as it relates to me and how godliness relates to others.

1 Matt. 22:37; Deut. 6:5. Unless otherwise noted, all scripture is taken from New American Standard Bible, The Lockman Foundation, (Anaheim: Foundation Publications, Inc.,1996.)

2 Jerry Bridges, Practice of Godliness, NavPress: Colorado Springs, 1983.

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3 Jerry Bridges, Practice of Godliness, NavPress: Colorado Springs, 1983.

4 Gal. 5:16-17.

5 Jerry Bridges, Practice of Godliness, NavPress: Colorado Springs, 1983, 13.

6 Jerry Bridges, Practice of Godliness, NavPress: Colorado Springs, 1983, 14.

7 1 Sam. 13:14.

The love of God constrains or compels us to serve Him.8 Out of Christ’s love for us and our love for Him; we are compelled to live for Him who died for us.

The first step towards devotion to God begins with a Fear of God. The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom.9 The Israelites were commanded to have no other gods but Yahweh. They were to have a fear for God that kept them from sinning. A fear that was based on the judgment of God. Many years ago, most of the preaching from the pulpit was Hell Fire and Brimstone. Sadly, today very little is mentioned about the wrath of God. But the fear of the Lord goes beyond scare tactics. Our fear should also have at its heart the majesty and power of God. We should hold an awe and honor towards God that we want to obey out of love and admiration. I remember that I use to obey my dad out of fear.

I was afraid of the punishment I would receive if I did not obey.

This made me behave. As I grew older, I obeyed my dad not out of fear only, but out of love for him. I wanted to please him. This same should be said of believers in obeying the lord. The closer we get to Jesus the more we see His holiness and our sinfulness.

This should cause us to fall on our face before God like it did Isaiah.10

Secondly, devotion to God requires that we Love God. Our focal passage in Matthew 22:37 and Deut. 6:5 explain that while this is a command, it is also a responsibility. We do not love God just with our emotions. Our love for God must encompass our entire being our heart, will, emotions, desires, and strength.

This love for God does not originate with us. We love God because He first loved us.11 God loved us while we were yet unlovable, and He sent Jesus to die for us.12 We are to love God for what He has done for us (Calvary); and what He wants to do in us (Godlikeness). As believers we need to come to grips that there is nothing we can do (good or bad) that will change the love of God for us. He loves us because He is Love. I must respond to His love, not out of obligation, but out of desire for more of Him in more of me!

Thirdly, devotion to God also includes our Desire for God.13 As the Psalmist says it, we should desire God the way a deer pants after water. The more we desire God, the more we want of Him. The more we want to be around Him and fellowship with Him. Like a young man in love with a girl; our desire for God should saturate our thinking and actions. The believer must have a thirst and hunger for God. God should be the desire of our heart. God knows our heart just as He knew David’s. Our prayer should be that our heart would be pure in motive and love for God. We should desire intimacy and fellowship with the Father.

Godliness comes from a foundation of growing devotion for God.

As believers we will not automatically be completely devoted to God. Nor will we at once be totally surrendered to Him. We must grow in grace and knowledge of God and our new life in Christ. To be godly the believer must grow. Growth is a natural activity for the human body; it should be for the spiritual body as well. Godliness like sanctification is an on-going process. The believer must do his part to grow. Growing in Christ requires certain disciplines in the life of the believer. We must come up with

8 2 Cor. 5:14.

9 Ps. 111:10.

10 Is. 6:1-8.

11 1 John 4:9-10.

12 Rom. 5:8.

13 Ps 42:1-2.

new practices or habits that will produce in us godlikeness. These are: prayer, fellowship, worship, obedience, and mediation on God’s Word. These disciplines are not for super saints but should be part of the normal Christian life. Sometimes we must make ourselves do what we know is right. These disciplines are for our own benefit. The practice of these disciplines will enable us to grow in our devotion towards God, in fear, love and desire. Next week we will look at what the believer must do to be godly in the inner man.

Next, we find that Godliness is reflected in my relationship with God. It is not so much my godliness, but God’s character at work in me.

In 1 Cor 9:24-27; Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things.

Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we for an incorruptible crown. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so, I fight, not as one that beateth the air: But I keep under my body and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I should be a castaway.

The subject of Godliness is directed towards the life of the believer. Specifically, I want to address the Fruit of the Spirit called Self-Control. There are other Fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5:22-23 and 2 Peter 1:4-9 that I could have used, but I have the belief that if I am to be godly, the greatest impact on my godliness is my own self-control.

Self-control is defined by Bridges in Practice of Godliness as the exercise of inner strength under the direction of sound judgment that enables us to do, think and say the things that are pleasing to God.14

As we continue our quest for the Sanctification of Our Souls, we continue the journey towards godliness. The focus of this part of the message is for the believers to see the need to be godly internally. If a person is going to be godly in his actions, attitudes, and thoughts; there must be a change on the inside. As we learned in our pursuit of holiness, believers are still sinners. We still battle and struggle with the Old Nature within us. If we are to be godly, we need to have our bodies under control. Self-control is the theme of this message. Many of us spent years being under the control of our sinful nature. The believer has been set free from the reign of sin in their life, but we must constantly suppress the old man within us. Otherwise, we may be like Paul suggested, preaching the Gospel, yet being disqualified because of our own failure to keep our bodies under subjection.

This message is for me and what I need to do grow in godlikeness. This desire to bring my body under control stems from my desire to be pleasing to the Father in all things. Again, if we are walking in the Spirit, we will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. It can be concluded that if we are under the influence of the Spirit and growing in godliness, then the Fruit of the Spirit will be evident. The fruit is developed out of a heart devoted to God. Out of the heart come the issues of life.15

This part of the message will identify those disciplines necessary to train us and grow us in godlikeness, while bringing our bodies under the authority of the Holy Spirit. This ser-

14 Jerry Bridges, Practice of Godliness, NavPress: Colorado Springs, 1983, 134.

15 Matt 15:19. Unless otherwise noted, all scripture is taken from New American Standard Bible, The Lockman Foundation, (Anaheim: Foundation Publications, Inc.,1996

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mon takes a hard look at who I am and why I do what I do. Part of being godly is being disciplined. Paul uses the illustration of someone training for an athletic event. He describes the training that must go on for one to compete. The goal of competing is to win the crown. Paul explains that the believer is also competing for a prize, but an incorruptible prize. I have watched the Olympics and watched the world athletes strive to win the gold medal.

The victory too many times was short lived because the athlete tested positive for some illegal drug. They were disqualified from further competition. The same holds true for the believer. We all strive to be like our God in holiness and godliness. We incorporate all the necessary Christian disciplines in our lives to train us to be God like, or so we think. Often the nominal believer adds only a “church life” not a disciple life to his salvation. Without the godly disciplines in place to combat the evil within us, many we know have been disqualified for ministry because they did not compete according to the standard of holiness. Paul warns us to bring our bodies under control. We cannot afford to have the old man rear his ugly head and eliminate us for our pursuit of holiness and godlikeness.

As has been mentioned, the disciplines needed for godliness towards God, they are the same disciplines needed for our inner being. We must be in the Word of God; we must be praying, fellowshipping, and worshiping God. If we are not, we will be weak when the temptation comes, and we will fail. It is only as we continue be devoted to God, that we will escape coming under control of the old man again.

The believer is in control of whether the goal of godliness is achieved. It is our choice as to whether we serve the flesh or the Spirit. The believer is to be in control over his human desires and appetites.

Self-control often means denial. Jesus said that if any man wants to follow Him, they will have to deny himself, and die daily.16 The war that rages in us between the Flesh and Spirit is on-going.17 It will not stop as long as we have breath. We choose who wins the war. A word of caution, a win today does not mean a win tomorrow.

In order to be godly, our heart must be right. I mentioned Matthew 15:19 earlier, and how out of our heart comes the issues of life. In other words, the real me, is revealed by what I do and say. All of us have a sin that we struggle with; it is only as we exercise self-control can we live free of sin. We must control our passion, sensual and physical appetites or they will control us.

As children of God, we must seek to please God in our bodies and not gratify the lusts of the flesh.18 We must be temperate, sober and constantly on alert to the sinful nature within us.

As our definition of self-control stated, we need to have the inner strength to say no to sin and yes to godliness.

This takes wisdom of what to do and how to do it.

Knowledge is not enough. We must properly apply the Word of God to our lives. Self-control requires that there are limits to what I can do and cannot do, based on biblical convictions. While Paul said that he had all freedom in Christ, he still understood that not all things were beneficial to him.19

16 Luke 9:23.

17 Gal 5:16-17.

18 Rom. 6:12.

19 1 Cor. 6:12.

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Self-control is carried out by honoring God with our bodies by what we eat and drink; not being lazy and refraining from sexual immorality. Our bodies are the Temple of God. We should treat them like the vessels of God.20

Part of our bodies is our minds. Too many believers do not control what they feed their minds. We feed on the things of the world; then we cannot figure out why we are tempted so much by the junk of the world. Philippians 4:8, reveals the things we should be thinking on. We also should not put our bodies into position where they can be tempted. If you know of a certain passion or desire that causes you to sin, stay away!21

Again, I remind you that our focus should be on pleasing God, and not ourselves. I have found that there are times I want to sin. This occurs when I am thinking about how I can be pleased. It is all about me and my needs. I must have the inner strength of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God in me to combat the sinful nature that wants to come back alive in me.

We have a choice on what we let hold mastery over us.

Our inner attitudes and thoughts directly affect our walk with the Lord. A defeated believer is one who replaced devotion for God with devotion to self.

The truth of the matter we fight the battle for control in our minds.22 This is the same place Eve fought the battle in the Garden of Eden. All of us have outside stimulus entering into our mind through our senses. The question is what will we do with them? We must understand that our passions and desires are not evil in themselves, but out of control they will destroy us and lead to death. We all know our weaknesses, and they are different for each person. We need to quit feeding the monkey! You and I are not strong enough to defeat the old sinful nature. We must be in the Word of God, relying on the Spirit of God to defeat sin in our lives. Recognize that evil is in you, and do not play around with it.

It is your choice of which person you allow to have mastery over you. If you feed the flesh, the old man will rule you. If you stay devoted to God, the Spirit will control you and produce its Fruit in you. Which do you choose?

Next, we will look at the final aspect of godliness, when we look at how we are to treat others.

Colossians 3:12-13; Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.

The proof of our godliness and holiness is found in the relationship we have with others. If our personal godliness is only known to us, then we have become nothing more than a religious person striving to gain mastery over human nature. We must remember the aim of our holiness and godliness is to be pleasing to God in all that we do, while becoming Christ like. The test of whether we are growing in godliness is not our opinion, but the opinion of others. The Fruit of the Spirit that most directly relates to our godliness towards other is the fruit Patience or Longsuffering as it is sometimes referred to. Our passage in Colossian 3 reveal that as believers there are somethings that we should be “putting on” in our character. Previously, Paul discussed the taking “off of the old nature” and habits that no longer are commensurate for a believer.

20 1 Cor. 6:19.

21 Bridges, 135 22 Bridges, 143

Paul uses a series of words to convey our godliness towards others. He uses words such as mercy, kindness, humbleness, meekness, and longsuffering. These are also Fruit of the Spirit which should be growing in the inner man. These words describe an ethos towards those that are outside the faith, but also inside the faith.

The use of the word patience in this passage does not necessarily refer to having the ability to wait. However, if patience and longsuffering have been perfected, the believer will exhibit a calmness and ability to be still before God.

Patience as a Fruit of the Spirit and Christian virtue describes a person who reacts in a godly manner in a variety of difficult situations.23

But how do we get patience so that we can respond in a godly way in difficult situations? James is clear how we gain patience; it is through trials. (James 1:2-4). Many people ask for patience, not knowing that trials and tribulations are coming their way. As someone once said, to find out what a person is made of, just squeeze them. I have to admit there are times I do not like what comes out of me when I am tested. If our Christianity is to be of any merit or have the ability to witness to the Lost; we must live out our faith in front of them. Just so there are not any misconceptions, the lost world is not the only source of mistreatment and frustration to us; other believers can also be a great source of irritation.

Now no one wants to be mistreated, abused, ridiculed, or even persecuted. But this does happen to all of us from time to time; especially if we are seeking to live holy lives before the Father. We must admit as believers, when difficulties come our way, we struggle. Often the struggle we have with the trials and testing is that we take it so personal. We are surprised that bad things happen to us. We should not be surprised, Jesus told us that if they persecuted Him, that they (unbelievers) would persecute us.

(John 15:20) We think that people are attacking us, when in fact they are still attacking Jesus. They just happen to be attacking the Jesus that is becoming more visible in your humanity. Actually, this is a compliment that your growth in godliness is real.

How we react when difficulties come our way is what Paul is addressing. Our response will glorify God or makes us out to look like hypocrites. We need to trust in God; He knows how to take care of any situation. He just wants to find out if you will let Him, or will you take matters into your own hands? When we are mistreated, Romans 12:19 tells us to let God take revenge. Besides most of us will do more harm to the situation by letting our emotions and thoughts cause us to sin. This really reminds us of how that we are to have our inner man under control.

When we are directly confronted by an adversary, we have a choice to make; we can stoop down to their level or take the high road. We need to remember it take two people to quarrel and fight; choose not to be the second person.

Yes, we will have to humble, and most likely must turn the other cheek? So, turn the other cheek. Matthew 5:39 clearly says that we are not to fight; obviously this will destroy our potential witness before the world. James tells us that we need to be “slow to anger.” (James 1:19)

If we are becoming more like Christ, then it should be evident in the way we respond to people. As a Pastor, I have come to realize that ministry would be easy if it were not for the people. Now that may sound bad, but the truth is people cause us

conflict. Often, we react to conflict rather than respond. As the “elect of God” we are to do all things from a heart of love. If we are truly devoted to pleasing God, then it will not matter what others do to us. How many Christians have lost their testimony by overreacting and becoming emotional about something that was inconsequential? Too many of us!

As believers we need to see that God allows trails to come into our life to test us and grow us deeper in our devotion to Him. Patience is the Fruit of the Spirit that is most intimately connected to our devotion to God.24

Colossians 3:12-13 goes further in admonishing us to be forgiving, just as Christ has forgiven us. We need to forgive others. If we do not forgive others, then it is reasonable that we will not be forgiven. (Matthew 6:12) This means to be longsuffering towards others. Just as Christ is patient with our inability to measure up to His standards, we also must be tolerant towards other misgivings.

Often, I am exasperated over people who I think should be better than they are. Rather than busting on them, we should show humility towards them. Too often we run people down for their faults and shortcomings. We often get put out with people because they do not meet our expectations. That attitude is nothing more than pride. We think that we are better than them.

The proper attitude is to love people the way that Jesus loves us.

Finally, patience causes us to wait on the Lord. Believers are in way too much of a hurry. We live in a microwave era where we want everything done now. God is not in a hurry. God’s timing is not our timing, neither are His ways our ways. But His ways are right all the time. The cure for our impatience is to believe in His promise, obey His will and leave the results to Him.25

As we display the Fruit of the Spirit towards others God will be made known and the Lost will come to salvation. Our godliness before men will open the pathway for us to tell them the life changing Gospel of Jesus.

In this message, we found that there are three significant areas of our redeemed lives that must reflect the holiness of God in us. We must Know GOD, we must have the character of God and we must act like God in our actions towards others.

Godliness is not about being good but being God-like.

While is it effective to hear a sermon, often for the world we live in, it is better to see a sermon. Be the sermon that draws the world to the Father!

24 Bridges, 179.

25 Bridges, 179.

Jim Grant is the Executive Director of the Galveston Baptist Association. He is an Air Force veteran, retiring with twenty-five years of service. His extensive travels allowed him the unique opportunity to serve in a full spectrum of churches with various styles and ranges of spiritual health. He has a master of divinity degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a Doctorate of Ministry degree from Midwestern Baptist Theological seminary with a concentration on Church Revitalization.

23 Bridges,168

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The Leadership Link:

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Pushed to the Edge From Exodus 14:5-16; 28

By Michael Atherton Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder! What is beautiful and inspiring to one may not be to another. Recently, I found myself engrossed in a television program in which a man was creating artwork. What seemed somewhat normal at first glance, however, was actually quite the opposite. This man was not creating art with paints, pencils, or colors. Rather, he was making his masterpiece with human vomit. When the man finished his so-called work of art, he turned to the cameras and concluded his program by sharing a rather lengthy message, but the major thrust of it was this: beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder.

Most people would agree with this assertion. The Grand Canyon is grand only to some; to others, it is simply one enormous hole. Some see the Rocky Mountains as awe-inspiring, while others find them to be a road bump that they can do without. Some can gaze all day at the beauty found in a botanical garden, yet others find the garden represents an afternoon of allergy symptoms. Whether one considers a major landmark or a piece of artwork, a park or a building, a person or a picture, beauty lies in the eye of the beholder.

If this statement is true, then when one observes the church, what does one see? Is the local church a masterpiece or simply a piece of work? Does she exhibit the beauty that her Creator purposed her to embody? As a pastor, I have been in many meetings in which church leaders have set out to render a judgment on the beauty of the church. These pronouncements would go far beyond the scope of paint jobs and flower beds. Is the church measuring up to the standards put forth in Scripture? Is the church living out the principles of Scripture? Is the church making advances in the Kingdom of God? In short, we are asking this question: if beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder, does God find the church to be beautiful?

If we were honest, we would recognize that many things have hindered us from truly embracing the work of Christ in the local church. The scope of a pastor’s life and responsibilities range from sitting on every committee to cleaning up the nursery messes and from scheduling potlucks to changing lightbulbs, not to mention the need to serve up the Bread of Life. Yet before pastors feel puffed up with pride by looking around at all they do, they need to recognize this reality is not much different for the lay leader. A forty-plus-

hours-a-week job that used to consume the biggest bite of one’s time now becomes the much-needed vacation away from the pace of after-hours activities—sports, camping, traveling, Cub Scouts, piano recitals, and church responsibilities, to name a few. All the while, the cause of Christ has suffered neglect.

In addition, there seems to be a tendency in churches today to rely solely on community surveys, polls, and reports to shape the direction of the church. In our feeble attempts to become relevant and accessible, there looms the temptation to succumb to a seeker-friendly movement that includes diluted preaching that won’t offend, weak teaching that won’t direct, and watered-down worship that is impressive to the ear but meaningless to the soul. This mindset says that if we want to reach people for Christ, we must subscribe to every principle found in a church growth book. That is not at all to say that these books don’t have their place, but why should the church settle for amusing people when, through Christ, they can be amazed?

If things do not change, we are living in a time where we continue to see a present-day church that persists but is largely ineffective. Small groups will carry on but remain underpopulated, and baptisteries will stay dry. These outcomes should not be accepted and cannot be tolerated. God has so much more in mind for His church!

So what is the answer? We must move ourselves back onto God’s agenda, regardless of the cost. We must concern ourselves with the beauty of the church as seen by our Lord.

Those things that matter to God must become our supreme priority. G. K. Chesterton said it best when he said that people do not want “a church that will move with the world, [rather] a church that will move the world.” If the church is going to serve as the life-transforming institution that she was created to be, her leaders will need, once again, to seek the church’s course on their knees. The church today is in desperate need of renewal and revitalization.

Definition of Church Revitalization: A technical definition of revitalization carries with it the notion of instilling new vigor, renewing hope, and redirecting or redefining purpose. In essence, we are making someone or something that was formerly vital again vital. Therefore,

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church revitalization is the process in which a church is renewed in their determination to experience healthy and sustained spiritual, numerical, and organizational growth by refocusing on their God-given mission as expressed through their obedience to Scripture.

Transition: Have you ever been responsible to lead a people into a new reality…very different from their past reality? Let me catch you up on the history.

• Moses is now leading the Israelites.

• They have already experienced the plagues.

• Pharaoh begged them to leave (Exodus 12:31-32) • They walked around the Philistine country (Exodus 13:17) • Pharaoh realized he had made mistake and set out to recapture to Israelites.

• The Israelites stopped and were overtaken.

• Then the Israelites said, why did you take us from Egypt, didn’t you know we didn’t want to come?

This is where we catch us up with Moses’ answer. Let’s see what is taking place as we ready our text. Read Text...

Exodus 14:5-16; 28.

When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them and said, “What have we done? We have let the Israelites go and have lost their services!” 6So he had his chariot made ready and took his army with him. 7He took six hundred of the best chariots, along with all the other chariots of Egypt, with officers over all of them. 8The LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out boldly. 9The Egyptians—all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots, horsemen£ and troops—pursued the Israelites and overtook them as they camped by the sea near Pi Hahiroth, opposite Baal Zephon.

10 As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the LORD. 11They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? 12Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!”

13 Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again.

14 The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

15 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. 16Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground.

17 I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them. And I will gain glory through Pharaoh and

all his army, through his chariots and his horsemen. 18The Egyptians will know that I am the LORD when I gain glory through Pharaoh, his chariots and his horsemen.”

The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen—the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived.

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As Moses led a people to embrace a new reality, what did he tell them?

1. Revitalizers encourage people to not fear the future There are a lot of things you and I are afraid of. I found a list of phobias that I thought would be neat to share.

• Cyberphobia: fear of computers; • Ecclesiophobia: fear of church; • Lunaphobia: fear of the moon; • Astraphobia: fear of lightning; • Chrometophobia: fear of money; • Europhobia: fear of the color red; • Homilphobia: fear of sermons; • Triskaidekaphobia: fear of the #13, • Peladophobia: fear of baldness, • Phobophobia: fear of fear.

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The sources of fear are two.

1. The fear of the past, in Israel’s case, was the chariots of Egypt bent on revenge. In our case it is often the failures of our pasts which come back to haunt us.

2. The fear of the future, in Israel’s case, was the uncertainty of the wilderness. In our case it is also not knowing what the future holds.

The shackles of fear are obvious. Fear can discourage, even paralyze. Christians today like Israel of old sometimes find themselves trembling on the shore of some uncrossable sea. The strength which dispels fear comes not from within us but from above us. It is the reassurance of the Lord of the universe: “Fear not.” Only He can truly dispel fear. If God is for us, who can be against us?

2. Revitalizers challenge people to stand firm (v. 13) The brink is a precarious place to stand. It is a place from which we, like Israel, like to run.

1. We can try to run backwards, to retreat into the security of the past. Israel entertained this idea numerous times in the wilderness.

2. We can try to run away, to escape the challenges of following God. Shallow belief and cheap religion always vanish in the face of challenge.

But God’s message to a people on the brink is to “stand firm.”

1. Our world is full of fleeing people. They are running from bad relationships, difficult jobs, challenging situations.

2. But somehow, even in the face of the greatest challenge, faith takes a stand. Know who you are, trust in the God you serve and resolve that you will not be moved.

Illustration: There is a story told of a minister who took his son to the circus and while there learned a powerful lesson. The minister writes, “The clowns were particularly good and the last one of them was a little fellow wearing a very wonderful high hat. While he was bowing elaborately to a dignified woman, his hat fell off and an elephant sat on it.

“The clown gestured wildly at the elephant, but the beast sat still. He waved and shouted again and again, but the elephant never budged. Angrily the clown stepped behind the elephant and kicked with all his strength, and hopped away with a sore foot in his hands.

“Then, frantic with anger, the little clown turned back to the elephant and tried to lift him off the hat. Defeated and in complete despair, the clown sat down and started to eat peanuts. The elephant was interested in peanuts and got up, ambled over, and begged for one!”

Application: That was a powerful illustration for that minister. He realized that he’d just witnessed a spiritual object lesson: You can’t accomplish anything for God by crabbing and kicking at the world (or your spouse, child, neighbor or co-worker!).

3. Revitalizers remind the people to look and see the deliverance (Salvation) of the Lord. (v. 13-14) Webster’s Dictionary: Salvation = the act of saving; state of being saved; the deliverance of the soul from sin and death Though the brink is a fearful and uneasy place to stand, it is also the best place to observe what God can do.

1. God had brought Israel to this place for the very purpose of demonstrating His power to save.

2. The sea they saw as the edge of disaster, now becomes the threshold of salvation.

God acts in decisive ways to demonstrate that it is He alone who can truly save. This is the great message of this text.

1. For Israel, the miraculous crossing, the manna, quail, water, the defeat of the Amalekites all demonstrated this great truth.

2. In man’s extremity is God’s opportunity. It is precisely when we are at our “end,” when the situation seems most hopeless that God does His greatest works.

Illustration: We need to be careful to understand here, the deliverance that God promises does not come from a fake or an impostor. He is the real deal. This reminds me of a comical story: “Mister, why doesn’t this cow have any horn?” asked the young lady from a nearby city on a field trip to the country.

The farmer cocked his head for a moment, then began in a patient tone, “Well, ma’am, cattle can do a powerful lot of damage with horns. Sometimes we keep’em trimmed down with a hacksaw. Other times we can fix up the young’uns by puttin’ a couple of drops of acid where their horns would grow in, and that stops’em cold. Still there are other breeds of cattle that never grow horns. But the reason this cow don’t have no horns, ma’am, is cause it’s a horse.

Application: You see this morning in the midst of fear I encourage not only to fear not, stand firm, but also to see the salvation of the Lord. But there is something very important to understand about the salvation of the Lord. It is for everyone! Let me explain why this is so important.

Conclusion: Columnist Herb Caen wrote in the San Francisco Chronicle: “Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed.

Every morning a lion wakes up. It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn’t matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle; when the sun comes up, you’d better be running.”

Let’s Pray!

Michael Atherton has served as the Senior Pastor of First Baptist Church of O’Fallon, O’Fallon, MO for 15 years. Leading a church in a church merger, he has learned firsthand the challenges of a revitalizer. Mike is the author of The Revitalized Church. Mike leads a Mentored Master of Divinity program at Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary and is past President of the Colorado Baptist Convention.

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Does God really set people free?

Or are we just talking?

Transformational Discipleship was developed to train leaders how to guide both brand-new and longtime believers towards deep spiritual change.

This training is foundational for every believer. It guides people who are stuck on their faith journey due to unresolved, often hidden issues in their lives towards true spiritual, emotional and mental freedom through intimacy with God.

“It’s not like anything I have been through before.”

Pastor John Wright, Titusville, FL “This is life transforming. I’m going to teach the socks off this thing.”

Dr. Phil Phillips, Ft. Myers, FL

Is Your Church a Normal or an Abnormal Church?

By Tracy Jaggers INTRODUCTION: Read the entire passage: Acts 2:41-47 (NKJV) 41 Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them.

42 And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.

43 Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.

44 Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, 45 and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need.

46 So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.

Now, before we forge ahead, let us consider the background and context of these verses.

BACKGROUND: The setting of Chapter One was forty days after the resurrection. [1 Corinthians 15:3-8 is the most comprehensive list of resurrection appearances]: 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 (NKJV) 3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve.

6 After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remains to the present, but some have fallen asleep.

7 After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles.

8 Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time.

1) Jesus met with His disciples and commanded them to wait in Jerusalem until they were baptized with the Holy Spirit, which He said would be in a few days.

2) Then Jesus warned them not to speculate concerning the date of His kingdom’s restoration.

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3) He promised them that they would receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon them and they were to witness of Him in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the end of the earth.

Jesus ascended into the heavens, followed by two angels who told the disciples they should not continue staring into the sky, because Jesus will return in the same way they just saw Him depart. Soon afterward they met in the Upper Room and chose a replacement for Judas Iscariot (Matthias).

Chapter Two recounts the Day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit filled the disciples and they spoke with other languages. Peter began his witness journey, as he stood and preached a sermon extolling Jesus as Messiah and Savior, calling listeners to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus for the remission of sins.

As a result of Peter’s sermon and the convicting power of the Holy Spirit, about 3000 people were saved and the church at Jerusalem was born. And, what a church it was!

Today’s invitation will be for you to determine whether you want this congregation to be a unique, powerful, effective, thriving church for the praise and glory of Jesus, or if you prefer to worship as you did in the past; they way that you prefer.

How has that been working for you? Are you thriving or merely surviving?

I am going to ask you to help me unpack the truths of this passage, but first, we need to clarify the meaning of two words:

Normal (conforming to a type, standard, or regular pattern; categorized by average intelligence or development). The operative term here is AVERAGE!

Abnormal (deviating from the normal or average; characterized by uniqueness – good or bad; exceptional). The focal word here is EXCEPTIONAL! Which term do you plan to be the term used for your church? Average or exceptional?

This passage describes a church that was the first and the norm, because it was the prototype. Today, in the US, it would probably be considered Abnormal.

In the following verses the Bible describes this church as: 41, 46 – They were happy - “they gladly received; they ate with gladness”.

41 – They were saved/committed – they were baptized, which has a greater meaning in the context of that time. They were confessing their allegiance to this radical new religion, this band of rebels and blasphemers. They were not loved but hated. Persecuted and murdered.

42 – They were obedient - continued steadfastly in the teaching of the apostles.

43 – They revered/feared God. 43 – They experienced the power and anointing of God. 44 – They were one (in heart; mind; possessions) – had all things in common 45 – They cared more about one another than their own material possessions.

46 – They worshiped daily, Yes, daily!

46 – They spent quality time together, daily.

47 – They blessed God and were respected by the community.

47 – The Lord blessed them continuously.

Some have proposed that the activity and ministry of the church in Acts was a temporary condition and did not endure.

Okay, let’s run with that!! God did miraculous events, and the congregation was obedient in every stage of this new movement.

How would that work for us today?

1) A church full of happy people, loving each other, ministering to one another, loving, and serving their community. I would join a church like that. How about you?

2) A church where the Lord was daily being exalted and God was regularly pouring out His favor and blessing.

Man, that sounds like a recipe for failure, doesn’t it? Of course not! Only a self-righteous, crabby old Pharisee would oppose a church like this! Maybe we are becoming way too much like a modern-day Pharisee?

In our post-Christian world, we might view this church as “abnormal,” but this model is exactly what God desires of every normal church.

So, let me ask you to ponder and answer once again these final few questions: 1) Is your church a happy (friendly; welcoming) place? Who is happy? Just those inside the walls, or everyone in the community who knows the people and practices of this place? Is EVERYONE welcome here, no matter what they look or smell like? Who is not here that needs to be here? Are you offering peace, hope and joy, or just a place to pacify our religious duty?

2) Do you regularly see people being saved? Is the baptistery damp from previous baptisms?

3) Are new converts being discipled to become sold-out followers of the Lord Jesus Christ?

4) Are church members immediately living holy lives on a consistent basis? Are we striving to sin less and less and become more and more like Jesus every day?

5) Does your church praise and exalt the Lord? Do you really expect the power and anointing of the Holy Spirit to show up EVERYTIME you meet?

6) Can most of the things that happen inside and outside the walls of this meeting place ONLY be explained by the transforming power of Christ?

7) Do you display a lifestyle of oneness, having one heart, one mind and one goal?

8) Do you care for and serve the needs of your church family and your community more than your own personal cravings?

9) Do you get together to worship the Lord whenever possible?

Remember, Jesus went to the synagogue on the Sabbath as was His habitual practice. Luke 4:16 - So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom (habit) was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.

10) Are you fellowshipping, growing together and daily caring for each other?

11) Are you blessing God and your community in such a way they can find nothing evil to say of your church?

Jesus said, in Matthew 5:16 - Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

12) Is God publicly and regularly blessing your church?

13) Is God adding to your church family often?

You may be screaming, “Whoa there Preacher! – No church is like that!”

Well, I beg to differ with you! This one was and it is the prototype, the model by which all others are to function!

CONCLUSION: As I close, I pose one last probing question Where is your Church? How do you compare in relationship to this model?

Do you want to go down in history as the church that flourished because you were willing to risk it all to pave the way for sinners to be saved and to exalt the Lord Jesus Christ above everything else? Or do you want to hold onto the past and continue to decline or survive? Which one do you suppose Jesus wants for you?

Do not let it be said of this church – “They didn’t care! They didn’t share! But do not fret – They are no longer here!”

Tracy Jaggers is the Associational Director of Missions of Gateway Baptist Association, Edwardsville, Illinois.

Tracy’s doctoral degree is the DMin in Church Revitalization from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City, MO. He writes for state and national revitalization websites and speaks for revitalization conferences and webinars. He is a contributing author for the book entitled, Practical Tools for Reinventing the Dying Church. His website is www.churchrecharge.com.

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Evangelize Without Talking to Strangers Acts 2:41-47

By Bud Brown MAIN IDEA Evangelism is simply talking with friends and other interested people about Jesus.

INTRODUCTION If surveyed the social, religious, and political landscape in 50 AD, you’d conclude, “Christianity is going nowhere.” It was one of many cults in the Roman Empire, led by misfits who argued about what to serve dinner guests. Judaism, from which it arose, persecuted the Christians. Even the Romans noticed and persecuted Christians who refused emperor worship. But Christianity not only survived, it also triumphed. But you know the story.

Within a few generations—an instant in time from the historical perspective—the gospel penetrated the world.

So, how did a hapless, persecuted cult become world’s preeminent religion? Perhaps what worked then-and-there will work here-and-now to spread the gospel here at home Keep that question in mind while we revisit life in ancient Ephesus.

I. ANCIENT EPHESUS WAS LIKE 21ST CENTURY AMERICA.

By New Testament times Ephesus was one of the most important of cities in early Christianity. Built on a natural harbor on the west coast of modern-day Turkey, Ephesus became the largest commercial center west of the Taurus mountains. It sat in a rich, fertile valley protected by mountain ranges. This made the area easy to defend.

When caravans approached through mountain passes, they followed a marble paved road, lined with masonry, and decorated with lavish carved stone statues that led to the Agora, the public market. Wealth was seen everywhere in this vibrant center of culture, learning, and the arts. It was a boisterous center of trade and commerce. It had shopping plazas, a theatre, sports venues, parks and green spaces, grand public buildings, and plenty of entertainment to keep everyone busy.

It was an important seat of government for the Roman empire.

Homes had tile floors, frescoed walls, polished marble panels, running water, and—in some cases—heated bathrooms. In many ways life in Ephesus was similar to life in any modern city of 250,000 minus cellphones, internet, computers, radio, and television. People worked, raised families, enjoyed recreation, buried their loved ones, and hoped for life after death.

We pick up the story of Paul’s work in Acts 19.

And he went into the synagogue and spoke boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading concerning the things of the kingdom of God. 9 But when some were hardened and did not 8

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believe, but spoke evil of the Way before the multitude, he departed from them and withdrew the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus. 10 And this continued for two years, so that all who dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks.

II. EVANGELISM IS TELLING RECEPTIVE PEOPLE AND FRIENDS ABOUT JESUS. Let’s rest on that last clause for a moment. “All who dwelt in Asia head the word of the Lord Jesus…” This refers to the gospel promise that God gives eternal life to all who believe in Jesus.

When he wrote to the church, he emphasized the gracious nature of God’s promise.

But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved) …. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.

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God’s scandalous grace is offensive to the world. The world’s religions assert that we must earn the right to enter heaven.

They imagine God maintains a scrupulous ledger that totals up our good and bad deeds. But that’s not God, that’s Santa Claus.

Quite the opposite; he gives eternal life to all who believe in Jesus. All God asks is that you believe this promise. If you haven’t believed in Jesus for eternal life, perhaps today is your day!

Let’s return to Acts 19 and notice verse 9. Here we find the first timeless principle that explains how the early church took the world by storm.

A. #1: EVANGELISM IS TELLING RECEPTIVE PEOPLE ABOUT JESUS. When Paul entered a new city he always began teaching where Jewish worshipers gathered. He taught as long as they would listen. When they refused to listen any further, he’d turn to willing Gentiles who eagerly listened to the message of Jesus.

This is how Jesus wants it done. The first time he sent disciples out to proclaim the gospel he told them, “whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet.” In other words, don’t try persuading people who don’t want to hear it. You’ll only create resentment and harden them against the faith.

To me, that comes as a great relief. Evangelism isn’t about talking to strangers or people hardened against the gospel. As Jesus taught, and as Paul demonstrated, the first principle is that evangelism is telling receptive people about Jesus.

B. #2: EVANGELISM IS TELLING PEOPLE YOU KNOW ABOUT JESUS. Let’s return to Acts 19 and see what else we can use in our situation. So, we know that Paul taught publicly about Jesus for two years. So many believed in Jesus, and began living for him, that others took notice. The tsunami wave of new believers hit the business community where it hurts—in the pocketbook. Let’s pick up the narrative at verse 23.

And about that time there arose a great commotion about the Way. 24 For a certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Diana, brought no small profit to the craftsmen. 25 He called them together with the workers of similar occupation, and said: “Men, you know that we have our prosperity by this trade. 26 Moreover you see and hear that not only at Ephesus, but throughout almost all Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away many people, saying that they are not gods which are made with hands.”

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Verse 26 repeats verse 10. “All who dwelt in Asia heard the Word of the Lord Jesus.” When the Bible repeats something we should pay attention. The significance of this repetition is easier to grasp if we look at a map. If you locate Ephesus on a Bible map, you’ll find it on the West coast of Asia Minor. The gospel spread from there over the course of two years to the cities of Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, Laodicea, and Colossae. The combined population of those cities was probably over one million people. In every city of Asia people believed in Jesus, spread the message to others, and gathered together to form indigenous churches. And it all happened while the apostle Paul stayed put in Ephesus.

How? How did the gospel spread so, far so rapidly?

What does this teach us about reaching our community?

Remember, Ephesus was a great seaport. This and the highways into and out of the city made it a centre of travel and commerce that linked markets in Europe and Asia. People traveled from those aforementioned cities in the interior to conduct business in Ephesus. Many of these business travelers heard Paul talk about Jesus as they strolled through the Agora to shop, to barter, and to trade. People in the ancient world loved news and gossip as much as anybody, so there’s no doubt that all who heard this new teaching told family and friends when they returned home. And that is the 2nd principle that will help us crack this town wide open for the gospel. Evangelism is talking about Jesus with people you already know.

So, let’s pull all of this together and see what wisdom there may be in it for us. Paul’s ministry and the gospel’s spread from Ephesus illustrates two timeless truths, two unchanging principles that work any time, any place.

1. Evangelism is telling receptive people about Jesus.

2. Evangelism is telling people you know about Jesus.

Bottom line is this: Evangelism is simply talking with friends and other interested people about Jesus.

III. APPLICATION The Church is a living organism and a missional organization made of believers who adapt their evangelism to fit the mission

field. New outreach methods grow from the desire to reach as many as possible. This happens when changes in the mission field necessitates new ways to effectively proclaim the unchanging message. But, like the methods that preceded them, these new methods will eventually fail to produce results as the mission field continues to change and evolve.

But because we’re creatures of habit, we ignore the fact that once useful methods need to be changed. Instead, we treat our methods as if holding on to them was the mission. We ignore the contradiction until the pain of decline forces us to seek church revitalization. That’s where we find ourselves today.

Before the tsunami known as 2020 swept over us, 75% or more of American churches were in serious decline. As 2021 unravels before us, the churches will continue to deteriorate at an accelerated rate.

It’s time for this church to evaluate one of our primary mission tools—how we do evangelism. If we are to revitalize this congregation, we must seek new methods to proclaim the gospel to a nation descending into the chaos of paganism and rebellion against God. A. TWO PRINCIPLES TO OBSERVE. Paul’s ministry in Ephesus demonstrated two unchanging principles of evangelism. These are our way off the plateau on which this church is stuck.

1. Evangelism is telling receptive people about Jesus.

2. Evangelism is telling people you know about Jesus.

B. THREE ACTIONS Finally, there are three things each of should do.

1. Vow you will not be defeated or discouraged by people who don’t want to hear the gospel. God intends for us to speak with receptive people.

2. Come up with three short conversation starters that invite others into a spiritual discussion.

3. Compile a list of people you know; they may not be close friends, just acquaintances you know or see regularly during your typical week. Pray over that list at least weekly. Ask God to create interest and a chance for a gospel conversation.

Now, pay attention to people. Listen for clues that reveal their degree of receptivity. Be ready to step in with one of your preplanned conversation starters. If they agree, begin what may be a protracted discussion over many months in which you explain the gospel, answer their questions, and invite them to believe.

I’m asking you to do this as your pastor because evangelism and conversion growth are the quickest and simplest way to revitalize this church and restore its former glory.

Bud Brown has ministered in a wide variety of settings, from small rural to mid-sized suburban to rapidly growing megachurches. He has trained and mentored international students, intentional interim pastors, doctoral students, and now serves as president of Turnaround Pastors (www.turnaroundpastor.com).

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The Noble Work of Revitalization 2 Chronicles 29

By Pete Tackett All of us know someone in our spiritual journey that used to walk with us, be faithful to the call of God, encourage us, and help us stay on track. Now, we look around and they are nowhere to be found. Their faith is shipwrecked as Paul said in I Timothy 1:19. It is an unfortunate reality that we also know churches that used to be like that. We remember when they were vibrant lighthouses of faith, joyous places of worship, and effective centers of outreach to the lost. Yet, now, we look back and they are just a shell of their former selves. Both members and observers are often left scratching their heads, asking “What happened?”

In 2 Chronicles, we see the Temple, the forerunner of the local church as we know it today, having fallen into much the same shape. Because we have the benefit of history and hindsight, we know it was caused by evil leadership and sinful practices. For purposes of this sermon, though, it does not matter why the church (temple) was in disrepair. What matters is that we see in this chapter a pathway of revitalization.

Before we dig into that pathway, we remind ourselves that restoration and revitalization are God’s default position.

Tom Cheyney often says in his presentations, “What about a dying church brings glory to God?” We only need to take a cursory look through Biblical history to see how God loves to restore and revitalize. Much of the Old Testament is given to God’s forgiving and restoring his people, Israel. Adam and Eve introduced sin to his perfect creation, but he made a way for them to be restored to him. David, after a monumental failure, cried out in Psalm 51:12 “restore to me the joy of thy salvation.” Peter, failed Jesus dramatically and publicly and yet became a pillar of the early church. God loves to restore broken things and broken people.

Revitalization is the sovereign work of God and no plan, formula, or template will lead a church back to health unless the Holy Spirit is welcome and involved. That same Peter in I Peter 5:10 reminds us that it is God himself who restores. Yet, in 2 Chronicles 29, we see a pathway on which we can walk that will open ourselves up to the divine work of restoration and revitalization. There are some lessons we can observe there that will serve us well as we seek God’s favor on our church.

Restoration and Revitalization is Hard Work (vv. 4, 11) Church revitalization is not for the faint of heart. That is why churches and individuals, confronted with the reality of the

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declining numbers, finances, and influence of their congregation, most often choose to continue in the same direction they have been traveling. They are somehow convinced that what they have been doing will work if they just get the right pastor and do it harder and faster and with more effort. It also explains why churches have a habit of turning on leaders who try to lead them to the hard work of revitalization.

That hard work begins with preparation. The early work of preparation is prayer and repentance and most churches that have been operating without the Spirit’s presence and guidance for a while, kind of running on autopilot as it were, don’t have the prayer infrastructure in place that will allow them to seek God’s leadership. Hezekiah gathered the priests and the Levites and reminded them of their job. In verse 4, he calls them in to remind them they have a job and gives them an assignment. In verse 11, he tells them to not be negligent. He reminds them God has chosen them to stand before him and minister to the people. What was the number one assignment of the priests? To intercede for the people. Before Hezekiah did anything about restoring the Temple, he called the core people to pray!

From the beginning, God’s plan for his Temple was that it be a house of prayer. Twice during Jesus’s earthly ministry, in righteous anger, he drove out the money changers and said that the Father intended it to be a House of Prayer. Those Jewish money changers would have recognized that phrase from Isaiah 56:7-8, where they were told that if the temple would return to being a House of Prayer, God would bring back the exiles and give them new people they had not yet met.

This should be a motivating thought to those whose church is dying a slow agonizing death. Let the church return to prayer, hard as it is, and the church will find people returning to them that had left in frustration as well as seeing new people come. It has been my experience that churches that start with prayer and do the hard work of repentance and spiritual evaluation are the ones that have the courage to move ahead with the difficult tasks to come.

It is hard work because most churches don’t know how to pray and don’t have time in their schedule to pray. In an effort to work harder, be busier, and offer a full program, they have squeezed out the vital work of prayer, not realizing that is doing more damage than they could ever overcome with the flurry of activity.

Pastor Emeritus, Mike Dawson, of First Baptist Church, Columbia, Tennessee, reminds us that the tools of revitalization are small and unassuming. He said, “By walking by an old building under construction, you can tell whether they are restoring or tearing it down to start over by the tools they use. Destruction requires big machinery like wrecking balls, bulldozers, and backhoes. Revitalization tools are much smaller and more specialized.” Prayer is one of the small specialized tools of restoration and revitalization. Like construction, it takes longer and does not look as impressive, but the hard work of prayer needs to be the first step. Of course, we know that it’s a lot easier to tear down and start over than it is to restore. That is why there are so many church splits, church plants, and divorces.

Restoration and Revitalization Begins with Cleaning Up and Cleaning Out (vv. 5, 16) When a church really begins to look upward to God and recenter their purpose and goals on glorifying him, prayer will reveal much to them about what has to be done. Almost always the first step is cleaning up some stuff and cleaning out some stuff.

Hezekiah charges the church leaders with doing just that. The unused temple, abandoned for worship, looted by King Ahaz, and left largely in disrepair is a picture of most churches in need of revitalization. He tells the priests and Levites to start the process of cleaning up the mess.

How many of you know that people, families, organizations, and even churches accumulate clutter. One of the first things I have done in every church where I served is organize a cleanup day. I am amazed at the stuff churches keep and even more amazed at the JUNK people will donate to a church and no one has the courage to say no to them. Within days of arriving at the church I server now, I threw away what seemed like a semi-truck full of junk off the walls, out of the closets and stored in the many unused rooms. Apparently, that is what the priests found in the temple.

Unfortunately, churches as organizations don’t only accumulate physical clutter but they also accumulate a lot of unseen clutter. They accumulate programs, traditions, and styles that become important to them but get in the way of adapting and changing to meet the needs of the changing culture around them. I have often said that Baptist churches (my denomination) have never met a program they did not love. There is nothing wrong with programs but we layer them up until they are working people to death and not providing any results.

Andy Stanley posed a great question at a conference a few years ago when he asked, “What program are you propping up that is costing you more energy, money, and effort than its worth?”

Our traditions and styles also clutter up our church vision and purpose. There is nothing wrong with tradition but there is everything wrong with traditionalism. When your traditions can’t be discarded because they mean more than the health of the church, the object of your worship has changed from God to your tradition. It’s time for us to, in the words of that great theologian Elsa from the Frozen movie to “Let it Go!” Hezekiah knew that if the Temple was going to be revitalized and restored, the leaders would have to in prayer decide what needed to be thrown away and what needed to be kept.

Unfortunately, church leaders, both elected and de facto accumulate some church clutter too. Individuals in the church hang on to the past hurts, habits, and hangups so they need to do some praying and repenting personally. They need to clean the clutter out of their own spirits if they are to be part of God’s noble work of restoration and revitalization. Dying churches are filled with unresolved conflict, broken relationships, and unrepentant sin that hangs in the air and suffocates as surely as the cigarette smoke from 40 years ago suffocates the COPD sufferer.

A real prayer strategy must lead to a cleaning out and cleaning up both corporately and individually.

Restoration and Revitalization Requires Honest Evaluation (v. 6) Hezekiah simply stated the obvious. To paraphrase, he said that what got us here was poor leadership, sinful choices, and rejection of God’s plans and purposes for HIS temple. Let’s be frank.

Most pastors know what the roadblocks are in making a u-turn in their church. It is not rocket science. We can look and see what has happened, how decisions have been made but not followed through or how decisions were stonewalled by power brokers. We can observe the past failures and where the church has departed from God’s plan.

Unfortunately, most churches that are in long seasons of decline resemble dysfunctional families that operate with a “no talk” rule. Like broken families can’t or won’t discuss Dad’s alcoholism or philandering or abuse, broken churches don’t talk about how the patriarch refuses to use and welcome new young leadership or how a business meeting got ugly and people left. Those churches simply adopt the narrative of the lead sinner and pretend it’s all someone else’s fault.

Hezekiah did not shrink back. He simply stepped up, made the observation, and told the truth about what he saw.

Certainly, he was the king and that made it easier for him to say those things, but God places his leaders in the church for a reason. He places us there to do the hard things. We cannot get sucked into the “no talk” rule. Scripture says to see it, say it, and deal with it. Proverbs 28:13 tells us “Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper….” David opined in Psalm 51:6 that “Surely you desire truth in the inner parts…” Jesus in Matthew 5:4 preached that only those who mourn will be comforted. All point out the need for honesty and the pathway to real revitalization in a church begins with prayer and then proceeds with honesty. Nobody likes to air out the dirty laundry, but it has to be done, in love but truthfully.

Restoration and Revitalization Highlights the Need for Leadership (vv. 12-14) It is incredibly difficult to take an honest look at one’s self either as an individual or a church. Most people and most churches don’t have the skill set to look at the issues that have led to their decline or failure. Some of that has to do with unrepentant sin but much of it has to do with our lenses. After many years of decline and departure, we are so used to the current reality that we cannot see the problems. In addition, self awareness is not a flower that grows in every parish garden.

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One of the common denominators of dying churches is a dearth of effective leadership. It may be that they have evil leaders like Ahaz or they may simply be ineffective. Many churches default to good people that love and serve well but do not have either the spiritual gift of leadership nor natural gifts in that area. When either of those things happen, the spiritual health of the church suffers and since it has “leaders” in each position, no one is really sure why that continues to happen.

Hezekiah knew that if the Temple was to be restored, he would need leadership that were both recognized and qualified. He appointed leaders from all three groups of the Levites and weighted them toward the worshipers. We will address that later. For our purpose here, let it suffice to say that leadership is critical to restoration and revitalization and a church should seek out that leadership in prayer and in practice.

Most churches and pastors cannot do this work alone.

They need like-minded leaders and partners to do this none work. Just as an individual that is broken cannot heal themselves but must seek help from a pastor, counselor, or accountability partner, a church must seek out help to return to spiritual health. That help can be found through Renovate, your local conference or denomination office, or a healthy church in your area with experience in revitalization. Don’t be afraid to lean on them and seek their advice and leadership.

Restoration and Revitalization Usually Involves Some Surprises (vv. 16) Individuals and churches that are messed up and broken usually don’t know either the reason or the extend of our brokenness.

When we begin to dig into our own brokenness, we find some things we did not know were there. C.S. Lewis famously said every man “needs to keep one nostril attentive to the inner cesspool of his own life.” Comedian Jeff Allen of Happy Wife, Happy Life fame said “Every man needs to get downwind of himself from time to time.” Both were saying that when we look at our hearts, we find out some things that we did not expect and that we don’t like.

Churches are no different. When Hezekiah’s appointed leaders got to the inner part of the temple, they found a lot of just filth and junk that needed to be discarded. The Levites and priests had not been in there in a long time and they found it cluttered with idols and refuse and just plain old junk. Some of it was evil and some of it was just a mess. Regardless, it has to be cleaned out.

When you start digging into the past of a dying or unhealthy church, you will find some things that you did not expect. You may find a lay leader who is leading a double life, pretending to be a man or woman of prayer, but living in sin.

You might find that the church has an idol of its own, such as an event they do because they have always done it or a particular ministry that has become the tail that wags the dog. You might find an unresolved conflict that has churned below the surface and scarred the church like an infection. You might even find the church has a badly sullied reputation in the community that they are unaware of.

The priests did what they were supposed to do. They cleaned it out and got rid of it. They did not just look at it and say that’s too bad; or shake their head and go back outside. They dealt with it. They took it out to the Kidron and got rid of it. The

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pathway to restoration and revitalization cannot stop with finding out what is wrong. That wrong must be dealt with!

When our church begins to pull back the layers, we may find some things we don’t like, sort of like having a physical. The doctor is going to tell you a few things you need to do but ultimately it is up to you as to whether they get done or not.

In the end, it is better to know than to not know, even if some of the surprises are distasteful and incriminating.

Restoration and Revitalization Always Ends Where It Began (vv. 19-20) You will know your church is beginning to taste revitalization when they are drawn right back to where they started - to the altar and to prayer. When the temple has been restored, Hezekiah and the leaders had ridded it of all that Ahaz had brought in and replaced all that Ahaz had taken out. Hezekiah now leads the people of God back to the altar in pure worship and gratitude. The balance of the chapter is given over to their worship.

If you follow the trail of reclaimed lives through Scripture, you will see they have something in common. The man healed at the gate called beautiful runs to the temple and jumps and praises God. Peter after his restoration is found often in the temple praying and praising the Lord. The woman at the well, went to tell her friends but came back to worship. David after his fall and restoration returned to the temple to praise God.

You will know restoration and revitalization are taking hold in the church when there is an air of expectancy in worship and when people no longer see church as a time clock to punch.

They are no longer just going to church, they are the church and worship is a vibrant part of their community of faith.

Conclusion: Restoration and revitalization begins and ends at the altar in worship. I believe that is why Hezekiah weighted the leadership he appointed toward the worship leaders. I also think that is why so much of the fear and the pushback on revitalization is around worship styles. Yet, it bookends this restoration project.

I invite you today to make prayer for your church and worship that centers on God your focus. Before you try to fix anything, pray. Before you offer an opinion, worship. Before you have a meeting, spend time on your face before God. Then follow your leaders, clean up the mess, and deal with the surprises. It will set you on a path to restoration and revitalization that may be painful at times but will result in the glory of God and the good of his church!

Author’s note: I have never had an original sermon idea so I am glad to share this with you. I do like to know if someone finds it helpful, though. If you use this manuscript, outline, or idea, would you take time to let me know at pete@petetackett.com?

Pete Tackett is Lead Pastor of Antioch Baptist Church in Johnson City, Tennessee, and a Pastor Connector for the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board.

He regularly partners with churches and pastors engaging in revitalization.

He is the author of re.Vital.ize: Lessons Learned in a Recovering Church.

How Are You? Acts 15:36

By Rob Hurtgen Introduction To get better, you have to get stronger. If you have ever undergone rehabilitation for a broken leg, hip, or knee, you have been told, “To get better, you have to get stronger.” If you have ever played sports, your coach has barked something like, “To get better, you have to get stronger.” We know that in many areas of life, to get better, you have to get stronger.

The same is true for the church. To get better, churches must get stronger.

In Acts 15:36, Paul comes to Barnabas with the idea to go and revisit the churches that they had recently planted. Acts 15:36 reveals seven priorities for strengthening churches.

“And after some days, Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us return and visit the brothers in every city where we proclaimed the word of the Lord, and see how they are.”

Churches must ask themselves how they are to be stronger.

History After some days following the Jerusalem council, a letter was sent addressing the issue of God’s expectations and salvation by grace. Paul and Barnabas are in the city of Antioch. After a few days, how many we do not know, Paul comes to Barnabas with the idea of going back and visiting the churches where they proclaimed the gospel.

These were fledgling churches. These were new churches. Even if the history is short, every church has a history.

Everything in revitalization builds on what was previously done.

When the church was blowing and going, the history of when the church was going can be a hindrance or a help to the revitalization efforts.

History of an act of sin in the church. A wrongful dismissal of a pastor. Known and tolerated sin in the church. These will impact the church.

One of the first acts in revitalization is to know the history of the church. The good, the bad, what is worth celebrating, and what everyone would like to forget. The history must be known.

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History impacts the present day.

“The first step to a Re-Claimed Church is to examine the history of the church and to ask how those beginnings affect the attitude, behavior, and response of the church leadership, in particular, and the church at large in general. Attitude is one of the keys to church revitalization. If the church has a bad attitude or a defeatist attitude, it may never see the potential it actually has.” 1 Paul asked Barnabas to “return” to go back and see how the churches are. They have a history, they have a present, and they have a future—history matters.

Team Ministry The normal pattern for effective ministry is as a team. Jesus sent out the workers in teams of two. Paul and Barnabas were set apart as a team. Even though Paul and Barnabas divided their ministry work, they went out in a new team of two.

The typical pattern for effective ministry is to serve as a team.

Not only does this pattern help us thinking about how to do ministry, but it reminds us that when it comes to revitalization, there is not a single issue, single person, or single strategy that will restore the health of a church.

The right pastor cannot bring renewal to a church that is not serving alongside them. The right décor will not bring renewal.

Singing from a screen will not bring renewal. We cannot look for a single issue solution to a multifaceted problem.

Action – go “Let us return,” Paul says. Let us go.

Renewal in your life, renewal in your church will not happen on its own. Actions must be taken to see renewal in your life. You cannot get healthy without a change to diet and activity. A business cannot produce a profit waiting for clients to come to them.

A team will not win the championship without showing up to practice. A church must also act to see health.

1 Bill Henard, ReClaimed Church: How Churches Grow, Decline, and Experience Revitalization, (B&H; Nashville, 2018), 9.

Reaching out to the neighborhood to bless them. Inviting the guy you work with to attend church with you. Having your neighbors over to dinner to build a relationship so you might be able to share the gospel with them. You cannot see health, cannot see growth without action.

Interested They were going to “visit the brothers.”

This is more than a social call. Visiting the brothers was more than having coffee and catching up. To see the brothers was to investigate how they were doing. How the ministry was advancing. How disciples were being made.

The phrase “visit the brothers” comes from a word with the idea of overseeing and inspecting. As a general inspects the troops, so Paul wanted to inspect the churches.2 Paul’s inspection reminds us of the priority to investigate how we are doing. To be a healthy church, we need to honestly ask hard questions.

Are we regularly planting the gospel seeds?

Are we sharing the gospel with others?

Are disciples begin made? How are we contributing and involved in missions work at home and around the world?

Are marriages being restored because of our ministry work?

Healthy churches and healthy Christians define what matters.

Evaluate Paul not only wanted to visit the brothers but to see how they are. His first desire to visit investigates how the church is doing.

The second see how they are presses to evaluate how the ministry is. The question “how they are” is asking how they are doing.3 How they are is a question of evaluation.

Healthy churches, healthy Christians regularly visit what they are doing and evaluate how they are getting along. The pattern of the New Testament is to investigate and evaluate the impact that ministries are making.

“What matters gets measured.” 4 Strengthen Paul and Barnabas have a disagreement over the role that John Mark is to play on the second trip. Barbabas sides with John Mark. Paul separates from them, choosing to take Silas on his second missionary journey. More ministry is birthed out of this disagreement.

Acts 15:41 records that Paul and Silas go “through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.”

2 Luke Timothy Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1992), 282.

3 R. C. H. Lenski, The Interpretation of the Acts of the Apostles (Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 1961), 632.

4 Attributed to Peter Drucker, source unknown.

The second missionary journey inspects and evaluates the churches and keeps the larger goal of strengthening the churches. The word “strengthening” comes from a term that means to establish or to render more firm. In other words, the trip’s initial aim was to return to newly formed churches and strengthen them.

The initial goal is not to make churches larger. Paul did not lay out the vision of seeing how they were so they could add more buildings and parking spaces. The vision is to investigate, evaluate, and strengthen.

An ongoing purpose of the Great Commission’s call to make disciples is laboring to cause churches to be stronger. Stronger disciples make stronger churches which, by God’s grace, win more to the Kingdom.

Healthier churches can become larger churches. Healthier churches cause believers and help other churches to thrive. The heart of every revitalization effort is how do we become healthier than we are today.

Tension Lastly, you cannot examine Acts 15:36 without examining the tension between Barnabas and Saul. They divided over John Mark, who abandoned them during the first missionary journey.

Their division was over an issue of practice. Who should go and how should the work be done. A result of the tension was two teams versus one. More ministry was done because of the tension. As a church, as a Christian, you often need to embrace the tension.

Bodybuilders and athletes recognize that when they strength train, they are often sore the next day. They are sore because they have torn the muscle fibers.

God has created the muscles with the ability to repair themselves. The tiny tears occur, and then the muscle is rebuilt. As a result, the muscle is stronger, firmer, and sometimes larger because of the tension. In church revitalization work, we must embrace the tension. The tension will make us stronger.

Conclusion Jesus wants His church to be healthy. His church to be strong. His church to make disciples of all nations. We can do that when we investigate our health, evaluate what we need to do differently, act, and trust in His grace to cause the growth.

Rob Hurtgen is the Pastor of First Baptist Church Chillicothe, Missouri. He holds an M.Div from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Ministry degree in Church Revitalization from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

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The Church in Motion

By Brian Thorstad Like most couples who’ve been married for a long time, Donna and I are very much alike in some ways and yet still very different in other ways. On our days off we typically go exploring our area. Since we move so often, it seems that we always have new territory to explore, and we both love this.

But the two of us have very different comfort levels with regard to “exploration.” My wife takes “no trespassing” signs literally, but when I see something interesting around the next curve, like an old truck or the rusting hulk of a boat, I just have to go see it. For me, a “no trespassing” sign is an exciting invitation to a new adventure!

I guess you could say that I love the exhilaration of going places where at least somebody doesn’t want me to go, and that’s why I find our text for this morning so exciting.

I’d like to show you what I mean from Matthew 16.

Here’s the context of our passage. Jesus has taken his disciples “up north” to get away from the crowds. At one point he gets them aside and turns to them and asks, (I’m paraphrasing vs. 13), “What’s the word on the street? Who are people saying that I am?” Jesus’ disciples repeated the varied answers that they’d been hearing.

At that point Jesus asked, very pointedly, “But how about you? Who do you say that I am?” The Apostle Peter answered (of course!) and for once he didn’t put his foot in his mouth.

“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God,” he confessed.

Jesus loved this answer! In verse 17 we learn that he responded with, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my father in heaven. And I tell

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you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.”

Jesus went on to tell his disciples that he was giving them the keys to the kingdom of heaven, which probably means that through the preaching of the good news of forgiveness through Jesus, their hearers would be able to believe and enter God’s kingdom.

There are issues in this wonderful passage that we can’t dive into this morning, but I’d like to focus on the central promise of the passage: “I will build my church,” Jesus proclaimed, “and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” You’ve heard of the great commission and perhaps the great companion, but I like to call these words the great prediction.

Jesus is depicting his church, his followers, his devotees as a band of brothers: a life-giving military force which will not fail. This band of brothers will do some holy trespassing, storming the gates of hades and by proclaiming the gospel, they will rescue men and women and children who are trapped in the Devil’s kingdom of darkness. Those who believe will be set free and enter Jesus’ wonderful kingdom of light.

“My followers will storm the gates,” Jesus promised, “and I will build my Church in the process!”

I love this way of thinking of the church in motion! It’s martial, it’s aggressive, it’s violent, it’s (let’s face it) very male! It drips with holy testosterone, doesn’t it? Men need a mission.

If you’re here and you don’t have one yet, you can’t do better than this. Get into Jesus’ army and spend the rest of your life storming the gates of hades!

There’s no question that the church is supposed to be “in motion,” at all times and in all places. We are supposed to be moving onward and outward in love, toward unbelievers, seeking to bring them to Christ. There is no place in Jesus’ thinking for an inward focused, passionless church.

However, this violent, aggressive picture of the church in motion doesn’t appeal to everyone. It “turns my crank” but it doesn’t do anything for my non-trespassing wife. So I’ve searched the Bible for a few other pictures of the church in motion and I pray that as I share these pictures, one of them will capture your heart and imagination. It’s even possible that one of these pictures might be adopted by your church as a picture of the kind of church in motion which you believe God wants you to become.

So, in addition to our picture of the church in motion as a band of brothers, storming the gates of hades, here’s a second picture: The church in motion is like a loving family adopting special needs children.

This may sound contemporary, but it’s actually a Biblical picture, for the concept of adoption is one of the motifs by which God chooses to help us understand our salvation.

Look at Ephesians 1:5: “…He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will.”

Here’s the way King David put it, 3,000 years ago, in Psalm 68: “A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families.”

Here’s an awesome truth: God knew how sinful I would be. He knew that I would have more rough edges than a moon rock and yet He chose to adopt me into His forever family. Amazing!

Here’s a beautiful trend in the Church today: families adopting special needs children, from all over the world.

Have you noticed? It’s a glorious sight to look out and see children of every color with every sort of disability, adopted by people who love them just like they love their biological children.

It’s actually a beautiful picture of the church in motion. We can go and find unlovely, unloved, lonely, unwanted people and tell them about Jesus’ love and Jesus’ wonderful family.

I’m thinking of a church which has drafted, as their mission statement, “Bringing the lost and lonely into community.” Beautiful!

So don’t think of your lost co-workers and neighbors as ugly and deformed individuals who are enemies of God’s people. Think of them as hurting victims of the Evil One, in need of adoption by a loving God.

There’s no question that the church should always be in motion, moving towards lost people in love. So far we’ve looked at two pictures of the church in motion: it’s like

a band of brothers storming the gates of hades and it’s like a loving family adopting special needs children. But here’s a third picture of the church in motion.

The church in motion is like a team of shepherds rescuing lost sheep.

We tend to think of shepherds as working alone and as men, but in truth, Bible-era shepherds more often worked in teams and consisted of women as well as men.

Male or female, a team of shepherds rescuing lost sheep is a compassionate and exciting picture of the church in motion. Look at what it says regarding Jesus in Matthew 9:36: “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”

We know of course that people are “sheep without a shepherd” because we are (as in Isaiah 53) sheep who have gone astray. It’s our fault that we are sheep without a shepherd. We are guilty as can be and yet, God loves us and cares about the pain we suffer from our self-inflicted injuries.

In Matthew 18 we hear Jesus say that “…If a man owns a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go and look for the one that wandered off? And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about the one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off.”

Interestingly enough, the average church in America has about one hundred people. We love our churches and we should, for when we are with our churches we are “home,” we are comfortable, we are welcomed. It becomes so easy to just hang out with the ninety-nine, night after night and never go after the lost.

Oftentimes we think we’ve done our evangelistic duty if we have a sign out front or put up a nice web site. “If lost people want to be saved, they can come in here anytime they want” we tell ourselves. But people are strayers, not seekers. They don’t walk into churches on their own very often. We have to go after them.

And they’re often found in nasty places, doing nasty things. Sometimes they don’t smell very good either!

But what a joy it is to work together as a team of shepherds going after lost sheep, bringing them to the Great Shepherd and into a loving flock!

So don’t look upon your neighbors or coworkers as people who “ought to come to church.” Look upon them as lost sheep whom we ought to go after, in love.

There’s no question that the church should always be in motion, moving towards lost people in love. So far we’ve looked at three pictures of the church in motion: it’s like a band of brothers storming the gates of hades, it’s like a loving family adopting special needs children and it’s like a team of shepherds rescuing lost sheep. Here’s a fourth picture of the church in motion.

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The church in motion is like a life-saving station rescuing the perishing.

I love this picture of the church in motion! While this one is not in the Bible, we know that Jesus loves parables so I’m sure that he loves this story.

The basic narrative here is found in the famous article, “The parable of the lifesaving station” by Theodore Wedel. The story begins with the fact that before the founding of the US Coast Guard, the shorelines of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and the Great Lakes were dotted with lifesaving stations.

They operated very much like volunteer fire departments. Hardy young men served as members. When a lighthouse keeper or a citizen saw that a ship was foundering offshore, a phone chain (like a prayer chain) was used to alert the members. (Picture the old crank- operated phone on the kitchen wall.) The guys would rush down to the boathouse at the lifesaving station, jump into their gear and get ready to head out into a raging storm, in their twenty-five to thirty-foot boats! Crazy, but courageous!

I had the privilege of standing in one of these crude boat houses on the shore of Lake Superior, gazing in wonder at the old boat – which I think we’d classify as a “launch” - imagining the scene: Everybody piled into the boat. Somebody started up the crude little gas engine located “midships,” in the center of the boat. Another brave lad opened the doors, facing the deadly lake. Somebody else pulled a lever which allowed the boat to slide down a sort of railroad track and plop into the water.

These incredibly brave young men would rescue as many people as they possibly could and then dry off and warm up with them in a simple little warming house.

In the parable however, the young men turned into middle-aged men: older, colder and less adventurous than they were. As their bodies deteriorated, their warming house improved. I suspect that their wives got involved, adding central heating, carpets, handsome furniture and “window treatments! As the years went by, the station members spent more and more time in the warming house and less and less time rescuing sailors. There came a day when they no longer ventured out into the lake at all.

Eventually, a new group of hardy young men started a new life saving station just up the coast. In time however, the cycle repeated itself, until eventually, the lakeshore had many lifesaving stations, though only the newest one was rescuing anyone from the waves.

The parallel to churches is pretty clear, isn’t it? Many towns – even small ones – have many, many churches and yet, only the newest one is actually bringing anyone to faith in Christ. Have you seen this?

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Interestingly enough, some church health experts have observed that most churches move all the way through the organizational lifecycle in about thirty years. In other words, in three decades they’re pretty much good for nothing. Some experts believe that we should just discard them, replacing them with new churches.

I see it differently. I believe it’s much more glorifying to God if we revive them instead of replacing them and I know that God has unlimited power to revive and transform even the most stagnant congregations!

Church consultant Bill Easum puts it simply and bluntly with what he calls “the basic law of congregational life,” which says that “Churches grow when they intentionally reach out to people instead of concentrating on their own internal needs. Churches die when they concentrate on their own needs.”

Churches are greatly helped by regularly asking themselves: “What is our church for?” “Who is our church for?” “Are we trying to be the best church in the community or the best church for our community?” “Is our church in motion or are we stuck in the warming house?”

There’s no question that the church should always be in motion, moving towards lost people in love. We’ve looked at four pictures: it’s like a band of brothers storming the gates of hades, it’s like a loving family adopting special needs children, it’s like a team of shepherds rescuing lost sheep and it’s like a lifesaving station rescuing the perishing.

Here’s a final picture of the church in motion. This one has become my favorite.

The church in motion is like a team of missionaries in love with their community.

Being “in love” is a remarkable thing isn’t it? Take the fifteenyear-old boy who has never willingly taken a shower in his life. He’s not usually very polite to anyone and he’s never been very generous either. (If you’re a fifteen-year-old boy, you’re welcome to beat me up after the service!)

All of a sudden his parents notice that he’s bathing, voluntarily. They hear him speaking sweetly, gently and politely to someone on the phone. Then he starts spending his money on gifts; exorbitant gifts! It looks mighty suspicious, and sure enough, it turns out that he’s in love. Being “in love” is a remarkable thing isn’t it?

Now let’s talk about our missionaries for a moment. We honor them for their service and well we should.

They are normal people but they do remarkable things.

They give up nice homes, good jobs, late-model cars and family relationships. At great personal expense they cross oceans, learn new languages and take up residence in some not very nice places. They also learn new musical styles and even dress differently for the sake of people who do not even appreciate them. This is amazing, isn’t it?

Our missionaries, of course, are following the example of the Apostle Paul, who adapted himself to an extraordinary degree in order to win lost people. In I Corinthians 9 he said that he made himself “a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible.” In other words, he’d do anything except sin to win lost people to Christ.

For his part, Paul would tell you that he was simply following the example of Jesus himself. The Son of God gave up the wonders of heaven. He gave up, the theologians say, “the independent exercise of his Divine attributes” (His powers and privileges as God), to come down here. He left his glory, his glorious appearance as the Son of God, up there.

He became, in fact, in our medical terminology, a zygote or conceptus (a human being at the one cell stage), then a morula, then a blastula, then a fetus and finally an infant. He was raised in poverty and obscurity and he did it all so that he could take our sins upon himself and die a horrible death in our place.

Missionaries adapt themselves to an extraordinary degree. Paul adapted himself to an extraordinary degree.

But no one in history has ever adapted himself in love to win lost people like Jesus did!

Think again about our missionaries. The couple comes home to visit their supporting churches. They give an update on their work with – it used to be slides and now it’s more likely a video. We watch the video and secretly pray, “God, thank you for the Swansons, but please don’t send me over there!”

After the service you approach one of the Swansons and express your admiration. You mention that it must be great to be “home” and that you would think that it’s going to be hard to go back. To your amazement your missionary friend disagrees. With some hesitation he admits that it’s hard to be back in the US and actually, he can’t wait to get back there with “his people.” You are astonished!

So what has happened here? More than likely, what happened is that your missionary friend, by giving up so much, by pouring himself into his work, by getting to know the people he’s trying to reach and adapting himself to them to an extraordinary degree, has fallen in love! His ministry has become – almost – easy, because he is “smitten” with the people he is seeking to win. Didn’t Jesus say that where your treasure is, there your heart will be also?

Isn’t this the way it is with our children? For two years we had a stinky, messy little foster baby in our home.

We got him as a five pound “preemie” right from the hospital intensive care unit, but eventually had to give him back to a seriously dysfunctional family. Towards the end of that time a big hit on the radio was “How am I supposed to live without you?” Every night, getting our little guy ready for bed, I would sing, with tears in my eyes, “How am I supposed to live without you, after I’ve been changing you so long?” We had fallen deeply in love with that child!

Here’s what I’m saying about our churches. If we will act like missionaries - thinking of our churches as mission stations on the mission field – if we will give ourselves in love to the messy, lost people of our communities, if we will adapt ourselves like Jesus and Paul and our missionaries, we will fall in love with our own communities and that love will make it easy to give ourselves away, year after year.

I love these pictures because there’s no question that the Church should always be in motion, moving towards lost people in love. We’ve looked at five pictures of the church in motion: it’s like a band of brothers storming the gates of hades, it’s like a loving family adopting special needs children, it’s like a team of shepherds rescuing lost sheep, it’s like a lifesaving station rescuing the perishing and it’s like a team of missionaries in love with their community.

Has one of these pictures grabbed your heart and imagination? Could one of these pictures become a vision of a better future for your church?

Here’s the bonus; here’s the reward from God. The churches that are truly in motion, moving towards the non-Christians of their communities in love, are the congregations which are having all the fun. They not asking for “fellowship activities,” because they’re enjoying sweet fellowship by working together to win the lost. There is great, great joy in being that band of brothers, that loving family, that team of shepherds, that lifesaving station crew or those love-struck missionaries.

So here’s what I’d ask you to pray about right now: • Does God want me to adopt as my own, one of these five pictures?

• Who does God want me to deliberately go to?

• Am I encouraging my church’s leaders to help us become a church which is “in motion”?

• How am I helping my church in its mission of going to the lost?

After thirty-five years of pastoral ministry, Brian A Thorstad is now serving as a Church Health Consultant with Church Assistance Ministry. He lives with his wife Donna in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin.

He is the author of three books: Heaven Help Our Church!, Redevelopment: Transitional Pastoring That Transforms Churches, and the newly released A Really Great Church! Find him at Churchwhisperers.org or churchwhisperer@gmail.com.

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Read From It. Learn From It. Lead With It.

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Transitional Pastoring That Transforms Churches A Step-by-Step Survival Guide for Christians in Troubled Churches Provides a complete guidebook to the revitalization of Gives the reader a roadmap through the rugged territory of church difficulties. Available on Kindle or Paperback.

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a congregation by way of a Redevelopment Transitional Pastorate. It is simple, readable, practical and includes a treasure trove of appendices which give the reader tools to put to immediate use. ISBN: 978-0-91180-2917

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Do Not Be the Church of Irony

By Joel Breidenbaugh When we encounter something which is the last thing we would ever expect, it can be ironic, like the Associated Press’s report in 1984 of 300 mailmen receiving their paychecks 3 days late because they were lost in the mail! Or how about when a Universal executive dismissed both Clint Eastwood and Burt Reynolds at a meeting in 1959. To Burt Reynolds, he said: “You have no talent.” He told Clint Eastwood: “You have a chip on your tooth, your Adam’s apple sticks out too far, and you talk too slow.” Or how about when a United artists executive, dismissing the suggestion that Ronald Reagan should be offered the starring role in the movie, “The Best Man” in 1964: “Reagan doesn’t have the Presidential look.”1

Those are ironies. But churches can experience ironies, too. The church that criticizes every growing church for its outreach but doesn’t use any form of outreach itself is a bit of an irony. Or the church that says it wants to reach its community only to have people say, “We don’t want those people here” is ironic. Or the church that wanted to reach young people “but not with their music!” Churches can miss out on health and growth because As we come to the final letter of the seven church of Revelation 1-3,” we look at Laodicea as “The Church of Irony.”

Revelation 3:14-22 14 ”And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: ‘The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God’s creation. 15I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot!

16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. 17For you say, I am rich, I have 1 Christopher Cerf and Victor Navasky, The Experts Speak, 1984.

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prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. 18I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. 19Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. 20Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. 21The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’”

Setting While John the Apostle was exiled on the island of Patmos for his faith in Jesus, he received this revelation concerning the 7 churches of Asia Minor toward the end of the 1st century, around AD 95.

Laodicea was 11 miles west of Colossae and 6 miles south of Hierapolis (cf. Colossians 4:13). Laodicea was situated along 3 major imperial roads, sort of like Interstates today— think of Atlanta with I-75, I-85, and I-20 running through it. Laodicea quickly advanced as a leading commercial center—its wool industry flourished through the production and export of black wool (and the associated costly garments). Laodicea also had a world-famous medical school specializing in ear and eye care, including an ointment or salve for inflamed eyes.

The city was so productive that when an earthquake devastated the city in AD 60, the city declined Rome’s offer of financial assistance to rebuild and rebuilt on its own power.

How many cities could rebuild themselves if they were decimated today without the help of the federal government?

With so much prosperity, it’s a wonder Laodicea had any needs. But it lacked in one major area—drinkable water. The city relied on aqueducts to pipe in the hot water springs from Hierapolis (with its calcium carbonate) or the cold mountain waters of Colossae. By the time either type of water reached Laodicea, it was lukewarm. Understanding this issue helps interpret and apply what Jesus said to this church.

In light of this passage and the background, I want to give you 4 areas to incorporate in your life and the life of your church to avoid becoming “The Church of Irony.” By avoiding the likes of the church of Laodicea, you can progress in the Christian faith.

Lean on Christ for His Work in Creation as the Agent in Creation (3:14) Each of the 7 letters in Revelation 2-3 begins with a reminder of Jesus’ description from chapter 1. Here, Jesus is called the “Amen,” which means He is true or faithful. Just to make sure no one misses it, Jesus adds He is “the faithful and true witness.” He tells us these things about Himself as a reminder so we can trust Him and what He says.

When people are called on a witness stand in America, you have to swear “to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you, God.” But few people do that, because they tell the truth of a particular question, but they don’t provide the whole truth on a related issue, because too much information may tip the scales in favor of the prosecution. While some people may hide information, Jesus is completely open and honest with this church because He speaks faithfully and truthfully.

Jesus also describes Himself as “the beginning of God’s creation.” Some translations say “the firstborn of God’s creation,” but it could also be translated as “the ruler of God’s creation.” Jesus is not claiming to be created but He’s claiming to be the “Head of all creation.” When you read Genesis 1:1-2 and John 1:1-3 together, you see all 3 members of the Trinity actively involved in creation. Jesus is claiming to be the agent in creation. We can lean on Him or trust Him because He is the Creator.

Learn from Christ for His Work in Redemption Instead of Your Cultural Conditioning (3:15-18) After Jesus identifies Himself, He cuts straight to the heart of the matter with the church. He says to them, “I know your works” (3:15). Apparently, the works were so incomplete, they weren’t even worth mentioning!

The Lord adds, “you are neither cold nor hot” (3:1516). Note how the notion of “neither cold nor hot” occurs three times in some form in these two verses. Many preachers fail to do a proper background study on Laodicea and claim Jesus either wants you on fire for Him or cold (lost with the

willingness to listen) rather than lukewarm. One of the questions I have about this interpretation is where is spiritual coldness ever defined as a willingness to listen to the gospel?

As I stated before, the hot, medicinal springs of Hierapolis were only 6 miles away and many used it to treat their ailments. Furthermore, the cold mountain water of Colossae was only 11 miles away and many used it for the refreshment of thirst. By the time either type of water was carried to Laodicea, it was lukewarm and revolting. What Jesus is saying here is that He wants you to provide spiritual refreshment to the tired and weary or spiritual comfort and healing to the sick and hurting. But the Lord does not want you to offer a lukewarm ministry which is completely ineffective.

In the wintertime or early of a morning, you may want a hot drink of coffee or hot chocolate to warm you and get you going. Or in the middle of a hot day, you may want cold water or Gatorade to cool you off. But who in the world ever wants lukewarm water or lukewarm coffee? No one, but you want to spew it out.

The church had evidently been conditioned by her culture because she relied on her own strength for riches and prosperity, needing nothing. She prided herself on independence and self-sufficiency, like so many in our community today, when in fact the people of the church were wretched, pitiable, poor, blind & naked! The fable The Emperor Has No Clothes was a reality for these people—so much for their eye salve and expensive clothing!

Just as Jesus called them, He also calls us to learn from Him and rely on Him for real riches and white garments of a right standing by faith in Him. He also provides spiritual anointing to see things the way He wants us to see them.

We are a culturally-conditioned people—we want a parking spot so we don’t have too far to walk, the padded seats we are used to sitting in, the right temperature, and the right length of service or we complain. Furthermore, most Christians in America rely on their own financial strength and don’t tithe but focus on how nice a vacation they can have or additional houses or vehicles or boats or the nicest things in their home. Please understand me, those things in and of themselves are not necessarily evil, but when our standards and cost of living is so great we say we cannot tithe, we are practicing evil and relying on our finances to take care of us rather than give to the Lord and adjust our lifestyles. Just a few years ago, my family was living on less than $40,000 a year in Panama City Beach with 4 kids and we didn’t take nice vacations or have fancy vehicles, and we owned just a simple house but we never considered not tithing as an option.

Sure, we could have had nicer things and not tithed but what would that have taught our kids?

On this issue, some people try to be spiritual and claim they don’t give to the church because they don’t agree with everything the church does or they want more information before they provide their investment. But I don’t know

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half of what the government does and much of what it does I disagree with, like abortion on demand, homosexual marriages, etc. But I still pay my taxes because Jesus said to “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s” (Matthew 22:21).

One area to incorporate in your life and in your church to avoid becoming the church of irony is to lean on Christ for His work of creation. Another area is to learn from Christ for His work in redemption. A third area is for us to…

Listen to Christ for His Work in Correction and Seek a Social Connection with Him (3:19-20) Once the Lord tells the church what is wrong, He instructs them on what to do to fix their problem. Fixing it includes discipline and that’s a word many like to avoid today. But Jesus loves His people enough to reprove and discipline them, just like we love our children enough to do the same (cf. Hebrews 12:5-6).

Jesus adds, “so be zealous and repent.” To be “zealous” is the same as being “hot” or “fervent” for the Lord (cf.

Romans 12:11) and “repentance” means to change your ways. The Lord told them and He tells us to be fervent for Him and turn away from our sin and self-sufficiencies.

Jesus then provides this image of standing on the outside of the church and knocking on the door, desiring to enter and fellowship with His people. Note that this is a text of fellowship for those that are outside of fellowship, not a text on relationship via salvation.

With desktops, laptops, tablets, and smartphones at our disposal today and wifi connections everywhere, most Americans are concerned about staying connected so they can interact socially via Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and the like. Again, those things are not evil in and of themselves, but Christians get conditioned to these things and we are so busy trying to interact socially with our “friends” that we fail to fellowship and socially connect with our Lord through prayer and time in His Word.

The Lord has addressed our need to lean on Him, learn from Him, and listen to Him. But He also wants us to…

Look to Christ for His Work in Glorification & Your Future Reign with Him (3:21-22) For the seventh and final time, Jesus gives a promise to the “one who conquers” and you only conquer through “the blood of the Lamb and the word of [your] testimony” (12:11). You must trust in Christ and His sacrifice for you and let that be part of your life story

Jesus will grant His people the right to sit with Him on His throne, just as He has done with His Father. Je-

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sus will give His followers the right to rule with Him, under His authority, not over it or beside it, just as He rules under the authority of the Father (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:24-28). We will be as “co-heirs” with Christ (Romans 8:17).

When our kids were babies and toddlers, I’d often let them sit on my lap while we ate at home or in a restaurant (that’s one reason why I quit wearing white shirts).

Even today, when they finish eating, it isn’t uncommon for my youngest children to come to me and sit on my lap at the table. It is a special place they have access to because of their relationship with me and we will have access to the throne of Christ because of a personal relationship with Him. Conclusion Each part of this letter to the church of Laodicea offers significant areas for improvement. Churches who take this letter to heart should not continue to decline but should become healthy and primed for growth. I believe that’s what you want or you wouldn’t be reading this message.

You know, in many ways, American churches often have more in common with the church of Laodicea than with any of the other churches in this list. We usually don’t have to deal with a lot of idolatry and heresy, as might be common in other countries, though we do encounter some issues of immorality. But what I mean is in the area of independence and self-sufficiency. Many American churches have members who tend to live in well-todo neighborhoods with better jobs and a higher social standing than many poorer Americans. And even the poor among us in America have much more than the poor in the vast majority of countries. We best take these words of Christ to heart and avoid lukewarm Christianity and a lack of fellowship with Christ or He will spit us out. But why would the Lord spit out American churches if we carry the hope for America and the hope for the world? Ironic isn’t it?

Joel Breidenbaugh PhD, is the Lead Pastor of Gospel Centered Church in Apopka, Florida and is an Assistant Professor of Homiletics for Liberty University John W. Rawlings School of Divinity.

Forward: Looking to What Lies Ahead Philippians 3:12-15

By Chris Irving Eric Lidell, famous athlete of the 1920s who was accosted and persecuted for his firm belief of the importance and supremacy of the worship of God above all else, once said “God made me fast. And when I run, I feel His pleasure.” He ended up winning the Olympic gold medal in the 400m and the bronze medal in the 200m. Lidell was well known for his strong stance against running on Sunday, but his love for Jesus led him to leave home and take the Gospel to China. That was the race marked out for him.

Similarly, Paul uses an intense running analogy to describe the Christian life. Paul’s passion was to know Christ (Phil 3:10). Paul refused to be still and stay in one place, committing to run hard for Christ. Kent Hughes describes Paul’s commitment best by saying, “There is nothing in Scripture quite like this explosion of spiritual longing.” It’s as if Paul has rounded the final turn and is heading down the home stretch and just like a welltrained athlete, he has kicked into a higher gear in his push toward finish line. In so doing, he urges the church to look forward to what lies ahead.

As we work through the text, I pray you hear the Word of God and that He will teach you what you do not know, and that what you are not yet, He will make you.

If you sense conviction because you realize you are not running well, let me assure you that there is absolutely no reason to be afraid of conviction from the Holy Spirit. Conviction is one of the tasks of the Holy Spirit and correction is one of the tasks of Scripture. It also means

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that God loves you because Hebrews tells us that He disciplines those He loves.

The one main issue with the Philippian church was their lack of joy. They were struggling to get along in trying circumstances. Why do I say that? First, Paul writes about the conflict between two women in the church, though we do not know what the subject of the conflict was.

Second, several times Paul reminds the church they must rejoice in the midst of their struggle. Plateaued churches often reach this plateau due to conflict within the family. Conflict will always arise but how we handle that conflict will determine whether or not we plateau or grow. Paul set out to remind the church two things about joy: 1. The source of our joy is found in Christ.

2. Our entanglement in earthly pursuits can turn us to inward fighting instead of forward focus.

In Philippians 3, Paul gives personal testimony about two sources of conflict. The first comes when believers put confidence in the flesh instead of being found in Christ. Another source of conflict occurs when a church works out of its own flesh and fails to look to Christ. As he laid out his persuasive words inspired by the Holy Spirit, Paul wrote the church this magnificent reminder of our call in Christ Jesus.

The church should always move forward because of what lies ahead of us. The best days for the Church are

ahead! What amazing work has God done in your past?

Was it a work of the flesh or a work of the Spirit? God is always at work and He set the church on a path to the glorious Day of the Lord. We need to consider that Paul’s words here are still relevant for the church today, 2000 years later, because we are still on that path. God is moving us forward to that day of completion.

So in the same way that Paul exhorts the Philippian church, we too must set aside all of the confidence in the flesh that we might place before God to earn His blessing of salvation and favor. It never is about who you are, where you are from, what language you speak, what national flag you salute, where you call home, where you are educated, what church you attend or don’t attend. This life is about pressing forward and following Jesus.

How do we do that? We simply lay our church attendance, our church busy-ness, our offerings, our committee work, our facilities, and our plans at His feet. We commit that by faith we will strive forward together to know more of Jesus. Now, we certainly cannot neglect facilities and offerings and the like; rather we must first focus our hearts on Christ Jesus and put absolutely no confidence in the flesh. In other words, we must place no confidence in what we can do on our own. A church that is ready to turn around and break away from the plateau is a church that acknowledges that nothing will be accomplished in its own power. It is only through the power of God that the church can move forward.

My goal as pastor is and will always be to present each member of my church to God the Father, complete in Christ. This was Paul’s goal and should be any pastor’s goal for the people God sends his way to shepherd.

So my challenge to the church is this - make every effort to know Christ. In order to know more of Him, you must strive, strain, and push forward by fixing your eyes on what lies ahead, not on what is behind.

Read Philippians 3:7-15 Humbly Admit You Have Not Arrived (3:12a & 13a) Have you ever played a game you just couldn’t win? As a kid, that game for me was Monopoly. My dad and my older brother beat me every single time. To this day, Monopoly has a way of humbling me. Even more than

a board game, the Gospel has a way of humbling me too. If it hasn’t humbled you, then I wonder if you’ve grasped the greatness of the Gospel.

Philippians 3:12 - Imperfection Paul mentions his own imperfection twice here. In Philippians 3:7, Paul says he counts everything as loss for the sake of knowing Christ. Paul does not mean he has arrived, but that He has let go of all things in order to begin the race to know Christ. Isn’t it interesting that Paul let go of his entire life so that he could know Christ, yet so many of us have put super glue on our worldly ambitions so as not to let go of anything for which we’ve worked. That’s the difference in between putting your confidence in the flesh versus putting your confidence in Christ.

Notice Paul readily admits he had not achieved perfection, but he is determined to move forward by looking ahead and striving for that day of fully knowing Jesus.

The interesting truth in his story is that there was a day when Paul genuinely believed that he had arrived.

Read Philippians 3:4-6.

In our day, it is normal to consider a message as a legitimate truth if the person sincerely believes in their message. Notice how Paul was wrong about his sincerely held belief because the Gospel of Jesus Christ changed him and he fully admitted it.

Another reason so many churches are plateaued or declining, is that it has left its first love, Jesus Christ. It is the Gospel that Paul declared to the Corinthian Church in 1 Corinthians 2:2. This Gospel is the change that changes everything. In order to move forward, we must refocus our eyes on the prize of knowing Jesus, and Christ crucified!

Paul wrote amazing truths about his life in this little letter, but he realized that Paul’s earthly “arrival” is not what God wanted. There is hope in humility. We need to realize that we are, by God’s grace, called to keep running with Paul because we have not yet arrived. The problem comes when we are unwilling to admit that we have not arrived because then we “hit the wall.” Have you ever seen a runner “hit the wall”? I’ve seen it and experienced it. Often in a track meet, there is one runner who takes off and gains a large lead only to hit the

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wall about halfway through the third lap of a four lap race. He runs out of energy. When we are unwilling to admit that we have not arrived to completion, we begin to think that in our ministry, in our programming, in our calendar, in our worship, in our __________ (insert your own word here) we’ve got it together. It is at this moment that we will hit the wall.

You must be careful not to adopt a passive approach to following Jesus. A passive approach reflects a passive attitude. There is nothing passive about moving forward and following Jesus. The New Testament uses athletic imagery to help us understand.

Our servant leadership, teaching, and discipling is not about lording power over people, but instead, by God’s grace, we can help people grow in Christlikeness. We get to help bring as many people along with us on the journey forward as we possibly can. In order to do what Paul was doing, we must lay aside our confidence in our flesh. It’s not about your pastor, it is not about you, it is not about the name of your church. It is about the simple pursuit of knowing Jesus Christ our Lord.

A Passionate Pursuit – Paul says to run in such a way as to win the prize. Let us run forward with endurance the race that lies before us. We are commanded to grow in maturity and grow in Christ. In order to grow, we need passion and discipline provided by the Holy Spirit. We don’t earn it. Instead, we make the effort to push forward. This effort reveals our personal responsibility to pursue the goal to win the prize.

Will you admit you need to grow in Christlikeness? I will.

Right here, right now. This leads us to see the evidence of God’s grace in others. Our love for Jesus will grow because we grow in knowledge of just how much we need His grace.

Zealously Chase a Greater Knowledge of Christ (3:12-14) Admitting we are not perfect or complete is only the first step. You see, this is a heavenly calling, a calling to move forward. He is not the Christ of the Complacent. You are not The Church of the Complacent. Paul is zealous to know Christ Jesus. He is passionate about his forward pursuit and the chase of knowing Christ and knowing the resurrection from the dead. He wants you to join Him in chasing Christ. Some churches will get this. You know when that lead runner hits the wall, there is always someone from the chase pack that catches them and passes them up. The church that will cross the finish line is like that runner in the chase pack waiting for the right moment to take the lead, always moving forward.

Hear Paul’s passion in 3:12, “I make every effort to take hold of it.” Paul is not a man on a lifetime vacation. He is on a mission to know Christ and make Him known to the world. He’s after the prize. What is the prize? Christ Jesus! There is no greater prize, or treasure in Heaven than the treasure of Jesus Christ Himself. Paul is chasing the fuller knowledge of Christ, in order to gain Christ, to know Him more, to know the power of the resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings.

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Read 1 Cor 9:24-27, and Hebrews 12:1-2.

One thing I do - What is your one thing? CJ Mahaney asks this question, “What one change could you make in order to pursue the one thing that matters the most?” Is it a sin? What sin do you need to throw off? What one thing could you do that you aren’t doing right now?

There is power in making just one simple change. Don’t compartmentalize or break up or segment your life of following Jesus. This is true for the church as a whole, as well as for each individual member. A church in decline is a church that, somewhere along the way, has failed to make the necessary adjustments of one thing at a time needed to move forward. One small change could keep their eyes looking forward and out to the community but often because the change doesn’t happen, their eyes turn inward and they lose their focus.

Personally, as believers we must evaluate how are we are spending our time. Maybe a simple adjustment in our daily schedules can change how much time we spend with Jesus in the Word.

Most importantly, we must evaluate how we are growing in the knowledge of Christ. This is often where change is needed the most! If Paul was not satisfied, we should not be satisfied either. So Paul’s “one thing” is focusing on his calling and striving forward to reach that goal.

Forgetting & Reaching - Think about the imagery that Paul lays out for us. It involves “forgetting” and “reaching.” Both are needed to run a good race. Every runner knows you can’t look over your shoulder as you are running. You have to forget what is behind you. You

can’t focus on what is behind you because you’ll get off course and any forward momentum you might have will suddenly be lost. What does Paul forget about? He forgets his past, which is full of disobedience and rebellion against God, and he forgets his achievements in the flesh.

Churches in decline love to focus on the glory days.

Many churches linger in memories of the days of yesteryear when they had a full children’s ministry, a full youth ministry, and a packed house for VBS. We tend to focus our eyes on our past. If we focus on our past achievements, then we’ve placed too high a value on those achievements, thus creating a false sense of security. You and I need a better path – a path forward!

The good news is that your past doesn’t have to determine your future. Just look at Paul’s life. The Gospel is good news, so forget your past failures and run forward.

Focusing on our successes can lead to a false sense of security. It creates a tendency to hang on to the “glory days.” If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always gotten. If Paul would have remained the same, Paul would have gone to hell because He didn’t know Jesus. But the glory of the Gospel is that Jesus found Paul and changed his life and Paul wants to know more of that change agent, Jesus Christ. Paul focused on remaining faithful and running forward until he crossed the finish line.

Never Lose the Miracle of the Gospel (3:12b, 14b) Here is the wonder and the amazement of the Gospel.

Paul says, “I make every effort to take hold of it.” Why? Because Paul was taken hold of by Christ Jesus. In verse 14, he speaks of “God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus.”

This is what we look forward to. This is the finish line. In Christ, God is calling you heavenward.

Paul never lost the wonder of the miracle of the Gospel in his life. He lived a changed life to the glory of God. Maturity, becoming more like Jesus, means we go deeper into the Gospel, never beyond the Gospel. Our growth comes as a result of the outflow of the Gospel.

to God? No. It is only because of God’s grace and mercy.

God calls us by His grace through faith.

Growing into Christlikeness sometimes seems to be separated in our minds from the Gospel. The Gospel is not just the ABCs of salvation. We need to see the Gospel as “the A to Z of Christianity,” as Tim Keller has said.

Paul says in Colossians 2:6, “Just as you have received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in Him.” Friends, there is nothing else…it is Christ! Keep looking to Him! Treasure His grace! If you boast, boast about nothing else except in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.

So, what does this look like for the church?

• We must humbly confess that we have not arrived. In fact, we might even need to confess that our church is plateaued or in decline. We need to be honest with the Lord and ourselves with this truth.

• We must commit to passionately pursue greater intimacy of knowing Christ.

• We must commit to a focused obedience to move forward in the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.

• We must not lose the miracle of the Gospel. It is the change that changes everything.

This call to move forward is a call to a deepening love for Christ and pursuing completion in Him. Remember I told you about Eric Liddell, who felt the pleasure of God when he ran fast? Paul felt that same pleasure in running for the prize, and he wants you to join him in that race. Fix your eyes on Jesus, the One who ran for “the joy that lay before Him.” Run for the pleasure of Christ!

Run for the glory of the One who took hold of you! Run forward until you see Him. Chris Irving is the Senior Pastor of the University Avenue Baptist Church in Honolulu, HI. He led two rural churches to health through revitalization and is currently involved in a revitalization work at UABC. He is the husband of Amber, and father to Matt, Jake, Karalyn, Katie, Kylie, and Benjamin.

What is the miracle? That Christ would take hold of Paul, a man who was sent to arrest followers of The Way (Acts 9). This miracle is the same miracle for you - the truth that Christ would take hold of you! How does that happen? Is there something in me that makes me attractive

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The local church is the only organization that can facilitate eternal hope, lasting change, and total transformation in the lives of people and communities everywhere. Even so, today’s local churches are often in desperate need of renewal and revitalization themselves. In The Revitalized Church, Pastor Michael Atherton uses his firsthand experiences to show how a local church community can once again become vibrant. The Revitalized Church shares Atherton’s eighteen-month journey merging two church communities with a common vision and discusses the challenges and the victories he encountered. In addition, he examines the key biblical leadership principles that were used to help sustain the church community.

God Is in the Details 2 Chronicles 15:1-4

By Desmond Barrett Opening story: Outside the church stood an imposing ‘For Sale’ sign, a disconnection notice clung to the front door from the gas company, and all the lights were out in the building or so it seemed. The pastor had arrived for his formal interview to meet his perceptive first church but could not find them. The church sign said she was called New Life, but it seemed there was no life left.

Had God called him to bury a church on life support as his first assignment? It seemed he was being led to a church that was already closed, if not physically, at least spiritually. In the early moments of uncertainty, he would search around every corner and open every door to find the people who made up the church. He would find them in a back Sunday School classroom huddled together - less than 12 faithful members doing their best to keep the church together. The remnant of believers had sold almost everything to help pay the essential bills, but they were losing their fight to keep the church open. The members had fought so hard to keep the doors open, yet here they were alone, huddled in a back room. The church was behind on all major bills, denominational budgets had not been paid, and numerically the church had been on a steady decline for nearly a decade. The imposing 20,000 square foot three-story brick church sat just under a dozen people waiting on God to send his leader to save the church. The leader God had sent them would help transform the hurting church into a heart of service through a missional outlook, but that was yet to be understood by the people huddled waiting that night in the room.

The church had been birthed in 1954 in a once vibrant town. Decades later, the old mill town had lost jobs, income, and people for nearly forty years, and the church was no different. New Life had run out of new life. It seemed guests did not come venturing through her doors to hear the message. The church stood next to a closed mill and abandoned elementary school. The pastor’s office was abandoned due to mold from a roof leak, plastic sectioned off portions of the building to keep heat, or cold in depending on the season, and as more items were sold off to keep her going, she became more hollow with each passing month. The church had aged, not only physically but spiritually. There was a feeling as if God’s presence slipped out of town with the last train that had powered through the city. The question on the lips of those huddled together was; Could a new pastoral family help revive this once lively church?

The church would find out over the ensuring years that God was in the details.

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Scripture Reading: Turn with me to 2 Chronicles 15:1-4 (NIV). As I read this passage of scripture, listen closely and then underline or highlight in your Bible where God is in the details. In this Old Testament passage God begins to reveal details to Asa, that I believe will help our church today.

The Spirit of God came on Azariah son of Oded. 2 He went out to meet Asa and said to him, “Listen to me, Asa and all Judah and Benjamin. The LORD is with you when you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you. 3 For a long time Israel was without the true God, without a priest to teach and without the law. 4 But in their distress they turned to the LORD, the God of Israel, and sought him, and he was found by them.

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Let us pray: Where are you God when members do not return? Where are you God when the offering, we collect does not pay the basic bills? Where? Here! We thank you God that you are in the details of this church’s life. Thank you for being in the details of our individual lives. Thank you for being in the details of the neighborhood around this church’s life. Thank you for being in the details of everything that we see and do not see. But we ask Lord that you open our hearts, and convict our spirit to ask; are we seeking you or are you always seeking us? Because God I believe today you are in the details. In Jesus Name Amen.

How many times have you started a project around the home and failed to complete it? If we are honest, most of us, if not all of us have faced the challenge of finishing and finishing well. The challenge we face today as a church in the midst of renewal is to remember that God is in the details of this work. In verse 2, we see that Asa had been given a task to Accept, Seek, Pray, and to Obey. These four key words (Accept, Seek, Pray, and to Obey) are critical words that we all should heed as we progress forward as individual and as a collective church body.

Accept: When God gives you a task to do, he will give the plan to accomplish it. God had called Asa to be the King, and if he would accept the call, God would use him to transform the city and surrounding kingdom. If not, he would fall like every King before who failed to accept God’s teaching and instructions. Asa would accept the call and begin to set about taking down the

sacred stones, the Asherah poles to false gods, removed the high incense altars where people prayed, and built up the fortifications of the city as God had instructed him. (2 Chronicles 1:1-6)

When I look around our sanctuary today, I wonder privately and out loud, who would be willing to accept God’s plan for this church? What scared altars have we built through name plaques, pieces of furniture, and dedicated spaces to past individuals that have become our sacred stones, our Asherah poles, and high altars that no man can touch? Have we allowed our wants, and desires to get ahead of the wants and desires that God has for us? For you? For our church? Are we any different than the people of Asa’s time?

Friends, I believe today, deep in my spirit that God is calling us to celebrate the past, but he will not allow the past to keep us there. For too long we have been held hostage by past decisions, that were good sound decisions decades ago, but today they have become our false idols. God much like in Asa’s day, is calling us to accept that he is in the details to move us forward as a church. But are you, are we collectively willing to accept that in the details we have to die to self, to achieve a deeper walk with our Savior?

Seek: Where is God at work and let us go work there. Asa had to seek after the face of God to be able to seek his will for the kingdom. Pause for a moment and reflect in your own life, and then on the life of this church, how are you (us) seeking where God is at work? How many meetings do we need to have before we move from discussion to action? How many conversations are taking place outside the church walls on Sunday evenings or after a business meeting, when we should be at the altars confessing our sins and seeking God’s will for our church? My friends, I know I am stepping on toes today. I know I am pushing some hot buttons, but I believe deep in my spirit that God is in the details and life of this church and he is calling us to do our part, to do his will, but first we must seek him.

Story: Part II A year had passed since the pastor walk-in to his first church to find 12 faithful souls doing their best to keep the church doors open. In a tragic night two tornadoes hit the county and the neighborhood around the church. An EF2 tornado that brought winds of 125mph clipped the church’s side and destroyed homes within a six-block radius. Over 50 buildings were severely damaged, and 267 homes faced some damage.

That night, all the church could do was try their best to help.

The church did not have a lot of resources, but they had prayer and a love for the neighbors to help. The neighborhoods adjacent to the church looked like a war zone. The church itself needed a new roof, but the pastor felt they could do more than pray, they could become the hands and feet of Christ. Out of tragedy would come triumph as God was in the details. Due to the proximity of the damage, the church campus became a field hospital for supplies, food, and emergency management personnel. For the next six months, the traditional sense of church closed. They stopped meeting on Sundays and Wednesday nights, and in turn, became a church for the community as they set up a compassionate ministry center serving food,

passing out supplies, and providing counseling and rest to the weary neighbors and workers. Day after day, truckloads of provisions would fill the church building and her education wing.

Where once the church was nearly empty, she came alive with life, as God was in the details. An infusion of helping hands and monetary resources came to the church, which enabled her to begin to dream of what God wanted her to do. While the tornado was tragic, God was going to use the pain for a turnaround.

New Life was once a forgotten church on the wrong side of the tracks, and in an instant, she became the church of compassion to a hurting city and she found new life to go on.

Pray: Wherever we (you) want to go, prayer will lead us (you) there. Each morning the sun would greet Asa as he would rise from his bed. As he awoke, he the smell coming from incenses burning on the hill side would sweep into his room to greet him. As he stepped out onto the balcony of his palace to view the happenings of the city, he could see off in the distance the altars to false gods looking back at him. Peering towards the altars, his eyes fixed onto the slow movement up and down the mountain along a well-worn path. What looked like ants from a distance were towns people moving up and down the mountain to worship false idols. Where was God you might ask? He was in the detail?

For many they thought what they were doing was right. It was what they always did. For generation after generation, they served at the feet of false idols. In the church we can get so caught up in the ‘doing’ that we forget the ‘going’ about God’s business. There are two questions that we must ask ourselves today.

What does God want to teach me?

What does God want to teach us as a church?

Asa understood that if he was going to effective for God, he had to seek the spirit of God. It is only through prayer and fasting that we will find the will of God for each of us as individuals and as a people we call the local church.

Obey: Follow through on what God has called you (us) to accomplish in his name. The Word of God said in verse 4; “But in their distress they turned to the Lord, the God of Israel, and sought him, and he was found by them.” The key words that I want us to focus on are they sought him, and he was found by them. The leader of the community (Asa) was called on by God to obey his calling. Much like centuries ago, God is calling our church, and his people (you, me, us) to obey him as we enter this new season in the life of the church. As Asa sought him, he had to evaluate inside of himself, was he willing to obey God and to challenge some of the beliefs of the day. If we are going to be successful in revitalizing our church, then we have to be willing to self-evaluate by seeking God’s plan for his church, and that will mean dying to self to take up the Savior’s plan.

Asa, had to order men to knock down the idols, to put out the incense fires, and to rebuild the fortification of the city. Are we willing to change rooms that have been the same

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for decades to prepare for guests? Are we willing to allow programs that we love but are no longer effective end, so we can begin where God is? Are we willing to invite in others that do not look like us, act like us, or even smell like us to be the hands and feet of Christ for our community? Are we willing to change to become more like Christ, or will we keep retreating from the hard places of God? God my friends is in the details. If we obey God, he will provide a way.

Story: Part III In six years, God had taken a church of a dozen and grew it to nearly 60 active members. He had used a revitalizer, and a tornado, to move the church from the pew into the streets. As the revitalizer left for another ministry outpost, the church was faced with either progressing or regressing. She has since reverted in several areas, from closing the soup kitchen and clothing closet that was started, while watching the attendance decrease by 50%. She has since stabilized, and new life is coming back to her again. As New Life has shown, revitalization is not done or sustained overnight. It is a continual progression of purposeful actions to reach out to the people around the church. As the church prays for God’s direction, they are going back to the basics developing a dedicated prayer night, focused-ministry outreach programs, and intentional discipleship.

Asa was challenged to Accept, Seek, Pray, and to Obey. These four key words (Accept, Seek, Pray, and to Obey) as we progress forward as individuals and as a collective church body with God’s grace, we will accomplish his plan and his purpose for our local church. As I think about the New Life church story that I shared, there are many similarities to our story here. As I studied and prayed over the two stories this past week, I found a parallel from Chronicles and the story from New Life Church that I believe can help us beyond the accept, seek, pray, and to obey keys that I shared earlier. Let us call them four revitalization rewards, that are found in that work of both that can help us here in our own local body as we continue progressing forward on the path of revitalization.

Revitalization Rewards found in the work at New Life that can help us.

1. A willingness to adapt to whatever situation the church faces.

God is calling us to ‘adapt’ to the needs that we face today. We celebrate our past, we acknowledge present situation, but we must be willing to pivot towards our future. That means we must adapt to the changing needs in our current situation and those around our community. By evaluating everything, leaving nothing to chance, but everything to prayer, God will be the details of how to move forward.

2. A spirit of never give up.

When things were going poorly for Asa’s community he did not give up. When New Life was down to two handfuls of people, they did not give up. Today, God is challenging us to not give up. To press forward to achieve his plan for our church. Let us take up the mantle of a never give up spirit. A can-do spirit. A spirit of being who God called us to be.

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3. Dedicated times of prayer and spiritual focus.

Over the next 21-days, I am calling us to pray and fast for God’s direction and purpose. It is in the times we quite our spirit, that God will begin to speak. For many of us we are so busy ‘doing’ church that we miss ‘being’ the church God has called us to be.

Over the next 21-days, God will reveal to us individually and corporately the details of his plans for our church. Each day at 2:15 based off the scripture from (2 Chronicles 15), I challenge you to pause and pray for our church, her needs, our needs, direction from God, and for us to become missionaries to our surrounding mission field.

4. The people in the neighborhood were as important as the people inside the church.

For many years we have struggled to connect with those outside of the walls of our church. We have done well with one-time events and being ready to greet anyone that walks through the doors, but that has not been enough. Asa had to ‘go’ make the changes to his community. New Life had to ‘go’ be the hands and feet of Christ to their neighbors. God who lives in the details of our lives is calling us to re-enter the neighborhood on a more consistent basis. The people outside our doors are as important as the people inside our doors. Being praying as we seek God’s direction for how we are to accomplish his plan for our church.

Today you have been challenged. For some called out. For others called to move forward. Wherever you are in calling by God, he is in the details of our lives as a church. Friends, I am so thankful to serve you as your pastor. I am so grateful to serve with you. The challenges we face today are not a surprise to God. If we accept, seek, pray, and to obey we will come out ahead, why? Because God is in the details.

Let us pray: Father, we thank you. Thank you for helping us to see our neighbors as you. Thank you for helping us to see us as you.

Thank you for helping us to receive your challenge to be the absolute best church that you called us to be. Thank you for making us uncomfortable to the reality that we must adapt to progress forward. Thank you for the next 21-days of prayer.

Thank you for speaking to us, with us, and through us. Thank you for calling us to Accept, Seek, Pray, and to Obey. In Jesus Name, Amen. *Underlined and bolded passages would be highlighted on a slide and displayed during the sermon.

Dr. Desmond Barrett is the Lead Pastor at Summit Church of the Nazarene in Ashland, Ky.

Weak Links 2 Peter 1:5-9

By Richard Harvey Intro: Diagnostic Tools This morning we are going to talk about diagnostics. Diagnostics are part of our everyday lives whether we realize it or not. The purpose of diagnostic tools is to reveal evidence of sickness, malfunction, or weakness of some kind. A doctor uses the information from the measurements taken by a blood pressure cuff or a thermometer to help identify potential health issues. A mechanic runs computer software hooked up to your car’s engine to identify the codes that are causing that “check engine” light to come on.

Just after graduating from college, I took a temporary summer job with a local engineering company before I moved away to attend seminary. The cool thing about my job was that I got to break things. That sounds a little more fun and exciting than it actually was. My job was to break concrete cylinders on a big machine that measured the PSI pressure at which the concrete would crack. Why was that important? Who really cares about the PSI pressure that causes a concrete cylinder to break? You might care if you knew that the concrete sample was taken on the day the foundation to this building was laid. You may want to know that you can trust the foundation and that this building—or your house, or your apartment—is not going to come crashing down under the pressure of what has been built upon it.

Those diagnostics matter. They matter when it comes to the strength of the foundation. They matter when it comes to the ability of your car to function as it should. They matter when your health is at risk. And they matter when the health and function and the foundation of the body of Christ is at risk.

Illustration: Children’s game—Red Rover When we were kids, we used to play a game called “Red Rover.” I have no idea where the game got its name, but you may remember how it is played. Two teams would line up facing each other with hands held tight like little vise-grips.

You always wanted the biggest and strongest kid on your team, you just didn’t necessarily want to be the one to hold his hand. Once everyone was positioned in this hand-holding chain, each team would challenge the other team to see if one of their players could break the chain. All togeth-

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er the team would yell out, “Red Rover, Red Rover, sent Billy right over.” If he could break through the hand-held chain, he could take one of your players back over to his team. If he could not break the chain, he would have to join your team. The point was to keep the chain from breaking until all the players from the other team were now part of your team. Now, if your name was called and you had to run and hopefully break through the other team’s chain, you had to exercise one all-important strategic principle for winning the game. You would want to quickly identify the one spot in the other team’s hand-held chain that was the weakest link. Because we all know, “A chain is only as strong as (let the congregation finish the phrase) the weakest link.” Does it surprise you that the Enemy is always looking for a weak link to break through in the church? Jesus said in John 10:10 (NLT) “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy.” How much damage has he done? Is there a way to assess the destruction? How are we really doing as a church?

Did you know that the Bible is filled with diagnostics? The Law of Moses, in and of itself, was God’s diagnostic tool for the people of Israel. It was God’s standard through which they could know if they were living in a way that was pleasing and obedient to Him. It was never intended to be a basis for salvation. No one could earn salvation through the Law because no one was perfect enough to live in absolute obedience until Jesus. He alone was the perfect and spotless Lamb of God. But for the rest of us, the Law—God’s commandments—simply reveal our weakness and our desperate need for Him—our need for God’s forgiveness and our absolute dependence upon His strength to help us live to please Him. The Law reveals our brokenness. It reveals the sin-sick cancer of our souls.

Romans 3:19 (ESV) says, “Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God.” The New Living Translation states it this way: “Obviously, the law applies to those to whom it was given, for its purpose is to keep people from having excuses, and to show that the entire world is guilty before God.”

In other words, God’s Word is not only designed to point us in the right direction, but also to help us understand why we are broken and headed in the wrong direction in the first place.

With the New Covenant in Jesus Christ, we live under God’s grace through faith in the atoning work of Jesus in His death on the cross and in His resurrection from the dead. We are free from the penalty of the Law. Romans 6:23 states, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Jesus said in John 3:18, “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”

By believing in Him—in His vicarious and atoning death and resurrection—we are born again into His kingdom. We are made children of God. John 1:12 says, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” By faith in Jesus Christ, we are brought into the family of God. And as such, Scripture says we are His church—the Body of Christ—in the world for the sole purpose of charging the gates of hell to win the lost and to disciple the saved, continuing to repeat that pattern, growing the kingdom of God until Jesus returns.

Sometimes, though, we forget that’s what we are here for. We are not storming the gates of hell. We have forgotten that it is all about His kingdom and we make it more about building ours. We forget about winning the lost and discipling the saved. We have exchanged the battleship for a comfortable cruise liner. We have exchanged the armored tank for a luxury SUV. But cruise liners and SUV’s are not equipped to win the war for the human soul. And the church begins to suffer defeat after defeat. Fewer baptisms, shrinking Bible study and worship attendance becomes the trend.

We have forgotten what a healthy church looks like.

We have forgotten how it is supposed to function. The check engine light has been flashing for years and we decided to put a piece of tape over it. Out of sight, out of mind, and sooner or later out of commission.

Thankfully, God has provided diagnostic tools for the believer and for the church. I am convinced that 2 Peter 1 is written as much to the Body of Christ as a whole as it is to the individual believer. In 2 Peter 1:3 we are promised that God has provided everything necessary to live a healthy and productive Christian life. He has already provided everything we need for life and godliness. Through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, God has given us all the tools we will ever need. Our job is simply to learn how to use the tools and to become more and more skilled, more and more effective, at using the tools He has provided.

In verses 5-7, Peter lists eight virtues of the Christian life. There is an incredible promise from God in verse 10 that if we learn to implement these virtues we will never stumble and fall. The end of verse 10 reads, “for if you practice these qualities you will never fall.” In verse 8 the promise is that “if these qualities are yours and are increasing,“ then you can avoid five very unhealthy symptoms. And even though these instructions may apply to the individual, I believe the

application here is actually corporate because the pronouns in the original language are plural. In other words, if you— church—will do these things, you—church—will never fall.

Peter is clearly not talking about falling from grace.

He is not suggesting the potential of losing your salvation.

God is simply telling us that if we as a church become weak and unhealthy in any one of these virtues, it will be evident in our lives and evident in the life and ministry of the church.

These virtues listed in verses 5-7 begin with the foundational element of faith and end with the climactic virtue of agape love. Each virtue produces the next in the same way that links are added to a chain. We are not simply called by God to have faith, but to exercise that faith in real living. Faith should produce the virtue of moral excellence, or goodness. The desire for moral excellence produces a need for knowledge of the Word of God. Knowledge of God’s moral standard leads to a decision of obedience that requires self-control. Self-control exercised day after day, month after month, in obedience to the knowledge of God’s Word produces perseverance. Perseverance ultimately produces a life of godliness in Christian maturity. These internal virtues are ultimately manifested externally in how we treat one another. First, we must love those in the Body of Christ— brotherly affection. But the chief goal must be our desire to win the lost to saving faith in Christ. It is an indication of our unconditional, agape love for the world around us—a love for everyone, everywhere, regardless of race, color, or creed.

These eight virtues are eight links in a chain that makes up the DNA of the local church. If one link becomes weak or neglected, the whole chain is affected. After all, a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. And God has provided a diagnostic for measuring the strength of these virtues. In our text, God provides five key indicators for church health. The call to church revitalization is a call to strengthen the weak links before engine failure takes place—before the heart monitor flatlines. An unhealthy church is a dying church that needs an appointment with the Great Physician.

If we went to Him for a check-up, what would He say? Is our church healthy? Is our church sick? Is there a minor illness or a major disease? What does God’s “church health” diagnostic from 2 Peter 1:8-9 reveal about the condition of our church?

What does it reveal about your heart and my heart?

The 5 diagnostic indicators of weak links in church health are actually the 5 negative consequences we find in verses 8 and 9. There are consequences for our failure to fully utilize the virtues God has provided for us. They are symptoms, or evidence, of sickness, of malfunction, or of weakness in the Body of Christ. So, what are the five symptoms that may indicate we have one or more weak links? What are these five key indicators that call us to revitalize, renew, and recommit to the cause of Christ? As diagnostic tools, let’s look at these in the form of 5 questions we need to ask ourselves, because these are the questions our Great Physician is asking right now. 2 Peter 1:8 (ESV) says, “For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Diagnostic question #1 . . .

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1. Is the church ineffective in reaching the community around us? (verse 8) In verse 8, the first negative consequence is found in the word “ineffective,” a translation of the New Testament Greek word argos which means: “free from labour, at leisure . . . lazy, shunning the labour which one ought to perform.” 1 You see, actively pursuing the eight virtues assures God’s present and ongoing work of effectively building His Kingdom through the local church. Believers are invited to join God in His work of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:18-19) not to sit idly by while the lost continue to walk the broad path that leads to destruction (Matt. 7:13). Believers are called to aid those in need, not to look the other way (Matt. 25:35-40, Heb. 13:16, 1 John 3:17-19). Faith that is not put into action through acts of benevolent love and care for others is a dead, ineffective faith (James 2:17).

The Christian life is designed to be a labor of love (Col. 3:23, Eph. 6:6-7, 1 Thess. 1:3). As the Body of Christ, the church is to model the character and compassion of its Great Shepherd by meeting the physical, mental, emotional, social, and especially the spiritual needs of the “harassed and helpless . . . sheep without a shepherd” (Mat. 9:36). Churches that are effective in ministry to the surrounding community generally begin to see the results in the form of more frequent guests in worship gatherings. In their book, Comeback Churches, Ed Stetzer and Mike Dodson put it this way, “If evangelism best takes place in Christian community, we have to find a way for people to find their way to that community.

Effective evangelistic churches find diverse ways to encourage people to visit and then stay.”2 Did you get that? Effective churches find ways to minister in the community around them and that generally translates into church growth. Ineffective churches don’t. Are we really effective at reaching our community or are we rather anemic, weak, barren, and woefully ineffective? Diagnostic #1: Is our church ineffective in reaching the community around us?

2. Is the church unfruitful in leading the lost to Christ? (verse 8) The second negative consequence is found in the word “unfruitful,” a translation of akarpos meaning “without fruit, barren, not yielding what it ought to yield.”3 God’s first command in scripture directed to humanity was to “be fruitful and multiply” (Gen. 1:28). In the New Testament, we find these words related to the early church. In his insightful book, There’s Hope for Your Church, Gary McIntosh suggests, “When Luke used the words fruitful and multiply in Acts 12:24, the early disciples understood the implication: churches are to 1 Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, with Hebrew, Chaldee and Greek Dictionaries, entry 692 avrgo,j, argos.

2 Ed Stetzer and Mike Dodson, Comeback Churches: How 300 Churches Turned Around and Yours Can Too (Nashville: B&H Publishing Group, 2007), 102.

3 Strong’s 175 a;karpoj, akarpos.

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grow and multiply across the world as new believers accept the gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ.”4 In the same way that individual believers are to abide in Christ as a branch abides in the Vine, the church must collectively abide in His love in order to bear much fruit for His Kingdom (John 15:8-10). Out of pure love for Christ, the church has an enduring obligation to bear Kingdom fruit by winning the lost and discipling the saved in order to continually reproduce new believers fulfilling God’s command to be fruitful and multiply. Diagnostic #2: Is our church genuinely fruitful or are we closer to unfruitful—almost barren—in leading the lost to Christ?

The next two negative consequences of failing to practice and promote the eight Christian virtues seem to be paired together. They both have to do with sight. 2 Peter 1:9 (ESV) says, “For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins.” Diagnostic question #3…

3. Has the church become narcissistically nearsighted with a preoccupation for personal preferences? (verse 9) 4. Has the church become spiritually blind to the reality of spiritual brokenness in the world around us? (verse 9) Under the heading of “diseases and conditions” on the Mayo Clinic website you will find a condition named Narcissistic personality disorder. The website describes this as “one of several types of personality disorders . . . a mental condition in which people have an inflated sense of their own importance, a deep need for excessive attention and admiration, troubled relationships, and a lack of empathy for others.”5 Narcissism describes the kind of nearsightedness, or shortsightedness, Peter is speaking of in our text. And it describes the condition of many churches, maybe even our own.

“Nearsighted” is from the Greek word muopazo, from which we get the English word myopic. It means “to see dimly, see only what is near.”6 “Blind” is from tuphlos meaning “blind” or “mentally blind.”7 The obvious implication is spiritual rather than physical blindness. The believer who fails to live out these virtues is no longer able to see clearly or see at all. Spiritual myopia occurs when believers become so self-centered, self-focused, and self-sufficient that they fail to see even the obvious needs around them. Fruitlessness and ineffectiveness are the natural results of spiritual myopia. In Revelation 3, Jesus described the Church at Laodicea as having become self-sufficient and completely self-absorbed.

Though they maintained a high view of themselves, Jesus declared in Rev. 3:17, “For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, piti4 Gary L. McIntosh, There’s hope for Your Church: First Steps to Restoring Health and Growth, (Grand Rapids: Baker books, 2012), 22.

5 https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions.

6 Strong’s 3467 muwpa,zw, muopazo.

7 Strong’s 5185 tuflo,j, tuphlos.

able, poor, blind, and naked.” Notice Jesus’ use of the word blind.

Bill Henard writes about the obstacles many church revitalization leaders face, especially when a stagnant, declining, or dying church simply refuses to face the reality of its dire situation. In his excellent book, Can These Bones Live, Henard describes the often-entrenched church lay leadership as those who “[do] not believe that change or revitalization is needed. The same people remain in charge and are myopic to their own demise.” 8 Spiritual myopia is as dangerous to the local church as it is to the individual believer.

Spiritual myopia is evidence of a church’s heavy emphasis on members’ preferences and nostalgia to the exclusion of any significant focus on the lostness in the community around them. It is a lethal aversion to any change that might be necessary in order to reach the community for Christ. As the ESV translators render the text, the problem escalates to the point that one is “so nearsighted that he is blind” (2 Peter 1:9).

Spiritual blindness in Scripture is generally relegated to unbelievers. Jesus rebukes the scribes and Pharisees as “blind guides,” “blind fools,” and “blind men” in Matt. 23:1626. Scripture teaches in 2 Cor. 4:4 that “the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” For the church to become nearsighted and blind is a serious spiritual health issue. It is essentially equivalent to unbelief. No wonder Jesus rebukes the Laodiceans in Rev. 3 saying he is ready to “vomit” them out of his mouth.

Yet His rebuke is in love. In Rev. 3:19, Jesus says, “Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.” He is ready to renew their spirits and restore their sight if they would simply repent of their sinful pride and return to Him. In verse 18, Jesus declared that He stands ready with “salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.” Diagnostic #3: Has our church become narcissistically nearsighted with a preoccupation for personal preferences? Diagnostic #4: Has our church become spiritually blind to the reality of spiritual brokenness in the world around us? And finally, Diagnostic #5…

5. Is the church in danger of a forgetfulness that literally threatens the future of the church. (verse 9) The final negative consequence is like having spiritual Alzheimer’s. Spiritual sight is gone and now the mind is going too. Scripture says to the one who does not practice these spiritual disciplines, or virtues, that he exists as someone who has “forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins” (2 Peter 1:9b). One of the great tragedies of contemporary Christianity is the great number of people who have no assurance of their salvation. They live in fear that somehow this promise from God might, at any time, be taken away, 8 Bill Henard, Can These Bones Live? A Practical Guide to Church Revitalization (Nashville: B&H Publishing Group, 2015), 51.

even though Scripture gives every indication that God always keeps His promises. Or, believers live with the stigma of some past sin rather than trusting in God’s promises of forgiveness and restoration. They allow the stigma to dominate their self-perception and that self-perception only reinforces a public perception. What they have forgotten is the gospel—”that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief” as The Apostle Paul states in 1 Timothy 1:15 (NKJ). Never forget what Christ has done for you! If we forget the gospel there will be no future for this church. We may hang on for a few years as a glorified country club, but we will not be the church of the living Christ. Hold on to the gospel with everything you have. Remember what Christ has done for you and go tell that story. It’s hard to tell a story you don’t have. Do you know for certain that you are a born-again child of God? Do you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ? Have you come to Him asking for the forgiveness of your sins and trusting in what He has done for you through his death and resurrection? Now is the time. “Come unto me,” Jesus said, “and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28). Again, Jesus said in John 6:37, “and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.” Come to Him today. Trust Him today!

Church, Diagnostic #5: Are we in danger of a forgetfulness that threatens the future of this church? He is ready to renew our spirits and restore our sight if we will simply repent of our sinful pride and return to Him. Will you join me today in a prayer of repentance and of recommitment to Him to be His fruitful, effective, wide-eyed, and open-hearted church reaching out to the hurting, helpless, and the broken all around us with an effective and fruitful laser focus on winning the lost and discipling the saved? Would you pray with me?

God, help us! Forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We confess our ineffectiveness and our fruitlessness as a body of Christ. We confess our narcissistic tendencies to be nearsighted as we have so often been more concerned with our own personal preferences that about the lostness and brokenness right here in our own community. We have allowed our eyes to become blind to the needs of our community. We have forgotten our own lostness and your gracious gift of forgiveness.

Forgive us and help us take this good news of Jesus Christ to our community and bless that effort with new growth—with new life—with a revitalization and renewal of your church to the glory of God now and forever. Amen.

Richard D. Harvey is the pastor of Eastwood Baptist Church in Bay Minette, Alabama. He is a 2020 D.Min graduate of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary with specialization in Church Revitalization. He has served churches in Alabama, Texas, Mississippi, and Florida and is also author of the forthcoming book Fail Proof: Eight Biblical Principles That Will Keep You from Falling.

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Forthcoming from Renovate Publishing Group The New Testament does not present a “cookie-cutter” approach for the local church. Each local congregation has its own unique qualities and personality. However, there are some very specific foundational elements that should shape the DNA of every Christ-following local church. In his forthcoming book from Renovate Publishing Group, Dr. Richard D. Harvey uncovers eight biblical principles for church revitalization.

Fail Proof is designed to help revitalization l eaders and struggling churches rediscover their biblical DNA and to begin a revitalizing process that will help them rise up from the downward spiral of unhealthy habits. The ultimate purpose of Fail Proof is to keep the church upright and standing strong in the battle to win the lost and disciple the saved for the glory of God. “For if you do these th ings, you will never fall” – 2 Peter 1:10b.

——— Endorsements ——— Dr. Tom Cheyney, Founder & Directional Leader of the RENOVATE National Church Revitalization Conferences and Executive Director for the Greater Orlando Baptist Association, Orlando, Florida – “Fail Proof… is very well formed and will be a great asset to the local church.”

Rick Ellison, Director of Missions, Baldwin Baptist Association, Baldwin County, Alabama – “In this resource Richard Harvey explores deeply the biblical teachings for church health. That part of his presentation is the best I have ever read. It … challenges leaders to examine themselves and look toward what God would have them and the church do in the future.”

Dr. Alan Floyd, Lead Pastor, Cottage Hill Baptist Church, Mobile, Alabama – “In your teaching, you make the statement, ‘Church revitalization is hard work.’ So very true!

But you present a material that walks a church through the essentials of that hard work. The church leadership is led/equipped to identify the core values, mission, and ultimately, the development of a strategy of church health and revitalization. …I definitely see your curriculum utilized by local associations and churches. A great resource for revitalization!”

The Radical Church

By Rob Myers This morning. I’m going to give you a sermon that I’ve entitled: The “Radical Is” Sermon. What is radical? When I hear the word radical, I think of someone that is absolutely on fire for God; absolutely turned on to God, and I think of someone who is living the way God wants them to live. What is the opposite of radical… think about it? The word that comes to my mind for the opposite of radical would be the word mundane. “We’re going to be mundane Christians.” How does that sound or work? Radical means on fire for God. Would you agree with that? Mundane means blah; blaze; run-of-the-mill; average same old thing. Run-of-the-mill, average same old thing. That is what mundane means right? Which of the two would you rather be? What is the opposite of interesting...

Un-interesting, Right? Would you rather be un-Christian or Christian? Would you rather be on fire or lukewarm? Well, the Bible says, in the Book of Revelation, that Jesus spoke to one of the early churches and he said to them, “I have something against you, you are neither hot nor cold and because of this I am going to spit you out of my mouth.” This church was named the Church of Laodicea. Laodicea was an infamous town because Laodicea had an aqueduct running through it with very putrid water. The Romans built great systems of aqueducts throughout the Empire. But the water from this one was so poor in quality that the city became known for this foul smelling, semi-liquid. I don’t know if you’ve ever been to Texas and tasted well water? There, when you turn on the spicket the water has the smell of a rotten egg. Evidently there is a lot of sulfur in the water. If you look at the people who have lived in Texas their whole lives, you will notice that their teeth are quite yellow. If you go into a bathroom has been there for a while many years, you’ll notice that no matter what they try to do to keep them clean, the bathtubs have a yellow to orange stain from the water infused with iron and the minerals. So, it’s not that the person is dirty. It’s just that the water is like that…yucky!

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Well, there was a city in the early Church times named Laodicea and they were famous for their yucky water.

They were “Un.” If anything could be “un.” They were “Un.” it was the “Un” place to be, the “Un” city to be in, but nevertheless a church had been planted there. And God spoke to that church, and he said listen, I have a problem with you as a church. I’m addressing you as a church, as a group of people and he sent the letter that he sent to that church and then to all the churches. So, every church that has a Laodicea problem, you need to look at this and understand this passage.

He said, now I have this against you. You are lukewarm. You’re neither hot, which would have some therapeutic value like a hot tub, and you’re not cold, which would at least have some refreshing value like a cool drink and refreshment and cooling down. You are lukewarm. And because you are lukewarm, if you do not repent, if you do not change church. I’m going to come to you and I’m going to take your lantern away, I’m going to take your candle away. I’m going to take your candle away. Well, what was he saying to that church that almost sounds like an Old Testament judgment?

I’m going to show you some parallels in the people of Israel and the church. And I’m going to call us this day to a radical form of Christianity. They say 7-Up is the Un-Cola I’m going to call you to full Cola, to be the person you need to be; not the unleaded version, but the on fire, high octane version of Christian.

In this world, you’re going to find two kinds of people - all the time. The world’s clear: the first kind of person is this: 1.Those that say yes to God… Now be careful here, I’ll show you in this passage how important this is. You’re sitting there going, I’m going to say yes to God, that’s great.

2. There are those who say no to God… By the way, there is only one name given under Heaven by which men may be saved. You can scream Allah till you’re blue in the face, it isn’t going to work! Have you ever noticed when people are dying on plane crashes and they’ve got those audio things running, they’re not saying Mohamed, Mohamed, Mohamed help me; allah, allah, allah; buddha buddha buddha belly? No, they’re saying oh Jesus, Jesus; Oh, Jesus, Jesus, Oh Jesus. Remember that plane that half the fuselage tore off? It was on its way to Hawaii and a few people blew out into Oblivion and died. They went to nap and they woke up dead. Wouldn’t that be spooky, you’re napping and you have one of those dreams like you’re falling… Have you ever had one of those and you wake up and you puff and then you wake up and you realize you’re safe in your bed, but then it was not really the dream that you thought it was.

It was REAL! …Aah Splat.

Well, they had tape recorders going on during that flight and a Christian man talked about how he had this peace of God. In the plane, they thought it was going to go down, because when it decompressed and that much wind was coming in, it was tearing people to pieces, even while flying slow. I don’t know if you’ve ever been in a on a motorcycle at over a hundred miles an hour maybe in a speedboat.

I have a friend who has a bass boat. It does at least 75 miles an hour and he’ll get out there on that bass boat and your face kind of like does this: it kind of mangles, you know, the wind gets into your mouth and your blows you around. He actually has a shield that he puts down up over his face. And when I’m on my motorcycle, I always put a helmet on and put the shield down because if a little piece of sand hits you it’s like a BB hitting you, I’ve gotten stung through my clothes many times when I was riding. So, you’re there. Your people are in distress and he had this peace, and he talks about his testimony. He had this peace in the midst of that and he mentions how everybody on the plane is calling out to God and repenting. I think every American in their heart knows the bottom line is Jesus Christ.

There are two types of people those who say yes to God and those who say no to God and there are always be two kinds of people in this world, always; those who say yes to God, and those who say no to God, but in the next world, it’s going to be different. There will only be one be one kind of person: those that said yes to God.

At the end of the service say you’re going to have an opportunity to say yes to God; to get your heart right with God so that if you were to come into His presence and he were to say to you why should I let you into heaven you, would know how to have that relationship with him. We call that the Good News. Here’s the Good News: you don’t have to die and go to hell; you don’t have to die in your sin, and you don’t have to live in your sin. God wants you with Him now and for eternity!

Turn in your Bibles with me to the Book of Matthew chapter 21. Now Jesus was talking to his disciples and also to a group of men we call the Pharisees the Sanhedrin, the rulers of Israel. He was on the edge of the temple. This was

after Palm Sunday, and people had laid down their robes and he came through Jerusalem and they’ve sang Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest. This was during the passion week and these guys were sitting around who were professional religious people, called pharisees. They were so religious that all they did was their religious stuff, all the time. Matter of fact, they were so engaged in the details of religion that there is probably not one practical aspect to anything of what they did for other people. It was all about them and their religious zeal, and about feeling good about themselves.

Let me tell you that’s not what we teach here. We do not teach you to be a Pharisee: one who’s the microscopic corrector of everybody else’s life! Matter of fact, Jesus talked to the Pharisees, He said, listen: you want to correct somebody else; you want to pick the speck out of their eye, then get the mote out of your own. We are not spec pickers. We’re not here to point out the zits on someone else’s face. Oh, you’ve got one right there in the middle of your head. I got bit by a bug this week right there and it looks like I had I have one of those Indian cast marks right here going for a while. I went to the 7-Eleven and the worker said, “hey Sahib, pointing to my cast mark and I responded, “no, bug bite.”

You know, we have to come to grips with Jesus and these guys, these pharisees, they were into religion. If your religion is all “shoulds,” think about this. … all shoulds… you should be doing this; they should do this, should, should, should, should, and there is no love in it, what good is it? You should …we don’t need a list of rules. Who died and made you God. We’re not here to condemn each other to pick the specs out of people’s eyes. Think about how much you’ve been forgiven. Jesus is basically telling the average person.

Listen, God says to you, I’ve taken a moat or I’ve taken a beam of wood out of your eye. How dare you turn to your neighbor and get picky! Now turn to your neighbor and say this: “don’t get picky with me.”

These pharisees were the most judgmental guys.

They were all about the rules. They even had a rule that if an ox falls into the ditch on a Sabbath day, you could go in and rescue the ox because, the animal was something that was valuable. That’s like money, you know, there’s $150 bill in the ditch. You can go pick up the hundred- and fifty-dollar bill, but if a person falls in the ditch, you can’t help them because of the Sabbath day and you’re not supposed to work, and that would be work. My goodness Jesus told him. He said look it, the Sabbath was not made for God. God doesn’t need rest …the Sabbath was made for man. And if you can’t rescue a brother on the Sabbath day, you guys are totally messed up in your interpretation of scripture. It’s not about beating the person up. It’s about rescuing them. It’s about people it’s about love. Well, these are the guy’s Jesus is talking with right here and he invoked this conversation, and he gave this parable then says, what do you think? He’s going to lure them in, and I want you to think about this.

There was a man and he had two sons and he went to the first son and he told that son, “son go and work today in the vineyard.” I don’t know if you’ve ever been here. I have

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three boys. I have experienced this firsthand. “Son, please go and take out the trash; son, today I would like you to mo-dilawn.” That’s French, you like my French Mo-di-Lawn? That’s my French. That’s about as good as my French gets. I’m sorry, that’s about as for my Haitian folks. That’s about as good as I do Mo-di-lawn. Well that first son looked back to his dad and said, “I will not, I won’t do it… oh come on, you’re an able guy, you can do it yourself.” You know, I think of that and I think of that as rebellion: that’s wrong, but I’m not the one telling the story Jesus is, so the guy says,” no I won’t,” but later he changed his mind and went. In other words, he thought about what he had said to his father and he changed his mind. The word used here is metanoia. He had a repentance, a change of direction. He thought about his relationship with his dad, and he realized that a few minutes mowing the lawn or whatever dad asked him to do; in this case, tending the vineyard, was not as important as a relationship with the father and so he repented and the implication is here that he did what he was asked to do.

Well, then the father went to the other son and told him the same thing and that son said, “aw dad… oh Dad., let me give you a hug, big hugs, big hugs oh dad… you’re my dad.. oh, yeah… I love you. Dad. I love you, you know, you know you got to think of me. I need your wallet, you know, whatever, you want, dad, dad dad, dad” And you know or if it’s a girl… “Da/ah/ah/dad” (valley girl accent). Yeah, you know the girls don’t say Dad and one syllable they say in four syllables “Da/ah/ah/dad.” So yes that child said. “Oh, yeah, Dad anything for you Dad, Yeah, I’ll do it. You got it. And then that child didn’t do anything. So my question that Jesus gives us is, congregation: “Which of the two did what the father wanted?” Well, the Pharisees got that right along with us.

Which of the two did what the father wanted? The first one?

He’s the one that what? He’s the one that what? … He didn’t just repent. He’s the one that did the job that was asked of him.

First, he repented, he changed his mind set, but he actually got out there and did the job. So, we have a disconnect in our in our American society. We get religious words, like repent,” I’ll repent, yeah, I’m repenting.” Well repent oftentimes involves an action. Repent means I’m turning from my rule. (A cry baby rant) “I’m in charge of my life. Don’t you tell me what to do? Who are you? You’re the father, you’ve got big arms; you can go do it yourself… You’re God. You can speak that vineyard into whatever you want it to be… you created it. It’s your mess… you made it. I didn’t make a mess over there. It’s your vineyard. You made it you made grapes and stuff and they are your problems. Why me?”

I want you to think back to the Garden. What did God give us to do? He gave us the Earth and he gave us the responsibility to tend the Earth to have dominion over it; to take care of it. We are here to serve God by doing what he asks us to do in this world. That’s why we’re here. So if I’m going to repent I don’t just say, “ yeah, I God I was wrong. I’m sorry.” I get back and I do the action that I’m called to do.

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So, Jesus looked at these Guys that are religious in their minds and says,” surely I tell you the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you.”

(Pharisee, speaking to self ) “Wow. Wait a minute. I’m religious; I spent all my time reading the Bible.”

(Jesus)And he says you guys are missing the gospel. You’re missing the gospel.

(The pharisees whine) Well, we know the gospel.

Yes, But they weren’t doing the gospel.

Many of you know the gospel but you’re not doing the gospel. Many of you have repented and turned to God said, “sorry” and for that we get our little slip that says: direct entry into heaven; fire insurance bill; I’m a Baptist; once saved always saved; it’s party time. Okay. I’m cool now!” Well, no.

It is time to do what we have been liberated by God from the bondage of sin to do. It is time to do the gospel to fulfill the Great Commission to go into all the world and to preach the good news of Jesus Christ.

Well, that’s the pastor’s job.

No, it’s not my job. My job is to stick a poke in your rear end… a goad (Heb.10:24). And to prod you as a congregation into doing your job. My job is to equip you; my job is to equip you to do your job. Amen! How insulting to Jesus, for John came to you to show you the way of righteousness and you didn’t believe him. Why, because they wanted to do their righteousness by what they did? “I’m righteous by what I do?

My good works are going to outweigh my bad. You know, I’ve got this down. I’ve got a system down so I can reach God on my own terms.” Well, you can have your own terms, but when God has the terms in his terms involve his son Jesus Christ.

That’s pretty significant.

You didn’t repent; you didn’t come to the way of righteousness, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did.

That’s why I tell you I don’t care what you think about how bad you think you are. You can still come to God. It does not matter what sin you have done. The Bible says all have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.

You can still turn to God. In this story, the Prostitute has a greater chance of turning to God than the men who studied the scriptures day after day and yet were cold to the application and the presence of the Messiah, much less the Holy Spirit. While the Pharisees had all this knowledge up in their heads, there was no application in the life. That’s a super dangerous place to be.

What God wants you to do is take that knowledge and act on it; let it permeate your life. So, what I’m here today to do

is to encourage you to get to the place where you are taking the Good News to the streets. My goal is to stimulate you to become radical for God? Where are you are doing The Great Commission? Are you participating in the church to go into all the world, preaching, baptizing and making disciples of all people groups?

What has Jesus asked us to do and what does He expect from us?

Jesus summarizes the law for us: He says, you are to love the Lord your God with all your heart soul and mind; and to love your neighbor as yourself.

In our church we summarize it like this: You are to love God and love what God loves. It breaks down like this: (here’s the conditional Clause). If you love him, then you will love what he loves.

What does he love…People. The Gospel is about the love of God for People. That’s why he commissions us in Matthew 28:18-20. This is the expectation of Christ for us. This is the prime objective of the real church, the on fire, radical church.

It’d be like God is saying: “if you really love me, I want specific action: Work the Great Commission! He doesn’t want you to give lip service to him. He does not want us to be like the 2nd son in His illustration and act excited and fain obedience and not follow through. He’s after action. He’s after movement. What did the Pharisees do? Doesn’t it bug you to be around “kiss ups,” who say what they think you want to hear and never follow through. The pharisees said yes to God their whole lives, but what did God want? What did he desire? He wanted them to repent he wanted them to change and love people

The prostitutes and the liar - lawyers -Liars, something like that. They repented and came to know Christ.

When you see even a lawyer can come to know Jesus.

(Illustration story/joke) A certain lawyer was a friend with a pastor. They went deep sea fishing in an inflatable boat and the pastor’s lure snagged the boat just offshore were and their boat deflated, and it began to go down. Between them and the shore there was a pool of sharks, just circling around, bubbling the water with their fins. There was only one life preserver between the lawyer and the pastor. The pastor looked at the lawyer and said, “you know what, I’m probably in a lot better relationship with God then you are, you keep the life jacket and I’ll swim in and get the coast guard to come get you.” The lawyer argued, “no, no, I’ll swim in.”

All of a sudden, the lawyer who had the life jacket threw it at the pastor and dove in the ocean. He swam right down the middle of the sharks and just like the parting of the Red Sea, the Sharks parted on both sides. Then the lawyer swam right up to the beach and went out got the Coast Guard and they went and rescued the pastor. After the rescue, the pastor told

the lawyer, “you know, I’ve never seen anything like that in my life… what happened, you swam right down the middle of the Sharks. They lined up and you swam right through them as they parted. How did you do that?” The lawyer responded, “oh that’s nothing, that’s just professional courtesy.”

My point of this illustration is to say that, if a lawyer can come to know Christ, if a prostitute can come to know Christ, anybody can. Jesus died for all. You may be sitting there thinking: “I’ve done too much; I’ve done too much sin; I cannot be forgiven.” Jesus can handle a man or woman that can admit they are a sinner in desperate need of forgiveness.

The person that Jesus has the hard time with, is the self-righteous person, that thinks they’ve got it together. What does God require of you? That you would humble yourself before God; that you would have a contrite heart and say I’m sorry Lord; I don’t want this in my life and I’m sick of this. He’s looking for a Brokenness in the life.

What’s interesting is the pharisees stayed around for the next story. Jesus said, ”I’ll tell you what guys, I’ll tell you another story,” and I don’t think that they yet “got it,” in that he was pointing the stories to them.

He said to them, “listen to another parable… (paraphrased) This time there was a landowner and he planted a vineyard. He put a wall all the way around the vineyard and he dug a winepress in it and built a watchtower. I mean he invested heavily into this vineyard and then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place.. They wanted to rent the business. The landowner negotiated a deal and rented it out. These guys are supposed to farm the land. And when it came Harvest time, he sent his servants to the tenants to collect his part of the fruit for his rent. You know, it’s a co-op where they get to keep so much, and they get to give so much. So, he sent his servants over there. And then what happened? Well, the tenets, the guys that were in business with the Landowner, seized his servants and they beat one of the guys up. They mugged him. “You want rent they said, I’m going to come over and knock your Noggin,” and they killed another one and they stoned the third one.

That doesn’t mean they got him drunk means they threw stones at them. Then he sent other servants to them more than the first time and the tenants treated them the same way. Last of all, he sent his son to them saying to himself, they will respect my son; they will recognize who he is, he looks like me. They will respect my son. What the Bible says is that Jesus told them, “but when the tenants saw the son they said to each other. This is the heir come let us kill him and take his inheritance.”

So they took him and they threw him out of the vineyard and they killed him.

First of all, I want you to see in this passage that, God is concerned with how the tenants, who have been given control over the assets are taking care of business.

And he’s also concerned with how his servants have been treated by these guys. He’s concerned with that and then he’s very concerned with how they treated his son…

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heavy concern here. (Obviously, the tenants are the pharisees, and the servants are the prophets, and the son is Jesus himself, but they had not figured that part out yet.)

“Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will be done to those tenets?” “He’ll bring those wretches to a wretched end,” the pharisees replied. Imagine the scene: they were “into” the story, you know they’re all standing around… (voice of pharisees) “Oh, man, they’re going to get those guys. Those guys are... oh boy. They’re going to get it. Those wretches are going to get what they deserve. You know, one guy’s sitting there saying: karma, karma, karma, what goes around comes around.”

Jesus continued, “and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants who will give him his share of the crop and harvest time then Jesus looked at him and said, have you never read the scriptures? The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone and the Lord has done this and it is marvelous in our eyes. Have you never read the scripture? You pick out pieces of the Bible that suits you for your legalistic process, but do you understand who you’re talking to?”

Because this was a word picture of himself and the father and the prophets that went before him that have been stoned and killed by the people of Israel.

And so they were missing it and they were stumbling over who he was, that he is Jesus Is God In the Flesh.

When he said if you have seen me you have seen the Father I and the Father and one. If you intend to get into Heaven, there is no other name given under Heaven by which men may be saved.

That’s it. Reject me and die.

The question I have is: Are you rejecting the Cornerstone?

Do you reject or believe: The messenger?

The message of the Cross?

The means of salvation?

The job assignment of the Christian?

The priorities of the Kingdom?

The purpose of the Christian?

The purpose of the Church?

The covenant of perfect blood?

A reject answer to any of these means you are dealing with an organization or an individual that is lukewarm or mundane.

Be careful. “You have been given, a message therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.”

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Now, we look at this and we get to see what God is after here.

He’s after production, not raw repentance; not vocal appeasement.

He is after production.

Anyone who stumbles on this stone will be broken to pieces and anyone who falls will be crushed.

God is looking for his fruit in you. Now, we can say, well these were Jewish guys and God’s judging Israel here, but I’m telling you, when you look at the church of Laodicea, you will see that God says the same thing to the church that Jesus said to the pharisees, and he says in essence, if you don’t get your act together, if you don’t get on fire for me.

I’m going to take your candle. I’m going to remove you as a church. I’m going to take a blessing away from you. If you do not produce fruit…

Now, this is not talking about the fruit of the Spirit.

This is talking about the fruit of reproduction. In other words, you are to produce other Christians.

The Great Commission is not something we learn about for the sake of knowledge; it is something we do. It does not call for prayer and study, it calls for action in obedience to what God desires and what His plan is and about what He loves.

You may say, “well, I don’t know how to do evangelism.” I’ll tell you this secret, you were never called to do it alone. You are called to do this as a church as a group, so when someone is out there helping set up tables on Sunday morning, and someone makes a decision later Sunday afternoon at the end of the service, you have helped in the evangelism process when you pull together as a church.

When someone’s back their teaching Sunday School, you have helped in the evangelism process and you are pulling together as a church. Perhaps you even hold a baby in the nursery one Sunday; so that a parent can come in here and hear the gospel, then you have helped in the evangelism process when you pull together as a church. You are part of the evangelism process when one of our ladies makes quilts and little things to sell for Missions. They are part of the evangelism. Because we take that money and that money goes towards supporting the missions say in South Africa, that is part of an evangelistic labor of love. We work together and we use the gifts that we have in the body of Christ to fulfill the Great Commission.

We evangelize, we produce fruit because people come to know Christ here. God is looking for his fruit in you and in your life.

My question to you is: Are you adjusting your life so that you are plugged in so that you are producing fruit of the kingdom of God.

When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they figured it out. He’s talking about us. Oh, my goodness, and they looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people believed that he was a prophet.

This always happens; there’s always two ways to respond. You can follow, trust and obey or you can get angry and you can disagree. You may say,” That’s Pastor Rob. He’s just throwing a guilt trip on us.” That’s just not true, in fact, I’m trying to get a guilt trip off of you. I’m trying to get the guilty verdict off of you, not on you. I’m not trying to guilt you into doing something.

I’m trying to explain to you that God has a purpose for your life that is beyond yourself and it is about motivating you to the place where you are doing things in the name of Jesus Christ, impacting your community. Jesus said if you even give a little cup of water to a little one in my name a child. There’s a blessing in that.

But you can get angry You can disagree with Pastor Rob saying: “That’s your interpretation. That’s not mine.” We are not interested in opinions; we are interested in what the scripture says. That’s why I don’t give you cutesy sermons that are outside of the Bible. I give you things that are from the Bible.

The Bible says they’re basically two consequences here to our Behavior: First one is you stumble over the Cornerstone.

You stumble when you miss the Cornerstone. Have you built your cornerstone on your own plans? Is that what you to build your life on? If your cornerstone is Jesus Christ, then model your life on him and build your life on him. So, you can stumble over him by saying: “I can’t be like Jesus that’s just ridiculous; that’s too much to ask.” There are consequences in your life. You will not make it to Heaven living or abiding in sin. You can say you are Christian all you like, but if you stumble over Jesus Christ, by disobedience to his Lordship and his prime directives, you are living on shaky ground.

You may say, “I don’t buy that part of it. I don’t buy that part of the Bible. I just want the Salvation part. I just want the feel-good part. I don’t want the work part. I don’t want the commitment part. Don’t ask me for that. I’ll go to a church that teaches nothing, that tickles my ears and makes me feel good about my rebellious state.” That my friend is stumbling lukewarm language. The other thing that can happen is if you disregard God you can get crushed by him. He will take you down some of you and you will say, “Why is this happening to me?” Why, is because you’re not listening to God and you haven’t been broken before God.

Second one is you repent and do the Gospel.

On the other hand, I have watched Men in this church who were broken before God and who had done terrible things in their past and having repented are now living marvelous lives now. I count it an honor to count them as friends, but you too must you must repent and obey or be crushed by your own pride.

Will you do it? Let’s pray.

Father God we are in your presence right now and you have to examine our hearts. You are our friend. I know you miss your time with us because we’ve evaded you avoided you by not listening to you; not taking you into consideration, but now we come before you and we desire not to be crushed and not to stumble upon your word, but to be fulfilled. I do not want to be like the hypocrites who stare at the at those people who are repenting and comment on them looking down our noses. Break us Lord, break us Holy Spirit in our stubborn pride and bring us to the place of Brokenness. Fill us with your Holy Spirit and change our heart oh God, to fully focus on you Lord. We call out to you right now Lord. We need you in our lives. We need you in our businesses. These are tough times we are living in, but we put our trust and faith in you.

I pray Lord a blessing on this congregation that cannot be held back. I pray that you would help every person here to bless their friends help them fulfill what you have them here for to have dominion in this world over Darkness through the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

We want to serve you Lord. We surrender our hearts today to Absolute honesty and integrity in Jesus name we pray amen.

Rob Myers is the Pastor of Miami Baptist Church a turn around church located in the multi-lingual community in South Florida. Rob has been in ministry for more than 39 years. He has been in church planting and pastoral leadership for 36 of those years, which includes 15 years as the Senior Pastor of Miami Baptist Church. His is Adjunct Professor of Indiana Wesleyan University and President of Baptist World Charities. Rob has an earned Doctorate in Ministry Leadership from John Wesley University, a M.Div. from Southwestern Seminary and a B.A. From Palm Beach Atlantic University.

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The

Revitalizer LIBRARY

The two books for this edition of the Revitalizers Library are vastly different. One focuses on skill, the second on your soul. The first is Excellence Wins; A No-Nonsense Guide to Becoming the Best in a World of Compromise by Horst Schulze (Zondervan, 2019). The second is Gentle and Lowly; The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers,

by Dane Ortlund (Crossway, 2020). Schulze is a titan in the world of hotel management and guest services. The founder of the Capela Hotel Group and cofounder of the Ritz Carlton hotel company. Ortlund is an elder at his church and chief publishing officer and Bible publisher at Crossway. Both are excellent in their unique purposes.

Schulze begins his book by telling his story of entering into the hospitality world of hotel management. Despite being discouraged from entering the hospitality industry, he has become the leading expert in consistently displaying excellence on a global stage. Schulze’s philosophy developed as a final paper in his education but powerfully stated, “We are ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen.”

His slogan has instilled within him a drive to call up excellence in others and give his guests excellence.

Excellence Wins; A No-Nonsense Guide to Becoming the Best in a World of Compromise is helpful to revitalizers for several reasons. First, the crux of the work is how you serve others. Problems are addressed, challenges overcome, and excellence is achieved by how you, with distinction, serve others. A revitalizer is working,

by God’s grace, to restore health and vitality to a congregation. He does so by serving, not being served. Second, the work challenges the way you look at people. Schulze’s retelling of his encounter with a tough union boss, an aggressive doorman, and a declining hotel is an inspiration for anyone leading a revitalization effort with challenging people in a difficult situation. Schulze tells of the orientation he

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conducts to invest in the ladies and gentlemen who serve ladies in gentlemen in his hotels. Seeing the best in people and creating clear avenues to help them elevate the best of themselves is a beneficial approach to serving and loving others in a sinking organization. Lastly, the work is a case study in problems solving and addressing difficult situations. Here a seasoned expert in people, starting hotels and turning them around, pours out his experiences to any who will pick the principles up.

The second book, Gentle and Lowly; The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers, is aloe to the soul. Ortland’s introduction hooked this reader. “This book is written for the discouraged, the frustrated, the weary, the disenchanted, the cynical, the empty. Those running on fumes” (13). Revitalization leaders often find themselves with those descriptors. For many, 2020 escalated those emotions. Ortland leads his readers to see the heart of Jesus and at his heart is for you. Each chapter is written in short, refreshing meals— more than a devotional, less than a Christological treatise. Ortland draws out the love that Christ has for us. His outpouring becomes a cascading overflow from your life into the lives of those you lead.

Two books. One for your skill. One for your soul. Both more than worth your time.

Rob Hurtgen is the Pastor of First Baptist Church Chillicothe, Missouri. He holds an M.Div from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Ministry degree in Church Revitalization from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

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