VISION FOR A HEALTHY CHURCH

A pastor shared his experience from the mid-week prayer meeting. A church member brought along a friend she was caring for, a lady with suffering from a palsy, her body parts moving and shaking at times uncontrollably. People in the group went about their prayer requests, did some praise and singing, studied a Bible chapter, while trying not to look at the crippled.

At the end they were about to pray a closing prayer for unity and evangelism, when the visitor spoke. “Look at me!” she said. Reluctantly, out of duty people turned their heads one by one in the direction of the voice. She continued: “I am a living parable of the church. There is nothing wrong with my head. My mind is clear, and I wish I could be in charge of my body, I wish my body would listen to my head, I wish my limbs and organs would obey my will, but something is lodged somewhere and is breaking the communication between the head and the body, something went wrong in my body parts and will not accept the messages from the head. There is nothing wrong with the Head of our Church – Christ Jesus. But somehow the body parts are not coordinated. Somewhere the “central nervous system,” the leadership, is not conveying the message to people; somewhere people are not responsive, and are totally disconnected from the source, acting up at their own volition.”

As I listen to this testimony I thought to myself “how true!” yet I believe that God’s promise is true when he speaks of His Church at the end of times: “for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His Wife hath made herself ready.” (Revelation 19:7) The church, the Body of Christ, the Bride of the Lamb is not to be palsied, but is to be readied. I believe in this challenge coming to reality.

Have you ever watched a military troop on a parade – they move as one. Same imagery is employed describing the church – an army with banner. After my recent car accident, suffering with a bad lower back, I had a firsthand experience that dislocated vertebrae need to be set in place, and healing is needed before the physiotherapy can be applied.

It is more than coincidence that as the church moves into an election process, choosing the leadership for another term we are also beginning Evangelistic rallying. Leadership is to be chosen who is aligned with God’s Vision for growth and outreach, key officers are to be chosen with servant attitude who will communicate and connect members of the Body, structures of connecting, communicating and receiving feedback are to be adjusted for the healthy functioning. All in all – restoring the body for the glory it ought to be in, as the bride of Christ.

I am always surprised how God orchestrates our lives, our service and our worship. From the Sabbath School Bible lesson this week “Here I am, send me” to the Evangelism Rally tonight at 4 pm we are moved to consider our duty, our place, our role in the Body of Christ.

EVANGELISM IS ABOUT FRIENDSHIP

After the last Board meeting the Vision for Evangelism was articulated even more – bringing our friends to Jesus, and making new friends to bring more into saving relationship with Christ.

Every event that takes place in our church – is an opportunity to invite friends to know more about Christ, to observe and learn the life style of those who are following Christ. Every event – meaning: birthday parties, anniversaries, weddings, graduations, even funerals – it’s all about Jesus. If people attended your party and did not get closer to Christ, did not learn to appreciate God’s Salvation plan – an opportunity wasted. I shared in my last sermon a simple truth taught by Jesus – those who procrastinate, or waver are not fit for the Kingdom of God (Luke 9: 59-62).

We all watched in some game an athlete who in the final minutes of a game tried to hold on to the ball but it slipped through his fingers. In distress, on his knees, he’s pounding the turf. Do you react with same grief when missing on God given opportunities to witness to people, that so often without warning pass, never to return?

Consider that extremely profane co-worker you were determined to witness to, but before you got around to it, he had taken another job and you see him no more. Consider that young father who has for years regarded Sabbath as his day for fishing, or the mother who was too busy getting things perfect at work and missing Sabbath worship, and now the daughter is grown up and is not interested in following Christ, and other siblings had moved out from home and the opportunity to influence them is gone. Consider a wife who craved some sign that she is more important than her husband’s job, but now it’s too late and they are in court. Consider that youth with low self-esteem who needed to hear some person say, "you’re really special," until it’s too late and were burying them and everyone is asking, “did you know he was depressed?”

What opportunities have you missed this week? What chances to share the witness about Jesus have you ignored since last Sabbath? Some of us are forever glancing over our shoulders, worried about something in the past, some mistake, some sin, some issues. To such, Jesus says – if you put your hand on the plow, stop looking back! Do not miss the new opportunities laid before you! And if you need training - a new class on witnessing is offered every weekend. 40 sessions altogether are offered until June 2009. Get involved, learn and go teach others to obey by your example.

As we are moving toward another Fall Harvest, NET08 Discoveries with Mark Finley, local rallies by district pastors, and then series of 10 evangelistic meetings in 2009 – pray about God placing new people in your lives and be open about making new friendships, keep friends until they are mentored enough to be released into discipling others. When you introduce people to Christ – Evangelism is not finished. Until new Christians have not become active members of church ministries, evangelism has stopped halfway.

Give your friends a chance for salvation, get intentional about sharing Christ!

THINKING EVANGELISM….AGAIN

A question was posed “What do you mean by evangelism?” Without a hesitation my answer was “making friends with intention to lead them to Jesus!” A discussion followed – some of us have enough friends already to keep up with, we can’t add anymore friends. It’s my turn to ask questions now: “Are your friends in saving relationship with Jesus? Are they leading others to Christ? If not – have you attempted to lead them to Christ? If they do not care, and time after time show disinterest - dump such friends, go and make new friends, intentionally. They your old friends would react – and maybe even come to the church, seeking to restore lost friendship.”

Let’s reason honestly here. The purpose of a Christian life is not to create a safe social club with a reserved membership rules, but to actively seek the lost and lead more people to Jesus. If those in church are not doing so, something has gone wrong. Think about your friends, how passionate are you about their life, their salvation, their eternal future? Are you leading them by example, by sharing how Christ is changing your life, inviting them to follow? If not – something is not right. Maybe you, yourself need conversion again, need to experience the renewal of love, need to come to Jesus.

I hear often comments like “I do not know how to witness…I am not equipped…” Equipping is offered. Last Sunday I’ve started teaching special class, 40 sessions until June 2009, focused on passing all the knowledge about Christian witnessing and basics of Christian faith and tradition.

Maybe your friends do not care and have made their choice not to commit their lives – why are you wasting your time end endangering yourself with contamination by sinful attitudes? By the way, Jesus qualified as “blasphemy,” as “unpardonable sin” people refusing to recognize the work of the Holy Spirit, not giving credit and glory to God’s work in one’s life. It’s time to make new friends!

There are hundreds of people who are hungry to find more about Jesus, to meet Him, to meet others that are passionate about following Jesus. Are you ready to offer your friendship? Evangelism does not work when preached in a relational vacuum. Only when friendship is made, and relationships of trust are created will people respond to the teaching.

As we are moving toward another Fall Harvest, NET08 Discoveries with mark Finley, local rallies by district pastors, and then series of 10 evangelistic meetings in 2009 – pray about God placing new people in your lives and be open about making new friendships, keep friends until they are mentored enough to be released into discipling others.

Some of you may be concerned reading this, because your family members are not committed, and you can’t just “dump” your family. Are you doing anything about inviting your “extended” family into your Christ family? Does your Christ family, brothers and sisters in Christ, pray about your “extended” family? Imagine the church service where during the altar prayer we will come forward with names of those in our extended family we plead with God to be converted! Each time we assemble for worship we must pray for people whose names are placed in the prayer requests for conversion. The more evangelism becomes part of our lifestyle, the more each evangelistic activity will bear fruit.

When you introduce people to Christ – Evangelism is not finished. Until new Christians have not become active members of church ministries, evangelism has stopped halfway. Let’s get intentional about Christ-living, Evangeliving!