| Vision 2008 |
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Everyone loves Raymond … and what we love about Raymond is that he takes the everyday challenges, relational dynamics and dysfunctions, and makes us laugh at them. And why do we laugh … because we relate to it … we laugh because we see the truth in much of what is funny … we see it our own lives and in the lives of those people around us … and sometimes we even see it in the church today … but that’s not really funny is it? You are the leading edge of the advance of God's glory among all the peoples of the world. You are the most constant, continuous and powerful expression of God's presence on earth. You are at the centre of what God is doing. You are not an appendage or an addition to God's plan. You are the body charged with the commission to declare God's glory and you bear direct and immediate responsibility to make God's name great among the nations. You are the church. If this is true … and I believe it is … what does it mean for us today? Do we live like it’s true … does it represent how we organise our time … our priorities … does the church today … do we, His church … reflect that statement. Our world is chasing significance … looking for a cause to fight for … looking to be part of something greater than themselves … to have impact … purpose … and play their part for good or for bad in making a difference somewhere … somehow. They jump from thing to thing … fad to fad … hungry for the “next best thing” … the vision to serve … the cause to die for … Let me tell you … it’s here … the cause … the significance … the “best thing” … this is it … it really doesn’t get any better than the call to serve our God … to take up your position in advancing His Kingdom … to take hold of who you are in the story that is unfolding around us … the bigger and greater story … You are the most constant, continuous and powerful expression of God's presence on earth. You are at the centre of what God is doing. For Kingsway this is our season of harvest … the most labour intense part of our season but also the most rewarding. The reality of Jesus’ day is still the reality today … Luke 10:2 (ESV) And he said to them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. It’s not that the world lacks harvesters … they are in abundance … the problem is that the harvesters are not in the harvest. The prayer is not that there are too few harvesters, but too few laborers … workers … harvesters that are actually going into the harvest. Part of this problem comes from a mindset in the western church today that separates the church into two parts: one that nurtures believers and one that goes into the world. The local church is a place for Christians to grow, and the world is a place where a few will go. But the reality is that if the church doesn’t go … the church doesn’t grow. Connect and Engage are not functional in isolation of each other … they only work in synergy with each other. Matt spoke last week about the need to be connected … that spirituality and faith are only real when shared … and we can not be truly connected unless we are truly engaged … and visa versa. We, as God’s church must be engaged as workers in the harvest, connected together. T he early church … had all things in common … they were connected together as they engaged in mission … it wasn’t 2 separate things … it was a package … to be connected together and not engaged in mission would be like being part of a team but never playing a game … enjoying the connectedness without contributing to the team. To be engaged without being connected, is to operate in isolation … a maverick island … doing your own thing outside of God’s design … and the reality is that both exist in the church today. The more a church is separate from each other and not aligned together, the weaker the church is and the less effective it becomes. Jesus is building his church, and we all have a part to play … God has a Plan A for reaching the world, and it includes the involvement of every Christian. What do you think was the first thing Jesus did after he told his disciples that the harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few? You find the story in Matthew … the end of chapter 9 and the start of chapter 10 … he sends them out. How much training had they had … what courses had they completed … how long had they been saved? … What’s the “biblical” time frame for people to get engaged in the mission of Jesus … immediately. (Luke 8 … possessed man …v 38-39)
In April we are going to do some teaching on the Holy Spirit … the role of the HS in our lives. The bible gives us many thoughts about what the HS does in the life of a believer … comforts, teaches and empowers … but there is major theme to all of these and a primary purpose to the role of the HS in our lives … to be engaged in our mission to the world … To be an effective part of Kingsway Community Church, aligning yourself with this simple yet profound heart beat of CONNECTING and ENGAGING is critical. Diversity and differences are fine as long as we are aligned in the same direction …this gives us momentum to move forward with one heart, one mind and one purpose. My encouragement to you is to get CONNECTED and stay connected and be ENGAGED in the way you live everyday serving God and His church. But don’t be like Raymond … driven by guilt or that sense of duty … connect and engage out of devotion. As Jesus faced the journey toward Jerusalem, He did so out of devotion not duty. He faced His approaching death not from obligation, some divine plan that must be accomplished, no questions asked, but because He loved so deeply; His Father, us. He did not endure the cross to fulfil His duty but to display His devotion.
The early church “devoted themselves” … Kingsway … the harvest is plentiful … it is indeed our harvest year … but the workers are few … the harvesters are plentiful, they just need to get work. |
