Three weeks ago, I quoted Rick Warren who said, “You were made for a mission. God is at work in the world and he wants you to join him. This assignment is called your mission…” “Your life mission,” he goes on to say, “is both shared and specific. One part of it is a responsibility you share with every other Christian, and the other part is an assignment that is unique to you…”
Then I said that I would be addressing the specific part of that mission in a few weeks. Well, that “few weeks” is now here! We conclude our current series, Ways We Please God, by learning that we please God when we work together as part of His team – the church!
As a final review, here is a listing of the ways we please God presented in this series: (overhead 1)
We please God by examining (and allowing the Holy Spirit to examine) our motives and standards against God’s standards. We looked at some churches in the opening chapters of Revelation who were in various states of spiritual growth or decay and who God was both pleased with and concerned about.
We also please God by following God’s plan of salvation. We preach Christ and the Gospel at our church not some current philosophy that changes tomorrow!
We please God by putting the Bible into practice. The Bible stands at the center of our congregational and personal lives. We teach and study the Bible, the true and infallible Word of God. It is the heart of our message and mission. (Overhead 2)
We please God by allowing Him to make us “new creatures in Christ.” We must be “born again.” We must be changed by the work of the Holy Spirit into people that are different and more like Jesus as the years go by.
We please God by cooperating with and proclaiming the work of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit works to filter out the impurities in our lives so that we are better able to serve God.
We please God by doing our part in fulfilling the Great Commission. The Christian faith is a global faith and each of us has a role in fulfilling Christ’s command to “go and make disciples.”
We please God as we live in peace and harmony with each other. We examined Romans 14 in which Paul wrote, “The Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”
Our final stop today touches on the last way we studied two weeks ago because it addresses the need to work together. We please God when we work together as part of His team – the church!
There is so much that I want to share in this sermon this morning because I believe that this way of pleasing God is critical for the long-term life and health of our congregation and ministry. But, we can only take in so much in one sitting and so I am going to give us three or four bites that I believe are important.
Bite number one is what our main text says to us about being a team.
The overall theme of our text is unity, a key ingredient in being a team. East Noble’s football team played like one this year. Granted, there were those who scored more points than others did and one member of the team broke some running records, but everybody pulled together and everybody did his job and the entire team had a great (albeit shortened) season.
Someone has written, “There is no I in team.” Paul says as much in this passage.
The first thing he says in the opening verses is “patience, patience, patience.” When any athletic team, including a pro team, starts practicing together, there is a period of time when they are learning about one another and the plays that they will run during the season. Patience is a necessity during these times. This is especially important when there is a coaching change or a key position has a new player.
For a team to “jell” requires patience, time, and encouragement. The same holds true for the church, “Be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults (not sin but faults) because of your love.” We are still learning together and learning how to work together, (that is an on-going process). But, to please God, we must be patient, patient, patient. Love helps here.
Paul also encourages us to be unified. As he says in verse 5, “There is only one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and there is only one God and Father, who is over us all and in us all and living through us all.”
Unity is a by-product of love, patience, and commitment to the same cause or goal. In our case, the salvation and spiritual life of human beings. We are called by God to help people to come to Christ and to grow in their faith and relationship with Him. We come at the goal in different ways and God has given to each of us a different aspect of this mission to achieve this goal. This is the common ground upon which we stand as the church.
This past Tuesday, Dr. David Sebastian, the Dean of the School of Theology at Anderson University, made a connection at a minister’s meeting in North Webster between verses 11 and 12 that I had never made before. He pointed out that while there are a diversity of gifts (or places of ministry and service) they were all designed to do the same thing – equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church [toward] maturity that comes through unity in faith and increased knowledge of Christ.
As I read these verses, I am reminded of Jesus’ prayer in John 17:21, “My prayer for all of them is that they will be one, just as you and I are one, Father-that just as you are in me and I am in you, so they will be in us, and the world will believe that you sent me.” Paul paints a picture of Jesus’ prayer that helps us be better and more effective members of God’s team and thus please God.
Finally, our text reminds us that in being a part of a team, maturity is a very important component. A healthy team, a successful team is a team that has matured.
Now I think a very important question pops up here, “What does maturity mean?” It is not about being old. It is not about being intelligent.
Think about a person that you might consider mature, what makes them mature. Our text offers us a key description in verse 14. “Then we will no longer be like children, forever changing our minds about what we believe because someone has told us different or because someone has cleverly lied to us and made the lie sound like truth.”
Ever been around someone who keeps changing his/her mind? It gets frustrating doesn’t it?
Stability of thought and commitment is a key characteristic of maturity. We please God when we have settled the issue of loyalty and commitment to Christ. And when we settle this issue we know where we stand and so do others and there is security in that knowledge.
I am reminded of a spat between a well-known pro quarterback and his teammate, the kicker, a couple of seasons ago and even an on camera incident between this same qb and a receiver a few weeks ago. A team that fights among itself is a team that will defeat itself. A church that does the same thing cannot survive for long.
So, we need to keep in mind, “patience, unity, and maturity” as we consider what our text has to say about being the team that pleases God.
Bite number two is about what our team is trying to accomplish.
I have shared a few highlights from a seminar that I attended in late September that has both affirmed much of our work and given me some clarity about what we need to be doing as well. One exercise that we did during that seminar helped me to focus on this second bite.
We imagined a phone call, diary entry, letter, conversation, or e-mail from a new member of our church to another person five years from now. It was a daunting task but also a refreshing task.
I reflected this week on what I wrote that day and made some refinements to it, and share it this morning because I believe that we need to develop a shared picture of what we truly believe is God’s future for us.
“Mom, as we left church this morning I cannot believe how much life has changed for the better. I always believed that there was a God and that I mattered to him but all the different churches confused me.
I think about that first home Bible Study I attended and the feeling of love and care that was present that allowed me to ask questions without feeling stupid. That was the beginning of my coming to faith.
Then there was FW Friends for Steve and Carol and the fact that they knew so many friends from school and really like going there. Friends, as I stop to think about it, who are now friends in the youth group.
Mike had some real hesitation about going to church until he realized that one of the guys from work attended there and invited him to go bowling with other men from the church. Next thing I knew he was up in Angola during the winter at the indoor racing track. He is still not involved as I would like him to be, but he comes and likes Pastor Jim’s puns.
Our church is truly amazing, mom. They scrimped and saved to get into a new facility because finding a parking place was tough and the space they used on Wednesday left little room for growth. But now, the space for ministry!
You ought to see the kids’ area! They call a large room “Kid’s Chapel” that is truly theirs and allows them to spread out and worship. And the teen’s area, wow!
It has two nice rooms for middle and high school group meetings and this large area for fellowship and worship. They call it “The Ark.”
Steve cannot wait to get there. He plays the drum in the worship band on Wednesday nights and is in the Sunday morning rotation for the worship team as well.
Carol is in the drama group and they are head to another church this afternoon to give a performance. She has grown so much in her faith and what a great thing to see her baptized last Sunday!
Remember how you used to tell me that I would make a great teacher? Well, I took a teacher training seminar and now serve as a teaching assistant with the 4th and 5th grade Sunday School class!
Well, have to go now. This is a busy week and we have the Christmas Bureau assignment this Saturday to get ready for. The church has agreed to provide gifts for three families! See you later! Lynn”
What do you think? Like the picture? Is it possible? With God, it is possible because what God wants our church to do, He will give us the ability, resources, and time to do it!
Our goal as God’s team is to see more Lynns, Steves, Carols, and Mikes come to Christ. This is what we are all about – changed lives! You have a place in this vision! You have a place in this plan!
God needs you! He needs you to be here – regularly. He needs you to find your place of ministry and service – and serve faithfully and consistently. It pleases Him!
Bite number three is celebrating and thanking one another for service rendered.
I want to thank all who have served this year in the following areas of ministry and acknowledge your service with a simple gift of appreciation.
I have asked some of our teens to help me with this task of handing out this gift from me. (Teens to your stations!)
There are two different kinds of plastic megaphones, in different colors. One says, “We’ve got the SPIRIT!” The other one says, “GO TEAM!”
(You can place a magnet on the back and use it on your refrigerator or you can place it on your key chain. Use it as a reminder to pray for the church and our ministries.)
We have the spirit – the Holy Spirit! He is our source of power and ability to do the work that God has given to us as this local church.
We are a team – God’s team! Now we can “do our own thing” (there are times that has to take place) but we do much better as we continue to work together as the New Testament points out in several different places.
I am going to read a list of various ministry groups and teams and ask those who have been involved in that ministry or team to remain standing as you receive your gift.
Would all those who served on a ministry team and/or trustees this past year please stand?
Would all those who served on our Sunday School staff please stand?
Would all those who served on our nursery staff please stand?
Would all those who served on our VBS team please stand?
Would all those who served on our prayer chain please stand?
Would all those who served those in grief through funeral dinners; celebrated birthdays and anniversaries through cards: and visited in nursing homes and hospitals please stand?
Would all those who served as ushers please stand?
Would all those who served as worship leaders and praise team members please stand?
Would all those who served as FW Friends and youth leaders please stand?
Would all those who served on the CFC team please stand?
Would all those who served on the relocation task force please stand?
Did I miss any groups?
Thank you!
Bite number four is committing ourselves to the future that God has for us. One of my life verses is Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you.” says the Lord, “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”
I cannot say this enough, “Until we die or the Lord returns, this church has a future, this church has a ministry in this community, this church has a mission that is bigger than what takes place at Mitchell and Oak Streets! It is God’s mission! It is God’s ministry! It is the future that God has for it!”
In a few moments, I am going to ask those who are currently serving in leadership and ministry to come to the altar for a time of prayer. We are going to commit ourselves to God and His future for us for another year.
As we conclude our series this morning I want us to spend some time reflecting on these questions, “How well are we pleasing God?” “How well am I pleasing God?” “What is one thing we need to change to better please God?” What is one thing that I need to change to please God?” (Overhead 3)
I believe that as we commit to pleasing God, congregationally as well as personally, we are going to have a great and more effective ministry and there is going to be a growth and newness in our lives that we cannot possibly imagine.
Will you commit to the ministry of this church and a ministry that God has for you? Will you do your part as a member of this church for God’s honor and glory?
Let us spend some time in silent prayer and meditation before we sing. Amen.
(The Warren quotation is from his book, The Purpose Driven Life. If you would like copies of the overheads that are in Power Point, please e-mail me at:pastorjim46755@yahoo.com. and ask for 111404svgs)
