WEBVTT 00:00:00.270 --> 00:00:02.810 Would you open your Bible with me, please, as 00:00:02.810 --> 00:00:08.169 we come to our study for this morning? We are 00:00:08.169 --> 00:00:13.789 turning to 1 Corinthians chapter 3. I make no 00:00:13.789 --> 00:00:15.890 pretense that this series during the month of 00:00:15.890 --> 00:00:18.329 January is an exposition of the Scripture. It 00:00:18.329 --> 00:00:21.809 is not. But I think that what we're saying is 00:00:21.809 --> 00:00:26.370 based upon Scripture and is the elaboration of 00:00:26.370 --> 00:00:28.969 biblical principles about building the Church. 00:00:31.820 --> 00:00:34.840 There was a man who dreamed of the house that 00:00:34.840 --> 00:00:39.500 he wanted to build. With the design of that house 00:00:39.500 --> 00:00:44.060 fixed in his mind, he bought the lumber and other 00:00:44.060 --> 00:00:48.899 materials and began his work. His friend saw 00:00:48.899 --> 00:00:52.100 his effort and asked if he might labor at his 00:00:52.100 --> 00:00:56.439 side. Certainly he replied, and so they worked 00:00:56.439 --> 00:01:00.579 together. And it was not long before yet another 00:01:00.579 --> 00:01:03.219 friend, who had always wanted to build a home, 00:01:04.000 --> 00:01:08.219 asked if he could join them. Of course, he replied. 00:01:10.219 --> 00:01:12.680 For weeks the three of them labored together 00:01:12.680 --> 00:01:16.359 side by side, each man constructing the house 00:01:16.359 --> 00:01:20.739 that he envisioned. So if you can imagine a split 00:01:20.739 --> 00:01:25.700 -level, ranch -style antebellum mansion. you 00:01:25.700 --> 00:01:28.579 can see the dream home that became a nightmare 00:01:28.579 --> 00:01:32.480 because the three men working together did not 00:01:32.480 --> 00:01:36.060 share a common vision of what they were building. 00:01:38.200 --> 00:01:41.480 You see, building a local church that is a living 00:01:41.480 --> 00:01:47.939 building of believer priests can also result 00:01:47.939 --> 00:01:51.900 in a nightmarish experience if there is no common 00:01:51.900 --> 00:01:55.079 vision laid out as to what the church should 00:01:55.079 --> 00:01:59.959 look like. My aim in these Sunday mornings is 00:01:59.959 --> 00:02:04.799 to share with you my heart what I believe God 00:02:04.799 --> 00:02:08.219 would have our church look like as we grow together 00:02:08.219 --> 00:02:12.780 in the 90s. Now frankly, there is some risk in 00:02:12.780 --> 00:02:17.080 doing what I'm doing, partly because of time 00:02:17.080 --> 00:02:19.740 constraints, although there are those who argue 00:02:19.740 --> 00:02:25.120 that I know no such constraints. But in a situation 00:02:25.120 --> 00:02:27.699 like this, one cannot say everything that might 00:02:27.699 --> 00:02:31.639 be said about every subject that comes up. And 00:02:31.639 --> 00:02:34.259 so there are loopholes that are left, and there 00:02:34.259 --> 00:02:36.840 are question marks that are maybe left in minds. 00:02:38.039 --> 00:02:42.180 And that can be a little dangerous. As I was 00:02:42.180 --> 00:02:44.379 driving home last week, I was thinking about 00:02:44.379 --> 00:02:48.750 the message. And as I did so, I thought, you 00:02:48.750 --> 00:02:51.090 know, you may have given the congregation the 00:02:51.090 --> 00:02:53.669 impression that there's never a place for a designated 00:02:53.669 --> 00:02:58.310 gift by what you said. And so I thought this 00:02:58.310 --> 00:03:00.710 morning maybe I should just clarify with you 00:03:00.710 --> 00:03:04.449 that that was not what I was saying, but rather 00:03:04.449 --> 00:03:07.610 I was saying that in that basic gift of the first 00:03:07.610 --> 00:03:10.590 fruits that we give, that monthly foundational 00:03:10.590 --> 00:03:15.129 gift that we give, I believe that that ought 00:03:15.129 --> 00:03:17.710 to be given to the total ministry that God calls 00:03:17.710 --> 00:03:21.430 us together to do. We have practiced that in 00:03:21.430 --> 00:03:24.770 our own family for years, but we also give designated 00:03:24.770 --> 00:03:27.949 gifts above and beyond that as God lays it on 00:03:27.949 --> 00:03:30.550 our hearts. For example, there are a couple of 00:03:30.550 --> 00:03:33.169 causes that our church budget does not address 00:03:33.169 --> 00:03:36.550 and we feel strongly about, and so we give some 00:03:36.550 --> 00:03:40.090 above and beyond giving toward those. And from 00:03:40.090 --> 00:03:43.319 time to time, there are special requests to come 00:03:43.319 --> 00:03:45.340 up in our church, and we give designated gifts 00:03:45.340 --> 00:03:47.379 in that direction. So I just wanted to balance 00:03:47.379 --> 00:03:50.740 that out a little bit this morning, in case I 00:03:50.740 --> 00:03:52.719 had left some of you with that question mark 00:03:52.719 --> 00:03:57.620 in your mind about last week. But without articulating 00:03:57.620 --> 00:04:02.080 some kind of a common vision, the danger is that 00:04:02.080 --> 00:04:04.360 the church will accomplish nothing, or perhaps 00:04:04.360 --> 00:04:06.599 even worse, will accomplish the wrong thing, 00:04:07.979 --> 00:04:10.219 and thus will come under the judgment of Christ. 00:04:11.780 --> 00:04:14.620 Is that not what happened in part at least to 00:04:14.620 --> 00:04:18.139 the churches in Asia Minor? To whom the Lord 00:04:18.139 --> 00:04:20.560 said, repent or I'm going to remove your lamp 00:04:20.560 --> 00:04:23.860 stand. You will lose your ministry, you will 00:04:23.860 --> 00:04:28.439 lose your witness. I think it's important that 00:04:28.439 --> 00:04:32.379 we see together a common vision of the kind of 00:04:32.379 --> 00:04:35.220 church that we're seeking to build here at Grace 00:04:35.220 --> 00:04:39.620 Church, Roseville. Thus far, we've said that 00:04:39.620 --> 00:04:41.819 we believe God wants this to be the kind of a 00:04:41.819 --> 00:04:45.139 church where the Word of God is faithfully taught 00:04:45.139 --> 00:04:48.899 with relevance to real life and where it is obeyed 00:04:48.899 --> 00:04:52.620 by all of us. We've said that we want to see 00:04:52.620 --> 00:04:55.040 this church be the kind of a church noted for 00:04:55.040 --> 00:04:59.120 loving acceptance of needy and hurting people, 00:04:59.779 --> 00:05:04.370 while at the same time pursuing holiness. We 00:05:04.370 --> 00:05:07.069 want ours to be the kind of a church where members 00:05:07.069 --> 00:05:10.350 allow for differences of opinion and conviction 00:05:10.350 --> 00:05:14.850 on disputed issues, where the Scripture is not 00:05:14.850 --> 00:05:20.170 clear. We want this to be the kind of a church 00:05:20.170 --> 00:05:23.709 in the 90s that works to keep its basic ministry 00:05:23.709 --> 00:05:28.610 simple and uncomplicated while at the same time 00:05:28.610 --> 00:05:32.949 meeting the essential needs of its members. And 00:05:32.949 --> 00:05:36.750 we said last week again that a church, we want 00:05:36.750 --> 00:05:39.470 this to be the kind of a church where everyone 00:05:39.470 --> 00:05:42.430 joyfully participates in the financial support 00:05:42.430 --> 00:05:46.490 of the total ministry. Now with those five items 00:05:46.490 --> 00:05:48.490 out of the way, I want today to move on quickly 00:05:48.490 --> 00:05:51.790 to number six. I believe as we look into the 00:05:51.790 --> 00:05:55.569 90s that God wants us to be the kind of a church 00:05:55.569 --> 00:06:00.550 that seeks to provide options for involvement. 00:06:02.220 --> 00:06:06.819 The day for having just one set of possible involvements 00:06:06.819 --> 00:06:12.819 in a church is over. At least it's over in a 00:06:12.819 --> 00:06:18.160 larger, more sophisticated urban area. The church 00:06:18.160 --> 00:06:20.480 that will be effective in ministry in the next 00:06:20.480 --> 00:06:23.459 quarter of century is the one providing options 00:06:23.459 --> 00:06:27.870 for people. Now, there is but one foundation, 00:06:27.910 --> 00:06:30.730 and that foundation is laid for us here in chapter 00:06:30.730 --> 00:06:34.290 3 of 1 Corinthians, where the apostle says in 00:06:34.290 --> 00:06:37.449 verse 11, no man can lay a foundation other than 00:06:37.449 --> 00:06:40.509 the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 00:06:41.930 --> 00:06:44.269 And he has said in verse 10 that he had laid 00:06:44.269 --> 00:06:46.910 that foundation in proclaiming the gospel to 00:06:46.910 --> 00:06:50.250 them. But now he says there are others who are 00:06:50.250 --> 00:06:52.410 building on that foundation, and we are doing 00:06:52.410 --> 00:06:56.290 the same thing today. In Grace Church, Roseville, 00:06:56.449 --> 00:06:58.949 we are building on a foundation that's already 00:06:58.949 --> 00:07:01.269 been laid. But what kind of a church are we going 00:07:01.269 --> 00:07:05.649 to build? We want to build the kind of a church 00:07:05.649 --> 00:07:08.290 that's going to minister effectively in the generation 00:07:08.290 --> 00:07:12.509 God has called us to be a part of. And to do 00:07:12.509 --> 00:07:14.709 that, I believe that we need to be the kind of 00:07:14.709 --> 00:07:18.250 a church that provides options for involvement. 00:07:20.610 --> 00:07:24.519 People today want the ability to choose. That 00:07:24.519 --> 00:07:29.319 is an expectation in our culture. We are the 00:07:29.319 --> 00:07:32.980 culture of cafeterias and buffets, of supermarkets 00:07:32.980 --> 00:07:38.180 and full -service institutions. I heard someone 00:07:38.180 --> 00:07:40.819 say recently that the church that makes it in 00:07:40.819 --> 00:07:44.560 the next 10 years will be the full -service church. 00:07:46.040 --> 00:07:47.959 Now what he had in mind is the point I'm trying 00:07:47.959 --> 00:07:50.540 to make this morning. It's the church that offers 00:07:50.540 --> 00:07:55.439 options to people. so that they can choose what 00:07:55.439 --> 00:07:59.519 they want to be involved in. The day to say to 00:07:59.519 --> 00:08:02.079 people, well, we have this on Sunday morning 00:08:02.079 --> 00:08:04.279 and this on Sunday night and this on Wednesday 00:08:04.279 --> 00:08:06.939 night. You can take it or leave it. That day 00:08:06.939 --> 00:08:12.680 is over. Because most people will leave it rather 00:08:12.680 --> 00:08:17.079 than take it. Rather, in our culture today, we 00:08:17.079 --> 00:08:19.420 need to develop the kind of a church that offers 00:08:19.420 --> 00:08:22.600 an array of selections to people, if you please. 00:08:23.540 --> 00:08:28.339 All of them, hopefully, good. But saying here 00:08:28.339 --> 00:08:32.639 is what our church is able to provide to you. 00:08:34.240 --> 00:08:38.879 Now you choose. And by the way, how can you be 00:08:38.879 --> 00:08:41.659 involved in our church? Here are those options 00:08:41.659 --> 00:08:46.340 also for you to select from. It goes both ways. 00:08:47.720 --> 00:08:50.360 Recently I was in one of the large department 00:08:50.360 --> 00:08:53.500 stores in our area and I was amazed as I walked 00:08:53.500 --> 00:08:56.759 back one quarter of that department store to 00:08:56.759 --> 00:08:59.919 see on one side of the aisle a travel agency, 00:09:00.039 --> 00:09:03.059 on the other side an investment firm. In front 00:09:03.059 --> 00:09:05.600 of me was a dental office and to another side 00:09:05.600 --> 00:09:09.299 was the optical service. All of that was just 00:09:09.299 --> 00:09:12.360 on the other side of electronics and home furnishings. 00:09:13.100 --> 00:09:16.639 You see, that's the direction of retail business 00:09:16.639 --> 00:09:22.200 in the 90s. It's the one stop store where people 00:09:22.200 --> 00:09:25.000 have the option of doing their everything that 00:09:25.000 --> 00:09:30.480 they may want to do. Now the church that's going 00:09:30.480 --> 00:09:33.200 to be on the cutting edge in the 90s is the one 00:09:33.200 --> 00:09:37.220 that works toward diversity in its ministry. 00:09:38.799 --> 00:09:44.710 One that gives interested people choices. Now 00:09:44.710 --> 00:09:47.230 at the same time, the essential needs that everyone 00:09:47.230 --> 00:09:50.929 has must be simplified. Those two things seem 00:09:50.929 --> 00:09:53.950 to be contradictory, don't they? As we talk about 00:09:53.950 --> 00:09:57.470 more options, and yet trying to make the ministry 00:09:57.470 --> 00:10:02.710 simple. We talked last week about the essential 00:10:02.710 --> 00:10:05.730 needs of every believer. I don't think there's 00:10:05.730 --> 00:10:11.029 an exception among us. We all need these three 00:10:11.029 --> 00:10:14.470 things. We need worship, We need relationship 00:10:14.470 --> 00:10:20.950 and we need ministry. But the challenge that 00:10:20.950 --> 00:10:24.610 we face in the simplicity of the needs is to 00:10:24.610 --> 00:10:29.870 provide options in each area. So that in worship 00:10:29.870 --> 00:10:34.370 we provide options for people. In relationships 00:10:34.370 --> 00:10:38.529 we provide options. In ministry we provide options. 00:10:39.029 --> 00:10:43.059 That's the point I'm making. In worship, we need 00:10:43.059 --> 00:10:46.940 to provide options. Options perhaps of times. 00:10:47.019 --> 00:10:50.600 We do that now. We have a service at 9 .30 and 00:10:50.600 --> 00:10:55.879 a service at 11. Perhaps there are other times 00:10:55.879 --> 00:10:58.159 that we need to be considering as we move into 00:10:58.159 --> 00:11:02.620 the 90s. Maybe a Saturday night worship or a 00:11:02.620 --> 00:11:05.600 Friday night worship or a mid -week worship ought 00:11:05.600 --> 00:11:09.679 to be considered. Now as I throw these things 00:11:09.679 --> 00:11:12.269 out, And please don't feel like that we're offering 00:11:12.269 --> 00:11:15.570 this next week. I am just saying these are things 00:11:15.570 --> 00:11:18.509 that can be considered. They may also be unconsidered 00:11:18.509 --> 00:11:22.710 just as fast. But the point is that we need to 00:11:22.710 --> 00:11:26.529 think through options. Options perhaps as to 00:11:26.529 --> 00:11:31.370 place of worship. Is this worship center as temporary 00:11:31.370 --> 00:11:34.450 as it's been intended to be? Is this the only 00:11:34.450 --> 00:11:38.409 place we can worship? I know of one church that 00:11:38.409 --> 00:11:41.409 offered its career men and women, at least some 00:11:41.409 --> 00:11:43.309 of them, the opportunity to worship completely 00:11:43.309 --> 00:11:47.850 away from the church campus in a cafeteria. They 00:11:47.850 --> 00:11:50.029 rented the cafeteria, began worshiping there, 00:11:50.149 --> 00:11:53.049 and hundreds of single men and women now meet 00:11:53.049 --> 00:11:55.909 there for worship every Sunday morning. They 00:11:55.909 --> 00:11:58.070 don't go to the church campus at all. They worship 00:11:58.070 --> 00:12:02.190 there, together, in that cafeteria. In that neutral 00:12:02.190 --> 00:12:05.049 setting, they found an interesting opportunity 00:12:05.049 --> 00:12:07.129 to reach out to people who are turned off by 00:12:07.129 --> 00:12:10.389 the institutional church. and who are rather 00:12:10.389 --> 00:12:12.429 intrigued by the opportunity to worship in the 00:12:12.429 --> 00:12:17.570 cafeteria. We need to offer options in style 00:12:17.570 --> 00:12:23.169 of worship. Traditional worship is very effective 00:12:23.169 --> 00:12:27.409 at meeting the needs of some people. Others need 00:12:27.409 --> 00:12:29.850 a different style of worship, a more contemporary 00:12:29.850 --> 00:12:34.230 kind of worship. There are some who find it very 00:12:34.230 --> 00:12:37.409 comfortable to come to church and sit and to 00:12:37.409 --> 00:12:39.750 listen and to stand up and sing and sit down 00:12:39.750 --> 00:12:42.070 and maybe to laugh once in a while and to go 00:12:42.070 --> 00:12:43.629 out and they feel good about that. But there 00:12:43.629 --> 00:12:45.450 are others who say, well I'd like to say amen. 00:12:48.210 --> 00:12:50.490 Someone said to me last Sunday, I said amen twice 00:12:50.490 --> 00:12:52.450 this morning, but not loud enough so anybody 00:12:52.450 --> 00:12:57.149 could hear me. You see, not enough of us know 00:12:57.149 --> 00:12:59.409 CPR to take care of all the problems that would 00:12:59.409 --> 00:13:06.200 arise if that would happen. We have some who 00:13:06.200 --> 00:13:09.340 who are coming to grace who come out of backgrounds 00:13:09.340 --> 00:13:11.279 where they have lifted their hands in worship 00:13:11.279 --> 00:13:16.279 before and They say we're afraid to do that Lest 00:13:16.279 --> 00:13:18.519 it may offend some people I said hey, don't worry 00:13:18.519 --> 00:13:22.220 about it If you feel like lifting your hands 00:13:22.220 --> 00:13:23.940 and worship then lift your hands and what would 00:13:23.940 --> 00:13:26.620 all of you just lift your hands right now See 00:13:26.620 --> 00:13:28.759 people who do that don't have weird muscles in 00:13:28.759 --> 00:13:31.879 their arms. We we all have the same muscles and 00:13:31.879 --> 00:13:35.899 can do that Now just like an amen, lifting hands 00:13:35.899 --> 00:13:40.299 can be a show. It can be empty. But for some 00:13:40.299 --> 00:13:42.500 people it's very meaningful to lift their hands. 00:13:43.919 --> 00:13:46.159 But in this kind of a setting, they find that 00:13:46.159 --> 00:13:49.980 difficult to do. As a matter of fact, tonight 00:13:49.980 --> 00:13:53.779 in our evening service, we're going to begin 00:13:53.779 --> 00:13:59.299 trying to create a more contemporary kind of 00:13:59.299 --> 00:14:02.059 worship service. where that sort of thing may 00:14:02.059 --> 00:14:06.919 not feel quite so abnormal. I hope that you will 00:14:06.919 --> 00:14:08.740 come this evening. We're going to do this for 00:14:08.740 --> 00:14:10.519 a couple of Sunday nights. We have a break that 00:14:10.519 --> 00:14:13.100 we've planned in for something special and then 00:14:13.100 --> 00:14:16.519 a couple of more Sunday nights in February. And 00:14:16.519 --> 00:14:18.759 what we do on these Sunday nights may or may 00:14:18.759 --> 00:14:22.120 not affect what we do on Sunday morning. But 00:14:22.120 --> 00:14:24.419 I invite your participation and your comments. 00:14:25.199 --> 00:14:28.600 about the new more contemporary style of worship 00:14:28.600 --> 00:14:30.639 that we're going to experiment with beginning 00:14:30.639 --> 00:14:34.399 this evening. My point is this, that if we're 00:14:34.399 --> 00:14:36.279 going to be on the cutting edge of ministry in 00:14:36.279 --> 00:14:39.080 the 90s, we need to be offering options in worship. 00:14:40.559 --> 00:14:43.100 And we need to be offering options in relationships. 00:14:44.620 --> 00:14:47.559 I suppose if there's any really strong point 00:14:47.559 --> 00:14:51.000 in our ministry now, it may be this area, because 00:14:51.000 --> 00:14:54.100 we have a lot of opportunities for people to 00:14:54.100 --> 00:14:58.159 develop relationships. We're talking about relationships 00:14:58.159 --> 00:15:04.259 in the sense of a place or a partnership where 00:15:04.259 --> 00:15:07.360 there is genuineness, where there is transparency 00:15:07.360 --> 00:15:13.480 and mutual caring. We probably need to work on 00:15:13.480 --> 00:15:17.720 how do we simplify this area. So far we've been 00:15:17.720 --> 00:15:20.600 saying to almost everyone, well you need to be 00:15:20.600 --> 00:15:23.039 a part of a small church and you need to be a 00:15:23.039 --> 00:15:26.539 part of a flock. Now maybe the time is going 00:15:26.539 --> 00:15:30.000 to come, I say maybe the time is going to come 00:15:30.000 --> 00:15:32.000 that we'll need to say to people, you should 00:15:32.000 --> 00:15:36.960 choose either a small church or a flock in order 00:15:36.960 --> 00:15:42.610 to simplify ministry in your life. and to try 00:15:42.610 --> 00:15:44.629 to accomplish then in both of those realms the 00:15:44.629 --> 00:15:50.029 best of both worlds. We need to provide options 00:15:50.029 --> 00:15:53.850 in relationships. We have a practical problem 00:15:53.850 --> 00:15:57.049 when it comes to small churches, and that problem 00:15:57.049 --> 00:16:00.110 is space, especially during the prime hours of 00:16:00.110 --> 00:16:03.929 ministry on Sunday morning. Next fall, our children's 00:16:03.929 --> 00:16:08.009 ministry will continue to expand just by the 00:16:08.009 --> 00:16:11.519 birth of more babies in our church. And as that 00:16:11.519 --> 00:16:13.919 happens, more rooms are needed. Right now we 00:16:13.919 --> 00:16:15.980 have some rooms where there are between 50 and 00:16:15.980 --> 00:16:20.039 60 kids in Sunday school. That's too many. It's 00:16:20.039 --> 00:16:23.480 impossible to teach a Sunday school class like 00:16:23.480 --> 00:16:27.500 that. We have some rooms where there are two 00:16:27.500 --> 00:16:29.960 grades meeting together, two classes meeting 00:16:29.960 --> 00:16:32.600 together in the same room with just a visible 00:16:32.600 --> 00:16:35.399 divider, but we can't continue doing that with 00:16:35.399 --> 00:16:39.220 children or we lose them. And so more rooms are 00:16:39.220 --> 00:16:41.220 needed for children's ministry. That means less 00:16:41.220 --> 00:16:43.179 room is going to be available for the traditional 00:16:43.179 --> 00:16:46.860 small church as we've established it. And so 00:16:46.860 --> 00:16:50.120 options for relationships to some extent may 00:16:50.120 --> 00:16:53.799 be forced upon us by the very fact of our circumstances. 00:16:54.639 --> 00:16:58.440 We need to offer options in ministry. I'm thinking 00:16:58.440 --> 00:17:00.700 of ministry inside the walls where there are 00:17:00.700 --> 00:17:03.980 lots of options. In fact, a couple of years ago 00:17:03.980 --> 00:17:07.890 we put together a booklet. that outlined some 00:17:07.890 --> 00:17:12.730 200 possibilities for ministry, basically within 00:17:12.730 --> 00:17:14.890 the structured program of the church, within 00:17:14.890 --> 00:17:18.849 its walls. But then you move outside of the walls, 00:17:18.970 --> 00:17:21.730 for most of us aren't geared to think, and the 00:17:21.730 --> 00:17:26.589 options multiply far beyond that. We need to 00:17:26.589 --> 00:17:30.769 encourage more options of ministry outside the 00:17:30.769 --> 00:17:34.710 structured ministry of our church. We need to 00:17:34.710 --> 00:17:40.369 take our ministry beyond that which is already 00:17:40.369 --> 00:17:43.329 established and which we do on Sunday or on Wednesday. 00:17:44.690 --> 00:17:47.289 For example, we need to encourage ministry to 00:17:47.289 --> 00:17:51.529 special need groups or target groups. Did you 00:17:51.529 --> 00:17:54.849 know that 27 million people in the United States 00:17:54.849 --> 00:18:00.150 cannot read? Some of those people live right 00:18:00.150 --> 00:18:03.829 here in this city. Wouldn't it be interesting 00:18:03.829 --> 00:18:08.210 for a Christian or a group of believers or maybe 00:18:08.210 --> 00:18:11.029 a flock group to say, you know, we'd like to 00:18:11.029 --> 00:18:13.890 create a ministry to help illiterate people. 00:18:16.329 --> 00:18:18.650 Or perhaps there are others who would be interested 00:18:18.650 --> 00:18:21.690 in providing health care for those who are poor. 00:18:23.609 --> 00:18:26.569 I know of one church that has established a clinic 00:18:26.569 --> 00:18:30.230 staffed by its own doctors and several hours 00:18:30.519 --> 00:18:34.400 a week they open that clinic to the poor community 00:18:34.400 --> 00:18:36.819 in which it exists and they offer free medical 00:18:36.819 --> 00:18:40.680 care and dental care to the residents of that 00:18:40.680 --> 00:18:49.220 community who cannot afford health care. What 00:18:49.220 --> 00:18:52.819 about legal assistance? Again there are churches 00:18:52.819 --> 00:18:55.599 that have lawyers that have banded together and 00:18:55.599 --> 00:18:59.700 they've opened a place in the inner city to provide 00:18:59.700 --> 00:19:03.319 free legal advice to those who are oppressed 00:19:03.319 --> 00:19:07.740 and cannot afford the kind of excellent legal 00:19:07.740 --> 00:19:13.400 advice that most of us can get readily. Single 00:19:13.400 --> 00:19:19.000 parent families abound. Are there some who might 00:19:19.000 --> 00:19:21.119 see it as a ministry to create a big brother 00:19:21.119 --> 00:19:25.640 or big sister network for kids who have no father? 00:19:27.130 --> 00:19:31.630 In some cases, no mother. And you see, doing 00:19:31.630 --> 00:19:33.809 all of these things that I've just mentioned 00:19:33.809 --> 00:19:39.509 with a view to preaching Christ to these people. 00:19:40.509 --> 00:19:42.450 Make no mistake about it. We're not just doing 00:19:42.450 --> 00:19:45.289 this to meet social needs. The point is that 00:19:45.289 --> 00:19:47.970 we do these things that we may call cultural 00:19:47.970 --> 00:19:53.829 key kinds of things. Ministries that open the 00:19:53.829 --> 00:19:57.500 door. To the culture out there in the mainstream 00:19:57.500 --> 00:20:02.099 as it is so that we can enter into that culture 00:20:02.099 --> 00:20:06.019 and Then after we've done that present Jesus 00:20:06.019 --> 00:20:11.099 Christ to them Options in ministry abound the 00:20:11.099 --> 00:20:14.700 only thing that is hindering us is our own lack 00:20:14.700 --> 00:20:18.960 of imagination and creativity It doesn't mean 00:20:18.960 --> 00:20:21.200 that we have to recreate the wheel in every case 00:20:21.640 --> 00:20:24.180 There are some ministries that are already established 00:20:24.180 --> 00:20:26.740 that might be suitable for some people's visions. 00:20:27.759 --> 00:20:29.559 For example, someone may say, well, I have a 00:20:29.559 --> 00:20:34.500 vision to work with young teenagers who are with 00:20:34.500 --> 00:20:38.000 child and unmarried. Well, there's already a 00:20:38.000 --> 00:20:39.880 wonderful ministry in the Twin Cities called 00:20:39.880 --> 00:20:44.299 New Life Family Services that you can plug into 00:20:44.299 --> 00:20:47.579 and minister with them. Or someone else says, 00:20:47.599 --> 00:20:51.700 I'm burdened about chemical abuse. And I would 00:20:51.700 --> 00:20:55.200 really like to learn how to counsel people who 00:20:55.200 --> 00:20:59.160 are involved in that terrible tragedy. Well, 00:20:59.240 --> 00:21:01.359 just in a few days, we are going to be associating 00:21:01.359 --> 00:21:03.200 with Midwest Challens. They're going to be moving 00:21:03.200 --> 00:21:06.920 into Delwood North. And they'll be available 00:21:06.920 --> 00:21:10.440 to train people in our church and will be involved 00:21:10.440 --> 00:21:13.960 in doing that. How to help people involved in 00:21:13.960 --> 00:21:19.849 chemical abuse. And we need to understand that 00:21:19.849 --> 00:21:22.309 it's not the church's job to create all of these 00:21:22.309 --> 00:21:25.630 ministries. Please, no one come to me and say, 00:21:25.769 --> 00:21:28.690 well, you know, I'm really burdened for working 00:21:28.690 --> 00:21:30.849 with people just getting out of prison. When 00:21:30.849 --> 00:21:34.329 is the church going to start something? Because 00:21:34.329 --> 00:21:36.430 if you come and say that to me, I'm going to 00:21:36.430 --> 00:21:39.549 say just as soon as you're ready to start. You 00:21:39.549 --> 00:21:41.990 see, it's not the church's responsibility to 00:21:41.990 --> 00:21:45.269 start all of these things. It's our responsibility. 00:21:46.050 --> 00:21:48.869 as individuals or as groups as God would lead 00:21:48.869 --> 00:21:52.049 us together to envision what God might have us 00:21:52.049 --> 00:21:57.190 do for the kingdom's sake in our region. The 00:21:57.190 --> 00:21:59.829 church can certainly give its blessing. The church 00:21:59.829 --> 00:22:02.130 can help recruit other people if that's needed. 00:22:02.329 --> 00:22:05.089 The church can help perhaps get it organized. 00:22:05.609 --> 00:22:10.289 The church can't support it financially. But 00:22:10.289 --> 00:22:17.000 God can. What would God engender in your heart? 00:22:18.059 --> 00:22:21.319 Maybe it's within the walls. Maybe you're doing 00:22:21.319 --> 00:22:23.920 right now exactly what God has gifted and called 00:22:23.920 --> 00:22:26.339 you to do and working with a wanna or children's 00:22:26.339 --> 00:22:31.259 ministry or ushering or whatever it may be. But 00:22:31.259 --> 00:22:35.019 maybe it's something more or something else that 00:22:35.019 --> 00:22:38.339 God is just starting now to give you a vision 00:22:38.339 --> 00:22:41.740 for. I want you to feel free to develop that 00:22:41.740 --> 00:22:46.910 vision. I want you to use your God -given imagination 00:22:46.910 --> 00:22:50.549 to be creative and innovative, and just see what 00:22:50.549 --> 00:22:54.170 He might have you do. I would encourage you, 00:22:54.190 --> 00:22:56.670 if you are interested in doing something like 00:22:56.670 --> 00:22:59.130 this, that we're talking about in terms of ministry, 00:22:59.869 --> 00:23:02.829 to read a book by Frank Tillapaugh entitled Unleashing 00:23:02.829 --> 00:23:06.609 Your Potential. An exciting book that will help 00:23:06.609 --> 00:23:08.529 structure some of your thinking. It'll answer 00:23:08.529 --> 00:23:11.500 some questions you may have. It'll set you on 00:23:11.500 --> 00:23:14.539 the right tracks as you get started, even in 00:23:14.539 --> 00:23:19.059 the early stages of just dreaming. That's called 00:23:19.059 --> 00:23:21.940 Unleashing Your Potential by Frank Tillapaugh. 00:23:22.839 --> 00:23:25.319 My point in this part of the message this morning 00:23:25.319 --> 00:23:29.799 is to say that we need to develop the kind of 00:23:29.799 --> 00:23:32.420 ministry here that provides options for involvement. 00:23:33.619 --> 00:23:37.730 In worship, in relationship, in ministry, And 00:23:37.730 --> 00:23:40.390 those options are not just provided for us, they 00:23:40.390 --> 00:23:44.869 must in some cases be created by ourselves. But 00:23:44.869 --> 00:23:52.349 we as a church can encourage the mindset of creativity 00:23:52.349 --> 00:23:57.329 and innovation. We can learn to see ourselves, 00:23:57.410 --> 00:24:00.210 not as a narrowly focused church that has one 00:24:00.210 --> 00:24:03.549 program, take it or leave it. But we can learn 00:24:03.549 --> 00:24:07.000 to see ourselves rather as will you pardon the 00:24:07.000 --> 00:24:11.720 term, a supermarket church that allows for options 00:24:11.720 --> 00:24:15.900 and choices in involvement. If you go to the 00:24:15.900 --> 00:24:19.059 supermarket and you want green beans, you're 00:24:19.059 --> 00:24:21.940 going to have choices to make. Do you want the 00:24:21.940 --> 00:24:23.940 regular cut green beans or do you want French 00:24:23.940 --> 00:24:26.960 style? Do you want green beans or do you want 00:24:26.960 --> 00:24:31.470 green beans with red pepper pieces in them? If 00:24:31.470 --> 00:24:33.369 you want tuna fish, you've got to decide if you 00:24:33.369 --> 00:24:35.509 want white tuna or light tuna. If you want it 00:24:35.509 --> 00:24:40.490 in water, you want it in oil. If you want cereal, 00:24:40.549 --> 00:24:41.950 you're going to have to decide if you want sugar 00:24:41.950 --> 00:24:43.990 in it or you want it without sugar. Or you want 00:24:43.990 --> 00:24:46.490 oats or you want bran or do you want wheat or 00:24:46.490 --> 00:24:50.809 do you want corn? You see, we're into choices. 00:24:52.029 --> 00:24:54.769 Our whole culture is into choices. And we as 00:24:54.769 --> 00:24:57.690 a church, if we want to be effective the next 00:24:57.690 --> 00:25:02.940 10 years, 20 years, must apply that to ministry. 00:25:06.960 --> 00:25:08.900 I believe that God in the next ten years wants 00:25:08.900 --> 00:25:13.099 us to be the kind of church, number seven, which 00:25:13.099 --> 00:25:17.880 performs its functions and continually creates 00:25:17.880 --> 00:25:24.700 new forms for them. Now I'm hesitant to talk 00:25:24.700 --> 00:25:27.299 about this because you're going to have to listen 00:25:27.299 --> 00:25:30.619 closely to what I'm saying. This is not easy 00:25:30.619 --> 00:25:33.740 to understand if it's your first pass at this 00:25:33.740 --> 00:25:37.619 kind of language. But I want you to notice the 00:25:37.619 --> 00:25:40.920 two key words in that statement. A church which 00:25:40.920 --> 00:25:46.019 performs its functions and continually creates 00:25:46.019 --> 00:25:53.900 new forms for them. Functions and forms. Now 00:25:53.900 --> 00:25:55.599 we live with those all the time, but we don't 00:25:55.599 --> 00:25:57.599 often think about them in terms of ministry. 00:25:59.820 --> 00:26:05.079 Function is what we do as a church. It's what 00:26:05.079 --> 00:26:10.740 we must do if we're going to be a church. Function 00:26:10.740 --> 00:26:13.720 is what the New Testament says that we must do 00:26:13.720 --> 00:26:19.099 as a body of people if we are an ecclesia, a 00:26:19.099 --> 00:26:24.539 church, a called out people. Now we as a body 00:26:24.539 --> 00:26:27.400 of leaders, as elders and staff have talked about 00:26:27.400 --> 00:26:30.839 this. And we see that there are at least five 00:26:30.839 --> 00:26:35.920 functions that a body of people have to be doing 00:26:35.920 --> 00:26:41.099 if they want to call themselves a church. Else 00:26:41.099 --> 00:26:43.799 it's a Bible study, else it's a parachurch ministry, 00:26:43.859 --> 00:26:46.220 else it's an evangelistic ministry or something, 00:26:46.259 --> 00:26:50.059 but it's not a church. A church must be in the 00:26:50.059 --> 00:26:54.599 first place involved in worshipping together. 00:26:57.769 --> 00:27:00.549 It must come together corporately as a body of 00:27:00.549 --> 00:27:03.809 people to worship, and that includes the observance 00:27:03.809 --> 00:27:07.910 of the ordinances, baptism, and the Lord's Supper. 00:27:08.309 --> 00:27:12.150 It involves praying together, worshipping together. 00:27:12.210 --> 00:27:15.690 That's one function. A second one is to proclaim 00:27:15.690 --> 00:27:21.009 the gospel. A church must do that if it's a church. 00:27:21.430 --> 00:27:23.970 It must proclaim the gospel to its community 00:27:23.970 --> 00:27:27.920 and to the whole world. There are times that 00:27:27.920 --> 00:27:30.619 that proclamation will be very confrontational, 00:27:31.039 --> 00:27:34.759 maybe event oriented. There are times when it 00:27:34.759 --> 00:27:37.380 involves the building of relationships with people 00:27:37.380 --> 00:27:40.579 to earn the right to present the gospel in a 00:27:40.579 --> 00:27:45.819 trusting setting. I'm including under this also 00:27:45.819 --> 00:27:50.700 being salt and light in our community, in our 00:27:50.700 --> 00:27:55.980 culture, confronting injustice, confronting oppression. 00:27:56.740 --> 00:27:59.940 I'm including a lot under this heading, but the 00:27:59.940 --> 00:28:02.279 point is that if we're going to be a church, 00:28:02.339 --> 00:28:04.779 then we must proclaim the gospel. Number three, 00:28:05.460 --> 00:28:09.480 we must encourage relationships that provide 00:28:09.480 --> 00:28:15.119 for life sharing and personal growth. A body 00:28:15.119 --> 00:28:17.059 of people, if it doesn't do that, is not going 00:28:17.059 --> 00:28:20.880 to function as a New Testament church. Because 00:28:20.880 --> 00:28:23.299 relationship is a part of it, it's a vital part 00:28:23.299 --> 00:28:27.440 of it. Number four, the function of a church 00:28:27.440 --> 00:28:33.680 is to teach and obey the Word of God. And number 00:28:33.680 --> 00:28:38.019 five, if it's a church, it must organize itself. 00:28:40.420 --> 00:28:42.859 The New Testament talks about two offices, elder 00:28:42.859 --> 00:28:47.059 and deacon. But the body of people must organize 00:28:47.059 --> 00:28:50.480 itself sufficiently so the direction, discipline, 00:28:50.660 --> 00:28:55.589 and function are achieved. Now as we've looked 00:28:55.589 --> 00:28:57.609 at Acts and as we've looked at the Epistles of 00:28:57.609 --> 00:28:59.589 the New Testament, we believe that to boil it 00:28:59.589 --> 00:29:03.730 all down, those are the five functions of a church. 00:29:05.369 --> 00:29:08.390 Wherever it is, whatever the culture may be, 00:29:08.509 --> 00:29:11.230 whatever the time setting of the church, the 00:29:11.230 --> 00:29:15.849 300s, the 1500s, the 1900s, or the next century, 00:29:16.690 --> 00:29:21.170 those five functions are the essentials of a 00:29:21.170 --> 00:29:28.430 church. But the second key word is forms. The 00:29:28.430 --> 00:29:33.950 function is what we are to do. But form has to 00:29:33.950 --> 00:29:42.849 do with how we do our functions. The form has 00:29:42.849 --> 00:29:48.309 to do with how we do our worshiping, our proclamation 00:29:48.309 --> 00:29:51.809 of the gospel. our relationships, our teaching 00:29:51.809 --> 00:29:57.990 of the Word, our organization. And frankly, as 00:29:57.990 --> 00:30:00.849 you look at the New Testament, you find very 00:30:00.849 --> 00:30:05.230 little to guide you in terms of forms. Why is 00:30:05.230 --> 00:30:10.390 that? Because forms need to change with the times, 00:30:12.470 --> 00:30:19.099 with the place, and with the culture. The functions 00:30:19.099 --> 00:30:23.180 do not change, but how those things are done 00:30:23.180 --> 00:30:26.859 had better change or the church will become irrelevant. 00:30:32.619 --> 00:30:36.700 I would encourage you, if you like to read, and 00:30:36.700 --> 00:30:38.460 many of you do, to get a hold of the book by 00:30:38.460 --> 00:30:41.539 Gene Getz entitled Sharpening the Focus of the 00:30:41.539 --> 00:30:44.460 Church. It will challenge you along the line 00:30:44.460 --> 00:30:47.359 I'm talking about this morning. Gene Getz talks 00:30:47.359 --> 00:30:50.960 about three lenses in that book. They are the 00:30:50.960 --> 00:30:55.000 lenses of Bible and history and culture. And 00:30:55.000 --> 00:30:57.660 he says that as we sharpen the focus of the church 00:30:57.660 --> 00:30:59.599 and what it should be doing and how it should 00:30:59.599 --> 00:31:02.259 be doing them, we need to get all three of those 00:31:02.259 --> 00:31:06.559 lenses into proper focus. We need to look at 00:31:06.559 --> 00:31:08.599 what we're doing through the lens of the Bible 00:31:08.599 --> 00:31:13.200 to make sure what we're doing is right. And to 00:31:13.200 --> 00:31:15.200 whatever degree the Bible describes how to do 00:31:15.200 --> 00:31:16.940 it, that we're doing it the way the Bible says 00:31:16.940 --> 00:31:20.359 to do it. We need to look at our ministry through 00:31:20.359 --> 00:31:26.039 the lens of history and learn from the past the 00:31:26.039 --> 00:31:28.079 right and the wrong, the good and the bad way 00:31:28.079 --> 00:31:31.880 of doing ministry. We need to get out the lens 00:31:31.880 --> 00:31:35.160 of culture and see if what we're doing can be 00:31:35.160 --> 00:31:37.420 focused better in light of the culture in which 00:31:37.420 --> 00:31:42.480 we're in. It's an interesting book. I've also 00:31:42.480 --> 00:31:46.019 read a chapter out of a book entitled Community 00:31:46.019 --> 00:31:50.079 of the King by Howard Snyder in which he says 00:31:50.079 --> 00:31:53.019 some helpful things along the line of what we're 00:31:53.019 --> 00:31:56.559 talking about. I hope that you'll listen as I 00:31:56.559 --> 00:32:00.000 read this. It's not easy to listen to somebody 00:32:00.000 --> 00:32:05.079 read. It's not going to be long, so hang in there, 00:32:05.420 --> 00:32:09.779 I quote. A church which intends to grow and serve 00:32:09.779 --> 00:32:13.769 the kingdom of God must be structured in harmony 00:32:13.769 --> 00:32:16.390 with the biblical understanding of the church. 00:32:17.609 --> 00:32:20.569 This is not to say that a church structured otherwise 00:32:20.569 --> 00:32:23.529 will not grow, for churches with the most diverse 00:32:23.529 --> 00:32:27.190 structures have obviously grown and survived. 00:32:28.130 --> 00:32:31.269 But a church not structured in harmony with biblical 00:32:31.269 --> 00:32:34.210 principles will never achieve the quality of 00:32:34.210 --> 00:32:38.529 growth and the authenticity of discipleship which 00:32:38.529 --> 00:32:42.960 God intends. And so he begins to lay out now 00:32:42.960 --> 00:32:46.559 in his chapter some of those principles that 00:32:46.559 --> 00:32:50.180 he's talking about. He's going to use the term 00:32:50.180 --> 00:32:53.240 church structure, but interpret that as we're 00:32:53.240 --> 00:32:56.759 using it today, ministry form. He says first, 00:32:57.000 --> 00:33:01.240 church structure or ministry form must be biblically 00:33:01.240 --> 00:33:04.559 valid. Although this principle should be obvious 00:33:04.559 --> 00:33:08.609 and fundamental, it's frequently violated. Structures 00:33:08.609 --> 00:33:12.309 are formed or spawned which are basically contrary 00:33:12.309 --> 00:33:16.049 to the Bible. They become unbiblical traditions 00:33:16.049 --> 00:33:20.970 and rigid institutions. We need to ask some hard 00:33:20.970 --> 00:33:24.589 and to some people shocking questions. Is the 00:33:24.589 --> 00:33:27.109 traditional Sunday school structure biblically 00:33:27.109 --> 00:33:30.690 defensible? By the way, I don't know that he's 00:33:30.690 --> 00:33:32.769 saying it's not, but he's asking the question. 00:33:33.049 --> 00:33:37.089 It's a good question to ask. Do believers really 00:33:37.089 --> 00:33:41.529 worship or encounter God in our church services? 00:33:43.710 --> 00:33:49.150 Is the Word of God really taught and heard? Do 00:33:49.150 --> 00:33:51.809 believers really speak the truth and love to 00:33:51.809 --> 00:33:54.650 one another or just say nice meaningless things? 00:33:56.369 --> 00:34:00.309 Do our structures take seriously the gifts of 00:34:00.309 --> 00:34:06.279 the Spirit and the priesthood of believers? Secondly, 00:34:06.460 --> 00:34:09.500 he says, church structure or ministry forms must 00:34:09.500 --> 00:34:13.159 be culturally viable, must be compatible with 00:34:13.159 --> 00:34:15.920 the cultural forms of the society in which the 00:34:15.920 --> 00:34:21.500 church finds itself. And third, he says, church 00:34:21.500 --> 00:34:24.579 structure or ministry forms must be temporally 00:34:24.579 --> 00:34:28.760 flexible. They must be open to modification as 00:34:28.760 --> 00:34:33.880 changing circumstances warrant. Now, without 00:34:33.880 --> 00:34:36.579 the benefit of those specific words, nonetheless 00:34:36.579 --> 00:34:39.559 our elders have been working through this matter 00:34:39.559 --> 00:34:43.760 of forms. And some of us have asked the question, 00:34:43.840 --> 00:34:48.420 yes, we are to teach the Word of God, and we 00:34:48.420 --> 00:34:53.079 are to teach it, for example, to children. But 00:34:53.079 --> 00:34:58.619 are we doing it the best way? We need to ask 00:34:58.619 --> 00:35:01.000 ourselves, do we have Sunday school on Sunday 00:35:01.000 --> 00:35:04.019 morning and a one on Wednesday night with the 00:35:04.019 --> 00:35:08.679 best results? You say, which one are you threatening? 00:35:08.820 --> 00:35:11.920 Neither one. I'm simply asking the question. 00:35:12.519 --> 00:35:14.940 We need to ask ourselves questions like that. 00:35:15.480 --> 00:35:19.699 How are we going to teach our children? And are 00:35:19.699 --> 00:35:23.280 we doing it in the best form possible for the 00:35:23.280 --> 00:35:30.150 90s? We are to provide relationships. Is small 00:35:30.150 --> 00:35:33.949 church the best way to do it? What does a small 00:35:33.949 --> 00:35:37.909 church look like anyway? Well, we have a certain 00:35:37.909 --> 00:35:41.949 model for small church. Are there any other models 00:35:41.949 --> 00:35:46.329 for a small church? As a matter of fact, one 00:35:46.329 --> 00:35:48.570 of our small churches is thinking and praying 00:35:48.570 --> 00:35:51.710 and talking through another model right now. 00:35:54.510 --> 00:35:57.650 It involves at least at this point in their thinking 00:35:57.650 --> 00:36:01.130 not meeting at all on Sunday morning as a small 00:36:01.130 --> 00:36:06.889 church. A meeting on Sunday night and three Sunday 00:36:06.889 --> 00:36:09.269 nights of the month meeting in small groups in 00:36:09.269 --> 00:36:12.030 homes and the fourth Sunday night coming together 00:36:12.030 --> 00:36:18.610 as a larger group. What's wrong with that? Nothing. 00:36:19.610 --> 00:36:24.539 If it works. And if it doesn't, it needs to be 00:36:24.539 --> 00:36:27.679 adjusted. Do you understand the point I'm making? 00:36:29.539 --> 00:36:32.239 As we get into the 90s, we have to look at our 00:36:32.239 --> 00:36:35.739 functions. Those things that God has surely said, 00:36:36.099 --> 00:36:40.539 if we're going to be a church, we must do. And 00:36:40.539 --> 00:36:43.239 we must look at those functions to see how best 00:36:43.239 --> 00:36:49.099 to do them. And to create new forms for carrying 00:36:49.099 --> 00:36:53.039 out these functions. As the elders have talked 00:36:53.039 --> 00:36:56.639 about forms, we have come up with several guidelines 00:36:56.639 --> 00:37:02.519 that we think are important to help us form new 00:37:02.519 --> 00:37:05.780 things. In the first place, we think the forms 00:37:05.780 --> 00:37:08.179 of ministry that might be developed here at Grace 00:37:08.179 --> 00:37:11.980 Church should be culturally sensitive. In other 00:37:11.980 --> 00:37:14.440 words, they should grow out of the culture so 00:37:14.440 --> 00:37:19.059 long as the forms are not morally tainted by 00:37:19.059 --> 00:37:22.639 the culture. should be consistent with our culture. 00:37:23.139 --> 00:37:25.480 Secondly, we believe that our ministry forms 00:37:25.480 --> 00:37:28.039 should be considerate of the weaker brother. 00:37:29.639 --> 00:37:32.860 In other words, we need to be careful and aware 00:37:32.860 --> 00:37:36.019 that some believers have different convictions 00:37:36.019 --> 00:37:38.900 on certain lifestyle issues where the scripture 00:37:38.900 --> 00:37:41.079 is indefinite. We talked about that last week. 00:37:41.599 --> 00:37:44.019 And so as we create ministry forms, we want to 00:37:44.019 --> 00:37:47.579 be considerate of that truth so that a form of 00:37:47.579 --> 00:37:50.510 ministry we come up with won't cause other believers 00:37:50.510 --> 00:37:55.429 to stumble who are weaker in the faith. We think 00:37:55.429 --> 00:37:58.050 another guideline is that ministry forms should 00:37:58.050 --> 00:38:01.849 be flexible and temporal and not allowed to become 00:38:01.849 --> 00:38:07.269 permanent and fixed, for that limits future possibilities. 00:38:09.010 --> 00:38:11.590 Number four, ministry forms must be prayerfully 00:38:11.590 --> 00:38:16.409 organized and set in motion, bathed in prayer. 00:38:18.800 --> 00:38:21.500 Ministry of forms number five should be held 00:38:21.500 --> 00:38:24.800 accountable for doctrinal and moral purity by 00:38:24.800 --> 00:38:28.500 church leadership. In other words, church leadership 00:38:28.500 --> 00:38:32.500 won't have direct control perhaps over some forms 00:38:32.500 --> 00:38:37.659 that are developed. For example, let's say here's 00:38:37.659 --> 00:38:40.659 Jim out here. Well, Jim is such a... Here's Hector. 00:38:41.000 --> 00:38:44.900 No, here's Zven. Here's Zven in our church. And 00:38:44.900 --> 00:38:47.829 Zven says, he and only. want to start a ministry 00:38:47.829 --> 00:38:52.030 out here somewhere. They have chosen an option 00:38:52.030 --> 00:38:56.750 to work with this group of people in St. Paul, 00:38:56.750 --> 00:38:58.969 and they're burdened about that. And they say, 00:38:59.110 --> 00:39:00.949 what do we do, church? And we say, well, God 00:39:00.949 --> 00:39:03.630 bless you. We'll help you if you need help organizing 00:39:03.630 --> 00:39:06.210 it. We can't support you financially. We'll pray 00:39:06.210 --> 00:39:09.170 for you. We'll help you recruit people, but go 00:39:09.170 --> 00:39:12.849 do it. We want to release them to do it. Encourage 00:39:12.849 --> 00:39:16.869 them to do that. God bless Zven and Oli. in that 00:39:16.869 --> 00:39:22.309 effort. And the only thing that we want to hold 00:39:22.309 --> 00:39:26.590 them accountable to is doctrinal purity. We don't 00:39:26.590 --> 00:39:28.650 want them getting off base and starting a cult. 00:39:30.070 --> 00:39:34.730 And moral purity. And we have recently done some 00:39:34.730 --> 00:39:38.130 discussion as to what those two things mean to 00:39:38.130 --> 00:39:40.190 us as a church. I want to go into that this morning 00:39:40.190 --> 00:39:44.159 though. Number six, a ministry forum should be 00:39:44.159 --> 00:39:47.559 encouraged as fulfilling personal vision and 00:39:47.559 --> 00:39:53.320 burden. We want Zven and Oli to have that burden 00:39:53.320 --> 00:39:59.519 for that group of people out there. And we want 00:39:59.519 --> 00:40:02.780 to encourage them to fulfill that personal vision 00:40:02.780 --> 00:40:05.119 that God has given to them saying, I want to 00:40:05.119 --> 00:40:09.219 do this for God. We want to say, charge, go to 00:40:09.219 --> 00:40:16.420 it. Number seven, we want ministry forums to 00:40:16.420 --> 00:40:19.639 be perceived as part of the life of the body. 00:40:20.960 --> 00:40:23.420 In other words, when Zven and Oli go out there 00:40:23.420 --> 00:40:25.320 to do their work, we don't want them to feel 00:40:25.320 --> 00:40:27.059 like they're being chopped off from the body 00:40:27.059 --> 00:40:30.340 in that work. We want them to feel some connection 00:40:30.340 --> 00:40:32.920 to us because they're a part of our membership. 00:40:34.539 --> 00:40:37.739 So as they and maybe a couple of other, maybe 00:40:37.739 --> 00:40:40.880 Hector can get involved in that, and a few others. 00:40:41.309 --> 00:40:43.789 Get involved out there. We want them to feel 00:40:43.789 --> 00:40:46.369 like that they're an extension of Grace Church. 00:40:47.449 --> 00:40:49.510 And so they want to come back to us and share 00:40:49.510 --> 00:40:54.150 testimonies with us. Maybe reports to us. That's 00:40:54.150 --> 00:40:57.849 exciting. But we believe that those are important 00:40:57.849 --> 00:41:01.050 guidelines. Here's my point. In the 90s, it must 00:41:01.050 --> 00:41:04.010 be the kind of a church that examines the way 00:41:04.010 --> 00:41:09.159 it does things. and which prayerfully seeks new 00:41:09.159 --> 00:41:11.739 forms for ministry that will enable us to do 00:41:11.739 --> 00:41:14.139 what God has called us to do with effectiveness. 00:41:15.739 --> 00:41:19.960 We want to avoid ruts. A rut is just a grave 00:41:19.960 --> 00:41:23.199 with both ends knocked out of it. We want to 00:41:23.199 --> 00:41:28.079 avoid that. You say, do we really need new forms? 00:41:28.179 --> 00:41:31.780 Listen, how should facts like these affect what 00:41:31.780 --> 00:41:39.820 we're doing? Number one, in 1957, 77 % of moms 00:41:39.820 --> 00:41:43.900 were at home during the day if they had small 00:41:43.900 --> 00:41:52.340 kids. In 1989, 17 % of moms were at home during 00:41:52.340 --> 00:41:55.539 the day if they have small kids. How do you think 00:41:55.539 --> 00:41:58.900 that affects forms of ministry? How do you think 00:41:58.900 --> 00:42:01.760 that affects the traditional vacation Bible school? 00:42:03.050 --> 00:42:05.670 that met during the daytime in the summer when 00:42:05.670 --> 00:42:09.030 the kids were off of school and depended largely 00:42:09.030 --> 00:42:11.469 upon moms who were at home volunteering their 00:42:11.469 --> 00:42:14.630 time to help and to teach. Do you think that 00:42:14.630 --> 00:42:19.929 has any effect on it? A dramatic effect. Effect 00:42:19.929 --> 00:42:24.469 number two. How should this affect us? The fastest 00:42:24.469 --> 00:42:27.230 growing segment of our population is families 00:42:27.230 --> 00:42:33.929 headed by single mothers. Single parent families 00:42:33.929 --> 00:42:39.750 now are one out of every five single parent families. 00:42:40.570 --> 00:42:44.730 How does that affect what we do? Fact number 00:42:44.730 --> 00:42:49.230 three, more than half of the population of the 00:42:49.230 --> 00:42:52.289 United States will shortly be single adults. 00:42:56.030 --> 00:42:58.510 Should that have some impact on the way we plan 00:42:58.510 --> 00:43:02.940 for the future? The way we do our teaching? The 00:43:02.940 --> 00:43:05.900 way we do our relationships and so on, of course 00:43:05.900 --> 00:43:11.719 it should. Get this one. Fact number four, by 00:43:11.719 --> 00:43:16.460 the year 2000, the majority of Americans will 00:43:16.460 --> 00:43:20.340 be over 50 years of age. I'll even be getting 00:43:20.340 --> 00:43:26.659 close to that. Then some. How does that affect 00:43:26.659 --> 00:43:31.360 what we do as a church? Fact number five. The 00:43:31.360 --> 00:43:34.480 trend of the last quarter of a century of people 00:43:34.480 --> 00:43:38.579 moving from the farm to the city is now being 00:43:38.579 --> 00:43:42.760 reversed People are leaving the city and going 00:43:42.760 --> 00:43:46.840 back to the country So that we have today not 00:43:46.840 --> 00:43:50.199 just rural and urban, but we have what I heard 00:43:50.199 --> 00:43:56.719 someone call recently urban Does that affect 00:43:56.719 --> 00:43:59.349 the way that we the times that we have ministry, 00:43:59.469 --> 00:44:06.170 how often we do things. Fact number six. Black, 00:44:06.409 --> 00:44:09.550 Latino, and Asian populations will outpace white 00:44:09.550 --> 00:44:14.849 populations in the 90s so that everyone in some 00:44:14.849 --> 00:44:19.190 major cities will be a minority. In some of the 00:44:19.190 --> 00:44:21.230 major cities of America, no longer will there 00:44:21.230 --> 00:44:27.829 be a majority of any race. Fact number seven, 00:44:27.869 --> 00:44:32.690 by the year 2000, one futurist by the name of 00:44:32.690 --> 00:44:36.829 Sam Dunn predicts, quote, the special status 00:44:36.829 --> 00:44:39.170 of the church in the eyes of the government will 00:44:39.170 --> 00:44:43.289 be all but eliminated, close quote, in the next 00:44:43.289 --> 00:44:46.789 10 years. In other words, probably he is saying 00:44:46.789 --> 00:44:50.730 by the year 2000, churches will have no tax preference, 00:44:50.889 --> 00:44:55.030 will be paying taxes on our property. Probably 00:44:55.030 --> 00:44:58.530 there will be no chaplaincies in the armed services. 00:45:00.210 --> 00:45:03.289 Probably there will be no conscientious objection 00:45:03.289 --> 00:45:09.010 allowed for military service. Probably there 00:45:09.010 --> 00:45:13.309 will be no advocacy of religion in any public 00:45:13.309 --> 00:45:17.849 -funded institution. Does that affect what we 00:45:17.849 --> 00:45:22.090 do? Fact number eight. The current of social 00:45:22.090 --> 00:45:26.170 change is toward individualism and privatization. 00:45:27.389 --> 00:45:29.690 That's a whole other subject and one that dramatically 00:45:29.690 --> 00:45:33.809 impacts ministry. But you see the point? If we're 00:45:33.809 --> 00:45:35.769 going to remain on the cutting edge of ministry, 00:45:36.449 --> 00:45:41.789 we've got to adapt new forms for our functions. 00:45:42.610 --> 00:45:45.070 Now what does this require of us if we're going 00:45:45.070 --> 00:45:49.199 to become this kind of a church? It's going to 00:45:49.199 --> 00:45:56.480 require qualities like trust, flexibility, sacrifice, 00:45:57.659 --> 00:46:06.420 innovation, patience, imagination, faith. Those 00:46:06.420 --> 00:46:08.460 kinds of qualities are going to be essential 00:46:08.460 --> 00:46:13.099 for all of us. There are some who are not going 00:46:13.099 --> 00:46:17.280 to like this kind of church. because to them 00:46:17.280 --> 00:46:21.199 values would include sameness, predictability, 00:46:22.300 --> 00:46:28.619 smallness, harmony, and status quo. And the fact 00:46:28.619 --> 00:46:30.860 is that as we become the kind of a church I believe 00:46:30.860 --> 00:46:33.980 God wants us to become, what we're looking at 00:46:33.980 --> 00:46:39.940 is change, diversity, conflict management, and 00:46:39.940 --> 00:46:46.960 bigness. Jesus Christ has called you and me, 00:46:47.219 --> 00:46:51.800 who name him as Lord, to be the church in the 00:46:51.800 --> 00:46:58.440 90s, to proclaim his word to this generation. 00:46:59.920 --> 00:47:02.900 If we're going to do that, it is going to require 00:47:02.900 --> 00:47:14.159 the best from every one of us. Let's pray. Sing 00:47:14.159 --> 00:47:42.469 with me again this chorus. Be glorified today. 00:47:42.469 --> 00:47:54.809 Sing it again. In our church, Lord. Be glorified. 00:47:55.230 --> 00:48:10.449 Be glorified. In our church, Lord. be glorified 00:48:10.449 --> 00:48:19.409 today. Amen. Well, thank you for being here.