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Jim's
Manuscript
September
5, 2010
"The Perfect
Church"
"Acts" Series Chapter 6
How do you like the title this morning? "The
Perfect Church." This title reminds me of a title to a movie preview I
saw. I did not see the movie, so this has nothing to do with the movie,
I don't know if it was a good movie or not, but the Title was, "The
Perfect Storm". The perfect storm? What an oxymoron. On the one hand,
the word storm conjures up images of chaos, and wind, and things flying
around, and blowing apart, and disarray. On the other hand, the word
perfect to me makes me think of words like well ordered, balanced,
whole, complete, without stain, blemish, or problems. The perfect storm
is an oxymoron and so is the phrase, the perfect church.
Ok, so let's talk about model churches, or healthy
churches. We've been studying the early church as a model and a
pattern, and we've been learning how to be a healthy church ourselves.
I've been excited about what God has been showing us from the early
church, haven't you?
Do you ever think, If Only We Could Have Been There?
We've been studying the rapidly growing
church in Acts. We've noted the dynamic faith of the Apostles. We've
noted the miracles, the spontaneous generosity and sharing. They had an
amazing fellowship. Have you ever wished you could have been there?
Before you get all dreamy about the early church as if it was perfect,
please remember that there is no such thing, not even then. We just
studied about Ananias and Sapphira, and the deception, compromise, and
selfishness that crept in. Sure, God put an abrupt halt to the cancer
of compromise, but we learn today that didn't make the church perfect.
What we learn this week in Acts chapter 6 is that there were still
problems. Chapter 6 opens with problems, big ones. These were
challenges the leaders had to address! Before we focus on these
problems, our focus for this morning is positive.
Focus: God gave us everything we need to be
a perfect healthy church.
Acts 6:1 (NIV)
In those days when the number of disciples
was increasing, the Grecian Jews among them complained against the
Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily
distribution of food.
It helps me actually to remind myself that wherever
there is church, there is going to be complaints. The church is
people. And people complain. I take comfort that this was true even
for the apostles.
Does Our Church's Shortcomings Distress You?
Let me make two statements that seem like
contradictions, but they are perfectly compatible. Here are the two
statements: 1) Our church has problems, lots of them. 2) Our church
is a healthy wonderful church that I would not trade for any other
church I know about, and I am extremely excited about our future!
Let me help you see how these two statements are
compatible.
6 Characteristics From Chapter 6:
The Perfect Healthy Church...
1. ... Has Problems
(6:1)
Acts 6:1 (NIV)
In those days when the number of disciples
was increasing, the Grecian Jews among them complained against the
Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily
distribution of food.
Every healthy church has problems. It is only the
unhealthy church that has NO problems. How could that be? If a church
got to the place where it had no problems, they got to the place where
they are not reaching anyone with problems. You don't see this as a
name for a church "The Us 4 And No More Church", but you still
see it in attitudes in some churches. In the "Us 4 And No More Church,"
everyone agrees. Nobody wants change. They have no problems, and they
want to keep it that way!
A church is not a club for perfect people. A
church is a hospital and rescue station. There is going to be
everything from hurting people to celebrating people in a healthy
church. A healthy church will be going through changes, and
adjustments, and handling issues, as they work with greater numbers of
problems.
Besides, ask yourself, "If our church had no
problems, would I be allowed to be a part of it?" If I ask myself that
question, the answer is a resounding "No", I have problems and I'm the
pastor. I have problems and you do to. Aren't you glad our church has
room for me and you?
What I Am Thankful For
- GRACE: A healthy church runs on
grace, and celebrates grace. I've offended people here and been
forgiven. I'm thankful for people like you.
- COMMITMENT: We have bunches of fully
committed people, even though not one of them is perfect. And
that's something to celebrate!
- CHRISTLIKE ATTITUDES: SO many people
we have who already have a Christ-like attitude oozing from you. I
see it when things don't go your way.
- SERVANTS!! so many have learned that
church is not a consumer product. We have so many now who realize
that Jesus defined everything completely differently than the
worldly business model. We have so many now who really take to
heart the words of Jesus when he said.
Matthew 20:27-28 (NIV)
and
whoever wants
to be first must be your slave-- 28 just as the Son of
Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a
ransom for many."
Do you realize how
fortunate we are? We have so many people who have figured out that
church is incredibly meaningful when you see a need and meet it. So
many of you have come to find out that that is where it is at. AS A
RESULT we have...
- LOVING RELATIONSHIPS: CONNECTIONS. It
is such a blessing to see Christ at work through us, and making
connections with people, and making a difference in people's lives.
I love this about you. I love watching the life of Christ grow up
in you.
- FOREBEARANCE: I've seen this quality
in many of you even though, you may be thinking, "I would not have
done it that way", or "I wish they'd do things more my way... but it's
not up to me, so I'm not making a big fuss, besides what IS up to me
is looking for ways to make a positive difference!" Now that's
forebearance!
- I've seen many of you listen to a
complainer the way a nurse helps a hurt patient. Sometimes
words of encouragement are offered, sometimes an effort is made to
direct the hurting person to focus on the positive things instead,
some times a potential fire is lovingly dowsed with corrective
admonishment.
- LEADERS WITH 2 BUCKETS.... Trickle down
effect...
Every year I remind the
board that each of us carries 2 buckets. In one hand we carry a bucket
of water and in another hand a bucket of gasoline. And when we see
fires, we have a choice of which bucket to throw on the fire. Do you
know that we have a great set of men leading this church? I'm grateful
to them. There is a tremendous trickle down effect, not to mention that
fires are put out frequently, but it isn't always leaders doing the
dowsing. We have lots of people who are servants, and encouragers, and
disciples helping other hurting people. That's beautiful!
Now we have hundreds of
positive people...(not all, and not always, but most of you now recognize
that CRITICISM is not one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit)
- PATIENCE (Sorting through the good Ideas
for the God Ideas).
I've also recognized
that we now have more and more people who realize that we leaders are
doing the best we know how to keep up with the God ideas, and we don't
need 400 new good ideas. I've watched a number of you graciously let
something go. On the other hand I have also watched as you have pursued
an idea yourself and pitched in with prayer and man hours to see if one
good idea just needed a volunteer and commitment to discover it really
was a God idea.
Where many church
leaders are discouraged and buried under constant criticism, I'm happy
to report to you that I am encouraged. And many of you play a large
part in the praying and encouraging that goes on around here.
Do you want to know the answer to the question:
Why Does My Church Have Problems? The answer is, "Because I attend
here!" Let's remind ourselves again. Every church has its
shortcomings! Every person does. Every pastor does. But our church is
a fantastic church, and I'm glad to be associated with all of you who
love Christ. I can't wait to see what God is going to do with us in the
next couple of years.
BACK TO ACTS 6. Point number 2. The Healthy
Church...
2. ... Prioritizes
(6:2-4)
Acts 6:2-4 (NIV)
So the Twelve gathered all the disciples
together and said, "It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry
of the word of God in order to wait on tables. 3 Brothers,
choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit
and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them 4
and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word."
The Word and Prayer must be our priority as well.
Not just what we do as a church, but what we do as individuals.
It is Not Right For Us To Neglect The Word of God (6:3)
"It would not be
right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait
on tables.
In this case something good was stealing time from
the best. A good ministry was causing all the energy to be taken from
the most important ministry. The most important ministry was the
proclamation of the message of God, the proclamation of the Gospel. The
heart of the matter is Christ. He must remain central, and the message
of Christ must remain central. We must continually talk about who he
is, what he did, and how people who are unconnected to Christ can make
the connection.
Social activism is good, but it cannot become our
central purpose. Social activism might fill a stomach, but the stomach,
but we must make sure we do not neglect filling a soul. This is one of
those important reminders about our priorities.
We focus on priorities a lot around here. We want
you to have a heart for God, a heart for one another, and a heart for
the world, and in that order. If you have a heart for the world, but
don't have a heart for God, your priorities are messed up.
It isn't enough simply to help people. We also
want to help people get it. They need to understand about Jesus.
Do You Give Attention To Prayer and The Word of God? (6:4)
We will turn this
responsibility over to them 4 and will give our attention to
prayer and the ministry of the word."
The temptation when problems are screaming at you
and life just gets crazy is to put all your energy and time trying to
solve those problems. The temptation is to think that you need to work
harder, and try harder, and make something happen. The temptation is to
think that the harder I work, the better off I'll be.
Do you remember where we started in the book of
Acts. Jesus commanded them to wait for the Holy Spirit. The act of
waiting is hard. But waiting on God is not just a passive thing but an
active thing. It is the act of depending. It is the act of leaning on
God. It is a conscious choice. Let me remind you that the title of the
first message in this series was "How To Do Less, and Be More." Paying
attention to prayer and the Word is the central connection. It is how
we orbit closer and closer to Christ. When we are orbiting close to
Christ, that is when others see the life of Christ in us like they did
in Act 4:13 when they took note that Peter and John, who were unschooled
men, were bold, courageous, and an unstoppable force, because they had
been with Jesus!
Acts 4:13 (NIV)
When they saw the courage of Peter and
John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were
astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.
If your work load is overloaded, try an
experiment. Rather than going to work early, and working longer hours,
try setting aside first things first. Make time to pray and orbit close
to Jesus. Pray about each problem, wait upon the Lord. Serve the Lord
first, then you will find that when you begin to work on those other
problems, you aren't spinning your wheels quite so much. You are going
to find that even in these mundane things, you are going to see God at
work. That's exciting.
3. ... Delegates
(6:3)
Acts 6:3 (NIV)
Brothers, choose seven men from among you who
are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this
responsibility over to them
You will notice who are the ministers listed on our
bulletin. The members are the ministers. In unhealthy churches, the
paid staff are the ministers, and the members are the customers. You
are not the audience in worship. God is. You are not the customers
choosing the services of this church. If you are a member, you are the
ministers. You are Christ's ambassadors. You are our delegates,
representing Christ in your work places, families, and neighborhoods.
Healthy churches delegate ministry!
I often run into people and have conversations
about church with people who do not go to church. Some of them say they
are believers but they are not into organized religion. I usually say
something like, "If you are not into organized religion, you ought to
try our church we're totally unorganized." They usually chuckle at that
one, particularly since they usually know I'm the Pastor.
Organized religion in their minds is this top down,
controlling, judging thing. What I mean by being totally unorganized is
this. There is so much ministry spontaneously happening all the time,
that there is no way to organize it and keep up with it, or control it.
In fact, the thing I have to remember is that it is NOT my job to
control the ministry. It is my job to encourage it, and cast vision for
ministry, to inspire ministry. The ministry is what Christians do,
everywhere, all the time. It is my job to inspire you to be the
unstoppable force of God everywhere in the name of Jesus, in whatever
you do, whether word or deed, do it all unto the Lord Jesus Christ!
That's worship. That's ministry. And it is done here, it is done at
work. It is my job to inspire you to be the best of employees, because
you do your work heartily as unto the Lord, rather than as working for
men.
Anyway...that's how leaders delegate ministry. We
don't do it all. We delegate. We inspire. We train. We do it also,
but my primary work, is the ministry of the Word and Prayer. That's
your primary work also, even if we delegate serving tables. That's how
you lift serving tables to a whole new level. You have to notice what
kind of men they chose for these service positions.
4. ... Has Many Spirit Filled People
(6:3)
These are men that have learned how to lean on the
power of the Spirit. They have learned to pray and depend on God. They
are not just out there working, serving, and doing. They recognize that
apart from Jesus, and abiding in him, they can do nothing. They
recognize that to touch something for eternity, eternity has to touch
you, and flow through you. These men were spirit filled. They have
learned how to lean on the spirit. They've discovered the same key,
Paul talked about when he said, "When I am weak, then I am strong."
These are men of prayer. These are men who learn how to walk by
depending on the Spirit, not just "trying harder."
How To Be Spirit Filled
·
Understand The Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is "he"
not "it"; the second person of the trinity, not an impersonal force.
The Holy Spirit is given to every true believer.
Acts 2:38 (NIV)
Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized,
every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of
your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
He dwells in us. You
don't have to feel anything for this to be true. This gift is God's
promise, made possible through Christ.
·
Receiving the Spirit and Being Filled are not the same thing; "Be
Filled" is a Command given to those who have already received the
Spirit.
Ephesians 5:18 (NIV)
Do not get drunk on wine, which
leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.
God wants us to be under the influence of the Holy Spirit.
Because it is commanded of Christians that they should be filled with
the Spirit, instead of being filled with some other influence, we see
that it is quite possible to be a Christian and not necessarily be
filled with the Spirit and that is why we are commanded to be filled
with the Holy Spirit.
Luke 11:13 (NIV)
If you then, though you are evil, know
how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father
in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"
To be filled with the Holy
Spirit, you need to be empty of self and sin. Being filled with the
Spirit includes learning how to empty yourself and ask God to fill you
with more of him. It means to let go of your agenda, and your will, in
favor of God's agenda and God's will. If you have not dealt with known
sin in your life, you are not filled with the Holy Spirit. There is no
filling apart from cleansing. A clogged conduit must be cleaned out for
the Spirit to flow. Being filled with the Holy Spirit means we become a
vessel, or a conduit through whom, God works his purposes in others.
·
Submit To God's Will though confession and repentance
Yield yourself to God.
·
Walk in Faith Also Means Obey
People who believe, obey.
If you do not obey, it is because you are believing a lie somewhere
along the line. Walk in faith. Obey God.
·
The Filling of the Holy Spirit is not a Once and For All time
Event.
It is more like a
process. More like breathing. Exhale sin by confession. Humble
yourself before God, he will lift you up, and fill you. Inhale God's
will, God's word, God's presence. Choose to surrender. Choose to
obey. Choose to depend. Surrendering to God's will is a choice.
Depending on God is a choice.
Ask to be filled.
A healthy church has many people who are filled
with the Holy Spirit. A healthy church also has people who are still in
process; still in the hospital; still learning; still being rescued;
still leaning on others who are filled with the Holy Spirit who are
reaching out to them, believing in them, showing them the way. So, a
healthy church ALSO has people who are not currently filled with the
Spirit, but they want to be.
These are like the crippled man in Acts 3 who in
that leaning moment, when Peter took his hand to help him up,
experienced a miracle. In the leaning, faith is born, and the
spiritually crippled learn to walk in obedience.
5. ... Grows
(6:7)
Acts 6:7 (NIV)
So the word of God spread. The number of
disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests
became obedient to the faith.
The Word of God Spread
The word of God spread
(NIV) or "continued to increase" (ESV). What does that mean? The
natural usage of this word has to do with the plant kingdom. It can be
viewed the way Jesus used the same word in the parable of the seeds and
the soils. The seeds of the gospel were being sown. It was taking
root. It was spreading, increasing. The hearts of many were open to
the seed, and their was a harvest of more open hearts. More seeds were
spread. If the fall cursed the ground with thorns and thistles and
weeds, picture a reversal of this. Weeds spread uncontrollably. You
really have to work to keep the weed population down. Now the reversal
is taking place, the good seed is spreading like weeds. Can you
imagine? Imagine a spontaneous garden. Imagine huge harvests on a
spontaneous garden. It is lush, beautiful, satisfying, amazing. That's
the kind of thing happening here, the word of God is taking root, and it
is changing hearts and lives, and fruit is showing up everywhere. Every
where you look you see evidence of love, and joy, and peace, amazing
amounts of patience, kindness, goodness. You see big burly men down at
eye level with children, the picture of gentleness, and protection.
People who had no self control before are now self controlled. That's
how the word of God spread.
The Numbers of People Affected Are Increasing Also
The number of
disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests
became obedient to the faith.
The spreading effects of
the Word was like a contagious rumor of Good news, spreading
everywhere. And people were affected. Disciples were added. Even
priests were turning to Christ. The Jerusalem council may have
commanded that no word of this Jesus be spoken, but everywhere you go,
his name is being spoken, whispered, listened to, talked about. He was
the talk of the town.
Never underestimate your own impact.
When you are riding a
wave like this, you are making rippling affects in a pond, that emanate
outward from where you are, and your ripples are touching someone else's
ripples. A movement is happening. Don't underestimate the value of
what it is you are doing in the name of Christ, and for the Love of
Jesus. You are part of changing the world. You are making a difference
eternally! You are making a lasting difference.
Remember also, that
spending time with Jesus, and leaning on his Spirit's power, is how
anything lasting and important happens.
6. ... Experiences Opposition
(6:9-15)
--TO BE CONTINUED...
The kingdom of light always clashes with the
kingdom of darkness. Our enemy does not give up. Every inch of ground
is contested ground. We will cover more on this next week.
Before we go. Look over your notes. Circle the
point that God has spoken to you this morning. What will you do about
it? Would you talk to God about that right now?
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