5 Convictions
Discipleship • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 1 viewChurch's 5 Convictions focusing on Deep in God's Word but over viewing the the other 4
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Deep in God word
Loving God
In Community
Serving Others
On Mission
If we want to make disciples, people who recognise their brokenness and turn to God as Lord and Saviour who are people saved out of the kingdom of Darkness into the Kingdom of God’s Son, Jesus Christ, and are worshiping with us around his throne in heaven, if we do that by the proclamation of God’s word into peoples lives, not just being nice, and through praying to God to change peoples hearts. Where ever we go, are and can. And teaching them to live as a Learner of Jesus for the rest of their lives. The Diocese calls this process, Sharing Jesus for Life.
Where on earth do we start… what a massive task.
Imagine you're put in charge of the response to a natural disaster or some other massive crisis, like Lieutenant General John Frewen, who was put in charge of getting covid vaccines to every Australian. How do you even approach such a gargantuan task? You break it down. You divide the mammoth task into its component parts or stages, and then start steadily working on each of these parts. You start eating the elephant one mouthful at a time.
The same is true in ministry. ʻSharing Jesus For Lifeʼ - that's a mammoth all-encompassing outcome. How could we break it down into some mouthfuls that we can start to chew, while continuing to pay attention to the theologically significant fact that believers belong together in a congregation? What are the component parts of the big outcome?
My suggestion is one by Reach Australia, Deep in God’s word, Loving God, In Community, Serving other and On Mission. If we work on these 5 areas, bit by bit, we will as a church under God, Grow.
The one that under-pins all others is Deep in God’s Word.
2 Timothy 3:16-17,
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
How can we be equipped if we don’t read the scriptures, and base our teaching, rebuking, correcting and training on them?
Romans 15:4-6
Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope. 5 May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, 6 so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
With the reading of scripture we gain hope, encouragement and endurance. so that we might be of one mind and one voice and glorify God togethers.
We cant love God unless we underpin that with reading scripture, we can’t love one another without scripture telling us why, we cant serve with out knowing the one who became a servant for us, and we can’t tell people about Jesus without having the scriptures to guide us.
A Disciple is deep in God’s word, to grow as a disciple you need to read God’s word. Book by Book, slowly, deliberately, meditating on it. Reading book about the bible to help develop your understanding of it.
Our own tradition calls us to the reading of Scripture, with the 6th Article of Religion tell us that the Scriptures contains all things nesscessary for salvation. Whatever is not read in it or deduced from it is not required as an article of faith, nor needed for salvation. If this is what it contains how important is it we deligently search and know the scriptures so we don’t put on people unnesscessary things, and are clear what is required for salvation!
Our practise here will be to work through the bible Book by Book for the most part, discovering the whole counsel of God. This year we went through John P1, Luke, 1 Samuel, next year we are doing Ecclesiastes, Galatians, John P2, Psalms.
We have bible studies to help us Grow, we have studies which I have written or borrowed for personal times with God, we read 3-4 readings each week because we want to be drenched in the scriptures.
I have been sharing books suggestions in the Pew Sheet, I have bought and given books to people over the year because we should be delving into the great depths of scripture together, If your not a reader then get an audiobook!
You might have guessed our focus this year has been more heavily aimed at Deep in God’s Word as a priority. not for any fault of the church or reasoning beyond its the easiest for me to do being new and not knowing where people are at, and that it is needed for the other 4.
Please, Please, Please, Brothers and Sisters, Open up God’s Word never come to the point were you think you do it enough. Not because you have to but you GET to, you have the very words of God in your hands, bring your bible to Church, scribble notes from sermons in them, mark and digest it. Read about it. Talk to PEOPLE ABOUT IT, encourage each other with it!
My conviction from theses sermons has been I after finishing college haven’t been reading enough, I turn away from the text to often, because it can feel like work. But lately I’ve been researching a topic and I remembered how wonderful it is to delve into God’s word and how REWARDING the searching of scriptures is.
Deuteronomy 6:1-9 - encourages Israel to remember the laws and decrees of the law, to talk about whenever and wherever they, to impress them on their Children so that Israel might not forget the Lord. DEEP in God’s word.
Loving God
Mature Disciples live lives of thanksgiving, prayer and praise in response to the God who has loved and saved us; to see them loving and rejoicing in God in all of their lives, and particularly when they gather together.
In Community
Mature Disciples are deeply integrated into the fellowship of Godʼs people; to belong; to be known and to know others.
Serving Others
Mature disciples are people who gladly give themselves to serving others, whether formally or informally. This service pervades all of life, particularly the household of believers. This happens as people grow deeper in their trust in the word, and in their love for God, and as they become part of the community.
On Mission Mature disciples of Christ embrace the heart of God to seek and save the lost. This is not an extra or optional component, for really keen disciples only. We need to build disciples, and churches, that are on mission, praying for all nations and seeing people converted.
Two things you can do to grow disciples
Grow yourself as a disciple Help others Grow as disciples