We Are His. Him We Proclaim.

INTRO: Do you ever step back and ask yourself what the plan is? With all the busyness, have I recently adjusted my plans and practices according to what God’s priorities and purposes are for my life?

Or… What is the purpose and plan for the Church? And then what should be God’s purpose and plan for us as a local expression of the Church? How would you describe the vision of the Church? Who are we, and what do we do?

It has been almost exactly four years since I last preached any messages on this topic, so we’re entering a topical series before launching into our exposition of Acts, Luke’s sequel to his gospel that we just completed. The aim of this short (3-week?) series is to give us clarity and focus on the answer to this question: “Who are we, where are we going?”

The only “vision” worthy of a local church is the purpose and mission given for Christ’s universal Church.

What do we aspire to do? We aspire to mature in ever-increasing faithfulness to all that our Lord has commanded of us. So we must look to God’s word to get to the bottom of what that is.

John 17:3 ESV

And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.

Context: Last supper discourse. More specifically, what we call the high priestly prayer of Jesus, where he intercedes for his apostles and for all who will believe in him.

The Point: Gets to the heart of the gospel. The gospel is the good news that the God of the universe has offered a relationship with himself to sinful humanity through the Lord Jesus Christ, to whom a response of repentance and faith is required. Knowing him is what God made us for. And if we will know him on his terms, as he truly is, we will fear him (in his holiness and power)… we will love him (in his majesty and grace toward us)… we will trust him (in his perfections and his plan)… and we will obey him (bc no other response will do for the heart that has come to know him).

[transition]

1 Peter 2:9 ESV

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

Context: Peter writes a letter to the churches to offer them encouragement and courage in their suffering. He writes from his own persecution in Rome to other believers who are and will suffer for the Gospel. So Peter challenges the Church to live with a laser focus on the hope that we have in Jesus Christ in the face of hostility. In this section more specifically, Peter uses the metaphor that we (the church) are being built up (like living stones) into a sanctified house that reflects the uniqueness of our Lord, who is himself the cornerstone.

The Point: The emphasis is on holiness here. We are a people set apart for God’s own possession, so we must live consistently with whose we are. In so doing we are proclaiming God’s excellencies (the virtues of his character).

Colossians 1:28 ESV

Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ.

Context: Paul’s ministry in the church, and more specifically the message God gave him to preach that through Jesus Christ God makes himself available to the Gentiles as well.

The Point: When God has made us his own by grace through faith in Jesus, our whole being and behavior proclaims the excellencies of God and proclaims the message of restoration to him through our Lord Jesus Christ.

[title again] That is who we are, and that is what we do: We Are His. Him We Proclaim.

The only vision worthy of a local church is the purpose & mission of Christ’s universal Church.

The Purpose & Mission of the Church

Again…

1 Peter 2:9 ESV

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

Why Do We Exist? (Purpose)

Why do we exist? We are his possession. We belong to God through faith in Jesus Christ. And therefore by your very existence as his people…

We exist to proclaim God’s excellencies together by pursuing Him as our highest good, by living set apart to Him, and by multiplying mature disciples of Jesus.

[highlight three parts ***]

And what does his possession do?

What Do We Do? (Mission)

We live to glorify him—by our growth in holiness (to reflect who He is) and by bearing witness to Jesus Christ and then discipling his people to maturity. To BE (set apart) and to GO (make disciples)

Colossians 1:28 ESV

Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ.

We strive to know God better from the study and application of His word, to rely on Him in prayerful dependence, to grow in faithfulness to His character and command, and to make mature disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Key words are the verbs: know, rely, grow and make (and the object or aim of each thing is really God himself)

Simplified versions that might be easier to remember (feel free to write these down):

We exist to know God and to make him known. (1 Peter 2:9)

Our mission is to call all people to know and grow in Jesus. (Col. 1:28)

Now, the only way we will accomplish such a purpose and mission is through dependence on God… because God himself is the purpose and the power, he is the message and the means to accomplish the mission.

So when we as a church talk about who we are and what we do, it’s helpful for us, before we set before us any methodology for ministry, to ground ourselves in the glory of God as our goal.

Core Values

We are committed to and motivated by the following convictions: [one image]

GOD’S GLORY – Our highest good and greatest joy is God Himself. We exist on this earth to express God’s glory by the transformation in our hearts and by sharing the life and love of Jesus with others.

GOD’S WORD – We prioritize faithfulness to the Bible in principle and practice. By God’s Word the Holy Spirit communicates to us who God is and by it He changes hearts to love and obey God through Jesus Christ. We therefore guard sound doctrine, practice expository preaching, and equip believers to study and apply the Scriptures.

GOD’S MISSION – God is redeeming for Himself a people for the praise of His glory, who by His grace place their trust in Christ alone for salvation, sanctification, and final glorification. We resolve to be a church family focused on multiplying mature disciples who exalt the Lord, serve the Church, and spread the gospel.

GOD’S METHOD – God’s plan to build His Church is to have local expressions of His Bride working together to make disciples of Jesus from all nations. As one such church family, we equip believers, train leaders, and partner with like-minded individuals and entities to accomplish the Great Commission.

GOD’S MINISTRY – We aim to see every believer active in humble service for building up the Church—encouraging, challenging, and providing for one another. The Holy Spirit further empowers us to be His witnesses and to do good works that draw attention to our Lord.

[summary so far…]

God’s work is most effective in and through us when we are most closely aligned to his character and command. (and according to his good pleasure)

How do we “do” that? How will we “get there”?

By drawing closer to God according to instruction in his Word, and by following Jesus to walk in step with the Spirit. By holding ourselves accountable first to God, and then to one another for the same purpose.

Based on a biblical vision for the church, here’s a philosophy of ministry that we’ve been working on and sharpening in recent years:

Ministry Philosophy

While methodology to fulfill our mission may change from time to time, a healthy church intentionally and zealously pursues a balanced ministry for growing in Christlikeness and for multiplying mature disciples. To that end, we desire to call ourselves and others to:

[Image]

BELIEVE in Christ.

BELONG to His Body.

BE TRAINED in Truth.

BE STRONG in Ministry.

· BELIEVE in Christ. – When God gets ahold of us by grace through faith in Jesus, the power and purpose for our lives changes. We begin to live these truths: We Are His, and Him We Proclaim. To keep that focus, we gather together regularly to unify our hearts with the Christian goal of knowing God and making Him known.

· BELONG to His body. – Healthy Christians are connected to the local body to grow in commitment to the cause of Christ. We encourage church membership and involvement in Small Groups to provide individuals and families with authentic relationships for support and accountability for applying God’s truth to our daily living.

· BE TRAINED in truth. – To grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ, we aim to equip believers for battling the flesh, standing for Christ, and sharing their faith. We provide classes in systematic theology and real-world Christian disciplines, and we foster mentoring relationships for leadership training.

- BE STRONG in ministry. – God designed the Church such that every member is a minister. It is our privilege and responsibility to build up the body and to share Christ with others. We aim to be sent as leaders for the harvest at home, work, school, and around the world.

Conclusion: [one slide] We Are His. Him We Proclaim.

How comfortable are you with understanding your purpose as a believer? The church’s mission?

How will you do your part for us to become the church we aim to be?

PRAY

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