Getting Out Of The Boat (2)
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Introduction
Introduction
I’ve been doing a lot of church exploration.
Gone to several churches of all stripes.
Some have amazing praise teams.
Others had classically trained organists leading worship in a choral fashion.
I've heard great sermons.
Some not so great sermons.
I’ve seen a couple AMAZING coffee bars. Nearly as good as Starbucks.
I’ve also attended churches that could hardly afford to make the building payment.
I’ve met a lot of wonderful people.
Very warm congregations in both large and small settings.
Most have been quite welcoming.
A few have not.
Most have some form of Bible study and children’s ministry.
A few have not.
But these are GOOD PEOPLE!
But I have to be honest, I’ve felt a little empty.
It’s not that these churches don’t do what they do quite well.
It’s that it all feels…well, a bit disconnected, honestly.
Some of the churches, it’s as if the Spirit has left and they are just waiting for the doors to close.
For others, the pastor gave a sermon that had all the production of the best TED Talk you’ve ever seen.
I was listening to one such sermon and, I’m a bit ashamed to say, that all I could think in my mind’s eye was “shiny, empty vessel.”
This is a shiny empty vessel.
Coffee bar in the front!
Herd them in!
Give them a few songs and a message.
Get them out, and bring in the next group, and repeat.
Meanwhile, and I can’t speak specifically to that congregation, but it gave a certain low commitment vibe.
Come, consume, leave.
No change, no transformation, no confronting sin, no being encouraged and challenged toward a life of holiness.
Question…Is that church?
Scripture
Scripture
Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
Say one thing for Peter in this text…Though his faith is certainly imperfect, he at least stepped out.
Fortunately, he had a perfect mentor.
And, so, I’ve titled this weeks message “Getting out fo the boat” because it sounds a bit more tepid, nervous, and testing than “Get out of the boat.”
I suspect there are lots of us who have this sense that we SHOULD get out of life’s boats when it comes to our faith.
Boats are safe. They protect us. They feel quite comfortable!
But boats can also stifle, protect, and keep us from those moments of faith where we have to trust Jesus.
Reasons
Reasons
The church has forgotten what Christian community is for.
As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.” Immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.
The church has stopped seeing itself as a transformational community.
We’ve tried, often in the form of small groups...
Kevin Watson…Three Types of Groups
Affinity Groups - These groups are organized around common passions, interests, or hobbies. Examples would be: a cooking club, a bowling league, or a book club.
Informational Groups - These groups are focused on conveying information and are organized by a common curriculum. Examples would be: Sunday school, a Bible study, or a study of any other book or curriculum. In these groups, members gather together to learn more about their faith. An assumption of these groups is that knowledge is essential for maturity of faith, or that right living is dependent on right knowing. In my experience, this is the kind of group most people have in mind when they think about a small group. At their best, these groups push participants to apply what they are learning to their lives. At their worst, they can be poorly conceived and organized and have no impact on the way group members actually live. Ultimately, I think there is a role for small groups that study curriculum in Christian settings. Biblical literacy and awareness of basic Christian doctrine are important for faithful Christian living. However, information-driven small groups are not the most effective way to help people become mature Christians.
I love these groups!
See, it allows me to study the text without it getting to the interior places.
It keeps us just far away from the text that we never necessarily experience change.
Just one problem…I don’t see it in the Bible.
Transformational Groups - The third type of small groups are transformation-driven groups. These groups focus not on discussion or mastery of content, but on changed lives, on group members’ experience of God. These small groups are organized around a common desire to support one another in their efforts to become increasingly faithful Christians who are growing in love of God and neighbor. Examples would be: accountability groups, fellowship groups, cell groups, class meetings, and perhaps even house churches. These groups are primarily focused on living and not on learning. They are especially focused on being made new by the grace of God, not only on receiving new ideas about God. These groups consist of people who want to more effectively practice their faith. This book argues that it is these types of groups that are the most effective at making disciples of Jesus Christ, and as a result, churches should be the most invested in establishing, promoting, and nurturing them.
Watson, Kevin. The Class Meeting: Reclaiming a Forgotten (and Essential) Small Group Experience (Kindle Locations 183-189). Asbury Seedbed Publishing. Kindle Edition.
Watson, Kevin. The Class Meeting: Reclaiming a Forgotten (and Essential) Small Group Experience (Kindle Locations 171-172). Asbury Seedbed Publishing. Kindle Edition.
Watson, Kevin. The Class Meeting: Reclaiming a Forgotten (and Essential) Small Group Experience (Kindle Locations 176-183). Asbury Seedbed Publishing. Kindle Edition.
Go back to the text for this morning.
Did Peter try to walk on water with Jesus alone, or with a transformational group?
When Jesus was seeking out the apostles in , did he say “we will learn facts so you can fish for people?”
No...”FOLLOW ME…Be transformed into a Jesus person.”
Secret
Secret
Did you know, that a person with a doctorate in religion isn’t more holy than a person with an eighth grade education.
Would you be surprised if I told you that I know very educated Christians who struggle with alcoholism, lust, anger, greed, etc...
This is not to say that knowing facts about faith isn’t important. It is.
It is to say that learning and knowledge isn’t enough.
James put it this way...
You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder.
Demons KNOW more than the most educated Christian you have ever met.
But it doesn’t make them followers of Jesus.
It just makes them knowledgeable.
Can I share with you a deep fear I have?
I fear, that we have a lot of people in church today who believe lots of correct things ABOUT God, but they have no real, living, faith.
they are empty vessels.
I’ve been there.
Maybe it’s because I’ve been there for a while that I’ve been on this period of exploration.
Application
Application
So, what do we do?
If you’re like me and you have knowledge, but there are too many times where it seems to stay at your head and never get to your heart, what do we do?
I will start with what we don’t do.
We don’t retire in private and read our Bibles to glean a spiritual truth.
One of the problems in the church today is that we have ISOLATED ourselves from one another.
Social media platforms that say absolutely nothing about how we’re really doing.
Shallow, depressing, and false.
Flesh and blood, face to face, person to person community is The FIRST thing Jesus did.
He surrounded himself with it for three years, and he created disciples in community.
THAT IS THE CHURCH!
It doesn’t need a building, a campaign program, or a coffee bar.
It does, however, require like-minded people who want to grow together, share the joy of faith in Jesus together, and invite others into that joy.
We Exist For Transformational Discipleship
We Exist For Transformational Discipleship
Small Groups? Yes
But for transformation
Exercise
Class Meeting
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Imagine being with a group of 7-12 people and every week coming together to answer nothing but the following:
How is your life in God?
b
Awesome.
Meh
Completely disconnected
How have you experienced God’s presence in the last week?
Where are you seeking guidance in the Lord?
How can we pray for you?
Would you say that’s more transformational than simple study? Is that non-threatening enough to at least get started?
Band Meeting
What if after a time, you decide you want deeper…you want to be encouraged to greater purity of heart?
In addition to the previous questions...
Can you identify a moment, when you experienced temptation to do something that you knew was not God’s will?
Did you resist temptation?
If so, what enabled you to do so?
If not, what would you need to resist next time?
How can we pray for you?
Was that precise model in the Bible?
Nope, but there’s lots of examples like it in the Bible.
Imagine a group formed in that, going out together in service to the world, going to work everyday, going back home to spouses and children.
Every time Jesus probed the hearts of his disciples.
Results: In 1776, Methodists accounted for 2.5 percent of religious adherents in the colonies, the second smallest of the major denominations of that time. By 1850, Methodists comprised 34.2 percent of religious adherents in the United States, which was 14 percent more than the next largest group! During this period, hundreds of thousands of people were coming to faith in Christ as a result of the preaching, testimony, and ministry of American Methodists. And throughout the period of this growth, every Methodist was expected to participate in a weekly class meeting...these small groups were the single most important factor to the growth of early Methodism and to the retention of converts...
Why?
Because it’s real change.
Every time he corrected and held them accountable.
Because it’s in community.
Watson, Kevin. The Class Meeting: Reclaiming a Forgotten (and Essential) Small Group Experience (Kindle Locations 369-374). Asbury Seedbed Publishing. Kindle Edition.
Because it
Getting Out of the Boat
Getting Out of the Boat
We’re going to provide a way for you to get out of the boat this fall.
Beginning in a few weeks, we will be kicking off at least one small group of 7-12 like this.
If we need to create more, we will.
It will have some informational content to get everyone grounded, but as it goes on, it will increasingly become focused on transformation rather than information.
And, so, my question to you today is this.
Are you ready to get out of your spiritual boat?
Are you ready to take a chance on growth that can at times feel very personal, but ultimately creates disciples?
If you’re interested, please either speak with me, email me, hand me one of the “Get To Know you” cards in the pew, and we will let you know as soon as all is ready to go.
Conclusion
Conclusion
Becoming a disciple of Jesus is not about safety.
It is about the joy of transformation.
Let’s get out of our boats, throw off the spiritual safety nets, and experience the joy of purity through real relationship and disciple-making.