Commitment not Consumerism
Church by the Book • Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 10 viewsNotes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
Introduction
Introduction
Imagine a faithful biblical church that is trying to shepherd and care for the members of that church.
Imagine the leadership in that church lovingly and graciously talking to a church member who has been discovered to be living in fornication.
Yet the lady who he is in a relationship with just tells him, come on over to my church, you can join here, my church is much more loving, they will not bother you like your church is.
The American church has done a good job of americanizing the church.
Many churched people in America shop for a church much like they are shopping for a new car.
They decide which church to go to much like they decide which hamburger place they want to eat at tonight.
I want to have it my way.
consumeristic
Church membership is driven by who is offering me the best deal. How can i get the most bang for my buck?
conveinence
Therefore the church has become nothing more than a
circus.
Who can bring the most entertainment today? Who can have the best show in town?
This is the one who draws the biggest crowd?
Who has the best program for my children?
I think that we will see more and more negative results as this church growth movement, which is something new in church history, has it’s full effect.
Parents and grandparents are teaching children and young adults to think about church and decide which church to join in ways that are unbiblical and have never been considered before.
As we continue to think about the church biblically, we need to consider who the church is for and what is the church for.
If these things are not understood then there cannot be a healthy church.
So I want us to ask four questions today that I hope will help us better understand what a biblically healthy church looks like.
Who is church for?
Who is church for?
First we need to remember what the word church means.
Church is not a building
Church is not a service
A church is made up of individual believers.
So that to be part of the church one has to have been born again, one has to have been born of the Spirit of God so that now they are a part of the family of God.
So what Peter says is true of every believer
Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God;
So when we go to church by necessity that has to mean that we are going to gather with those who have been called out of the world and called into the Kingdom of God.
The church is the collection of those who are
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. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.
1 Peter 2:9
So the church is made up of believers and the Sunday gathering that we refer to as church is simply a time set aside for these believers to gather together to worship, to fellowship, to be taught, to be ministered to, and to minister to others.
So when you have a popular pastor saying things like, this church is not for believers, it is for unbelievers, by definition he is stating an impossibility.
If the Sunday morning gatherings that he is overseeing is aimed toward getting unbelievers to come to hear him preach then he may have a weekly evangelistic campaign but he is not having a weekly church service.
Now I am not against evangelistic meetings but the regular gathering that we refer to as church, is intended to be the gathering together of a part of the people of God who have committed themselves to living the Christian life together for each others good and for God’s glory.
It is a time when the people of God can gather together to be encouraged, strengthened, and prodded along as we use our gifts to minister to one another.
Now let me say this, when we gather together on Sunday mornings, it is for believers, this does not mean that we do not welcome unbelievers, we love for them to come. We believer that there is no better place for you to be than to be gathered with the Lord’s people, hearing the Word of the Lord declared and seeing evidence of God’s grace and mercy and seeing God’s love put on display as the Lord’s people for one another and care for one another.
when we gather together on Sunday mornings, it is for believers, this does not mean that we do not welcome unbelievers, we love for them to come but we orient our service toward the building up of the body
Why church membership?
Why church membership?
One person may ask, well if it is important for me to gather with believers regularly why can’t i just go to a different church every Sunday? Why should I gather with the same believers?
Commitment
If you are going to be able to live out the commands of the Scriptures to love and to care for and to use your spiritual gifts for other believers then you are going to have to have a clear definition of who those believers are.
In other words you can’t do that for every Christian in Macon.
A commitment to every Christian is really a commitment to no Christian.
If you are going to be able to follow biblical commands like
Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.
Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.
and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you,
Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.
As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace:
The only way you are going to be able to consistently live out these commands is if you have committed yourself to a local body of believers.
And the only way that you can know that others have committed themselves to you is if you are a member of a local body of believers.
Joining a church lets the leaders and the membership know that you desire to live out the Christian life within the context of this group of believers.
Joining a church lets the church know that they have responsibility to minister to you and to care for you.
It let’s the leadership know that you are a part of the flock so that applies
So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.
.
One of the things that was emphasized early on in Baptist history that was a Biblical idea and that we need to get back to is emphasizing the importance of membership, that membership is a commitment.
One of the ways that this was done was that there was a church covenant that was used as a regular part of the church life.
The church covenant was not something that was extrabiblical, instead it was a summary of the Biblical teaching on requirements and the expectations of church membership.
What should church members expect of the church?
What should church members expect of the church?
Commitment to the spiritual good of the believer.
Each member should expect that the church, that is the gathering of believers is committed to their spiritual good.
What does this look like?
Ministry of the gifts
teaching, encouragement, prayer, admonishment, comfort, prodding along, fellowship, being loved on, forgiveness, compassion, sympathy, care
Should expect to me shepherded by the leadership
Public proclamation of the Word
Relationships with leaders who are checking on you (deacon family ministry)
Pursuit or correction when you go astray
Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.
Gal. 6.1-
My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.
You should also expect for the church to take formal action against you if you persist in unrepentant sin after being shepherded by the leadership of the church
“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”
Matthew 18.
We see this in
You should expect and desire to be committed to your spiritual good even if it means doing hard things if you are every entrapped in sin or lead astray by the evil one and in a state of unrepentance.
My desire if that was ever the case with me is that as lovingly as the church could the church would be very clear to me, Robbie, you are not living consistent with the gospel and because we love you we are not going to continue to confirm your confession of faith because you are living like one who does not have saving faith.
That is hard, but that is what should be expected of the church and that is what every born again Christian would desire from a church.
One of the ways the church in America has gone so horribly wrong is that the leadership sees members as consumers, as customers that are to be kept at all cost and when that is the case you will have to compromise when it comes to commitment to the spiritual good of the members.
Why is it church discipline has virtually disappeared in most American churches?
Because members and leadership are not committed to the spiritual good of others, they are committed to making people comfortable (here i am using that word in a wordly sense not in gospel comfort).
What should the church expect of church members?
What should the church expect of church members?
By the aid of the Holy Spirit to
walk together in Christian love
Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.
strive for the advancement of this Church in knowledge
Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him,
But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
holiness
I myself am satisfied about you, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge and able to instruct one another.
Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.
comfort
sustain it’s worship
And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
Heb.
ordinances
ordinances
discipline
doctrines
Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.
contribute cheerfully and regularly to support the ministry of the church
maintain secret devotions
seek to share the gospel
walk in world in a way that is honoring to our Lord
Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.
care for one another
that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another.
pray for one another
praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,
be patient with one another and forgive one another
bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.
What the church should expect is a commitment to the church, that you are committed to the spiritual good, the spiritual advancement of your brothers and sisters in Christ.
Let me tell you, one of the most basic ways that you can do that is through a commitment to being here.
What an encouragement you will be here shortly as we partake of the Lord’s Supper together when you again publicly proclaim to the church that you are continuing to trust in the finished work of Christ alone for the forgiveness of your sins and the hope of eternal life.
We gathered together on mornings like this morning
to worship our Lord together
to hear from Him as His word is preached
to declare the gospel to one another as we come to the Lord’s Table
Brothers and sisters this is not something to be taken lightly. This is a great privilege.
This is weighty.
As we share the table together this morning may we renew our commitment to our Lord and to His church.