Multiplication
2020 Vision Series • Sermon • Submitted
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· 830 viewsOur goal as a church is to multiply disciples in Clovis, NM but what will it take for that to happen this year?
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Introduction
What is our vision for 2020 ? It should be a sincere desire to see the multiplication of disciples in Clovis, NM through the ministry High Plains Baptist Church.
Disciple- a committed follower of Jesus Christ
Multiplication- The process by which a given quantity is increased
There were in the beginning twelve disciples- , then later we find 120 in the upper room awaiting the coming of the Holy Spirit the number of the disciples had multiplied tenfold- and then as we progress through the book of acts we see multitudes converted and the number of disciples continuing to multiply.
If this is the pattern of the early church in the time of the apostles, should it not also be the pattern of any local New Testament church today?
So how is it that the number of the disciples continued to multiply, what are the factors that continued to produce more and more disciples?
Let us work backwards from the end result and observe the process by which we arrive at the multiplication of disciples.
Immediately preceding the multiplication of disciples in the latter part of verse 7, we see:
The Increase of the Word of God
The Increase of the Word of God
The first factor we come to as we trace the process that brought about the multiplication of disciples is an increase in the Word of God.
One factor that led to the multiplication of disciples was the increase of the Word of God. The early church was intent on saturating every area of outreach with the Word of God.
What we see here, is a reference, not only to the spread of the Word of God, but also to the impact it had upon the people.
- the high priest accuses the disciples of “filling Jerusalem with [their] doctrine”
& - We see a continuing pattern as the church continues to grow, and as new churches are planted throughout the known world.
If we are to see the multiplication of disciples in Clovis, NM as the early church saw in Jerusalem then we must strive to saturate Clovis, NM with the Word of God. We should have a sincere desire to see every person in our community impacted by the Word of God.
How can we accomplish such a monumental task? If we are going to saturate our community with the Word of God we will have to pursue any ministry that gives us the opportunity to share the Word of God.
We have van ministry, nursing home ministry, Sunday school ministry, FBI ministry, etc… but what else could we do to impact our community with the Word of God?
Public school ministry/Jail ministry- the problem is we don’t have the workers necessary to contemplate beginning such ministries.
The increase of the Word of God that was seen would not have happened were it not for another factor that we see in this passage:
An Increase of Workers
An Increase of Workers
The increase of the Word of God was directly tied to the increase of workers taking greater responsibility in the church.
The twelve recognized that they had reached a point of decision, if they were to continue to see growth they must delegate responsibility to others.
Now at this point, there were already a multitude of believers but it was time for some of them to begin to serve.
The disciples realized they could not handle all of the work that needed to be done on their own. Thus seven men were chosen who would take some of the load of the ministry off of the twelve.
If we are to see the multiplication of disciples at High Plains Baptist Church, we must first have a multiplication of those willing to make a commitment to serving the Lord through the ministries of HPBC.
We need a multiplication of individuals willing to serve in the van ministry, the nursery ministry, the music ministry, the children’s ministries, the Sunday school ministry, and any additional ministries that God would lead us to start!
We will not see a multiplication of disciples if we do not first see a multiplication of workers in the church! Are you serving? Where could you jump in and work to lighten the load of ministry?
There was an increase in workers in the early church, but the question must be asked, where did these workers come from?
Increase of Witnesses ()
Increase of Witnesses ()
There would never have been an increase in workers if there had not first been an increase in witnesses. The disciples were tasked with going forth as witnesses to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ.
As they shared the message and many believed, the disciples would then train and instruct these new converts to also go forth as witnesses sharing the gospel.
Immediately prior to the multiplication of disciples we see in verse 1 of chapter 6 we see that there were a number of disciples preaching and teaching Jesus Christ.
These disciples were seizing every opportunity presented to them to share the gospel with others around. They were telling others about Jesus in the local synagogues as well as going from house to house to share the good news of the gospel.
Before there could ever be a multiplication of disciples there must have been a multiplication in those responding to the gospel by placing their faith in Jesus Christ for salvation.
This was the result of the increase in those who were spreading the gospel. It is only natural that the more people that we can reach with the gospel, the more people there will be who respond and trust Christ as savior.
If we are to see the multiplication of disciples we must first see a multiplication of soul-winners so that we there are new converts who can be developed into disciples willing to serve.
We cannot expect to see multiplication happen at High Plains Baptist Church if we who are saved will not seize the opportunities that God gives us to be a witness of Christ to those around us.
We certainly understand that no one trusts Christ without God having first worked in their heart but it only makes sense that the more people who are sharing the gospel the more opportunity there will be for God to work.
We need more members who are willing to be witnesses in their workplace, witnesses in their school, witnesses in their home, witnesses in their daily lives.
Conclusion
I am thankful for those who have grown into mature disciples over the past year but it is my sincere desire to see that number multiply over the course of the coming year.
Our mission as a church is to produce disciples and if we are going to be successful we must follow the pattern of the early church. There must be an increase of the Word of God, that will only happen if there is an increase in those who are willing to work, but this will only happen if there is first an increase in those who are willing to witness!
Let’s do all that we can in 2020 to see as many as we can come to faith in Christ and develop into disciples!