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Sermon 1468 |
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Many of you were raised in church, and many of you were not. For those who were raised in church, what are some of your earliest memories of your church experiences? Some of your stories will bring a smile or even a hearty laugh.
Every so often on Sunday nights, the music minister at my home church, First Baptist in Anderson, would hold a hymn request night. "What's your favorite hymn? What do you want us to sing tonight?" I can even remember some of the hymn numbers. "Number 240," someone would cry out. And we would sing "Just As I Am?" "Number 1," another would request. And we would sing, "Holy, Holy, Holy." One particular Sunday night, I was sitting with some friends (I can still see the spot), and we decided we wanted to make a request. We huddled up, trying to come up with a hymn number we could request. In back of the old Broadman Hymnals, in the 500's pages, there were these three-fold, four-fold "Amen" choral responses. Boys will be boys, so why not? "I hollered out, ‘548'." Everyone turned. It was evident the music minister was caught off guard. But without skipping a beat, we became the first congregation ever to sing the fourfold "Amen." Overall, growing up, I was very active in church-choirs, R.A.s, Vacation Bible School, Sunday School. I remember the envelopes we had to mark every Sunday-present, on time, read S.S. lesson, staying for church, giving. But in reality, to me, church was merely a place. A building that you go to on Sundays. I shared with you a few weeks ago about my early college days, how I got into the party scene and away from my walk with Christ. Then in my sophomore year I began to understand that God had a plan for my life. I got on the fast track with my spiritual growth. As I look back on those days of spiritual development, there was one part of my attitude that I'm ashamed to state publicly. I became very judgmental and cynical about the local church. I began to wonder why no one told me that God had a plan for my life. I was highly critical of my home church. Even as God began to call me into full-time ministry, I had no desire to serve in the church. I just assumed that God wanted me to serve on the staff of Campus Crusade for Christ. But during my senior year at Clemson, an older pastor started mentoring me. He would drive from Landrum all the way to Clemson to spend some time with a handful of guys who were sensing God's call into ministry. And it was this short, plump pastor, C.W. Farrar, who planted the seed in my heart that God still needs some good pastors. Even to this day, I still ponder what it means to be the church. I still wonder what it would be like if we truly allowed Jesus to be the center of the Church. It still frustrates me to know that there are many who see the church merely as a building, a place where you're supposed to go a couple of Sundays a month. I still have enough faith to believe that God wants to build His church and that Chapin Baptist Church can be a vital player in producing kingdom growth. What about you? What comes to your mind when you think about the church? Or do you even think about it, other than showing up on Sundays? What did you learn about the church when you were growing up? What are your perceptions now? How important is the church? What should the church be doing? Where is the church headed? Or are these questions you think should concern only pastors, teachers and deacons? I have a feeling that a good many of you are wondering, "What in the world do these questions have to do with me? I don't want to hear a message about the church. Tell me something that I need." Let me put it this way. By a show of hands, shoot straight with me. How many of you would like to be engaged, hands-on, in a strategy that would change the world? Well, believe it or not, that's what God has designed the church to do. And I want to be a part of something like that. And I hope you do too. But how? We must begin by going to the Bible to see what God says about His Church. During our Christmas studies we're looking at the theme "Jesus-the Center." Last week we talked about Jesus being the Center of the universe. Today, we're going to see how He is the Center of the Church. In the South we joke about there being a church on every street corner. That's an exaggeration but the point is well-taken. But today I'm not talking about building structures. I'm talking about a world vision that God set into rapid motion when Jesus was born in Bethlehem. That baby was no ordinary baby. He existed before the heavens and earth came into being. And God's plan was that this baby would bring hope to the nations-hope of eternal life and hope of a life filled with significance and joy. Local churches exist all over the world because of this baby born in Bethlehem. Let's dig into the Scriptures and see what we can learn about Jesus being the center of the church. One verse is found in a text we looked at last week. It says, "He is the head of the body, the church" (Colossians 1:18). That says it all. But this thought is amplified in our key text for this morning. Read with me Ephesians 2:19-22. In this chapter Paul is talking about the body of believers in Jesus Christ. In this case, he doesn't use the term church anywhere, but that is exactly what he is talking about. He teaches that we all are members of God's household. I know we make a big deal about church membership, and I think there are biblical reasons for doing so. But here Paul is reminding us that we belong to the "God" church, His household, one that is made up of millions of people around the world who have embraced Jesus Christ and have chosen to follow Him. The Old Testament prophets and New Testament apostles laid the foundation of truth for the church. They clarified God's plan of redemption for mankind and explained how His plan was fulfilled in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In fact, when writing about this foundation, He referred to Jesus as the chief cornerstone. Dictionary.com defines cornerstone as "a stone representing the nominal starting place in the construction of a monumental building." God is building a monumental building, not with bricks and mortar, and the starting place is Jesus Christ. Another definition says that cornerstone is "the chief foundation on which something is constructed or developed." Bottom line-Jesus is the Center of the Church. Look closely with me at verses 21-22. Notice the verb forms. Still talking about God's household, the Church, Paul states that the building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple. Joined together and rises to become. Get the picture? Joined together-believers everywhere joining forces together-and rising as one unstoppable army to carry out God's strategy of bringing people to Himself. That's the Church. Verse 22 sheds a little more light. We (believers, that is) are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives. Don't miss what I'm about to say. This dwelling Paul is talking about is the church. Not a physical building erected for people to come and worship. No, the church is right here-in my heart. In my life is where God has chosen to dwell. As beautiful as this worship center is, this is not the church. This (point to heart) is the church. You are the church. Jesus is the center. So what's the point? What's the big deal here? When you as members of Chapin Baptist Church accept the fact that the church is not this building but Christ living in your heart and when you acknowledge that Jesus is the Center of the Church and live your life accordingly, then we will join together as one body and rise to serve together on the mission to win every person in Chapin to Jesus Christ. We will pray together and join forces together to do kingdom work. We will be a unified body that cares for one another and serves one another. Book after book I read, conference after conference I attend, reports that there is a tremendous spiritual hunger in our land. Those who are hungry find Jesus attractive; they just don't like the church. Why is that? Think about it. The spiritually hungry must not be discovering Jesus at church. What are they discovering? They discover they don't fit into the club. They discover traditions that are untouchable but not biblically based. They discover hundreds of so-called followers of Christ who are content just to stay in the pew and not engage in ministry. They discover pockets of believers who don't get along with one another. They discover factions. They discover gossip that's worse than at the office. Little wonder the spiritually hungry are not drawn toward the church. George Barna in his book Revolution has studied this exodus from the church. What he has learned is disturbing news for the institutionalized church. New churches are starting up everywhere but not the kind we grew up with. New churches are being formed in coffee houses, homes, and restaurants. These groups of 15-20 people are studying the Word together, they're holding one another accountable, and they're serving one another and reaching out to minister to the hurting. As much as I think the church building will still play a major role in identifying the people of God, I believe these folks probably have a better understanding of Jesus as the Center of the Church than most church members do. I think the younger generation gets it. I think the future of God's Church is bright. Evidences abound that teenagers and young adults are willing to make a huge difference in our world. They see through all the fluff and hypocrisy that plague so many churches. They understand that the church is not a building but the people of God binding together and rising up to change the world. I'm telling you-there are students in our ministry here whose spiritual maturity is light years ahead of where I was when I was a teenager. They get it. They pray for their lost friends. They're studying the Scriptures everyday. They're feeding the hungry. They're being the church. Okay, let's assume I've convinced you that Jesus is the Center of the Church. Let's assume that I've convinced you that the Church is not a building but the living Christ residing in your heart. What do I want you to do? Here's what I want you to do. Based on these truths, in your heart I want you to do some soul analysis: What am I doing to support the vision of this church? What am I doing to serve my fellow Christians here? Am I doing anything at all that is creating factions or generating disunity? Am I willing to team up with others in my spiritual family to take God's love outside the walls? In addition to this soul analysis, I want you to pray. Pray that we will live out what it means to be the people of God. Pray that Chapin Baptist will become an unstoppable force for God in the community. Pray that we will be flexible and willing to change any tradition/method that keeps us from moving forward. By definition we are the Church. Now pray that we will be the Church. Imagine what it would be like if every member of Chapin Baptist did this soul searching and praying. What if we all had a solid understanding of the Church? What if each of us could move beyond the idea that the church is a building? What if we not only agreed that Jesus is the Center but allowed Him to operate as the Center of the Church? Jesus talked about building His church, one that would become such a powerful force in our world that the gates of hell could not stand against it. He trained His disciples to carry on His vision after He was gone. And now you and I have been called to keep His dream alive. We're called to join together and to rise up together to change our world. There's no greater dream and no greater vision. The local church is the hope for the world. It excites me to no end to imagine the impact this church could have if we were operating on all cylinders-all praying, all serving, all inviting others, all being the people of God doing the work of God.