Who owns this church? Not us! Del Norte Baptist Church is Christ’s church. We may have title to this building and land. But they are not the church.
Jesus said He builds the church. He didn’t physically build this building. The church is you and me. When Jesus builds the church all the combined forces of hell cannot overcome it. Here’s the best part—you and I are on the construction crew. Each of us is responsible to help grow the church.
This is what 1 Cor. 3:10 is about. We will read verses 1-11 to get the context that Paul was writing to a dysfunctional church. 1 Cor. 3:10 "By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds."
An expert builder is careful. He follows the architect’s plans, lays a solid foundation, he uses the best materials, and he completes the work to the master’s satisfaction.
Can we do any less? We must build on the solid foundation of Jesus. To continue to grow begins with you, your attitude, and your commitment to Jesus. Do you want us to be, “On the Cutting Edge?” To be on the cutting edge requires an attitude adjustment by all of us. First we must have a…..
We are living during an unprecedented era of change. Between 1970 and 2020 we will experience change equivalent to that of the previous 500 years.
To stay relevant to our culture we must be willing to do whatever it takes. Paul was an expert builder. We must be wise and expert builders in partnership with Jesus to reach our community.
We must understand our culture; we must study our community; and we must design our ministries for the greatest impact upon our community and culture.
When I begin talking like this, some folks begin wringing their hands and saying, “Oh my, Pastor Bob is talking about change.” Things change whether we like it or not. This is the normal!
In the 50s you had to drop a dime into a pay phone. Today you carry your phone with you and you can’t even find a pay phone. In the 50s you watched TV in black and white. Most of you wouldn’t trade your flat screen color TV to go back to that.
In the 60s and 70s while in Viet Nam I waited days and weeks to get a letter from home. Today I can email my soldier friends instantly. Hundreds of years ago the church sang Gregorian chants. Whether you prefer traditional or contemporary, I think you agree that either is better.
Fifty years ago, there was a corner grocery store and a little church with a steeple sitting side by side meeting the needs of their community. The little grocery store may have had 5000 grocery items for sale, and the little church had Sunday worship services, and Wednesday prayer meeting.
Today the grocery store has 100 to 200 K items, many of them which don’t have anything to do with groceries, to meet all your needs and wants. Today, most churches still have Sunday worship, and Wednesday prayer meeting.
Who has done the best job of meeting the needs of this culture? Change is good. It is part of God’s plan. Without change we’d be still living in mud houses, using outhouse, and traveling by foot through muddy streets.
When I was a kid I could name every make and model of automobile on the street. Today, there are a million models of cars, and I don’t even try to name them. But I sure do like them, and I sure do like to travel in comfort in them.
It’s a simple fact--the culture will move past us if we don’t keep up with the changes. And Jesus will raise up a church willing to minister to this culture.
Some of you think you know exactly how church is to be done. The way you think it should be is because that’s the way you’ve always done it. The Bible doesn’t tell us how to do church. There is no one right way.
Did you know that 11:00 a.m. Sunday worship started about 110 years ago so that farmers could milk their cows and do their chores and still make it to church!
The Bible doesn’t say to meet at 8:30 or 11:00 on Sunday mornings. It does tell us to not give up meeting together, and to spur one another on toward love and good deeds (Heb. 10:24-25). That’s growing.
And the Bible makes it clear that we are to bring lost people into the Family of God. That’s reaching—reaching the lost for Christ.
The question is: Are you willing to do whatever it takes to reach our community for Jesus? We must also have a …..
If care is not taken, most institutions eventually go through three stages. They begin as risk takers, they then grow to be caretakers, and eventually they end up as undertakers. Most churches that are over 25 years old have become caretakers, just trying to hang on.
We are not going to be a caretaking church. We are not going to be undertakers for Del Norte. You have adopted a 5-yr. strategic plan for growth. Your new Growth Pastor, Kevin Warner is already mapping out strategies and casting a vision of what can happen when we all get excited about what God is going to do with us here.
You know what vision is? Vision is to care more about what is going to happen, than what has already happened. Vision is not living in the past; it is building on it for the future. The future belongs to those who see possibilities before they become obvious.
It’s the ability to see and understand your community, the culture around you, how the different generations think. It’s the ability to see and understand those forces that make such an impact on our cultures such as music, movies, television, MTV. And then to see what you can do to reach those people.
My wife and I play the “What If?” game. What if we enclosed the patio? What if we move this wall? What if we put a door here? Some of our “what if’s” come to fruition; others don’t. But we’ve found that the very process opens doors and windows of possibility.
We, as a church, should learn to play the “What If?” game. What if we started this ministry? What if we began meeting at such and such place? What if we had a Bible study with coffee at Starbucks?
An expert builder always sees the possibilities; he always has a vision. If we are going to be on the cutting edge, we simply cannot do business as usual. Nothing in life is accomplished without risks.
It’s easy to play it safe. It’s risky to be willing to do whatever it takes to reach our community for Christ, knowing that sometimes we will fail.
In 1998 the Oakland, California, police force unveiled its first “lowrider” police car. The car had the standard logo, lights, and siren, but also included chrome wheels, hydraulic lifts, and a 500-watt sound system. Why? The car was put on the force to help officers build better relationship with inner-city kids.
This is the same principle that Paul applied when he said, “I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some” (1 Cor. 9:22).
Underline that word ‘some’. Paul didn’t reach everybody for Jesus. Even Jesus was more unsuccessful than successful (Rich Young Ruler). The point is—we understand what’s at stake, and that we are not here just for our own personal comfort. And we must be proactive rather than reactive in order to impact our culture.
Yes it may seem less threatening to stay where we are. It may seem easier to maintain the status quo. But in the end the status quo is more dangerous and ineffective in reaching people for the Kingdom. We also must have a…..
God dreamed us into existence. God made us in His image. He implants dreams within us. To fail to dream a better future is to deny ourselves our own birthright.
In Acts 1:8 Jesus told 120 of His followers, “You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the entire world.” Talk about a big dream. How could just 120 followers reach the entire world?
Yet, you know what they accomplished in 40 years? Read the book of Acts and you will discover that the gospel of Jesus Christ had gone into the entire known world.
Let’s dream big, to see beyond where we are today, and to anticipate a great future. Let’s build upon our anticipation . . . this is the risk taking, putting it all on the line for God’s wonderful Kingdom.
The world has always been changed by those individuals who embraced a dream and stepped out in faith that it could be done. They have a goal, a destination that they see somewhere out there.
Del Norte Baptist, dream big! Dream about where you want to be at this time next year, and in two years, five years, ten years. Let’s do more than dream, let’s build upon our dreams.
Watch out for the dream killers and the self-appointed “cold water committee,” always willing to throw cold water on any fresh and exciting new ideas. Watch out for those who say, “We can’t do it,” or the classic, “We’ve never done it that way before.” They’re always afraid to take risks.
What is our business? Are we here primarily to care for our own members and minister to our own needs? Or, are we here to fulfill the Great Commission?
Or is it just easier?
Do you realize that 2/3 of those who are under the age of 50 do not attend any church services regularly? Why do you think this is?
Let me tell you in their own words as reported by the Associated Press: They believe they can connect with God as well at other places as they can in church. They think there is too much division and discord in churches.
There are “worship wars” going on in some Southern churches. They are battling over the style of music—contemporary or traditional. And while they are only thinking of themselves and what they like the best, a lost world is going to hell.
The under 50 crowd also said that they don’t have time for church. There’s nothing to interest them at church. Churches ask for money too much. They think worship services are boring. And, they believe the church is irrelevant in the world today.
How can we reach this generation?
Do we think we, as a church, can reach newcomers in the community, and the younger generation without making any changes in our schedule, in worship, in music, preaching, teaching, the facilities, and so forth?
Jesus Christ reached people because He knew them and knew how to talk to them. If we are serious about reaching the lost people of Albuquerque, remember that the majority do not attend church. You cannot assume they know anything about the Gospel.
We must learn who they are and how to talk to them. How can we entice them to Jesus? How can we design programs for them?
Finally, as Rick Warren says, think like an unbeliever. Imagine being told, ‘I have the greatest news in the world, but before I tell you, you have to come to my building, wear my kind of clothes, understand my way of talking, and sing my songs.’ That’s a statement for failure. Yet we do it every week. It is selfish.”
Are we on the cutting edge of ministry? Are we?