Let all things be done decently and in order. I Corinthians 14:40 The word “clarity” can be applied to many areas. As a church body, we need to have a clarity of understanding our purpose in sharing the gospel in our community. What does the word “gospel” mean? It is the good news of Jesus’s death, burial and resurrection (I Corinthians 15:3-4). When sharing the gospel, Paul made sure to explain sin thoroughly to address the problem all mankind faces without God (Romans 1:18-3:18). Once man comes to grip with their sin problem, then they need to turn to Christ and find the solution in Him alone (John 14:6; Romans 5:8-11; 2 Corinthians 5:21). And finally, man needs to respond to the truth by putting his trust in Christ alone and the work that he did on the cross (Romans 10:9-13). As a church, we are ambassadors for Christ and have this ministry of reconciliation (making peace with God) by sharing the gospel where we live, work, and play (2 Corinthians 5:18-21). As a church, we also need clarity in the area of leadership roles. In I Peter 5:1-3, the Apostle Peter offers a powerful and concise overview of the need for pastors to mesh their three biblical roles of elder, shepherd, and overseer. The three roles are connected and work together to bring about revitalization. The transformational shepherd should be able to:
The wise elder must:
The skilled overseer must:
(The Overseer by Dr. Rob Peters) In our prayers, we can seek God to provide humble, faithful elders who will help to support the pastor in shepherding and overseeing the body of Christ. The primary role of these leaders is to set things in order (Titus 1:5-9) and has the idea of the oversight of the flock (church body). Role clarification is also mentioned in Acts 6; shepherds were to be devoted to the word and prayer while other leaders were put in charge of service tasks. This type of leadership protects the congregation from being neglected or overlooked in having their needs met (Acts 6:1-7). Pray for God to add more faithful men and women to our leadership roles in the church.
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As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head-Christ-from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes the growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. Eph. 4:13-16
When Paul refers to speaking the truth in love, he is explaining to us the importance of speaking the truth in love. The more we understand and grow in God’s “love.” the better we can walk in love (Ephesians 5:1-2) in our relationships with others. When someone speaks the truth without love, that is judgment; when someone shows love without sharing truth, that is toleration. Both of these ways are not biblical. We need to ask God to strengthen us to be able to speak the truth in love but also to humbly be able to receive the truth when it is spoken in love. However, if it is not truth to begin with, that must also be clarified as well. This is the biblical example of love that we want to cultivate in our church family so that we may grow in our relationship with God and one another. Sometimes fear can cause us to withhold information in our communication with one another. This is a fear of man. The fear of man can immobilize us when we should take action, and gag us into silence when we should speak. It feels powerful, but its power is deceptive. In Proverbs 29:25, it says, “the fear of man brings a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord shall be safe.” The Hebrew word for “snare” refers to traps hunters used to catch animals or birds. Snares are dangerous. If we get caught, we must do whatever it takes to free ourselves. God has the power to free us, and He wants us living in the safe freedom of trusting Him. But He frees us not by removing our fear of disapproval but transferring it to the right place. And typically, He frees us by helping us face our false fears, so they lose their power over us. For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
Matthew 28:18-20 And let our people also learn to maintain good works, to meet urgent needs, that they may not be unfruitful. Titus 3:14 What does it mean to be “on mission” with the gospel? The word “disciple” simply means “’follower.” Though this term is often used in different ways amongst Christians, it is best used to describe anything God uses to help someone either become a follower of Christ or to grow as a follower. We desire to be a church that takes people through a spiritual pathway from unbelief to belief; from belief to maturity; from maturity to leadership. In Matthew 4:19, Jesus said, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Jesus made this promise for all His followers, not just a select number. Matthew 28:18-20 is a command for all of us to keep as our mindset. This is a life-or-death issue-not an option. People around us are facing an eternal death, and they need to hear the good news of salvation. What do we learn from Jesus’ example? What was Jesus’ mission? Jesus’ mission was to make His gospel known to all people through both word (sharing the gospel) and deed (demonstrating the gospel). Jesus shared the gospel message in His preaching (message) and demonstrated His gospel with His actions (healing, meeting needs, etc.). This mission is one that every generation of His followers must take up as well. Christ calls His followers to make the gospel known through word and deed wherever they live, work, or play as well as in their surrounding communities. And of course, all of this starts with prayer (Matthew 6:33). Let’s pray that God will help us to look with compassion on the people around us and give us wisdom in how we can make the gospel known through word and deed. And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness.
Acts 4:31 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and self-discipline (sound mind). 2 Timothy 1:7 Unbelief and lack of trust are at the root of fear. Lack of faith leads to the growth of sin (Read Isiah 43:1-3, Prov. 29:25; Psalms 56:3-4). When we allow fear to control us, we are actually forgetting the character of God (Read Isaiah 51:7-8; 12-13; Compare how men are described to how God is described). Sinful fear is an absence of a fear of God (Read Psalms 112:1-8). Finally, sinful fear is the absence of the love of God maturing in us (Read 1 John 4:17-18). Some important things to remember about fear:
Pray that we will not allow fear to control us, but instead we will seek God in prayer and take steps of faith in sharing the gospel in word and deed in our community where we live, work, and play. Be strong and courageous, for you shall give this people possession of the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go. This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:6-9 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. This is the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these. Mark 12:30-31 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing. Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes (trusts, NIV) all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. ... And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love. I Cor. 13:1-8; 13 The Greek word translated as “believes” in I Corinthians 13:7 is a form of the verb pisteuo, which means “to believe, place faith in, or trust.” Those who love will always “believe” in the other person. There is no second-guessing or questioning whether the person should be loved. The loved one does not need to perform anything or achieve a certain goal in order to be loved. Just as Christ loves His children unconditionally, He calls us to love others. Love is based on who He is, not on what others do. (Gotquestions.com)
As we read these convicting passages, we can all recognize ways we have obediently shown God’s love and ways we have disobeyed and not shown His love in our relationships, especially those closest to us. The main evidence of maturity in the Christian life is a growing love for God and His people as well as a love for sharing truth with lost souls. It has been well said that love is the circulatory system of the body of Christ. In the context of this passage, Paul was dealing with the Corinthian church’s problems when he wrote these words: the abuse of the gift of tongues, division in the church, envy of other’s gifts, impatience with one another in meetings, and wrong behavior in general. The only way spiritual gifts can be used creatively is when Christians are motivated by God’s love. Note that all three of the Christian graces - faith, hope, & love - will endure even though faith will become sight and hope will be fulfilled. But when you love someone, you trust them and will always be anticipating new joys of what God is doing in your growing relationship. Faith, hope, and love go together, but it is “love” that energizes faith and hope. |
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