Our Response To Christ’s Church
2018-01-14
Pastor Jonathan Falwell
Key Verse: Colossians 1:18 And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.
Ephesians 2:19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.
Last week, we talked about the church. We focused on what the church really is and used the Bible to give us a clearer description of the church. Today, I want to talk about our response to knowing what the church truly is. But first, let’s revisit what we talked about last week:
1. The church is God-ordained
2. The church is not a building, it’s you
3. Jesus is the Head of the church
4. Jesus gave us the plan for the church
5. Jesus gave us the keys to the church
So in knowing these truths about the church and having a deeper understanding of the importance of the church, what should we do?
1. We are required to carry out His plan
– the Great Commission
Matthew 28:19a Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations…
– tell grow send
2. We are required to serve within the church
Ephesians 4:11-12 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.
(NLT) 11 Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. 12 Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ
– the responsibility every leader within the church has is to help the church (all of us) do the work of building up the church
3. We are required to baptize believers
Matthew 28:19b …baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit
-Baptism is an “ordinance” of the church – or “an act we must perform” per the Word of God.
– Matthew 3:15 “it is fitting”, “NLT says “It should be done, for we must carry out all that God requires.”
4. We are required to remember how Christ established the church
– through the broken body & shed blood of Jesus Christ!
– Communion is an ordinance of the church
I Corinthians 11:23-26 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” 25 In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.
5. We are required to pray that the world would believe
1 Timothy 2:3-7a For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time, 7 for which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle
Luke 10:1-2 After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also, and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go. 2 Then He said to them, “The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.
– In other words, we actually are required to care about the world
– We must have the same desire Christ has, to see the world come to know Him
– 2 Peter 3:9 “not willing that any should perish”
– Luke 19:10 – “the Son of man has come to seek and to save that which was lost”
WE ARE REQUIRED TO…
…TELL our salvation story to all
…GROW others in their walk with Christ
…SEND ourselves and others out into the world to let them know