PREACHING & PARTNERING FOR AN INCH...

The world has been blessed by God with some great preachers, who have been able to move people over land and sea to come to Christ. I'm not one of them. My preaching tends to move people by inches...

After two decades of professional preaching, I have become convinced that successful preaching is always a partnership between the preacher and his congregation. The preacher prepares. So do the congregation. The preacher prays for the Word to be effective. So do the congregation. The preacher connects with the unconvinced. The congregation connects with the unconvinced. The ideal partnership is for a "one mile" preacher to partner with a "one mile" congregation. That is, if a preacher can move people one mile closer to Christ, they will partner best with a congregation who connects with people "one mile" away. I would love to be a "one mile" preacher, but the truth is I am a "one inch" preacher. Therefore, I need people to partner with me who can help me move people "one inch".

Here's how we can do it. Whatever you do in the church, do it to move someone else "an inch". If you are preparing Communion, prepare Communion for "an inch". There may be someone who comes to our church service who needs to stop, reflect on Christ's atonement, and receive Christ's forgiveness afresh. Their marriage tension, or their business stresses, or their failing health, may have moved them "an inch" away from Jesus. But as they take the Communion Cup and the unleavened bread, which someone has prepared, they are moved "an inch" closer back to Christ. Your Communion preparation is an act of partnership with the preacher. If you are welcoming people as they enter our building, your smile and warmth of heart can help move them "an inch" closer to Jesus. You may never know what kind of horrible week some people might have had who walk through our doors. Your genuine welcome is an act of partnership with the preacher.

For me to move people an inch as a preacher, I have to work harder than most, because most other preachers can at least move people a foot. But for me to move people an inch, I have to read a lot. I have to study a lot. I have to ponder a lot. I have to pray a lot. I have to write a lot. Because I am also a member of the congregation that I am pastoring, I also try to cultivate the inch I am preaching for before I preach. How I conduct myself throughout the week. How I treat my wife and children. How I treat those I work with. How I treat those outside of a church throughout the week. All of these acts of service factor into determining whether this preacher will move these people "an inch".

But moving people, even "an inch", is not an easy thing. In fact, there are many things which move people away an inch - a thoughtless remark / an inconsiderate look / a forgotten birthday / a lapse in Christian consistency / an inappropriate FaceBook comment / flaunting road laws / excessive drinking or gluttony / slothfulness / passionless spirituality, and so on. I am ever mindful that I have, through dropping my guard, moved people "an inch" - but in the wrong direction!

Hebrews 7:25 ¶ Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermostthose who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them. .

We want to move people "an inch" closer to Christ. Will you help me? You can. Take a minute each day for the preaching to be more effective and you are partnering in our efforts to move people an inch. If you wipe chairs or tables before a service, don't do it with your hands, instead do it with your heart. It's your passionate service of Christ in contributing to helping us conduct a worship service that moves people an inch. Be an under-shepherd after our services to someone by getting to know them and making them feel welcome. By doing this you help to move someone an inch.

Even though it looks like the preacher is moving people "an inch", truth be told, it's all of us playing our part together.

Philippians 1:5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.

Father, I need Your help. I want to preach so that people are moved an inch closer to Christ. Help me to lead the kind of life that increases this being able to happen. Lord, when I fail and let Your down, help me to be quick to repent. Give me partners who know that their service is making an eternal impact on the lives of others. And Father, we pray, that in all we do we might be privileged to see people come to Christ as their Saviour, in Jesus' Name, Amen.

Eph. 3:21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

Ps. Andrew

Being Negative Is Attractive

I was reading an insightful article in Christianity Today by Collin Hansen who noted that great movements are often founded on negative campaigns. Negative people attract a following. Hansen points out that it's easier to identify the problem than it is to offer a solution.

A quick survey of movement building reveals that many groups struggle to shift from destruction to construction. The Tea Party movement hates taxes and wants to defeat President Obama. But what's their shared vision for governance? Who knows. The Democratic Party built large congressional majorities and recaptured the White House behind unified opposition to President Bush. But less than two years later, polls indicate widespread voter dissatisfaction with Democratic policies amid intraparty squabbling. Strategists now suggest that Democrats—who control two of three government branches—should blame the minority Republicans rather than try to campaign on their own accomplishments.

Yet, who wants to be known as "negative"? We nearly always denounce politicians when they are negative- but notice what we generally do in response to negative people? "Denounce" is negative. But it almost sounds "positive" to denounce negativity. Indeed this psuedo-postive strategy worked for one of our State Political Parties during our last election. He denounced the other two major parties for being "negative". People were attracted to this negativity- just ask Brett.

But why do we all default to the negative? Why are we drawn to those who find fault? Whatever the reason, Gossip magazines don't care. They thrive on this attraction to the negative.

Collin Hansen wonders whether any movement can successfully transition from being built fundamentally upon negative ideals, to being a movement promoting a positive agenda? But I wonder if you can even do one without doing the other? That is, if a movement is positive, it must also be negative. The moment a movement identifies what it is for it automatically declares what it is not for. In fact, the more positive a movement becomes the more negative it has to be. This is unavoidable because the clearer a movement's direction is, the clearer and more obvious it becomes where it is not going.

For the Christian and the movement he belongs to, the Church, there is certainly a lot to be negative about. But this negativity is entirely because we are for something else. We are against sexual immorality because we are for marriage-for-life because marriage between a man and a woman reflects the Holy Community of the Trinity from which life springs. We are against the taking of innocent human life, despite its size, age, condition, parents, or location, because we are for the dignity of life because all human life is created in the image of God and has instrinsic value. We are against man-made-religion because we are for God's offer of salvation and forgiveness through Jesus Christ.

As a Church, we at Legana will be necessarily negative - and we should not be daunted by pseudo-positive denouncements for being so - because we are just as positive about our mission to proclaim the life-saving, life-changing message of God's love and grace through Christ and summon people to repent, flee the wrath to come, and become a part of the New Covenant Community Christ is gathering.

Ephesians 4:13-15 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ,

Someone has put it this way- Those who stand for nothing fall for anything.

Father, help us to be courageous and bold for you. Help us to be positivelyfor the things and issues You want us to be for. May we love our spouse selflessly. May we parent our children with intense care. May we get involved in their lives so that we live the extra-mile to those who should matter most to us. As a church, may we be strongly united and committed to our mission of preparing/praying/proclaiming the eternal need to accept Christ as Saviour. Father, we thank You for saving and continuing to change us into the image and likeness of Jesus. Give us a heart to grow and to reach out beyond our comfort zone so that those who have not yet received Christ, will. In Jesus' Name,

Amen

A PENNY, A SPLINTER, AND A HIDDEN STAR

Prov. 22:25 lest you learn his ways
and entangle yourself in a snare.

Samuel Grafton once said- "A penny will hide the biggest star in the Universe if you hold it close enough to your eye." It's amazing how big a small problem becomes if you focus on it and let it fill your vision. Yesterday I had a tiny little piece of something stuck microscopically in my jeans. It was occasionally rubbing near my knee. I felt it at the start of the day but didn't worry too much about it. But as the day unfolded and I had several stressful (and immensely far more important issues than a tiny splinter in my jeans) arise, I increasingly noticed that this teeny-weeny, tiny, splinter had grown. I scanned the outside of my jeans searching for the offending splinter, but to no avail.

As the day went on and the stress of even newer difficulties were thrust upon me, I was duly distracted by the splinter in my jeans which now had a hyperdermic needle tip. Once again I searched for the pesky culprit. But it must have seen me looking since it was no where to be found.

I was trying to help people in very sensitive situations yesterday. But I was continually distracted by this splinter which had now been possessed by a demon-goth-lord-of-the-underworld and had stepped up its campaign of annoyance to a fully fledged war on my inner knee and thigh by no longer rubbing itself occasionally into my normally super-humanly tough skin, but now it was deliberately, yea: maliciously jabbing itself demonically into my leg.

Forget the fact that I have the greatest job in the world. Forget the fact that I work in with a talented loyal staff team who are committed to the Cause of Christ and are prepared to do so sacrificially. Forget the fact that I have a loving God honouring family. Forget the fact that I live in one of the greatest places to live on the planet. Forget the fact that I could eat today. Forget the fact that I woke up in a comfortable bed in a comfortable house in a comfortable street in a comfortable neighbourhood. Forget the fact that unlike 80% of the world's population, I actually had something to eat today. Forget all these things- there was a microscopic splinter somewhere in the seam of my jeans causing hell-on-earth-demonic havoc with my leg!

Heb. 12:1 ¶ Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily hinders our progress. And let us run with endurance the race that God has set before us.

Of course I should have known better. I should have realised what the old NY Times columnist, Samuel Grafton, meant when he said that with a penny you could block out the biggest star in the universe. I should have known that when you focus on a problem, even a trivial one, you "feed" it. It grows with attention.

I was reading the book of Nehemiah that other day and was reminded that Nehemiah had many problems in rebuilding Jerusalem. At one point his enemies requested an urgent meeting with him to discuss the rebuilding program. But Nehemiah refused to meet with them.

Neh. 6:3 And I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?”

Nehemiah knew how to ignore life's "splinters".

Near the end of the day I determined to rid myself of this splinterous distraction. I changed my jeans. I now reflect that there are probably more times than I care to admit when I have lost sight of the big (read: "important") things in life, and sweated on the small stuff. An older and wiser pastor than me once said to me, Your are only as big as the problems you deal with. Yesterday I was reduced to the bigness of a splinter!

Jesus said-

Matt. 6:25-28, 31, 34 ¶ “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ¶ “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Sometimes we hold our small problems so close to our eyes that we block out our vision of the brightest Star in the Universe (Rev. 22:16).

Rev. 22:16 ¶ “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.”

Jesus Should Make A Difference

JESUS SHOULD MAKE A DIFFERENCE

Romans 12:1 ¶ So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. (THE MESSAGE)

If Christianity was made illegal, would there be enough evidence to find you guilty? According to Phil Cooke, in his book Branding Faith, the latest research comparing the values, morals, habits of Christians is now indistinguishable from non-Christians! But Romans 12:1 calls those of us who follow Christ to live an entirely different kind of life to those who don't know Christ. We are to have different values- we are to prize God's Word, talking to God in prayer, fellowshiping with other Jesus-followers, loving our closest family members, we watch different TV, read different magazines, listen to different music, have different morals- we understand that life is not just about the here-and-now but that everything we do will be accounted for to a holy God who is going to judge us on The Day of Judgment. We have different habits - we treat people with undue respect - we start every day by reading God's Word, when we have a problem we commit it to God, the first thing we do with our weekly income is to present an offering to God, and we make sure that everyday Sunday is set aside for worship in church.

Romans 12:2 Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.

This is one of the reasons why it has been so important for us as a church to focus on the remainder of Romans 12, especially the portion between verses 9-21. We have been focussing on this vitally important in our Bible Study Groups (you can download those studies here), our Sunday evening services, and other pulpit time. The major reason for this is that we want to follow Christ and bring the most glory to Him. These 27 imperatives in this passage can only cause followers of Christ to be noticeably different to those who do not live for Christ. But perhaps the most important aspect of this passage is that it requires followers of Christ to live in community as the church. When believers live in community with their brothers and sisters they can't help but stand out from the crowd. This is why meeting together each Sunday for expressing worship, expounding the Word, and experiencing fellowship is critically important for us.

Romans 12:3 ¶ I’m speaking to you out of deep gratitude for all that God has given me, and especially as I have responsibilities in relation to you. Living then, as every one of you does, in pure grace, it’s important that you not misinterpret yourselves as people who are bringing this goodness to God. No, God brings it all to you. The only accurate way to understand ourselves is by what God is and by what he does for us, not by what we are and what we do for him. (THE MESSAGE)

In John 17:15-16, Jesus prayed that His followers would be "in" the world (living with, playing with, working with, talking to, helping out, non-Christians), but not "of" the world (acting like, thinking like, believing like, those who do not follow Christ and honour His Father). Christians are different. And we should be careful to be different for the right reason: to show the glory of Christ to the world. The good news is, as Romans 12:3 points out, that it is God who enables His people to live differently. When we fail God though, we have the knowledge that God will hear our prayer for forgiveness, heal us and restore us into loving fellowship with Himself. May God help us to be different. The world is waiting to know if Jesus really does make a difference.

Amen.

A New Model of Contemporary Church

What is a 'Church'?
Some people answer this question by limiting a church to a group of people who meet in a house for worship through prayer, sharing and Bible study.
Other people now claim that a church is a community of anonymous people who meet in a chatroom to discuss aspects of their faith in Christ.
Still others claim that a church is an institution with a priestly class, a liturgy, and a governmental structure.

Can a church be "independent"?

Can a church belong to a group of churches and share common ideals, methods, understandings, then still belong to that group if those things radically change?

Can a church be called a church if it is vague about what it believes?

What role should tradition have in defining what a church is today?

If one church disciplines a member, and that member leaves that church, should this member still be disciplined?

Should a church have a leader or leaders?

What do you think?