Disciple Making: The Orignial Mission

Among the final words of Christ our Lord are these, "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." Matthew 28:19 - 20.

To make disciples is the objective Christ has left us, His church. Funny how we make a mess of this and confuse this primary mission with many other misguided (though well intended) objectives these days. I have seen missions of churches that want to “make Jesus famous,” while others just want to “provide a safe place for your families.” Yet others (some of the larger more notable churches) seem bent on making us happier in this life by assuring us that we can have our best now.

I think I know why this is. The change in focus, I mean, from Jesus' primary command to the periphery issues. You see, it seems to me, that the periphery (happiness, safety, and fame) are all relatively easy when compared to the prospect of disciple-making. We seem to be very good at the former. We pretty much have the pursuit of those things down to a science. The latter, disciple-making, however, is not only difficult work, but we find that it is messy, untidy, and imminently difficult to gauge with modern measurements. Afterall, I can gauge my happiness by how I feel, but what is the gauge that checks my disciple-making pulse? Do I have a long list of converts following me around? Or is it that I have, when given opportunity, loved my neigbhor as myself? Perhaps it is because I tithe 10% of my income to the local church and then give other resources away to charities and agencies of compassion in my community?

While those are, no doubt, indications of a strong belief system, if we spend too much time there, disciple-making deteriorates into a ritualistic exercise of checking the boxes everyday day, week, or month. At that point, we have created a kind of hybrid disciple-making enterprise. While it is certainly not anti-Christian neither is it fully Christian.

No, disciple-making comes down to this: Seeing Christ for who He is and responding to that reality with all of our life! Notice the disciples in Luke 19 as Jesus makes His triumphal entry into Jerusalem. They are the ones among the crowds and throngs of people who see Christ for who is really is. They recognize Him as Lord and because they recognize Him as Lord they respond by shouting, “Hosanna in the Highest!” Funny thing. You see, the disciples were the leaders of the crowd that day. Because they saw Christ for who He was and responded with their whole life (as expressed in their praise and ultimately in their own deaths for His cause) the others around them responded, too. Yes, they made an impact on those around them by simply being a disciple.

I think that you and I need to get back to this single truth upon which disciple-making is built: We see Him as Lord and follow Him with our life! Once this happens those other focuses and false missions become decidedly less important and ultimately we will see them as interference. Join me this weekend at WCC as we take a look at who He really His and how we should respond.

Grace and Peace!

Biz

Unique Design for a Unique Purpose

We have all, I believe, from the earliest of ages wondered what our life would be like. When we were younger it probably came out in the form of a statement declaring that we would be policemen or lawyers or teachers, etc. Coupled with that pursuit we also seem to lunge for an answer as to who we are going to spend our live with. Will we be married? If so, what will our spouse be like? If we don't get married, then what? I find that throughout every passage of life we tend to ask these two questions again and again. Yes, what we are going to do with our life and who we are going to do it with are very important. In fact, they tend to shape our next steps and the moments for which God has given us a Unique Design.

Scripture affirms this type of pursuit when it reminds us that we are to be a people of vocation and calling in this life! As we have seen over these past few weeks in our look at the Gospel of Luke, Jesus gives us a calling to be stewards in His work and to line our own wants, wishes, and will with His priorites and purposes! When this amazing connection takes place, lives change and cultures begin to regain the original vision of God when this whole thing began! Consider this: Wherever you go and whatever you do, you are a representative of the Most High - the King of Glory! You have a name tag on your shirt which reads “Child of God”. This truth alone begins to answer the key questions of what and whom!

We wrestle and wrangle with this so much in the course of daily life! The what is to bring glory and honor to God! The whom is His people - His church! This Sunday is really going to be the culmination of the past 8 weeks for us as a church! We are privileged to have as our guest Mels Carbonell who has led countless numbers of God's people to grasp brand new this idea of what and whom with which we all seem to struggle. Not only that, but he will guide us in the how as well! He will help us explore our giftedness, skills, passions and our Unique Design for Christ and His Kingdom!

Now here is the great part! This weekend will empower and equip you for every area of your life and vocation! All four areas of vocation we have referenced (child of God, family, work/culture, church) will come together this weekend and equip you as never before! Join us for church on Sunday morning and then come back with a friend to explore this great idea of vocation and calling as we answer the what and whom of life together!

Uniquely You Seminar
This Sunday, September 26
2:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Cost: $20 per person
Register: Rick Keaton (877)708-7747

See you Sunday!

The Life of Vocation; its Measurements and Meaning

Let's break it down this week. You and I have multiple levels of vocation to live into on a daily basis. The first areas is our vocation or calling as a child of God. The second area is our vocation or calling in relationship to our families (i.e. husband, wife, father, mother, child etc.) The third area of vocation or calling is within the work place and culture at large. The fourth would be in the local church/ministry in which you are involved. The beauty of all of these areas is that Scripture affords us no small amount of guidance as we consider them and seek to live into them on a daily basis.

Our vocation as a child of God begins the moment Christ calls us unto Himself and we respond with repentance and confession. God has justified you and I, and through the justification achieved by the person and work of Christ on the cross, we are declared righteous! This is the first calling and it impacts all the others. To be a child of God brings with it certain consequences. The Bible says it in various ways, but a main theme is that we are called to be a blessing to others (Gen.12) and that we are called to 'walk in step' with God's Spirit! In other words, once we become a child of God then our thoughts, desires and activities should line up with the 'will, call and desire' of God in our world!

In order for God to practice His vocation in our life, He puts us in a system of relationships whereby He might sanctify us and grow us closer to His image! The first, and probably most significant, is the family system. Here you and I get way off track immediately. Our modern philosophers and pundits would tell us that family is the place where our desires are met and where our dreams are fulfilled. Truth be told, when this philosopy runs it course in our lives we find ourselves empty and heartbroken with a string of broken relationships and unfulfilled expectations (all of which we blame on God). In order to be a person of Vocation or a child of God on Vocation we must learn that we are called to serve and love in and through our family relationships. Our first order of business in the home is those who are not ourselves! It might be wise to cosider how we are doing in this area? Husbands are called to love our wives as Christ has loved the church. Wives are called to submit to and respect our husbands. Children are called to obey our parents and care for them in their older age with respect and honor. Find your part in this story of God and assess how you are doing!

Of course, our vocation extends beyond the home into our work place and culture at large. Keep in mind that the principles that form both are, in most cases, antithetical to Kingdom principles and Godly desires. For instance, first thing on Monday morning, your boss may ask you to fudge a bit on the numbers to make the quarter look better. Or, perhaps your neighbor confides in you in relationship to some activity that is shady at best. Or maybe its more subtle. Perhaps you just decide to withold information that will not hurt someone else but would decidely benefit you and your career. At nearly every turn we are challenged to sell out to modern practices and forsake our vocation for the convenience of compormise and the ease of self will. Maybe this week we should think closely about Abraham again and the call of God on his life (and lineage) to be a blessing to others. Of course, we can find this truth in the New Testatment from the very mouth of Christ as He tells us that the commandment upon which all others hinge is, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart . . . and love your neighbor as yourself.” There is our calling card and our route to a life of vocation in our work and culture. Self Check: how are we doing with the whole thing about 'loving our neighbors?' Does my presence benefit and bless them or distract and curse them?

And, last but not least, we all have vocation or calling to be fulfilled within the local body of believers. The Bible is full of exhortations that remind us of our calling as a 'body' and the fact that it trumps our calling as an 'individual.' We are not called to be islands unto ourselves, but communities of faith sharing life and experiencing God's purposes together. The Bible goes as far as to teach that if you are in a local body of believers then you have a unique calling and purpose that God intends and desires you to fulfill in that ministry! So, are you involved in the local ministry? Are you generously giving your time, talents and treasure to the fulfillment of the plan of God through your local church?

Next weeknd, on Sept. 26th, we are offering a great seminar to help you explore all of these areas of vocation. Sign up now by calling the church and invite a friend who might be struggling with their vocation as well!

Living Vocation!

Biz

The Experiential and Theological Truth of Movement

Life requires movement. Some of us don't get this and many of us wish it weren't so. But, nonetheless, life is designed to be lived and moved into on a daily basis. Life that is vital, vibrant and healthy often moves seemingly at the speed of light. For instance, today is our oldest son's 13th birthday. It is hard for me to believe because I remember the day of his birth as if it were yesterday. The road(s) that has taken us from there to here has been one of perpetual movement and vitality! In fact, from the very earliest moments of life, we humans begin to move! It starts of course with our mouths, responding to the stimuli our brains give us telling us that we are hungry - we obey and scream to high heaven until someone feeds us. And, you know as well as I do, life just speeds up from there. One day you’re changing diapers, the next day your buying size 10 shoes wondering: 'how did all of this happen?' And then you realize it. Movement has been occurring all along, taking you and your family along with it at literally a 'break neck' pace!

Movement is more than just a common human experience, it is a theological truth. We, as believers, are pictured in the Bible as 'sojourners,' i.e. people on the move. This world, we read, is not our home. We are on a journey to the world God has created for us in Christ and as such we are always moving toward that reality. On this grand journey home to Him, however, He has left us 'on mission!' His mission for us is to actively move or engage in His interests in this world on a continual basis! Yes, you and I are not only moving toward our ultimate home, we are also called to movement as we follow Him into our world on a day to day basis.

This is a tougher reality for you and me to face, because we often get frustrated by, in and through our daily world. We wonder when the economy will bounce back, or when our boss will get some sense, or when the weather will cool down, or when . . . You get the picture. We get frustrated, we feel slighted and this leads us to think, to begin to believe, that it is okay if we just stop moving. We start to view life as if we were sitting on the couch in our home watching it on television. It is almost as if we are participating in it, but not quite. As inviting as this may be, it is not an option for believers! You and I are called to live a life with God's interests in mind and to lean into every opportunity that He gives us when it comes along - no matter what it may require of us or how difficult it may be! If we are going to 'go with God' then we cannot stay where you are!

A central component of all this movement that life (and God) requires is the component of 'calling and vocation' that we are focusing on this month! As we explore 'vocation' we will be challenged and encouraged to 'move' into our vocation in all its various forms and to recognize that as we do we take the presence of Christ with us wherever we go. We become His image bearer in an idol worshiping world! Over the next week, maybe two, we will un-package several areas of vocation. Let me remind you of one definition for vocation that I have come to lean on - vocation is a 'calling,' it is the way that God works through human beings on this earth. If God is going to work through us, then He will move us into those places with those peoples at those times that He requires our service! Where is that for you today?

See you Sunday!
Biz

Heigh Ho, Heigh Ho . . . it's off to work we go

The year was, I think, 1937. Count em up. You got it; 73 years ago we were introduced to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Below you will find a link to the video, that has, by in large, defined the movie for many of us. The video depicts dwarfs who actually sing while they dig - while the work. I wonder, when was the last time we viewed our work place with such high regard? When was the last time we came to work singing, sang while at work and then left work singing a happy tune? For many of us, unfortunately, that has never happened. What a shame. I wonder where this type of distaste for work actually began. When did work become something we just 'get through' until we get to the end of our day or until we get to Friday, or, even, until we get old enough to not work anymore - to retire?


It wasn't always this way, you know. In ancient cultures work and trade were highly valued as integral to the proper functioning of societal and communal life. So much so, in fact, that families engaged in work together and in so doing they grew closer to each other; they grew to learn their passions; strengths and giftedness and they also contributed to the culture around them. In short, their work made others better, more productive, healthier.


Hmmm, where did you and I get off track, I wonder. Some would say the industrial revolution. Others perhaps assembly lines; yet I have heard others argue that our trend toward 'professionalism' has devalued much of the work that is not 'professional' in nature, but no less important to the proper ordering of family and community life. I believe that the problem could be traced to all three as well as other influences that have formed modern living. But for the believer who has been called according to the riches of God's grace in Christ, the problem lies in us not understanding the wide range implications of His calling on our lives! Take a minute and think about it. What does it mean to be called by God? How does God view our work? Did Christ or does Scripture ever speak to us as workers or employees or employers or colleagues?


Of course you know the answer to those questions is a resounding 'yes.' But, do you know what the actual answer is? Do you know what Christ has to say about work and its importance to life? In Luke 19 Jesus tells a parable of a ruler who has to leave for awhile to receive the authority righty his as ruler. During the time of his absence he leaves his stewards in charge of portions of his kingdom (through minas). Upon return he inquires as to how they have used his resources and how they have cared for that over which he gave them charge. This king is quite generous with those who have done well and used his gifts. In fact, his generosity is unheard of; it is abundant beyond belief. However, there is one (there is always one, right?!?) who does nothing with his gift. In fact he hides it and pretends as though it doesn't exist. You know what the King does? He strips this steward of that which he did have - leaving him with nothing - and gave it to the ones who were faithful.


This parable has much to say to you and me today in regard to work. The King in this parable is Jesus and we are the stewards. He has left us in charge of his work during His absence and he has literally told us 'engage in business, conduct trade, and be involved in vocation.' This is precisely what he asked of the stewards in the story I just described. You see, for the Christian it matters not where we are employed or even if we are employed. It matters not if we are under-employed or over-employed. What matters is that wherever we are placed, we are to conduct the work of His Kingdom in the midst of those around us. This is the idea behind calling and vocation - that our lives count for more than ourselves and our work makes a difference in the lives of others! The other lesson illustrated here, one we miss at our own peril, is that we will be judged by the King based on how we have 'stewarded' during His absence. To the faithful there will be ABUNDANT reward in heaven, to the unfaithful - well you get the picture.


So, where is this idea of calling to be pursued and fulfilled in our lives? There are at least three areas in which you and I practice and steward our 'vocation' or calling every day. First we are called to steward within our home. Yes, I have a vocation (calling) as husband, father, son, brother, etc. Do you view your home as 'vocation?' Secondly we are called to steward within our church. Yes, there is work do be done within the context of local ministry in a congregation - if you are just sitting watching others do the work of the Lord, then you risk great judgment and little reward! Thirdly, we have a calling to steward within our culture. We are to actively bring the presence of Christ into our culture on a day to day basis. This would include our neighborhood, our work, our places of influence in politics, industry, schools and institutions - all of these need the presence of Christ lived out as 'vocation' on a day by day basis.


By the way: Happy Labor Day! Hopefully this year it will mean more than just one last chance to fire up the grill or spend the day on the beach. Maybe - just maybe -  you and I will get serious about 'vocation/calling,' 'work/stewardship' and truly be the people Christ is calling us to be


See you Sunday!


Biz
by the way, don't foget to check out the video - it will at least put a smile on your face!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_fF6P_PQqQ