Church in Transistion: Sermon Preached 6/4/06
I showed up Sunday morning with two complete sermons: One on why the church needs vision, and one on "The Prodigal Son". During worship, I kept going back and forth on which to share. Eventually, I ended up sharing the high points of each. Essentially, it boiled to this: Our church needs to have vision, and everyone needs to walk in the gifts and talents God has given them.
The Church, as in the Bride of Christ, the Church Universal, has three purposes:
1. Ministry to God (Worship)
2. Ministry to the Believers (Nurture)
3. Ministry to the World (Evangelism and Mercy)
Vision is the individual churches expression of these purposes.
As far as The Prodigal Son goes, my 'bent' on the story was that there were people in our congregation that had been given gifts and visions from God, but had 'squandered' them by either not using them (for what ever reasons) or that the had used them, but stopped (for what ever reason).
Gifts, spiritual gifts, are given to individuals for building up the church. They weren't given to people for their sake, but for the Church's sake, and to withhold them was, well, sin.
But God the Father, as characterized by the Father in the parable, is anxious for their return, waiting for them to repent, and restore them.
And where our local church is at right now, we need everyone to step up in what God has gifted them in and called them to.
Some time down the road I'll post my notes.
Christianity, Sermon,
The Church, as in the Bride of Christ, the Church Universal, has three purposes:
1. Ministry to God (Worship)
2. Ministry to the Believers (Nurture)
3. Ministry to the World (Evangelism and Mercy)
Vision is the individual churches expression of these purposes.
As far as The Prodigal Son goes, my 'bent' on the story was that there were people in our congregation that had been given gifts and visions from God, but had 'squandered' them by either not using them (for what ever reasons) or that the had used them, but stopped (for what ever reason).
Gifts, spiritual gifts, are given to individuals for building up the church. They weren't given to people for their sake, but for the Church's sake, and to withhold them was, well, sin.
But God the Father, as characterized by the Father in the parable, is anxious for their return, waiting for them to repent, and restore them.
And where our local church is at right now, we need everyone to step up in what God has gifted them in and called them to.
Some time down the road I'll post my notes.
Christianity, Sermon,
Posted by Surly Dave on
Monday, June 5, 2006
