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Back to Sermons Index Back to Home Page 19th March 2006 PMMOVING FORWARD IN FAITH Pastor Colin Meadows Acts 2:42-47, 2 Kings 6:1-4
● We are growing! Over these past seven years, I have watched our Rivo family grow and move forward. Slowly new friends have joined us, built relationships, and become involved in the life of our church. Yes, we have been growing. Perhaps you haven’t realized this. You only see one aspect of our family life and you don’t sense that there has been growth and change. Such is not the case. Gently God has been bringing more people into our sphere of influence. Around 450 people regularly attend our worship services, but that is only one aspect of our life here together. Growth has occurred in our different ministry areas and in the range of ministries now offered. We have watched ministries grow with now over 700 involved – U-Niquely-U, Wings, Boys and Girls Brigades, Prayer Ministry, Worship Ministry, Moving Men, Joy Girls, Youth groups, TABS, Kidsalive, Pastoral Care, Kindy & Crèche Ministries, Sports ministries, Carols by Sunset, Growing Kids, MOPS, LinC, Small Groups, Ministry Associates, MADE training program, the list is very long! Yes, growth is occurring. But what should be the hallmarks of such growth? Is it all about numbers of people involved in activities or is there more that should be considered? Let us look to the life of the early church to understand what should be taking place. The book of Acts is so helpful in this regard as it records the story of the church as it came into being. ● God is building His church: This was in fulfillment of the promise of Jesus. Matt 16:18 “…I will build my church and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” The word church could be translated ‘those who are called out”. It is a gathering of people called together in the community for a specific purpose. As God’s people we are called together to worship and to proclaim who our God is. The church is not a building but rather a group of people committed to Christ. Rather the church meets in a building! How does one become part of this group of ‘called out people’? Simply by responding in faith to the good news about Jesus. When the people on that amazing day heard the good news about Jesus, they asked Peter… Acts 2:37 “Brothers, what shall we do?” Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.” Believe the Good News for yourselves. You will become part of God’s family as you do that. Have you done that? To repent means to acknowledge that you are going the wrong way in life, that you need to stop and ask Jesus to forgive you your sins and to turn to walk with him. Then the Holy Spirit will come upon you to confirm in your heart that you are a child of God. That is the inward experience of faith. You are to be baptized as this displays outwardly what has taken place in your heart. You acknowledge before others that you have become a child of God. What happens next? ● Be strongly focused: When people in those days responded in faith to the claims of Christ they became fully committed to God. They didn’t sit on the fence. Acts 2:42 “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” In other words, they got on board all that was happening in the life of the church. They pulled out the stops on their spiritual lives. Nothing was going to hold them back from following Christ. The word ‘devoted’ does not convey all that was meant here. They lit. ‘passionately involved themselves.’ There was nothing half-hearted in their walk with God. What about us? Is this where we find ourselves at this time? Let us be strongly focused as we walk with God. ● Be filled with a sense of awe: Those early believers were gob smacked by the amazing supernatural power and presence of God. Acts 2:43 “Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles.” Lit. it could be said ‘fear came to every soul…” As they saw and heard all that God was doing, they were overwhelmed with a holy fear towards God. Today God is still at work in amazing ways that should bring a deep sense of holy fear into our hearts. Lives are being touched and transformed by God’s hand daily and we hardly notice it. Have we lost a sense of wonder and awe at what God is doing in our midst? We pray for people but do we also stop and thank God for his answers to our prayers? God is at work daily. As I meet with people preparing for baptism, I am so excited to hear their stories of how they came to know Jesus. God is at work. At a wedding recently I asked a young man how he became a Christian. I was left with a sense of awe of what God is doing in our midst. A man last Sunday indicated he wanted to become a disciple of Christ after the morning service. God is at work. It was great to ring him up and make arrangements to encourage him on his journey of faith. Can I encourage you to look around you and see what God is doing! Ask a friend what God has done in their lives over the past week. Introduce yourself to a new friend and hear God’s story of transformation. Be filled with a sense of awe of God. ● Be people who care deeply for others: Those early believers put their faith into action. Acts 2:45 “Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need.” They were doing God-directed acts of kindness to others. They cared enough for others to do something about it. They put their hands in their pockets and became to redistribute the wealth that God had given into their care. They looked at the inequalities that others struggled under and sought to respond. They acted so that needs could be met. As I reflect on the life of our church, I am amazed at the generosity of people, of people quietly getting on with sharing with others who had needs. A few dollars to pay an outstanding account, delivering some bread to a needy situation, a food parcel to tide someone over a difficult patch, mowing a lawn, the list is very long. Most of this goes on without others being aware. I stumble across some of these acts of kindness as I wander around! We seek to do the same things collectively as a church. Food parcels, paying outstanding accounts in needy situations, bread deliveries, etc. Let us care for the people God brings across our paths. Yes, be people who care deeply for others. ● Be people who meet together: The early Christians met regularly together to encourage each other. Acts 2:46 “Everyday they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes…” Yes, they met for corporate worship in the temple courts but also had their small group times in people’s homes. Let us continue to do just that. They were able to keep meeting initially in the temple surrounds until persecution drove them out. Acts 8:1 “…On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered…” The church then went underground, especially after the destruction of the temple in 70AD and did not meet again freely in large gatherings until the edit of toleration of Constantine in 313AD. Down through the years, Christians have continued to meet together in buildings that reflected their needs and their understanding of their faith. As needs changed, so buildings were modified to meet those needs. Today we are still doing the same. Our current building for instance no longer meets the needs of the church and the community it is seeking to reach. Thus we have embarked on a redevelopment process. Can I encourage you to be part of this! Give as God directs you so that the ministries of our church may flourish. Building issues amongst believers has been a constant issue down through history. The prophet Elisha and his band of prophets for instance ran into space problems with their building too. 2 Kings 6:1 ‘“Look the place where we meet with you is too small for us. Let us go to the Jordan, where each of us can get a pole; and let us build a place there for us to live.’ And he said “Go.”’ When the building was hampering their ministry and not meeting their needs, they built something better. That is what we are seeking to do right now. Can I encourage you to get behind this redevelopment with your prayers, practical involvement and finances? Better resources will enable us as a church to better meet the needs of people we are seeking to reach with the Good News of Jesus. Yes, we are people who meet together to fulfill God’s plans for our lives. ● God will keep building: Our Lord will continue to build his church. Acts 2:47 “And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.” Our God is continually at work, building his church. He doesn’t go on vacation from this vital task. And he has commissioned us to join him as He builds. God is building His church. Be passionately involved with Him as he builds. Have a sense of awe at what God is doing. Really care about the needs of others. Continue to meet together. Ensure that our buildings are not hindering our ministries and are adequate for what God intends to do in our midst. Watch to see God at work in his church! Keep moving forward in faith.
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