Multiplying Ministry

We have seen in the last two posts a summary of a talk from a conference I went to with Mark Dever last year. So far we have looked 14 blessings of every member ministry and 7 dangers and challenges and today we see 3 ways to go about multiplying ministry.

1. Understanding

We misunderstand leadership, before we require people to do something we need to teach them. We need to help them understand. And teach with clarity.

2. Motive

Avoid involvement through guilt as it saps joy in service. Tell them about God and his glory and the wonderful hope of the resurrection. Love from the one who loved first. Love for others in God's image. Teach the right motivation clearly.

3. Culture

Create a culture of discipling others, don't make it an optional extra because it's not! Helping others follow Jesus is the most basic way way we show love for each other (Jn 13). Teach that the basic package is to inconvenience yourself out of love.

The challenges of 'every member ministry'

The other day I outlined the 14 blessings that Mark Dever talked about at a conference last year. Today we outline the 7 challenges, dangers or cautions of every member ministry' that Mark Dever put before us.

1. It is difficult to manage: there is a unorganised nature to it.

2. Divisiveness

3. Reductionist: can simply reduce Christian life to ministry. New members need to attend first and then do ministry later

4. Busyness: lose all our time in church

5. Narcissism: wrong type of individualism in it

6. Be a steward of your gift/talent/desires but remember you are also called to minister in a way in which the local church needs it.

7. Rebelliousness: authority needs not to be oppressive

I think No 5 & 6 are interesting.

No 5 because there is a sentiment and feeling out there that 'everything is important'. Every announcement or piece of information is THE one to listen to and we then have lost perspective on the big picture. And everything is important then it communicates the nothing is important, everything just flat lines as being REALLY important and nothing stands out. The other consequence is that we are busy doing the wrong things that actually don't produce any Christian fruit (by which I mean Christian growth or new conversions). Churches are already busy and complex beasts to manage at times which can sap people from spending time in relationships with other people with the result being, 'I'm too busy to spend time with non-Christians (or in other valuable relationships) because I have too much church stuff to do'. When we have achieved this attitude then I think we have failed.

No 6 was particularly challenging for me. I am a big believer in people using their specific gifts in service of the saints. The question that remains is, for example;

'What if there is no one who desires/gifted/talented to read the Bible at church, should we not do it?'

Or should someone 'have a go' because the church needs it to happen? This relates across all our ministries that we do - how far do we keep stretching people who are not gifted to fulfill particular ministry roles but do it because it is an area of need? Dever's thoughts were definitely challenging for me.

The Blessings of 'every member ministry' thinking

One of the things I have been trying to create a buzz about this year is 'every member ministry'. The unashamed goal is for everyone to know and think that they are as much a minister as someone with a Rev in front of their name. In our context of middle-class suburbia I want our people to think 'we are ministers in the urban jungle; we are missionaries to the Parish of Norwest'. I want people to get to the point were they feel equipped and ready for the task of being a missionary and I see my job as one of helping them for this task. As Eph 4 says

And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and
teachers, 12to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building
up the body of Christ, 13 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,

As I was shifting through some notes from a conference I was at with Mark Dever last year I came across his 14 blessings of every member ministry. I haven't got explanations for them all unfortunately.

1. Blessing of perspective: especially to the Pastor to know it is not all up to him
2. Blessing of fellowship: encourage others in ministry
3. Blessing of growth: there is a new completeness in the believer
4. Blessing of relationship: a depth
5. Blessing of seriousness
6. Blessing of obedience
7. Blessing of service: from consumers to 'where is that person?' How can I follow them up? A move to contributors to the gathering
8. Blessing of maturity
9. Blessing of resources:
10. Blessing of priesthood: it takes seriously the 'priesthood of all believers'.
11. Blessing of efficiency
12. Blessing of corporate responsibility
13. Blessing of witness: the more people are involved the greater the witness. Don't underestimate the power of corporate witness. I remember the story he told of a Professor in Sociology who became a Christian at his church because of the way the people related to each other.
14. Blessing of perseverance

Looking back on them now, I wish that I had taken better notes!

The Wise Words of Sheens

It's time to start listening to the Australian coach, Tim Sheens, and put Robbie Farah into the NSW side for Origin 3. Read the wise words, here.

Getting to Grips With Your Identity in Christ - An Introduction

I have written a short booklet on Christian identity that came out of two talks I did for Russ Smidt at Epping. Here is the introduction...... do you want to keep reading?

Introduction

It is a joy to be human. This is especially true when we compare ourselves to our canine friends. I, for one, am glad that I am not a dog. A dog can’t reason like humans can. A dog can’t prize things for their real worth. A dog doesn’t contemplate the universe. A dog can’t think about things in relation to God. And a dog certainly doesn’t reflect upon their identity. So, aren’t you glad you are not a dog?

But if you’re not a dog then who are you? How on earth do we figure this out? Our natural tendency as human beings in this world is to look around at the creation to figure out an answer to this perplexing question. It is my hope that in reading this you will come to see something extraordinary, something truly amazing, and something that will cause you to again reflect upon your identity.

God has revealed who we are in Christ.

This is the central truth that I am communicating. In order to help us we will concentrate our efforts from the book of 1 Peter. Why chose 1 Peter to focus on?

The main tension that runs behind 1 Peter is how much do the readers conform to the culture and dominant values of the day? As well as, what are the boundaries of maintaining a Christian distinctive in a hostile society? It is fair to say that the tension of these original hearers is our tension too. Our Australian society is not one where we easily accept the uniqueness of Christian characteristics but we are all for conforming to the Australian culture. Who wants to be branded un-Australian? It is into this type of melee that 1 Peter is written and has much to say to us even today. Peter’s response to these questions is to re affirm who they are in Christ and in doing so shows us as readers 2000 years later who we are in Christ.

There are only two chapters in this book. The first outlines how we see ourselves and the second flows out of it, how we see other people. The two are intimately connected as we will see in the course of our journey together.

Weekend Away Talks

Unfortunately the outlines haven't moved in the last few days but I did get some books from the Moore College library to keep me thinking.
I've also got a 2,000 word exegetical on Titus 1 due next Friday so it's going to be hectic.
Here is the text of Titus 1.

What do you think are the big ideas in this chapter?
Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God's elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness, 2 in hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began 3 and at the proper time manifested in his word through the preaching with which I have been entrusted by the command of God our Savior; 4 To Titus, my true child in a common faith: Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior. 5 This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order, and appoint elders in every town as I directed you- 6 if anyone is above reproach, the husband of one wife, and his children are believers and not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination. 7 For an overseer, as God's steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain, 8 but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined. 9 He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it. 10 For there are many who are insubordinate, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision party. 11 They must be silenced, since they are upsetting whole families by teaching for shameful gain what they ought not to teach. 12 One of the Cretans, a prophet of their own, said, "Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons." 13 This testimony is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith, 14 not devoting themselves to Jewish myths and the commands of people who turn away from the truth. 15 To the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their minds and their consciences are defiled. 16 They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work.

I'll give my thoughts tomorrow (hopefully!).

The Holy Spirit - Part 1

So after a day of reading and discussing how to communicate the Holy Spirit here is what I have so far. There are 4 talks. Talks 1 & 2 are really one LONG talk :)

The Spirit connects us to Jesus - Part 1
Big Idea: The Spirit connects us to the work of Jesus

1. Clearing the floor
a) Understanding the Holy Spirit within the Trinity
b) The inseperable nature of Word and Spirit
c) The Spirit in the Old & New Testaments
d) The Spirit (ual) Fulfilment

2. Connecting to Jesus
a) The art of connecting
b) The work of the Spirit is faith
c) Faith and the work of the Spirit

3. The strength of the connection
a) Why it is really strong
b) Why it is sometimes weak

The Spirit connects us to Jesus - Part 2
Big Idea: Exploring the nature of the connection in relation to doubt and assurance
(Don't want to give too much away before the weekend!)

1. If we are connected to Jesus, why do we doubt?


2. If we the Spirit connects us to Jesus we have great assurance!


The Spirit gives us new life - Part 3

The Spirit gives us a great deposit - Part 4

More to come on part 3 & 4 hopefully tomorrow.

Love to hear your thoughts.

The Holy Spirit

June 25-27 is our evening church weekend away. I have given myself a big task. I am speaking about the person of the Holy Spirit and looking to specifically apply it to the issues of doubt and assurance.

I have 3 statements and looking for any feedback, good illustrations to blatantly steal, any articles worth reading, etc.

Here are my three statements.

1. The Holy Spirit unites us to the work of Jesus

Thinking specifically in this talk about the benefits of union with Christ.

2. The Holy Spirit gives us new life (regeneration)

In this talk working over why we need new life and the joy of being regenerate.

3. The Holy Spirit is a deposit/seal

Talking about getting the Spirit which is something that belongs to the new age.

Got anything for me?

He's not a traitor

Benji stays strong amongst those who are deserting league. Cough, cough ... Israel Folau.

With a name like "Israel" he was never going to be faithful. Huh, huh, get it?? .... yeah ok, maybe it wasn't as funny as I first thought.

New layout

So, what do you think of the new background and layout?
Too black and white :)

Hosea and Marriage

This post is written by Luke Thomson who works with me at Norwest

Implications for Marriage from Hosea 1-3
Hosea chapters 1-3 form a pivotal point in the Bible for our understanding of marriage. The story of Hosea & Gomer help us to bridge the gap in our understanding between the institution of marriage in Genesis, and the New Testament understanding of marriage. Here, I will very briefly explain some of these important links. (There is much more to say on this topic to do it justice. I highly recommend Christopher Ash’s book “Married for God”)

Genesis
The account in Genesis 2 of Adam and Eve establishes a foundation for how we understand marriage in the Bible. After all, it’s the very first marriage. In creating Eve, God says in verse 18 “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” Eve is to help Adam in his task in caring for and ruling over God’s creation (1:28, 2:15). We are told at the end of Genesis 2 in verse 24 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh”. We see in this chapter, some of the basic elements of marriage – it is an exclusive relationship, with the intended aim of serving God in fulfilling his purposes.

Ephesians
Skip over to the New Testament. Ephesians 5:22-33 has a lot to say about marriage, but one significant theme runs through it: the marriage between a husband and wife is to be based on the love Christ has for the church. The whole passage intertwines these two images – marriage and church – in such a way that it’s easy to lose focus on which Paul is talking about in any one particular sentence. In his mind, so linked are the ideas of marriage and of God’s relationship with his people that he can jump back and forth between the two images.
In verse 31, Paul quotes Genesis 2:24 – which we know to be about marriage between a husband and wife. But then in the very next verse Paul says “This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church.” In other words, Paul sees the very creation and institution of marriage as talking about God and his people. Marriage is to be a display of God’s covenant of grace with his people. Paul calls it a ‘profound mystery’ because this has always been the purpose of marriage, but only in Jesus do we see the full purpose of marriage displayed clearly.

Hosea
Hosea fits in between these two significant passages we have looked at on marriage. Chapters 1-3 have shown us that God called Hosea in a marriage relationship that would reflect God’s relationship with his people. The idea is best captured in 3:1, where God tells Hosea to love his wife once more, even though she has been unfaithful. God says “Love her as the LORD loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods”. The purpose of Hosea’s marriage is to help Israel (and us!) understand God’s covenant relationship with his people. Hosea’s marriage points us towards, and helps us understand what Jesus has done.

Marriage
The ultimate goal of any marriage is to display what God’s relationship to his people is like. Marriage is fundamentally more about God than it is about us. Marriage was created in the pattern of God’s relationship with his people, and its purpose is to display the pattern from which it came. Our marriages best serve God by pointing towards Jesus and his relationship with God’s people. Hosea is an amazing picture of this reality.

How might this look in practice?
• We should strive to make our marriages an example of God’s love for his people, knowing that we will be imperfect reflections because of our own sin.

• Husbands must see themselves as the spiritual leaders of their homes. They are to diligently lead their wife and children in knowing God and helping them to live out their faith. It will mean sacrificing other desires and opportunities for the sake of their family’s godliness. This is the most important task that husbands are called to.

• Wives should gently encourage their husbands in their role, and help them to lead the family.

• Marriage is for making disciples of Christ… whether that be your own children, the children of others, or even other adults.

• Marriage provides many opportunities to show forgiveness and grace. As we experience the challenges of marriage, we ought to remind one another of how great it is to be forgiven and graciously rescued by God.

• Our language of marriage should be positive. Marriage is a wonderful gift that helps us understand God’s love, not a burdening restriction of our freedom. Whilst being honest in its challenges, we must uphold the positive value of this gift that God has provided.

• We must be careful not to make marriage the goal of life. Marriage does not ‘complete’ a person as their ‘other half’ (thereby rending the unmarried ‘incomplete’). A life of singleness is equally as valid and complete.

I have stolen...... a question!

OK, look I know this blog is sporadic at best and my apologies for that.
But I have stolen this question from over here

“What segment of the community that surrounds your church would seriously miss you if you suddenly disappeared from the face of the earth over night?”

If you normally just read and don't post a comment I would really love to hear from you. Even if you're not Christian or you don't go to Norwest, your thoughts on this question would really interest me. Even if the answer is the church wouldn't be missed at all - that's still an answer. So go on, have a go! You can do it