Matthew 22:34-40, Matthew 28:16-20, 1 Corinthians 12:1-31

Matthew 22:34-40

Matthew 28:16-20

1 Corinthians 12: 1-31

February 15 2009

“A Great Commitment To Fellowship”

Part 5 of The Purpose Driven Church series

Read Scripture

A great commitment to the Great Commandment and the Great

Commission makes for a great Church.

That’s what Rick Warren – in his book The Purpose Driven Church – gives as a purpose statement for a great church.

A great commitment to the Great Commandment and the Great Commission makes for a great Church.

This year holds an exciting promise for us as churches in New Harmony Presbytery begin taking part in The Acts 16:5 Initiative – a program where consultants from the Vital Churches Institute will be working with local churches – and helping them look at some specific things they can be doing to be reaching out into the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ. I pray that Hopewell will be led to take part in this. But — as we wait for that opportunity — we are taking the time to look at what God may be calling us to do as a Church by studying Rick Warren’s The Purpose Driven Church on Wednesday nights and my preaching on topics from the book on Sundays.

Remember — as a Church, we can’t do everything.

No one Church can do everything.

But – every Church can do some things.

There are things we can do.

There are things we should do.

In fact — there are things we must do if we are going to be the Church God would have us to be.

So — what are the things we can do – should do – indeed must do – to be the Church God intends for us to be – and to do God’s work and will in the community and in the world?

What are the things that should be our focus – our purpose – that we should use to define ourselves — and that others should use to define us?

What is our purpose as a Church?

Rick Warren writes that

A great commitment to the Great Commandment and the Great Commission makes for a great Church.

A great commitment to loving God with all our heart, soul, and mind and loving others as ourselves – that’s what we find in Matthew 23 with the Great Commandment –

And a great commitment to going and making disciples for Christ – that’s what we find in Matthew 28 with the Great Commission –

Makes for a great church!

A great commitment to the Great Commandment and the Great Commission makes for a great Church.

I really like that statement. I believe that it encompasses the things that are most important for us to be doing as a Church – and keeps our focus on God – on others – and on making disciples.

But – we can’t just have nifty little sayings such as this one and expect to truly be the Church God wants us to be. It takes much more than just words to do God’s work in the community and the world – it takes commitment – and it takes action.

If we are going to say that loving God with all our hearts, souls, and minds — loving others as ourselves – - and going into the community and the world to make disciples for Christ – is our purpose as a Church – then we have to be focused on these things – and focused on how we can do these things and put actions behind these words. We have to be focused – and committed – to truly being people and a Church that loves God – loves others – and makes disciples.

In his book Warren ties 5 elements of church life – 5 things we do as a church – to the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. These elements are:

Worship – which we looked at 3 weeks ago and saw that a great commitment to the first part of the Great Commandment – loving God with all our hearts, souls, and minds – leads us to having a heart of worship —

Ministry – which we looked at 2 weeks ago and saw that a great commitment to the second part of the Great Commandment – loving others as we love ourselves – leads us to reaching out to others with God’s love –

Evangelism – which we looked at last week and saw that a great commitment to the first part of the Great Commission – going and making disciples – leads us to tell others about Christ —

Fellowship — which Warren ties to the second part of the Great Commission – Baptizing – and

Discipleship – which Warren ties to the third part of the Great Commission – teaching them to obey all I have commanded you.

A great commitment to the Great Commandment and the Great Commission makes for a great Church.

Today we are going to look at the second element of what we do as a Church that Warren ties to the Great Commission – that being fellowship.

Go and make disciples of all nations – Jesus says – baptizing them – and teaching them.

That’s the Great Commission.

Once we tell others about Christ – once we get involved in the work of evangelism – is that all we need to do?

No – we need to baptize them – or make them members of the fellowship we have – the body of Christ.

Jesus says to “baptize them”.

That means bringing them to a decision about Christ – a decision for Christ to be their Lord and Savior – or in the case of infants it means the parents and the Church are committing themselves to teaching the child about Christ until they can make their own commitment. We even say in the Service of Infant Baptism that we are doing this “in the sure and certain hope of the day when they child will make their profession of faith in Jesus Christ”.

Baptism is a way of professing faith in Christ.

Baptism is also a way of committing ourselves to being a part of the body of Christ – the Church.

I believe that it is that aspect of baptism – being an active part of the body of Christ – the Church – that Warren is emphasizing when he ties that aspect of Fellowship with “baptizing them”.

Baptism is becoming a part of the body of Christ – the Church – and a part of the fellowship we have as the Church.

If we here at Hopewell are going to be the Church God wants us to be – we are going to have to have a great commitment to the fellowship that we have as a Church.

A great commitment to fellowship makes for a great Church.

A great commitment to fellowship makes for a great Church.

Now – first of all – we have to understand what is meant by Fellowship.

By Fellowship I mean the feeling of belonging to the Church –

the feeling of taking an active part of the Church –

the feeling being an important part of the Church –

the feeling that you have an important role to play and contribution to make in the Church –

the feeling that everyone involved in the Church is important –

the feeling that everyone involved in the Church has an important role to play and contribution to make to the Church–

the feeling that no one is unimportant in the Church.

Yea – we have “Fellowship Suppers” and activities and even a Fellowship Committee – but eating and going places is not the purpose. We can eat on our own – we can go places on our own but the purpose of the fellowship times we have as a Church is to help us get to know each other – share times fun times together – build up a feeling of love and support for each other – so that we each will see how important we are to each other in the Church – and everyone will see how important they are. The more time we spend together sharing our lives, the greater our feelings of love for each other will become – and the greater our commitment to each other – the Church – and using what God has blessed us with for the work of the Church – will become.

Too many times we overlook the fact that we are needed and have God – given gifts to offer for the good of the Church and feel we are not important – so we don’t get involved and we don’t offer what God has given us to offer to the Church.

Sadly, too many times we also overlook that fact that everyone is important in the Church – and don’t try to get others involved in the life and work of the Church.

The thing is – everyone is important – God has given everyone something they can use that will enrich the life of the Church – and when we do not get involved – or make sure everyone is involved – the work and life of the Church suffers.

Friends — if we here at Hopewell are going to be the Church God wants us to be – we are going to have to have a great commitment to the fellowship that we have as a Church.

A great commitment to fellowship makes for a great Church.

A great commitment to fellowship makes for a great Church.

We have to realize that we are important – have been blessed by God with gifts to give for the work of the Church – and that everyone else is important – and have gifts to give for the work of the Church.

Here’s an easy way to remember this important truth:

Nobody is a “nobody” in Christ’s body.

Nobody is a “nobody” in Christ’s body.

Imagine with me some Carpenter’s tools holding a conference:

The Hammer presides, but several suggest he leave the shop because he is too noisy. The Hammer replies, “If I have to leave this shop, the Screw must go also. You have to turn him around again and again to get him to accomplish anything.” The Screw speaks up: “If I have to leave, the Plane must leave, too. All his work is on the surface. His efforts have no depth.” To this, the Plane responds, “The Rule will also have to withdraw if I have to leave, for he is always measuring folks as though he were the only one who is right.” The Rule then complains about The Sandpaper: “He ought to leave, too, because he’s so rough and always rubbing people the wrong way”. And so goes the discord. In the midst of all this discussion, in walks the Carpenter. Putting on his apron, he goes to the bench and goes to work. He uses Brothers Hammer, Screw, Plane, Rule, Sandpaper, and all the other tools. After the day’s work, when he is finished and has left, the Saw arises and remarks, “I observe that all of us are workers together with in the hands of the Carpenter.”

Friends — if we here at Hopewell are going to be the Church God wants us to be – we are going to have to have a great commitment to the fellowship that we have as a Church.

A great commitment to fellowship makes for a great Church.

Nobody is a “nobody” in Christ’s body.

Nobody is a “nobody” in Christ’s body.

Everybody is important because we are all part of the body of Christ.

Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 12:12-13:

12 The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body–whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free–and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.

Nobody is a “nobody” in Christ’s body.

Our bodies have many members. Our physical bodies are the most wonderful creation on the planet. One of the many wonderful things about our bodies is that they have many significant members. Our mouths, our eyes, our teeth, our toenails, our knees, and our hair (no matter how much or little we have) are all members of one body. We don’t have more than one body (although I know most of us wish we had another one!). We only have one body that is made up of many, many members.
And the body of Christ has many members, also.

We are all members of Christ’s body — we are all members of Christ’s church here at Hopewell. Just as our physical bodies have many members that form just one body, all of us who make up Hopewell Presbyterian Church are all members of Christ’s body – the church in this place and time.

Nobody is a “nobody” in Christ’s body.

We can easily see why the many members of our bodies are one – but what about the Church – the body of Christ?

What makes us here at Hopewell Presbyterian one body – the body of Christ – even though we are all different?

In 1 Corinthians 12:13 Paul says that we are one because we are baptized by one Spirit. The Holy Sprit has made us one body. We are all members of the body of Christ – everyone is included – and no one is excluded. The Holy Sprit has united us in the body of Christ just like all of the parts of our bodies have been united to form one body. Everyone is important because we are all part of the body of Christ!

Nobody is a “nobody” in Christ’s body.

In fact, everybody is important because we are different. Look at the illustration Paul gives:

Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. 15 If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body. (1 Corinthians 12:14-20)

There is diversification in the body of Christ – just as there is in our bodies – but e ach part is needed – just as each part of our bodies are needed.

Nobody is a “nobody” in Christ’s body.

We all have different abilities — according to what God has blessed us with – and we each can serve in different ways — based on the abilities God has given us – but we are all important. We are all different — but we are all members of the same body – the body of Christ – the Church here at Hopewell. The members of our physical bodies are all as different as toenails and eyelashes, but they are all members of the same body! Toenails and eyelashes look different and they have different abilities, but they are all members of the same body! So it is in the body of Christ! We are different, but we are all members of the same body. In spite of the fact that each member is unique, we are all still members of the same body, important and needed. The reason everybody is important because we need each other. Just as Paul illustrates that the parts of our physical bodies — though different – are needed – every member of the body of Christ – the Church – is needed – and important.

You may not feel that you are important, but you are. You may not feel that you are needed – but you are. You may feel that no one will notice if you are not here, but you are mistaken! You may think that no one will notice whether you are here are not. You may think that there’s nothing for you to do and therefore you are not needed. But I am here to correct that notion. Everyone is important because we need each other! When you are not here, it is discouraging to those who are here. We need each other – we need you!

There may be some that we do not treat as important – or get involved in the life and fellowship of the Church. If we do that, we are hurting the Church – missing what they can offer and give us – and we are actually hurting ourselves.

Friends — if we here at Hopewell are going to be the Church God wants us to be – we are going to have to have a great commitment to the fellowship that we have as a Church.

A great commitment to fellowship makes for a great Church.

Nobody is a “nobody” in Christ’s body.

Nobody is a “nobody” in Christ’s body.

Everybody is important because we are all part of the body of Christ.

We are all important because we need each other. If one member suffers, we all suffer. When one member of our physical body suffers, the whole body suffers. If you question that, notice how your body reacts the next time stub your little toe. You might think your little toe is not important, but when it suffers the whole body suffers! And — when someone in the body of Christ suffers, we all suffer with them.
You can easily see it each Sunday during our prayer requests — when folks are suffering, we all suffer – and want to pray for them. When one of us suffers (even when they think they are no more important than a little toe), we all suffer with them. And likewise when one member rejoices, we all rejoice. In our physical bodies, when the virus that was in our stomach is gone – or the cold that was in our sinuses — the rest of the body rejoices with it! We should get excited at the victories and celebrations in other peoples’ lives —because everyone is important!

Everyone is important because we need each other! Everybody is important because we all have an important purpose. Listen to what Paul; writes:

Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 28 And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30 Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues ? Do all interpret? 31 But eagerly desire the greater gifts. And now I will show you the most excellent way. 1 Corinthians 12:27-31

If one member of our physical bodies ignores it’s purpose, the whole body suffers. If the nose quits smelling, the body will suffer. If the tongue decides to quit tasting, the body will suffer. If the foot decides to quit walking, the body will suffer. Paul is saying that not everyone in the Church has all of the gifts – but – just as each member of our body has an important gift – each member of the Church does also. Not everyone does everything. – but everyone can do something! Everybody has different gifts, but we all work together for the common good just like toenails, eyelashes, hands, and feet. Everybody is important because we all have an important purpose.

Nobody is a “nobody” in Christ’s body.

Nobody is a “nobody” in Christ’s body.

Every member is important because they have an important God-given talent that is needed in the body of Christ! If we will use our gifts used together we will build up the body of Christ; we will grow spiritually and numerically when we use our gifts together as part of the team! If we use our gifts we will unify the body f Christ — we will be unified when we use our gifts as part of the team! But — I hope that you see that none of these things will happen if each of us are not using our God-given talents – and encouraging others to do so. If you or I choose not to use our God-given abilities, — and encourage everyone else to do so — the church will suffer.

We can’t think that since we don’t have the same abilities as everyone else, we won’t get involved. We can’t let others think that either. But God knew that the body only needed all kinds of gifts – and has given different members different gifts – so that His work can be done. Every member – every gift they can give – every contribution they can make — is important! Every member has a God-given ability and therefore a God-given purpose! God doesn’t expect you or me or anyone else to do everything — God expects us to do what He has gifted us to do! And when we all use our gifts together we become a church! When we all do our part, we become the greatest organization on the planet – the Church of Jesus Christ – doing God’s work in this community and the world.

So – if we here at Hopewell are going to be the Church God wants us to be – we are going to have to have a great commitment to the fellowship that we have as a Church.

A great commitment to fellowship makes for a great Church.

Nobody is a “nobody” in Christ’s body.

Nobody is a “nobody” in Christ’s body.

Everybody is important because we are all part of the body of Christ.

So – here is the question you need to consider:

Are you fulfilling your purpose for which God brought you to Hopewell?

Are you fulfilling your purpose for which God brought you to Hopewell?

God has given you a specific ability that Hopewell needs. If you choose not to use that ability, the Church will suffer.

Are you fulfilling your purpose for which God brought you to Hopewell?

Here’s another question:

Are you encouraging others to fulfill their purpose for which God brought them to Hopewell?

God has given all of us specific abilities that Hopewell needs. If we choose not to encourage others to use their abilities, the Church will suffer

We all need to simply allow God to use us by using the abilities that he has given us and encourage those around us to do the things that God has gifted them to do. In that way every member is fulfilling the purpose to which God called and gifted them to do.

Are you fulfilling the purpose for which God has brought you to Hopewell?

Are you encouraging others to fulfill the purpose for which God has brought them to Hopewell?

If you’re not, you need to commit yourself to that today.

If we here at Hopewell are going to be the Church God wants us to be – we are going to have to have a great commitment to the fellowship that we have as a Church.

A great commitment to fellowship makes for a great Church.

A great commitment to the Great Commandment and the Great Commission makes for a great Church.

Next week we’ll look at another aspect of this – but for today remember that a great commitment to fellowship — to using the gifts God gives you to encourage and build up others and do God’s work – makes for a great Christian – and a great Church.

A great commitment to fellowship makes for a great Church. Amen. .