Core Value: Gospel-Centered Local Church (Part 1)

Eph 2:10, 1 Cor 12:12-13

Commissioning Dave Skinner: officially recognized and called to serve as a minister of the Gospel of Renewal Church.

We’ve been talking about our vision and core values and how it all flows out of the Gospel. We see the Gospel as the engine that drives who we are and what we do.

Today we want to address that we are saved by the Gospel to be a part of the Church, and to work together as a body. Next week we want to talk about the value and meaning of church membership.

Gospel-Centered Local Church

In an age where society frowns upon the church and organized religion and where Christians are prone to church-hop, we strongly value commitment through membership to the local church as necessary to be on mission for Jesus as his followers. This stems from the conviction that the gospel-centered local church is central to God’s redemptive mission and the hope for our broken, needy world. Members hold themselves accountable to local church leadership and use their God-given spiritual gifts and passions to intimately share in the community life and mission of their congregation.

I fear our society has a pretty low view of church. We have a consumeristic view: we shop around to find a church that meets our needs and suits our preferences. And if we’re not happy, we find another church that would make us happy.

Instead, we believe the church is the new society, the new people God has redeemed for Himself. And its people are called as His ambassadors to represent Him to this world, His army on a mission to advance His kingdom. The church is not a spiritual department store for us to consume religious goods and services; the church is God’s empowered presence on earth, His body gifted and equipped to advance the Kingdom.

If you’ve been at Renewal for a while, some of this should sound familiar.

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Eph 2:10

1. Our righteousness and our good works are God’s gift to us.

This passage isn’t telling us to do good works. This passage is telling us what God has done for us. Eph 2:1-10 is a Gospel summary.

If we look more closely at Eph 2:1-10, this paragraph is a summary of the gospel story:

1-3 our sinful past

dead in sins, followers of the world, the kingdom of the air, objects of wrath

4-7 God’s loving rescue

Because of His love and mercy, made dead sinners alive in Christ and raised us up and seated us with Christ in the heavenly realm

8-10 an explanation of our salvation

a gracious gift, not because we earned anything, received by faith

God saved us and He created us to accomplish good works.

God is the actor, we are acted upon; His workmanship

This is the story of how God mercifully loved and rescued undeserving sinners, and this includes making us a doer of good works.

We want to enlarge our view of salvation. God has not just given us a “ticket to heaven.” God has made us a new creation to live in a new kingdom.

Our salvation does not stop with the forgiveness of sins, our salvation includes the righteous person you become and the righteous things you will do.

Our salvation is not a moment-in-time gift, we are receiving our salvation gift every day we grow in Christ and do good works.

Our good works are not what we do for Him, our good works are His gift to us.

2. We are tailor-made for our specific work

You are God’s workmanship, designed and created by God to accomplish specific works. You are tailor made for the job prepared for you. No one else is created to do those very things God has created for you to do. Other believers were designed by God to do other things, but not your things.

There is a natural fit between how God made you and the ministry He prepared for you to do.

Your ministry is not in spite of who you are but flows out of who you are.

You are perfect for the job God has for you.

I want to thank God for our staff and session.

Dwight is a great at connecting with people (Christians and nonChristians), great at inspiring people.

Dan is a great shepherd, very approachable and caring.

Charles has been a tremendous help in thinking organizationally and strategically; gifted expositor.

John is such a valuable counselor, full of wisdom and care.

Isaac has both a laudable idealism and practical sensibilities.

Dave has a passion for discipleship and helping people move forward in their spiritual walks. As a former lead pastor, he brings a wealth of wisdom, experience and resources.

à We’re all different with different ministries to do

Some of you love kids, love music, love mercy, love theology, love medicine. Some of you are great at connecting with nonChristians, some of you are so organized and structured, some of you make people laugh. And the list can go on.

We were made in different ways and prepared to do different things.

And this leads us to the church. The church is made up of different people with different gifts and strengths. We weren’t meant to be solo acts. We were made to come together in harmony, as a symphony of different instruments, as a body of many parts mean to work and grow together.

The Gospel tells us (1) we weren’t just given forgiveness and adoption, we were also given good works to do, we were made useful. And (2) we weren’t made to be useful by ourselves. We designed to work on a team, to be part of a body.

To put it another way, The Gospel says you were made to be a valuable part of the church team. Being a useful part of the church body is part of what God has done for you.

Let’s consider this from another angle, another passage.

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. ¹³For 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. (1 Cor 12:12-13)

1. We were saved into one body.

As mentioned, we need a bigger picture of our salvation. We were not just saved into a personal relationship with Jesus

We were saved into a community, a body of believers. You were adopted into a family. You were brought onto a team, an orchestra. [diagram]

2. We are made to be useful and needed parts of this body.

We could have a metaphor like being invited to a party, or being found like a lost coin. We are privileged or rescued. But the metaphor here emphasizes how we’re needed. 1 Cor 12 explains how there are different spiritual gifts and how, like the ear or eye or hand or foot of a human body need each other and work together, so likewise Christians with different spiritual gifts need each other and work together. [invitation vs. eye glasses]

This is part of the Gospel: We were saved into a body as useful parts of this body. We didn’t have to be, but part of God’s gift to us in our valued participation in His work.

Kids recognize this sense as a gift and privilege. My boys want to be included, they want to help: if I’m washing the car or assembling a toy or shoveling snow—they want to be a part of the action. I could tell them to stay out of the way, but I include them. It’s a gift.

3. This is God’s gift to you.

These gifts are gifts. This is not telling you to gain and develop wisdom or discernment or healing powers. This passage is telling you that God has given some of you these various gifts.

4. This is God’s gift to the body.

They are manifestations of the HS given for the common good. This is how the HS reveals Himself, through members of the body using these spiritual gifts. If you are a member of God’s family, a part of His body, then you are God’s gift to the rest of us. You are a steward of His grace, a manifestation of the Holy Spirit to the rest of us.

You are re-created for good works.

You are perfectly tailored for the work prepared for you.

You were given spiritual gifts.

That is God’s gift to you, to bury in the ground or use for His mission.

You were saved into a body, a body of many different parts. You were made to be useful.

This is what Christ has done for you—the Gospel.

This is who you are. This is what God has done for you in Christ.

Notice, I’ve not told you to do anything. I’ve only explained what God has done for you.

Being a part of the church is part of the Gospel, it is part of what God has done for you.

The problem most churches have is that 20% of the people do 80% of the work. Most people are spectators, pew-warmers, consumers. That is not being the church. That is not what you were saved into.

Why so many spectators? The problem is (partly) we don’t believe the Gospel.

You may not believe that you’re useful. You may feel weak and inadequate, not well-made.

You may feel you don’t have any spiritual gifts.

You may feel you don’t need anybody else, or that no one else needs you.

But I would say, your Gospel is too small. You don’t see/believe the greater picture of our salvation, of what God has done for you.

I invite you to believe, to repent & believe: Repent of minimizing the Gospel, of belittling the gift God has given you. Repent and believe, believe that God has made you, and made you well, and made you a needed part of the church team. That’s who you are, in Christ.

We have a Gospel-centered, Gospel-driven understanding of our participation in the church. This is not out of guilt or duty. This is the privilege, the gift God has given us.

Let me get a bit practical. As we move to a multi-site church, there are so many needs. We need everyone to step up and act as a functioning part of the team.

A few words for WP

On top of the Sunday School, praise team, committees, there are now additional categories.

We have a new building, and we need people to not be visitors/renters but homeowners (trash, garbage, lights, lawn, snow, etc.).

There will be more opportunities to serve the needy—mercy/deaconal ministry. We’re working on a structure to better serve those who immediate needs, but we’re going to need teams of people to get involved.

A few words for PM

We need basically everything: CG leaders, SS teachers, nursery help, praise team, greeters & ushers, treasury, web & multi-media, hospitality team, set up team. We even need to start a junior high ministry. We need people with strong evangelism gifts, intercessory gifts, administrative gifts; shepherding, discipleship, leadership. We need everyone to step up and be on the team. We cannot afford to have spectators.

We have our 2^nd campus-wide meeting this Friday at the Plymouth Meeting Community Center. Invited to come and get involved. Come and be the church.

And if some of you have other gifts and passions that you’d like to add, things that are not already in place, please talk with any of the staff or session. We want to encourage people to use their gifts and passions for the common good. But we also want to do it in an organized and unified way.

This is God’s grace, God’s salvation to us—that we are made for good works, made to be useful parts of the body. This is who you are, this is what God has given you—now live like it.