Setting Worthy Goals as a Church

  This message was preached at Word Of Grace Church on January 12th 2025 by Lasya. For the audio & video please click here.  For the worship please click here.

Setting worthy goals as a church

Last week, Colin encouraged us to set worthy goals from the passage of Philippians 1 which includes our personal goals – developing humility, growing in spiritual maturity, striving for holiness. Today we will look at some of the corporate goals that we need to set as the body of Christ. 

Why do we need to set corporate goals? 

When the New Testament refers to church, in 80% of the cases it is talking about a local church. We have this idea that the “church” is this abstract amalgamation of all believers from all times, but when Paul or Peter or Luke talk about the church, they are referring to the church in Ephesus, the church in Philippi, the church that meets in someone’s house… it is not either or, but it is focused on the local with a vision of the global and eternal. We are born on our own, but we are born into a family just as in the natural. This family that we are born into is the church. The church is not an organisation, it’s a spiritual body – it is the fellowship of the redeemed. Romans 12:5 “so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.”

We need the local church in order to obey Jesus. Both the great commandment (Matthew 22:37-39 “7 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”) and the great commission (Matthew 28:18-20 “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”) are rooted in a place. In fact, the promise is that when the holy spirit comes upon us, we will be witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth.  

You and I are here by design to meet the purposes of God in this place and time. So as we step into this new year, let’s look at what is the role of the this church in this place and how do we set ourselves up to obey God. 

Q. What are some of the new year’s resolutions you’ve ever set that have actually stuck? When you reflect on it, what is the difference between the resolutions that stick v. the ones that don’t? Illustrations of gym or eating healthy, etc. 

• Commitment 

• Custom 

• Compelling vision 

1. Commitment. 

Q. What is Jesus committed to? 

Matt 16:18 “And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Q. What do we need to be committed to? 

Acts 2: 42- 45 – “And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers...And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.”

So there were some things that the believers were committed to (devoted to) – to the apostles teaching, to fellowship, to prayer, to giving- and they did all this in the context of a community.  

a. Apostle’s teaching – not just doing our bible reading in our personal devotion, but corporately. Do we come expecting God to speak to us through the word each Sunday, or do we go searching online for whoever the latest or most favourite preachers? 

b. fellowship – not just friendship but an intentional togetherness. Illustration – fellowship of the rings. It is coming together for a purpose - for mutual edification. Ephesians 4: 15-16 “speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and help together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work” 

c. prayer – most underused gift of the church is corporate prayer.

d. giving – tithes and offerings belong in the local church first. Giving is beyond this – it is giving of your time, resources, meeting the needs in the church. Many times, the needs are not monetary. Are we a generous community? 

2. Custom – our commitments need to turn into custom 

just saying we are committed to something is not enough. the road to hell is paved with good intentions

Jesus and the disciples had certain customs:

Luke 4: 16 “And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read.”

Luke 22:39 “And he came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him” (prayer) 

Acts 17: 1-2 “7 Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. 2 And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures,”

Acts 2: 46-47 “ 46 And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people”

Q. What are some of our customs? 

Is attending church on a Sunday a custom, it is something that is non-negotiable? Is prayer a custom? Lets look at how to turn our commitments into customs. 

A commitment requires good intention, but a custom requires good planning. Illustrations - how can we make it to church on time/ be there for corporate prayer. 

3. Compelling vision:

Q. What is Jesus’ vision for the church? 

Ephesians 5: 25-27 “25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish”

Revelation 21: 2-4 “ 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place[a] of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people,[b] and God himself will be with them as their God.[c] 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.””

Q. What is our vision? 

Colin will tell us next week. 

But it has to do with being salt and light in this place. it has to do with loving God and loving our neighbours, it has to do with make disciples of the nations starting with NIBM, Undri, Pune and to the ends of the earth. In all this, we are the hands and feet of Christ. when God thinks about the darkness and evil that is prevalent in this area, his answer is, let me send word of grace church there. 

Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again),  Spirit-filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English-speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that has people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service.  Word of Grace is part of a wider international family of Churches called RegionsBeyond.To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org. 

 

This message was preached at Word Of Grace Church on March 24th 2024  by Colin. For the audio & video please click here.  For the worship please click here. 

Godly Parenting

 What does God expect from parents? All of us must recognize that children are a gift from God.

Psalm 127:3 - Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him.

We must know that God is involved in our children’s life before their birth.

Psalm 139:13-14 - For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

God loves children. What is God’s goal in us having children? In the garden of Eden, God’s promise to Adam and Eve was to fill the earth with people who know Jesus.

Malachi 2:15 - Has not the one God made you? You belong to him in body and spirit. And what does the one God seek? Godly offspring.

God is seeking Godly offspring. We realize that children can be demanding and whining. That’s because they are lost. They have a heart that is turned away from God.

Genesis 8:21 - The Lord smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: “Never again will I curse the ground because of humans, even though^[a] every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done.

Proverbs 22:15 - Folly is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline will drive it far away.

Children are self-centred, angry, defiant, and whiny because foolishness is bound up in their hearts. Our role as parents is to help move them from this to Christ-centeredness. That is our prime responsibility. Our highest calling is to take our faith and put it in our children’s hearts.

2 Timothy 1:5 - I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.

The other responsibilities are –

1.     Provide for our children.

1 Timothy 5:8 - Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

It is our duty as parents to provide for our family and meet the needs of our family.

2.     Shower them with our love.

We must show love to them through words, hugs, kisses, serving, caring for them, reading for them, praying for them and spending time with them. Both mother and father must do this. Give them time, not just gifts.

3.     Teach and train them.

Children have an evil bent in them which makes them take the wrong path.

Ephesians 6:1 - Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.

Ephesians 6:4 - Fathers,^[b] do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.

Deuteronomy 6:6-7 - These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.

God says, take my Word, learn it, put it into practice and teach your children while sitting, walking, lying down and all the time.

The main responsibility is in the parents’ hands but not with the school teachers and Sunday School teachers. In different situations, draw them to God all the time. Pursue the right beliefs and right behaviour all the time.

Teach them to greet one another and respect one another.

It is hard work and not a one-time event. It is for life. As they grow, different things need to be addressed at different stages in life.

4.     Discipline them.

If children are not disciplined, they grow wild. We are instructed by God to discipline our children.

Proverbs 19:18 - Discipline your children, for in that there is hope; do not be a willing party to their death.

Proverbs 13:24 - Whoever spares the rod hates their children, but the one who loves their children is careful to discipline them.

Discipline is love.

Hebrews 12:7 - Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their fathers?

As parents, we love our children in different ways. One of the ways to discipline them is sometimes to spank** them. This should never be in anger. Before you discipline them, make sure that they understand the instruction given and how they have disobeyed. (**Spanking is to be used very rarely, in extreme cases of disobedience and one spank on the bottom is enough. We do not encourage spanking once the child is over 8 years of age, or in very rare cases). We do a whole training on bringing up children so this is just skimming the surface.

Always, discipline them in private but not in public. Don’t feel embarrassed to take them aside and discipline them.

All these responsibilities help our children to become :

1.     Respectful

1 Timothy 3:4 - He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him, and he must do so in a manner worthy of full^[a] respect. 

1 Peter 2:17 - Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.

Teach your children to greet everyone and be respectful. They will keep forgetting and it is our job to keep reminding them. Teach them how to behave when they are  in other people's homes and in public places. 

2.     Responsive

Luke 2:51 - Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But his mother treasured all these things in her heart.

Jesus obeyed his parents. 

The goal for obedience is to say just once and the children would immediately listen and follow. That’s the goal. It may not happen immediately and needs training.

3.     Responsible

We must give them age-appropriate responsibilities.

2 books can really help parenting – Strong-willed child and Dare to Discipline by James Dobson.

We must realize that we cannot change the hearts of our children. We are like farmers. We sow, water, and care for them but the change comes from God. We must be faithful in loving them, providing for them, training them, teaching them, disciplining them and leading a godly example. It is hard work but if we are consistent, the rewards are great.

Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again),  Spirit-filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English-speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that has people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service.  Word of Grace is part of a wider international family of Churches called RegionsBeyond.To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org.   

Gifts of the Holy Spirit Part 4

This message was preached at Word Of Grace Church on February 13th 2022  by Colin D'Cruz via zoom. For the audio & video please click here.  To listen to the worship please click here.

 Gifts of the Holy Spirit - Part 4

When you come to Jesus Christ what happens is that your sins are forgiven. We are in fellowship with Jesus, in fellowship with His people. And we are seeking His will seeking His word and say, Lord. What do you want me to do today? How can I serve you? How can I please you? And that is what salvation is all about. And when we are filled with the Holy Spirit, we are immersed in the Holy Spirit, which adds a new dimension to our Christian lives. Previously we were powerless and weak. But with the Holy Spirit, as Jesus said, you will receive power. And this power comes in the form of many different gifts. Remember the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came upon disciples and they were all filled with the spirit. They spoke in tongues, they prophesied, they praised God. This morning, I'm going to do one section of them.  I'd like to just share a few things to remind us about the gifts of the Spirit.

1)These gifts are given for a purpose

1Corinthians 12:7 -Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 

All these verses on the gifts are found in 1st Corinthians, chapter 12 and Romans chapter 12 primarily. The purpose of the gifts is to advance God's kingdom to bless the body, it's not for me to show off. 

2) The source of the gifts is the holy spirit.

 1Corinthians 12:11-  All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.

 We don't deserve the gifts. They are Grace gifts that are given to us. It's the Holy Spirit who gives us gifts just as he determines. We've got to recognize them. 

3) These gifts are diverse. They are very different from one another.

1 Corinthians, 12: 14-Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.

Paul is showing us here that just as our human bodies are made up of many parts, So also Christ's spiritual body. The church is made up of many, diverse parts. 

We need to value one another's diversity and differences.

4)There is a divine order.

1 Corinthians 12:18 -But in fact, God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 

God has arranged every one of them just as he wanted them to. God has placed you here for a purpose.

5) Eagerly desire the greater gifts.

1 Corinthians 12:31-Now eagerly desire the greater gifts.

 

There are some gifts given to us and we can desire other gifts as well, but we can't demand them. It's up to the Holy Spirit to give them to us. So, whatever gift, God has given you, your responsibility is to discover that gift. Not just to discover it, but to value the gift and then develop it. 

 

How can I take that gift to a higher level? What can I do to grow that gift? We have to be faithful to that. Because our faithfulness will be rewarded. And when we use them, there's a supernatural Grace and blessing upon it to dispense. We are all called to operate in these gifts. If your gift is Prophecy, you are encouraged to seek God and prophesy. You may not have the gift of healing, but you are encouraged to pray for healing for people. We're all called to give and we're all called to serve.

So today we will look at the administrative gifts. Now there are many classifications of gifts, some people categorize them into two-three classifications some into two some into five. We've got five or six different classifications.

 

 So, we're looking this morning at the administrative gifts. The first administrative, gift, I picked up is the gift of service.

 

1)Gift of service

Romans chapter 12: 6,7-We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your^[a] faith; ⁷ if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach

   

We have different gifts according to the grace given us. So this gift is a gift of Grace. You don't deserve it. I don't deserve it. God in his goodness is giving you a gift.

 1 Peter 4:10-Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 

 

The Greek word for service is DIKONIA which means deacons or one that serves at the table or it's the word ministry as well. 

 

The little gift that comes along with serving is the gift of helps.

 

1 Corinthians 12:28-And God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance, and of different kinds of tongues.

 Romans12:6,7-We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your^[a] faith; ⁷ if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; ⁸ if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead,^[b] do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

Some people have a more public Ministry, for example, preaching, or worship and standing up in front of a crowd and doing all that. But for many, the ministry and the calling is not so much a public thing, but for behind the scenes, Now, which is important? Both are important. And we see this clearly in Acts chapter 6. 

 

This is God's plan that he gives different gifts to you. We don't choose which gift we get. God gives it to us and what we are responsible for is to be faithful with it.

You may think serving on tables,  serving the Biryani, washing the dishes-that sounds like a menial task. But even for this task that the world would consider menial, God has qualifications- men full of the spirit, full of wisdom, full of faith, full of the Holy Spirit. Even that waiting on the table required the Holy Spirit. And the result of this was the word of God spread and the number of disciples in Jerusalem, increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith. 

 

So don't sit on your gift. But you gotta say: Lord, how can I use my gift? And the second thing to remember is that this gift that needs to be used, needs to be used in conjunction with the local church. There are no solo gifted people here that you know, your hand may be very talented. But if it's not connected to the body, it's useless. I want to exhort each one of you to find out what your gift is and use it. 

 

Revelation.2:19

I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did at first.

What I like to say is even the service that we do, even a cup of cold water to somebody is, does not go unnoticed by God. These gifts of serving and helps -enables us to serve others, and especially serve those whose ministries and gifts are more public. People with these gifts are not seeking recognition of their position in the spotlight. They just want to help out and they are content serving in the back knowing that their contribution will bless the church. 

2)Gift of teaching.

This gift is found in Romans 12, where Paul says, in verse 7.

If it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 

 1 Corinthians, 12 : 28-And God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance, and of different kinds of tongues.

Ephesians 4: 11-So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers

 Teachers are the people who are able to instruct others from the Bible in a logical and systematic way. They can communicate pertinent information for true understanding and growth. This gift is a very important gift and it carries a heavy responsibility. The church. In fact, in James chapter 3 verse 1. If you have a gift of teaching.-you have a deep desire for God's word. You love to read the word and you have the ability to communicate it with people. . 

We're all called to teach and admonish one another. The same gift there are different spheres that of operation. Some people are called to preach before thousands and teach before thousands. Others may be called to teach and preach in a smaller setting. 

 

 3) Gift of administration:

  We see that in First Corinthians 12:28

And God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance, and of different kinds of tongues.

This word Administration comes from a Greek word that refers to steering or guiding. It refers to a captain of a ship. And the idea is to guide or direct a group of people towards a goal.  With this gift, the Holy Spirit enables- a chance to organize, direct and implement plans to lead others in the various ministries of the church. This kind of person loves tasks. They have a to-do list. They can write that down, they can plan, they can prioritize and they like to do it. 

4) Gift of leadership:

 This is found in Romans 12;8.

if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead,^[b] do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

 This gift of leadership is closely connected to the gift of administration, and also the gift of the pastoring or the shepherding. This word leadership means - to assist, to protect, to care for others. The difference between the gift of administration and the gift of leadership is the gift of administration is mainly focused on doing tasks, doing things. Well, a gift of leadership, is more focused on people. So it's building people up, helping people move along. etc 

The holy spirit gives a spiritual gift of leadership to some people in the church to care for God's people and lead them into a deeper relationship with Christ and with each other. It's helping people grow in your spiritual walk with Jesus and the way they lead could be through teaching and preaching but with a deep concern for the well-being of others. Often people with the gift of leadership are more Visionary. They can see the big picture. But they are less concerned with the details. They often need the help of good administrators and people with the gift of service and help to take that vision and make it happen.

1, Timothy chapter 3 :4 ,5- He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him, and he must do so in a manner worthy of full^[a] respect. ⁵ (If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?) 

So in the church, the leadership gift is there, but we start by Leading our own family.

 

5)The Gift of giving or generosity. 

Romans 12:8

if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead,^[b] do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

The holy spirit gives this gift to summon the church to meet the various needs of the church and its ministries and missionaries. These are great gifts and you want to use what he has blessed you to be a blessing in the Kingdom. Typically, we look for people who are in need and will be generous. But they'll go out of the way and lookout for ways to seek out others and help others. And sometimes what this involves is cutting down their lifestyle, adjusting their lifestyles, in order to be able to give more to spread the gospel, to care for the needy.

 So I would encourage you this morning. God does not want us to increase our standard of living but our standard of giving.  

 

6)The gift of encouraging 

Romans 12 :8

if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead,^[b] do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

 

The Greek word for encourager is a similar word to the Holy Spirit, the Parakleet. So you're coming alongside someone with words of encouragement, comfort, consolation council and to help them be strong in God and help them be all God wants to be. This is a spiritual gift of exhortation. What we're doing is helping people who may be depressed, o down or going through a difficult situation. 

 

7) Gift of Mercy. 

Romans 12:8

if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead,^[b] do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

 

What is it mean to be merciful? It means that we are sensitive towards those who are suffering, whether physically, mentally, emotionally. They feel genuine sympathy with your misery and they can speak words of compassion and they can care for them with deeds of love to alleviate the stress. Now all Christians are called to be merciful. But there are some people who have this Supernatural Gift of Mercy that just enables them to be with people who are suffering and to communicate the love of God and the grace of God. 

 Romans 12:15- Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 

Galatians 6:2 - Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way, you will fulfil the law of Christ.

 Another part of being merciful is they're good listeners. It is just able to sit down and listen to people as they unburden themselves. 

 

 We've looked at all these different gifts. Ephesians 2:10 says

For we are God's workmanship created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

God has called us to do good works means you can use your gifts and the name of Jesus would spread throughout this world and the needs of people would be met.

So, I want to encourage you this morning. Will you spend time with the Lord and ask the Lord, what is my gift? If you need some help, come and speak to one of your leaders.  And we will be happy to guide you and help you with that. 

Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again),  Spirit-filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that has people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service.  Word of Grace is a part of a wider international family of Churches called RegionsBeyond.To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org.