The Mystery and Mission of the Church, Part 3

Today with JD Greer if you want Christ to work in your life you got no right asking for the power go to work in your life. No right to ask the power of God.

If you have separated yourself means really involved in church were hurt by a congregation or maybe Sunday mornings are busy and it's hard to make out the door maybe tried it and it just didn't do anything for them and I gave that this is describe you. Is it okay to just listen to a sermon online and go about your day is it really any different than actually going to church yesterday, Greer answers that question today on Summit life continues our study in Ephesians chapters 2 and three titled this message history and mission of the church is a little read this passage Paul talks about the nature of the purpose of the church try to answer four questions. First question is why we should be involved in the church. The second question is how involved we should be in the church and the third question is what the mission of the church is full of your quotations about offer for you revisions to verse 11. Therefore, remember that one time you Gentiles in the flesh you were separated from Christ and you were alienated from the commonwealth of Israel you like Commonwealth. Once Virginia got to do with this was a Commonwealth anyway but don't get caught up on that word. The important thing is, will be important thing first. What is what it says in verse 12 it to be separated from Israel was to be separated from Christ, you Ephesians, Paul says you Americans for that matter. You are part of the separated alien nations. You are verse 12 strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world now. This is crucial to everything poles about the tell Paul is reminding them that they were people who were outsiders with no in this perspective was to form how they think about all of their relationships. Verse 13 but now in Christ Jesus you who were once far off have been brought nearby the blood of Christ, for he himself is our peace was made us both one is broken down in the flesh in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility, how by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, thus making peace and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross thereby killing the hostility, the walls of hostility got torn down between Christians because the work of Jesus shows us that humanity has a common problem. Sin there's one problem of man and it supersedes race, religion, gender, education, and even political persuasion, and that problem is sin, and the solution to that problem is the substitutionary death of Jesus Christ for all. What none of us could do for ourselves in Jesus blood cleanses us all alike. Furthermore, when Jesus rose from the dead. See, this was 15 he created in his resurrection get this a whole new race of humanity till it's over 50, he created in himself one new man out of the two.

In other words, if you are in Christ, your identity is not primarily as a white man or a black man or a Hispanic you are a new race of man in Christ. Verse 18 you see that through him we got access with one spirits to the following at once. The runs through all of us and it's like a common blood that runs through the veins of our body. Verse 19 so that then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints.

Paul uses three analogies for the church and each one gets more intimate than the last.

First of all your citizens. One thing but he says members of the household of God for that phrase is as you like family, your brothers and sisters with one daddy verse 20 dear built on. Here's your third analogy, it's like a building is more connected. Your citizens want kingdom. Actually your brothers and sister actually like bricks that are cemented together. People develop this last analogy is as we're bricks in a building built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone in whom the whole structure being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord and him you will also be built together into a dwelling place for God by the spirits. Also, all Christians have three things in, he does it. One, they have a common source of righteousness. Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of their acceptance before God. Secondly, they have a common foundation of truth to phrase the apostles and the prophets reference to the Bible is the last thing they have in common is they got a common purpose. Pulses all Christians everywhere are built together as a dwelling place by God for the spirits. Why must we be a part of the church. Your analogy church members like Apollo bricks that we put together are a temple for God's Spirit dwells north this in the same way get this.

None of us are complete in Christ without one another because it is only by being a part of the body of Christ that I will experience the fullness of Christ. That means two things every day.

If you want to know Christ. You must be intimately connected to his body. The Spirit dwells in the whole body, not in any one part of the system except three. So that through the church. Paul says the manifold wisdom of God might be made to manifold manifold just means multi folds or multifaceted. I've experienced some things by Christ in my life that you have not experience and there's a big you've experienced about Christ that I have not experienced because it is only you have been through some things on the ribbon through and you can give me a picture of Christ that I cannot understand on my own and it's only by knowing you that I know Jesus. See the fact that God's Spirit inhabits his church also means that if you want God to work in your life. You gotta be a part of church. A lot of people try to pray to God to help him with something in their life and it's like they expect God to stop him from heaven, but that's what God does.

You pray it pictures your sap. Let's plan a do that well I guess you go get some help from the church present. We got a couple that struggling in their marriage. Many God's help, click pray and ask God to help them in their marriage. Now God could just stop him from heaven and also may come home one day it all cheery and selfless and loving God didn't do that well then I guess they could be a small group with a long godly relationship patterns brothers are able speak into their lives, and supportive. But that's plan be nearly as good as God's out for you guys struggling with alcoholism or a lust addiction so he prays to God for help. God help me what's God to sap them from heaven with the Holy Ghost taser gun were suddenly he just loses all those desires and is not God didn't do that. Maybe get involved in some Chrysler ministry at the church where guys can support him and speaking of his life. Do you plan a is God saps you like that exciting stuff. Plan B is that you use the church. Here's the revolutionary truth. The church is plan.

The church is the means by which God spirit does his work is where he dwells in Ephesians 210 said that for each of us. God had predestined good works for us to do some of the good works that God is predestined for me to do part in your life if you are not here. You cannot participate in the good works that God has predestined for me to do in you and you got good work you got is predestined for you to do in me and in others. And if you are not here other people and benefit of the good work you got is predestined for you to do. You get what I'm saying if you want Christ to work in your life you have your part of the church.

If I miss my son offensive.

I would like this message and try to rephrase everything to his maximally offensive you got no right asking for the power of God to work in your life. No right to ask for the power of God. If you have separated yourself from the means of that power. If you been at this church for a while and you just refused to get involved asking God for help in your life because you want I give you my power.

If you separated yourself from the means of the power to save your spouse I want sex with not only the relationship stuff to the church is plan. Hey, this is where my power goes through.

I predestined different people to be the conduits of Mark, the second question.

That is how involved should we be in the church based on what I said to you a better way to phrase the question is this how involved you want Christ to be in your life. That's the better question humbled you be in the church will rephrase it humbled. You will Christ be in your life or how well do you want to know Christ there's you that are on the sidelines. You are only experiencing French what God wants you to know what the mission of the church is what is the mission of the church in light of all that we said how God is glorified by the salvation of a wide diversity of people's listen. Our mission has to be to bring into one body. People of vastly different backgrounds to worship Jesus.

And that means that our church has to reflect a widely diverse people. God is not glorified by a big audience of white people watching and entertaining show together how big it is all black people are always better people. We really think God nobody so impressed as we are 4000 people come to our church glorifying to God or that impressive what God glorifies God is with people who otherwise have little in common, come together as brothers and sisters and one body, and that means working to do some things at this church listen to me that some of you not necessarily comfortable with things that I'm not couple with either people at the searchlight of the notices they think that because I'm the pastor that the way we do church is exactly according to my preferences. Okay, I'm at the top of the food chain so I could church well one of your top food chain you could will that got there's a lot of things we do here that I actually been there. Some other styles that I prefer that we always necessarily do here because the point is not my preferences are your preferences. The point is what is it take to bring people were not connected to got into this church for worship teams.

That's only half joking, and I was joking about was using to note that of mass hysteria suites Raleigh-Durham and on Tuesday, everybody wakes up with a craving and a mad desire for bluegrass music you got three weeks to pull together a bluegrass worship said in a start doing that on Sundays because it has nothing to do what I want. That's the filter is not what I like what you like. What brings in the lost.

There's a lot of things I might prefer to do differently don't come to me was going to say straight do not come to me and tell me what you like or do not like. I do not care. I am not going to listen and nod my head and be thinking about something else unless you and I believe in you coming like this caused me to come to Jesus that might listen.

If you're believers got references. I don't care to listen to and read the complaint, I'm sorry. I'm just so I complained to me one time slot group counseling right on the your canceling so many complained one time that there were enough black people in our church. I totally agreed with that same person said to me a few weeks later that they didn't like it when we do all the songs were people put their hands in the air and stand up and clap like have you ever been to apply church black people come in here and act like there you means that if we are to be the kind of church need to be means you have the leg or preferences on the grounds and I want to talk about care is not my preferences were yours is what's it take to engage the lost community of Raleigh-Durham. It also means that many of us need to make as our personal mission in life, bringing in the church. Those people that are most far from God real quick clinical quickly. Do you a little bit from next chapter were Paul puts us in a practice. What's this for this reason I Paul prisoner for crises on behalf of you Gentiles, assuming that you have heard of the stewardship of God's grace that was given to me for you. This gospel I was made a minister to bring the light for everyone. What is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages. A God who created all things.

This was according verse 11 to the eternal purpose that he realized in Christ Jesus our Lord in whom we now have boldness.

So I ask you not to lose heart worm suffering for you is what I want you to notice for Maggie shooting touch anything. Paul arranged his life mission, according to God's eternal mission execution notes. Paul arranged his life mission, according to God's eternal mission.

So even when things look rough like when Paul is writing this. He's in prison. He says I got boldness because I know the mission of God. I know how committed. God is to bring it about in Paul arranged his life mission, his life mission, according to God's eternal mission, and we, like Paul have to understand, get this, the eternal mission of God and how committed. God is to bring in that mission about and then we watched this like Paul have to arrange our lives around that mission present before I got a special place in my heart right now for those areas of our community that seem to be the most far from God almost offers prisoners on my mother's products.

Okay, I place my heart for this because I know that the far from God and I knew that God wants us our people to be involved significantly in their lives as possible to go about doing some of the stuff, but I know how committed yes I have boldness because Paulette boldness and we both got boldness, me and Paul and you got boldness because we know what God's eternal mission is Hudson Taylor said mission. There are three stages to anything God wants to do impossible difficult done. I know it's it's possible it's like this guy was to arrange our mission around God's mission. I want some of you to step out in boldness and share Christ with somebody who is very far from God that he was extremely close to Christianity because you know that that's just the kind of things that God does is he takes people far from him and brings them into the church as a display of his grace and you have under there are still many people in other nations in other cultures that are very far from God, and I know that God's purposes is to bring them to know worship you. There are 16,349 people groups in the world, a people group is a group to speak the common language of the common culture. This at least 10,000 people bit of the 16,349 different people groups 6647 of them qualify as unreached unreached means that there less than 2% Christian and there's no Christian movement in the country of those watches. 6647 unreached people groups 1662 of them or in dates. Which means that not even one Christian is 14 them to see the gospel take root and no Christian is ever worked in them and I know it is God's purpose to bring these people into the church and I what many of you, especially college students to arrange your life mission around that mission today make up about 1.8 billion people in the world this if you put those people in a line with arms like this is between wrap around the equator 25 times. Can you imagine seeing a line of people 25 thick. As far as the eye could see that her marching steadfastly straight into hell I want that fish you want to move you day and night. Today, to date this Sunday over 12,000 kids in Africa and India will die of malnutrition or hunger -related disease turn to see God's love brought to them and go forward with confidence because you know that's what God wants. What is mission is also you girls say maybe I should go to waste places a star in orphanages and helps these kids get adopted by Christian parents, some of you say yeah I'm an engineer, but instead of graduating college and use my engineer to make a ton of money. I want to use it to serve the kingdom of God go to one of these countries and help see the gospel before I'm a medical student on the use my medicine to make a ton of money.

Only use it to serve the purpose of the gospel. I'm a teacher I will plant myself in a place where they're not believers only get letters for the next 35 years that this will mingle most of the pastor 35 years, get letters in different once you like in your church.

I learned to burn for what God was doing in those places around the world were farther from him and now I'm here.

I've seen people come to know Christ use the word stewardship stewardship means a particular task given to him pulsating light of the eternal purposes of God. I got a special assignment. I want you to figure out what your stewardship is in light of the eternal purposes of God. All of you been given a job in one day all of you are going to have to stand before God and answer how you personally furthered the mission as we know this is God's will talk about finding God's will think I told you it's not lost. You only to find this is what God is doing what are you going to have to offer to God in the final day of how you further that mission never heard a voice telling me to go to. Millie says you will need a voice universe in verses are better than voices so challenge the students give the two years after you graduate.

His first two years sort of tongue-in-cheek. Not really, unless you heard from God.

Otherwise you plan on spending two years after you graduate somewhere overseas two years now a lot of you and it's not for everybody because God has given you something or told you some, but of God hasn't told you clearly your punishment two years see what God is doing this places around the world are frauds from unknown got a call you all, but in light of what God's eternal purposes are: number is elastic missile. These are all just paper summarizing what is a what don't you take away for today. What I'm asking from you.

The implications in one be very active in the church so you to get the small group need to get a ministry team you get off the sidelines and get in the gate. It's time.

Number two need to be open to other styles that are not like you. Number three you need to connect with others here who are not like you youth pastor who said that we never got a high school and high school you go to lunch or music with people that are like events which small groups are now my challenges for some of you to say I want to be part of a group of people just like me. People of different ages, people of different cultures and let the body of Christ ministry number four. Reach out to others far from God. I want to challenge you to pray about these five areas that I put in front of you and reach out to people are far from God.

Five. Consider going to the unreached people groups start saving up your money or giving your money so that others can go some version guys are not Christians here. I know we are such representations. Here's what I want you here were a group of people who have experience God. God has loved us, even one God has forgiven us and saved us from all kinds of different backgrounds. I Jesus's call was radical. Give yourself away to the greatest kind of your light from the perspective of eternity mission.

We should jump on board for your listening to pastor Jeannie Greer on Summit life to hear today's program again or to download the free message transcript. Visit us online@jdgreer.com gain greater clarity into the mystery of God's love, we created an exclusive new resource based on our current study here on the program. It's a personal Bible study called mystery and clarity. The book of Ephesians interactive questions in insightful commentaries will help you walk. Verse by verse through the book of Ephesians. Plus, we've included Scripture memory this time to help solidify those truths in your heart.

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