People Spots
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Produced by James W.
Moss, Sr., and Church Consultants
Provided as a service by New Life Ministries
A Declaration of Purpose
by James W. Moss, Sr.The establishment of purpose is the first step in a long-term dream. Every church must decide why it exists. There is, in my opinion, a three-fold biblical reason for the existence of any church.
1. To worship and glorify God
“Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord” (Psalm150:6, NIV).
“These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full” (John 15:11, NIV).
A boy of eight was in church during a worship service. The boy was having some difficulty focusing on the service. A college student was sitting behind him. The student made a funny face for the boy. The boy smiled and let out a quiet chuckle. His mother turned and smacked him. The boy began to cry. His mother said, "Now isn't that better?" Was it really better for the boy to cry than smile in church? What would Jesus want?
Joy is noticeably absent in many worship services. I have been visiting churches since 1977. I have made an average of 150 on-site visits to local churches a year. Joy has been missing. I have wrestled with the absence of joy in the church for a long time. Suddenly, it became apparent. the source of joy is hope. If you take away hope, you destroy joy. What does this mean?
Christians are to be the people of hope, and the resurrection is our source for hope. Because God raised Jesus on the third day, we have cause to celebrate and hope. We shall live because He is alive and well. The Christians who ground their hope in the resurrected Lord will experience hope and joy. Worship each Sunday is a celebration of the God of the resurrection. We worship the giver of the resurrection. We are the people of the resurrection. Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
2. To minister to the needs of our own people
"This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?” (I John 4:16-17, NIV)
It is our God-given responsibility to provide ministry to our own. The Bible clearly defines the relationship between Christians. The church must intentionally help Christians bear responsibility for each other. Paul writes, "Now however, I am on my way to Jerusalem in the service of the saints there" (Romans 15:25, NIV). Paul sensed a strong commitment to serve the saints of the church. His concern must be ours. Paul challenges the church at Rome to accept a new attendee named Phoebe:
"I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been a great help to many people, including me" (Romans 16:2, NIV).
“If I then your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet” (John 13:14, NIV).
When he washed the disciples' feet, Jesus gave a clear example of servant leadership. Greatness dictates service. I will liken society in Jesus' day to a pyramid. The ruler sat at the pinnacle of the pyramid. All the rest of society existed to benefit the ruler. Jesus turned that pyramid upside down and said that one who wishes to be great must become a servant. It is unnatural to desire servitude. Have you ever heard a small child respond, "I want to be a servant when I grow up!"
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Servant leaders put others first. |
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Servant leaders are willing to do menial tasks. |
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Servant leaders set aside personal ambition for the sake of the common good. |
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Servant leaders structure ministry so they might fulfill the call for action and care for the saints. |
Christianity is an action faith—Jesus calls us to practice what we believe. Sue felt called to do visitation, so her church provided training. The church sent Sue to some workshops that helped her do her job better. She made a score of visits with an accomplished visitor. The pastor then gave Sue regular assignments to visit in the homes of members. She carefully reports back on each visit. Sue's supervisor evaluates her visits. The congregation has equipped Sue for servant ministry and is caring for the saints.
George felt called to teach an adult class. His church provided training. A master teacher instructed George on how to design a lesson plan. The Christian Education Committee sent him to special courses on teaching adult classes and the church gave him two books to read on the subject. He observed for six weeks in the class of the best adult teacher in the Sunday School. George then began to substitute teach regularly. A trained evaluator made helpful suggestions. Now George is teaching regularly. His church has equipped him for servant ministry and he is caring for the saints.
Paul urges every church to accept and care for all the saints. For years it was my perception that older existing churches ministered to their own competently. Part of my study shockingly revealed that the churches in my conference had dropped two members for every three received over a period of twenty years. Would this have happened if Christians in these churches had received Phoebe (or other Christians) in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints...."?
3. To win new people to Christ and his church
Peter writes to Christians,
"Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls" (1 Peter 1:8-9, NIV).
Is it Christian to keep salvation to ourselves? Jesus clearly taught that Christians ought to be seeking new converts. "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost” (Luke 19:10, NIV).
Zechariah's inspired prophecy announced Christ's purpose: "To give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins” (Luke 1:77, NIV). Salvation is found in Christ. The Scriptures proclaim salvation is found only in Christ. "Salvation is found in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12, NIV). This creates a tremendous imperative for the work of outreach in the church.
In 1977 a neighbor brought us a gift. She was sure our four-year-old Rebekah needed a kitten of her own! She had in her arms a beautiful gray and white critter with a bobbed tail. Rebekah fell in love with the kitty and named it Penny. We all grew attached to the kitten. In six months we had four kittens. Ten days later Penny was killed by a car. With my wife Gwen feeding them from a bottle, the babies all survived. We chose to keep the kitten that looked like Penny. We named her Butterball because of her round little tummy. After about three years Butterball had two kittens. One was pure white with a bobbed tail like his mother and grandmother. However, we'd had enough of this kitten business. Satin, named of his color, was neutered to eliminate this problem. It worked—we've had no more kittens in the line of Penny, Butterball, and Satin. In fact, Satin is a dead-end, the last of the line. This has become more evident as he has aged and is approaching his demise. Unfortunately, a lot of Christians are like Satin. They are the end of the line. They are Christians because others witnessed to them. Yet, they can't identify another who is a Christian because of their witness.
Which is more important, conservation or outreach? Neither—they have equal value. Which must be done first? Neither—they both must be a part of a ministry strategy for a healthy church. Why does your church exist? Why is it here? Once its purpose is identified, pursue it with vigor.
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Read about Jim's seminars and books.
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July 29, 1998. Volume 1, Issue 10. People Spots Online is prepared by James W. Moss, Sr., and Church Consultants. It is provided as a service by New Life Ministries, www.NewLifeMinistries-NLM.org. Articles may be duplicated and reproduced in any way with proper credit. A new article is produced about every two weeks. To be added to a list to receive these messages directly by e-mail, send a request to churchconsultants@yahoo.com.