Care & Share logo

Care and Share resource added to The Rooftop Academy

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Care & Share logo

The Rooftop International is pleased to announce the completion of the Care and Share equipping resource to The Rooftop Academy.

Across the world there are many Christians that engage in caring ministries but never share their faith with those that they caring for. This may be in food banks, provision of clothing or helping with any number of practical needs.  On the other hand there are many churches who focus on preaching the gospel but do not serve and care for those outside of the church. Care and Share equips Christians to engage in genuine care among those beyond the walls of the church and. at the same time, encourages them to receive the passion and confidence to share the good news of Jesus with those that they are caring for.

Care and Share can be downloaded from The Rooftop Academy.

New steps forward for The Rooftop Espanol

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Over the past few weeks there have been significant steps forward with The Rooftop ministry among Spanish-speaking churches in the US and there are many new opportunities for the ministry in Latin America.

Dennis Pethers, the International Pioneer writes:

“So much progress is being made among Hispanic churches—over the past few weeks we have completed the filming of the core teaching for The Rooftop in Spanish. This teaching is delivered by Josue Castro, now living in Arizona. In addition we have had the opportunity to connect with and preach at many churches in Arizona, Los Angeles and Dallas.

Perhaps most exciting of all is to see the way that each time I had the opportunity to preach in churches and challenge Christians to Join Jesus in His Mission, the response was so encouraging as people teemed forward and cried out to the Lord, asking Him to give them a fresh vision of His heart for lost people.  Each time there was a tangible sense of the presence of God as he ministered to those who had responded.  I long for a global awakening and it is always a thrill to see this taking place piece-by-piece.

As a result of connecting with many Hispanic churches in the US, there are now many opportunities opening in countries across Latin America—praise God!”

Dennis will be in Panama from 7–9th May presenting the vision of The Rooftop to pastors from across Panama City.

These Bones Can Live

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The Rooftop movement is connecting with churches across the world and encouraging Christians to ‘Join Jesus in His Mission’. Recently Dennis Pethers, the International Pioneer was speaking at New Hope Baptist Church in Mt Juliet Tennesee—his sermon title ‘Can these bones live’.  The message was simple and direct: as we look at our own lives and the huge challenges facing the church in these days we can so easily give up on the hope that things could ever change for the better. In the midst of a seemingly hopeless situation, Ezekiel obeyed God and something amazing happened—dry bones lived! At the end of the message there was a remarkable response as many came to the front of the church in obedience to the word of God and in surrender to the Holy Spirit.

As The Rooftop movement continues across the world we are convinced that the best days for the gospel are in the future, there is hope—these bones can live.

Stay on Mission – 30th April 2018

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3. Dare to!
Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear.
It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. Philippians 1:12-18
Staying on Mission with Jesus is not the ‘safe’ option for life, in fact, the opposite is true! Sadly, the result of this is that many who say that they follow Jesus opt for a life that has ‘Jesus in it’ but avoids the challenges that would come if we really joined Him in His Mission. We don’t dare to talk about Jesus because of what it may cost us.
Put very simply, we often choose not to talk to others about Jesus because it is a lot easier not too!
Paul, writing from his prison cell, did not live his Christian life in that way! His perspective is entirely different. He writes:
And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear.
Repeatedly, in this letter, Paul talks about the joy and rejoicing that he has because the gospel is being preached. And in this verse, there is a glimpse of what causes him to rejoice. He is in prison in chains and yet this, far from preventing the gospel from being shared, is having the opposite effect. Other Christians, who ‘because’ they have seen the absolute commitment that Paul has to the gospel, are trusting in the Lords power, as opposed to their own weakness and, in Paul’s words now ‘dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear’.
I find that expression hugely motivating and challenging and long for a time when the church will be made up of people who ‘dare all the more’! What I love about this is the picture it paints in my mind of people who are growing more and more confident in the Lord. People who are stepping further and further away from the comfort zone that lies within the walls that have been erected as a result of fear! A people who are becoming daring, who, when they get knocked down get back up and dare some more. A people who are so in love with Jesus that bringing glory to him is a far greater motivation than the fear that so often prevents them.

I am not writing from a prison cell as Paul did but I want to encourage you to do what those that he writs about did. This week, for the sake of Jesus and His mission ‘dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear’.
Dennis

Stay on Mission – 23rd April 2018

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1. Compelled
Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear.
It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. Philippians 1:12-18
Last time we looked at the motivation that people have for sharing the gospel and reflected upon the fact that many do this for selfish ambition. Surprisingly, the apostle Paul was prepared to overlook this because it was more important that the gospel was being preached.
Paul’s response to this tells us something very important about his purpose, what he understood to be his ‘reason for living’. Elsewhere in the letters that he wrote to the churches we gain an even clearer picture.
To the church in Corinth he wrote:
For when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, since I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! 1 Corinthians 9:16
Just a few verses later in this letter to the Philippians, he writes:
For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. Philippians 1:21-24
There is little doubt that Paul understood that the only reason he did not want to leave this life was because God wanted him to remain and preach the gospel. He does not take any credit for this and present himself as a great Christian, he says that he is ‘compelled’ – there is nothing in this life that is as important to Paul as preaching the gospel.
How unrecognizable the church would be if the many millions of people who attend services every week were similarly compelled!
How many people in the sphere of your world would hear about Jesus if you were compelled?
Jesus made it abundantly clear that following Him and joining Him in His mission was not the ‘easy’ option that allows us to live lives with ourselves at the center while being grateful that we are saved!
This week, I challenge you to spend time with the Lord and read the gospel accounts of Jesus’ sacrifice for your sin and the sins of the people that are in your world. Ask Him to set your heart on fire!
Dennis

Stay on Mission – 16th April 2018

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1. Motives
Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear.
It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. Philippians 1:12-18
I remember when I first became a Christian from a completely ‘Never Churched’ background that there were some passages in scripture that surprised me, and this passage from Philippians was one of them. Paul writes to the church in Philippi, a church that fills him with so much joy because of their partnership in the gospel and, as he writes from a prison cell, he says: The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.
It surprised me so much when I first read these words, I thought ‘how could anybody preach Christ with a false motive!
Last week I was meeting with a group of leaders to discuss how they may use The Rooftop process to reach students across the campus of their university. As I was introduced by the leader, he said: ‘Before you arrived Dennis we were trying to decide how famous you are’, they then began to mention names of Christian leaders that I was perhaps more or less famous than.
As they were doing this in a very light-hearted way, I found two things happening inside of me. One was more ‘noble’ I genuinely wanted to say to them ‘It is an utterly irrelevant thing to be discussing, the only person that we should want to be well known is Jesus’. As much as I felt that I also had the feeling that these young people were assessing how valuable I was in the Kingdom. They weren’t doing that but I found my defense mechanisms beginning to click in!
Like every other Christian on the planet there is always a little, or sometimes even a lot of ‘me’ in the things that I do for the Lord and I am so grateful to Him that more often than not he uses me in spite of me.
My prayer is repeatedly something like: ‘Lord help me to make you known through the life that I live and the words that I speak’ – maybe this is a prayer that you could focus on this week – let’s make Him our motive!
Dennis

Stay on Mission – 9th April 2018

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Discipleship 4 – ‘Exchange’
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done. Matthew 16:23-27

In the famous story of Aladdin and the lamp the wicked merchant tries to trick Aladdin by offering ‘new lamps for old’. He wants the ‘magic’ lamp so he offers a brand new one to replace it in the hope that Aladdin will be tempted and deceived.
His motives were self-centred and power seeking but the phrase ‘new lamps for old’ is, I find, a helpful way of thinking about what it means to become a disciple of Jesus and Join Him in His Mission. As I mentioned last time, Jesus doesn’t offer us an ‘improved life’ he offers us a new life. He doesn’t add to the life we have, He asks us to exchange our life for the gift of eternal life. This means that we have to be willing to ‘give up the old life’ so that we can receive the new – it is a replacement, not an addition! He offers ‘New life for old’.
As Jesus says: For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.
I find these to be hugely challenging words because it is so tempting to want to live my life, in my way, where I decide what I will or will not do and then, have the bonus of a relationship with Jesus who is always there to provide what I need when things don’t work out. I think this is what Jesus is referring to when He says ‘whoever wants to ‘save’ their life. He is addressing a trait that exists in all of us – self interest! His stark warning is that if we only want Him in our life to make it better than we will not receive the life He wants to give us.
He says we must ‘lose’ our life so that we can truly ‘find’ it. But please note the two critically important words that Jesus uses regarding the ‘losing’ of our life, He says, whoever loses their life for me.
As the Apostle Paul writes:
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation: The old has gone, the new is here! 2 Corinthians 5:17
The OLD is a me-centred life, the NEW is a Christ centered life!
If we are to join Jesus in His Mission we must receive the new life that He wants to give to us. We must not simply ask Him into our lives, rather we must give our lives to him ‘lock, stock and barrel’! Everything!!
This week, as you consider how you will live for Jesus, ensure that you take some time to give Him any of the things that you are holding onto – ‘New life for old’ – what an exchange!
Dennis

Stay on Mission – 2nd April 2018

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Discipleship 3 – ‘Ambition’
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done. Matthew 16:23-27
Where I live, in the UK, there isn’t a day, or even a moment that goes by where there isn’t some company or other who is trying to persuade me to buy something or do something that they are trying to sell. TV, Radio, Internet, roadside billboards are just a few of the ways that are used to present me with the encouragement to ‘buy’ what is being sold because it will be so good for me and add so much to my life and make it so much better!
It is tempting, when living in a world that offers us ‘a better life’ to see the offer of life that Jesus gives to be the same, a positive addition to my life which makes it better than it was before. ‘Receiving Jesus’ then becomes a decision to improve my life and make it better.
The words Jesus uses do not make this an option! He doesn’t talk about us inviting Him in to improve our lives, rather He says with absolute clarity ‘For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.’
Jesus doesn’t offer us the bonus of a better life that is somehow added to our life. He calls us to lay down our life and give it all to Him, not to hold on to our selfish desires and ambitions but to make Him our greatest desire and ambition.
The Apostle Paul wrote in Philippians chapter 1:21- 23
“For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two”
For Paul, to die was gain and the purpose of His life here was ‘fruitful labor’ – Jesus was the desire and ambition of his whole life. He was torn between entering into eternity with Christ or to continue in this life with Christ as the object of all that he was. Such a person can be used by God to complete the mission of Jesus because Jesus is their ambition, not an ‘improved life’ but a whole new life that is received in exchange for a life that is laid down!
This week, as you reflect upon Jesus words: ‘For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.’
Please consider this question: ‘Is Jesus my ambition?’
Dennis

Stay on Mission – 19th March 2018

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Discipleship 2 – ‘Surrender’
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done. Matthew 16:23-27
If we are to join Jesus in His mission it must begin with obedience to Him! But this obedience is not a ‘one-off’ moment that secures our salvation and then leaves us free to live the rest of our lives following our own wants, dreams and desires. This act of obedience should be the first step in a life that is now continually surrendered to Jesus as Lord.
The Apostle Paul puts it like this:
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Gal 2:20
It is tempting to read a scripture like this and attempt to explain it away by saying something like “well that was the Apostle Paul, and he was a really important Christian who God used in remarkable ways”. As plausible as this may sound, especially if it helps us to feel that the same deep commitment is not required from us, the words that Jesus spoke in the passage from Matthew make it clear that this life of obedience, serving a new master, is not just for ‘Super-Christians’.
Jesus said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me”.
The first word in this statement takes away our hiding place and leaves us exposed to the call of Jesus to ‘whoever’ wants to be His disciple!
It could not be more plain! Every person who wants to be Jesus’ disciples must deny self, take up their cross and follow Him.
Joining Jesus in His Mission requires a life of surrender to Jesus because, put at its simplest, it is often easier to ‘not follow Him’ when things get a little tough.
We are all surrounded by people who need to hear about Jesus but, it is much easier for us not to witness!
We are all surrounded by people who need to be loved and served, but it is much more convenient for us not to serve.
I confess that as I write these words I am deeply challenged by them myself. So, I ask both me and you: As opportunities arise to join Jesus in His mission this week will we deny self and be prepared to ‘die to our desire for comfort and ease’ so that others may come to know more about the one who loved us and gave Himself for us?
Dennis

Stay on Mission – 12th March 2018

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Discipleship 1 – ‘Obedience’
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done. Matthew 16:23-27
If we are to join Jesus in His Mission it is imperative that we obey His frequently repeated call ‘Follow me’. Over the next few weeks I will be l looking at the vital need there is for true discipleship to be rediscovered in our own lives and in the life of the church across the world. I am convinced that this will be critical if we are truly to Join Jesus in His mission and make disciples of people who are beyond the walls of the church.
The words of Jesus are quite clear:
“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me”.
As we consider these words I will be reflecting on how these were worked out in the life of Peter. It is important to say that neither Peter, or any of the 12 that followed Jesus during His earthly ministry are ‘super disciples’. Each person that follows Jesus as a disciple is required to be a dedicated follower. By considering the life of Peter as a disciple, I am not suggesting that he is a ‘model’ disciple rather that the things he experienced are likely to be faced by all who truly follow Jesus and Join Him in His Mission. Peter had to be a disciple so that he could be sent out to make disciples. This is just as true for each of us!
For Peter, it began at the outset of Jesus public ministry:
As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” At once they left their nets and followed him. (Matt 4:18-20)
Has it ever occurred to you how life-changing this moment was for Peter? The scripture paints the picture so naturally: As Jesus was walking beside the sea of Galilee, he saw Peter (and Andrew) and said ‘follow me and I will send you out to fish for people’.
This life-changing challenge was presented by a person that Peter had never met! His response is quite extraordinary as he immediately left his nets and followed Jesus! Everything he had ever known was to be left behind and his whole life was to change out of all recognition. In spite of this he said yes!
Why?
Was he being reckless and crazy? Was the fishing industry in a state of decline and he was seeking a new career opportunity?
The simple, but enormously challenging explanation is, I believe, is a very uncomplicated one. The simple explanation is: ‘Peter was obedient’. For him, this was not an act of self-interest but one of absolute obedience to Jesus. He didn’t do it for what he was going to get out of it, he obeyed Jesus because He was Jesus!
The beginning of Peter’s life of discipleship presents a real challenge to many of us who call ourselves Christians. As I travel I meet so many Christians all over the world and one of the questions that I love to ask them is ‘how did you come to faith?’ The answer that I hear most frequently is something that is very different from Peter’s whole-hearted obedience. It is usually something like:
‘I heard the gospel preached and I didn’t want to go to Hell so I asked Jesus into my life to forgive me for my sins’.
What I am about to say will present a huge challenge to many who are reading this short devotion but it must be said. Many Christians began following Jesus by praying a ‘self-interested prayer’. Not a prayer of absolute obedience but a prayer that would lead to us receiving a gift. My observation is that the church is filled with people who have never obeyed Jesus unconditionally – for the mission of Jesus to happen this must change because there is a cost to following Jesus!
There is so much more that I want to say about this over the coming weeks but, this week, please take some time to read the passage at the beginning of this devotion and reflect on what it means for you to be a true disciple of Jesus.
Dennis