‘Don’t be foolish’.
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law. Matthew 7:24-29
The crowds were amazed at Jesus teaching!
There were, I am sure, so many things that Jesus said that caused amazement, but, at the centre of this short story that Jesus told is a deep truth that so many of us can so easily miss.
At the core of this story is this truth: ‘When it comes to what Jesus told us, we have to do it, not just accept that it is true!’
I cannot begin to imagine the number of words that many Christians have heard in sermons but in spite of all that has been heard, what has been ‘put into practice? What have we done?
A few years ago, I was in a gym in Virginia Beach, after I had been there for a few minutes, a man came in wearing his gym gear and headphones – he looked the part! Then he went and sat on the rowing machine, took a fitness magazine out of his pocket and began to read it. He was still sitting in the same place, and reading the same magazine, an hour later when I left. I wondered if he thought that just going to the gym and reading about fitness would make him fit?
Then it struck me – do we do this in church?
I like to go to the gym and the gym I go to near where I live, like so many others, has pictures and words on every wall, all of which are intended to encourage gym-users to work hard and achieve the goal of getting fit and healthy.
It is clear that if we want to improve our physical condition then it takes work and application – we have to do the exercises and follow the disciplines! This is just as true with our spiritual condition! If we are going to stay on mission with Jesus, we need to be spiritually conditioned to face and overcome the challenges that we face.
Some of the words that are used in my gym are really inspirational and challenging and I thought that over the next few weeks I would look at some of these and help us to see how what they say are so similar to the things that Jesus said to us as he invites us to join Him in His Mission.
This week, as you reflect on what it means to follow Jesus, don’t be foolish and just listen to what He is saying – put it into practice!
Dennis

1. Acts 2:42-47 – The Lord Added.
They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Over the past few weeks we have been considering how the first church was devoted to ‘learning’, the fellowship’, and ‘prayer’. It is perhaps not surprising to read that there was an outcome to their devotion. This is seen at the end of the passage:
‘And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved’.
It is important to take careful notice of how these words are written, the passage doesn’t say ‘and because of their devotion they became the fastest growing church in the city’. The growth is not credited to them but to God, it was the Lord who added! This truth is similar to the words that Jesus used when He sent out the seventy-two (Luke 10:1-24). He said, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field”. (v2)
The Harvest field is not ours it is the Lord’s and this is a key thing to remember as we seek to stay on Mission with Jesus. It is not about us feeling that we have to ‘get people saved’ and ‘get them in church’, rather it is about us recognizing that Jesus is already at work in the harvest field and He is inviting us to join Him where He is – where the people are!
There are two vitally important implications of making His mission our focus:
1. As we meet together with other believers our focus should be not on ‘the church’ but on Jesus and His Mission. How can we learn, be in fellowship and pray in such a way that we will be empowered and equipped to be effective in the harvest field where we are scattered?
2. The number that defines us is not limited to how many people turn up at a church building or worship gathering on a Sunday. The activity of God is taking place in the lives of people that have never been through the door of a church and many of these people are our friends, neighbours, work colleagues and perhaps even family. It is this ‘number’ that our focus should be on.
As you seek to ‘stay on Mission’ this week please remember that our mission is not about merely swelling the number of people that attend a worship service so that we can be seen as a successful church. Our mission is to join Jesus in His Mission and, as we devote ourselves to Him, to trust that he will do the ‘adding’.
Dennis

2. Acts 2:42-47 – Devoted to the fellowship.
They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
In a world that is becoming increasingly distant from, and, in many ways even hostile towards the gospel, it is really important to consider: “What should church be if it is going to help Christians to stay on mission?’
I was speaking recently at a young adult’s conference in the United States and asked a question that I believe passionately we have to answer, that is – “If we, as Christians, were meeting together so that we could be envisioned and equipped to reach the world, would we meet in decorative buildings, sit in rows and only connect once-per-week?”. My answer to this question is: “No!, We would be an empowering community that stood shoulder-to-shoulder, looking out for each other as we each seek to make Jesus known – gathering together to be equipped so that we can be effective when we are scattered”.
This is the church that I see in the New Testament!
The church that gathered in Jerusalem after the Holy Spirit fell on the day of Pentecost was ‘devoted to fellowship’. What this looked like is outlined a little in the verses that follow:
All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people.
‘Church’ for them was not a place that they visited, it was a people that belonged to one another and had a purpose that was beyond themselves.
When Paul wrote to the church at Philippi, he described ‘fellowship’ in the following way:
“If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.” (Philippians 2:1-2).
At the heart of what he is saying is ‘all pull in one direction, and make that direction the mission of Jesus’.
As you and I seek to stay on mission with Jesus it is critical that we ‘devote ourselves to fellowship’, make it a priority to build deep relationships with Christian brothers and sisters that we can both empower and be empowered by as we seek to Join Jesus in His Mission.
This week, please pray for the church across the world! Please pray that there will be an awakening and that we will remember our purpose and ‘be the church’ that is needed for this time.
Dennis

4. Matthew 13: 1-9 The soils.
‘That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other see fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. 9 Whoever has ears, let them hear.”
The generously scattered seed of ‘the words of the Kingdom’ fall in all kinds of different places and the condition of the soil determines the growth of the seed. So, it is with the receptivity that people have towards the gospel. Some are immediately resistant, others receive it but quickly return to their old ways, still others begin to be transformed but then the things of life take priority, and then there are those in whom the seed grows and produces a spiritual harvest.
There is so much that can be said about this parable but I want to focus on just one aspect as I encourage you to stay on mission this week. The point I want to make is that the ‘soil conditions’ of a person’s life can change. A person who is resistant to the gospel can, through the circumstances of life and the activity of the Holy Spirit, reach a place where they become receptive to the gospel, receive it and bear fruit.
When I became a Christian, my stepfather was disgusted at what had happened. As my mum and then two brothers gave their lives to Jesus he became increasingly angry. He was very resistant!! I could write pages and pages about this but just trust you to take my word for it!
Over the next years he said and did things that made it quite clear that he was opposed to all that was happening in the family. Then, following some huge life decisions, he began to become more reasonable, made some compromises, even began to attend church. During a sermon one Sunday morning, he surrendered his life to Christ. After that he began to change but still had many struggles. Some years later, he was diagnosed with a terminal cancer and the church gathered together to pray for his healing. He wasn’t healed physically but for the rest of his days on earth, and I don’t say this lightly, whenever you were with him, you knew Jesus was there! A life that was solidly opposed to Jesus became so filled with Him that his presence was evident. God can do this!!
As you seek to sow the seed of the gospel this week, please don’t give up on people who may not be ready to receive it right now. Live your life before them in such a way that, even though they may not say it, they can see something in you that makes them curious about Jesus. Also continue to pray that God, the Holy Spirit, will be at work in them, break down their resistance and make the ready to receive the gospel in His time.
Dennis