October 29th, 2006
What is a healthy church:
strategic leadership. 1 & 2 Samuel
Intro…leadership is often a tricky thing
“Strategic leadership”…important to any organization
God has called all of us to lead in some capacity. I’m going to assume you all
are “leaders” today...think about your life, who God has asked you to lead or
influence...
Mention book, “A work of heart”
Text: 1 Samuel 17:45-47
When you think of King David from the Bible, what comes to mind?
King of the most extensive empire in the Middle East a millennium before Christ.
Courageous. Conniving. Loyal. Self-serving. Hero. Fugitive. Military strategist.
Architect. Protector. Brutal. Sensitive. Vengeful. Forgiving. Murderer. Lover.
Warrior. Musician. Poet.
We can relate to David because of his humanness. He’s just like us. (Actually
he probably committed worse mistakes then most of us will every make, yet God
still used him in a powerful way.)
Lets take a brief review of David’s life and see what there is to learn about
leadership.
“Great leaders are shaped not born.”
David came in last in nominations by his own father, but first in the call of
God. 1 Samuel 16:6-13
God defines the search parameters of what he is looking for. God values heart
integrity and spiritual presence instead of “Hollywood good looks and charm.”
Great leaders are willing to spring into action.
In the great battle David fought who? Goliath. 1 Sam. 17:26
When you see a need for godly leadership, will you spring into action?
OK, I see a need here, I will step up and do my best. Let God use you...
Great leaders have an enormous respect for God.
Over time Saul grew more jealous of David and had numerous attempts to kill
him. 1 Sam. 19:9-10, 26:7-10. David could’ve easily reacted with anger and attempted
to kill Saul, instead...
1 Sam. 24:3-7 David not only had respect for Saul as the king, he knew where
Saul got his authority. It ran straight to the top. David had respect for God
and his plan for leadership. Obviously, God eventually replaced Saul with David,
but it was on His time.
As a leader, you should have people respect you for your desire to follow God.
Great leaders recognize that this is a call from God.
This is my case. A few key moments in my life…
This sounds great, but remember God never removes his call on a person’s life,
but he can withdraw his anointing. That’s what happened with Saul, he pleaded
too little, too late. He played the fool with the call of God.
That can happen to us to if we choose to walk away from God in the midst of
our leadership. We’ve seen this happen all throughout history.
The only remedy is return to obedience, a plea for mercy and a hope that it’s
not too late.
Hence the importance of daily reflection and confession before God…
Ps. 51:10-12, David
Great leaders order their life around the call of God.
This require determination and patience. Why? What is God calling you to do?
How may you need to order your life around this call?
As a Christian leader God’s call on your life needs to be the center of gravity
for all your life experiences. We must exhibit patience and determination to
pursue God’s call.
Why? Circumstances will try to wedge themselves into your life and threaten
the call’s fulfillment.
What are some of those circumstances?
Great leaders have raw courage.
We see this with David initially in his fight with Goliath. His courage served
him well later in life in the many battles he fought. 1 Sam. 23:1-5, 30:1-6,
16-18.
And this is key!
Great leaders lead from courage and not fear. What’s the difference?
Fear of being disliked, of losing income, failure, conflict. These threats can
hold you captive. Guess what, many of them will happen!
This is what gets coach Shotinhimer from the Chargers in trouble. “Martyball”
playing not to lose rather than playing to win.
Great leaders recognize the gifts (weapons) God has given them to lead (attack)
with.
5 smooth stones and a sling. David knew he could do damage with a sling and
not necessarily the Kings bulky armor.
Little guy, couldn’t fit into the Kings armor, used a sling and a rock? Musician,
shepherd?
Some may have a low estimation of your ability. Does that stop you? Didn’t stop
David right from the start. (last to be picked…kinda like choosing teams on
the playground)
As a leader, your cues cannot come from the external environment only. Your
drive to lead needs to fueled by God’s call and not dependent ultimately on
the opinions of others, even significant others.
Great leaders recognize that they are called to serve others. 2 Sam. 23:13-17
David never wanted to give the impression that it was all about his needs. It
was not about his personal convenience and comfort.
It’s all about servant leadership “A good leader is an instrument in God’s hands
to help others have the opportunity to live their lives with greater significance
and in relationship to God.”
David learned to serve others because he did not insulate himself from the people
he served. With the people you lead, open up yourself to their lives...
We know David did a lot of bad things, but he was also known as??? A man after
God’s own heart. He had these godly qualities:
Conclusion:
Without strategic leadership our church will fail. Please pray for our leaders.
Please pray about becoming part of this leadership.
All leaders please come forward...prayer.
“True leaders carry a sense of legacy. They believe God is working through them
to influence the generations following them. The ultimate responsibility of
the spiritual leader is to share the heart of God with the people of God.”
October 22nd, 2006
“What is a healthy church? Win/build/equip.
Win (Romans 3:21-24) Build (2 Timothy 2) Equip (1 Cor. 12)
Intro...Billy Graham mission/Harvest Crusade….you know what really makes the
whole mission/crusade effective? All the local churches working together to
follow up with these new Christians.
As great as it is that all these people become Christians, without getting plugged
into a good, solid Bible teaching (healthy) church, then they are like lost
sheep, waiting to get pounced on by the wolves out there. Acts 20:28-31a.
In our series of “What is a healthy church?” We’re going to cover these 6 topics,
it only makes sense that we do the same thing.
Text: Romans 3:21-24
So, how are we going to go about the win/build/equip process?
Win (Romans 3:21-24)
Important things for all people to know from these verses:
True righteousness come straight from God. Only God is righteous. The Bible
clearly speaks of this. Why is it that most people consider themselves “good”? (In
essence righteous?)
We receive God’s righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ and what he accomplished
(his life, death and resurrection).
This is available to all who believe. Can it really be that simple? Yes!!
We all need that righteousness. No one is exempt. V. 23
Yet we are justified (made right) through God’s free (nothing we can do to earn
it) gift of grace (which comes through Jesus Christ). GOSPEL
It’s important to know that the “win” process actually has nothing to do with
you and me. (Maybe not exactly what you expected to hear…)
It’s called predestination...Eph. 1:3-7, 11.
It is the Holy Spirit that moves on a persons heart. We are certainly blessed
to be a part of that process, however. Remember though, “Human to human is the
most effective way for the gospel of Jesus to be communicated.”
That reminds us of the importance of praying for those we’d like to see come
to Christ.
Let’s get in on God’s saving process...
Build (2 Timothy 2)
Marine boot camp What is the purpose of boot camp?
These are the qualities that should be evident in the life of a Christian: Strong
in God’s grace, focused, disciplined, committed, avoids wickedness, set apart
and a servant. (Much of what soldiers get trained for in boot camp)
Let’s pick ‘em apart briefly. Help me out with some ideas….
2:1-2 Strong in God’s grace
God’s grace covers our mistakes. Passing on God’s wisdom.
2:3-4 Focused
“You gotta stay focused!” Allows you to endure hardship, don’t get distracted
by ungodly affairs, please God first and foremost. The soldier imagery is clearly
portrayed.
2:5-10 Disciplined
Ironman yesterday. Dee Dee Jonrow? v. 10 is key!
2:11-13 Committed
Through Christ’s death, we live. And somehow, God remains faithful to us in
the midst of our unfaithfulness.
2:14-19 Avoids wickedness
V. 15 godless chatter...v. 19
2:20-23 Set apart
V. 20-21 Get your act cleaned up! If you are set apart, you will...v. 22-23
2:24-26 A servant?
What a way to end, learning to serve others. What a thing to be known for?
We’d also like to do our part here at Coastlands by offering a follow-up/discipleship
process, small groups, connection events, etc. (Lots of “connection” stuff throughout
the week.)
The elders and I are currently finishing up some material that will be 5 sessions
on assurance of salvation, forgiveness of sins, the bible as God’s authority,
the importance of the Holy Spirit, daily personal time with God and some of
the essentials of Christian growth (sharing your faith, small groups etc.)
If you haven’t been through some “basic training” like this, please let us know!
Equip (1 Cor. 12)
Kelley and I had the recent privilege of seeing our new baby (girl) at her 19
week ultrasound appointment.
We were anxious to learn about the sex of the baby, but the technician said
it right, “We are more concerned with other things than the sex of the baby.”
Obviously it’s because as new parents we pray for a fully developed healthy
baby. It’s a huge blessing to see a fully developing baby body…
It’s the same thing with the church, the body of Christ. It’s a great thing
to see a fully developing group of Christians.
That can’t happen until we’ve all discovered our spiritual gifts and are using
them.
1 Corinthians 12: 21-26 The Message, page 2
Can you imagine Eye telling Hand, "Get lost; I don't need you"? Or, Head telling
Foot, "You're fired; your job has been phased out"? [22] As a matter of fact,
in practice it works the other way—the "lower" the part, the more basic, and
therefore necessary. You can live without an eye, for instance, but not without
a stomach. [23] When it's a part of your own body you are concerned with, it
makes no difference whether the part is visible or clothed, higher or lower.
You give it dignity and honor just as it is, without comparisons. [24] If anything,
you have more concern for the lower parts than the higher. If you had to choose,
wouldn't you prefer good digestion to full-bodied hair?
[25] The way God designed our bodies is a model for understanding our lives
together as a church: every part dependent on every other part, the parts we
mention and the parts we don't, [26] the parts we see and the parts we don't.
If one part hurts, every other part is involved in the hurt, and in the healing.
If one part flourishes, every other part enters into the exuberance.
Spiritual gift discovery doesn’t need to be some mysterious process. Most often
your spiritual gifts are things you already enjoy doing.
So, how are you going to serve the body of Christ in and outside of this church?
Where are the Apostles? Prophets? Teachers? Miracle workers? Healers? Those
who can help others? Administrators? Those with godly wisdom? Those with godly
knowledge? Faith?
What a great picture of a fully developed body of Christ serving God here in
PB and beyond.
Conclusion: This is an area I feel like we can improve on as a church. Last
weeks message, (biblically based) we’re doing pretty good in. Discipleship/connection...let’s
get on it!
October 15, 2006
“What is a healthy church?” Biblically
based and Christ centered.
2 Timothy 3
Intro….Like I told the kids, it only makes sense that you teach them how it’s
done correctly….
Text: The best thing we can pass on to someone is Biblical, godly character
traits…
2 Timothy 3:16-17
God knew what he was doing when he gave us that Bible as a guide for life.
However, like I told you last week, the Bible doesn’t spell out the answers
for everything in life A-Z.
The more you study the Bible, the more you learn God’s character and the better
chance you’ll have on figuring out “answers to life.”
I agree that it’s not always easy to know exactly what to do…most often though,
it is. Be honest here…
As we cover these six topics the goal is for each of us individually to do better
in each area. As a result, we’ll do better as a church.
1 & 2 Timothy and Titus are known as??? The pastoral epistles.
These three books are packed full of helpful advise for guys like me. (And all
of us…) Guys who are trying to lead their churches in a godly manner.
Chapter 3 is a word of warning against apostasy. What comes to mind when you
hear the word apostasy?
So obviously, we don’t want to be apostate when it comes to our faith.
Look what happens to those who have abandoned what they know is true, 3:2-5
Geez, that reads like a parental warning list…
Then in vs. 10 Paul reminds them and us of what we know is true.
3:14-17 is really the whole of the concept we want to look at today.
Lets take our bullet points directly from the scriptures (hey, not a bad idea).
3:14-15a Continue in what you know is true, and have become convinced of, that
is the holy scriptures.
How many of you where raised in a Christian home, “in the faith?”
You have the privilege of “continuing in what you know is true.”
Some of you are just now catching up on all this.
It does take time (and well worth it) to learn the scriptures.
Once you start to learn and apply the Bible to life.
So, why the emphasis on the Bible?….
3:15b The Bible can make you wise for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.
I know Jeff covered this well back in July. Salvation comes only through Jesus
Christ?
What are we saved from? (Now and for eternity?) see next page...
We’re saved from a life of selfishness, meaningless, etc. Review 3:2-5
This is the gospel message that weaves in and out of the entire Bible.
GOSPEL...communion intro...
3:16a All scripture (the entire Bible) is God-breathed.
This is just so critical to how we operate as individual Christians as well
as the church. Otherwise, I’m standing here blabbing at you with a bunch of
nifty ideas I came up with on my own.
Without the Bible we are basing the decisions we make on moral relativity, situational
ethics, what feels right etc. What’s wrong with this? (everyone is right)
“God-breathed” is what it literally says in the Greek. “Theopneustos”
Lets take a look at 2 Peter 1:12-13b, 16, 19-21
Jeremiah 36:2, Ezekiel 1:3, Acts 1:15-16
“God superintended the human authors so that using their own personalities,
they composed and recorded without error God’s Word to man. Inspiration does
not involve mechanical dictation but the accurate recording of God’s words.”
Unfortunately, people have also used the Bible throughout history to justify
wrongdoing.
Hence the important of community, connectedness and accountability (one of the
sermons in this series.)
You need to know that we have a great group of leaders in this church (and especially
the elders) who have no problem calling me out. (which is how this whole series
came about…)
Mike Borders always keeps me humble with the “Evan who?” answer...
3:16 All scripture is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training
in righteousness.
These points are pretty self-explanatory. Heb. 4:12
We don’t read the Bible for comfort only (not a bad thing). My prayer is that
every time you/we open the Bible we are convicted of the change that needs to
happen.
We need to be trained in "righteousness"--both inward and outward.
So that we all may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
If we are allowing the Bible to be our guide for life we will be thoroughly
equipped. “complete, capable, proficient, able to meet all demands”
Able to face life and its challenges with a godly perspective.
Conclusion:
Think back to all those exams you took (or are taking) in school or to get a
job...
So, when we base all we do on the Bible (as individuals and as the church) then
we will naturally be Christ-centered.
October 8th, 2006
What is a healthy church?
(Introduction)
Acts 2
Intro...my favorite chair, the papa chair...I know I’m at home sitting in that
chair.
Church can be that way. Once you decide that this is your church, it should
be like coming home. I’m comfortable there.
Yet, where church differs is that we don’t want to get too comfortable. We need
to be challenged. Good churches do that.
What are some of the marks of a healthy church?
Where do we go to look for a list of the qualities of a healthy church? The
Bible, sort of. Read Acts 2:42-47.
I find it interesting that we’re supposed to look to the Bible for guidance,
yet it is obviously somewhat vague on how we should exactly “do” church.
Contrary to what some people think, the Bible does not spell out the details
for every single situation in life.
That’s not a bad thing though. I means that sometimes we need to use these brains
that God gave us and apply Biblical truths that are over arching to decisions.
That’s why you see so much variety in church life.
Help me out here, just within the protestant churches, what are some of the
variety of churches (denominations etc.)?
Just try to define “contemporary” vs. “traditional”. In one sense we’re a mixture
of both, (hymns, prayers etc.) yet to most with our casual style and dress,
we’re labeled “contemporary” (which isn’t the worst thing to be called).
Just in the last ten years in the pastors conferences I attend and the stuff
I get in the mail I’ve seen the emphasis on reaching ”Seekers, then “Gen X”
then “postmoderns” then millenials, then “emergent”, what’s next?
How ‘bout a church where “Any one of any age is welcome as we all gather to
seek Jesus Christ and grow deeper in our faith?”
Let’s take a look at some of the ways the NT talks about church life.
We know that the church was birthed in the book of Acts.
Acts 1:7-9 Jesus sends them out as missionaries and ascends.
First thing they did (according to the Bible)? Acts 1:12-14 Prayer!
Next thing they did, replace Judas (who turned Jesus in) with Matthias, to round
the number of Apostles back up to 12. Acts 23-24.
They had to cast lots (v. 26) because Jesus was gone and the HS had not yet
come…
Acts 2 is the story of Pentecost. They were all gathered to celebrate Pentecost
(the 4th of the annual feasts for the Jews after Passover, Unleavened bread
and Firstfruits).
Pentecost literally meant “fiftieth” and was the Greek name for the “Jewish
feast of weeks”. The whole ceremony was the completion of that dedication of
the harvest to God as its giver.
The law was given from Sinai on the fiftieth day after the deliverance from
Egypt.
Just as the appearance of God on Mt. Sinai was the birthday of the Jewish nation,
so was the Pentecost the birthday of the Christian Church.
The birth of the church was an amazing event (Acts 2:2-4)
Peter preached an amazing sermon (probably the first of the “church”) and look
what happened. Acts 2:37-39, 41
So, the church starts with a bang, over 3000 were saved and what did they do
next? (Acts 2:42-47)
We know these things are important for the church:
Apostles teaching
Fellowship
Breaking of the bread
Prayer
Had everything in common, shared possessions and gave to those in need.
Even if we were just known for those 5 things (Solid teaching, fellowship, sharing
meals, prayer and taking care of the needy) we’d be doing pretty good.
Some ideas on healthy church life:
Glorify God/Christ centered, Biblically based teaching.
Produces disciples (lives being transformed, and growth of the church body in
both maturity and in numbers).
Reproduces (plants churches).
Strategic leadership
Significant relationships within the congregation/small groups/connections.
Genuine worship.
Strategic evangelism/outreach.
Serves the needy people in their community/mission local and foreign.
Teaches healthy stewardship and generosity.
Mobilized spiritual gifts
A commitment to prayer.
A few other ideas just from the book of Acts: (readers please…)
Acts 4:31-32, 5:12, 9:31, 11:19-21 (the people), 13:1a, 2-4, 13-16, 42-44, 14:21-28,
16:5, 13-15, 17:2-4, 10-12, 19:8, 20:7.
Here’s where we’re going:
We’ll take a look at these areas over the next month or so.
On the last Sunday of the series, we’ll hold a “town hall meeting” right after
church to dream together how we can do better.
Hopefully our next 10 years will be better than our first!
Conclusion:
Unfortunately, when you mention “church” or “religion” to most people today
they think of corruption or hypocrisy. They want nothing to do with it.
What an opportunity for us to show our friends what the church really is: A
group of people gathered in need of God’s grace, worshipping him in spirit and
truth. A group of people doing our best to follow the way of Jesus in everything
we do, when we are gathered and when we are separate.
October 1st, 2006
Coastlands Church 10 year
anniversary
1 Samuel 13-14
I tell ya what, lately I’ve been really enjoying my early morning time with
God.
Seems like every day there is a sermon I could preach!
I’ve been reading through 1 Samuel and was intrigued with the stories of Samuel,
Saul, Jonathan and David.
1 Samuel 13-14 Is a great story the speaks of the boldness of Jonathan and his
armor bearer. Their boldness inspired the Israelites to victory over their enemies.
Saul had managed to get himself and the people in a mess with the Philistines,
13:5-7.
Saul is starting to fail as a leader and the Israelites are suffering the consequences.
13:13-14.
Along comes his son Jonathan, full of confidence (in the Lord!). What an inspiration.
14:6.
His courage was an inspiration to his armor bearer and eventually to the rest
of the Israelites. 14:7, 10.
The Philistines begin to taunt Jonathan and his armor bearer, 14:10-12a.
But look at Jonathan’s confidence in God, 14:12b
Oh what a victory they had, 14:13-14.
From there they set off wide spread panic. 14:15.
Victory ensued, 14:20-23.
Who won the battle for the Israelites that day? God! Who lead the charge? Two
guys!!!
Reading on in 1 Samuel 16, it’s time for a new King.
Saul had a hard time sticking to the details God had given him as a ruler.
God sends Samuel (a great leader who had learned to listen to the voice of God
with the help of Eli the priest) to the house of Jesse.
Jesse parades out his seven finest sons. One after one, God says no.
Finally he says, “Are there more sons? Bring out the runt.” 16:11
The youngest, little guy, poet, musician, wimpy guy?
Yet God made it immediately clear to Samuel that this was “the chosen one.”
16:7, 13
Why is it that God so often likes to use the “little guy”?
Often the little guy needs more help...and knows it.
Often the little guy is more willing to ask God for that help.
Often the little guy isn’t so self-reliant. In the case of Jonathan and his
armor bearer, it’s almost like they didn’t know any better. Full of confidence
in God.
God can really show his off his power when “the little guy” wins.
We all love the story of the underdog winning.
Underdog the superhero?
Today we celebrate our 10 year anniversary, rah, rah, rah.
Can I guarantee that in the next 10 years we’ll become the biggest church in
San Diego? (Obviously not)
One thing I do know, is that God will continue to use us if our hearts are fully
devoted to him.
We are blessed. God has done some amazing things through the people of this
church in the last 10 years.
I need to thank all of you for being a part of this church over the years.
I especially need to thank all the leaders, elders, trustees etc.
Kelley and the boys have been a huge part of this from the start…
I could’ve have so-o many people get up and tell stories today.
Yes, God will continue to use our church in powerful ways, even if we are one
of the “little guys” here in San Diego.
Here’s a humbling thought for me, God may want to keep us small to use us powerfully
as we learn to fully rely on him.
As I meet with the elders, we are committed to doing all we can to make sure
our church is at least growing spiritually...
We can have a great impact for God as a church and as individuals
II Thess. 2:16-17