What would you think if you pulled into our parking lot and read that on our sign?
Does that sound beyond the reach of any local church? Isn’t it a bit pretentious to claim to be doing something so lofty? I mean, who obeys everything Jesus commands? No one goes a day without falling short in some capacity, so why would a church set themselves up for failure by attempting something so difficult? Putting it on our sign might be a terrible idea, but it was Jesus who said to teach people to obey everything he commanded.
And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” – Matthew 28:18–20
This passage is called the Great Commission. It may not be plastered on our sign out front, but it is our mission and informs everything we do as a church. You read it everywhere and hear it quoted verbatim and restated a hundred different ways, but is it happening? Are disciples being made? Are we observing Jesus’ commands and teaching others how to observe them ?
As disciples, are we growing in our love for others as Jesus loved us: our families, neighbors, and even our enemies? The degree to which we love as Jesus loved determines whether the world will recognize us as genuine disciples of Jesus (John 13:34-35). Quoting the Great Commission doesn’t fulfill it. Loving God and one another does.
For five weeks this August we’ll take a candid look at our church’s calling, progress, and future.
- Who are we.
- Where we are headed.
- How do we get there?
Who we are.
We will take a look at our calling, who we are in Christ. We will also take an honest look at the ways we are not walking day-to-day in the reality of who he created us to be.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. – Ephesians 2:8–10
Where we are headed.
Living out our calling as disciples means we have to do what disciples do. That sounds obvious, but have you ever wondered, “How do I become the kind of person who loves like Jesus?” Are we doing what disciples do? Are you? Providing a building and adding one service on top of another is not a plan; it’s a reaction. Instead, we must train one another.
You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also. – 2 Timothy 2:1-2
How do we get there?
We will make changes as a church to grow in becoming and making disciples, so we will outline those changes. We will also challenge you to alter your life and give the Spirit free reign to make you like Jesus. It is not enough to know what Jesus said. We must choose to obey.
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. – James 1:22
