1 00:00:01,560 --> 00:00:04,040 Hey everybody, this is Pastor John Ewart from Inglewood 2 00:00:04,040 --> 00:00:05,920 Baptist Church in Rocky Mountain, North Carolina. 3 00:00:05,920 --> 00:00:08,119 Thank you so much for tuning in to our podcast. 4 00:00:08,360 --> 00:00:11,320 You're going to hear from God today as we share from his word 5 00:00:11,560 --> 00:00:15,080 about important issues facing your life that can guide you 6 00:00:15,080 --> 00:00:22,120 according to the Bible. Well, good morning, Inglewood. 7 00:00:24,680 --> 00:00:27,240 Thank you. How we good. 8 00:00:28,440 --> 00:00:30,160 So I appreciate you all being here this morning. 9 00:00:30,160 --> 00:00:32,600 Listen, let me share just a couple of quick words with you 10 00:00:32,600 --> 00:00:36,480 and we'll dive into this. Just a couple things that have 11 00:00:36,480 --> 00:00:38,960 kind of recently come up that are not in your worship guide. 12 00:00:39,280 --> 00:00:41,720 Couple of dates to mark on your calendar for me, if you would. 13 00:00:41,960 --> 00:00:44,480 We have a church plant in Tarboro for those of you who are 14 00:00:44,480 --> 00:00:47,680 guests here that we love and we're, we want to support and we 15 00:00:47,680 --> 00:00:49,040 want to help them with their lunch. 16 00:00:49,560 --> 00:00:53,920 And so 2 Saturdays, August the 30th, let's mark it down 17 00:00:53,920 --> 00:00:56,920 someplace. And September 27th, we're going 18 00:00:56,920 --> 00:00:58,600 to have work days down in Tarboro. 19 00:00:58,600 --> 00:01:00,960 One, the first one's going to kind of help with the place, the 20 00:01:00,960 --> 00:01:04,200 physical part of it. The 27th, we need all hands on 21 00:01:04,200 --> 00:01:05,360 deck. That's when we're going to go 22 00:01:05,360 --> 00:01:08,560 door to door all across that whole community, inviting people 23 00:01:08,560 --> 00:01:11,360 to the launch service. So mark those two dates down. 24 00:01:11,880 --> 00:01:14,080 And then one other thing is we're going to have another trip 25 00:01:14,080 --> 00:01:16,520 out to Western North Carolina to continue to help with some of 26 00:01:16,520 --> 00:01:19,240 the relief effort. This will be a kind of a house 27 00:01:19,240 --> 00:01:21,720 building trip. And so this is going to be 28 00:01:21,720 --> 00:01:24,800 October 2nd through 5th. So just a couple of dates to 29 00:01:24,800 --> 00:01:26,640 keep in mind. We'll, we'll give you a lot more 30 00:01:26,640 --> 00:01:31,840 details in the weeks ahead. Listen, two weeks ago I shared 31 00:01:31,880 --> 00:01:35,840 about our understanding of the why and The Who of the church as 32 00:01:35,840 --> 00:01:40,000 I share this brief series in which I want to just invite you 33 00:01:40,520 --> 00:01:45,120 to come be the King's bride. This is a series about the 34 00:01:45,120 --> 00:01:47,320 church and about what we do as a church. 35 00:01:47,720 --> 00:01:50,040 But then what about lead us to as well? 36 00:01:50,040 --> 00:01:52,760 And all these sermons connect together and they build on one 37 00:01:52,760 --> 00:01:55,160 another, whether or not it seems that way to anybody but me in 38 00:01:55,160 --> 00:01:58,760 the mirror. But I talked about salvation, I 39 00:01:58,760 --> 00:02:01,120 talked about the church, I talked about baptism. 40 00:02:01,440 --> 00:02:04,800 And and this morning we're going to talk about the scriptural 41 00:02:04,800 --> 00:02:07,360 connection of formal, formal church membership. 42 00:02:07,360 --> 00:02:09,520 So let me just ask you, because each week I'm asking you an 43 00:02:09,520 --> 00:02:12,280 important question. And this morning the question 44 00:02:12,280 --> 00:02:15,960 is, why be a church member? That's going to be important. 45 00:02:15,960 --> 00:02:17,080 Now. Next week we're going to start 46 00:02:17,080 --> 00:02:21,280 defining discipleship for you. So these are just important 47 00:02:21,480 --> 00:02:24,640 messages that are setting the stage for us. 48 00:02:24,640 --> 00:02:26,000 Now. This should be an interesting 49 00:02:26,000 --> 00:02:28,960 sermon for some of you. You might say, well, I'm already 50 00:02:28,960 --> 00:02:30,920 a church member, why in the world would I need to hear this? 51 00:02:31,360 --> 00:02:35,000 Well, this also might be affirming to you to recognize, 52 00:02:35,000 --> 00:02:36,960 oh, that's what church membership really means, and I'm 53 00:02:36,960 --> 00:02:39,480 thankful for it. Or maybe you're not a church 54 00:02:39,480 --> 00:02:43,520 member and you're curious as to why should I ever even 55 00:02:43,520 --> 00:02:45,960 officially join a church? So these are things we're going 56 00:02:45,960 --> 00:02:47,720 to talk about for a few moments from the Word of God. 57 00:02:48,280 --> 00:02:50,640 And so this could even be tough for some of you. 58 00:02:51,320 --> 00:02:54,000 And so again, I just want to thank the new members for 59 00:02:54,000 --> 00:02:56,240 showing us this in action. Amen. 60 00:02:57,000 --> 00:02:58,680 Yeah. So just welcome, welcome, 61 00:02:58,680 --> 00:03:00,680 welcome. So let's talk about a few things 62 00:03:00,680 --> 00:03:02,320 this morning. This is about a seven point 63 00:03:02,320 --> 00:03:05,520 sermon, so hang in there. That's no, no exaggeration. 64 00:03:05,520 --> 00:03:08,800 But they're going to go quickly and we'll be out somewhere near 65 00:03:08,800 --> 00:03:10,960 time or, you know, within an hour or two of it. 66 00:03:10,960 --> 00:03:15,120 So listen, the first thing we need to talk about is our, our 67 00:03:15,120 --> 00:03:18,840 culture and church membership. Let let me just set the stage 68 00:03:18,840 --> 00:03:20,680 for us a little bit. I, you know, I, as I've 69 00:03:20,680 --> 00:03:23,560 mentioned too many times, I've had the opportunity working with 70 00:03:23,560 --> 00:03:24,800 a lot of churches around the world. 71 00:03:25,160 --> 00:03:27,200 And one of the things that I've had the privilege of doing is 72 00:03:27,200 --> 00:03:30,960 working with national Baptist leaders in other countries and, 73 00:03:31,040 --> 00:03:33,720 and, and, and especially in places, frankly, where the 74 00:03:33,720 --> 00:03:36,840 church is persecuted. And so been a lot of persecuted 75 00:03:36,840 --> 00:03:39,200 places. And one of those opportunities 76 00:03:39,200 --> 00:03:42,880 has been in the Ukraine. And whether you realize this or 77 00:03:42,880 --> 00:03:45,400 not, and you might not think about this with the war that is 78 00:03:45,400 --> 00:03:49,080 going on there, but in a war zone like that, the Ukrainian 79 00:03:49,080 --> 00:03:53,160 Baptists have lost probably half of their churches and pastors so 80 00:03:53,160 --> 00:03:55,840 far. And so I've been consulting with 81 00:03:55,840 --> 00:03:58,720 them for the last couple of years to actually talk to them 82 00:03:58,720 --> 00:04:02,240 about how do you help rebuild? How do you help replant, How do 83 00:04:02,240 --> 00:04:05,560 you help retrain these leaders, which is a relationship that 84 00:04:05,560 --> 00:04:07,920 I'll continue to try to help them with because they would 85 00:04:07,920 --> 00:04:11,120 desperately love to have their churches back. 86 00:04:11,800 --> 00:04:18,279 Yet I worry that here in a place of peace and freedom that we 87 00:04:18,279 --> 00:04:20,399 fall prey. And this is going to sound like 88 00:04:20,399 --> 00:04:23,600 a strong word, but it's the right one where we fall prey to 89 00:04:23,600 --> 00:04:28,120 a satanic misunderstanding and devaluing of the church and 90 00:04:28,120 --> 00:04:31,880 church membership. We, we live in a culture of 91 00:04:31,960 --> 00:04:37,800 virtually lawless, unlimited individualism where most people 92 00:04:37,800 --> 00:04:40,960 believe they can do whatever they want, however they want 93 00:04:41,240 --> 00:04:44,680 without any repercussion. And, and we want to believe 94 00:04:44,680 --> 00:04:48,280 often that what our media tells us that we deserve this or that 95 00:04:48,280 --> 00:04:51,920 and we can have it all our own way and that and, and we want to 96 00:04:51,920 --> 00:04:55,440 have the right to have that immediately and, and completely 97 00:04:55,440 --> 00:04:59,160 to our individual autonomous satisfaction. 98 00:05:00,200 --> 00:05:02,600 Teresa and I went to high school together and I grew up in this 99 00:05:02,600 --> 00:05:06,680 little town in eastern Oklahoma. And this little town when I was 100 00:05:06,680 --> 00:05:08,880 growing up really didn't have any fast food restaurants. 101 00:05:08,880 --> 00:05:12,080 And I remember when McDonald's came to town that let me make me 102 00:05:12,080 --> 00:05:14,280 sound like I'm old, which I am, but that's not the point. 103 00:05:14,280 --> 00:05:16,160 It just came really late to this small town. 104 00:05:17,040 --> 00:05:22,480 And my father liked hamburgers. And so, but, but before that, in 105 00:05:22,480 --> 00:05:26,680 Tahlequah, OK, the metropolis of Tahlequah, you know, you had to 106 00:05:26,680 --> 00:05:29,840 go to a hole in the wall mom and pop burger place where you walk 107 00:05:29,840 --> 00:05:32,480 in and everybody knew him by name and he could order his 108 00:05:32,480 --> 00:05:35,200 pineapple milkshake and his weird configuration of a 109 00:05:35,200 --> 00:05:37,920 cheeseburger. So he goes into McDonald's and 110 00:05:37,920 --> 00:05:41,520 there's poor little high school girl waiting on him and he walks 111 00:05:41,520 --> 00:05:43,200 in. He has no idea how this works. 112 00:05:43,680 --> 00:05:45,760 So he walks in there and he says, I'd like to have a double 113 00:05:45,760 --> 00:05:47,280 cheeseburger with grilled onions. 114 00:05:47,280 --> 00:05:49,920 And I'd like to have the Pickles, you know, diced up 115 00:05:49,920 --> 00:05:51,960 finely. And then I, you know, I'd like 116 00:05:51,960 --> 00:05:55,400 to have a pineapple milkshake. Well, the girl just stares back 117 00:05:55,400 --> 00:05:58,120 at him and, and basically says, Sir, I don't have a button for 118 00:05:58,120 --> 00:06:03,040 that. Well, my dad was not necessarily 119 00:06:03,040 --> 00:06:04,640 the most patient human being in the world. 120 00:06:04,640 --> 00:06:08,560 So bless her heart, she she experienced his impatience. 121 00:06:08,560 --> 00:06:11,440 I'll leave it at that. And I remember him grabbing me 122 00:06:11,440 --> 00:06:13,040 and dragging me out of McDonald's. 123 00:06:13,040 --> 00:06:16,840 So my very first time to try McDonald's, I didn't even get to 124 00:06:16,840 --> 00:06:18,840 try McDonald's. What a loss, you know, I mean, 125 00:06:18,840 --> 00:06:21,880 what a huge loss. Obviously you can look at me and 126 00:06:21,880 --> 00:06:24,280 you can realize I've been to a few McDonald's since then. 127 00:06:26,280 --> 00:06:30,520 But this attitude is not simply outside the church. 128 00:06:30,520 --> 00:06:32,800 Sometimes it's inside the church also. 129 00:06:33,040 --> 00:06:36,840 And many want easy and comfortable doctrine and easy 130 00:06:36,840 --> 00:06:40,680 and comfortable expectations to feed their own self defined 131 00:06:40,680 --> 00:06:43,240 desires and and consumerism frankly. 132 00:06:43,800 --> 00:06:47,280 And they expect the church to conform to and frankly entertain 133 00:06:47,280 --> 00:06:52,000 them to their personal preferences or else, you know, 134 00:06:52,560 --> 00:06:55,600 and this is not new, as I've shared with many of you, and I 135 00:06:55,600 --> 00:06:57,600 appreciate the hundreds of you who are coming on Wednesday 136 00:06:57,600 --> 00:07:01,120 nights. People often do not want real 137 00:07:01,120 --> 00:07:05,080 truth. I'm telling you everything here 138 00:07:05,080 --> 00:07:07,520 that we're doing connects. So our Wednesdays and Sundays 139 00:07:07,520 --> 00:07:09,280 really connect more than you might think. 140 00:07:09,520 --> 00:07:12,560 But listen to Second Timothy 4, which I've read on a Wednesday 141 00:07:12,560 --> 00:07:13,640 night. It says, I charge in the 142 00:07:13,640 --> 00:07:16,280 presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the 143 00:07:16,280 --> 00:07:19,600 living and the dead, and by His appearing in His Kingdom. 144 00:07:19,600 --> 00:07:22,800 Preach the Word, be ready in season and out of season, 145 00:07:22,800 --> 00:07:26,840 reproof, rebuke and exhort with complete patience and teaching. 146 00:07:27,280 --> 00:07:31,520 Here we go, for the time is coming when people will not 147 00:07:31,520 --> 00:07:33,760 endure sound teaching, but have itching ears. 148 00:07:33,760 --> 00:07:36,720 They will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit 149 00:07:36,720 --> 00:07:40,960 their own passions and will turn away from listening to the truth 150 00:07:40,960 --> 00:07:46,560 and wander off in the myths. Humanity works really hard to 151 00:07:46,560 --> 00:07:49,440 rationalize and to self justify, frankly. 152 00:07:49,680 --> 00:07:52,640 And as I shared one Wednesday night, this, this verb form of 153 00:07:52,720 --> 00:07:55,280 will turn away. And that verse 4 literally, it's 154 00:07:55,280 --> 00:07:58,000 a strong medical term that really means to twist a limb. 155 00:07:58,000 --> 00:07:59,760 In other words, they're, they're they're going to get they're 156 00:07:59,760 --> 00:08:01,440 going to work so hard to get away from the truth. 157 00:08:01,440 --> 00:08:03,520 They're going to twist their ankles and blow out their knees 158 00:08:04,480 --> 00:08:07,680 because they want to reject it and they deceive themselves. 159 00:08:08,240 --> 00:08:10,960 But but one of the things that I've had to work through is the 160 00:08:10,960 --> 00:08:15,560 fact that church leaders often fall prey to this and, and, and, 161 00:08:15,560 --> 00:08:20,360 and they fear standing against the tide of self-centered church 162 00:08:20,360 --> 00:08:24,400 definitions and self-centered church expectations lest they 163 00:08:24,400 --> 00:08:28,480 lose their employment. And so a pastor recently came to 164 00:08:28,480 --> 00:08:31,760 see me and just listen to what he says. 165 00:08:31,920 --> 00:08:35,600 I want my church to change, but I don't want to produce any 166 00:08:35,600 --> 00:08:38,600 conflict, create waves, or knock over any apple carts. 167 00:08:41,000 --> 00:08:43,840 Now we we looked at his church and studied his church. 168 00:08:43,840 --> 00:08:48,080 His church is absolutely dying. Nobody's being saved, Nobody's 169 00:08:48,080 --> 00:08:51,960 joining the church, but they're unwilling to change to become 170 00:08:51,960 --> 00:08:56,880 healthy. Well, blessing or curse, my 171 00:08:56,880 --> 00:08:59,120 friends, this is what you've gotten into. 172 00:08:59,320 --> 00:09:04,040 I'm a notorious apple cart kicker and wave maker, and so 173 00:09:04,040 --> 00:09:08,040 we've got to understand growth never occurs without change. 174 00:09:08,040 --> 00:09:10,280 It just won't. A baby doesn't stay a baby. 175 00:09:10,480 --> 00:09:12,800 That cute little puppy, no matter how much we wish it 176 00:09:12,800 --> 00:09:14,800 would, grows up into that big old mangy dog. 177 00:09:15,760 --> 00:09:19,840 And a seed doesn't stay a seed. But, but let me just stop for a 178 00:09:19,840 --> 00:09:21,680 second. And I mean this with my whole 179 00:09:21,680 --> 00:09:24,120 heart. Teresa will tell you, I was a 180 00:09:24,120 --> 00:09:27,600 bit overwhelmed last night, but I, I just want to express my 181 00:09:27,600 --> 00:09:31,200 deepest appreciation to you, Englewood family, for your 182 00:09:31,200 --> 00:09:34,680 willingness to adapt these last few weeks with our changes and 183 00:09:34,680 --> 00:09:37,600 connect groups. And I especially want to call 184 00:09:37,600 --> 00:09:41,680 out a certain age group. Thank you, senior adults, 185 00:09:42,080 --> 00:09:45,320 because I know it was a significant change and I know 186 00:09:45,320 --> 00:09:47,000 that it's required a lot of patience. 187 00:09:47,000 --> 00:09:51,760 And I just appreciate you. I really, really do, and I just 188 00:09:51,760 --> 00:09:54,600 want to thank you for that. And last night I got to spend 189 00:09:54,600 --> 00:09:57,360 some time with a wonderful Connect group and fellowship and 190 00:09:57,360 --> 00:09:59,280 they gave us a lovely house warming gift. 191 00:09:59,280 --> 00:10:01,440 Frankly, I was a little overwhelmed and humbled by that. 192 00:10:01,840 --> 00:10:05,360 It's just a wonderful thing to be part of a church family. 193 00:10:05,360 --> 00:10:08,520 And I don't know if you know this, but last Sunday we had 194 00:10:08,520 --> 00:10:11,720 more people in our Bible studies than we've had since before 195 00:10:11,720 --> 00:10:14,960 COVID. And so, and it's not the numbers 196 00:10:14,960 --> 00:10:18,000 that I'm after, it's the fact that I just want as many souls 197 00:10:18,000 --> 00:10:21,360 as possible studying the word of God together and loving on one 198 00:10:21,360 --> 00:10:22,480 another. You know what I mean? 199 00:10:22,680 --> 00:10:26,160 Absolutely. So way to go Inglewood. 200 00:10:26,160 --> 00:10:28,600 Thank you for that so much. And if you're not a part of any 201 00:10:28,600 --> 00:10:31,720 of that, it's time to join. But because unfortunately, a lot 202 00:10:31,720 --> 00:10:35,080 of people just dumb down or underestimate or even avoid the 203 00:10:35,080 --> 00:10:36,760 significance of church membership. 204 00:10:37,000 --> 00:10:39,440 So let's talk about this for a few moments and and talk 205 00:10:39,440 --> 00:10:42,120 specifically about not just church involvement, but 206 00:10:42,120 --> 00:10:44,440 membership. Let's look at the Kingdom value 207 00:10:44,440 --> 00:10:47,240 of church membership. Remember that the church is the 208 00:10:47,240 --> 00:10:50,960 King's bride and also the King's representative of the Kingdom 209 00:10:50,960 --> 00:10:53,920 here on earth. And so she's precious and holy 210 00:10:53,920 --> 00:10:57,440 and, and it must be treated with respect and with high 211 00:10:57,440 --> 00:11:00,800 expectations, right? Theologian Michael Horton says 212 00:11:00,800 --> 00:11:02,200 this. The visible church is where 213 00:11:02,200 --> 00:11:04,080 you'll find Christ's Kingdom on earth. 214 00:11:04,560 --> 00:11:07,560 And to disregard the Kingdom is to disregard its king. 215 00:11:08,400 --> 00:11:11,280 So Jesus, who holds all authority in heaven and earth, 216 00:11:11,280 --> 00:11:15,120 is delegated to the church, the authority to March on the 217 00:11:15,120 --> 00:11:18,640 nations and to make disciples, just like you saw the Taiwanese 218 00:11:18,640 --> 00:11:20,640 team do, right? Just like we're going to see 219 00:11:20,640 --> 00:11:23,280 happening in Tarbor, just like we need to see happening in 220 00:11:23,280 --> 00:11:25,760 Rocky Mount. So we look forward to being 221 00:11:25,760 --> 00:11:29,120 together with members at some point of the Universal Church. 222 00:11:29,360 --> 00:11:31,960 I have friends from all around the world and I look forward to 223 00:11:31,960 --> 00:11:33,960 introducing you. And one day we're all going to 224 00:11:33,960 --> 00:11:36,160 be there, every tribe, every tongue in every nation gathered 225 00:11:36,160 --> 00:11:38,280 in the throne room. And I look forward to that 226 00:11:38,280 --> 00:11:42,360 moment in heaven. But until that end, local 227 00:11:42,360 --> 00:11:46,600 churches represent him and they represent the Great Commission 228 00:11:46,600 --> 00:11:48,680 responsibility that he has delegated. 229 00:11:48,880 --> 00:11:51,000 And, and we may not always do that perfectly. 230 00:11:51,080 --> 00:11:55,640 Maybe we never do it perfectly, maybe we never do it perfectly, 231 00:11:55,800 --> 00:11:59,120 but we're going to honestly seeking to fulfill His mission. 232 00:11:59,720 --> 00:12:03,160 So we need to understand the value or His value for His body 233 00:12:03,640 --> 00:12:05,920 and how that ought to dictate my commitment to her. 234 00:12:06,200 --> 00:12:09,920 So in our study back in Acts, we saw Christians united with 235 00:12:09,920 --> 00:12:13,440 individual but also interconnected churches. 236 00:12:13,680 --> 00:12:17,160 They were added to the church and other churches were planted, 237 00:12:17,240 --> 00:12:19,040 but they continued to communicate with them. 238 00:12:19,040 --> 00:12:22,560 And at times it even took up offerings to help one another in 239 00:12:22,560 --> 00:12:25,880 times of need. And so they identified, if you 240 00:12:25,880 --> 00:12:29,320 don't understand the church, and if you're a person sitting here 241 00:12:29,320 --> 00:12:31,760 and you know somebody, because I bet you do, you'll sit there and 242 00:12:31,760 --> 00:12:34,040 say, well, I can serve Jesus, but I don't need the church. 243 00:12:34,200 --> 00:12:36,600 You're really missing out on the bulk of the New Testament. 244 00:12:36,680 --> 00:12:38,760 That's really not what the Bible teaches. 245 00:12:39,240 --> 00:12:41,440 And so you've got to understand that even early on in church 246 00:12:41,440 --> 00:12:43,000 history, you've got to understand this. 247 00:12:43,280 --> 00:12:45,400 They knew who went, who their members were. 248 00:12:45,560 --> 00:12:49,240 They identified as churches and others identified them, even 249 00:12:49,240 --> 00:12:51,560 persecuted them as local churches. 250 00:12:51,680 --> 00:12:53,480 They knew exactly who these people were. 251 00:12:53,720 --> 00:12:56,080 So we're not created for isolation. 252 00:12:56,360 --> 00:12:58,840 We're not born again into isolation. 253 00:12:59,080 --> 00:13:02,800 My one of my mentors and friends, Tom Rainer, wrote this. 254 00:13:02,800 --> 00:13:06,120 He said the New Testament does not have a plan for growing as a 255 00:13:06,120 --> 00:13:08,000 Christian outside of the local church. 256 00:13:08,600 --> 00:13:11,880 From Acts chapter 2 to Revelation chapter 3, the New 257 00:13:11,880 --> 00:13:15,280 Testament is all about the local church. 258 00:13:15,280 --> 00:13:17,680 And it is if you honestly read the Bible. 259 00:13:18,560 --> 00:13:21,320 And so we are saved. We practice spiritual 260 00:13:21,320 --> 00:13:24,040 disciplines. We are gifted individually 261 00:13:24,040 --> 00:13:29,000 wonderfully by the Holy Spirit, but we are also expected to join 262 00:13:29,000 --> 00:13:33,760 a local congregation and use them all for mutual edification, 263 00:13:33,760 --> 00:13:37,280 for the building up the body, as well As for, and here's a cuss 264 00:13:37,280 --> 00:13:39,320 word in our culture, accountability. 265 00:13:40,920 --> 00:13:45,120 So after salvation, a Christian should join a church as soon as 266 00:13:45,120 --> 00:13:48,440 possible with eagerness, with passion, to be used in the 267 00:13:48,440 --> 00:13:51,800 greatest way with their spiritual giftedness and 268 00:13:51,800 --> 00:13:54,720 service. There's no other context for 269 00:13:54,720 --> 00:13:56,520 using your spiritual gifts like that. 270 00:13:56,960 --> 00:13:59,440 So we do so because we simply seek. 271 00:14:00,320 --> 00:14:02,360 We do. But see some, here's the 272 00:14:02,360 --> 00:14:04,720 problem, I'll get there. Some people don't do this 273 00:14:04,720 --> 00:14:07,920 because they're simply seeking something for themselves in the 274 00:14:07,920 --> 00:14:11,520 church. And, and, and we need to, and 275 00:14:11,520 --> 00:14:14,320 although we ought to be blessed by the church, we also need to 276 00:14:14,320 --> 00:14:16,880 understand that we need to bring great glory to God and to be 277 00:14:16,880 --> 00:14:19,320 used to build up the church. Paul talked about this all the 278 00:14:19,320 --> 00:14:25,360 time, a very troubled church in Corinth, and he wrote this in 279 00:14:25,360 --> 00:14:27,400 First Corinthians 12. He says to each is given the 280 00:14:27,400 --> 00:14:29,840 manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 281 00:14:29,960 --> 00:14:32,960 That just means spiritual gift. That's the context. 282 00:14:33,240 --> 00:14:36,920 And then in chapter 14, so with yourself, since you are eager 283 00:14:36,920 --> 00:14:40,560 for manifestations of the Spirit, strive to excel in 284 00:14:40,560 --> 00:14:44,720 building up the church. These aren't for your individual 285 00:14:44,720 --> 00:14:47,480 honor badges. This is for you to build up the 286 00:14:47,480 --> 00:14:50,640 body and you've got to be in the body in order to do that. 287 00:14:51,240 --> 00:14:54,320 So one of the things that we're addressing is where we're 288 00:14:54,320 --> 00:14:57,200 looking at this idea that the Christian life, and this is a 289 00:14:57,200 --> 00:15:01,000 great phrase, it's ideally A discipleship journey in 290 00:15:01,000 --> 00:15:02,880 community. That's what it is. 291 00:15:03,200 --> 00:15:06,400 The Christian, the Christian life is a discipleship journey 292 00:15:06,720 --> 00:15:10,800 in the, in the context of community or in community with 293 00:15:10,800 --> 00:15:12,760 others. And so one of the things that 294 00:15:12,760 --> 00:15:17,920 we're addressing through our Connect groups is the idea that 295 00:15:17,920 --> 00:15:19,960 our reach ministry that you're going to be hearing more and 296 00:15:19,960 --> 00:15:22,720 more and more about is going to reach out to everybody in our 297 00:15:22,720 --> 00:15:25,720 church role. There should be no inactive 298 00:15:25,720 --> 00:15:28,720 church member. That category doesn't exist in 299 00:15:28,720 --> 00:15:31,680 Scripture. And so one of the things we want 300 00:15:31,680 --> 00:15:34,360 to do is love people back into. In fact, last night at this 301 00:15:34,360 --> 00:15:36,760 Connect group meeting, I was just listening over listening 302 00:15:36,760 --> 00:15:37,960 talk about reach. We're going to do this. 303 00:15:37,960 --> 00:15:39,320 We're going to reach these people, going to reach that 304 00:15:39,320 --> 00:15:40,280 people. It's so exciting. 305 00:15:41,400 --> 00:15:45,320 And so if we're committed to Christ as our head, we must also 306 00:15:45,320 --> 00:15:48,400 be committed to to the body, his body, the church. 307 00:15:48,600 --> 00:15:51,840 There's no ecclesiological decapitation allowed. 308 00:15:52,800 --> 00:15:55,400 You don't get to do that. That's not biblical. 309 00:15:56,040 --> 00:16:00,600 So officially and formally commit to a local church to be 310 00:16:00,600 --> 00:16:04,880 in the best position to become the most obedient disciple. 311 00:16:05,360 --> 00:16:08,160 And so to believe that you can best serve Christ while not 312 00:16:08,160 --> 00:16:12,120 being accountable as an official church member is, frankly, to 313 00:16:12,120 --> 00:16:15,320 ignore a major percentage of the New Testament teaching. 314 00:16:15,480 --> 00:16:17,680 That's not what the Bible teaches. 315 00:16:18,320 --> 00:16:21,520 The New Testament church understood her responsibility. 316 00:16:22,000 --> 00:16:25,480 And the New Testament church, I promise you, knew who was in and 317 00:16:25,480 --> 00:16:29,360 knew who was out. They had to as they faced 318 00:16:29,360 --> 00:16:31,720 persecution and they faced false teaching. 319 00:16:31,960 --> 00:16:34,960 They knew who was a member, and they knew who was not a member. 320 00:16:35,280 --> 00:16:38,840 They had to know that every church to which Paul wrote could 321 00:16:38,840 --> 00:16:41,440 be identified. They met together in a specific 322 00:16:41,440 --> 00:16:44,080 city, in a specific place to serve and share together in 323 00:16:44,080 --> 00:16:47,040 specific ways. And they dealt with those who 324 00:16:47,040 --> 00:16:50,320 did not live the Christian life nor teach proper doctrine and 325 00:16:50,320 --> 00:16:53,440 were forced to preserve and protect the integrity of the 326 00:16:53,440 --> 00:16:57,120 body by knowing who was in, who was a member. 327 00:16:58,240 --> 00:17:01,040 Now, on Wednesday nights, I'm teaching theological triage. 328 00:17:01,040 --> 00:17:03,000 In other words, I'm teaching what are the most important 329 00:17:03,000 --> 00:17:06,040 doctrines for us to believe in? What are some secondary and 330 00:17:06,040 --> 00:17:08,599 tertiary doctrines? Last Wednesday night, again, 331 00:17:08,599 --> 00:17:12,040 just by the way, we had the largest adult attendance on a 332 00:17:12,040 --> 00:17:15,119 Wednesday night at Inglewood. I, I, it's all long before 333 00:17:15,119 --> 00:17:16,599 COVID. I don't know the last time. 334 00:17:17,160 --> 00:17:18,880 So you need to be here if you're not coming. 335 00:17:19,240 --> 00:17:21,440 And this Wednesday night, we're going to talk about some of the 336 00:17:21,440 --> 00:17:24,440 secondary and tertiary doctrines that may sound technical and 337 00:17:24,440 --> 00:17:27,240 academic, but it's not. These are things we need to 338 00:17:27,240 --> 00:17:30,640 believe, some that are worth dying for and some that are that 339 00:17:30,640 --> 00:17:32,920 we can, we can have different interpretations about. 340 00:17:33,520 --> 00:17:36,200 And how do we understand those? That's Wednesday night. 341 00:17:36,960 --> 00:17:38,600 But the early church had to know. 342 00:17:39,240 --> 00:17:43,080 The other church had to deal with those that were not of the 343 00:17:43,080 --> 00:17:45,080 fold. They could not survive without 344 00:17:45,080 --> 00:17:46,760 knowing. They didn't have a church on 345 00:17:46,760 --> 00:17:49,160 every corner. They didn't have the luxury of 346 00:17:49,280 --> 00:17:51,640 that much choice. They had to know. 347 00:17:52,200 --> 00:17:54,480 And so they also had to practically perform Great 348 00:17:54,480 --> 00:17:57,040 Commission tasks and, and missional tasks. 349 00:17:57,040 --> 00:17:59,400 So #3 let's look at the practical ministry of church 350 00:17:59,400 --> 00:18:02,320 membership. So to do all that, they were 351 00:18:02,320 --> 00:18:05,360 commanded, they organized leadership, and they organized 352 00:18:05,360 --> 00:18:08,000 delegation, and they organized ministry lists. 353 00:18:08,000 --> 00:18:09,640 You need to study church history sometime. 354 00:18:10,840 --> 00:18:14,400 And so in the Bible we even hear about an enrollment of widows on 355 00:18:14,400 --> 00:18:17,560 a list to receive food and care. Listen to first Timothy 5. 356 00:18:17,920 --> 00:18:22,600 Let a widow be enrolled if she is not less than 60 years of 357 00:18:22,600 --> 00:18:25,080 age, having been the wife of one husband. 358 00:18:25,560 --> 00:18:27,840 And our deacons right here at Inglewood are doing this. 359 00:18:27,840 --> 00:18:30,120 Our, our, our, our deacons take care of our widows. 360 00:18:30,120 --> 00:18:31,800 Our deacons take care of our shut insurance. 361 00:18:31,800 --> 00:18:35,080 In fact, one of the, my favorite parts of the week is when I get 362 00:18:35,080 --> 00:18:37,680 to go out with a Deacon and we go, I go visit shut insurance 363 00:18:37,680 --> 00:18:39,480 with them every week. I get to meet these wonderful 364 00:18:39,480 --> 00:18:41,840 people who are also going to be incredible prayer partners for 365 00:18:41,840 --> 00:18:44,240 us. And so the early church knew who 366 00:18:44,240 --> 00:18:46,680 their leaders were. They knew who their members 367 00:18:46,680 --> 00:18:48,200 were. They had a list of called 368 00:18:48,200 --> 00:18:50,240 qualifications for them as members. 369 00:18:50,680 --> 00:18:52,840 They also knew what their ministry needs were. 370 00:18:53,360 --> 00:18:57,800 And so belonging to a church includes the church taking 371 00:18:57,800 --> 00:19:02,320 specific responsibility for you, and you taking specifically 372 00:19:02,640 --> 00:19:04,960 specific responsibility for other members. 373 00:19:05,320 --> 00:19:08,080 It's a give and take. It's a wonderful thing, and I'm 374 00:19:08,080 --> 00:19:10,880 sorry if that's not what church has meant to you. 375 00:19:11,560 --> 00:19:14,360 I'm sorry if no one has told you that before. 376 00:19:14,600 --> 00:19:17,160 I'm sorry if there's been no expectation of that. 377 00:19:17,480 --> 00:19:20,760 I'm sorry if some church leader or church has failed you. 378 00:19:20,920 --> 00:19:23,920 I see this way too often in my ministry. 379 00:19:24,040 --> 00:19:27,520 Sometimes churches legitimately fail in fulfilling their part of 380 00:19:27,520 --> 00:19:29,240 the covenant relationship with his members. 381 00:19:29,400 --> 00:19:31,240 In fact, I'm writing a book about it right now. 382 00:19:32,800 --> 00:19:35,800 But just like Paul and Barnabas sometimes had to go separate 383 00:19:35,800 --> 00:19:39,760 ways at one point in their missions work, we believe God is 384 00:19:39,760 --> 00:19:44,400 leading Inglewood to go down a a new path to best serve Him. 385 00:19:44,760 --> 00:19:47,040 And so we want to separate ourselves from any of that 386 00:19:47,040 --> 00:19:49,520 negative past and move forward in a positive way. 387 00:19:49,800 --> 00:19:54,520 We must be obedient to him. But then yet then, because even 388 00:19:54,520 --> 00:19:56,880 like these new members, they have a chance to start in a 389 00:19:56,880 --> 00:19:59,480 brand new place, a brand new family, we got to welcome them 390 00:19:59,480 --> 00:20:00,600 there. A lot of these folks are going 391 00:20:00,600 --> 00:20:02,160 to plug in their experienced leaders. 392 00:20:02,160 --> 00:20:05,640 It's going to be wonderful. So, so right now you can 393 00:20:05,640 --> 00:20:10,560 personally play a vital role by joining, growing and getting 394 00:20:10,560 --> 00:20:13,680 involved right here, right now at Inglewood like you've 395 00:20:13,680 --> 00:20:17,600 witnessed them doing. Let us press on to be the best. 396 00:20:17,600 --> 00:20:21,720 Let us let us have the most complete example of discipleship 397 00:20:21,720 --> 00:20:24,200 that we can possibly share. And I'm going to talk about 398 00:20:24,200 --> 00:20:27,400 discipleship all next week. But but other churches in the 399 00:20:27,400 --> 00:20:29,680 lost world around us desperately need this. 400 00:20:29,880 --> 00:20:30,800 Because let me tell you something. 401 00:20:30,800 --> 00:20:34,040 Let me skip practical. It's difficult, maybe impossible 402 00:20:34,800 --> 00:20:37,600 to care for a flock. Well, if the shepherd and the 403 00:20:37,600 --> 00:20:41,120 other sheep don't know who the actual members of the flock 404 00:20:41,120 --> 00:20:44,720 really are, becomes really hard. So #4 let's look at the 405 00:20:44,720 --> 00:20:47,800 submission. Well, oh, another cuss word to 406 00:20:47,800 --> 00:20:50,760 church membership. People don't like that word in 407 00:20:50,760 --> 00:20:53,240 this culture. It's because they don't 408 00:20:53,240 --> 00:20:56,720 understand it. As I read 2 weeks ago, Jonathan 409 00:20:56,720 --> 00:20:59,720 Lehman radically challenges us concerning church membership. 410 00:20:59,720 --> 00:21:02,440 He says church membership is a formal relationship between a 411 00:21:02,440 --> 00:21:05,360 church and a Christian, characterized by the church's 412 00:21:05,360 --> 00:21:09,880 affirmation and oversight of a Christian's discipleship and the 413 00:21:09,880 --> 00:21:13,320 Christian's submission to living out his or her discipleship in 414 00:21:13,320 --> 00:21:15,320 the care of the church. Now this gets even stronger. 415 00:21:15,320 --> 00:21:18,120 Listen to this. Christ does not call us to join 416 00:21:18,120 --> 00:21:20,600 a church, but to submit to a church. 417 00:21:22,400 --> 00:21:23,400 And we just don't think like that. 418 00:21:23,400 --> 00:21:25,160 A lot of times we think this is some choice. 419 00:21:25,160 --> 00:21:27,440 And if I don't like this show, I'll just go find another show. 420 00:21:28,440 --> 00:21:30,920 See. And many in our culture would be 421 00:21:30,920 --> 00:21:34,720 unwilling to engage in that level of accountability because 422 00:21:34,720 --> 00:21:38,040 they don't want to submit to anyone and they don't understand 423 00:21:38,040 --> 00:21:40,440 biblical submission. Biblical submission is like the 424 00:21:40,440 --> 00:21:44,080 I do's of a wedding ceremony. The submission's not by 425 00:21:44,080 --> 00:21:46,640 manipulation. It's not by coercion, but ought 426 00:21:46,640 --> 00:21:49,800 to be driven in Christian marriage by a sense of God's 427 00:21:49,800 --> 00:21:54,280 calling to serve and to submit to him first and then willingly 428 00:21:54,280 --> 00:21:57,280 to one another because of the prior commitment to him and his 429 00:21:57,280 --> 00:21:59,200 will. That's what a Christian marriage 430 00:21:59,200 --> 00:22:04,240 survives on listen, we choose to submit to one another in love 431 00:22:04,240 --> 00:22:07,480 and service in the church, much like a husband and wife. 432 00:22:07,760 --> 00:22:10,040 I mean, listen, you got to understand God has just blessed 433 00:22:10,040 --> 00:22:12,400 me in this way when I married Teresa. 434 00:22:12,400 --> 00:22:16,440 We, we sacrifice for one another to have a strong marriage. 435 00:22:16,680 --> 00:22:21,200 And many unfortunately don't know church being like this. 436 00:22:22,200 --> 00:22:26,280 It's been something else, something wrong, something 437 00:22:26,280 --> 00:22:30,000 incomplete, something human driven perhaps. 438 00:22:30,000 --> 00:22:34,120 Listen to what Paul wrote, Listen to what he wrote here in 439 00:22:34,120 --> 00:22:37,160 Ephesians chapter 5. Look carefully then, how you 440 00:22:37,160 --> 00:22:40,200 walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, 441 00:22:40,200 --> 00:22:42,880 because the days are evil. Therefore, do not be foolish, 442 00:22:42,880 --> 00:22:44,600 but understand what the will of the Lord is. 443 00:22:45,080 --> 00:22:47,440 Not get drunk with wine for that's debauchery, but be filled 444 00:22:47,440 --> 00:22:50,280 with the Spirit addressing one another in psalms and hymns and 445 00:22:50,280 --> 00:22:52,800 spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with 446 00:22:52,800 --> 00:22:56,080 your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the 447 00:22:56,080 --> 00:22:57,960 Father in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. 448 00:22:58,400 --> 00:23:05,120 Submitting to one another of reverence for Christ, not just 449 00:23:05,120 --> 00:23:07,720 reverence for one another, but because of Him first. 450 00:23:07,840 --> 00:23:10,840 So he challenges this local church in Ephesus to live wisely 451 00:23:10,840 --> 00:23:13,080 in a very unwise world. They were surrounded by paganism 452 00:23:13,760 --> 00:23:18,320 and to encourage one another in action and worship according to 453 00:23:18,320 --> 00:23:19,920 God's will. And as they're full of the 454 00:23:19,920 --> 00:23:24,240 Spirit, to willingly, thankfully submit to one another, not 455 00:23:24,240 --> 00:23:27,720 necessarily just because of one another, but because of Christ. 456 00:23:27,720 --> 00:23:30,320 That's the key. And we missed that point in 457 00:23:30,320 --> 00:23:34,960 church life in our experience unfortunately, and in our human 458 00:23:34,960 --> 00:23:39,160 earthly minds and values. We want church and frankly 459 00:23:39,160 --> 00:23:43,520 everything else to be about us and only see the problem of 460 00:23:43,520 --> 00:23:47,160 submission to other humans and don't connect it to the 461 00:23:47,160 --> 00:23:50,960 submission to Christ. So we may just think it's about 462 00:23:50,960 --> 00:23:55,640 that pastor who seeks to Lord authority over you or some power 463 00:23:55,640 --> 00:23:58,120 hungry power group in the church who want to run the church 464 00:23:58,440 --> 00:24:00,880 rather than trusting God to God his bride. 465 00:24:01,520 --> 00:24:03,120 But the church has to be more than that. 466 00:24:03,800 --> 00:24:07,080 Paul drives home his point. He continues in Ephesians 5. 467 00:24:07,840 --> 00:24:10,720 Wives, submit your own husbands as to the Lord, for the husband 468 00:24:10,720 --> 00:24:12,920 is the head of the wife. He visits Christ as the head of 469 00:24:12,920 --> 00:24:16,920 the church, his body and his and is himself its Savior. 470 00:24:17,600 --> 00:24:20,520 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should 471 00:24:20,520 --> 00:24:22,000 submit and everything to their husbands. 472 00:24:22,280 --> 00:24:25,480 Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the Church, and 473 00:24:25,480 --> 00:24:29,920 gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify, make might 474 00:24:29,920 --> 00:24:32,520 sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of the water 475 00:24:32,520 --> 00:24:35,520 with the Word, so that he might present the Church to himself in 476 00:24:35,520 --> 00:24:39,000 splendor, without spot or wrinkle, or any such thing, that 477 00:24:39,000 --> 00:24:41,720 she might be holy without blame, without blemish. 478 00:24:42,320 --> 00:24:45,200 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own 479 00:24:45,200 --> 00:24:47,640 bodies. He who loves his wife loves 480 00:24:47,640 --> 00:24:49,680 himself. For no one ever hated his own 481 00:24:49,680 --> 00:24:53,520 flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ 482 00:24:53,520 --> 00:24:56,800 does the Church, because we are members of His body. 483 00:24:57,360 --> 00:24:59,880 Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast 484 00:24:59,880 --> 00:25:01,600 to his wife, and the two shall become one. 485 00:25:01,600 --> 00:25:05,560 Now listen to this. This mystery is profound, and 486 00:25:05,560 --> 00:25:10,680 I'm saying that it refers to Christ and the Church. 487 00:25:11,360 --> 00:25:13,840 However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and 488 00:25:13,840 --> 00:25:15,800 let the wife see that she respects her husband. 489 00:25:16,160 --> 00:25:20,000 So this image of marriage and this image of the Church go hand 490 00:25:20,000 --> 00:25:23,320 in hand and that, and that's part of the part of the point we 491 00:25:23,320 --> 00:25:26,000 submit to one another in Christian marriage. 492 00:25:26,160 --> 00:25:30,680 We do that in that relationship, thankfully, joyfully, willingly, 493 00:25:30,800 --> 00:25:34,000 not just because of our love for our spouse, but because we have 494 00:25:34,000 --> 00:25:37,920 submitted to and love Christ and believe with all of our hearts 495 00:25:38,120 --> 00:25:42,080 that our marriage is his will. And in difficult times, your 496 00:25:42,080 --> 00:25:45,400 marriage can survive because both partners recognize 497 00:25:45,400 --> 00:25:48,880 submission to Christ as the key and not simply to one another. 498 00:25:50,200 --> 00:25:54,200 Now listen, I believe it is God's will for me to be married 499 00:25:54,200 --> 00:25:58,000 to Teresa Joe Baker. God has blessed me with the 500 00:25:58,000 --> 00:26:02,280 kindest, sweetest, greatest Christ follower I've ever met on 501 00:26:02,280 --> 00:26:05,280 this planet. My wife and I'm honored to be 502 00:26:05,280 --> 00:26:07,520 her husband. I'm difficult to get along with 503 00:26:07,520 --> 00:26:09,880 sometimes. I'm not sure that she's always 504 00:26:09,880 --> 00:26:12,680 honored to be my wife, but I'm very honored to be her husband. 505 00:26:14,520 --> 00:26:17,280 And, and listen to this. I believe it is God's will for 506 00:26:17,280 --> 00:26:19,040 me to. It's stronger than that. 507 00:26:19,360 --> 00:26:23,480 I believe I would have been disobedient and in sin if I did 508 00:26:23,480 --> 00:26:27,040 not marry her. I believe it was God's will. 509 00:26:27,040 --> 00:26:30,040 And when I perform a wedding ceremony and they go through 510 00:26:30,040 --> 00:26:34,160 intensive premarital pastoral care, they have to express in 511 00:26:34,160 --> 00:26:38,560 writing why they know it is God's will for them to marry 512 00:26:38,560 --> 00:26:42,120 their fiance and they would be in sin if they did not get 513 00:26:42,120 --> 00:26:45,080 married. Then we discuss those truths and 514 00:26:45,080 --> 00:26:46,960 I share that as part of the wedding ceremony. 515 00:26:47,440 --> 00:26:49,160 That's a major part of the wedding ceremony. 516 00:26:49,280 --> 00:26:52,520 Why these two people know beyond any shadow of a doubt it is 517 00:26:52,520 --> 00:26:55,560 God's will for them to be married to one another. 518 00:26:55,840 --> 00:27:00,000 This is serious business, church membership serious too. 519 00:27:00,960 --> 00:27:03,320 It's parallel. It's a it's an image of one of 520 00:27:03,320 --> 00:27:05,280 the other. Joining the church ought to be 521 00:27:05,280 --> 00:27:07,000 something you know is God's will. 522 00:27:07,200 --> 00:27:11,440 Listen to says in Ephesians 521, submitting to one another out of 523 00:27:11,440 --> 00:27:15,800 reverence for Christ. See, it's the same relationship 524 00:27:16,520 --> 00:27:18,040 that we have. This is the key to strong 525 00:27:18,040 --> 00:27:19,640 marriage. It's the key to your church 526 00:27:19,640 --> 00:27:22,280 membership. So I want you to believe it's 527 00:27:22,280 --> 00:27:25,080 clearly God's will for you to be a member of Englewood Baptist 528 00:27:25,080 --> 00:27:26,520 Church before you seek to join her. 529 00:27:27,920 --> 00:27:30,560 And Jesus described this type of submission as service. 530 00:27:30,560 --> 00:27:33,760 He says in Matthew 20, He says, but Jesus called them to him and 531 00:27:33,760 --> 00:27:36,320 said, you know, that the rulers of the Gentiles lorded over 532 00:27:36,320 --> 00:27:39,240 them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 533 00:27:39,440 --> 00:27:42,160 It should not be so among you. But whoever would be great among 534 00:27:42,160 --> 00:27:45,160 you must be your servant. And whoever must be first among 535 00:27:45,160 --> 00:27:48,400 you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be 536 00:27:48,400 --> 00:27:51,280 served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. 537 00:27:53,200 --> 00:27:58,440 Point #5 another cuss word, the accountability of church 538 00:27:58,440 --> 00:28:01,000 membership. This is something that some 539 00:28:01,000 --> 00:28:02,520 people don't ever want to think about. 540 00:28:03,480 --> 00:28:05,040 They want to deny that it's true. 541 00:28:05,480 --> 00:28:08,400 We gather to serve him and we gather to serve one another. 542 00:28:08,400 --> 00:28:11,880 But to to best do that, we must know who is really a member of 543 00:28:11,880 --> 00:28:15,320 the flock. Endeavour and Alexander wrote 544 00:28:15,320 --> 00:28:17,920 this. Church membership is means by 545 00:28:17,920 --> 00:28:20,880 which the boundaries of church membership are drawn. 546 00:28:21,520 --> 00:28:24,560 We know who you are. According to John 10, the Good 547 00:28:24,560 --> 00:28:27,840 Shepherd knows his sheep and they know his voice, right? 548 00:28:28,280 --> 00:28:32,880 They are identifiable and he'll leave the 99 to go after the 549 00:28:32,880 --> 00:28:37,320 one, but he's got to know he has 100 in the 1st place to do that. 550 00:28:37,320 --> 00:28:40,200 This becomes very practical and logistical for leaders. 551 00:28:40,560 --> 00:28:44,600 A coach needs to know who his players are and what position 552 00:28:44,680 --> 00:28:47,160 that they're skilled at. Just as a general needs to know 553 00:28:47,160 --> 00:28:50,880 each soldier in their talents and Christian leaders, pastors 554 00:28:50,880 --> 00:28:54,000 must also know the specific parts of the local body. 555 00:28:54,080 --> 00:28:57,240 What are your gifts? What is your spirit of skill, as 556 00:28:57,240 --> 00:28:59,760 Exodus would describe it? What are your talents and 557 00:28:59,760 --> 00:29:03,200 experiences so that together we serve in the greatest way? 558 00:29:04,000 --> 00:29:07,320 We're not going to know that unless you're a member. 559 00:29:08,800 --> 00:29:13,640 See, we actually bear as leaders the responsibility for specific 560 00:29:13,640 --> 00:29:17,400 sheep through the Church of God. Peter writes about it. 561 00:29:17,400 --> 00:29:20,480 He says in first Peter 5 shepherd, the flock of God that 562 00:29:20,480 --> 00:29:24,320 is among you, exercising oversight not by compulsion, but 563 00:29:24,320 --> 00:29:28,960 willingly, as God would have you, not for shameful gain, but 564 00:29:28,960 --> 00:29:32,960 eagerly or in the book of Acts chapter 20. 565 00:29:33,720 --> 00:29:36,680 Take careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock 566 00:29:36,880 --> 00:29:40,000 in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers to care for 567 00:29:40,000 --> 00:29:43,200 the Church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. 568 00:29:43,440 --> 00:29:49,920 And we simply so we simply cannot be ignorant as shepherds 569 00:29:49,920 --> 00:29:54,360 of who the specific sheep are in order to serve God well, we need 570 00:29:54,360 --> 00:29:57,280 to know who you are so we can make sure that there there are 571 00:29:57,280 --> 00:30:00,680 people who are assigned to you, to minister to you, as well as a 572 00:30:00,680 --> 00:30:04,960 place of service for you to be assigned to serve others, to use 573 00:30:04,960 --> 00:30:08,160 your calling, to use your giftedness to serve God will. 574 00:30:08,240 --> 00:30:11,720 We cannot fulfill that obligation if if we're not 575 00:30:11,720 --> 00:30:14,680 involved with one another. We can't fulfill our obligation 576 00:30:14,680 --> 00:30:17,240 to other Christians, and we can't do it to church leaders 577 00:30:17,240 --> 00:30:19,680 without the personal, specific involvement in the local church. 578 00:30:19,920 --> 00:30:22,280 And other Christians and church leaders can't fulfill their 579 00:30:22,280 --> 00:30:26,160 obligations to you without your specific involvement. 580 00:30:26,880 --> 00:30:30,200 Now, many don't like this, either due to their 581 00:30:30,200 --> 00:30:33,400 individualism or some lousy past church experience. 582 00:30:34,960 --> 00:30:37,400 I know so many around the world who would love the privilege and 583 00:30:37,400 --> 00:30:40,400 opportunity to become a member of a church again. 584 00:30:40,400 --> 00:30:43,320 Dever and Alexander Wright Corrective discipline assumes 585 00:30:43,320 --> 00:30:46,160 that it's important for a person himself to know that he's a 586 00:30:46,160 --> 00:30:49,560 member of the church. He can't be expected to submit 587 00:30:49,560 --> 00:30:52,640 to the church's discipline, another cuss word, if he is 588 00:30:52,640 --> 00:30:54,800 unaware of his own membership in the church. 589 00:30:55,640 --> 00:30:58,560 It also assumes that other members need to know whether or 590 00:30:58,560 --> 00:31:02,040 not a person is a member. Listen to what Paul wrote to the 591 00:31:02,040 --> 00:31:05,720 Corinthians in chapter 5. For what have I had to do with 592 00:31:05,720 --> 00:31:08,960 judging outsiders? Is it not those outside the 593 00:31:08,960 --> 00:31:13,320 church whom you are to judge? Excuse me, is that is not those 594 00:31:13,320 --> 00:31:15,000 inside the church whom you are to judge. 595 00:31:15,000 --> 00:31:18,000 God judges those outside. Purge the evil person from among 596 00:31:18,000 --> 00:31:20,640 you. So the church is responsible for 597 00:31:20,640 --> 00:31:24,280 the members spiritual health, but there's no way for spiritual 598 00:31:24,280 --> 00:31:28,040 accountability to work if no one knows who a member is. 599 00:31:29,000 --> 00:31:32,480 They could simply walk away. They could simply reject any 600 00:31:32,480 --> 00:31:35,120 correction. They could simply even reject 601 00:31:35,320 --> 00:31:39,280 encouragement and not be redeemed like a Matthew 18 602 00:31:39,280 --> 00:31:42,520 passage would suggest. Or in Second Corinthians chapter 603 00:31:42,520 --> 00:31:44,360 2. For such a one, this punishment 604 00:31:44,360 --> 00:31:46,680 by the majority is enough. See them. 605 00:31:46,880 --> 00:31:49,320 The church held people accountable. 606 00:31:50,400 --> 00:31:53,200 Second Thessalonians chapter 3. If anyone does not obey what we 607 00:31:53,200 --> 00:31:55,760 say in this letter, take note of that person and have nothing to 608 00:31:55,760 --> 00:31:57,760 do with him, that he may be ashamed. 609 00:31:57,760 --> 00:32:00,280 Do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother. 610 00:32:01,120 --> 00:32:03,120 But many in our culture just don't like this part. 611 00:32:04,440 --> 00:32:07,520 The Bible tells us in multiple places that the church must hold 612 00:32:07,520 --> 00:32:10,200 her members accountable and even discipline them. 613 00:32:10,760 --> 00:32:13,880 And no matter if you've ever seen it or not, or don't like it 614 00:32:13,880 --> 00:32:16,240 at all, the Scripture is full of it. 615 00:32:16,560 --> 00:32:20,240 That that that this designated, shepherded, defined, obedient 616 00:32:20,240 --> 00:32:23,800 group of people watch out for one another and protect the the 617 00:32:23,800 --> 00:32:28,080 sanctity of the body. So as imperfect people, because 618 00:32:28,080 --> 00:32:31,320 that's who and what we are saved by grace. 619 00:32:31,480 --> 00:32:35,280 We imitate Jesus by loving others through intentional 620 00:32:35,280 --> 00:32:38,000 relationships for encouragement, accountability, and holiness. 621 00:32:38,160 --> 00:32:40,080 We do that corporately. We do that individually. 622 00:32:40,920 --> 00:32:44,520 But fall in humanity is often much more skilled at competition 623 00:32:44,520 --> 00:32:47,480 than community. They often seek to get rather 624 00:32:47,480 --> 00:32:50,520 than to give, to promote themselves rather than lift one 625 00:32:50,520 --> 00:32:53,120 another up. Again, listen to Tom Rayner. 626 00:32:53,600 --> 00:32:56,600 You don't get to treat the church like a social club where 627 00:32:56,600 --> 00:32:59,600 you pay your dues, the pastors and staff for your hired hands, 628 00:33:00,000 --> 00:33:01,880 and you expect certain perks in return. 629 00:33:03,200 --> 00:33:06,600 Sacrificing self for the benefit of others is at the very heart 630 00:33:06,600 --> 00:33:08,720 of the mind and the life of Christ. 631 00:33:09,640 --> 00:33:12,640 So number six, let's look at the pathways of church membership. 632 00:33:14,400 --> 00:33:17,040 For many of you, the next step is to become an official member 633 00:33:17,040 --> 00:33:21,360 like these you have seen today. This is reserved for those 634 00:33:21,360 --> 00:33:24,240 who've been born again, biblically baptized by 635 00:33:24,240 --> 00:33:26,480 immersion, and are seeking to serve the Lord with all their 636 00:33:26,480 --> 00:33:29,280 hearts and lives and around the world. 637 00:33:29,280 --> 00:33:32,080 As I've said a minute many times, I work with persecuted 638 00:33:32,080 --> 00:33:35,000 people who pay tremendous prices for their membership in a local 639 00:33:35,000 --> 00:33:37,440 church. They're starving for more and 640 00:33:37,440 --> 00:33:41,040 more churches too. But but true discipline is our 641 00:33:41,040 --> 00:33:43,640 true discipleship. True discipleship is not 642 00:33:43,640 --> 00:33:48,640 measured by attendance alone. It's not. 643 00:33:49,440 --> 00:33:53,040 We love having you here and if you're a guest visiting today, I 644 00:33:53,040 --> 00:33:56,040 know it may be a weird message, but if you're here today and 645 00:33:56,040 --> 00:33:58,600 you're visiting today, we love having you here and we want you 646 00:33:58,600 --> 00:34:00,920 to come back. But this is just the beginning. 647 00:34:01,760 --> 00:34:06,400 It's too easy to walk away. It's too easy to reject 648 00:34:06,400 --> 00:34:09,360 accountability. It's too easy to find someplace 649 00:34:09,360 --> 00:34:12,440 else to just attend. So don't just hang out with the 650 00:34:12,440 --> 00:34:16,199 bride. Commit to the bride and and 651 00:34:16,199 --> 00:34:20,199 don't just be present to check off some religious duty list or 652 00:34:20,199 --> 00:34:24,000 to appease someone else or to maintain some family tradition. 653 00:34:24,440 --> 00:34:27,560 Join and be an active part of the official community. 654 00:34:27,719 --> 00:34:30,920 I know people who will not officially join a church in 655 00:34:30,920 --> 00:34:34,760 North Carolina, in Nash County in Rocky Mountain. 656 00:34:35,920 --> 00:34:38,800 I know people who will not officially join a church because 657 00:34:38,800 --> 00:34:41,560 their previous generations belong to a different one 658 00:34:41,560 --> 00:34:45,679 grandma belong to a different church, and they see church 659 00:34:45,679 --> 00:34:48,920 membership as more of a family tradition than a present 660 00:34:48,920 --> 00:34:50,960 commitment to service in God's Kingdom. 661 00:34:51,960 --> 00:34:55,600 And they think by leaving another church and joining this 662 00:34:55,600 --> 00:34:58,720 one that they're somehow defying or neglecting that family 663 00:34:58,720 --> 00:35:00,400 tradition. And I just want to say to you, 664 00:35:00,400 --> 00:35:02,760 that's not true. You're actually affirming the 665 00:35:02,760 --> 00:35:07,040 discipleship and the foundation they built into you so that you 666 00:35:07,040 --> 00:35:09,480 could go on and serve well in a new place. 667 00:35:10,000 --> 00:35:14,160 You honour them. So don't miss this opportunity 668 00:35:14,160 --> 00:35:16,320 to use your giftedness and calling to serve others. 669 00:35:17,240 --> 00:35:21,280 And so our church constitution and bylaws is full of, of, of 670 00:35:21,280 --> 00:35:25,160 definitions and expectations. There are expectations of 671 00:35:25,160 --> 00:35:27,360 membership. You don't get to be inactive 672 00:35:27,360 --> 00:35:29,720 here according to our to our bylaws. 673 00:35:30,480 --> 00:35:33,000 Did you know that that members here are actually supposed to 674 00:35:33,000 --> 00:35:35,880 hold you accountable according to what this document says? 675 00:35:36,040 --> 00:35:39,040 Did you know that membership can even be terminated according to 676 00:35:39,040 --> 00:35:40,840 this document? Did you know that church 677 00:35:40,840 --> 00:35:42,400 discipline is actually described? 678 00:35:42,400 --> 00:35:44,440 I promise it's right here. I have it, I could read it all, 679 00:35:44,440 --> 00:35:49,920 but I'm not going to. It's a serious business. 680 00:35:53,960 --> 00:35:58,960 So #7 As we close, let's just think about the decision for 681 00:35:58,960 --> 00:36:02,880 church membership. Christ established His church 682 00:36:02,880 --> 00:36:09,360 for specific purposes, and He knew we desperately needed it to 683 00:36:09,360 --> 00:36:11,360 be the disciples that we're supposed to be. 684 00:36:12,360 --> 00:36:14,600 There's a reason why solitary confinement's a severe 685 00:36:14,600 --> 00:36:17,080 punishment. That's not who we're designed or 686 00:36:17,080 --> 00:36:19,360 created to be. The early church devoted 687 00:36:19,360 --> 00:36:21,760 themselves to the fellowship and breaking of bread. 688 00:36:22,320 --> 00:36:24,080 They devoted themselves to Koinonia. 689 00:36:24,080 --> 00:36:26,920 You know that word which means to hold things in common, but it 690 00:36:26,920 --> 00:36:29,200 also means to enter into each other's life. 691 00:36:30,800 --> 00:36:32,760 And so we're to enter into one another's life. 692 00:36:32,760 --> 00:36:36,000 And they were single mindedly, continuously devoted to that in 693 00:36:36,000 --> 00:36:39,640 the book of Acts, the Bible says so church commitment requires 694 00:36:39,640 --> 00:36:41,800 focused action. It requires intentionality. 695 00:36:41,800 --> 00:36:43,240 It's not going to happen by accident. 696 00:36:43,720 --> 00:36:48,000 And, and, and we have been saved and gifted and called to use our 697 00:36:48,000 --> 00:36:51,200 giftedness to commit to serve one another, to serve this 698 00:36:51,200 --> 00:36:54,400 community. But unfortunately, there's some 699 00:36:54,400 --> 00:36:57,600 who avoid, intentionally avoid such closeness with others. 700 00:36:58,640 --> 00:37:00,000 They they don't want to be known. 701 00:37:00,000 --> 00:37:02,000 They don't want to have that kind of accountability in their 702 00:37:02,000 --> 00:37:04,160 life. And the result is they make it 703 00:37:04,160 --> 00:37:06,800 very, very difficult, if not impossible to receive the 704 00:37:06,800 --> 00:37:08,200 spiritual support they need in life. 705 00:37:08,200 --> 00:37:10,440 And then they wonder where God is when crisis happens. 706 00:37:12,240 --> 00:37:15,040 So to simply attend as part of a crowd of hundreds of people, 707 00:37:15,040 --> 00:37:16,960 it's an incomplete discipleship journey. 708 00:37:18,160 --> 00:37:19,920 And, and, and it might be a great start. 709 00:37:19,920 --> 00:37:22,440 And again, we're overjoyed that you are here, but it's not going 710 00:37:22,440 --> 00:37:24,240 to be enough to become all that you could be. 711 00:37:24,360 --> 00:37:26,840 We're not called to be several independent bodies meeting 712 00:37:26,840 --> 00:37:29,520 together on Sunday morning or whenever you feel like it, or 713 00:37:29,520 --> 00:37:31,760 whenever you're forced to come and dragged here by Mama. 714 00:37:33,480 --> 00:37:37,600 We are here for an accountable to one another, and when one 715 00:37:37,600 --> 00:37:40,760 member slips and falls, the other must be there to pick them 716 00:37:40,760 --> 00:37:43,080 up and to catch them and to hold them and help them get their 717 00:37:43,080 --> 00:37:45,760 footing again. We're bound together by the Holy 718 00:37:45,760 --> 00:37:47,680 Spirit. We're devoted to entering into 719 00:37:47,680 --> 00:37:51,160 each other's lives with love, to strengthen the young and 720 00:37:51,160 --> 00:37:54,320 struggling believer, to protect a weaker brother and sister in a 721 00:37:54,320 --> 00:37:57,800 tough spot, to love back the inactive, wandering members, to 722 00:37:57,800 --> 00:37:59,560 reach a lost world all around us. 723 00:37:59,760 --> 00:38:03,160 But this can't be real if you hold people at an emotional, 724 00:38:03,200 --> 00:38:07,640 spiritual, and relational distance, trust in God's plan 725 00:38:07,640 --> 00:38:09,800 and submit to Him. The early church was. 726 00:38:09,800 --> 00:38:12,360 Here's a word for the day. The early church was was 727 00:38:12,360 --> 00:38:17,000 Homothymodon. It means they are of 1 accord. 728 00:38:18,160 --> 00:38:22,080 They were one together and compared to their old legalistic 729 00:38:22,080 --> 00:38:25,840 religion this was revolutionary. This was life altering to them. 730 00:38:25,840 --> 00:38:29,320 It was freeing to them. And our culture is starving. 731 00:38:29,320 --> 00:38:32,680 This post postmodern pre Christian culture is starving to 732 00:38:32,680 --> 00:38:35,240 death for that kind of authentic community. 733 00:38:37,560 --> 00:38:41,320 Out of their fiercely independent autonomy and desire 734 00:38:41,320 --> 00:38:44,480 to define their own personal truth, they seek others with 735 00:38:44,480 --> 00:38:47,680 whom they can share their belief and and who will believe with 736 00:38:47,680 --> 00:38:49,360 them. For for others, that will help 737 00:38:49,360 --> 00:38:53,480 them find comfort and assurance in the midst of the chaos in in 738 00:38:53,480 --> 00:38:56,280 which they live. And this church should be the 739 00:38:56,280 --> 00:38:59,360 leading peer community of truth for them. 740 00:39:02,120 --> 00:39:03,760 But we've seen a lot of poor examples. 741 00:39:04,600 --> 00:39:05,960 So Englewood, we got to show them. 742 00:39:07,720 --> 00:39:09,920 I need you to join us to take whatever step. 743 00:39:09,920 --> 00:39:12,920 Your first step is to become a real covenant member of this 744 00:39:12,920 --> 00:39:14,480 church. Right now. 745 00:39:15,560 --> 00:39:17,720 Who's going to come to begin that process? 746 00:39:17,760 --> 00:39:20,360 Who needs to be saved? Who needs to be baptized? 747 00:39:20,480 --> 00:39:23,320 Who needs to go through our, our, our discover Inglewood 748 00:39:23,320 --> 00:39:25,160 process? Just like you've seen all of 749 00:39:25,160 --> 00:39:27,360 these people and many more. There are many more getting 750 00:39:27,360 --> 00:39:28,520 ready to go through the next one. 751 00:39:29,600 --> 00:39:32,240 On your Next Steps card, you'll see a little QR code down here. 752 00:39:32,240 --> 00:39:34,640 You can either fill this out, drop it one of these boxes, or 753 00:39:34,640 --> 00:39:37,120 you can click on that QR code and you can sign up for that and 754 00:39:37,120 --> 00:39:39,360 we'll follow up with you. We'll help you with those steps. 755 00:39:39,520 --> 00:39:42,080 But right now, in a moment when we sing, I'm going to invite you 756 00:39:42,080 --> 00:39:43,840 to come. Pastors are going to be here. 757 00:39:43,840 --> 00:39:46,080 They're going to be people in that Next Steps room right over 758 00:39:46,080 --> 00:39:49,080 there who would love to visit with you privately, discreetly. 759 00:39:49,080 --> 00:39:54,720 But what's my next step for church membership so that then 760 00:39:54,720 --> 00:39:58,560 we can truly make disciples together, uniting our 761 00:39:58,560 --> 00:40:02,520 giftedness, uniting Our Calling to serve together as a family, 762 00:40:02,520 --> 00:40:05,320 as a body, as a bride and members. 763 00:40:05,320 --> 00:40:07,480 I hope that you'll show your support with those who need to 764 00:40:07,480 --> 00:40:12,240 come, that you'll let them know that they would be most welcome 765 00:40:12,240 --> 00:40:16,480 to join the family and to join you on this faith journey. 766 00:40:16,960 --> 00:40:18,680 So let's pray and encourage them right now. 767 00:40:18,680 --> 00:40:22,680 Father, we thank you that we were never designed to do this 768 00:40:22,680 --> 00:40:26,360 alone. That Father, you call us to be a 769 00:40:26,360 --> 00:40:28,680 disciple, but that's not something we do by ourself. 770 00:40:29,560 --> 00:40:32,760 That's something we do together. That's something we do in 771 00:40:32,760 --> 00:40:35,200 community. That's something we do as part 772 00:40:35,200 --> 00:40:36,680 of a family. Thank you so much. 773 00:40:36,680 --> 00:40:39,640 Thank you so much for the new members who've joined us. 774 00:40:41,240 --> 00:40:44,280 Father, I met with many of them myself and, and know their 775 00:40:44,280 --> 00:40:46,280 hearts and know their desire to serve. 776 00:40:46,840 --> 00:40:48,520 Some of them are experienced leaders. 777 00:40:48,600 --> 00:40:50,640 We thank you, Father for bringing them our way, 778 00:40:51,480 --> 00:40:55,240 strengthening this body, the Father. 779 00:40:55,240 --> 00:40:57,720 There may be someone here and the very first step they need to 780 00:40:57,720 --> 00:41:00,000 take is salvation. They recognize they've never 781 00:41:00,000 --> 00:41:02,200 trusted in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. 782 00:41:02,200 --> 00:41:04,800 That's the first step. For others, it might be to be 783 00:41:04,800 --> 00:41:07,280 biblically baptized like people are going to be next week. 784 00:41:10,040 --> 00:41:13,280 For others, it's it's a conversation about how do I move 785 00:41:13,280 --> 00:41:18,280 my membership from one church to another so that I can serve here 786 00:41:18,400 --> 00:41:20,560 because that's what I believe God wants me to do. 787 00:41:20,880 --> 00:41:24,280 That's the only time they should do it is because they believe 788 00:41:24,280 --> 00:41:28,160 you want them to, Father. So Father, as we sing in just a 789 00:41:28,160 --> 00:41:30,400 moment, I pray people will come. People can come and pray at 790 00:41:30,400 --> 00:41:32,800 these steps, but also pray they'll go to the next steps 791 00:41:32,800 --> 00:41:36,920 room to share with those who just love to sit down with them, 792 00:41:37,840 --> 00:41:43,160 have a casual conversation, take their time to talk through this 793 00:41:43,160 --> 00:41:45,880 and pray with them. So Father, bless us now in 794 00:41:45,880 --> 00:41:48,360 Christ's name, Amen. Stand with me. 795 00:41:48,360 --> 00:41:52,080 We're going to sing together. Some of us will be up here, some 796 00:41:52,080 --> 00:41:54,280 folks are going to be over there in that next steps room. 797 00:41:54,280 --> 00:41:55,720 You don't have to come up here first. 798 00:41:55,720 --> 00:41:58,920 You can go right over there or you can come see us first. 799 00:41:59,000 --> 00:42:02,200 You can come pray whatever you need to do as we sing. 800 00:42:08,080 --> 00:42:09,720 Thank you so much for listening today. 801 00:42:09,720 --> 00:42:11,040 And I also hope that you'll go to 802 00:42:11,040 --> 00:42:14,840 ourwebsite@englewoodbaptist.com as well as our app and find many 803 00:42:14,840 --> 00:42:17,200 other resources that will bless you and your families. 804 00:42:17,360 --> 00:42:18,400 Thank you once again.