Thank God for His Church (North OC)

Daneil: So we've been in a new series, or, not really new, but we've been

starting it for the past couple weeks called, uh, Thank God For, alright?

And I know that, uh, Marcel preached and Eric preached last

week, they did amazing jobs.

I wasn't there, but I was able to watch online and I was just like, Oh man,

I got my work cut out for me today.

But man, we talked about, you know, thank God for, for his word.

I know last week Eric talked about thank God for, for the spirit.

And today I want to talk about thank God for his church.

I don't know about you guys, but, you know, growing up in the church, I always

had this idea of what church is like.

You know, I always thought church was limited, you know, to a building.

Uh, you know, speaking of gladiator, he wasn't much of a gladiator, but

you guys know the superhero Thor?

I believe it's Norse mythology, Thor.

So, the only Norse mythology I know is from the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

So, in one of the movies You know, he, he was fighting his, his sister,

you know, she's a bad guy or whatever.

And, you know, Thor lost his father, meaning that, you know,

he's gonna be king of Asgard.

Alright, I believe it was in Thor Ragnarok.

And, you know, his dad came to Thor in a vision.

And, you know, his dad told him that, you know, Son, Thor, Asgard

is not a place, but it's the people.

I remember watching that, I think I was like a senior in high school.

And I just, for some reason I was like, I looked at my mom, I was

like, is that what the church is?

And she was like, exactly.

You know, so thinking about that, you know, Thor would

obviously kick Gladiator's butt, but we won't talk about that.

But I really think about that, at the same time, that's what church is.

You know, church is not a place.

Church is the people.

You know, it's the community of believers, and it's the body

of Christ, the family of God.

You know, the church is not a place we go.

You know?

It's not a place we just check off.

It's a place where we belong to and it's through the church we experience that God,

you know, loves and grows in our faith and carry out his mission in the world.

And so when I think about, of like, man, who in the Bible just loved the church?

And, you know, it was, you know, clear to me, sending it out

this week, that it was Paul.

The Apostle Paul loved the church.

You know, I think Paul's perspective is, is so important, because,

you know, before he was even an apostle, I don't know if you guys

know this, but, he was a Pharisee.

He was someone against, you know, the church.

He went from being someone to, uh, wanting to kill disciples, you know,

we see in Acts, I believe, chapter 8, he was, uh, he killed, uh, Stephen,

he was there for the stoning of them, and it was just like, wow, okay,

like, everyone was scared of this man.

And then one day on the road to Damascus, you know, Jesus encountered

him, you know, blinded him, You know, through that encounter, Paul

was like, oh my goodness, like, why, like, why am I persecuting Jesus?

Why am I doing this to his church when they're just trying

to bring Jesus to the world?

And he went from being one of its greatest persecutors to one of its

greatest defenders of the church.

You know, Paul's love for the church is remarkable, especially, like I

said, when you consider his past.

He sought to destroy it, and after encountering Jesus, he, it became

his life's work to build the church.

It became his passion.

And Paul not only helped, you know, establish it, but he

continuously prayed for the church.

You know, his letters written in the Bible, in the New Testament, he

wrote 25 percent of it, but if you read the epistles, all of it were

letters to the church, to individuals, to reveal a deep gratitude for the

church, even in its imperfections.

You know, Paul's writing teaches us that what it means to value the

church, not because it's perfect, but because it's God's chosen instrument to

carry out his mission into the world.

You know, with that in mind, we have to ask ourselves, how often do we

stop to thank God for the church?

You know, for some of us, we may think of it daily.

Some of us, we may not think about it regularly.

We get caught up with the busyness of life and the demands of the week and

maybe get challenged, face challenges even within the church we are here today.

You know, I know for myself, I can get caught up in the busyness.

I can get caught up in all the imperfections of the church.

And I'm like, you know what?

Forget about it.

I just want to remove myself from it.

When we stop to reflect about the church, we realize how vital

it is for our spiritual journey.

And, you know, it serves a purpose for God and his people.

For Now, the scripture I'd like to look at is in, uh, Philippians chapter one.

Philippians chapter one, verse three through six, it reads, I thank

my God every time I remember you.

In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your

partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident

of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion

until the day of Christ Jesus.

You know, I love this, this scripture here.

You know, he begins with saying, you know, I thank my God every time I remember you.

Think about that, that is so powerful right there alone.

Every time Paul thought about the church in Philippi, you know, he,

he couldn't help but feel gratitude.

He didn't focus on their imperfections or their mistakes.

He focused on the joy and encouragement they brought to his life.

You know, for some of us, you know, it could be, it might be easy to focus

on the flaws or shortcomings of the church or the people here around us.

And I know for myself, I can get caught up in that too.

But I love Paul's examples here.

Paul says, he reminds us to, to have the choice to focus on what is good.

To focus on, you know, the, the joys in life, not really the, you

know, to look at the imperfection or flaws that other people have.

And here Paul continues, he says in all, uh, my prayers for all

of you, I always pray with joy.

Think about, why would he have joy?

I mean like, man, you get this imperfect people around here in this church, but

like why am I joyful to be part of this?

Because Paul's joy came from knowing that the church there in Philippi,

they weren't just passive Christians.

They weren't just sitting on the sidelines.

Instead, they were on the field.

They were actively, you know, trying to continue to see the work of the gospel

and they were partners with Paul in that.

As we see here, it says, because of your partnership in the gospel from the

first day until now, you know, here, Paul has the reason for gratitude.

Philippians were partners with Paul and Paul was partners with them.

You know, Paul spread good news in the church in Philippi.

They supported Paul in his journey.

You know, in Philippians chapter 4, we see that they, uh, I think

Philippians 4 · chapter mention

they financially supported Paul and his ministry in doing so.

They prayed for Paul continuously, and Paul prayed for the church in Philippi.

And they also lived out their faith.

Their faith was in action.

Like I said, the church wasn't on the sidelines.

They were in it, despite the persecutions they faced.

They remained steadfast.

And that encouraged Paul, and vice versa.

You know, as I was studying it out this week, thinking about, you know, remaining

steadfast and not being on the sidelines, you know, I think about our church here.

I reflect on last year when we made the move here to the PAC.

You know, I remember we always talked about, man, we all need to start serving.

We all need to step up.

I know some of us in this room, we've been disciples for 5, 10, 15, 20

plus years, and it could have been easy for you guys to be like, no,

no, no, give it to the young people.

But no, I see the disciples, the older disciples really stepping up.

And I want to thank you for that, because really it motivates

me to not be on the sidelines.

Knowing that, you know what, yeah, let me be in the battle with

you guys, let me start serving.

Let me be in those studies with you guys.

And I think,

I think how, like I said, we're here at the PAC, but this is, We all did this

to, you know, have church like this.

You know, we knew that we had to put on our servant hats.

We didn't have to put on our servant bibs as, uh, Kyle Lounsbury liked to put it.

And it's moments like these where we serve continuously as a church.

It reminds me of verse 6 here.

Oh,

and there it is.

Being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry on

to completion to the day of Christ Jesus.

You know, Paul reminds the Philippians the good work started with them.

This partnership in the gospel was not finished.

God would continue to work through them, shaping them into

who he would want them to be.

You know, Paul's confidence wasn't in their abilities, but

it was in God's faithfulness.

He believed what God started, he would finish.

This gave Paul even more reason to thank God for the church in Philippi.

Paul saw the Philippians more than just a group of believers.

He saw them as a reflection of God's grace and love.

You know, they weren't perfect, but they were willing, faithful,

and committed to one another, and to Paul, to thank God constantly.

Now, are we, church, thankful for the spiritual family as Paul was for his?

Do we recognize the ways God is working through the church

to bring hope to the world?

You know, I think, you know, I thought about the offering we gave last

week, the, the, uh, hope offering.

And man, I was so grateful for that.

Seeing the video and seeing where the money is going to, to help children, to

help third world countries like that.

And I'm like, wow, the gospel is being spread to them.

And hopefully they're going to be our brothers and sisters one day.

You know, Paul's example reminds us that even in the face of challenges, the

church is worth thanking God for because it reflects his grace, his purpose.

His mission.

Well, let's be real here.

All right.

We all know, we say the church is the family, right?

And just like any family, you know, we're about to have Thanksgiving this Thursday.

I don't know about you guys, but there's going to be some

people at the family table.

You're like, all right, there's the good.

And then there's that, that crazy uncle, that crazy aunt.

You know what I mean?

You're just like,

I don't have to deal with that.

I don't think right.

Yeah, no, no.

But I think about that, like, man, there's people who.

Can give headaches and Paul experienced that too within the church.

I mean, look at, you know, the church in Corinth.

Man, that church was full of problems.

There was pride, immorality, misuse of freedom, lack of unity,

lack of generosity, leadership.

There was so much more to it.

You know, in 1 Corinthians chapter 1, Verse 10 through 13, it says, I

1 Corinthians 1:10–13

appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,

that all of you agree with one another in what you say, and that there be

no division among you, that you be perfectly united in mind and thought.

My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe's household, have informed me

that there are quarrels among you.

What I mean is this, one of you guys says, I follow Paul, another says,

I follow Apollos, another, I follow Cephas, still another, I follow Christ.

Is Christ divided?

Was Paul crucified for you?

Were you baptized in the name of Paul?

Think about that.

They were plagued with division.

The church was plagued with sin.

People were aligning themselves with different people and not really

aligning themselves with Christ themselves, who's the ultimate uniter.

This was a messy situation Paul was in.

Flawed group of people.

It might seem like Paul had every reason to just throw up his hands and

just walk away, be like, you know what?

Lost cause here.

But instead, Paul calls out a powerful question.

He says, is Christ divided?

Was Paul crucified for you?

Now I don't think this was just a rebuke, it was literally a reality check

for the Corinth church right there.

Paul reminded them that church isn't about personal allegiances with

human leaders, it's about Jesus.

It's about his sacrifice, his name, his mission.

You know, Paul redirected their focus to the core truth

to all of the believers there.

It's Christ who matters.

It's not Paul, it's not Cephas, it's Christ.

You know, I love how he opens up even in 1 Corinthians chapter 1 here.

1 Corinthians 1 · chapter mention

Before even entering himself in the mess, he was just like, You know what?

I always thank my God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus.

You know, even in the imperfections, Paul still show gratitude for the church.

That is the heart we want to have gratitude over imperfections.

Paul didn't focus on their faults.

You know, it's so easy to focus on each other's faults.

He focused though, on God's grace at work in their lives, in his lives.

He believed that God's grace was far greater than their imperfections.

You know, church, do we have that same mindset?

Yes, there may be that brother and sister who, you know, you're just, ugh.

But church, do we view them the way God views them?

Do we view them as a lost cause?

Do we view them truly as our brother and sister, that we want to help them?

If we're honest, sometimes though, it can be hard to have that same perspective.

It can be challenging to thank God for church, especially when

it feels messy or imperfect.

You know, we can experience unrealistic expectations, thinking that maybe

the church, man, there shouldn't be any problems in the church.

Sorry to tell you, but there's problems in the church.

We're made up of imperfect people.

We all fall short of the glory of God.

All of us here, we're all in this one room here worshiping God.

Maybe we experience hurt or disappointment.

Maybe we focus on people instead of Christ.

Maybe we have spiritual blind spots in our lives.

Can we relate?

And yet, Paul's perspective reminds us something powerful.

Gratitude for the church isn't rooted in perfection.

Paul's gratitude wasn't tied to the church's performance or behavior.

It was strictly tied to God's grace and the bigger picture of what

he was going to do through them.

You know, when we focus on the work, you know, when we focus on God's work in the

church rather than the imperfection, we begin to see the beauty of things, right?

That's a matter of perspective right there.

You can decide what to do in those situations.

You know, the church's messiness reminds me of the gospel itself.

God takes broken people, He takes, He takes them and transforms

them through His love and power.

And in our weakness and in our struggles, God's strength shines through.

You know, just as Paul saw God's grace at work in Corinth, we can

see God bring beauty and restoration even in difficult circumstances.

You know, but it's easy, like I said.

It's easy for us to be frustrated.

It's easy for us to point out problems, to point out conflict and

disappointment or unmet expectations.

But I think if Paul could thank the church as messy as Corinth,

man, we can thank ours too.

You know, when we feel hurt, let's ask yourself, you know, how's God's

grace still at work here, rather than taking that victim mindset.

When we feel frustrated, let's focus on the bigger picture.

What is God doing through his people?

When we feel tempted to criticize, man, let's pray for unity and

healing and growth as a church.

You know, sometimes we can let our emotions cloud our perspective,

causing us to miss out how God's been working behind the scenes.

You know, it's easy to get stuck on what's wrong and forget what God

specializes in redeeming brokenness.

In moments, we need to take a step back and remember that the

church isn't perfect, but God's chosen instrument to reflect His

love and carry out His mission.

You know, when we choose gratitude over frustration, we open our hearts to see

His hand at work, even in the mess.

No, thanking God for the church, I said, it's not easy.

You know, I'm still working through that, even as a youth minister, thanking

God for the church does not come easy.

It requires us to look past the flaws, the disappointments, the challenges, to see

the bigger picture of what God is doing.

But when we choose gratitude, when we make decisions for God and His

church, it changes our perspective.

It helps us see and draw us closer to God and His people.

You know, I think, why, why should we thank God?

You know, we're in a sermon series, you know, thank God for, why

should we thank God for his church?

And one of the things I thought about is, man, church, church is a gift.

Church is God's gift to us.

Like I said, maybe it's not, you know, we're not all perfect, like

I said, but it's still a gift.

I think about, maybe when you're younger and Santa, uh,

gave you a Christmas present.

And you're like, I really didn't want this, Santa.

I wanted the new iPhone.

And you gave me this doll.

But still, it's like, you know what?

It's still a gift.

And you're still gonna cherish it.

You're still gonna make the most of it.

And that's what the church is like here.

You know, in Ephesians chapter 4, verse 11 13, I like the ESV verses.

Ephesians 4:11

And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds, and

the teachers to equip the saints for the work of the ministry.

For building up the body of Christ until we attain the unity of the faith

and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of

the stature of the fullness of Christ.

Now, what does this mean?

Well, God designed the church for growth.

And I'm not talking about numerically growing.

I'm talking about spiritually, for ourselves, growing.

We see that God gave us leaders, he gave us apostles, prophets, shepherds.

Not to dominate or control us, but to equip us for God's work of service.

Now these roles exist to help us grow spiritually and guide

us to understand God's word and encourage us to live out our faith.

I mean, think about it.

When you've been challenged or comforted by a sermon or a Bible study or a

talk with a brother and sister here in this room, that right there is

the God's gift of church in action.

Amen.

You know, the church is also a place for encouragement and unity.

You know, the goal is to build up the church, obviously.

Like I said, not numerically, but, I mean, we want to build up the church in that

way, but also just for our hearts too.

We don't, we don't want to just make something, we also

want to keep disciples as well.

We want them to die as a disciple.

And the goal is for us to, to reach unity in faith and in knowledge.

In a world that's often divided, the church is supposed to be a

place where we come together, unified in our love for Christ.

Now, how many times have the church been there for you in

your lives during a hard time?

Maybe someone prayed for you.

Maybe someone brought a meal to you.

Maybe just someone sat down and just mourned with you.

You know, I share it many times here.

Just think about how the church was there for me during times of mourning.

When I lost my dad.

Last year when I lost my friend Max.

A lot of us, man, you guys were there for us.

You were there for me.

You guys were praying for me.

You guys were continuously checking in on me.

And I was so grateful for that.

And the church is also just used for encouragement, not only in that

area, but also for celebration.

You know, this past year I got to marry my wife Savannah, and you guys were

all just there wanting to help out.

You know, we were, we couldn't rub two pennies together, but you

guys gave us that extra penny to really make the wedding happen.

You guys encouraged us so much through that time.

You know, the church is God's gift.

It's also a path to become mature, as it says here.

To the measure of stature of the fullness of Christ, mature manhood.

Though Paul reminds us, not only to care for us, but to shape us.

Sometimes that means to challenge or correct, you know, so we can grow.

People have to correct us.

They have to challenge us and we have to accept that because it's part of the

refining process to be just like Jesus.

You know, one of Jesus purpose in this world was to seek and save the lost.

And the scripture I think about It's here in Matthew chapter 5.

Matthew 5 · chapter mention

It says, You are the light of the world.

A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.

Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl.

Instead, they put it on its stand and gives light to everyone in the house.

In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good

deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

Now Jesus doesn't say here, Hey, try to be the light.

No, he says, You are the light of the world.

Now, as a church, we're a visible representation of God's love, his

truth, and hope for the world.

Our actions, our words, and unity shines in a way that draws us close to him.

And notice how Jesus gives the example of a town built on a hill.

You know, I believe that, individually, yes, he wants to be light, but as

a church, you know, think about it, a town is not made of one person,

it's made of multiple people.

And think about how Jesus wants us all to be that town, to be that light.

you Man, think about how us being a light together, man, we're so unstoppable.

I think of all of us, we're to continuously be the light.

I think we'll be that car on the freeway late at night that just

has their high beams light on.

And that will be us right there.

So when you thank God for the church, we're not simply expressing gratitude

for a building or an organization.

We're thanking him for his wisdom.

You know, a spiritual gift of family.

A community where we can grow.

Where we can find support.

Where we can work together to make an internal impact.

You know, Paul, even while chained in a prison cell, found reasons

to thank God for his church.

His circumstance didn't define his gratitude because Paul

understood the bigger picture of God's purpose for the church.

He saw beyond the imperfections and the struggles, focusing instead on

the way God was working through his people to accomplish his mission.

You know, Paul's gratitude wasn't rooted in ideal conditions.

It was rooted in a deep trust.

In God's plan for his church.

If Paul can rejoice, man, we can rejoice in our church as well.

You know, but gratitude, gratitude isn't just a feeling church.

It's something that we can live out.

It's a choice that requires intentionality.

So how can we live out thankfulness for the church?

Well, here's some action steps we like to do as a church.

First, man, let's just pray for the church.

Make it a habit to pray for the church, for its leaders, its members, its mission.

Because when we pray, we're in line with God's heart and with

each other here in this room.

Let's also encourage one another.

Now take time to encourage someone in this room today, tomorrow,

you know, throughout the weeks.

I know it's Thanksgiving, but man, maybe a kind word, a note of gratitude, or even

a simple thank you can go a long way, lifting someone's spirit and their hearts.

And then lastly, it's what we love to do.

Let's celebrate.

Let's celebrate the good of the church.

You know, it's so easy to point out imperfections, but let's

choose to celebrate what's good.

Amen.

You know, maybe that worship singer didn't sing well, but you know what?

They're up there praising God and they're leading us.

Amen.

Amen.

That brother, man, he's stumbling over his words, but guess what?

He's preaching the word.

Or man, you know what?

That, that teacher, man, he was just saying weird things, but you know what?

They're serving my children.

You know what?

Amen.

Because when we dwell on the imperfect and celebrate the way God is at work

in the church, man, we can do so much.

Man, let's share good news.

Let's reflect.

Let's reflect on answered prayers and rejoice in the victories, big or small.

I'm gonna say a prayer and then we'll continue with our worship.

Lord, we're so grateful to be called your sons and daughters, God.

God, we're so grateful for your church, God.

God, I'm grateful that your church is just not limited to a building, God.

It's not limited to Sunday events, but God, it truly is, uh, where

we are, God, as a people, God.

The church is all of us here in this room.

And God, I pray that we can just look past the flaws and imperfections, God.

I know it's easy to dwell on them, God, but I really pray that we can

dwell on your goodness that you have here for us in this time, God.

God, I pray that the church here, that we can really reflect and live out

the true mission that you have, God.

That we have the true partnership like Paul had with the church in Philippi, God.

God, thank you so much for this time.

Thank you for the word, and thank you for the people you've

placed in our lives, God.

God, we love you, and it's just something we pray.

Amen.