August 4, 2024 // Why is the Church Important?

Welcome to Walk in the Truth podcast.

How do we know where to find answers to the toughest questions in life?

While the simplest answer is the Bible, where do we start this search and how do we discover

this truth?

Today, in this teaching podcast, John Metter, lead pastor of Cross City Church, takes a

specific text of the Bible and helps us find truth for the life we're searching for.

We are so ready to get into the Word today, I hope, and if you have your Bibles, take

them to Ephesians 2 today.

This is the final message of a series we've been in through all the summer called Rooted.

Over the last 10 or 12 weeks, we've been walking through various incredibly important questions

for those who come to know Christ as Lord and Savior.

There are really basic questions, but we want to make sure everybody knows the answers to

questions like, who is God?

How does God speak to us?

Where is God when I'm suffering?

How can I make the most out of my life?

How and why do I tell others?

What's God's view of money?

How can I pass truth on?

And today, why is the church important?

This is the last one in our series.

By the way, we have eight different small groups walking through the Rooted Material,

and we're walking on a way to find where everyone who comes into our church, if they're led

to be a part of our church, we want them to go through the Rooted Material because it's

so important to know how we are grounded in truth.

That's the only thing that helps us to stand firm when the world around us is just really

in panic mode.

So take your Bibles today.

We'll ask the question, why is the church important?

And we'll read out of Ephesians chapter two, and let's stand together as I read verses

two, or verses 13 through verse 22.

Now when we read this today, I confess to you, this is a very complicated set of words.

This paragraph or two is filled with expressions and all kinds of verbs and adjectives and

nouns and all kinds of flowery language as well.

And what I want to do is walk through this and then come back for a quick pass over it

and get the basics out of this text.

We will not mine the depths of this text today.

It would take weeks and weeks to do that.

But this text is one that'll keep you reading it as you try to find out what is it that

God is saying about the church to me through this text.

And we hope to get you started with that question and that conversation today.

Beginning in verse 13, after taking the first 10 verses of Ephesians two to talk about how

we are saved by God's grace, how we were separated from God, dead in our trespasses and sins.

That's Ephesians two, one, two, and three.

It says about God, who has risen in mercy.

And we talked about that a few weeks ago.

The great salvation that we have through Jesus Christ.

Now he talks about the church beginning in verse 13.

But now in Christ Jesus, you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the

blood of Christ.

For he himself is our peace, who made both groups into one.

Now keep in mind he's speaking of Jews and Gentiles.

That is Jews and everyone else.

If you're not a Jewish person, then you're a Gentile.

So all of us is what he's talking about.

For he himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the barrier

of the dividing wall by abolishing in his flesh the enmity, which is the law of commandments

and contained in ordinances.

So that in himself he might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace.

And might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross by it having put

to death the enmity.

And he came and preached peace to you who were far away.

That's a great word.

And peace to those who were near.

For through him we both have our access in one spirit to the Father.

So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints

and are of God's household.

Having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself

being the cornerstone in whom the whole building being fitted together is growing into a holy

temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the

spirit.

I told you that was a mouthful, right?

And it really is.

But it has so much truth for us.

Let's go to the Lord in prayer.

Father, we need the power of your Holy Spirit to illuminate these words for us to shine

light on our hearts and our minds, but also on these words inspired by your Holy Spirit,

by the Applauds of Paul, written by the Applauds of Paul through your power to reveal to us

the things about the church.

So Lord, help us to know our connection to the church, why it's so important and why

we meet and what we're doing while we're on this planet until you return.

Thank you Father for calling us to this.

I ask this in Jesus' name.

Everybody said amen.

Please be seated.

Now today as I begin to talk about the church, I'm going to spend a few minutes talking

about the way the world views the church.

I'm going to spend some time talking about how some who are followers of Christ view

the church.

I'm going to talk about history just a tiny bit.

And by history I mean the last 25 or 30 years.

So recent history.

Let me give you first of all some results of a poll that is a widely accepted poll.

In the year 2000, 45% of Americans polled were practicing Christians.

And the definition of a practicing Christian was someone who professes Christ and attends

a religious service once a week.

That was their definition of practicing Christian.

So in 2000, 45% of Americans polled were practicing Christians and 35% were non-practicing Christians.

They said they believe in Christianity or Christ or God, but they weren't involved

in any church services or any small groups or any other visible connection.

Twenty years later, by 2020, only 25% of those polled were practicing Christians and 43%

were non-practicing Christians.

In 2022, just after pandemic, more than 50% of those who said they were practicing Christians

also said they primarily worshiped online.

And that means that they weren't really face to face, side by side with anybody else who

named the name of Christ.

Now here's another stat that's really amazing to me.

The average Christian today attends a worship service 1.8 times per month.

And on any given Sunday, only 3 in 10 Christians attend services according to the Gallup Polls.

And I got that figure 1.8 times a month and I began to think about it.

And I thought 1.8 times a month doesn't really do anything at all.

If I only mowed my lawn 1.8 times a month, my neighbors would be knocking on my door.

If I only worked out 1.8 times a month, well, then I'm not going to be in very good shape.

I could say I'm a movie buff, but if I only watch 1.8 movies a month, I'm not a movie

buff.

I'm not a Cowboys fan, but if I only watch 1.8 football games a month during the season,

then I'm not really a Cowboys football fan.

So how is it if I call myself a practicing Christian and only participate in any form

1.8 times a month that I'm seeing accurately what I am?

Now I don't necessarily believe that that poll applies exactly to us.

However, it's the state of Christianity in America today.

And what I want to do today is contrast that with the original biblical vision Jesus had

for the church and the Apostles Paul's description of what the church ought to be like.

As we walk through that today, I want to ask the question, and the question I think that's

important to ask is, is the de-emphasis of the church that we see in even Christian culture

today, is that de-emphasis of the church what Jesus had in mind when he formed the church?

That's a rhetorical question, and it's not really up for debate because it's not what

he had in mind.

But here's something even more frightening.

At the same time, Christians have de-emphasized their involvement in the church.

They've also de-emphasized their connection to truth and morality.

Deconstruction has happened at about the same rate in our country as our stepping away from

being involved with others and the teaching of the word and prayer and the challenge that

other believers bring to our lives.

In other words, we're not in alignment with Jesus' vision of the church.

So today, I want to spend a few moments talking about Jesus' vision for the church.

Jesus envisioned the church to be established as the building and the body and the people

who have faith in common.

He wanted us to be together as a group, and it's the organization that he created to carry

out his ministry on earth until he comes back.

And when he comes back, who's he coming back for?

He's coming back for the church.

And he calls us the bride, and he wants us to be spotless and without blemish as he comes

back for us.

In other words, he wants us to be following the plan that he laid down for us from the

beginning of the world, but that we came into when we came to faith in Jesus Christ.

Now today, in spite of all the difficult words that we'll kind of unpack today, there are

three words that are very simple that will flow throughout this entire message.

And those three words we've used a lot in the course of my time here, and those three

words are believe and belong and begin.

I'm going to tell you what it means for you to believe and to belong to the New Testament

church and to begin your spiritual journey.

And we're going to walk through those in three different ways.

First of all, I want you to see that this text tells us about the church, that the church

is a people who believe.

The church is not these buildings.

The church is not the organization.

The church is not the staff.

It's not the pastor.

The church is a group of people who believe in Jesus Christ.

Now go to verse 13 again.

But now in Christ Jesus, you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the

blood of Christ.

Now remember, Ephesians chapter two, verse one says you were dead and you're trespassing

in sin.

You're following the course of the world, but God, who's rich in mercy through Jesus

Christ saved you.

So it says you who were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

And it goes on to say for he himself is our peace.

Paul emphasizes faith that we have in Jesus in the first 10 verses of Ephesians two.

And then he says, once you have faith in Jesus Christ, you've been brought into one group

of people that we call the church of Jesus Christ.

And we're a diverse group of people, folks.

We are all kinds of people coming from all kinds of thoughts and backgrounds and ethnicities

and color.

We have all kinds of culture that we come out of, but all of us have come to one place

and we are one people in Jesus Christ.

We sang a song about it a moment ago.

In first Peter chapter two, verse nine and 10, Peter said to a church that was under

incredible persecution, he says, but you were a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy

nation, a people for God's own possession.

So that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who has called you out of darkness into

his marvelous light.

For you were once not a people and now you are the people of God.

At one point you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

You are, if you've come to Christ, you are the people of God.

I want you to turn to your neighbor and say, you're my people.

Say that to them.

Go ahead and look at them.

You're my people.

Do you know that if you're seated next to somebody that is a believer in Jesus Christ,

they're your people.

They're your people, not because they look like you and not because they talk like you.

They're your people not because of the same size of you or because they came from the

same biological family, but they're your people because they came from the same spiritual

family.

God is your father.

You have one father.

When we pray, our father who art in heaven, that's who we're praying to.

We are people of God.

You and I need to remember that the church is about the people of God.

Now, as we dive into this, keep in mind that Paul is talking about in Ephesians 2 the vertical

relationship of who we are.

It says, if you look at these verses, how have we been brought near?

By the blood of Christ, not by anything else.

Who is our peace?

He himself is our peace.

I don't have peace because everything's going well.

I have peace because Jesus himself is my peace.

I have been brought near by working hard to be right with God or by getting into the right

church.

I'm made right because of Jesus Christ making me right.

I have peace with God.

I've been brought near by Jesus Christ.

All that talks about the vertical relationship.

Paul in Romans chapter 5 verse 1 says, therefore having been justified by faith, we have, say

Romans 5:1

it with me, peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

And that's true.

If you look at a picture of the cross, and I love to look at the cross, and of course

we love the cross in every way you can love the cross, I think.

We even named our church Cross City Church because the cross is so central to everything

that we think and say.

But the vertical beam of that cross is a beautiful picture of the fact that it reaches heavenward

and that it's planted into the earth, into the ground.

And I love the statement that was said years ago by someone who says Jesus died on the

cross and when he died on the cross he reached with his hand upward and grabbed the hand

of God.

And he reached with his other hand downward and grabbed the hand of mankind and he brought

the hand of God down to earth and he brought the hand of mankind up to the cross and there

he put those hands together and made us one in Christ.

I love the picture of the cross if that is.

I mean this is no insignificant act that Jesus did on the cross and so it means that it's

a very significant change that happens to your life when you come to faith in Jesus

Christ.

We often share this verse on the screen when we pray.

It's Romans 15 13.

Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing so that you will

abandon hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The peace, the joy that comes from Christ is amazing.

And all who are part of the church of Jesus Christ became part of the church of Jesus

Christ because they have put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ.

You know if somebody calls our church office and it rarely happens, in fact I'm not sure

if it ever happens, if they call and say hey what's it take to join your organization?

Are there membership dues?

Are there meetings?

What's it take to be a member of the church?

We don't talk to them about membership matters at that moment.

We talk to them about relationship matters.

At that point we say what's your relationship with Jesus Christ?

And the reason we do that is because church membership is not about a piece of paper,

it's about a relationship with Jesus.

I mean it's so important for us to get that right.

So Paul is saying by way of foundation believing in Jesus Christ is the way that you start

being connected to the church and becoming the church.

I love it when I see people come to that point in their lives when they're ready to put their

faith and trust in Jesus as Lord and Savior.

Don't you love that?

When they respond to the decision station.

Last week I was walking around the room and people stood up and followed me to a decision

moment.

I love it when someone comes to faith and sits down with somebody else and says I really

need to know how do I get forgiveness of sin?

How do I have a relationship with God?

And someone leads them in a very simple prayer that says put your faith and trust in Jesus

Christ.

Those are sacred moments.

Those are moments by which a person moves from being far away to being nearer by the

blood of Jesus Christ and by faith in Jesus Christ.

And that's really what it means when someone comes to faith in Jesus.

And then once they come to faith in Jesus then it's important for us to teach those

who come to faith what the important truths of Scripture are.

That's one thing to say.

Well I'm glad you've come to faith in Jesus.

Let me give you a copy of this Bible.

Now in this Bible there are only 66 different books written by a number of different authors

under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

Probably has 2,000 pages in it but if you read this it'll have all your answers.

Now is what I said true?

It's true.

If I would read this whole book it'd have all the answers.

But that's not how most people come to grasp truth.

They come to grasp truth when they began to hear it taught, when they have others share

with them different aspects of the Scripture, when they began to dive in as a lifestyle

instead of trying to read it like a book.

That's why we have something like a doctrinal statement.

We have our doctrinal statement on our website saying these are the important things for

you to know what to believe.

And here are the passages that we receive them from.

Here are the places where we learned about the atonement of Christ or forgiveness of

sin or the power of the Holy Spirit or whatever doctrine you may want to talk about.

We teach that in our next step classes as well.

So the church is not only about believing in Jesus Christ but understanding how we ought

to think about truth that Jesus gave us.

It's also important that we follow the Lord in baptism.

Last week was a great week.

We were able to baptize a number of people on the stage here and then a number of others

in our commons area.

But you know what that's all about, right?

It's not about people getting in that water to become clean because of the water.

It's about people who have put their faith in Jesus wanting to demonstrate outwardly

what just took place inwardly.

In other words, when I baptize someone I always say, buried with Christ in baptism into death,

raised to walk in the notice of life.

And that's why you celebrate because you know that they've already placed their faith in

Jesus and now we're celebrating that.

And they're saying, I'm not ashamed and I love to see that happen over and over again.

It's kind of a strange thing that we do when we baptize people.

I mean, who else in the world actually does this except kids in the swimming pool like

when they're little, right?

They dunk people.

Baptists dunk people for different reasons other than to get them wet.

We do it so that everyone else will know this is what it meant to die and to be buried in

your sin but raised to walk in the newness of life with the power of Jesus Christ.

That's why we clap when people come out of that water wet and dripping in every way.

We celebrate that because they're demonstrating outwardly what happened inwardly in their

life.

Baptism is a key thing.

We take the Lord's Supper and when we take the Lord's Supper or communion, this little

piece of bread and this little cup symbolize the body and the blood of Jesus and we do

that not with roshas celebration.

We don't clap loudly when we do that but we do it with a solemn spirit that says, wow,

he loves me so much that his body was nailed to the tree and his blood was shed just to

forgive me of sin.

Wow, what kind of love is that?

And we're amazed and astounded by that.

We celebrate the covenant relationship we have with Jesus Christ and all that happens

because we believe in Jesus Christ to be our Lord and our Savior.

That's amazing.

You're a group of people that have been called by Jesus Christ to be with other people because

of your belief in Jesus.

But the second thing I want to point out about the church today is that the church is a family

to which we belong.

In other words, you belong to the family of faith.

Now the fact that you believe means that you are connected with God and part of the faith

people but now I'm looking at the horizontal aspect of that.

We talked about the vertical but now the horizontal is what's being brought up in Ephesians 2.

In verse 15 and 16, Paul says, so that in himself he might make the two into one new

man, thus establishing peace and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross.

You don't have to really know much about biblical history to know that the Jews and the Gentiles

were not good friends.

And because of that there was enmity and there was hatred, there were wars, all kinds of

problems between the two.

But when Jesus Christ came as a Jewish man dying on the cross for all mankind, all of

a sudden the fact that it was changed completely.

And now Paul is saying because of what Jesus did, you people who hated each other are now

in the same spiritual family and you've got something in common.

He's your Savior and God is your Father and today you are a people that have a family

group all around you and I love the fact that God does this around the world.

We live in a very diverse part of the United States of America.

Trinity High School across the street from our church is the most diverse high school

in America by a recent poll that was given last year.

That's a diverse group of people.

Seventy-five different languages are spoken in the homes of the students of Trinity High

School.

That means that over the years when people have come to faith in Jesus maybe through

the schools or through folks that just live in the area, we have become a very diverse

group of people.

We have 40 different nationalities that worship with us on any given week.

Some of them worship in our Espanol service, some in our international service, some in

our early service, some in our late service, some in North, but 40 different nationalities

that worship together.

Where else other than the body of Christ can there be a family of God with that kind of

diversity that love each other and get along with each other in such a miraculous way except

the Church of Jesus Christ?

Wow.

That's what God had in mind.

You know, in a purely biological sense, when you marry someone, you marry the bride or

the groom, but you really also get their whole family.

Various family members, some of them normal, some of them crazy, some of them weird, or

maybe they're all normal and you're the weird one, I don't know.

It's kind of cool, it's kind of fun, it's kind of unusual because you're going to be

committed to them.

They're now family, right?

And you may not have ever known them before, but now they're family, and so it's a different

dynamic.

Yesterday I went to a very celebrated first birthday of my only grandchild, and there

were 37 people at that birthday party of that one-year-old little baby girl, and about 20

of them I'd never seen before in my life, but we're family because of the connection

with that little girl.

By the way, I can't imagine how a one-year-old child could not be spoiled after having 37

people fawn over her for two hours, but that's another subject.

We're now related, we're now connected because of that one little child.

A few thousand years ago a child was born named Jesus, and we're all in faith related

to each other by faith in Jesus Christ in a far superior way than any biological family

can ever be connected.

And I want you to think about this for just a moment because knowing who your people are

is one thing, but knowing who your family is is really, really specific.

I'm part of the same people group as people in the nation of Brazil or Kenya or Mexico,

wherever it may be.

If they come to faith in Jesus, I'm part of that people group.

But there's something about the family as we meet together that accelerates our relationship

and our commitment to Christ is also a commitment to the family of God.

I mean, he's my father, but you're my brother and sister.

As you look around, everyone who is in faith is your brother and sister in Christ.

And together we're a family, but we're also an army, a body, we're a tribe, we're a building,

we're the people of God.

And that means that we need to know how to get along and be committed to each other as

a family.

And that commitment is big.

John Stott said this, you find it in page 200 of the root of book that we have used

this series.

He said, I'm assuming that we're all committed to the church.

We're not only Christian people, we're also church people.

We're not only committed to Christ, we're also committed to the body of Christ for the

church lies at the very center of the eternal purpose of God.

Get this next line.

It is not a divine afterthought.

It is not an accident of history.

All these people just happen to gather together.

On the contrary, the church is God's new community.

And whether you know it or not, you need the friendship and the accountability and the

relationship and the encouragement and the prayer and yes, the reproof or rebuke.

You and I need that in the body of Christ.

We need family around us committed to Christ first, but committed to each other as brothers

and sisters of Christ.

Otherwise we will not be all we need to be.

The church by Jesus' perspective is that incredible family of faith and what we do in small groups

and large is so incredibly important as we relate to each other, first of all to Christ

and then to each other in the same way of unconditional love, agape love.

In Romans chapter 12 verse 9 through 16, there's a series of verses.

Romans 12:9–16

Paul writes at the church at Rome, these verses grab my heart.

They're good.

And I want to put them on the screen for you.

You can also have them up in your Bible, Romans chapter 12 verses 9 through 16.

Romans 12:9–16

But there Paul begins to talk about what we do in the body of Christ.

So let me just take a step back here for a moment.

The very first line of this passage is a line that focuses on the umbrella of what he's

going to talk about.

And it says, let love be without hypocrisy.

Speaking of the church, he says, abhor what is evil, cling to what is good.

Be devoted to one another in brotherly love.

This is the brother sister relationship.

Give preference to one another in honor, not lagging behind in diligence.

In other words, don't be lazy about this.

Don't ignore this.

Don't put this on the back shelf.

This is family.

You don't put this off.

He goes on and says, by way of the passion, I would say, be fervent in spirit.

Serve the Lord.

Rejoice in hope.

Persevering in tribulation.

Devoted to prayer.

Contributing to the needs of the saints.

Practicing hospitality.

And those are some great phrases, aren't they?

Wouldn't you like to be a member of a family that practices that kind of thing?

You can say yes at this point.

Amen.

I want to be a part of a family that does that kind of thing.

And I can't do that kind of thing without the power of Christ and you can't either.

And the truth is, this is what the church was designed to be, all these things.

And this verse tells us, this passage tells us that we are to live out our best life with

each other as the body of Christ.

And it's so important that we learn to do that.

I wrote this down over the course of the week as to the reason why we're called to that.

And here's what I wrote down.

God designed the church to be what each individual needs.

A home to understand and practice faith and a family to be loved by others who believed.

Now look at me for just a minute.

There are some of us that have found that our biological families don't always provide

that for us.

There are some of us who have family members who do not believe and they're not sympathetic

with what we believe once we come to faith in Jesus Christ.

And that's going to be increasingly an issue in the world we live in.

That means that they won't support you in your faith walk sometimes.

That means they won't agree with you with your moral choices and your moral stances

and what you know to be truth that they don't see as truth.

And sometimes there's a real division in a biological family because you put your faith

and hope in Jesus Christ and you know your eternity is secured with him but they don't

see it that way.

And it begins to be hard and difficult.

And because of that you need your spiritual family to say yes love your biological family

but also know we're here for you when nobody else is.

We've got to be like that.

And that's part of why Christ wanted the church to be that very thing.

You know when Jesus was teaching the disciples, he taught them that he would bring peace but

he also said that when it came to social relationships it wouldn't always be peaceful.

In Luke chapter 12 he said, do you suppose that I came to bring peace on earth and by

Luke 12 · chapter mention

that he meant social peace?

I tell you no but rather division.

And while it's not your intent to create division sometimes you're embracing truth that Jesus

gives you division by those who refuse to acknowledge that.

But you're a people and you're part of the family of God.

And that's why we need to be family with each other.

Then thirdly, finally, the church is a house where we begin to grow.

Now this is where the passage gets a bit complicated and we're going to try to walk through this

gradually.

If you look at verse 21 and 22 it says, in whom the whole building, the house, being

fitted together is growing into a holy temple in the Lord in whom you also are being built

together, and look at this last line, into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.

Man, I like that end goal.

A dwelling of God, a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

Meditate on that with me for just a minute.

Paul the apostle says the church should be the dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

God, while omnipresent, is most manifested, most revealed, and most operates through this

spiritual house called the church of Jesus Christ.

In no way does that take away from the inward dwelling of the Holy Spirit in your personal

life, but it maximizes the fact that when our group of people who are indwelt by the

Holy Spirit get together, watch out because God is going to do a greater thing when we

are together.

And as you look at that last passage, every one of those verbs, if you were to dig into

them, are present, passive verbs, which means we are the subject of the action.

Someone is acting on us to help us be what we should be.

Let me go through it very quickly.

Being fitted together means being placed.

The Holy Spirit brought you here today, and this may be the first time you've ever been

here or it may be the 100th time you've been here, but you were placed by God in this place

today for a reason.

I believe that God places His people in the body of Christ for a reason.

He saves you, He places you for a reason.

And when people begin to find their fit and they begin to serve, and they begin to be

served and they begin to reach out to other people, it's amazing what happens when we

see that we fit.

Our gifts have been given and we're exercising them, how we began to grow and how God begins

to use us in a very powerful way.

Being fitted together means being placed.

Then the next line is growing into a holy temple.

That really means being influenced by others around you.

We begin to grow when we allow others to influence us.

I'll tell you over the years, every place I've been as a pastor, there's always been

somebody in that church that I look to to mentor me in some way.

And I know I'm supposed to be the pastor and I'm supposed to have most of the answers,

but there's always been some people that were so mature that I just met with them over and

over.

Tell me everything you know.

And they grew me.

And that's true of all of us in the body of Christ.

There's someone around wherever you are that can influence you and grow you.

And finally, being built together means we're a part of something bigger than just ourselves.

And together we move forward in this culture to impact people with the gospel of Jesus.

Now as a man, when I get around a camp or a campfire, I like to mess with the burning

logs.

How many men in this room always mess with the burning logs?

Raise your hand.

Some of you raise your hand very fast.

And recently my wife and I went camping and so we built this amazing, amazing fire.

I'm so proud of the way I stacked the logs.

Perfect because it got really hot really fast.

But at some point one of those logs wasn't burning as hot as I felt like it should be.

So I just moved it out for just a few moments.

I was able to grab the log and hold it and it was lit.

It had fire, but as I held it out from the rest of the fire, it quickly grew dim.

I had fire, but I didn't have a blaze.

So I placed it a little bit better on the campfire that I'd built.

And before long I didn't have fire, I had a blaze.

The difference between a fire and a blaze is significant.

One is warm, the other is hot.

One is impressive, the other is really impressive.

This fire was this big, it burned almost all night.

I'm so proud of myself.

But listen, you're indwelt by the Holy Spirit as a believer.

But when you're interacting with others, it's a blaze.

It's a blaze.

It's not just a fire.

It's a blaze.

God's design for the church is that we would operate that well together in such a powerful

way that it would be a blazing fire.

And our cold, dark world needs a blazing fire.

It needs a church that's alive, a church that people know that they believe and that brings

them in.

They have a family of faith and we're a house that Jesus is building up and we're impacting

others around us.

That speaks about the power of relationships, the power of spiritual gifts, the power of

corporate prayer, the willingness to stand when nobody else is standing for those who

are hurting the most, the power of an invite culture where hundreds and thousands of people

go out and invite their friends to hear about the truth of Jesus Christ.

And here's what it says to me.

It says to me that we need to be present, that we need to be engaged, that we need to

be involved for us to be all that Christ calls us to be as a church.

You see the church is important because it's your people and it's your family and it's

your house.

It's really your home and it will be until you get an eternal home called heaven.

We move from this house to one that's far more glorious, far more difficult to describe,

being built for us which we eagerly anticipate in heaven.

That's why the church is here and that's why you need to commit yourself to the church.

You know in just a few moments we'll give an invitation.

The invitation is usually three-fold and I would say that today I invite you to do one

of the three things.

Our invitation stations are here and if you would like to stop and talk to someone about

your faith relationship with Jesus or any other decision, we're here to help you.

We've been trained, we're equipped, we are people who have helped many other people with

these faith decisions.

So let us talk to you today, pray with you today, and as you leave you can see on either

side of the building on your way out these decision stations.

That's number one.

Number two, I invite you if you're a guest to come to our guest reception area where

I will be.

I would love to welcome you personally and get to know you.

It's hard for me to be able to visit with you when we're in this room but in that room

that gives us a chance to talk and I'll share a little bit about church with you if you'll

join me back there for just a few moments.

Thirdly, even though our series on Rooted Ends this week, I really think you shouldn't

even think about missing the next two or three weeks because the next two or three weeks

are going to be some extremely personal messages about my own journey through the things that

I've walked through this year.

Some of you know I've gone through some cancer surgery and been the recipient of a ton of

prayer that has been lifting me up.

There's just some things I want to share with you as a church, as a body that will be very

personal and I hope encouraging to you.

So don't miss these weeks ahead.

It's not a normal series but it will be I think impactful to your life.

Would you stand with me as I close in prayer today?

Father, we are so thankful that we can gather as a people, as a family to let you build

us as a house which is the dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

What a line Lord.

Thank you for giving us that.

As we meditate on that and contemplate that and as we are mesmerized by how big that vision

is, Lord help us to at least scratch the surface of it to become that.

Father, today for those that are at a point of decision, help them.

Have the courage and the boldness to reach out to others and to be encouraged to place

their trust with you or with this church and whatever decision they need to make today.

Father, thank you that you love us so much.

I ask all this in Jesus name, amen.