Jesus was going through all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness. Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.” – Matthew 9:35-38 (NASB)

Well, I’ve weathered the holidays and many significant events over the past two months.  Now I can get back to posting at least once a month for the two or three people that actually read what I write.  This year I will continue my personal development as a shepherd of God’s people while I continue to work my way through God’s Word seeking lessons to learn and share.  However, this post is slightly different.

I mentioned in my last post in November that one of our significant events was our annual Spiritual State of the Congregation address.  This is a tradition at my congregation where the shepherds each give a charge to the congregation for the year to come.  Therefore, I will be sharing most of my part of the address with you today, in case you are doing or would like to do the same thing at your congregation.

I like to start my charge by reviewing significant events over the past year.  I feel it is important to know where you have been before you talk about where you want to go.  This is a Scriptural practice as mentioned in my last blog.  Then I follow the review with a charge to the congregation which I try to center on a specific theme.  My theme for this year was Lead, Follow, or Get Out of the Way.  I hope   the following edited version of my charge is beneficial for you.  It was developmental for me as I wrote it and delivered it.  So, here goes.

INTRODUCTION

Good Morning Family,

We thank you for being here today as we deliver our annual Spiritual State of the Congregation.  In the past 18 months as one of your shepherds I have come to be known as the long winded one.  However, it is not because I like to hear my voice.  Nor is it because I think what I have to say is any more profound than the next person.  No, I am long winded for two reasons.  First, I am long winded because I am not smart enough to be more succinct.  Second, and most importantly, I am long winded because I am passionate about serving you and God as one of the shepherds here.  Now that I’ve warned you, let me begin.

YEAR IN REVIEW

Ephesians 4 charges us shepherds with the responsibility of equipping the

Saints (YOU) to build up the church (US).  This past year we have made strides in this direction by:

– Conducting an in-depth study of James, our Book of the Year
– Appointing new deacons, recognizing the contributions of those deacons no longer serving in that role, and hosting a combined Dynamic Deacons Seminar with a sister congregation

– Emphasizing specific ministries each month to jump start new ministries, sustain thriving ones, and reenergize ones that had stalled

– Continuing our emphasis on making our presence known in the community with our first annual Watermelon Olympics, the County Parade, and Community Starlighting

– Spreading the gospel in foreign countries such as Angola and Scotland and also other strange places such as Michigan and Texas:-)

– Launching a new website and YouTube devotionals
– Devoting resources and ourselves to the overlooked age group we call Gen Faith
– Improving our building and the surrounding grounds

– Recognizing a generation of service from one of our elders

– And conducting a well-designed VBS for our younger kids this past summer.  I mean, who knew Scooby and the Gang were members of the Church, right?

…And the list could go on.

We will continue many of these activities and ministries in the year ahead.  But there is always more we could do to glorify God.  Which leads me to my theme this morning of LEAD, FOLLOW, OR GET OUT OF THE WAY.

CONGREGATIONAL CHARGE

There are two components to what I mean by LEAD.  First, I mean we shepherds will strive to lead by example. We recognize in order to be the shepherds the Lord wants us to be we must deepen our relationships with the whole congregation, just like we continue to deepen our relationships with our deacons and other ministry leaders with ministries of the month and other actions, just like we formed or deepened relationships with Gen Faith this past Summer, and just like we deepened relationships with many in our youth group at the teen elder / retreat last weekend. What this means to you is we have asked our Encouragement Deacon to schedule one hour visits where we shepherds visit you in your homes so we can spend time in personal prayer with you, get to know each other better, seek to inspire your involvement, and see where we can help you as shepherds.  This approach has been beneficial for us as we have taken similar action with our deacons and other ministry leaders.  You can ask them if this approach has not been beneficial for them.

Second, just as Christ developed the future leaders of the church, we will strive to develop current and future leaders of the congregation.  In Matthew 10, Jesus models what it means to create disciples and what it means to lead with authority.   Jesus then gives authority to the 12 Apostles and instructs them how to use it.  Up to this point, the 12 have been with Jesus, learning from His words and His example.  We will strive to follow Christ’s example by intentionally teaching, coaching, and mentoring current and future leaders in the Kingdom and seeking counsel and support from all generations of the vertical slice to foster a desire to serve in our youngest generation who are participating in Leadership Training for Christ (aka LTC), VBS, and other younger member opportunities.

Third, if you are already leading within this congregation then ask yourself “What else can I do?”  How can I become a more faithful follower of Christ by becoming a better leader in the congregation?  Ask yourself, are you giving your ministry, your family, and this body everything you have as a leader?  Are you struggling and do you need help, and have you asked for it?  We shepherds ask ourselves these questions routinely.  You will be well served if you do the same.

That is what I mean by LEAD.  Maybe by now you are asking yourselves what I mean by the second part, which is FOLLOW.

First, we all follow someone.  In Matthew 4 and Matthew 9, Christ calls his disciples with the simple words “Follow Me”.  He calls all of us to Follow Him even today by seeking and saving the lost and then teaching them to do the same.  Next, In Matthew 9:35-38 we have the following account:  Jesus was going through all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness. Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.”

What we see here is Jesus imploring the disciples to find workers to spread the gospel and to minister.  Why?  Because He knew serving in the Kingdom was bigger than any of the disciples, He knew they would need the help of God, and He knew they would need the help of fellow disciples.  Family, if you call yourself a Christian than you are one of those disciples.  We have many ministries in our congregation led by capable Servants of God.  Many times their ministries become larger than any one person can handle.  These Servants need your help.  If you don’t have the gifts to help with every ministry, then help with the ones you do have the gift for.  If we don’t have a ministry specific to your gifts then approach us and we will figure out where, when, and how to use your gifts.  But don’t sit there and say you can’t do it.  Instead, sit there and say which of the servants of this congregation will I follow to help them with the harvest?

My final point on the idea of FOLLOW is this – we ask you to follow us as we follow Christ.  As I mentioned before, Ephesians 4 is a charge to us shepherds to equip the saints for building up the body.  Seldom do we have a conversation that this topic does not come up.  Seldom is this idea far from our minds.  If you follow us we will do our best to equip you and build up this body.  If you don’t follow us then God will look elsewhere to find good and faithful servants to do His will.  If you don’t believe me then try reading the Old Testament sometime.  It is replete with examples where God finds others to do His will when those with great opportunity refuse to do so. As shepherds, are we infallible?  Most certainly not.  However, we are serious about our roles in this congregation, serious about the charge given us by the Word of God, we care for your souls deeply, and God holds us accountable to follow His will personally and lead this congregation to follow His will as a body.

Which brings me to my final point of GET OUT OF THE WAY.  First, let us see what Jesus has to say on the matter.  Matthew 16:21-23 relates the following:  From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day.  Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You.”  But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.”

I mentioned before that I have had the honor of serving as one of your shepherds for the past 18 months.  As with all families and all relationships we have experienced spiritual and emotional highs and lows together.  What has become readily apparent to me over these few months is how often and how hard Satan attacks us.

Something else I have noticed is just as Satan tempted Christ at the beginning of His ministry in Matthew 4, we tend to experience Satan’s attacks when we are trying to put our energy toward serving God.  What is even more perplexing is how some of us allow ourselves to be used by Satan to get in the way of the work here at Castle Rock.

We experienced this phenomenon last summer as we tried to get the Gen Faith ministry up and running.  People tried to undermine the ministry and others that had little or nothing to do with it were so concerned with themselves that they felt their personal issues were more important than a ministry meant for others.

I’ve also noticed how Satan focuses the bulks of his attacks on us from within.  Satan attacks us with distraction and he attacks us with discontent. He attacks our intellect, convincing us that we know better than those already serving God.  He attacks our families by convincing parents that staying together when their relationship is hurt is too hard and therefore broken homes are somehow better for all involved.  Or that the members of their family are objects to bend to their will instead of beings made in God’s own image to be loved and sacrificed for, down to the very fiber of our being.  And Satan attacks us in a host of other ways that are deeply rooted in ourselves as the sinners we are, instead of the Christians living out the life Jesus tells us we can have.

So what then do I mean by GET OUT OF THE WAY?  Simply this.

– If you are not setting your mind on God’s interests but your own, then just like Jesus told Peter, get out of the way.

-If you are not going to put God first but your own pettiness, get out of the way.

– If you are not going to seek what God wants for this body and instead are going to seek what you think He wants because you must know better, than get out of the way.

– If you are going to criticize those working for the Lord instead of pitching in to help, get out of the way.

– If you are going to gossip, if you are going to rebel, if you are going to refuse to place yourselves under the leadership of us Shepherds who are striving to do the will of God, get out of the way.

– If you don’t have the intestinal fortitude to bring your genuine, God-centered concerns directly to us, but would rather sew discontent, disunity, and disharmony, then get out of the way.

– IN SHORT, IF YOU ARE CONTENT TO BE SATAN’S TOOL INSTEAD OF GOD’S INSTRUMENT, THEN GET OUT OF THE WAY because, to paraphrase from Joshua’s immortal words “CHOOSE FOR YOURSELVES TODAY WHOM YOU WILL SERVE…AS FOR ME AND MY FAMILY, WE WILL SERVE THE LORD!”

CONCLUSION

But I don’t want to leave you with such harsh words.  Instead, let us consider the words of Peter as found in his first epistle, chapter 5 vs. 8-9: Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.  But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world.

Isn’t it amazing that the very same man whom Christ rebuked as being a tool of Satan is the same man that warns us not fall into the same trap?  Isn’t it an encouragement to know that if we have been getting in the way, we can recognize it and with God’s help and the help of our brothers and sisters here we can be God’s instrument instead?

We thank you for listening this morning.  We thank you for being a part of the body of Christ that meets here.  If you are visiting we thank you for being here and hope you have gained insight into how we shepherds desire to serve God by leading this body of believers.  We hope you have gained some insight into where this congregation is headed in the next year, and understand that we have no agenda but God’s agenda.  We are but humble servants of God and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  We look forward to working the fields of harvest together with you.

You may have noticed most of the scriptural examples today have come from the Gospel of Matthew, our Book of the Year for 2013.  At the end of Matthew’s Gospel account we find Jesus telling his disciples“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Clearly this has not been your conventional sermon.  But the invitation to participate with God in making disciples by proclaiming the gospel and teaching them to obey His commands is the same today as it was nearly 2,000 years ago.

Maybe you are already a disciple and there is something in your life preventing you from being a good and faithful servant.  Maybe you are a good and faithful servant but want to do even more.  Maybe you are not a disciple but want to become one by putting our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on in baptism and having your sins washed away.  In a moment we will stand and sing a song of invitation.

It is not an invitation to embarrass you.  It is not an invitation meant to single you out, point fingers, or judge your heart.  No, it is an invitation to be loved and prayed for.  You can come forward and let us know or you can find us after the assembly and arrange a time for a more private setting.  Whatever your need, the lesson is yours as we stand and sing.

– May your blessings exceed mine today and every day.

DEM