The Purpose of the Church
Pray for God to Fill our Cup.
What I want to look at for a little bit tonight is basically an introduction to what we’re going to be doing in the coming weeks and the lessons on what the purpose of the Church is- the purpose of this Church! Calvary Baptist Church
Young people, God is preparing you now for years to come! If you’re a believer you’re a member of this church then every sermon is for you no matter your age David was just a kid when he was anointed to the king the Apostle John was just a teenager when he started walking with Christ all the way to Abraham was pushing 100 when he had his son Isaac So it doesn’t matter your age What matters is your availability to serve a living God.
Me in the 70’s Here in this very room in this very Church I was 15. That was some 50 years ago, and everything I went through since has prepared me for tonight, or every time I preach.
First, what is the Church?
The short answer is YOU!
I love a song that our choir used to sing. It’s called “We Are Still the Church.”
Here at Calvary, you are still the Church.
“We Are Still The Church” is a Southern Gospel song focusing on resilience, continuity, and faith despite challenges, with lyrics that emphasize moving forward, and the song talks about enduring through battles. It often highlights that despite changes, the church remains steady.
Key lines mention having “started out for heaven’s shore” long ago with Jesus as the captain, and despite being tossed by “waves of sin,” the ship remains secure because “the God we serve is sovereign” and “He is still the King of kings.”
Lyrics for the Chorus: We are still the church, We will go forward, We are still the church, We will go on, Let’s forget about the things which are behind us, We are still the church, Keep pressing on. There you go. Keep pressing on.
Theme: The song emphasizes that despite facing challenges, the church remains steady, as seen in the lyrics: “And still the waves of sin are raging high. Oh, but the God we serve is sovereign… And He will hold us steady. ‘Til we reach the other side.”
The God I serve is the God who created the universe. I think he can handle this Church and keep this Church afloat.
Matthew 16:18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
I heard a preacher say one time that he wants to build a mission right at the gates of hell. He wants to catch them before they are thrown in. That’s not a bad thing
He is not talking about 3988 Powder Springs Rd ., but about Peter, Petra, the Rock, the foundation upon the person.
It’s what he built his assembly on, the Church
We are sitting in the Church building.
What I am looking at is the Church!
The people, you.
The word Jesus used when he said I will build my church has never meant what most Christians think it means, and the mistranslation has shaped Western Christianity for centuries.
Matthew 16:18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.
The Greek word for Church is ekklēsia, and it was not a religious word. It existed centuries before Jesus was born in the ancient Greek and Roman world. Ekklēsia
described a called-out assembly of citizens summoned to conduct the governing business of the city, a gathering, not a religious meeting, a governing body.
The word ekklesia is used 115 times in the New Testament, mostly in the Book of Acts and the writings of the apostle Paul and the general epistles. At least 92 times, this word refers to a local congregation. The other references are to the church general, or all believers everywhere, for all ages
The English word Church comes from a completely different Greek word, keyicon, meaning a building belonging to the Lord
Jesus never used the word for a Church Building; He used ekklesia,
And the moment of the translation shifted from ekklesia to Church, the entire identity of what Jesus was building shifted with it.
In Athens, it was the city’s primary governing assembly.
Citizens were summoned from their daily lives to make decisions affecting the entire city, and not voluntary attendance, a summons, and the business was not religious. It was governmental
When Jesus said, I will build my ecclesia. It was not describing a weekly gathering. He was describing a called-out governing assembly, carrying his authority into every domain of human life, not just Sunday morning, every domain, every institution, every nation,
Then Matthew 16:19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”
Keys, binding, loose, is the language of governmental authority given not to a building, to an ekklesia, the Western church has become a building.
People say Well, I gotta go to church, and you do. I’m all for that, 100 percent for church as we have it, but the way the word reads here in the New Testament, especially in the book of Acts, is the gathering.
We had Church here Thursday at 1:00 with the Operation Christmas Child
A group of us had Church Thursday night in a restaurant up in Villa Rica. It’s the group, it’s the assembly, it’s the Ekklesia
Brian and I have Church every year up at Big Canoe on Lake Pettit
It is the forsaking, not the assembly of yourself together, that assembling assembly is ekklesia. Can you do it here? Yes! And we do.
People attend a place to consume and get. But Jesus never called his people to build a building, but a Relationship with Him and other believers.
He called them to be ekklesia.
Your job, my job, our job is not just to be Pew warmers, not just to show up.
Every one of us has been given gifts from God, and we need to put those gifts into practice, Paul told the Church of Rome.
Romans 12:4-8 4 For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, 5 so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. 6 Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; 7 or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; 8 he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality;open-mindedness he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
You’re never looking anybody in the eye that Christ didn’t die for. How would you treat somebody you’re mad at if you were standing there and Jesus Christ had his arm around them? Would you still be hollering at them and fussing?
God says you gotta love one another. That was my mother’s favorite verse: Love one another because love is of God in 1 John
1 John 4:7-11 (NKJV) 7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.
8 He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.
9 In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him.
10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
And then the Church of Corinth;
1 Corinthians 12:4-11 (NKJV) 4 There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. 6 And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. 7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: 8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing (Giving) to each one individually as He wills.
As he said to the church of Ephesus;
Ephesians 4:1-8 (NKJV) 1 I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, 2 with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, (1st John 47 Love one another for love is of God) 3 endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. 7 But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8 Therefore He says: “When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, And gave gifts to men.”
So in the book of Romans, we have encouragement, giving, leadership, mercy, prophecy, service, and teaching in First Corinthians we have administration, discernment, healing, interpretation of language, language, prophecy, wisdom, apostles, faith, helps,(Brian) knowledge, miracles, and teaching and in, Ephesians we have apostles, pastors, teachers, evangelism, prophecy, and then Peter tells us about serving and teaching, we all fall in to one and Probably more than one of these categories.
!!! And Peter said in 1Peter.
1 Peter 4:7-11 (NKJV) 7 But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers. 8 And above all things have fervent love for one another, for “love will cover a multitude of sins.” 9 Be hospitable to one another without grumbling. (Get along, you see that in the first century church in unity in one accord, Calvary, you gotta get along with each other) 10 As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. 11 If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God. If anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
The spiritual gift that God gives you is not for you.
It’s for others.
It’s for you to give away.
You get them to give them…
Yes, the Book of Revelation explicitly promises rewards for believers, stating that Jesus will bring His rewards with Him when He returns to repay everyone according to their actions.
The New Testament breaks down these heavenly rewards in detail:
- The Reward of Jesus: In Revelation 22:12, Jesus says, “Behold, I am coming soon, and my reward is with me, to give to each one according to what he has done.”
- The “Crowns”: Throughout Revelation and other epistles, the Bible outlines five specific crowns awarded for faithfulness:
- The Crown of Life: James 1:12 mentions this crown is for those who endure trials and remain faithful.
- The Crown of Righteousness: Mentioned in 2 Timothy 4:8, this is for those who eagerly look forward to Christ’s return.
2 Timothy 4:6-8 (NKJV) 6 For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. (A prime example of keeping the faith is Ceylon Plemmons) 8 Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.
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- The Imperishable Crown: Found in 1 Corinthians 9:25, it is awarded for self-discipline and spiritual endurance.
- The Crown of Glory: 1 Peter 5:4 promises this to church leaders and believers who faithfully shepherd and care for others.
- The Crown of Rejoicing: Mentioned in 1 Thessalonians 2:19, this is often called the “soul-winner’s crown” for sharing the Gospel.
What are we to do with those Crowns?
- Casting Crowns: Revelation 4:10 describes elders in heaven casting their crowns before the throne of God, which is often interpreted as believers offering their accomplishments and rewards back to God to give Him all the glory.
We need to be doing more than just sitting in a Church building.
You need to be going out the door, going into the world, and presenting the gospel with your gifts that God gave you.
I pray in the coming weeks that I will say some stuff that you can take out the door of this church and help the world come to know our Savior, Jesus Christ
My question is, are you giving these gifts away?
Are you doing your job?
It’s up to you if this Church grows; it’s up to you if this Church makes it.
God wants you to do something. You need to help grow this, Church.
I love what Ben Turner used to say:
“Shepherds don’t birth sheep; sheep birth sheep.” It’s the Church’s job; it’s the people’s job to get other people in here.
Not the Pastor’s or Preacher’s job, Our Job is to present the gospel in a way that you can get something out of it and carry it to the world.
As long as we’re doing our job, you should be learning something, and then you should be going out.
You should be bringing others in.
That’s your job.
But we don’t have a pastor.
PASTOR = The feeder, protector, and guide, or shepherd, of a flock of God’s people in New Testament times.
The first-century Church, when Paul sent a letter to the Church of Corinth it didn’t just go to one building, one address.
It went to everybody in Corinth. They didn’t just have one leader of that church or that ekklesia, that gathering, that assembly.
In speaking of spiritual gifts, the apostle Paul wrote that Christ “gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers” (Eph 4:11).
The term pastor by this time in church history had not yet become an official title.
The Greek word translated pastors in Eph 4:11 is used elsewhere in the New Testament of sheepherders, literally, or symbolically (Matt 25:32).
of Jesus, the Good Shepherd (John 10); and of “shepherds,” or leaders, of the church (Eph 4:11). The NKJV uses the word pastor only in this verse. Also compare Jer 23:1-2 (KJV)
(from Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Copyright (c)1986, Thomas Nelson Publishers)
Jeremiah 23:1-4 (NKJV) 1 “Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture!” (He said woe to the that’s interfering with God’s work in this church) says the LORD. 2 Therefore thus says the LORD God of Israel against the shepherds who feed My people: “You have scattered My flock, driven them away, and not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for the evil of your doings,” says the LORD. 3 “But I will gather the remnant of My flock out of all countries where I have driven them, and bring them back to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase. (I think you will be fruitful and increase here at Calvary.) 4 I will set up shepherds over them who will feed them; and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, nor shall they be lacking,” says the LORD.
When Peter was being restored by the fire in John 21, Jesus kept telling them Feed my sheep, take care of my sheep, tend to my sheep Being a shepherd, that’s what a pastor does, not just in this pulpit but in life
Being a shepherd, sometimes there’s more than one out there watching over the flock.
You recall when the Angel showed up to reveal that Jesus was just born, and it says they were shepherds keeping watch over the flock by night.
That’s the pastor’s job
The term implied the one that nourishes and cares for God’s people.
So do you have a Pastor?
Yeah, you have that. According to that definition, His name is the Lord Jesus Christ.
Israel just had to have a king, and God said, “They have rejected me as their king” (1 Samuel 8:7).
Jesus said Follow me.
The word followed there doesn’t mean just going in the same direction; it means to do the same way…
It really truly means don’t take the lead; let him have the lead, follow him.
Have you ever followed somebody in front of them?
It’s not an easy task I’ve done it or tried to I worked for discovery investigations part time sometimes and I had to do surveillance and had to follow people I got ahead of a guy one time on a road I didn’t mean to I was weaving in and out trying to keep up with him and not look too suspicious when I ended up passing him it’s really difficult to follow in front so quit putting yourself in front of God.
And this is really hard to do, but wait.
Be patient
Patience is a virtue possess it if you can found seldom in a woman, never in a man!
Follow Him, follow His lead, and through those whom He has put us here right now.
You have men in this Church who are trying their best, and doing their best.
Be still and know that I am the Lord; wait on him. Don’t go looking. He’ll send you the right person at the right time when the time is right!
And be careful who you listen to. When they send somebody, not everybody saying they are helping you is your friend; not everybody who appears to be hurting you is your enemy.
If a preacher is preaching something that’s convicting, it’s not because he’s mad at you; it’s because God told him to. And if I’m coming across a little harsh, I don’t mean to; I love you, and I’m just trying to tell you, and I want to get it out of me because God gave me this for y’all!
Some of the best preaching and leadership I have seen in this Church in years is happening right now.
God’s anointing them to lead this Church.
Who do you have nourishing and caring for you?
You, we, have Ceylon Plemmons, Brian Busby, Alan Clayton, Alan Young, Jeff Hodges, and, as much as it pains me to admit, C.J. Martin. And now, DeWayne Swann, as long as y’all let me, I tell my small group all the time, as long as y’all let me do this, as long as y’all want me to do this, I’ll do it till I take my dying breath.
As long as they are following God, follow them. And if we don’t, don’t follow us, call us on it, don’t let it go on and on and on.
What we’re going to be learning in the next few weeks is your job as part of this Church and what you’re supposed to be doing, and why we are here, and I hope it will help you to grow in the Lord and to serve Him better.
1) The Purpose of the Church- Worship
2) The Purpose of the Church- Prayer
3) The Purpose of The Church- Fellowship
4) The Purpose of the Church- Discipleship
5) The Purpose of The Church- Service
6) The Purpose of The Church- Evangelism
I want to use Acts 2:42-47 for the main text for most of these messages.
In this passage, we can find the essential purposes of the first-century church.
READ ACTS 2:42-47
Acts 2:42-47 42 And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine (The word of God) and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, (What you’ve done here tonight and every Sunday night) and in prayers. 43 And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles. (We’re seeing many wonders and signs being done here:
1) through Operation Christmas Child. Could you have seen doing 209 boxes last year? Can they accomplish that No, but you did it. Because God was in it
2) through Ceylon’s class, sending thousands of Bibles to Don Rich and him given the word of God to people all over the world)
44 And all that believed were together, and had all things common; That’s so important. You need Unity 45 And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need. (This is not socialism; this is survival, which means you will have to sacrifice. There wasn’t a lot of money in this church in the 70s when we built this place; people sacrificed their time. They sacrificed a lot of their money and gave it to God, and it was well worth it. Ex: Charles Spraybeard…)46 And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, (I have gladness, singleness of heart when I get to eat meat.)47 Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.
So what we’re going to be looking at in the coming weeks is;
Purpose of the Church.
What drives the church?
Are we tradition-driven?
Are we personality-driven?
Financially driven?
Program or building driven?
Event-driven?
Proverbs 29:18 (KJV) Where there is no vision, the people perish: (Not where there’s no pastor but where there’s no vision) but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.
Wanna be happy, keep the word of God, is what he’s saying.
Where there is no vision, the people perish:
The verse emphasizes that a lack of divine revelation or spiritual direction (You’ve got Spiritual direction here at the Calvary), but if you don’t, it leads to a lack of restraint as the necessity of God’s word for purpose.
The word vision in context refers to a divine revelation or prophecy, or the revealed word of God, not just a personal goal or dream.
It means where God wants us to go.
The word perish means, in the original, to loosen, cast off restraints, or run wild, suggesting a collapse of a moral order rather than just physical death
Another way of saying the Original Hebrew is;
Proverbs 29:18 When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild. But whoever obeys the law is joyful.
My Headstone has this inscribed at the bottom of it:
Psalm 119:112 (NKJV) I have inclined my heart to perform Your statutes Forever, to the very end.
But whoever obeys the law is joyful.
The starting point for every Church should be the question, “Why do we exist?”
It’s no accident that you’re here, and I mean the Church as a whole. I was here when it started in 1965.
I’ve seen miracles happen on this very ground. I’m one of the largest miracles that God reached down and saved me, that spared me so I could be here tonight.
For what Brian’s preaching on Wednesday nights about the Book of Esther for such a time as this,
It’s not hard to lead the sorry lo life, no good for nothing drunk to the Lord; he knows he needs God.
But it’s hard to lead good people to the Lord. I think the Church is full of lost folks. I think they have head knowledge but not a heart knowledge about who Christ is, and they’re missing out.
And I say that based on my own experience, for over 24 years, I was a part of this church, and I was lost until I was 28 years old.
I was recently told how Roswell Street Baptist Church is redefining itself.
We need to do the same thing here.
Don’t do things just because we always did it that way.
This Sunday night, the way you’re teaching and learning is a prime example, and it works; I know it does, because I’ve seen it work in a Church that I pastored.
This is just doing what we did and do every Thursday night in our small group. That’s the Church.
What we called it was: “Fill Your Cup.” Service.
Understand this: My job is not to fill your cup; my job is to empty mine.
I saw a quote recently that said, “Preaching is simply enjoying the Bible in front of others.”
I’m just pouring out to you what God has shown me.
You’ve got to have an empty cup when you get here for God to fill it.
Listen to me, this sermon was written before I was asked to come and speak it. The day I got through writing this sermon, Brian called and asked if I was serious about filling in on Sunday nights. I told him, yeah, I’ve already got the series, and I’ve already got the first sermon.
And if you don’t come in with a clean, empty cup, you won’t get anything out of these lessons.
Ben Bennett will call me sometimes, and he always starts by asking the question Are you clean? If you’re not clean, don’t bother, but if you are clean, I’ve got a prayer request for you, and then He tells me the request.
2 Timothy 2:21 If you keep yourself pure, you will be a special utensil for honorable use. Your life will be clean, and you will be ready for the Master to use you for every good work.
If you come in with your cup half full of the world and the things that are going on, all you’re gonna get is ½ full cup when you leave. The same applies to every service.
If you come in with your cup full of the whole world and mad at the family and the kids, you’re not gonna get anything out of it.
I ask you, from now on, before you walk in the door of this Church or any Church, pause for a minute and say God cleanse and fill me with your word. I want to hear from you today, and I promise you, He will.
Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening
If you don’t come into this Church ready to receive the word of God, you’re not going to receive anything or get anything out of it; you’re going to leave here with your cup in the same shape it was in when you got here.
We need to do it the way God wants it, follow the Word, not the man or the men that have come before us, but of God in God’s word, and that alone.
Until we know what our Church exists for,
We have no foundation,
No motivation,
And no direction for the ministry.
Max Lucado said, “From God’s perspective, the ungodly party-goer and the ungodly pew-sitter are alike. Both need the same message—without God, they’re lost.”
Pastor Jim Cymbala, the Pastor of Brooklyn Tabernacle Church in New York recently said on Instagram, “As a minister, I firmly believe that I am not allowed to preach what is not in the Bible. It is an exciting enough book as it stands. It is not something dull that we need to spice up; what we need to teach is all that Jesus did and taught, and no more. We will have plenty of thrills, fresh wind, and fresh fire.
The Church needs to define its purpose; this must start from God’s word.
And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine.
Stedfastly This word is found 10 times in New Testament = continue 4, continue instant 1, and here it is continue steadfastly 1, attend continually 1, give (one’s) self continually 1, wait on 1, wait on continually 1
They stayed on their course
It means you just keep on doing it, you continue on and on and on and on… You stay faithful, and as I said, if you do, you will get just rewards when we get to heaven, and it will be well worth it.
They were in the WORD of God a lot.
We can look at what Jesus said and the examples in the New Testament.
We have the Bible that they were writing at the time.
I believe that there are four basic questions that we have to answer as a church.
1. Why does the Church exist?
2. What are we to be as a Church? (Who and what are we?)
3. What are we to do as a Church? (What does God want done in the world?)
4. How are we to do it?
You do it according to the Word of God!!!
Chuck Swindoll said there are three points to preaching
What does the Bible say
What does the Bible mean and
How does it apply to me
And in the coming weeks, I beg you, I beseech you, I plead with you, whatever word you want to use, get someone else to come with you here on Sunday mornings, on Sunday nights, on Wednesday nights, and God is moving here in a mighty way. I’ve seen more excitement in this church in the last few months than I have in years.
We are not commissioned to go to Church.
We have to have the Church because Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
So that’s how you get the word of God by coming to Church.
So, how are you gonna get the word of God if you don’t come to church, if you don’t listen to the word of God, and then we follow the Commission?
The Bible is clear: We need each other.
That is, we are commissioned to go into the world and preach the gospel, present the gospel, present Christ to the world, and if the church is not doing that, then you’re messing up badly. You’re missing the mark!
The way we answer these questions will provide context for how we function as a church.
If we do not answer these questions, we will just stumble around with no true purpose or vision on what God wants this church to do.
Andy Stanley says that’s what builds a hard heart. Not doing anything with what you learn
You come to Church, and you hear, and you hear, and you hear, and you never do anything with it, and you will develop a hard heart.
The definition of a hard heart is simply overexposure and under-response to the Word of God.
It’s like a choir practicing songs over and over and never performing in front of anybody.
It’s like a baseball team practicing and practicing and never playing a game.
You’re coming here, and you’re learning to go out and do something with it, and what you should be doing is bringing others in to learn also.
Try this. Don’t ask people to come to church with you; do as Deon did: call me, and he said Come and sit with me, my friend,
Ask people to come sit with you. Come and be a part of this ekklesia church
Every time I try to come here and hear Brian preach, I call my niece his sister, and I say, Lynn, come sit with me, and she does, and I love it, and I love her. It makes me look so good with her beautiful self and her beautiful daughter sitting there beside me.
I’m sure everyone here knows someone that they love, someone that’s not in Church, that’s not under the word. Even someone who’s not saved.
Ask them to come sit with you; ask them to come here because we need all the help we can get, and that’s how you grow this church.
I saw the Fill Your Cup service go from 4 people to over 40 because the hand of God was there, not because of DeWayne, but because of the Obedience to God.
I got bad news for you- you’ve heard it. You’ve got to do something with it. Because the Bible says you’re held accountable for what you’ve learned, if you don’t do anything with it, you’ve got a problem with God.
After Jesus gave a parable about his coming, He then said this:
Luke 12:47-48 47 And that servant who knew his master’s will, and did not prepare himself or do according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. (Scourging) 48 But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more.
You’re going to be held responsible for what you’ve heard, and I believe if you should be here and hear it and miss it, you’re going to be held responsible for that also.
My prayers for the next few weeks are for me to be able to teach you what I believe God has taught me, and that’s what we need to be in the world, and that is God’s Church.
Mark 16:15 (KJV) And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
Matthew 28:18-20 (KJV) 18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
Preach = English Words used in KJV: preach 51, publish 5, proclaim 2, preached 2, preacher 1 [Total Count: 61]
of uncertain affinity; to herald (as a public crier), especially divine truth (the gospel) :- preach (-er), proclaim, publish.
Strong’s Talking Greek & Hebrew Dictionary.
So, who’s supposed to do this?
You are commissioned to go into the world as a public crier, proclaiming the gospel.
Call out “The Divine Truth,” preach the good Word. Not only in your voice but in your actions
By taking what you learn in these four walls and applying it to what you learn in your own personal study and devotional time.
And taking it to the world.
Out of the forty miracles recorded in the Book of Acts, 39 happened outside the synagogue or church walls.
The Church is to teach you how to live in the world that we’re living in now.
That’s why the Church is so important.
Taking what God has given you through sermons, in Sunday school lessons, and you take it to the world and give it to them so they can know Christ- that’s our job.
The Atlanta Christian Crusoe Movement has a saying: “make a friend, be a friend, and bring that friend to Christ.” That’s your job.
Our job as pastors, preachers, and teachers is to tell you how to do it
What does the Bible say?
What does the Bible mean?
And how does it apply to us?
PRAY!!!
