Many people who profess to be Christian - attending church services every week and participating in church-related groups during the week - believe they are doing their part in extending God’s kingdom. They hope that by their worship style and the programmes they offer, new people will be attracted to their location. And once they get them to enter the church building, only then they can work with the Holy Spirit in converting them, and sharing the good news about Jesus.
While it is never a bad thing to have new people entering our church buildings, it would seem we have badly misinterpreted what "church" really is! The "Church" in the Bible refers to the people who have come to know Jesus as their personal friend, and are striving - with his leading and intervention of the Holy Spirit - to lead lives like Christ! The Bible refers to "the church" as the "body of Christ". And one of the purposes of that body is to reach out and win new members to that body - to replicate!
Over the centuries many christians never learned or have (conveniently?) forgotten that Jesus called us to be disciples! And not just at the weekend or when we meet in our groups! Jesus commanded us to be disciples every day and every hour of the week, and in every situation!
The only way we can expand the body of the Church is to be alongside the people we with whom we work, have coffee, share school runs, and stand in the shopping queue! It is in these situations we are required to share the good news as The Holy Spirit leads!
This is what Jesus meant when he sent the disciples out to go into the highways and byways to share the good news, because the “Field is white unto harvest”. As God’s people and church we have to be "whole life" - 24/7 - Christians.
This can be a scary thought because we will need to depend wholly on the Holy Spirit and his leading. We will have to live what we believe and pass that on in conversation and testimony.
This is how the Church becomes a gateway. It is through this door of committed discipleship that those whom God has challenged using our influence, come and are nurtured in the church. They can then be trained in our various groups to equip them to be disciples too, as Jesus intended. And then they will become gateways themselves engaging in whole life discipleship ministry.
Are your Church doors locked - keeping you in? Or are they wide open to allow disciples to be made, used, and replicated?
Remember Jesus didn’t just choose disciples in Bible times. He chose you to be disciples in the present time, before you were born.
If you would like to know more please contact us.
Robin Black
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