Pastor's Newsletter
February, 2010
Let My People Go!
After this presentation to Israel’s leaders, Moses and Aaron went and spoke to Pharaoh. They told him, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Let my people go so they may hold a festival in my honor in the wilderness.” Exodus 5:1 (NLT)
From Moses to Jesus, worshipping God has always involved going. At the time of the exodus, God commanded Pharaoh to release the Israelites so they could properly worship God. They had to get away from the known, the comfortable, the familiar, the "safe", yet also that which enslaved them. Worshipping God is an adventure into the unknown with God. The Great Commission, the church's marching orders given before Jesus ascended to heaven to rejoin his Father at the throne of God, also tells us to "go" and make disciples. The church gravitates toward the known, the comfortable, the safe, and the religious. We would rather hang out with our Christian friends instead of venturing out into the great unknown of the unchurched world. Yet the Great Commission cannot be accomplished without going outside the walls of our Christian Comfort Zone.
When Pharaoh heard Moses' demands to release Israel to serve the Lord, he responded arrogantly.
“Is that so?” retorted Pharaoh. “And who is the Lord? Why should I listen to him and let Israel go? I don’t know the Lord, and I will not let Israel go.” Exodus 5:2 (NLT)
Just as then, even now when believers seek to obey the Great Commission and actually GO to those who do not yet know God, they will encounter the resistance and wrath of all the forces arrayed against our Lord and His gospel. There are four powers we must face and overcome:
our flesh or sin nature,
the power of sin,
the world system, and, finally,
the spirits of darkness headed up by Satan.
The flesh amounts to all those things inside us that seek to preserve our own selfish lifestyles at the expense of obeying God. The flesh is all about self-gratification and preservation. It's arch-enemy is the cross of Christ by which our will is crossed by God's and our self-life is put to death. Unless we allow the cross of Christ to render our flesh a practical death blow, we will never quite get to overcoming in any other areas. To quote the apostle Paul:
Now those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Galatians 5:24 (NET1)
The beautiful thing is that God has done the Lion's (of Judah) share of the work in defeating the flesh or sin nature. When Christ died on the cross, he rendered a death blow to the power of the flesh.
We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. Romans 6:6 (NLT)
If we trust in what Christ has already done in nullifying the power of the sin nature, we will be able to do our part in applying that crucifixion of the "flesh" to our lives. In other words, we crucify the the sin nature by applying by faith what Christ has already done. We are able to say "No" to sin and our fleshly appetites because Christ has given us the power to do so. We are released from the enslaving power of the sin nature by combining our faith in Christ's work with the fruit of the Spirit called "self-control". We must choose to say "No" to sin and "Yes" to God, as Paul wrote to Titus.
For the grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people. 12 And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God, 13 while we look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be revealed. 14 He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds. Titus 2:11-14 (NLT)
In like manner, we apply the victory of Christ on the cross to the other three areas of bondage which attempt to keep us from obeying the Great Commission. Sin has been conquered through the cross, too. Sin is closely related to the sin nature, but is not quite the same. The sin nature is the propensity in every person which is inherited from Adam that motivates us to to sin. Sin is a power that can overcome and destroy in its own right. Originally Adam did not have a sin nature. He was created as a perfect person in God's likeness, but he was overcome by the power of sin. How much worse is it for us today! Not only is sin lurking to destroy us, but by default we desire to sin, at least before applying the cross of Christ. But Christ's death and resurrection not only defeated the sin nature, but also sin itself. Read Paul's glorious Spirit-inspired declaration in Romans.
Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace. Romans 6:14 (NLT)
For us to experience freedom from the sin nature, we had to be crucified. For us to experience freedom from the power of sin, we had to be released from the condemning power of the Law. The strength or power of sin is the Law, according to First Corinthians 15:56. This means that the power of sin is activated when we encounter God's righteous demands found in the Law. Is this not what took place in the Garden of Eden so long ago? Did not Satan prey upon the first couple by emphasizing what appeared to be the confining and restrictive nature of God's command to not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil? After Adam and Eve actually disobeyed God, the power of condemnation was released to keep them in bondage and away from God's ability to redeem. This is how sin operates today as well; so, the only way out is for us to receive the forgiveness found in Christ as well as the release from all forms of condemnation. It is only then that we are able to access by faith the power of the Spirit who enables us to live a life of obedience to God.
So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. 2 And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. Romans 8:1-2 (NLT)
Once we learn about, believe in, and begin to live out the freedom we have in Christ with regard to the sin nature and the power of sin itself, we find ourselves up against another very formidable foe - the world system.
Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. 16 For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. 17 And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever. 1 John 2:15-17 (NLT)
The world system is anti-Christ. It stands for everything that is against God. It was displayed in Genesis at the tower of Babel where men sought to make a name for themselves and ascend to a god-like status through their own strength and accomplishments. It is based on pride, self-will and rebellion. It permeates the culture and many of the people around us. Its effects are often so subtle that we fail to see them. The world system is at odds with God's will for our lives and is an enemy to the Kingdom of God and must be defeated in our lives. This means we must choose things that run counter to the world system, something that is usually quite terrifying and dangerous. When Moses stood up to Pharaoh, he stood against the power of the world concentrated in one man in what was then the most powerful nation on the earth, which was totally given over to idolatry. Resisting Pharaoh put Moses up against the spiritual forces that ruled the land, the military might which enforced obedience, with the resultant pressure to conform or lose everything.
Moses was equipped to stand against the world system because he had encountered the living God, but most of the rest of the Israelites were poorly prepared and caved immediately to the pressure. When Moses made his demands, Pharaoh immediately countered with more oppression and harder labor. The Israelites, who did not understand the power of God nor the nature of the fight, became discouraged and wanted to give up. They lost confidence in God and his appointed leaders. Today, when believers make choices to stand against the world system, in order to overcome, they must know God and his power. They must be ready for the fight and be willing to stand their ground against what may seem to be overwhelming odds. We must be willing to endure over the "long haul", because the world system will not easily release its captives.
But, be of good cheer, Jesus declared that he has overcome the world!
I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world. John 16:33 (NLT)
And Paul reiterates:
But may I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. Galatians 6:14 (NET1)
Once again the cross of Christ is the answer. The world has lost its claim and pull upon us, and we are no longer compelled to serve it. We can make the choice, with the help of God's Spirit, to deny the world's demands and serve the Lord.
Lastly, we must be prepared for a pitched battle against spiritual forces of wickedness that have dedicated themselves to resisting God's will and purpose and defeating all who align themselves with Jesus.
Finally, be strengthened in the Lord and in the strength of his power. 11 Clothe yourselves with the full armor of God so that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens. Ephesians 6:10-12 (NET1)
Satan primarily uses deception (lies) and intimidation (fear) to oppress and enslave. He is a very real antagonist who goes about "seeking whom he may devour". He seeks to kill, steal and destroy. He is against everything that stands for and with God. He seeks to infect everything that is good with something that is evil. He wants to overthrow God, ruin His handiwork, and spoil His glory. And he is your declared enemy.
Satan marshals his forces of evil spirits, whether they be fallen angels or demons, against the body of Christ. He is intelligent, sly and cunning. He has had millenia of experience and proven strategies that have worked time and time again. He knows how to take advantage of our weaknesses and how to set us up for a fall. He employs the other three foes against us - the flesh, the power of sin and the world system.
But, once again, the cross of Christ is the key to victory. Through His death and resurrection, our Lord Jesus triumphed over Satan and every evil spirit.
Disarming the rulers and authorities, he has made a public disgrace of them, triumphing over them by the cross. Colossians 2:15 (NET1)
In addition, Christ has made us believers more than conquerors through participating by faith in His completed victory.
So he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 Look, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions and on the full force of the enemy, and nothing will hurt you. Luke 10:18-19 (NET1)
Nevertheless, we must not only believe in what Christ has done; we must also appropriate it. In other words, Satan and his forces will not willingly let God's people go anymore than Pharaoh easily let the Israelites go so long ago. God told Moses that Pharaoh would only let Israel go "under compulsion". So it is today. We have the power of the Holy Spirit who stands behind the authority of Christ vested in us believers as a result of His triumph through the cross. We, like Moses so long ago, must be willing to stand up against the full fury and obstinance of the enemy, demanding the release of the prisoners. In other words, we must risk everything to be a true disciple of Christ. Even though Satan is defeated ultimately, God allows him some room to operate so that we can become overcomers by faith in order to bring greater glory to God.
But they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives so much that they were afraid to die. Revelation 12:11 (NET1)
Application
Now how can we apply this teaching to our present situation? As a church we are in the midst of what I believe is a huge transition. When we fasted and prayed for forty days together as a church a year and a half ago, our desire was to more fully connect with God's purposes for us as a body. Whenever anyone or any group asks God to more fully reveal Himself in and through him, her or them, it sets up a colossal battle with everything that opposes such a thing from taking place.
Nearly every person and group who starts out with a fervent desire to serve and please God, ends up mired in some sort of lukewarmness and error eventually. This is human nature. By default (i.e.. the sin nature), we gravitate to the safe and comfortable over time. After twenty years of existence as "Liberty Church", we too had become a little "off track", or maybe, at least in God's eyes, a lot off the mark. During our time of seeking the Lord a year and a half ago, what came to us over and over was the need to focus on the main thing in God's heart - making disciples. We had, without knowing it, fallen victim to a worldly model of doing church. We had succumbed to our consumer culture and had largely become a vendor of religious services.
Everything in our culture tends to mold us into consumers; so, why should we think the church would be any different. In a world where businesses compete for our hard earned dollars by telling us they will give us more for the money, should it come as a surprise that the church markets itself the same way? This is called the attractional model for church growth. These types of churches (us in the past) grow mostly by transfer growth - gaining membership from people moving into the area or who are moving from other churches due to some dissatisfaction. Believers end up measuring and choosing churches by what they receive from them, instead of by whether or not the church is making them into Great Commission obeying disciples. Instead of looking for a church that will equip and thrust us into the world to make disciples, we want to attend church meetings with other Christians to have our needs met. The church that can do this the best wins, thus the rise of the full service mega-church. The church with the most to offer gets the people - the best preacher, the best ministries, the best building, the most excitement, the biggest anointing, the greatest thrill. As a church, we had tried to compete in that arena, and largely failed, all at the expense of truly discipling people. The desire to be a vendor of religious services might be considered merely misguided, but the failure to produce real disciples is a true disaster.
A true disciple is one who knows God's Word and puts it into practice. A disciple thinks, talks and acts like Jesus in an ever-increasing way. A disciple is a worshiper of God, a lover of people and a disciple maker. Jesus discipled his followers by teaching them and then gave them a chance to put them into practice in real life ministry situations. The mission became the motivation to learn. A church that makes the Great Commission its core, is what many call a missional church. Its members are more excited about ministry to others than receiving ministry themselves. They are looking for a church which will equip them and afford them the opportunity to minister outside the walls of the church facility. This is much different from the church that operates mainly as a classroom setting where most people hear God's Word taught Sunday after Sunday without ever being challenged to use what they have learned in the marketplace.
Following our fast, when we rewrote our mission statement, we started emphasizing discipleship and ministry to people. This was the beginning of "turning the ship", so to speaks and was also the beginning of spiritual warfare on a whole new level. Almost immediately the leadership was criticized for its decisions and actions. Eventually around one-third of our folks decided to leave the church for various reasons. In the midst of this exodus, we developed an outreach strategy that is what we now call Mobile Ministry in the Town and Country neighborhood. Through that ministry we have seen people come to Christ. Lives are being touched. We also launched an Alpha group in January this year. Our goal or vision is to see self-reproducing small groups, which might be called "house churches", dotting the landscape throughout the city, one neighborhood at a time. We may well be on the verge of a dramatic shift in how we "do business" as a church, which will bear much greater fruit; but, it has not come without a struggle.
It has been discouraging to see so many friends decide to do church elsewhere, but we acknowledge God is somehow working in all of this. (Romans 8:28) It has been a challenge financially as well. Our faith is being tested, as well as our resolve. Will we have the courage and grace to stand toe to toe with "Pharaoh" and demand that he let God's people go (and make disciples), or will we slink back into the old safe way of doing church, our "tails between our legs"?
I am comforted by the words of the psalmist who wrote thousands of years ago:
Indeed, none of those who wait for You will be ashamed... Psalms 25:3 (NASB)
Waiting on the Lord is one of the most difficult and rewarding things a person or church can do. The flesh wants to do its own thing. Just do something, it cries. When Saul felt threatened by the Philistine armies, rather than wait on God and his servant Samuel as he had been instructed, he took matters into his own hands. It is better to do nothing than to disobey God. Self-will is the essence of rebellion. Waiting on God crucifies self-will and rebellion and glorifies the Lord. It is a practical expression of our faith.
Currently as a church we are waiting on God. We are staying the course, moving forward with what we know, until if and when God gives us further instructions. Graciously, the Lord has given us the financial resources to do this, but we need to grow numerically and increase financially to continue over the long haul. There is nothing about this that is difficult for God. We are being faithful in being his witness and preaching the gospel. We are going outside the church walls as He commanded. So we should expect Him to provide the increase, that is, unless he desires for us to change in some other way.
Pressure is one way the Lord uses to get our attention and change our ways. By nature, human beings loathe change and usually will resist it tooth and nail. God knows this; so, when he wants to alter how we do church, he may use pressure to make us willing. In Acts, Paul was
strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying, "Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God." Acts 14:22 (NASB)
The word translated "tribulations" also means troubles, pressures, afflictions, anguish, persecutions and distresses. Just as children usually enter this world through the stress and pressure of natural childbirth, we too must cross over into new territory through tribulations. Unless we make the transition, we will not have space to grow, thrive and continue. A baby who stays in the womb will die, along with the mother. A church that cannot make the transition, will likely die, too. We must make it through this change so we can go on to the next phase of our life together as a church.
Let's make the choice to continue on with God no matter how tough the going may get. Let's not be like the Israelites of old, many of whom complained bitterly, disobeyed God, rebelled against the leadership and died in the desert. Thankfully, we live under a much better covenant, based on better promises, all made possible through the cross and resurrection of Christ and indwelling power and life of God's Holy Spirit. We can do this thing, church. We must! We must continue to do the work of an evangelist, to care for people as their pastors, and to believe that God will allow us to reap a harvest of souls that we will faithfully disciple into doing the same thing.
The most practical way to be part of the victory is to do the following.
Faithfully wait on God in prayer, asking Him to guide us as a church and individually.
Participate in Mobile Ministry in some fashion, whether it be through prayer or ministering in the neighborhood or at the Alpha group meeting.
Reach out in your own "oikos" or network of family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, etc.
Consider hosting an outreach oriented small group in your home.
Be generous with your giving.
Be willing to change, as the Lord directs.
Never, never, never give up.
Let me conclude by saying that it is never dull following Jesus. I think pursuing his plan for kingdom growth through multiplying disciple making small groups will be a whole lot fun, as well as difficult at times. Let's choose to focus on the positive and give it a go.
Until later...
Pastor Pete