Submitted by admin on Mon, 02/02/2009 - 2:38am
MP3 File:
How many of you enjoy driving in Minneapolis? • During rush hour? • During construction season in the summer? • When the traffic is backed up on 694 and you're crawling along at about 3 mph-stop-and-go traffic? And compared to other cities Minneapolis is considered a dream. In suburban Washington D.C. the average commuter spends nearly 40 minutes behind the wheel driving to work, which works out to more than two weeks on the road every year, more than 14 days, 24 hours a day.
When we talk about traffic jams or the traffic reporter from the helicopter talks about congested roadways, we often use the phrase "bottle neck." An accident or road construction or even a stalled car causes everybody to slow down. You were sailing along at 60 mph (you were speeding), when all of a sudden, there's a huge back-up in the traffic. You've run into a bottle neck. All these lanes of traffic trying to squeeze down into a single lane.
The same thing can happen in ministry, where churches put the brakes on and try to squeeze all its ministry down into one lane. The "bottle neck" of ministry is when we try to funnel all the work of the church through one or two "professionals." He's the pastor. Isn't that what we hired him to do?
The expectations of church people can create this bottle neck—where everyone calls the church office for every ministry need. But sometimes church leaders themselves obstruct the flow of ministry. Whenever pastors view themselves as something special—highly trained professionals who alone can get ministry done right, they also clog up God's plan for ministry within the body of Christ.
For two weeks now we've been considering what might happen when we take off all the limits that hold the church back. What would God be able to do in us? Through us? How would a "no limits" perspective change us? Change our church? Change our impact in this world?
We've concentrated on some verses from Ephesians. (Have you taken me up on my challenge? Have you read through the book of Ephesians?)
Let's take another look at these verses that show us what the church should strive for. Paul wrote these words to a group of believers in Ephesus in what we now call Turkey, on the Aegean Sea across from Greece. Many of these new believers were Gentiles. They had a Greek world view and didn't really understand how they could fit in with all things Jewish. They weren't all that familiar with the OT or Jewish laws and traditions. They knew they were different.
And now Paul said these Gentiles who had been separated from God and his people were now part of the same body, the same family of God, the same building or temple for the dwelling of the Spirit. So in this letter he gave them—both Gentiles and Jews—instructions on how the church was to work. Things had been changed from OT days when there were priests and sacrifices and Jewish religious rituals. Now they were all to be priests, all involved in ministry, as Peter wrote (1 Pet 2:9): "you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God."
Let's take another look at what Paul wrote to this new church in Ephesus (Eph 4:7-16):
7But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. 8This is why it says: "When he ascended on high, he led captives in his train and gave gifts to men." 9(What does "he ascended" mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? 10He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) 11It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. 14Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. 15Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. 16From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
7...to each one of us... means not just a few select individuals; not just those who have been to seminary, not just those schooled in ancient biblical languages, not just those who had studied John Maxwell's 21 Irrefutable Principles of Leadership. No! Grace has been given to each one of us.
12[Church leaders were given] to prepare God's people (NIV) or for the equipping of the saints (NASB, NKJV). In other words, apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers were not supposed to do the work of ministry themselves! They were supposed to prepare and equip God's people—all the saints—to do the ministry, to do God's work!
It takes more than a driver to win a race. It takes a pit crew. What would happen if the driver had to get out of the car, add more fuel, change the tires, etc.?
Paul wanted to see a church in Ephesus that was fully mobilized. Where all the parts were functioning according to God's design. Where Jews and Gentiles together were able to accomplish far more than they ever could do independently.
Paul wanted to see a church where everyone was involved—not just church leaders, not just a designated few. He wanted to see a church where everyone contributed to the effectiveness of the ministry—not just the hired guns (v 12).
He echoed the same thoughts elsewhere:
Rom 12:4Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6We have different gifts, according to the grace given us.
We have different abilities; we do not all have the same function.
1 Cor 12:27Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 28And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues. [Then he asks a string of rhetorical questions]
1 Cor 12:29-30 (NASB) 29All are not apostles, are they? All are not prophets, are they? All are not teachers, are they? All are not workers of miracles, are they? 30All do not have gifts of healings, do they? All do not speak with tongues, do they? All do not interpret, do they?
In other words, no one person can be expected to do all these things. We cannot sidestep God's plan for the church by appointing someone to do it all—because no one can do it all. And if we expect one person to do it all, then we create a ministry "bottle neck" and limit what God wants to do here.
2 Tim 2:2And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others. (Four levels: Paul → Timothy → reliable men → others.)
Peter also taught this principle. 1 Pet 4:10 Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms.
What do you think of when I say the words, "full throttle"?
Full Throttle means to get the most speed and power out of the engine. All the parts fine-tuned: the spark plugs and wires in top shape, the gapping in the plugs precision adjusted, the carburetor gauged to best mix of fuel and oxygen, the pistons lubricated, the crank shaft set properly. If any one of these parts is off a bit, the performance of the whole engine is reduced.
The church has many parts, many different components. Each one contributes to the overall performance, and if any part is not performing up to standard, the performance of the whole church is affected. Ministry does not happen as well as it could or to the extent that it should.
Sometimes we make things even worse by our attitude or messed up thinking—like running the race carrying a couple of suitcases. With all that extra weight and excess baggage, we're not going to do very well. If you're driving down the freeway with the parking brake on, you've got a problem!
Years ago when my son, Nathan, was young, we visited Wild Mountain where they have these concrete shoots where you can ride these plastic sleds downhill. You can get going pretty fast on them, so they come with a brake, so you can slow yourself going around the corners. But my son freaked out. He rode that brake all the way down the hill at about walking speed until there was a whole crowd of angry customers stacked up behind him who wanted to go faster. In the same way, we can put the brakes on what God wants to do. We can hold things back and limit ministry in the church.
We need to move toward a full-throttle ministry—going all out for God! Holding nothing back.
For this to happen, we must meet several requirements.
- When each believer knows what he or she has been gifted and called to do... [sensed God's call, experienced God's equipping, tested to see God was in it]
- When each believer accepts his or her role... [no
"gift envy" or "gift pride" but a simple recognition that this gift comes
from God]
How many players does it take for a team to play in the Super Bowl? 11 at one time, but 53 total on the active team roster. Each player has a specialty, an area of expertise. Kurt Warner is QB for Arizona. He's a good athlete, but you don't want him kicking field goals! You don't want him playing defense. (Have you ever seen a QB after an interception trying to tackle? It's seldom a pretty picture.) ...It's the same reason why you don't want me playing my accordion on the worship team. It would not be a pretty picture.
- When each believer obeys his or her Lord's instructions... [no excuses, no dodging responsibility]
- When each believer listens and learns from teachers and leaders... 17 Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you. (Heb 13:17)
- When each believer steps out in faith and dares to try what God has put before him or her...
Then we will see a "full-throttle" ministry! Then we will see results.
- Maximize the effectiveness of the church. When
only the hired ministry staff does church ministry, it's like putting a
lid on ministry effectiveness. When you run everything through the church
office, then it's a bottle neck that limits what can be done.
How many doctors and nurses did it take to deliver the LA octuplets? It wasn't just one doctor handing babies off to one nurse. It was a 46-member team. Each person on the team had an assigned role, a place to stand, an order in which to step forward, a time to respond. They went through practice runs before the procedure began.
- Mobilize the members of the church. What
caused the great separation between "lay" and "clergy" first begin? The
hierarchy of the priesthood is an OT model. But the NT teaches that we are
all to be priests—all of us through Jesus Christ have the privilege of
coming directly to the throne of grace. He baptizes us with the Holy
Spirit. He dwells within us. He gives us gifts by the Spirit. The only
distinction is that there are different kinds of gifts in the church,
different roles and assignments. But every one in the church is called to
serve—and that's why we want everyone mobilized to do something in the
kingdom.
- Multiply the ministry of the church. What
kinds of things happen when the hired ministry staff primarily does church
ministry? Less ministry happens because it's all funneled through a few
individuals. God wants our ministry to be "full-throttle"—no more traffic jams where everything clogs up
and slows down.
What's more, that bottle neck means that fewer people will receive blessings from God: (a) Those needing help will fall between the cracks; we've bottled up the pipeline of God's grace to them; (b) What's more, those who can help will miss the blessing they could have received by being involved in ministry. Jesus said, "It is more blessed to give than to receive."
- Maintain the focus of the church. Misplaced
priorities can put the brakes on ministry—when we emphasize programs more
than people, superstars more than Jesus, buildings and property more than
the body.
- Meet the goals of the church. To see the body of Christ built up, to see each one become mature—to see each one reach the whole measure of the fullness of Christ (v 12-13). What kinds of things happen when it's the hired ministry staff alone that does ministry? People plateau in their spiritual journey. They stop going higher. When only a few do ministry, others cannot exercise their gifts and consequently cannot grow stronger in their faith. Their Christian growth is stunted. They will become spiritual midgets. Serving is actually a way to grow stronger and deeper in the Lord.
The church in action is not when the pastor calls to encourage you. It's when ___ calls you with encouragement. It's not when the associate pastor provides a needy family with a Wal-mart gift card. It's when ___ lends a helping hand. When the members are involved—dropping off a meal, reaching out to someone who is discouraged, visiting a friend in the hospital—that's when the church is in action.
It's great that you gave nearly $10,000 last week to help short-term needy families. But that's only phase one—we could use some "supervisors" to connect with them, to transport them to a job site, to make sure they have the rakes or shovels they need.
When we open the doors to the community and let them come here for their family events or children's birthday parties, that's good. But when we have Shelly or Lori Jean hosting them, helping them, being a friendly face to them, being a member of Christ's body to them, that's what makes the playland worthwhile.
Do you know what I love? I love to see people in this church working behind the scenes, giving themselves and their time and their energies without any of the public recognition. People buried way back in the baby nursery, changing diapers, consoling crying infants—all so their parents can have a break and listen to God's Word. That's the church in action.
Or when Heidi and the youth I-serve teams put together all the prayer helps that we used Friday during our UpReach prayer gathering. Very few knew about the hours of work and preparation they put into all those rooms, the verses on the wall, the maps, the prayer lists. They did it to serve the church. And that's the church in action.
Are you part of the church in action? Are you serving and using your abilities? Or have you been holding back? Letting others do what God has gifted you to do?
Dear God, I pray that you would pour out your Spirit upon us so we would be inspired and empowered to fulfill our call. Where we have pulled back or hesitated, we confess our lack of faith and obedience. Where we have envied others, we ask forgiveness. Where we have elevated ourselves, we repent. Lord, we ask that you would stir our hearts. We surrender ourselves to you, so your church can be more effective in ministry.