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What is God really doing in the world?
When we read through the Old Testament we see God at work calling out or gathering a people to himself.
From one perspective, God’s interaction with Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham, Moses, David and many more,
God’s purpose has always been to create a “nation” of people who would fearlessly and faithfully represent his moral reign,
rightly imaging him in every aspect of their lives.
Jesus said during his earthly ministry, “I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18).
Having created all that exists, God’s purpose today is calling out a people unto Himself, which can be seen in:
The saving of eight people from the Flood
His calling and covenant with Abraham
The establishment of the nation of Israel
The redemption of Israel in the Exodus
The numerous rescues of Israel during the time of the judges and
The calling out of the Body of Christ in the NT
The formation of the Church leading up to Christ’s return
What is the church that Jesus said he was going to build?
The word “church” comes from a Greek word ecclesia, which means “a called out assembly.”
The church is made up of redeemed, sanctified (set apart to holiness),
Spirit-led, missional, unified, serving, sacrificing, worshipping people.
If we unpack the meaning of all of those terms, we will discover that the church Jesus is building
is a group of people who have one thing in common:
they are all committed followers of Jesus the Christ.
On this they are unified, despite all of their differences in other areas.
The church is many things:
A called out assembly (ecclesia)
A redeemed people
A sanctified people
A Spirit-led people
A people sent on a mission – a mission of God
A unified people
A serving people
A sacrificing people
A worshipping people
The church not only is the term that describes the universal Body of Christ spoken of in the New Testament,
but it is a term that refers to each local church or assembly.
Each local church is intended to be a localized expression of what God is doing worldwide, i.e., calling out people from all nations,
cultures, ethnic backgrounds, etc., to represent his moral reign.
This means that the basis for unity in the local church is not shared musical preferences,
shared religious rituals or traditions,
shared buildings, shared events or even shared friendships.
The local church, as a micro-expression of the universal church, is unified by the common unity (community)
we have in the person and redemptive work of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Although there may be cultural differences within or between congregations,
the basis for our oneness or unity is Jesus Christ.
All local churches may not do things exactly the same, sound the same, sing the same, etc.,
but an authentic local church will have the person and work of Jesus Christ in common with every other authentic local church.
All of our cultural, social, political, ethnic differences and loyalties are subordinate to this common unity in Christ.
Jesus’ prayer in John 17 was that his church would be one in him.
Although the expression or application of these values may look different in one setting versus another,
our common unity in Christ means that the church worldwide would value the things that God values.
What does God value?
We glean from God’s self-revelation in Scripture that he values himself,
expressed in such statements as the first of the Ten Commandments,
“You shall have no other gods before me”.
Nothing is more valuable than God.
Second, we should value God’s story, which is revealed in the 66 books that make up the Old and New Testaments.
Jesus said that his word is eternal and forever authoritative, that it would never pass away (Luke 21:33).
Third, we should value God’s people because God does;
he created people in his own image, gave them dominion over his creation to manage it on his behalf
and he values his people so much that when they rebelled against him, he provided the means by which they can be redeemed.
Our church is a common unity that involves common values
We value God, therefore we will be a worshipping community and a praying community
We value God’s story, therefore we will be a learning, teaching, and discerning community
We value God’s people, therefore we will be a caring, equipping, and whole person-oriented community
God values his world. He designed it in such a way that there is built in to the physical world natural laws and processes
that preserve and protect it. Although the physical world has become corrupted and does not function as it was created to function,
it retains much of its created goodness and functionality.
As God’s managers, we should care for the world as God does,
which means we should be committed to an appropriate level of earth keeping.
In addition, we should engage the world not as conquerors but as servants, imitating the Lord Jesus Christ who redeemed us.
We should be known as a compassionate community as we minister to the needs of the infirm, the less fortunate and poor.
Lastly, if we value God’s world, then we should communicate God’s story to the world since
God is the ultimate Source for all that troubles the world.
Consider these questions:
In what way does valuing God’s people and God’s world require us to tell people the truth about the world,
even if they do not want to hear it?
How do we compassionately tell people about Jesus as Lord and Savior without “sugar coating”
the truth of the Gospel to avoid offending people?