Church, Why Bother? sermon 4 & 5

We wrapped up the series this past week and I cannot believe I am headed into my 2nd series or messages already. It seems like only yesterday we arrived in Burlington...time flies!

I will start by saying message 5 was all about our statement of faith and practice at Burlington Community Church. From this, we hope to draw some into the next steps of baptism and church membership. This will now take place in the Life Group system we established as we move on to the next series of messages, EPIC.

Sermon 4 was all about the Power of the Church. This message was very basic but very pointed. We can do nothing in the church that God has not designed and given us the power and ability to do. From His resurrection power to the power of His Word, we have and always will have a direct line to the infinite power of God.

After looking at the Power of God, we can see His power displayed through the gathering of His people in worship, our prayers and power to spread the Gospel. God wants to reveal His power and it is through His people that He works and demonstrates it.

My prayer is that Burlington Community Church will never stray from the power of an almighty God!

Church, Why Bother? sermon 3

In the 3rd message of Church, Why Bother?, we emphasized the importance of purpose. It is so important that a while back a very important figure in today's church wrote The Purpose Driven Church - Rick Warren. The impact that this book has on churches around the world is incredible! It has given churches and church leaders focus as they prepare and plan ministry. Rick Warren's concepts were used to help us see that we are to be at work with what God is doing and not doing things in church that do not matter. It was a real exploration into what is important to God and our role is making just as important in our church.

Though this message is not a rehash of this book, it is certainly an example for us. This message is more about walking through the perceptions and stereotypes the world has of the church and then revealing what the world should feel if we were a church of purpose.

Church WITHOUT Purpose

• Irrelevant – lost touch, impractical, uneducated
• Hypocritical – inconsistent living, inner politics and power, and focus on leaders’ failures
• Judgmental – pious, self-righteous, other agendas and political aspirations

Church WITH Purpose

• Passion for Christ – Philippians 3:10
• Unity in Spirit – Psalm 133:1; Ephesians 4:3
• Dependence on God – I Peter 5:7
• Compelling faith – Hebrews 11:6
• Faith and Works – James 2

Want to know what the purposes of Burlington Community Church are? Come to a Life

Group meeting this Thursday night! For more information contact Pastor Roy at

pastorroy@burlingtoncommunitychurch.com

What a dirty plug for BCC Life Groups, eh? ;-)

Church, Why Bother? sermon 2

What a great adventure we have had in beginning this journey to build Burlington Community Church! Our second week was awesome. We had a great attendance for a church that had started only the week before. Outside of Labor Day Weekend, we have had visitors to every service. Praise the Lord for that! Keep us in your prayers and below is my sermon from Aug. 29th...

Right Relationships/Right Direction

In continuing our series on "Church, Why Bother?," it is important to understand and have the right relationships. Many get frustrated in church because the relationships built are not with direction or purpose. Friendships may be built on interests and opinions but close relationships have deeper foundations. In his book, DNA of Relationships, Gary Smalley builds his case of the importance of relationships and how interaction is vital to humanity. He simply begins by saying, "Life is relationships; the rest is just details." He points out that there is no way to avoid relationships completely and we need them! John 15 is an excellent passage for understanding the right relationships one can build.

1. A Growing and Personal relationship with Christ.

John 15 starts by showing that we are to have a relationship with Christ and His Father. He shows how he is the vine and we are the branches. We cannot do anything of spiritual significance and growth outside of this relationship with Christ. As a matter of fact, God is the one who prunes and shapes us for his glory and production. It is all a matter of glorifying God that we are drawn into the continue in our relationship with Christ. God will accomplish His work through us as we stay connected to Him and doing His Will.

A great and interesting promise in this passage is that verses 14 and 15 point out that Christ no longer calls us servants but friends. This is an incredible concept because a servant only does what he is told where a friend will know and understand everything the friend wants and asks. Very simply, we are His friend and He will show us exactly what He wills, and as his friends, we understand and are excited to be a part of it.

2. A loving relationship with each other.

It is interesting that we are commanded here to love one another. Why is that? Is it because we do not have the capacity to love another Christian? I believe it is because the closer we get to one another and the more we "experience" of each other, the easier it is to become comfortable and predictable. Just like a marriage can "cool down" in passion because of familiarity, any intimate relationship can be taken for granted. It is also much easier to criticize and condemn a person the more you know what they think, say or do. That is why our first relationship in a growing and personal one with Christ is so important. He will sort out our thoughts and help us to truly love each other because we are growing and sustaining in Him as our vine.

Loving one another is also a commitment and choice. There is no way Burlington Community Church will continue without those of us who have come together to stand up and say we are one. We will find out more about the mission and passions of our pastor and this church so we can make a difference! What kind of difference are we talking about? Here it is in our third point...

3. A compassionate relationship with the world.

At the end of John 15, we are given the sobering state of our relationship with the world. We will not be loved but persecuted. This means there is opposition to our efforts as His kingdom people. Opposition in also motivation. If there were no opposition, what a wimpy, lame cause we would have a Christians!

Now, that means our efforts are about loving and reaching the world with the Gospel. Here in Toronto, a pastor and his congregation picketed a gay man's home. The reporters asked what they were doing and why. This pastor's response was, "We have freedom in this country to preach the gospel!" I agree with the pastor's statement but his actions do NOT match his words. Picketing a gay man's home is NOT preaching the gospel. The gospel is the life, death, burial, and (very importantly) resurrection of Christ! If we are persecuted for this, we are on the right path and doing the Will of God. Cases like this pastor in Toronto leave a community and world wondering why they would bother with church.

So what is our response to the world...?

A. Be in it but not of it (Romans 12:2)
B. Do not love the world or practice its lusts and pride (1 John 2:15-17)
C. Love the world and endure its persecution (John 15:18-19)

Church, Why Bother? sermon 1

Beginning BCC has been one of the most difficult things I've done but picking out the first sermons series was not. I knew from day one that I would want to deal with the subject, Church, Why Bother?. This has been an incredible journey and the question is something many are asking. We have had more than one encounter with Canadians who have simply given up on church. BCC is shedding the weight of "church and religion" to take on the life Christ meant us to have. You see, when most in the world see the church in light of their perception or stereotype, it is important that we present a church that is about life and abundant life in Christ. This is something the world does not see and we, the church, are to blame. We can become so rigid, set in our ways and filled with rules that we do not present a living church. So with this in mind, my very first sermon on August 22nd was about what a person should expect from a church. Here are my thoughts:

Act 2:42-47 tells of of a very real and very alive church. When the church was doing all it was supposed to do, people were saved, baptized and added to the church. This is the goal, what every church wants to be. This is the church Christ is the foundation of and power for.

Sadly, the church is not seen as a place of life change and growth. As a matter of fact, many in Canada do not go to church at all. “It is no longer 1955, when 68% of Canadians attended a place of worship on a weekly basis. Now, church attendance in Canada is more like 13%. In some urban settings, it is even lower.” Borderland Churches - Nelson (2008) We can argue over the reasons behind this but the truth is that most Canadians will not be in church this Sunday.

What can a person expect from Burlington Community Church? Are we going to have life, growth and change or are we going to be another presence in the community with no power to change anything? Because of Christ, there are 3 things we can promise a person will experience when they walk through our doors.

1. Love – I Corinthians 13.

We want anyone who comes to our church to experience love. This love is patient, gentle, kind but also casting out of fear and willing to be open and honest. It is the kind of love that will be greater than the imperfections we may encounter in each other.

2. Forgiveness – Ephesians 4:32.

Forgiveness is not condoning what someone has done but choosing not to dwell on their failures or sin. It is knowing what is wrong and extending grace to the repentant soul.

3. Hospitality – Romans 12:13

Hospitality is more than "throwing a good party." It is about being willing to give of ourselves. It is about giving up our own comforts for the sake of others. “The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of grief and bereavement, who can tolerate not-knowing, not curing, not healing and face with us the reality of our powerlessness, that is the friend who cares.” Out of Solitude - Henri Nouwen (1974) There are so many ways that we can show hospitality but we get stuck in our own selfishness most of the time.

Perfection and ultimate example found in Christ! Here is how we know…

1. Love – John 3:16 & 1 John 4:10

Christ loved us so much that He came to die on the cross for our sins. His expression of love is our salvation. His example of love is our witness to the world. Because he loved us that much, we can love each other.

2. Forgiveness – Ephesians 4:32

Because Christ forgave us, we can forgive others. This is more than a suggestion, it is a command. Christ forgave ALL of our sin, we are to do the same for others.

3. Hospitality – Philippians 2:6-11

Christ took on the form of man and humbled Himself by taking on our sins and dying on the cross. He left his throne in heaven to be our savior. The least we can do is leave the comforts of our own homes to reach out to someone who needs Christ.

Church, Why Bother?

This is the current sermon series we are in at Burlington Community Church. The special interest article, radio ads, newspaper, mailer and flyer distribution brought in an interested bunch of people. What is interesting to me is that this topic has attracted a younger, 20 something group to our first services. It is a group who have watched the previous generation of church goers in Canada fail in some key areas in life. There is also an underlying sense that the church is completely boring and impractical for life. Just this week I had a pretty deep discussion with a lawyer who occasionally goes to church and his wife does not. He said his friends tease him for the few times that he does go which he said is only about 4 times a year. He said he knows there must be more to it and he wants his kids to experience church though he does not know why he is doing any of it.

When I have a conversation like this, it fires me up a little because I know that this lawyer and others like him feel this way because they have not experienced a life giving church. They do not know true salvation and God has not been a part of their lives. It is doubtful that they see church as anything but a place to sit for an hour and feel they have "done their duty" for God this week. They have not seen the body of Christ in action because everyone in the congregation has become self absorbed and selfish about life, friends, and time. Getting to know people and investing in their lives is work and giving of yourself. It is MUCH easier to keep the few great friends and cruse through life.

Meeting people is hard for me because I would rather sit in the background and let others interact. I do not usually feel it is necessary to meet others or insert myself in new situations. I have to force myself to meet people and find out more about them. It really is an act of giving of myself to show interest in people and let them talk. I would much rather tell them about our church then they visit, accept Christ, and commit to ministry. Unfortunately, that is not how it works and it can take months and years for some I meet today to even consider church or spiritual things. Bill Hybles calls this "just walking across the room." We need to be willing to do that and let God lead those interactions.

I have had a steady diet of meeting new people ever since I arrived in Burlington. Our family came up here without knowing a single soul but we know quite a few now. My prayer is that God gives us many more opportunities to meet people and share our faith. It has been an experience and I am praying for God to work through me for His Kingdom.