Minster's Desk 5 August 2012

In my sermon this morning I touch on three biblical reasons why we should “do the work of an evangelist”.  To support this I provide a few bible readings, below are some more.  Please take some time to read and pray over these passages.  Through them allow the Holy Spirit to stir your heart for the lost of this world.

Humanity is inherently sinful

“Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son” John 3:18.

“Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord” (Acts 3:19).

“As it is written: ‘There is no one righteous, not even one’” Romans 3:10

                      
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” Romans 3:23

We are unable to save ourselves, that’s why we need Jesus

“For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost” Luke 19:10.

“In reply Jesus declared, ‘I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again’” John 3:3.

“Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved” Acts 4:12.

“They replied, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved--you and your household’” Acts 16:31.

 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast” Ephesians 2:8-9.

We are commanded to share the gospel with those who haven’t heard it yet

“Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field’” Matthew 9:37-38.

"’All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age’” (Matt 28:6 – 20).

Ministers Desk 29 July 2012

Part of Jesus’ ministry was to teach and train his followers for the ministry that they were called to.  A disciple making community places emphasis on helping people develop skills for ministry.  Our purpose (Growing Disciples who Exalt, Explore, Embody, Engage) challenges each of us to have at least one intentional relationship in which we share our faith, believing that God will lead them to faith.  At the moment we are looking at ways that we are able to develop our skills for relationship evangelism.  Over the coming weeks our morning worship services will look at the biblical principles and practices of relationship evangelism. We do this because it is invariably the practice of the church and its members, that unless we are consciously outward focussed, we will gravitationally and unconsciously turn our focus inward. 

To complement our Sunday teaching, I want to share some resources that our congregation has.

Prayer cards – cards to place in our bibles or wallets or somewhere else convenient.  Write on them the names of pre-Christians that you are praying will come to faith.  Use as a constant reminder to pray.

How to talk about Jesus without freaking out – an easy to read, practical guide to relationship evangelism.  Contains a study guide that can be used for personal or group use.

Out of the salt shaker – an easy to read book that helps the reader see relationship evangelism as a way of life, not something that we do. 

Just walk across the room – a DVD based study guide of four sessions that contains simple steps for pointing people to faith.  Best used in an Explore Group, but also good for use individually. 

Becoming a contagious Christian – a practical workshop for identifying and developing your personal style of relationship evangelism.  Best used in an Explore Group, but also good for use individually. 

These resources are kept in the library in the church foyer.  Please feel free to borrow, use and return.

A resource not listed above is prayer.  In Luke 10:2 Jesus says, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”  I believe that if each day everyone of us prayed as Jesus commanded, that there would be a great change in our congregation.  Constantly praying for our pre-Christian friends and family, praying for other Christians as they share faith and praying for ourselves would raise the awareness of the importance of evangelism and would further tune us to the work of the Spirit in our lives.  So I encourage you to pray.

Ministers Desk 15th July 2012

Last Sunday Barry Jardine, Maureen Witheyman and I worshipped at Newlife Uniting Church where we met the Moderator of the Solomon Islands, Wilfred Kuripeto.  In his sermon the Moderator shared the history of the Methodist church in the Solomon Islands.  In 1902 Rev John Goldie, his wife Helena and a small group of others left southern Tasmania and travelled to the area that is now known as Munda in the Solomon Islands.  Rev Goldie was a probationer Minister in his early 20s.  Yet he heard the call of God to go and he was faithful to that call.  The Moderator preached on the Great Commission in Matthew 28, “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”  In reminding us of this passage he praised God that people like the Goldies, and others, in the past had gone when they had been sent.  He further encouraged us to be obedient to God’s call to go where we are sent. 

The people of the Solomon Islands still today give thanks to God for the missionaries who took the gospel to the Solomon Islands 110 years ago.  Since then the word missionary has dropped out of our vocabulary, except when talking about people from history.  Yet the importance of mission and the necessity for each of us to be a missionary continues to this day.  For many years the church saw the idea of mission as being something that we sent people overseas to do.  That no longer applies in our time.  There are probably more people in Brisbane who need to hear the message of Jesus, than there are in the Solomon Islands, and God is calling us, his church to take this message to our friends, family, workmates and neighbours.  Disciples are missionaries.  The mission of God remains for us to go and tell others of the good news of Jesus Christ.  It may be that like John and Helena Goldie we travel to another country and culture or we may stay in our own country and culture.  However, like the Goldies we are called to commit the totality of who we are to the mission of God, wherever we are placed.

Identifying ourselves as missionaries causes us to rethink how we spend our time, what we do with our church buildings and resources, what priorities we set and who we spend our time with.  Concentrating ourselves in this way causes us to have a prevailing concern of “what has God called us to do and be for others in the particular time and place?”  We therefore move ourselves out of an inward focus and toward a focus on others.

A focus on mission requires a growing faith, because mission can be costly.  The results of mission are not always immediate, so we’re required to trust the future to God.  We are often called to exert more effort than we might find comfortable, therefore we need to lean on God for strength.  We can be confronted with situations that are not familiar, we therefore need to rely on the inspiration of God to get us through the unknown.  Being involved in mission grows our faith as we see the results of lives transformed, people who find new relationships with Jesus, answers to our prayers and a reassurance that God is continually at work in our lives and the lives of others.

As disciples of Jesus we are called to go and live as missionaries.  What is your mission field?

MInisters Desk 8 July 2012

Barry Jardine, Maureen Witheyman and I have returned from our mission and service trip to our partner church, Noro in the Solomon Islands.  To say that we had an amazing, challenging and faith stretching time would be an understatement.  I won’t speak for Barry and Maureen, but during the trip I discovered new things about God, about other people and about myself. We had time to sit and talk to people, ask questions and gain some limited understanding of a different way of living.  Being exposed to another culture shines a light on our own and exposes things that we would not otherwise see, both good and bad.  These new discoveries are part of the ongoing journey of life and our growth as disciples of Jesus Christ.  Barry, Maureen and I will be sharing about our trip in the morning worship services on 15 July.  Today (8 July) we are at Newlife Uniting Church at Robina meeting the Moderator of the United Church in the Solomon Islands who is in Australia to attend the Assembly meeting.

Our partnership with Noro is important for both our church and theirs.  Whilst we were in Noro we provided training in computer skills and bookkeeping, we encouraged them through our presence and we provided a computer and bibles and some other resources.  From our position of relative wealth what we did may seem inconsequential.  Yet to our partners in Noro we have provided them with access to training and equipment that they would find extremely difficult or even impossible for them to access.  In doing this we have built their capacity to serve in the church and to gain better employment.  We have enriched their lives.  This is a key aspect of the gospel and a key calling of Christ’s disciples.  To bring freedom from the things that imprison and impoverish God’s people. 

Yet I believe, that the people of Noro have enriched me even more.  As I said above, our partnership with them gives us a different way of seeing the world.  We are shown what it means to trust in God, when the trappings of wealth and ability are absent.  We are invited to participate in worship that is vibrant, inspiring and wholehearted.  Questions of time do not matter, and a worship service can last up to four hours, but it doesn’t appear to.  We are given the opportunity to learn new ways of valuing others, displaying patience and taking time to understand meaning, rather than merely words.  In our busy and time poor society these are learnings that we often miss.  These again are important elements of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.  In Christ we are called into community with him and each other.  The very nature of the Body of Christ means that we must rely upon each other and live in an ongoing giving of self for the sake of others.  Our society is developing an increasingly individualistic orientation that takes us away from our Christian principles of holy community.  In the Solomons we learn again what these principle looks like and how we can implement it in our society.

Our partnership with Noro helps us move forward with our church’s purpose of Growing Disciples who Exalt, Explore, Embody, Engage.  It challenges our assumptions about life and discipleship and helps us look at these from another angle.  

Ministers Desk July 1st 2012

Rev. Alistair Macrae is the current president of the Uniting Church in Australia. On Wednesday Rev. Macrae issued the following pastoral statement on behalf of the Uniting Church. Because of Christ’s call for us to serve even the most marginalized in our communities it is important the church have a voice in the public debate surrounding those seeking asylum in Australia. We do this, not because we feel we deserve special treatment simply because we are the church, but rather because to keep silent would to be to deny our charge to love as Christ loves us.  

Grace and Peace

Harlee.

PASTORAL STATEMENT ON CHRISTMAS ISLAND TRAGEDY

Wednesday, 27 June 2012

On behalf of the Uniting Church in Australia, I offer our thoughts and prayers for the safety of the asylum seekers affected by the latest tragedy off Christmas Island.

Our prayers are also with the rescuers as they do all they can to help the survivors.

The tragedies of today and last week have once again drawn our attention to the plight of asylum seekers in our region.

Too many places in our world are ravaged by violence and too many people suffer the horrors of torture and persecution. In this broken world, people will always seek safety and the opportunity to live a life of freedom, even if the journey itself poses grave risk. This life of safety is one that we as Australians too often take for granted, and too often fail to share in the true spirit of hospitality and welcome.

The boats that come to our shores do not carry criminals. They carry men, women and children who flee torture and persecution.

As the nation responds to these latest tragedies, we pray that the harshness of partisan politics be replaced with compassion and humanity.

We pray that the Parliament will rise above the longstanding and divisive rhetoric which damages lives and destroys hope.

We pray that the voices of Australians who embody the spirit of hospitality in their everyday lives will be heard above a shrill minority.

We continue to pray and work for a world in which people are not forced to abandon their lives and their homes and seek safety by way of a dangerous journey to nations such as ours.

Rev. Alistair Macrae
President, Uniting Church in Australia Assembly

Ministers Desk 24th June 2012

On Friday 22 June the Uniting Church celebrated its 35^th anniversary.  In 1977 the Uniting Church was inaugurated with a sense of hope and optimism for the future.  The three founding denominations (Methodist, Presbyterian and Congregational) were strong and vital in their ministry and membership.  The church came together out of a belief that God had called them together to give testimony to his desire for the church and for the sake of service to the people of Australia.  At the time of Union the church issued a statement to the nation.  The values articulated in the statement expressed and shaped the identity of the Uniting Church.  I have reproduced this statement below.  Please read it and reflect on the church that God has called us to be and who we are in relation to our nation.

Grace and peace

David Fender
 

We, who are members of the first Assembly of the Uniting Church in Australia, address the people of Australia in this historic moment.  The path to unity has been long and at times difficult, but we believe this unity is a sign of the reconciliation we seek for the whole human race.

We acknowledge with gratitude that the churches from which we have come have contributed in various ways to the life and development of this nation.  A Christian responsibility to society has always been regarded as fundamental to the mission of the Church.  In the Uniting Church our response to the Christian gospel will continue to involve us in social and national affairs.

We are conscious of our responsibilities within and beyond this country.  We particularly acknowledge our responsibilities as one branch of the Christian church within the region of South-East Asia and the Pacific.  In these contexts we make certain affirmations at the time of our inauguration. 

We affirm our eagerness to uphold basic Christian values and principles, such as the importance of every human being, the need for integrity in public life, the proclamation of truth and justice, the rights for each citizen to participate in decision-making in the community, religious liberty and personal dignity and a concern for the welfare of the whole human race.

We pledge ourselves to seek the correction of injustices wherever they occur.  We will work for the eradication of poverty and racism within our society and beyond.  We affirm the rights of all people to equal educational opportunities, adequate health care, freedom of speech, and employment or dignity in unemployment if work is not available.  We will oppose all forms of discrimination which infringe basic rights and freedoms.

We will challenge values which emphasise acquisitiveness and greed in disregard of the needs of others and which encourage a higher standard of living for the privileged in the face of the daily widening gap between the rich and poor.

We are concerned with the basic human rights of future generations and will urge the wise use of energy, the protection of the environment and the replenishment of the earth’s resources for their use and enjoyment.

Finally, we affirm that the first allegiance of Christians is God, under whose judgement the policies and actions of all nations must pass.  We realise that sometimes this allegiance may bring us into conflict with the rulers of our day.  But our Uniting Church, as an institution within the nation, must constantly stress the universal values which must find expression in national policies if humanity is to survive. 

We pledge ourselves to hope and work for a nation whose goals are not guided by self-interest alone, but by concern for the welfare of all persons everywhere – the family of the One God – the God made known in Jesus of Nazareth the One who gave his life for others.

In the spirit of his self-giving love we seek to go forward.

Ministers Desk 17th June

I have been writing recently about our church’s results from our latest Natural Church Development survey.  This survey shows where we are strong and weak.  In any survey that ranks items from top to bottom there must be one item that is at the bottom.  For our congregation this is in the area of evangelism.  The bad news is that we have consistently identified that this is an area of weakness for us.  The good news is that we have improved in this area since the last survey. 

One of the causes of growth is our Community Helping Hand.  This very practical way of meeting people’s needs is a highly visible and direct way of communicating the love of God through action.  In Jesus’ public ministry of Jesus he fed the 5000 as a means of telling the people of the coming kingdom and sharing with them the good news.  We continue to walk in his footsteps as we meet the needs of our community. 

Our congregation’s purpose encourages each of us to engage in at least one intentional relationship where we share our faith with someone in the belief that they will be drawn to declare Jesus Christ as lord and saviour.  We are seeing an impact in relationship evangelism as more members of our congregation identify that they are seeking to deepen their relationships with people who don’t yet know Jesus Christ.  In the survey, this was the area in which we identified our single largest increase. 

The context of our personal relationship is the best place to share our faith and the most effective way of leading people to Christ.  Research shows that over 90% of Christ followers made a decision for Christ as the result of the influence of a close relationship with another Christian.  In our relationships with other people we talk about the things that are most important to us.  If our faith means anything in our lives, it will be part of these conversations.  This could include positive conversations about our church activities, the people we worship and serve with, and the work of the church.  It could become more personal when we talk about our reasons for believing and the impact that Christ has on our lives.  When we are listening to the Holy Spirit he will lead us to opportunities to offer invitations to church events and to challenge our friend or family member to commit their life to Christ. 

Prayer is a significant part of the work of evangelism.  We should each have a list of people whom we are praying for on a daily basis.  In prayer we should be asking Christ to become more real to them and we should be asking for boldness in the Spirit to take the opportunities to speak about faith that he will provide.  If you don’t have a list already, there are cards on the information desk that allow you to write down the names of five people and then store these cards in your bible or wallet.

“Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”  How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?  And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”  (Rms 10:13 – 15)