Sermons About Ecclesiology
The Church is the Bride of Jesus
Jesus said in Matthew 16, "I will build my church." He is faithful! We have come to the place in the life of this church plant to begin talking about what it means to be a member of the church. This sermon is the first in the Church Series, in which we will talk about the key indicators of a true Church. Scripture says that the Church is the bride of Jesus and in this sermon we look at a key passage in our understanding of that metaphor. In Ephesians 5 Paul, through inspiration of the Holy Spirit, refers talk of husband and wife, Jesus and the church, and Adam and Eve. This brilliant passage sheds much needed light on the nature of the church and how Jesus cares for his beloved.
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Becoming the Missional Church
Acts 2:41-47 Missional? What does that mean? If you take a noun and add –al to the end you get an adjective! So you and your adversary have and adversarial relationship. So to be a missionary in your community means that you live missionally. We have spent 5 of the last 6 times I have had the privilege of speaking to you talking about what it means to be a missionary in our own town. For far too long the church in America has failed to think missionally. We have assumed that if they were interested in church they would attend. We have assumed that our neighbors had friends and relatives around better suited to meet their needs. We have assumed that our community knows where we are and will find us if they are in need. But when we look at our Missionary God we don’t see him waiting for us to reach out or waiting for our friends to serve us. We see him coming, sending, serving, reaching and pursuing. So what has been the big idea of these five sermons and what is the big idea behind Missiology (the study of missions) and missional thinking? For us this is the big idea : We are a community of servants sent by God to allow Jesus to pursue our neighbors, family, friends, and coworkers through us. Now let us look at what this looks like when an entire church is committed to being on mission with Jesus!
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The Centrality of the Church
3:1 For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner for Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles— 2 assuming that you have heard of the stewardship of God's grace that was given to me for you, 3 how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly. 4 When you read this, you can perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ, 5 which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit. 6 This mystery is [1] that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. 7 Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God's grace, which was given me by the working of his power. 8 To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in [2] God who created all things, 10 so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. 11 This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him. 13 So I ask you not to lose heart over what I am suffering for you, which is your glory.
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