At Home In The House

Heart for the House

Okay, so we are in a series. It’s called Heart for the House. This is week two. And last week, if you weren’t here, I just want to hit you with a super fast review. And number one, we had three points. Number one was this God wanted a house. God has always wanted a designated place where He has committed to meet with His people. Number two was this Jesus built the house. So, and the idea is this if Jesus built the house, I’m gonna be part of the house. And then number three was this Jesus loves the house. And so I love the house because I’m committed to loving what Jesus loves.

And if you’re taking notes this week, we’re gonna fly into it. So I got a long way to go. You’re probably like, you better get moving as you’re looking at your handout. I know. I’m trying. The title this week, if you’re taking notes, you can jot it. I think I’ve got it on there maybe somewhere, probably don’t. It’s this the title for this week specifically is at home in the house. At home in the house.

Ephesians chapter 2, verse 19. Paul would say this, talking to the church. Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the chief cornerstone. In him, the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him, you two are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his spirit.

Isn’t that amazing? He says that together we form a building in which God Himself lives. And I want to focus on just a few words before we get into the points this morning that were in these verses. And here’s a few four phrases or words that I really want to focus on. Citizens, members, household, and being built together.

Citizens and Members of a Household

So Paul comes and he says to the church that we’re not foreigners, we’re not strangers, and we’re not visitors. Would you hear that? Focus on that. We’re not visitors. But what we are instead is we’re citizens and we’re members of a household being built together to form the house that God Himself lives in. I just want to make a point here at the beginning. It’s just notice how the language that he uses, it’s home language. You know what I mean? It’s like it’s family language.

Because I don’t know if anybody in here knows this, but there’s a difference between where you visit and where you belong. Are you with me? There’s a difference in being present in a house and being at home in the house. I go to a lot of houses and I love being in houses. I’ll go to Melinda’s house, and it’s awesome. She’s got a great house, she’s a great host. But it feels different when I’m at Melinda’s house than when I’m at my own house. Because just being at a house doesn’t it’s not the same thing as being at home in a house.

The Difference Between Renting and Owning

And you know, I have um I was thinking about it this week. I think that I have volunteered, so I would say this I’ve served at this church for just about 30 years now, if you can believe it. 30 years, and there’s been a lot of, you know, I started out as a volunteer. I started, I ran sound, that’s kind of when I started. I played guitar, and I just kind of stayed faithful over 30 years, and that’s basically the story of me standing up here right now.

But it shouldn’t surprise you that over 30 years you see a lot of people come and go. You know, and you have a lot of volunteers come and go. And if we look at pictures from 30 years ago and we see, oh, look at this picture of the volunteer team. I mean, there are some people that are still around from 30 years ago, but the vast majority of the people that were volunteers at this church 30 years ago aren’t anymore. And that doesn’t mean that something bad happened. That’s just life, right?

Life has a way of taking you in different directions and pulling you to different places that you never thought you’d be. You know, and I’ll like I love all our amazing young people around, but you know, they’ll come up to me like Pastor David, I love this church, man. I’m here, I’m here, man. I ain’t going nowhere. And it’s like, I love that sentiment. I appreciate it. But I also know that the reality is that life ends up taking you different directions.

Sharing Rights and Responsibilities

And just because you were born in Albuquerque, just because you’re raised in Albuquerque, doesn’t mean you stay in Albuquerque, right? Ian Coth doesn’t mean he did anything wrong, but it’s just life does that. And so for me, I’m always kind of like looking at different things that make people stay versus people who are likely to possibly head out at some point. And for me, when I’m talking about the city of Albuquerque specifically, if I’m looking at people who are gonna stay, you know what I think one of the biggest defining factors is if they buy a house. Right? Pretty basic.

But like if you buy a house, I’m like, oh, okay, you might you might stick around. You know, you might like Donald, you bought a house. It’s like, oh my gosh, well, you might be here for a long time, man. But if you but if you rent or you just lease, you know, if you like get some better offer, there’s nothing holding you there that makes you stay the same way of buying that buying a house does. And so I just think like there’s the difference. What I’m trying to communicate is there’s a difference between renting something or leasing something and owning something.

And I think even like in this room, when it comes to the church, our church, specifically this church, I think we have both of those types of people in the room. And that’s not that’s not bad. We we we love all like like if you’re just rolling through, we’re glad you’re here. You know, love you. Grateful that you’re here. If you only come eight times a year, glad you’re here. Love you. You’re you’re you’re awesome.

But I think like if if you would be someone who would consider themselves at home in this house, well then that calls for a deeper level of commitment and faithfulness to this house. Because it’s not just it’s not just God’s house, it’s your home. And in this place, you share, follow me here. You share both the rights and the responsibilities of this place. The right, you get rights, but you also get responsible.

The Rights and Responsibilities of Family

So, like, let’s say, let’s say you’re family. Like when I go, I go to my parents’ house. So I’ll go over to my parents’ house later today. Well, when I’m there, do you notice what I don’t do when I walk up to their front door? I don’t knock. I don’t knock. I don’t knock at my own parents’ house. It’s where I grew up. You know what I mean? It’s like I go there, and I know, I know, like I I know where my mom keeps the snacks, I put my feet up on the coffee table, you know what I mean? I make myself at home.

If I don’t want to wear my shoes, I don’t want to wear I don’t wear my shoes. Right? Because it’s my mom’s house. Right. And so in a way, it’s like this is my this is my family’s house. But also notice if it’s like if you if you have a house that you consider your house, you get to do what you want in that house. But if the dog poops, you clean it up. You know what I’m saying? But it’s like it’s it’s that you share if if you have a place that you call home, you share you enjoy the rights of that place, but you also share in the responsibilities, right?

So it’s like it’s it’s because you’re not a guest, you’re a part of the family. You share the rights and the responsibilities. And some of you in this room, you have you have family members that want the rights of being in the family, but they don’t want to share any of the responsibility. I believe they’re called teenagers. You know what I’m saying? Right? They they got no problem eating all the food. Right? But when it’s time to vacuum, where do they go?

The Church and Mooches

And like, like, like, and that’s fine when you’re seven. Like I’ve got a daughter who’s eight, it’s beautiful, just saw her. She contributes almost nothing. She’s learning, she fed the dog this morning, and she puts the dog, one of the dogs, she puts the dog in the kennel. So that’s pretty good. The one that’s still potty training. So that’s pretty good, but but she doesn’t contribute a whole lot, and that’s fine when you’re eight years old, but when you’re 28, right? If you’re still living at your parents’ house, contributing nothing, just sharing the rights and none of the responsibilities, something’s wrong.

You know, back in the day, when I was a kid, we had a word for these types of people that I’ve used before, and that word is a mooch. I know I don’t I don’t even know if that’s like politically correct to say, I don’t know if you are allowed to say mooch, it’s probably not okay anymore. But like we would call someone a mooch, so it’s like so it’s like some one of your friends, you know, you’re eating your McDonald’s, and the friend comes up and is like, hey, I’ll give me some of those fries. It’s like get out of here, you mooch.

You know what I mean? But it’s like, oh, hey, I’m going to both. Oh, cool. Can you get me a spicy chicken sandwich? It’s like, why am I the only one paying when we’re both eating? Is it’s a mooch. And and and can I be honest? Is it okay? I think churches have a lot of mooches. And I look, if you’re starting out, right? If you’re seven, if you’re eight years old, that’s fantastic. But if you’re 28 in the faith, you can’t mooch.

Sharing in the Church’s Rights and Responsibilities

Right? And I I’ll be like perfectly frank that there’s there’s a lot of people that ain’t got no problem with me giving up my Friday and Saturday to prepare this. You know what I mean? Like, they got no problem with me missing time with my family, my wife, and my daughter, you know what I mean, so that you could be spoon-fed the word of God. They got no problem with like Dov and his team showing up at 720 and having spent all week learning all this. They got they got none of that. They so they love coming in here to receive the rights of this family, the benefits of this family.

They get communal worship. They’re spoon-fed the word of God. Like when you’re in crisis, you got no problem calling me at 3 a.m., you know what I mean? And like, don’t misunderstand. I’m I’m honored. I’m honored that you would do it. But but I just think I just think you got to understand that there’s people who want the rights of the church, but don’t want to share in the responsibility of the church. But to be a mature family member in the family of God requires that you share both the rights and the responsibility.

Right? So, like the shift in mindset is this. I’m I’m not asking, like, what’s the minimum I have to do? Like, okay, what’s the bare minimum I can do and still be a part? Like, you start asking, like, how can I be a part of what God is doing in this city? How can I be a part in advancing this? And so, like, if if you want to be a part of this house, I’ve got six things for you. Six. I know it’s usually three, but I didn’t do any, but I didn’t do any on Easter, so I’m saving them up. I got point credit.

Six Things That Household Members Do

Six things that household members do and fill ins under those six points. Number one, as you can see, is this pray for your church. Pray for your church. Every major move of God starts with prayer. There is no exception to that. And how would this play out? Here’s your first fill-in. Pray for church leadership. Pray for church leadership.

Ephesians chapter 6, verse 19 says this. Paul would say this to people that he’s discipling. He says this, pray also for me. So Paul’s asking that they pray for him, for Paul. Pray also for me that whenever I speak, words may be given to me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel.

Isn’t that interesting? So he’s saying, you praying for me helps me preach better. Isn’t that interesting? Right? He said, Pray for me that I would have the words, that God would have the words. So look, pray for me. Pray for all the communicators. Pray for pray for Pastor Jordan, for Pastor Marshall, for Pastor Cindy, for Pastor Shirley, for Pastor Lauren. All of these people that are committed to communicating the gospel, that your prayers actually make us more effective in what we do.

I just think that’s amazing. And you know, like leading leading a church isn’t just about planning services. It’s it’s it’s a lot is about seeking God’s wisdom. It’s about seeking God’s direction for what he’s calling us as a church to do. And prayer isn’t optional to that, it’s central to that. And that includes our prayers. So like we got no business being pastors if we don’t pray. But know this that your prayers, Paul didn’t just say, I keep praying that I would have the right words to say.

He also says, You also pray. You also pray that I have the right words. And it’s like in the book of Exodus. I don’t know if you know this story, but there’s a time when when Moses he needs his hands held up because he gets tired during battle. And it’s like, it’s like me and Jordan and all the leaders here, we know that’s what what’s happening is that your prayers hold us up. That’s what happens. Your prayers, your prayers hold us up. So when we get tired, I’m gonna get tired, I’m tired, I’m sorry. But your prayers keep us strong.

Your prayers keep us stable. I know Miss Bobette, I don’t know if she’s I’m sure she’s in here somewhere. Ah, right here. Miss Bobette, she tells us, she tells us, me and Clarence, pray for you every day. Pray for you every day. And you know what I tell Miss Bobette? She’ll tell you say this. Well, we need it. And that’s not because we’re like a hot mess, but we do need it. Even when you’re healthy, we need it. Sometimes I’ll say we need it and it’s working. But we need your prayers.

Pray for Church Leadership

I remember it was probably a couple years ago. A lady came up to me and I recognized her a little bit. Um, I think I had talked with her, you know, maybe a couple months ago, but she came up after service and she said, she said, Pastor David, I just wanted you to thank you for praying. I felt those prayers. And she said, and and and I got a great report from the doctor. So we’re so we’re celebrating and so thank you for praying and believing. And that was awesome. And she walked off, and I just stood there because I hadn’t been praying for her.

Not like the way that she thought I was. You know what I mean? Because I didn’t even remember what she had said. And like that really bothered me. Because I’m thinking, I’m like, and from that point on, I made a commitment that I’m gonna pray for people the way they think I’m praying for them. And so, and so for me, I’ll just tell you, and if you come up to my prayer line, I’m sure you’ll you’ll hear this. I’m gonna say, Oh, I’m gonna add that to my prayer note. Because I’ve got a prayer note in here, and it’s prayer requests from different people, and I write their name and what we’re praying for.

And so when it’s time for me to pray, I pull it open and I go through and I pray for those things. And when I get a good report, I cross them off. That way, even like before I add something, I remember what God has already done. Right? But but pray, pray for church leadership. Pray for us because we need it. Pray for church leadership.

Pray for Church Fruitfulness

Number two is this pray for church fruitfulness. Pray for church fruitfulness.

First Corinthians chapter 3, verse 6. Paul again says this. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.

Right? He’s saying this that we can do our part in watering something, in planting a seed, but only God makes things grow. Like real healthy growth. And so and church fruitfulness, I’ve told you this, I’ll tell it a hundred times. It’s not just about numbers. It’s not just like so that we can feel good about ourselves so that we need all these services and all that. It’s not about that. It’s recognizing that each number represents a real person. And every single person matters to God, and so every person should matter to us.

It’s not about how many people come to this church, about how many people don’t. Right? And so it’s so like prayer is we don’t pray so that we’ll have like Instagram pics. Our creative team knows. I’m very weary of taking photos that are just like really focused on crowds and stuff that make it just look like oh, your church is very popular, very popular. I’m very wary of that because I because I think that churches do that and it’s a gross habit. Where it’s like, it’s like there’s this scoreboard happening all the time where it’s like, oh, you’re here and you’re here, and you’re here, and you’re here.

And it’s like we we don’t want to play that game. And so church fruitfulness is not about just like feeling good about ourselves, it’s about reaching real people. Pray for fruitfulness.

Pray for Church Unity

Okay, uh, next, pray for church unity. Pray for church unity.

Ephesians chapter 4, verse 3, Paul says this. Make every effort to keep the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace.

Unity doesn’t just happen. Unity is fought for. And unity is prayed for. We live in a world where division is celebrated. Did you notice? There’s like factions, and then there’s subfactions in the factions, and then there’s subsubfactions in the subfactions. Like it’s like division and pointing out what’s wrong. Like that, that’s celebrated, and it’s just it’s just so easy for us to get to that place where we stop fighting for unity because we don’t realize how important it is.

Church is a place where people who have nothing in common become family together. And so we have to fight for that, but we also have to pray for that. Pray for church unity. Okay. Number two is this things that family members do, attend faithfully. Attend faithfully.

Attend Faithfully

How does this play out? Next fill in. Come to service consistently. If you ever like people, people come up to me, Pastor David. What do you what do you need from me, man? What do you need? I’m on board. This six, this is what I need from you. Right here. Attend consistently.

Hebrews chapter 10, verse 24. And let us consider how we may spur one another on towards love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together as some are in the habit of doing.

It was even true then. Isn’t that an interesting? It is a habit. Sleeping in on Sundays is a habit. Y’all know that. Right? As some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another all the more as you see the day approaching. I find it interesting that Paul says, make sure that you don’t neglect meeting together, not for your sake, but for the person next to you. Their sake.

Right? He he’s he says, he says, don’t neglect it as someone, but encouraging one another. So he wants you to come to the gathering so that you can not he didn’t even say you can be encouraged, even though you will be encouraged. He says so that you can encourage one another. Right? And so that that’s the difference between being a consumer and a contributor in the church. That a consumer is like, I don’t know if this is doing anything for me. I’m not sure this is doing anything for me. I don’t care for those songs because they don’t do anything in me.

A contributor is this. I’m celebrating, I’m worshiping God, I’m listening, but at the same time, I’m saying, God, how can you use me in this hour and a half that I’m here? How can I encourage people? Like I came in and checked my slides, and I have over over here, Pastor Shirley was praying for people, just impromptu. You know what I mean? She’s not, she’s not here, she’s not like looking for how, oh, I don’t care for this music. I don’t go you know, she’s she’s she’s looking for ways she can minister to other people. And that’s not true for just the clergy. That’s true for all of us.

Paul says, Don’t neglect meeting together, but instead get together and encourage each other. And look, that’s not it’s not about perfect attendance, it’s about making church a priority. Not just when it’s convenient. Right? I’ve I’ve heard it said that it’s like priorities are like arms. If you say more than you have a couple, you’re either lying or crazy. Right? That it’s like you can’t, it’s like, yeah, of course, church is a priority. It’s just number 37. It’s like, well, then it’s not a priority. Because you can’t have 37 priorities, right?

And so I and so I’m just submitting as a person who has been following God their entire adult life, that if you have to pick three things and the gospel isn’t in there. Then you then you just you’re you’re you’re pretending. Right? Because Jesus will not be put in second place. Right? And so just because it’s like, well, I’m a I’m a drywaller and I’m providing for my family, you bet. And also the gospel is important. And also your relationship with God is important. Raising your kids in the way of the Lord is important. That matters.

Not 37. Yeah, that’s another thing I ought to do, shucks, and go to the gym, you know. It’s like it’s not the same level as the gym. It’s it’s foundational to who you are, to who you’re becoming, how you see the world. And like some people will say, like, I can worship God anywhere. It’s like that’s true. You can also eat dinner in your car. But that’s but that’s not the best way to have family dinner. You know what I mean? Like, like you, you can do it, but it’s not the best way.

Because this isn’t about you experiencing God by yourself. It’s about us communing, communally together, worshiping God, pursuing God, encouraging each other in God, right? That the gathering together is precisely the point. So I love people that watch us online. I love it. But just know it’s a great supplement and a terrible substitution. For being in the house. I’m always walking in. I’m sure you’ve known this for the last 45 years. Um, I’m walking and I’ve got my milk, and then I hear, Pastor David.

I’m like, it’s just it’s like I got places to go. But someone comes up to me, Pastor David, hey, how you doing? I’m like, hey, hey, how’s it going? And they’re like, and then all of a sudden, like, we’re like right in the milk aisle, and like they won’t it’s like they walked into a confession booth. You know what I mean? It’s like, I know I ain’t becoming a church, man, the way the way I’m supposed to, you know, man, I was so busy. But they say, but that’s my church. But that’s my church. And I’m like, I’m just trying to buy milk, man.

I’m not taking attendance. But like, even people in the grocery store that come four times a year, even they know there’s a difference between casually attending and being a real part of a church. There’s it just it feels different. It weighs different. That it’s like like I I’ve told you this before, like me and Jordan come Sunday morning, and this was before we worked at this church. Like this was true when I was growing up. That it’s like on Sunday morning, I didn’t decide to come to church. We don’t wake up and say, like, what do y’all want to do?

We should probably go to church. Like I don’t do that Monday for work. I just get up and I go there. And Sunday, I just wake up, I get ready, and I go there. I make a pre decision decision. Right? Because because the enemy will want to keep you out of this place. Right? So he’s gonna throw anything he can at you to be like, oh, you might got you the sprinklers and oh the car battery, like, oh I mean, my, my uncle called, and now I feel upset. Like there shouldn’s gonna be all kinds of different things that the enemy will come and try to talk you out of being here.

And so you just have to decide that it’s like it doesn’t have to be perfect attendance, right? We all we all vacation, blah blah blah, but just decide that it’s like come Sunday morning. I’m not deciding whether or not to go to church. I go to church. Right? I I’ve I decided beforehand. And it’s like like this is true in every relationship. This isn’t something that’s unique to church. Like, like you don’t have to go home to be married. You know what I’m saying? Like, like, I’m not going home now, okay.

Well, you’re still you’ll still marry, but you stay away long enough, and your marriage is affected. And the lives of your kids are affected. Right? Same with church. You don’t have you don’t have to be here to be a Christian, but you stay away long enough. I’ve seen this a thousand times. People are like, I’m not really into church anymore, but I still follow God. It’s like, talk to me in three years. It is it’s the most predictable thing in the world. This message is mean. It’s the most predictable thing in the world that people think they don’t need this place.

Christianity does not long survive outside the church. That’s just the way that it is. And look, you might not like that, but that’s the consumer in you. Right? That’s like, if if you want to grow in your relationship, like, where do Christians come from? If yeah, where do Christians come from? I’ll tell you. You zoom out far and you only have to go like three levels of Kevin Bacon to find your way back to the church. Right? Because the church is what produces Christians. Right? And then you go out and you make other Christians, and other people come in here, we make more Christians, but but Christianity and the church separating them is just insane.

You stay away long enough, it affects you, it affects your family, it affects God’s plan for your life. Come to service consistently. I’ve got to move way faster. Be present for special events. Be present for special events.

Acts chapter 2, verse 44. Y’all were thinking, he’s got to go. Jordan, you were thinking that, huh? No. Oh, good, okay. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together at the temple courts.

So this is an example of not just, they weren’t just together during like church services, they were just together because they made being together a priority. And like, like if if your family, when your family has something important, you show up. My beautiful my mom, I’m sure she wouldn’t mind me saying this, recently turned 70 years old. 70 living abundantly, she says. Well, um, a little bit ago, uh my mom, we were we had a birthday celebration for her plan. Well, someone called me from out of town, they pastor a church, and they said, Hey, we’ve got this conference, we can’t you know love to have you.

Can you can you be there? I said, Oh my gosh, no. I’m so honored, but no, I can’t be can’t be there. I said, My mom’s there in 70. What can I tell you? They’re like, oh, that’s cool. Right? It’s like when when something’s really family to you, you fig you figure it out. You know, I’ve told you there’s like some people were like, oh, I don’t know, I’ll be working, I don’t know, the traffic’s bad. It’s like, it’s like it’s amazing how resourceful you can be when it’s something you actually care about. Right? Like, like, you know what I mean?

It’s it’s it’s not an issue of time, it’s an issue of if it’s important or not. And you can lie to me, but don’t lie to yourself. Right? That it’s like if you cannot, if you cannot find a way to be here on a Friday night, having 12 weeks’ notice, it’s like it’s probably an importance issue. Just just do it, right? It’s not convenient, maybe you gotta move things around, but you make it work because you’re family. Same with church. Pray for your church, attend faithfully.

Give Consistently

Number three is this give consistently. Oh, it’s getting worse. I know. When you’re home somewhere, you give, not because you have to, but because you’re invested on in what’s built there. Number one, fill in. Give as an act of worship. Give as an act of worship.

2 Corinthians chapter 9, verse 6. Paul would say this remember this whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly. And whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion. Listen to this. For God loves a cheerful giver.

God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to bless you abundantly so that in all things, at all times, having all that you need will abound in every good work. Here’s something incredible is that Paul does not say that God loves a wealthy giver. I do. Right? It doesn’t say that God loves a perfect giver. It says that God loves a cheerful giver. A cheerful God loves it when we’re happy to give. You know what I mean? It’s like, man, this is a privilege. It’s a privilege to give. God loves. Bring in Him our first and our best.

And we’re not mad about it. We’re not bitter about it. We’re not selfish about it. We’re not complaining about it. And there’s tons of scriptures that talk about like when you give, your needs are taken care of too. Like, so there’s tons. We talk about it plenty. But I’m just saying that that’s not the primary motivation of giving. Right? That you don’t primarily give, give to get. You know what I mean? It’s like, oh, I worship God by singing, but I don’t give him any of my money. It’s like, well, it’s an importance thing.

It goes back to an importance thing, right? That it’s like I give, I give to the local church. I tithe, not because my church is perfect, not because my pastor’s perfect, not because of any of that, but because God told me to. And I’m doing it as unto worship. It’s like King David, he says this, I will not give a gift that costs me nothing. He says, I want you, I wouldn’t even give a gift that costs me nothing. It’s sacrificial giving as worship, give as an act of worship.

Give to Advance the Gospel

Two, give to advance the gospel. Give to advance the gospel.

Philippians chapter one, verse four. In all my prayers for you, I always pray with joy because of your listen to this phrase. Because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.

Your partnership in the gospel. It’s interesting that Paul he describes people’s gifts to him, not as thanks for keeping the lights on, no, no, thank you for you know buying me food. He calls their giving a participation in the gospel, a partnership in the gospel. Giving is an act of worship, but it’s also participating in what God is doing in the city. And I’ll just tell you this: like me, I’ve been I’ve been tithing my entire adult life. My first job was at the New Mexico Commission for the Blind, and then I moved up to Subway.

Um I have tithed my entire life. Right, and I and I have never once regretted it. I’ve never regretted it. I’ve regretted the the uh the gym membership, you know what I mean that I used three times. I’ve regretted that. I’ve regretted the 2 a.m. Amazon purchase. But I’ve never regretted being faithful in giving. Giving it’s not a transaction for me. It’s saying, it’s saying, God, I believe that the message of Jesus is still worth spreading. Right, and there’s lots of things that need to happen in this city, right?

There’s lots of stuff, and we’re trying to do all kinds of things, and we’re trying to be creative with how to deal with the home. Like, all of that is super valuable. But I believe that like anything outside of the gospel is a band-aid. And band-aids are cool. I like band-aids, but if you want real change, I believe that happens through Jesus. And and so, and so for me, like using some of what I generate with my time to advance the gospel um is it’s just it’s just a privilege to me it’s like God demands I give and it’s like no man I believe in the gospel I believe in I believe in making the name of Jesus great in this city and so I’m happy to give amen

Volunteer Regularly

Number four volunteer regularly volunteer regularly so when you’re at home somewhere you serve because you care what happens there how does this play out join a department join a department

First Peter chapter four verse 10 says this each of you should use whatever gifts you have received to serve others as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms

Remember uh when your mom when you were a kid your mom would say this house ain’t gonna clean itself well that’s that church church is a lot like that right except we’re building something eternal but like every department here is a family solving problems together so like the creative department you know the people that are running all this playing the instruments running the sound running the lights running the camera see there’s like a camera person right here behind this camera all like they’re they’re not just running a camera they’re not just taking a photograph it’s like they’re using the 21st century tools that we have to advance the gospel so they’re ministers it’s like I ain’t just taking pictures I’m advancing the gospel I’m I’m presenting what we do what God is doing in this church we’re doing everything that we can to get that out into the city.

BC kids, it’s like that’s not daycare. Right? They’re helping us raise our children in the ways of the Lord. And I’ll tell you, man, even just this morning, Grace was waking up and she was being a total nuisance. But and she was singing so loud and it was bugging me and Jordan. It’s like, can you sing quiet? Can you sing quieter? But you know, she was singing like some Christian beautiful song. It’s like, where did she learn that? At church. You know what I mean? So it’s like she knows that Jesus died on the cross and that she believes in it.

And it’s like, why? Because we raised her up in the ways of the Lord through BC kids. So they’re not just diaper changers. They’re ministers. The coffee bar and the host team, like that, like these are the people they’re extending the welcome of God to people. And then and they’re changing people’s life. And you know what? And they’re the reason that you have coffee. So that’s sacred work. Uh joined department.

Discover and Use Your Gifts

Discover and use your gifts. Discover and use your gifts.

First Corinthians chapter 12, verse 5. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.

Right? So, like, here’s a here’s a wild thought for you. You’re not an accident. Right? That God put things on the inside of you. He actually gave you abilities. You were intentionally made by God with talents and a personality and passions, and you can use those to serve the church. So maybe you’re thinking, like, I don’t have church gifts. I don’t have church gifts. It’s like, well, can you make someone feel welcome? Well, then you do have a church gift.

Right? Like, can you can you hold babies? You got a church gift, right? Can you can you stack chairs without throwing your back out? That that’s that’s a ministry gift. And so if if you don’t volunteer at a church uh any departments and you’re thinking, like, okay, here’s what you should do. Next week, start here class after service. It’s like a 10 minute class right after service next week. It’s May sec uh May 3rd, and then you go there, you learn about all the different departments, and we can get you plugged in that day. That day. Yep. Volunteer regularly.

Invite Others

Okay, number five is this invite others. Invite others. How does this play out? Invite people. I realize that’s a repeat word. Invite others, sub point, invite people. I know, but

Luke chapter 14, verse 23. Jesus would say this get out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in so that my house will be full.

Basically, he’s saying this like go out to central and tell them to come to church. So that my house will be full. So evangelism is not being a professional door knocker. Right? And it’s it’s not like having a perfect theological argument. I can never talk to people about Jesus because I don’t know what I think about the rapture. It’s like you don’t have to have all this theological stuff figured out. It’s it’s just it’s just hey, you know, this thing I found, I think you might love it too. Invite people.

Bring People

Number two is this bring people. Invite people and then bring people.

John chapter 1, verse 42. Andrew brought Simon to Jesus.

That’s pretty simple, right? Andrew brought like it’s one thing, it’s one thing to invite someone to church. It’s another thing to actually bring them. Like, hey, I’m gonna pick you up. I’ll be there 9 30, Sunday. I’ll see you then. Wear whatever you want, bring whatever you want. You don’t have to have to brush your teeth, but I will see you at 9 30 on Sunday. Right? Walk in with them, sit with them. Andrew didn’t just tell his brother about Jesus. He brought him to Jesus. He didn’t say, hey, go check out that guy over there.

He said, Let’s go together. Let’s go together. Sometimes people need more than an invite. They need a friend to walk through the doors with them. Also, by the way, uh, this guy that um his brother that Andrew invited, uh, his name is Simon. You probably know him as Peter. Right? Peter wrote two books of the Bible, shaped the faith of billions of people across thousands of years. You never know when the person you bring will change the course of history. Right? All started with an invitation. Invite people, bring people.

Welcome People

Three, welcome people.

Romans chapter 15, verse 7. Accept one another then, just as Christ accepted you in order to bring praise to God.

So welcoming is it’s not just about being nice, it’s about creating space where someone could say, like, I might belong here. It’s like I just walked in. I I just might belong here. I just might have found my family. Like, remember the feeling of being the new kid? It’s terrible. People are feeling that this morning. There’s people, there’s people in there. And so that’s why being welcoming matters. A smile, hey, welcome. You know, hey, you want to sit with us? My name’s David. Oh my gosh, what brought you to the church? It’s so great.

So just being welcoming, those moments can change the trajectory of someone’s life. Right? So just don’t just walk past strangers. If you have two minutes, say, hey, I’m David. Have we met? It’s easy, but be welcoming. Okay. Pray for the church. Pray for your church. Attend faithfully. Give consistently, volunteer regularly, invite others. Number six, I’m done. Champion the church. Champion the church.

Champion the Church

What does that mean? Next fill-in. Speak well of the church. Speak well of the church.

Ephesians chapter 4, verse 29. Paul would say this: do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths. But only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

So he’s not talking about like being in some weird cult where we’re not allowed to ask questions. Like that’s that’s crazy. But I just think it’s it’s real easy when the culture is hating on the church for you to come and do the same thing. Right? You can be like, well, it’s different because I’m hating on it from the inside. It’s even worse. Right? It’s just really easy. Like I think it takes courage to acknowledge that the church, while imperfect, is still a force for good in the world. Church isn’t perfect, but church is God’s plan A. There is no plan B.

Right? And church will always have critics. That was probably the case 45 years ago, Pastor Cindy. There will always be critics of the church. Right? But but that’s not our job. That’s not our job. Right? Like, like our job is to be champions. And when other people tear down the church, we build up the church. When others criticize the church, we celebrate what God is doing. Right? It doesn’t mean we’re blind to the imperfections. Doesn’t mean that, but it means that we recognize that without the church, the gospel suffers.

And we can’t have that. Speak well of the church.

Build Unity

Next, build unity. Build unity.

Romans chapter 14, verse 19. Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.

The world loves division. We already said that. But it’s like social media, news, politics, they thrive on spitting like splitting people apart. But the church is supposed to be different. And that may mean a lot of different things. Maybe for you, like that means forgiving. Right? How do I fight for unity, Pastor David? By forgiving. It’s like it happened a long time ago. It’s like, well, they didn’t ask for my forgiveness. Forgiveness does not require an apology. I regret to it.

Like the world’s idea of forgiveness requires an apology. God’s do, you know what I mean? Because you you’ll recall that Jesus said, forgive them, they know not what they weren’t saying they were sorry, right? He was offering forgiveness while they were in the act of killing him. Right? And so so all you all you need to recognize forgiveness is like this is someone that did something wrong to me in my mind, and I feel raw about it. Forgiveness. I’ll do more talks on forgiveness at some point, but forgiveness comes in three phases. Stop bringing it up to them.

Number two, stop bringing it up to other people. And then number three is I stop bringing it up to myself. And it takes time. It takes time, but it’s a decision. Maybe for you, it’s like saying something kind as opposed to being able to say something technically right but mean. Right? You can be forensically correct and still be in the wrong. According to the kindness of Jesus. Right? Maybe, maybe for you it’s like reaching out, it’s reaching out to someone when it’s like, well, they should, they should be calling me.

They should call if they want to talk, they should call me. Like, like, no, maybe, maybe for you, fighting for unity means you reaching out. You unity’s not not us all thinking exactly the same, but it means loving each other despite our differences. Where we’re committed to each other more than we’re committed to only being right. Number one, pray for your church. Two, attend faithfully. Three, give consistently. Four, volunteer regularly. Five, invite others. Six, champion the church.

Moving from Guests to Family

So we are um we’re in a season here at the church. Uh BC2026, it’s a it’s a campaign, but it’s also a new identity for the church and and some other big projects, but it’s what we believe God is leading us to to be more effective as a church. And so if you haven’t read about that, maybe you missed Vision Sunday, you’re not sure about any of that. As you head out, our host team, they’re gonna have these uh flyers, these kind of like handouts for you that’ll kind of explain uh the project to you.

Not because not because we want your money, but because we want you to feel like you belong here. And if this is your house, you deserve to know what we believe God is leading us to. So my big ask, two things. Start here May, May 3rd, so that’s next Sunday. If you if you’re not volunteering, go to that and then get that BC handout, read it, pray over it, pray for us, pray over the project, right? Champion the project, be excited about the project, and if God would lead you, uh to give.

But I just want to say it’s like it’s such an amazing privilege that Paul says that that we’re being built together into a dwelling that God Himself lives. That’s not that’s not poetry, but I think I think for me as I read that, that was true then. But that’s like to me, that’s that’s a word for this season. Right? Because for me, I I feel like God’s leading us somewhere. But I can’t go there by myself. Right? So I need my family to go there with me. Right? Like I’m taking a step of faith and need my family there with me.

Right? So it’s it’s not something that I’m doing, it’s not something that we’re doing, it’s something that we’re doing together. Right? And then we get to celebrate together, and we get to, we get like it’s it’s credited to our account. Right? When when lives are changed through this place, when you’re a partner here, what happens through this church includes you. Here’s my closing statement. Moving from being guests to family, we embrace both the rights and responsibilities of being at home in God’s house.

One, pray for your church for leadership, growth, and unity across through consistent prayer. Two, attend faithfully, make church gatherings a priority, showing up for both regular services and special events. Three, give consistently. Worship through giving and partner in advancing the gospel. Four, volunteer regularly. Join a department and use your God-given gifts to serve. Five, invite others. Invite, bring and welcome people into our church family. Six, champion the church. Speak well of the church and actively build unity as God’s people.

Come on, can I get an amen for that? See one more minute of your time, every head bowed, every eye closed. And I want to talk to a specific group of people in the room or maybe even online. But there are people who just for whatever reason they know that they’re not right with God. Like they just they just feel that. They feel that there’s just something, there’s a disconnect there happening. Um, and if that’s you, I want you to know that this moment right here is why you came. That this is your moment.

It’s so amazing that God has always been pursuing you, and he’s always wanted relationship. He what he wanted relationship with you before you were, before you even knew he existed. He’s always been chasing after you. And so maybe you’re like, I’ve never made that first time commitment to follow after Jesus. It’s as simple as receiving him, confessing him as Lord, and beginning to follow him. Or maybe for you, like you have given your life to Christ, but you just kind of got caught up, life got busy, life got wild, life got weird, and you you stopped following, and it’s just like you’re just ready to come back home.

Like the prodigal son, you’re ready to come back home to the love of the Father. If that’s either either of you, maybe you’re in either of those camps, we’re just gonna have, we’re gonna all pray a prayer together. We’re not gonna have you come up or anything like that, but we’re gonna ask you to do something brave, just so that I can see who I’m praying with with every head bowed, every eye closed. You’d say, like, Pastor, include me in that prayer to come to come to God, or maybe to come home again. If that’s you, with every head bowed, every eye closed, just for me to see.

Will you raise your hand when I count to three? One, two, three. Raise them up real high so I can see them. God bless you guys. God bless you. Thank you. Thank you, guys. Okay, can put him down. Okay, we’re all gonna say this prayer. It’s not a magic prayer, but it’s a way for us to confess with our mouth what’s happening in our hearts, and we’re all gonna repeat it together. Repeat after me, God in heaven. Thank you for Jesus. I thank you that he came and died. And he rose again from me.

I’m sorry that I sinned against you. Come into my life and give me a brand new start. I thank you that you now live in me. And I’ll follow you the rest of my days. In Jesus’ name. Amen. Amen. Hey, can you clap for those people and encourage them? God bless you guys. God bless you. God bless you. Our host team may find their way to you. They may not, but they’ll have a card for you, what they would love to, we just love to follow up with you, what you can do. Or if you didn’t get a card, head out to the info center afterwards and you give them them.

We have a book for you that we think could be a big help to you. My pat uh my wife and I, we’ve we’ve written some things that are we think are helpful for your next steps, and we’d love to get a Bible in your hands if that would be helpful for you. But can you clap for those people one more time and encourage them? Amen. And stand with me on your feet. Love y’all so much. I know I kept you an extra few minutes, uh, but we’re so grateful for you. Love you so much. Look forward to seeing you this coming Tuesday.

And if not, we can see you this Sunday as you head out. If you need prayer for anything, me and the pastors up here. This isn’t counseling as much as praying, but we’re uh glad to talk to you or schedule an appointment with you if needed. Um, also, we have prayer teams in the back, amazing people uh that would love to pray with you as you head out. Also, if a bag of food would help out you and your family, we would love to feed you for the week. You head out and see an info center. They give you a card and help you get all that figured out in a discrete way. Love y’all so much. Look forward to seeing you on Tuesday, and if not, Tuesday, Sunday. God bless, you’re dismissed.