It's really very simple...

Christianity has been around for almost 2,000 years now. You would have thought by now that the church would know what it should be doing in regard to its relationship with Christianity…but in most cases, it does not. Let me explain… Did not God tell Adam and Eve to be fruitful and multiply? This is not just dealing with procreation. Did not Jesus tell all of His disciples to go and make disciples?

There are two basic functions of the church – Evangelism & Discipleship. Of course, the church is supposed to worship on Sunday (or any day for that matter), but these two functions of the church normally take place outside the worship arena (sanctuary). Remember, the first two centuries following Christ’s resurrection, there were no church buildings!

What is evangelism? It is simply telling the good news. It is the good news of what Jesus has done. But not only that, it is the good news of who Jesus is. You see, Christianity is about relationships – with Jesus and with everyone else. Evangelism introduces people to Jesus. There is no “set” pattern for doing this. There have been hundreds of methods used in order to try to tell people about Jesus. The most effective way to tell people about Jesus is to use your own personal testimony about what Jesus has done for you. When the people of God are utilizing their spiritual gifts in ministry they are in effect, telling people the good news. Sharing Jesus should be just as natural to a believer and follower of Jesus as eating breakfast…

Allow me to be very frank and honest about this. One reason evangelism is not common place among Christians is because it is hard to give away what you don’t possess! If Jesus has saved your life – wouldn’t you want others to know? We use many excuses and justifications for not sharing Jesus. Examples: “I don’t know what to say” or “I don’t want to offend anyone” or “I don’t have the time”or “I might be rejected” or “I don’t have the gift of evangelism” etc. etc. The excuses demonstrate the powerlessness of many believers of Jesus. We have a few people who ask people to come to church, but how many do we have who invite people to Jesus? Someone once said, “Were your children raised in church or raised in Christ?’’ Good question!

Second, Discipleship. You can call it what you want… spiritual growth, maturity in Christ, learning about the faith, etc. Everything about Christianity hinges on discipleship. We are born into the Kingdom of God, but we have to be MADE into disciples. A church that does not disciple will eventually become extinct. Why? Because a church goes against it’s very nature if it doesn’t!

So, let’s make this very simple…There are two areas of instruction the church needs to avail itself to:

One is the Membership class to be held on Sunday afternoon, February 12 at 3 PM. Why? The class is designed to introduce new members of the church to the reason why the church exists and to explain how the church mobilizes to carry out her functions. While the class is designed for new members, ANYONE – INCLUDING ALL MEMBERS, ATTENDERS, and NON-MEMBERS are invited. Why? A refresher is sometimes needed to get all of us on the right track and the instruction given at the class will help those who have questions regarding their faith in Christ.

The Journey – As of this writing I have 15 people who have signed up to go through the Journey which is an instruction process on the basics of the Christian faith. Since we are called to make disciples, this process will help you to get to that level in your life. Is it scary? Yes. Is it risky? Yes. We will begin this process as soon as 30 people sign up. Then, we will continue to register people until EVERYONE becomes a part of this process.

Won’t you avail yourself to the two simple functions every church member should be doing in the everyday routine of life?

Keeping it simple,

- Pastor Cliff