Recently, I have become much more aware of what my wife actually does. Some of Carol's regular clients depend upon her experience and expertise with words as they work in the ever-changing world of advertising. Most recently, however, I have noticed that businesses are forced to change their vision and mission to meet the changing needs and interests of their clientele. They become something other.
I think I've always known this, but actually watching this kind of change take place for a company caused me to think about the church and the way in which we're often tempted to change or modify our vision and mission. Sometimes, the leadership of the church treats the church more like a business than a God-ordained relationship.
Now, I would be among the first to admit that there is much about church that can be changed, even, should be changed. But most of these changes are merely the colors and designs that serve to catch the eye of the next potential church visitor, member and servant. But there is little about the vision and mission of the local church that should ever be changed.
You see, the church is not a business. And the needs of the people are always the same: they are dead without Jesus Christ. Even if the church were to be thought of as a business, the needs of the clientele would still, ever and always, be the same. All people are dead and spiritually lost without a relationship with Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
The vision and mission of the church has always been "to know God, and to make him known." Now, each church, because we want to be unique, words this in a manner that reflects the personality of the pastor, the leadership or the members. This is not a bad thing as long as the wording does not change the essence of God's design for the local church.
As a matter of fact, HOPE Community Church has a committee that has been looking at how we have worded God's ideals for our church's vision and mission statements. This morning, we will take a closer look at some of the essential truths that drive the church of Jesus Christ. I will tell you up front, these truths are not derived from our style of worship, model of leadership, building location or design, or even, our outreach program. BUT all of these elements of HOPE, style of worship, model of leadership, building location and design, and outreach program, must be designed in response to God's ideals for His church.
Please join me in Romans, chapter one, where the apostle Paul clearly explains the essentials of the church. The church, it seems, exists because of, and for, one key purpose: the gospel of Jesus Christ. Not merely for food banks and clothing closets, the church exists for the gospel.
In the process of introducing himself to the Romans, Paul mentioned the gospel, the driving force behind his life and ministry. This is where we'll begin our study this morning. Paul had written about his intended visit:
Romans 1:13 . . . I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.
Paul's ministry had been driven by his calling to Christ unto salvation, and his calling by Christ to be an ambassador for the gospel. Paul's spoke of his calling in verse 14:
Romans 1:14 . . . I am obligated both to Greeks and non_Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish. {15} That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are at Rome.
In response to his calling by Christ, Paul carried a burden, an obligation to share the gospel. According to Paul, the gospel is an obligation, a debt he eagerly desired to repay. Paul was moved by his gratefulness for life to share the message of life with everyone who would listen. It has been said that working Christianity is one beggar showing other beggars where to find a warm meal.
According to Paul, personal salvation obligates us to share the good news with the uninformed. It would be reprehensible not to share the life-changing truth we know. And yet, that is where many of us find ourselves . . . not sharing.
Rome was a pagan, non-Jewish city. Religion in Rome included all known religions, even emperor worship. And yet, a church had developed, perhaps started by believers who returned home from Jerusalem after Pentecost and Peter's first sermon. Paul ached to minister to this youthful, yet vibrant, church.
Paul's statement, "to Greeks and non_Greeks," captures the social design of his times. Rome ruled the world—Europe, North Africa and the Near East—and the people under its rule were either Greek (the Roman culture) or non-Greeks. Paul's intended audience included Greeks and non-Greeks. Paul knew of no better place to reach the Roman world than in Rome, the heart of the empire.
I submit that Paul has isolated the fundamental driving force behind the church: the gospel message. Whatever else we may endeavor, the gospel must be primary among the ministries we carry out. Without the gospel, we are just another social club.
Beyond the obligation, Paul also saw the gospel as revelation regarding God. The gospel message teaches truth about our God. And the gospel reveals God's power as the words of the message of the gospel change the lives it touches. For the local church, her greatest strength is a persistent focus upon the gospel message and the resultant life-change.
Concerning the gospel's power, Paul wrote:
Romans 1:16 . . . I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.
Why was Paul so vocal about the Cross? Why was he not ashamed? Paul knew what others thought about Jesus, and about the Cross. But Paul understood that the gospel was God's power fleshed out in human words. Our personal faith in Jesus' Cross work releases God's resurrection power unto new life.
Words can be powerful. Just yell "fire" in a crowded room, or mention "bomb" while standing in line at the airport. You will see the power of words as the crowd rushes to escape the fire, or as the authorities cuff and cart you off to jail.
The power Paul observed was the life-change the gospel makes possible for each person who accepts the gospel as truth. The words of the gospel, as they flesh out Jesus' Cross work, become the antidote for the poison sin has become within us. There is no work to be done. It has been done. There is ONLY need to believe the gospel message.
And just in case you were wondering, Paul's words, "first for the Jew, then for the Gentile," reflect a biblical order: Jesus, as a Jew, came from and to his own, and then reached out to all men. Paul followed this pattern. He always began at the synagogue and then went to the rest of the community. This is not a measure of value, just a statement of order . . . to the Jew first, and then to all the others.
As revelation, the gospel also makes clear the righteousness of God and the wrath of God against unrighteousness. Paul wrote:
Romans 1:17 . . . For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith." {18} The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness....
The Cross is a powerful image of God, a display of His anger against the offenses of all sin, a promise of available righteousness for each believer. God's holiness, wounded and insulted by sin, demands satisfaction, a satisfaction only made possible by Christ's death.
The Cross reveals Almighty God, righteous and just, yet loving, gracious, merciful. In His perfection, God balances His righteousness and His wrath against sin. Sin is punished (justice), you and I are set free (mercy). The Cross reveals His wrath (death), and promises life (grace).
Let us keep the gospel before us as our mission. Let us not be ashamed to wear the name "Christian." Remember, the gospel is God's power unto new life. And the gospel is a revelation of God, the author of life, the conqueror of sin and death.
I wonder this morning: What has been your relationship with the gospel? Have you embraced the gospel for life? Does it define you? Is it the message you share with others?
