Tuesday, June 27, 2006
June 28 Philippians 1
Go ahead and look first at Philippians 1 . See how God speaks to you individually. Then come back, if you wish, and see what God has put in my mind/heart.
Key Verse(s): Philippians 1:4-5
In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now
Title: A Partnership for the Sake of the Gospel
Observation: Church can be about a lot of things. We can make it about friendship. We can believe it’s about family. We can think it’s transactional, that God tolerates us for another week because we made it to church. We can pretend that its about making us feel good, a source a mild entertainment.
But the truth is, the ecclesia, the called out community, was designed to be a partnership for the sake of bringing the gospel to the world. I long for this kind of partnership. I am willing to make major sacrifices to a part of a partnership for the sake of the gospel. But the other, too small identifications of a church, are less and less palatable.
Application: I need to be willing to communicate this truth. I must be willing to pay the cost for a real partnership with those who are sincerely trying to share the gospel with a hungry world. I want to live with this clear focus. I need to present this clarity of focus.
Prayer: Lord, help me to be clear as I lead about the reason we gather. Help me to love those who are not ready for it not to be about them. Help me present a better future that would attract those who need to hear this truth. Help me to put this into practice.
In Jesus Name,
Amen
Key Verse(s): Philippians 1:4-5
In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now
Title: A Partnership for the Sake of the Gospel
Observation: Church can be about a lot of things. We can make it about friendship. We can believe it’s about family. We can think it’s transactional, that God tolerates us for another week because we made it to church. We can pretend that its about making us feel good, a source a mild entertainment.
But the truth is, the ecclesia, the called out community, was designed to be a partnership for the sake of bringing the gospel to the world. I long for this kind of partnership. I am willing to make major sacrifices to a part of a partnership for the sake of the gospel. But the other, too small identifications of a church, are less and less palatable.
Application: I need to be willing to communicate this truth. I must be willing to pay the cost for a real partnership with those who are sincerely trying to share the gospel with a hungry world. I want to live with this clear focus. I need to present this clarity of focus.
Prayer: Lord, help me to be clear as I lead about the reason we gather. Help me to love those who are not ready for it not to be about them. Help me present a better future that would attract those who need to hear this truth. Help me to put this into practice.
In Jesus Name,
Amen
