OPEN DOORS, OPPORTUNE MOMENTS
When I had to miss the first Sunday in
May due to a bronchial infection, I had no choice. Not only was I weakened by the infection but with all the
congestion, I could barely speak…I had lost my voice just about entirely!
We live in a
time when our world is suffering from a devastating infection of hopelessness
and hardness of heart toward the things of God. No doubt that the infection has crept into the institutional
church and has caused her to be weak and anemic, powerless and sometimes
feeling rather useless. Has the church
also lost its voice? Have we ceased to
be salt and light in a tasteless and darkened world?
Cathy and I
spent three days in Washington, D.C. earlier this week at a Pastors’ Briefing
designed to present us with information about the state of affairs in our
nation…threats of terrorism here at home still loom over an unknown
horizon…pictures of US soldiers torturing prisoners…state-recognized homosexual
marriage beginning tomorrow in Massachusetts…religious freedom of speech placed
at risk by threats of hate-crime charges…31 years of legal abortion…lax enforcement
of decency in media by the FCC…persistent racial division in nearly every
sector of society including the church…what a list of depressing conditions we
face in a world gone haywire!
Is it time to
fold up the tents and go hide in caves…or is it not time to sound the alarm and
see these as opportune moments for the Lord to open doors for the gospel in an
unprecedented manner?
We are convinced
that we have been raised up by God’s sovereign design at this moment in history
for such a time as this! This is a day
of open doors filled with opportunity for any people willing to trust God and
march through for His glory!
THESIS: Our faith in Christ must grow if we are to have the
capacity to receive all that He wants to pour out upon us and through us so
that we might seize these opportune moments and walk through these open doors
for the glory of Christ!
I. A
CRITICAL TIME FOR BIBLICAL MINISTRY
--What a time to be entrusted with a message of healing and
hope for a world gone mad!
A. THE DAYS
ARE EVIL
Eph 5:15-16 Therefore be careful how you walk, not as
unwise men, but as wise, 16
making the most of your time, because the days are evil.
· International
Crises: Iraq atrocities within a bloody war
--Israeli/Palestinian
violence and hostilities increasing
--Vicious acts
of terrorism are escalating
--AIDS/HIV is
killing untold millions in Africa alone
· National Shame: 40-45 million
Americans were aborted since 1973 (of the population under 18 years old in
2000—99.3 million Americans—72.3 million were born since 1982 and 27 million
were aborted)
--Sexual
immorality continues to extend its stranglehold on the soul of the nation as
marriage loses its historical, cultural and biblical place of value and honor
and is threatened by an epidemic of divorce, pervasive premarital sex, increase
in number of children born out of wedlock, acceptance of homosexuality as just
another option, rampant pornography—in short, a nation held captive by its own
lusts.
B. THE
LEADERS ARE FEW
Ezekiel 22:30 “And I searched for a man among them who
should build up the wall and stand in the gap before
Me for the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one.
--With the annihilation of over one fourth of a generation through
abortion, and the failure of the church to train and equip the survivors of
that generation to serve rather than be served, we face a crisis of leadership
unless the body of Christ steps up and does what it takes to identify, develop
and build up leaders who will know what to do to lead the church, the nation
and the world back to Christ!
1 Chronicles 12:32
And of the sons of Issachar, men who understood the times, with knowledge of
what Israel should do…
--We need sons of Issachar who will understand the times and
know what should be done for the glory and honor of Christ and the good of His
people.
C. THE DOORS
ARE OPEN
--Into this void, doors are wide open for someone to step in
with a solution, an answer, a way to get through.
1 Corinthians 16:9 for a wide door for effective service has
opened to me, and there are many adversaries.
Revelation 3:8 ‘I know your deeds. Behold, I have put
before you an open door which no one can shut, because you have a little power,
and have kept My word, and have not denied My name.
II. AN
EXCITING TIME FOR EFFECTIVE MINISTRY
--The overuse of the word ‘exciting’ sometimes makes me shy
away from using it, but as we watch what God is doing throughout our ministry,
it is hard to find a better way to describe ministry at this point in our
church’s history.
A. A
CRYSTALIZED FOCUS FOR OUR MINISTRY
--For years, people have asked what our vision for ministry
is and if we know what we are doing and why.
--Through the efforts of many among our pastors, elders and
deacons, those questions are being answered with greater clarity than ever
before and more people are joining us who understand and embrace our calling
1. Looking
to Christ for Direction
--We have all found that no other way satisfies than fixing
our eyes on Christ and then following Him in whatever direction He leads.
2. Lifting
Up Christ in Adoration
--Worship holds a pre-eminent place in our life together as
a congregation as we seek to engage each of us at a personal level of
participation in personal, family and corporate worship that exalts and adores
Christ above all.
3. Living
for Christ with Authenticity
--We have had it with hypocrisy and have declared war with
anything less than total commitment to Christ in all things so that living for
Christ truly means walking with Him authentically in all aspects of life—a
comprehensive genuineness in the way our lives are being conformed to the image
of Christ.
--Everyone who comes here soon realizes that we are serious
about fulfilling the kind of ministry that is clearly focused in every way on
Jesus Christ.
B. AN
INVITING CHARACTER TO OUR MINISTRY
1. Bringing
People in through an Open Door
--When we have concluded that it is a good thing to invite
people to come and see and find that the Lord is good, we will begin to look
around and identify a wide range of people who need to know the Lord.
· Spanish language ministry beginning on May 30 in an
elementary way with simultaneous translation
· Singles and college outreach ministries both have taken off
· MarketPlace ministries has gotten off to a great start
during the past year and shows great promise
· Joy Prom was introduced on April 30 as an outreach to people
with special needs in our community
2. Sending
People out the Open Door
--We continue to send people out into various fields of
ministry and the coming year offers great possibilities in missions, community
ministries and a host of other places where the PBC family is taking the love
of Christ.
· Ordaining and training pastors in ECCD
· Training, sending and supporting missionaries
· Equipping people for evangelism in a wide variety of
settings and with distinctive needs and world views
· Informing people of needs throughout the culture and
challenging them to engage (public office, teaching, serving as volunteers,
mentors, tutors, etc.)
--Too many Christians have become too comfortable staying in
the house when there is much to be done beyond the open door!
C. A
PEACEABLE SPIRIT IN OUR MINISTRY
Acts 9:31 So the church
throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria enjoyed peace, being built up;
and, going on in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it
continued to increase.
--There was a great spirit of
peace enjoyed by the church that was fostered through their commitment to “go
on” in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit.
1. Walking
in the Fear of the Lord
--That peaceful spirit begins when we fear the Lord more
than getting our way, when we love His glory more than our good.
2.
Encouraged by the Spirit of the Lord
--When that happens, we will experience the comfort and
encouragement that the Holy Spirit brings to us as He shows us how to be
content in Him, not in winning.
--The Holy Spirit unites our hearts and builds into our relationships
and ministry a oneness that bears witness to the One Voice which glorifies, the
One Way which unifies, the One Word which edifies.
Romans 15:5-6 May the God who gives endurance and
encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ
Jesus, 6 so that with one
heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
D. A PRAYERFUL ENVIRONMENT
THROUGHOUT OUR MINISTRY
Col. 4:3 praying at the same time for us as well, that God may open up to us a door
for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I
have also been imprisoned;
--Prayer not only must permeate every aspect of our
ministry, it must saturate every heart and motivate every endeavor.
1. Pray that
Doors Will Open
--We do not know how to pray as we ought until the Holy
Spirit leads our praying and the Word of God informs our praying.
--Throughout the Scriptures, we find prayer preceding every
effective ministry and prevailing in every challenge to effective ministry.
--So we go on record again:
We must and will be a people who pray…and specifically at this point in
our ministry, we pray that God will open doors we would never have thought
would open.
2. Pray that
People Will Obey
--But what good is it for doors to open if we are reluctant
to walk through them when they do?
--Men and women of faith who invest themselves in prayer
will rise from their knees after they have prayed and boldly march through the
doors which have opened…and know that they will go forth with power and courage
and confidence that God goes before them and with them.
Exodus 33:14-15 And He said, “My presence shall go with you,
and I will give you rest.” 15
Then he said to Him, “If Thy presence does not go with us, do not lead us up
from here.
--We pray…and then we obey!
For God will go with us!
E. A GROWING
FAITH WITHIN OUR MINISTRY
--As we go forward in faith, our trust will grow because we
will see once again that God is faithful to His promises and is committed to
His principles.
--During the coming year, you can fully expect to see the
faith of this congregation grow as we step out and trust the Lord for things
that go far beyond our ability to see.
1. Giving at
a Faith-Increasing Level
--As a congregation, we will be called on to give at a level
that will stretch our faith, that will push us to the brink, that will demand
more than we ever thought possible.
--The vision for the kind of ministry God has given us will
cost more than a ministry that plays it safe, that becomes self-satisfied and
comfortable.
--Therefore, we have to be ready to count the cost and then
trust the Lord to show us what will be required of each of us to pay the price.
Room to Grow Costs in Land and Facilities
Land: The property we had
prayed for years to come available has in the last 6-9 months fallen into
place—God has opened doors that had been locked shut, apparently without any
keys we could find.
Facilities: The building of
adequate space means that we will be adding a worship center that should meet
our growing needs for the next 20 years, seating 2400-2500…preschool space
sufficient to support that many families in attendance…youth and education
space to accommodate increases in worship.
--Therefore, we have prayed and done our research and sought
counsel and believe that the Lord is leading us to be bold and walk through the
doors He has opened and prepare a place for His people to fulfill the ministry
He has given us!
--During the coming year, expect to hear the trumpet sound
as we call for everyone to rally together “…with that which every joint
supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part…” so that
together what each of us brings by the grace of God will meet the need!
2. Serving
with a Faith-Inspired Purpose
Room to Grow Costs Servanthood and Sacrifice
--In the meantime, fulfilling our calling will require more
than sacrificial giving on our part…it will require each of us to pray about
what we must do to take the low place, to become servants to one another and to
the purpose which binds our hearts together.
--Each week, opportunities to serve will present themselves…and
each week, there will be a hundred reasons for you to say no.
--But we have to learn to say yes to servanthood and
sacrifice and take our place in making it possible for this congregation to
burst through the doors God has opened and will open as we follow Him.
Parking: You will be able
to make room for others by driving down the street to Oak Park and finally
riding the shuttle you have heard so much about.
Worship
Attendance: You will be able to make room for others by adjusting
your preferences to go either to another hour or to another venue to worship
(new worship hours and new worship spaces will be starting soon).
LIFE Class
Attendance: You will be able to make room for others by
exploring options for meeting place and hour that may be different from current
practices.
Teaching/Leading: You will be able
to serve others who come by volunteering to teach, or to be a helper in a
classroom (kids, youth or adults) and help shoulder the weight often born by a
few while the majority sit back and allow them to do so.
3. Loving
with a Faith-Initiated Fervor
Room to Grow Costs Our Hearts and Compassion
--If you don’t care about people who do not know Christ and
have no hope, there is little I can say to stir your heart.
--But if you love as Christ loved you, you will understand
that loving others is costly because you have to give away your heart to them.
--You have to give your heart unconditionally for Christ’s
sake and love the unlovely and unfamiliar and ungrateful…because that is how
Christ calls us to love…loving that is fervent because it is initiated and
sustained by faith!
1 Pet. 1:22
Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love
of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart,
--We will have to step up and begin to love everyone God
draws to us, both here and in whatever sphere of influence we might have!
--And that will mean that we will pay whatever price is
necessary so that others might have the privilege of meeting Christ and that we
might have the opportunity to impact our culture in such a way that we offer
hope where none is readily apparent.
--Our faith in Christ must grow if we are to have the
capacity to receive all that He wants to pour out upon us and through us so
that we might seize these opportune moments and walk through these open doors
for the glory of Christ!
So I close by asking you…in light of the condition of our world,
would you prefer to pull up your tent and go into hiding? Or will you join us as we launch an all-out
assault on the gates of hell?
God has opened doors for us in
unprecedented ways in the past year. We
stand at the threshold and have a decision to make about what we will do. With open doors there will always be “many
adversaries” but our calling is be bold and courageous, sacrificial and
obedient, and take our places in building up a place for effective ministry by
seizing these days for the glory of God!
As the body of Christ, we can do nothing
less!
Providence
Baptist Church
© David Horner 2004
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