Episode Transcript
[00:00:09] Speaker A: Good morning, Westgate.
It is the start of Missions Emphasis Week. Are you excited?
Well, let's stand and let's worship together. Amen.
I have felt the hands that bear the scars Reach down and rest rescue me and I have known the love of the Father's heart A prodigal now redeemed from where I was to where
[00:00:43] Speaker B: I'm now It's overwhelmed me
[00:00:48] Speaker C: the more
[00:00:49] Speaker B: and more I see you move all around me oh I can't help but praise you Praise you Lord oh I I can't help but lift up shouts of joy When I think of how good you've been Faithful now until the end oh I can't help but praise you Praise you Lord
[00:01:27] Speaker C: for the blood you spill to save my life A debt I cannot repay for the the cross you bore with open arms Salvation that called my name from where I was to where I'm now It's overwhelming the more and more I see you
[00:01:52] Speaker B: move all around me oh I can't help but praise you Praise you Lord oh I can't help but live Lift up shouts of joy When I think of how good you've been Faithful now till the end oh I can't help but praise you praise you Lord oh
[00:02:28] Speaker C: I can't help but dance cause you pray Got no chains on me I'm healed and redeemed oh I can't help but call on the name that buried my shame who opened my grave oh
[00:02:43] Speaker B: I can't help but dance cause I'm free Got no chains on me I'm healed and redeemed oh I can't help but call on the name that buried my shame who opened my grave oh I can't help but praise you praise you Lord oh I can't help but lift up shouts of joy When I think of how good you've been Faithful now until the end oh I can't help but praise you Praise you Lord oh I can't help but praise you Praise you Lord oh I can't help but praise you Praise you Lord.
Amen. Give him praise.
[00:03:47] Speaker A: Amen.
You can go ahead and have a seat and take a look at the screen.
[00:04:08] Speaker D: Welcome to missions emphasis week 2026. We are excited to share with you all this week about the many ways that God is moving around the globe through the Christian and Missionary Alliance.
As a CNMA church, Westgate Chapel has a long and rich history as a missions sending church.
Over the past 30 years, Westgate Chapel has trained and sent out international worker families to share the love of Christ all around the World. From Russia, Germany, Ukraine, Mongolia, Nigeria and a closed country in Asia, we have played a significant role in taking the Gospel to the ends of the earth. Good morning, Westgate Chapel. We are Steve and Christine Volstead. Thank you for your commitment to training and sending workers just like you sent us to Russia 26 years ago.
[00:05:01] Speaker E: And thank you so much for continuing to this day to send new workers all around the world so many more people can know and love Jesus.
[00:05:11] Speaker D: We love you all and we miss you.
[00:05:13] Speaker F: We miss you.
[00:05:14] Speaker G: Bye bye.
[00:05:14] Speaker E: Bye bye.
[00:05:15] Speaker D: As a church, we are also passionate about supporting, encouraging and partnering with our international workers in the mission that God has called them to. Over the last 20 years, we have sent over 30 short term mission teams and interns for this purpose. Our rich history only continues to grow as we strengthen and develop partnerships with our international workers who are sharing the love of Jesus and seeing the heart of and darkest parts of our world.
[00:05:44] Speaker E: Good morning, Westgate Chapel. We want to thank you for your partnering with us over the last 32 years in ministry. Your investment in prayer and generosity has made an incredible impact. We have been training and sending out pastors and evangelists and missionaries into the most dangerous parts of our county, Nigeria.
[00:06:09] Speaker H: We love you.
[00:06:11] Speaker D: Finally, one of the key indicators of this missional heart of this church is the generosity that flows from it. Over the past six years alone, you have given nearly $2 million toward the great Commission Fund of the Christian and Missionary alliance along with numerous other gifts to ensure the Gospel is taken to the ends of the earth.
[00:06:34] Speaker I: My name is Jonathan Schaefer and I have the privilege of serving Jesus as the president of the Christian Missionary Alliance. Your church is part of this bigger family that stretches around the world and you've had so much impact as you have prayed. Trained workers, you've given generously, you've sent out, you've encouraged, you are making an impact in your neighborhoods in Northwest Ohio and really to the ends of the earth.
I can't wait to be with you next Sunday on October 11th and just share some of the ways that God is at work. Some really exciting testimonies from around the world as we take all of Jesus to all the world. I'm praying God's blessings on you and look forward to meeting you in person. Thanks so much.
[00:07:22] Speaker F: All right, church, let's stand and worship together.
Every tribe will see your glory.
Every day Bow before you all our treasure turn to ashes in the light of you.
As we're singing Holy is the Lord Almighty Only you are worthy Worthy of it all oh,
[00:08:14] Speaker B: praise and Glory, honor and strength Unto our God Unto our
[00:08:21] Speaker F: God Matchless, endless love unrestrained this is our God Every tribe sing.
Every tribal see your glory oh, yeah,
[00:08:42] Speaker B: yeah
[00:08:45] Speaker F: Every nation bow before you.
All our treasure turn to ashes in the light of you.
[00:09:05] Speaker B: As we singing Holy is the Lord Almighty Only you are worthy Worthy of
[00:09:17] Speaker C: it all Praise and glory Honor and
[00:09:24] Speaker B: strength Unto our God Unto our God Matchless, endless love Unreal strength this is our God every.
Come on.
[00:09:51] Speaker F: There is no one like our God There is no one like our God There is no one like our God
[00:10:03] Speaker B: There is no one like our God.
[00:10:25] Speaker F: Unto me Unto our God Unto our God Matchless, endless love Unrestrained this is our God this is our God Amazing.
[00:10:37] Speaker B: Glory, honor and strength Unto our God
[00:10:41] Speaker F: Unto our God Matchless, endless love Unrestrained
[00:10:48] Speaker B: this is our God Every tribe sing Praise and glory Restraint Unto our God
[00:10:57] Speaker F: Unto our God Matchless, endless love Unrestrained
[00:11:03] Speaker B: this is our God Every tribe sing There is no one like our God no, no There is no one like
[00:11:12] Speaker F: our God There is no one There
[00:11:14] Speaker B: is no one like our God There is no one like our God.
[00:11:27] Speaker C: Amen.
[00:11:28] Speaker J: God is good.
[00:11:29] Speaker B: Amen.
[00:11:30] Speaker C: He is.
[00:11:31] Speaker J: Hey. Would you thank all who participated in our parades of flags this morning?
Such a great kickoff to our missions emphasis week. I invite you to go ahead and grab a seat if we have not had the opportunity to meet. My name is Rob Zimmerman, lead pastor here at Westgate Chapel. And if you haven't picked up on the vibe today, it is the kickoff of our missions emphasis week. We are very excited to spend this week hearing from many of our partners, but also learning about what God is doing all around the world as the good news of Jesus spreads even to the least reached and darkest corners of this world. And so we're excited to dive in together.
If you're new to Westgate, we are a part of the Christian and Missionary alliance denomination, a worldwide denomination that sends out workers over 700 into to the darkest places of our world to share the good news of the gospel. And so this week we're gonna get to hear all about that. We're gonna get to hear from some of our very special partners that have flown in to be with us this morning and we're very excited about that. I'll also say for those of you that are at home watching online, when we get to the message portion of the service, we have something special planned for you. Where we'll go away from the live shot here in this room because we have workers from a creative access country, but we have something great. So Please stay tuned in as that switches over a little later in the service.
If you are a guest here with us today, though it is your first time or you've been new in the last few weeks. Again, my special welcome to you as you look to take that step to get connected here at Westgate. The first best way to do that is to fill out a connection card. You'll see that connection card in the pew in front of you this morning. And so if you wanna take that step today, I'd invite you to take that. You can fill it out and at the close of our service, I'd encourage you to take it to our main lobby where at our guest center we have a number of hosts who would love to greet you, answer any questions you have about getting connected at Westgate, but also have a small gift to give you just to say thank you for worshiping with us today.
And so please be sure to stop by and do that. A couple pieces of information for you. As you walked in this morning, one of our entrances, hopefully you saw the sermon notes and also these pamphlets.
These pamphlets have all of the information about what is happening this week during Missions Emphasis Week. We have so many opportunities to gather. You'll also see that the interior of that is on the inside of your sermon notes this morning. And so I want to draw your attention to just a couple of key ways to connect this week. One, whether you are a child, all the way up to a senior adult, we want to invite you to come back this Wednesday evening. We're going to have our global partner experience that begins at 6:00pm we're going to have apple appetizers and great food from around the world that we can enjoy together. But then we have got an experience planned for you that is going to be such a wonderful evening of learning about our different partners, about different places in the world where the Gospel is going forward. It's interactive, you will not want to miss it. And so please come out and join us for that evening as well. I will point out that we have our men's and women's brunch next Saturday, October 10th. That's at 9:30 in the morning. Men and women will gather together. We'll grab food together but then split off and be able to hear from our international workers.
It would be a great time of learning and praying over them as well. And so I would just encourage you to put that on your calendar. But again, anything you want to be a part of, it'll be found in this pamphlet or inside your sermon notes. This Morning, so please be sure to check those out. With that being said, we want to continue in our worship, but before we do, we want you to stand up, greet someone you haven't said hello to yet this morning. Tell them two countries you've traveled to. And if you've never traveled out of the us the furthest city in the Ohio that you've gone to.
[00:15:47] Speaker F: Come all you weary Come all you thirsty Come to the well that never returns Drink of the water Come and thirst no more.
Come all you sinners Come find His mercy Come to the table he will satisfy Taste of His goodness Find what you're looking for.
[00:16:25] Speaker B: For God so loves the world that
[00:16:29] Speaker F: he gave us Is one and only Son to save us Whoever believes in him will live forever.
[00:16:54] Speaker B: Bring all your failures Bring your addictions Come lay them down at the foot of the cross Jesus is waiting there
[00:17:07] Speaker F: with open eyes
[00:17:13] Speaker B: For God, our soul the world that he gave us his one and only Son to save us
[00:17:23] Speaker F: Whoever believes in him will live forever.
[00:17:32] Speaker B: The power of hell forever Defeated now in Israel I'm walking in freedom for God God so love God so loves the world.
[00:17:51] Speaker C: Praise God, Praise God from whom all blessings flow Praise Him Praise Him Lift his name up for the wonders of him love Praise God Praise God from whom all blessings flow Praise Him Praise him for the wonders of his love
[00:18:30] Speaker B: his amazing love For God so loved the world that he gave us his one and only Son to save oh God so love the world that he gave us his one and only Son
[00:18:50] Speaker F: to save us Whoever believes in him will live forever.
[00:19:01] Speaker B: The power of heaven forever defeated now it is well I'm walking in freedom For God so loved God so loved the world.
Bring all your failures Bring your addictions Come lay them down at the foot of the cross Jesus is waiting God so loves the world
[00:19:39] Speaker A: Amen.
[00:19:40] Speaker B: Amen.
[00:19:41] Speaker F: Amen.
[00:19:49] Speaker A: Do you believe he's coming back?
[00:19:52] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:20:02] Speaker A: The spirit and the bride together testify
[00:20:11] Speaker B: all things shall be made right Amen.
[00:20:19] Speaker A: The law shall be restored the grave
[00:20:24] Speaker B: shall be no more and all the church will roar Amen.
Let's testify now Prepare the way the
[00:20:39] Speaker A: King is coming
[00:20:44] Speaker B: Enthroned on Praise the King is coming the last, the first the living word in glory shall return
[00:21:02] Speaker A: we prepare the way with hearts like
[00:21:11] Speaker B: lamps that burn as light upon the
[00:21:16] Speaker A: earth we wait for his return Amen.
[00:21:25] Speaker C: Yes.
[00:21:26] Speaker A: No fear of watch to come Our
[00:21:31] Speaker B: hope set in the one who said that it is done Amen.
Prepare the way the King is coming he's enthroned on Praise the King is
[00:21:56] Speaker A: coming
[00:22:00] Speaker B: he's the last, the first the living word in glory shall return
[00:22:09] Speaker F: we
[00:22:11] Speaker B: prepare the way Jesus we prepare the way.
[00:22:30] Speaker A: The trumpet soon shall sound he'll ride upon the clouds and every knee will bow Amen.
Do you believe it?
The honor and the fame all the
[00:22:51] Speaker B: glory, power and praise be unto Jesus name Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen Amen Prepare the way the king is coming Every voice he's enthro our praise the king is coming the last, the first he's the last of first the living word in glory shall return he's the great I am the son of man the lion and the lamb he he's the cornerstone who stands alone in life Will lead us home oh we prepare the way Jesus we prepare the way Jesus as we prepare the way Jesus we prepare the way.
Yes
[00:24:43] Speaker A: every voice prepare the way.
Last the first.
Church Jesus we.
Sing it out Jesus.
One more time Lift it up.
[00:25:45] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:25:45] Speaker A: Give God glory and praise unto his name Amen.
[00:25:52] Speaker J: Amen.
Well, you may be seated again as I mentioned, for those of you that are at home watching on Livestream because we're going to be having an interview with a couple that is from a creative access country. We're going to have to cut our livestream away but don't go anywhere because we have got something great planned for you. There'll be a couple of short videos talking about the theme of the mission's emphasis for the Christian Missionary alliance as well as a thank you video from a number of our international workers. But following that, you're going to get a message online from a friend but also Vice President of Church Ministries of the Christian Missionary Alliance, Kelvin Walker, who is going to share about the heart of how we as the body of Christ come together to reach the nations. And so we're going to send you away. God bless you and we pray that you have a great time worshiping the Lord together at home or wherever you may be.
[00:26:49] Speaker E: Alliance Family, we just want to say thank you.
[00:26:51] Speaker K: Thank you all so much, Alliance Family, for everything that you do for us, the ways in which you support us, the ways in which you encourage us. It's been a long road, but after seven years of prayer and preparation, I'm
[00:27:03] Speaker J: now here in Milan, Italy.
[00:27:05] Speaker E: Your giving has allowed our family to launch into a new location and begin a new church planting work.
[00:27:10] Speaker K: Although we're by ourselves right now, it is amazing to know that people are proud praying for us and we are not alone.
[00:27:16] Speaker D: Thank you Alliance Family for your partnership with us in the Gospel in Spain. Some of you since we began 31 years ago.
[00:27:22] Speaker L: Thank you for supporting our ministry at Life International School.
We in our 31 years of ministry, I've seen more families come into the kingdom than anything else we've done in Spain.
[00:27:45] Speaker K: We serve in Paris, France. We had a group of people that we wanted to go deeper with. And so we decided to create a dinner that we titled questions that matter.
[00:27:53] Speaker G: And then through just like shoulder tap invitation, invited them to these like dinner parties with a purpose.
[00:27:58] Speaker K: We were talking about topics that mattered and that would also give them opportunities to ask questions about Christ.
[00:28:04] Speaker G: Because people give and they support. We're able to buy groceries, provide meals, pour a warm cup of coffee.
[00:28:09] Speaker L: People feel like they belong, like they're
[00:28:11] Speaker E: where they're supposed to be.
[00:28:12] Speaker G: So many times we've had people in our home or at something and they say, I had no idea how much I needed this.
[00:28:21] Speaker L: Your prayers and your gifts keep me in Kosovo where I am sharing the gospel, able to help disciple new believers and train leaders. We have a congregation of Roma. Only a couple of them have accepted Christ, but they're rest are interested in learning more about who Jesus is. We work with Lighthouse Berlin. There are a lot of immigrants in Germany. We shine the light of multicultural understanding
[00:28:42] Speaker K: between Arabs and Germans and Germans and Arabs, Persians and Germans. And then there's North Africans.
[00:28:59] Speaker E: If you weren't praying for us, if you weren't sending, we couldn't do what we do every day, which is showing the love of Christ to the people of Bosnia Herzegovina.
[00:29:08] Speaker K: I know that there are so many older women around the world in churches that are praying on our behalf. And I think that they pray more than anyone. And I think our ministry really operates on the backs of these older ladies.
[00:29:19] Speaker H: Familia, aliancita.
[00:29:21] Speaker M: Nuamente.
[00:29:21] Speaker L: Gracias.
[00:29:22] Speaker M: Shukran Dunca.
[00:29:23] Speaker B: Gracias.
[00:29:23] Speaker L: Falamanderis.
[00:29:24] Speaker K: Merci. Finland.
[00:29:26] Speaker H: Merci. Gracias.
[00:29:28] Speaker N: Moltas.
[00:29:28] Speaker H: Gracias.
[00:29:29] Speaker E: Thank you.
[00:29:30] Speaker L: Thank you.
[00:29:32] Speaker N: Thank you.
[00:29:32] Speaker L: Without your support, none of this would be possible. We couldn't do this without you. We're really grateful.
[00:29:37] Speaker K: We love you and we appreciate you and we see you.
[00:29:50] Speaker E: I can't even imagine mission in isolation, and I don't think it would be possible.
We need each other.
[00:29:57] Speaker L: We need community.
[00:29:58] Speaker M: Because when you look at how Jesus did it, he invited people to be fishers of men and he started a team.
[00:30:06] Speaker E: God's mission was meant to be carried out together because God is a God of community.
He's created us all different. He's given us different talents and we're
[00:30:16] Speaker L: not meant to do it in our own strength.
[00:30:18] Speaker K: He's bringing people from the nations into our communities.
[00:30:23] Speaker N: Every follower of Jesus Christ is a missionary where they live.
[00:30:29] Speaker H: We're not just called to send people to other nations. We are sent just as disciples to be on mission with Jesus.
[00:30:40] Speaker N: God has placed me in that neighborhood so I can live out in his mission every day.
[00:30:48] Speaker H: The church in the sending and the church on the field are not separate parts of the mission. We are one body doing one work.
[00:30:58] Speaker J: We could not be there as a
[00:30:59] Speaker K: mission without that support of the Alliance Family. And I think he desires that we respond to his spirit, that the Jesus is in you. You can do something to share my love with them.
[00:31:15] Speaker L: When you're in his fullness, you just
[00:31:17] Speaker E: let that flow out from you and that's what reaches the nations.
[00:31:20] Speaker H: Nothing or nobody can give us the hope that we have in Jesus and we have to share it.
[00:31:28] Speaker K: We have to bring that next generation along with us and say, look, the field is ripe. And you can have a role in that. Not someday somewhere, but right now.
It truly takes all of us.
[00:31:40] Speaker L: We are on mission together.
[00:31:43] Speaker N: We are one body filled with one spirit given, one mission with one hope.
Jesus,
[00:31:57] Speaker H: Lions, family, it is good to be with you this morning.
All of Jesus for all the world. That is the vision God has given us. And as we look into that, I want to look at two quick passages today. Ephesians, chapter 4, verses 3 and 4. Say this.
Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body, one spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called.
And then first Corinthians, chapter 12, verses 1, 7 and 11.
Paul says this.
Now about the gifts of the Spirit. Brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. Verse 7. Now, to each one, the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. And then verse 11.
All these are the work of one and the same Spirit.
And he distributes them to each one just as he determines. And if we're going to put a title or a tag on the message this morning, it would be this. The gift of empowered community.
There's an old African proverb to which I constantly return. And that proverb is this. If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.
Going alone, you'll get there quickly, you'll get there unencumbered. You'll get there uninterrupted and unhindered. You might even get there in the most expeditious manner that you can think of. But I want to submit to you that the problem with going alone is the getting there. You see, when you go alone, getting there is solely dependent upon you. And though you might arrive quickly, you'll arrive alone.
And no matter how well you do, the result will still be lacking. But there is something about going together, something about building together, something about discerning together, something about creating an environment where
[00:34:03] Speaker M: everyone gets to contribute, an environment where
[00:34:05] Speaker H: everyone is on mission together. An environment that brings an outcome that's far greater, far more expansive, and far more joyous than anyone could ever imagine. Oh, it may take some time. There may be some frustrating moments to work through. Going together might not be as expedient or as efficient, but the outcome of going together will certainly be far more efficacious.
If you want to go fast, go alone.
If you want to go far, go together. The apostle Paul says it a different way in Ephesians, chapter 3, Ephesians, chapter 4, verses 3 and 4. There he writes, make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called.
Notice what Paul does not say. He does not say unity happens automatically.
[00:35:06] Speaker M: He says, make every effort.
[00:35:09] Speaker H: That word carries the sense of striving, of laboring, of eagerly pursuing something that will not simply fall into your lap. Paul is telling the church at Ephesus the very same thing that this old proverb tells us.
Unity is the far road, and the far road takes time.
In the kingdom, we aren't called to go fast. We are designed to go forward.
In the kingdom, we aren't called to go alone. We are designed to go together, one body held together and empowered by one Spirit walking toward one hope. And the advancing of Christ's kingdom takes more than just the gifts and the anointing and the empowerment of one individual. Rather, the kingdom is designed to advance through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit as he releases the gifts and empowers the body.
And empowered leaders, through the power of the Holy Spirit, are called to build a culture of an empowered body.
So if you want to go fast, go alone.
If you want to go far, go together.
Here's the other thing about going alone.
[00:36:25] Speaker M: You can easily become convinced that it
[00:36:28] Speaker H: is about you, and you can easily try and do it on your own stre but not so when we go together. For we quickly realize that when we go together, we need an empowerment and a strength that is not our own in order to keep things together.
[00:36:45] Speaker M: That's exactly what Paul means about being the bond of peace.
[00:36:50] Speaker H: It's not a peace that we manufacture. It's a peace that the spirit supplies. And it's the only thing strong enough
[00:36:59] Speaker M: to hold a body made up of many different people from many different backgrounds
[00:37:03] Speaker H: with many different gifts together as one. And so dependent is this body on the moving and the filling and the anointing and the empowering of the Holy
[00:37:14] Speaker M: Spirit that everything down outside of him
[00:37:18] Speaker H: will seem strange, it'll seem incomplete, it'll seem laborious and wanting. And though it might seem excellent on the surface, it will be noticeably empty and devoid of authority.
The late Dr. A.W. tozer said it this the church was never intended to be a natural and intellectual organization, but a supernatural instrumentality wholly dependent upon the power of God.
Dr. Tozer also said this. If the Holy Spirit was withdrawn from the church today, 95% of what we do would go on and no one would know the difference. But if the Holy Spirit had been withdrawn from the New Testament Church, 95% of what they did would stop and everyone would know the difference. That's how dependent upon the power of the Holy Spirit the early church was. And I believe Paul understood this, which is why he emphasizes that we are one body empowered by the Spirit.
[00:38:21] Speaker M: Paul constantly talks about the empowerment and
[00:38:24] Speaker H: filling of the Holy Spirit because he
[00:38:26] Speaker M: knows we need the Holy Spirit's empowerment
[00:38:29] Speaker H: and filling to be united and unified in this one mission that God has called us to. That's important because you see, the New Testament church understood empowered unity. They understood and practiced these things. One body. Paul says it plainly, there is one body, not a collection of competing gifts, not a stage for one person's anointing, but one body made of many parts, all needed, all necessary. They understood one spirit.
[00:39:02] Speaker M: The same Spirit who gives the gifts
[00:39:05] Speaker H: is the same Spirit who binds the body together. He is the bond of peace that Paul is talking about. They understood empowered leaders empower the body.
They don't hoard the gifts, they release the gifts. They understood the body advances the kingdom together, advancing the kingdom toward one hope into which we are all called.
[00:39:29] Speaker M: Because they understood these things.
[00:39:32] Speaker H: I submit to you that the New Testament church was an empowered church unified in one spirit and a church that was on fire.
The apostle Paul was an empowered leader who understood the importance of an empowered body when it came to advancing the kingdom. Later, in Ephesians 4, he tells us that the goal of every gift and every leader and every effort is so that the body of Christ may be
[00:40:01] Speaker M: built up until we all reach the
[00:40:03] Speaker H: unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
Unity is not a byproduct of the gifts. Unity is the point of the gifts.
[00:40:19] Speaker M: And when he writes to the church
[00:40:21] Speaker H: at Corinth, Paul is teaching that very same lesson from another angle.
[00:40:27] Speaker M: No community of believers is complete unless the gifts of the Spirit given to
[00:40:31] Speaker H: the body can operate in full capacity.
[00:40:35] Speaker M: And while he may be correcting some
[00:40:37] Speaker H: misuse of the miraculous or the sign gifts that were there, he wanted to correct it so that there would be proper use. I also submit to you that the principles Paul teaches to the church at Corinth apply to all the gifts of the Spirit we see in Romans 12 or Ephesians 4 or in 1st Peter 4. Gifts of service, gifts of leadership, gifts of administration, gifts of generosity, gifts of faith. So in the few moments that we have left, I submit to you that these texts beg a question about which we must inquire.
Here's the question.
What does Paul intend for us to learn about the unity of the Spirit
[00:41:19] Speaker M: and how the gifts of the Spirit
[00:41:22] Speaker H: galvanize the entire body of Christ?
Or should I say, how the empowered and unified body of Christ?
We saw this pattern earlier that I mentioned. Now let's draw out some lessons. Here's the first one.
One body, one Spirit. The gifts are for the collective equipping of the body.
There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in every one is the same God at work.
One body, one spirit.
Maybe another way of saying it is this.
[00:41:59] Speaker M: The gifts of the Spirit are for
[00:42:01] Speaker H: everybody, and everybody gets to jump in.
[00:42:04] Speaker M: Can you look at your neighbor and
[00:42:05] Speaker H: say, neighbor, the gifts of the Spirit are for everybody.
[00:42:10] Speaker M: And now tell that neighbor, and everybody
[00:42:12] Speaker H: gets to jump in.
Here's the second lesson, the bond of peace. He, the Spirit owns them. We steward them.
He owns them. We steward them.
Now to each one, the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. All these are the work of one
[00:42:32] Speaker M: and the same Spirit. And he distributes them to each one
[00:42:36] Speaker H: just as he determines.
[00:42:39] Speaker M: Can I say it this way?
[00:42:41] Speaker H: The gifts of the Spirit belong to the Spirit and are given by the Spirit for those who are filled with and walk in the Spirit. Let me say that again.
[00:42:53] Speaker M: The gifts of the Spirit belong to
[00:42:55] Speaker H: the Spirit and are given by the Spirit to those who are filled with and walk in the Spirit. And the bond that holds all of that together isn't our effort or our niceness. The bond that holds all Together is his Spirit who brings the bond of peace.
Here's the third lesson.
One mission meant to unite and not divide.
Paul does not leave room for competition in the body.
Make every effort to keep the unity of the spirit. That's not passive language. That's a command to guard something precious,
[00:43:36] Speaker M: something that the enemy would love nothing
[00:43:39] Speaker H: more than to see fracture.
A good friend of mine, Dr. Michael Plunkett, said something recently that resonated deeply with my soul. Here it is.
[00:43:50] Speaker M: He said, the mission of the Holy
[00:43:52] Speaker H: Spirit is not to make us happy, it's not to make us comfortable. But rather the mission of the Holy Spirit is to bring us into alignment with the mission of Jesus.
That brings us into one mission, following under the guidance of the Holy Spirit and doing that, what Jesus has called us to do as his followers. Friends, we are called to one hope. And that hope was never meant to stay parked in our hearts. It was meant to move. It became our one mission.
[00:44:27] Speaker M: The gifts were never meant to divide
[00:44:29] Speaker H: us into who's more spiritual and who's less spiritual. They were gifts, every single one, for the common good, so that we will be pulled toward one mission and not scattered into dozens of competing agendas. And here's the fourth empowerment for all on mission. The gifts of the Spirit released in a unified body where everyone is making every effort together, moving together, partnering together, and taking their place in making the body complete. Together is evidence that God is on the move, the kingdom is advancing and the church is on fire. If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.
The church is on fire. I can't help but think of my upbringing as I'm preaching this message. You see, I grew up in in Long island and my dad was an associate pastor in what I call a Baptistal church. And this Baptistal church used to sing these songs. And some of you may have heard me sing this before, but I want to use it again today. And it song goes like this. Well, I wish somebody's soul would catch
[00:45:48] Speaker M: on fire Catch on fire catch on fire well, I wish somebody so catch on fire Burning with the Holy Ghost
[00:46:02] Speaker H: if I were to change those words and add a different verse, it would sound like this. Well, I wish somebody's church would catch
[00:46:12] Speaker M: on fire Catch on fire Catch on fire well, I wish somebody's church would catch on fire Burning with the Holy Ghost Friends, you see when an empowered leader's soul catches on fire and that leader catches a vision for going far through the building of a unified culture where everyone gets to Use the gifts of the Spirit that are poured out on them rather than going fast by going alone. Then the church catches on fire, burning
[00:46:49] Speaker H: with the Holy Ghost.
[00:46:50] Speaker M: And when we move forward in that
[00:46:52] Speaker H: way, then we move forward on mission together.
[00:46:56] Speaker M: When an empowered leader builds a unified, empowered culture, the leader doesn't desire to
[00:47:03] Speaker H: do everything alone, but rather that leader
[00:47:05] Speaker M: fully understands and lives out. The Ephesians 4 charge that apostles and prophets and evangelists and shepherds and teachers have a main task of equipping the saints for the work of the ministry so that the body may be built up until we all reach the unity of the faith. And when that happens, the church catches on fire and we move forward in our mission together. When an empowered leader builds a unified, empowered culture, the leader doesn't have to be the only one laying hands on the sick to pray for healing. The body gets equipped and trained and empowered to lay hands on the sick to pray for healing, and the sick become well. And the church catches on fire and we move forward on mission together. When an empowered leader builds a unified, empowered culture, the leader doesn't have to do all the administration.
Those who are gifted in administration are freed up to step forward and say, let me take that off your hands. And the administration gets done and the church catches on fire, and we move forward on mission together. When an empowered leader builds a unified, empowered culture, the leader doesn't have to be the only one discerning the next step for what the Lord desires for the church to take. That leader can call all the discerners together in the body, and together bound by one spirit, they discern the will of the Lord for the body, and the church catches on fire, and we move forward on mission together. When an empowered leader builds a unified, empowered culture, the leader doesn't have to be the only one praying to receive a prophetic word for the body. The leader can bring together the prophets in the house to lean in together and ask, is there a word from the Lord? And the Lord gives a word and the body is blessed and the Word and the church catches on fire, and we move forward on mission together. When an empowered leader builds a unified, empowered culture, the leader doesn't have to be the only one who preaches every Sunday. The leader can bring together the preachers in the house and the preachers work as a team, and the team models the very unity that Paul asked the Ephesians to strive for. And the church catches on fire and we move forward on mission together. When an empowered leader builds a unified, empowered culture, the leader doesn't have to be the only one in the house who exercises faith for God to do miracles and signs and wonders. That leader can bring together those who have the gift of faith. And together they believe in faith.
And as the Lord leads, they begin to take risks and steps of faith bound together, not scattered apart. And they watch God move because of their faith. And the church catches on fire. And we move forward on mission together. Let me bring us home, friends. Paul told the Ephesians to make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit. One body, one spirit, one hope. And Paul told the Corinthians that the gifts of the Spirit are for the collective equipping of the body.
He owns them, restored them.
[00:50:24] Speaker H: They're meant to unify, not divide.
[00:50:27] Speaker M: Empowerment for all on mission. And this means that we are people who are committed to being, continually being, always being filled with the Spirit. So, brothers and sisters, if the work of the kingdom is dependent upon your gifts and not the gifts of the Spirit given to the body, held together in the bond of peace, then it's all done by you. It's all dependent on you, and ultimately it will end with you. But if the work of the kingdom is built upon the leading and the filling and the ministry and the gifts of the Spirit as he empowers the body and as we make every effort to keep the unity he alone provides, then the world sees that God is on the move. The world sees that the gospel is being preached. The world sees that Jesus is being exalted. The kingdom is advancing. Empowered leaders are empowering the body. The collective community is going far because they're going together. The Holy Spirit is the power source. One body, one spirit, one hope. The church is on fire and we
[00:51:36] Speaker H: move forward on mission together.
So Holy Spirit, come catch your church on fire.
Baptize us, fill us, unify us for one mission in Jesus name.
[00:51:59] Speaker I: Amen.
