FRIDAY AFTERNOON
MISSION, PHILOSOPHY, VISION (THURSDAY AFTERNOON)
Psalm 105:4 “Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.”
I. MISSION:
- The Great Commission Mt. 28…
- Our mission: to make disciples who make disciples
II. VISION
A. AN INTRODUCTORY WORD ABOUT VISION:
B. A PICTURE OF THE FUTURE
(1) Focus #1: Publicly open the Sarasota Campus in 2025
(2) Focus #2: Find a site for Campus #4
(3) Focus #3: Continue Reducing our Long-Term Debt
(4) Focus #4: More Kingdom Workers
B. PHILOSOPHY
Thinking about Philosophy of Ministry
1) There is a difference between philosophy and theology.
2) Most disunity at staff-elder level is philosophical.
3) Be thankful your voice is heard and don’t be afraid to give input.
4) Be positive and realize it’s working!
5) Understand you won’t be in on every philosophy discussion.
MAJOR BULLET POINTS OF OUR PHILOSOPHY OF MINISTRY
- We are Jesus focused and Bible-centered
- We’re making disciples not just converts
- We want to double our present impact
- We believe in the concept of Simple Church. We want to do a few things well.
- We do everything with all our might to the glory of God.
- We care about families as the bedrock of society and our church.
- We’re called to reach men (“Jake” conversation later)
- We love getting better.
- As a staff, we want to love each other and have fun along the way.
JAKE
See document written in 2016, “The Typical ND Seeker”
Why Men
1) Common sense
2) Scriptural command
3) Felt Need
Why a “young dad”
Why “Jake”
Keeping the balance
FRIDAY EVENING
VESPERS
Study the two passages assigned to your group. Talk about what you learn from these passages about the qualifications and duties of elders. Write out a prayer using the things you’ve observed from the Scripture, asking God to help us apply the passages. The prayer should be 1-2 minutes long. Assign someone to pray the prayer over all of us when we get back together.
GROUP ONE
- Acts 20:28-31
- 1 Tim 3:1-7
GROUP TWO
- Titus 1:5-11
- Titus 2:2
PHILOSOPHY OF DISCIPLESHIP AT NEW DAY
[Mat 28:18-20 ESV] 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
[2Pe 3:18 NIV] 18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.
[Act 2:42-47 NIV] 42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
[Gal 5:22-23 ESV] 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
SUMMARY OF REVEAL STUDY:
Outcomes of spiritual growth are not related to how often people are in the building or in your programs but are dictated by their relational connection to Christ.
Four levels of relational connection:
- Exploring Christ
- Growing in Christ
- Close to Christ
- Christ-centered
These 4 categories have 3 “movements” from one level to the next; the church needs to figure out how to move people across these 3 movements.
Those who “stall” spiritually primarily fall in the earlier categories.
People who are “Christ-centered” have an enormous capacity for increased kingdom impact.
The Bible is the most powerful catalyst for spiritual growth. “Spending time in the Bible is hands down the highest-impact personal spiritual practice.” (true across all 3 movements.)
Three big changes they made:
- Change message to congregation: no longer “one-size-fits-all” spiritual development, but encouraging people to “move from dependence ON the church to a growing interdependent partnership WITH the church.
- Coach next steps: They developed tools for helping people assess where they are spiritually and move to the next level.
- Extend the impact of weekend services: They realized that the weekend service was the most impactful time, so they began to get more intentional about helping people move to the next level, across each of the 3 “movements” on the weekend. (i.e. handing out a journal twice a year to go along with special series and encouraging people to journal their learnings etc… in effort to get them more involved in their own spiritual development Mon-Fri.)
SUMMARY OF SIMPLE CHURCH:
- Whatever you land on needs to be simple and easily communicated to the congregation.
- Everybody should know what you expect of them.
- There shouldn’t be any competing products.
STAGES OF SPIRITUAL GROWTH
- Seeker / Pre-born
- Infant / Child (Consumer, needs to be fed)
- Young Adult (Has moved to feeding themselves)
- Spiritual parent (Is feeding / discipling others)
A PERSON NEEDS THE FOLLOWING TO GROW IN CHRIST:
- Growing in knowledge (biblical knowledge and application)
- Growing in relationships (with God and God’s people)
- Growing in mission (growing in passion, influence, etc.)
BRAINSTORMING EXERCISE:
You are on the elder board of a church in Wauchula, FL, of 600 people.
There is a lot of enthusiasm but no clear plan of discipleship.
Your people are wide open to change and there are no sacred cows.
A new preacher is leading a retreat and has asked for direction:
How will we disciple people at our church?
Make sure you answer the following questions:
– What do people need to grow in Christ & become disciple makers?
– What programs will we offer to help them meet these needs?
– How will we measure whether the programs are successful?
– How will we communicate to the congregation the expectations for involvement?
SATURDAY
THEOLOGY AT NEW DAY – THREE IMPORTANT REMINDERS
I. BIBLICAL INERRANCY
TEN REASONS WHY I TRUST THE BIBLE AS GOD’S WORD
1. IT HAS STOOD THE TEST OF TIME
2. IT CLAIMS TO BE THE WORD OF GOD
[2Ti 3:16 NIV] 16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness…
3. IT IS HISTORICALLY ACCURATE
4. ITS PROPHECIES ARE FULFILLED
5. ITS WISDOM IS UNMATCHED
6. IT IS ENDORSED BY RIGHTEOUS PEOPLE
7. IT MAKES EXCLUSIVE TRUTH CLAIMS
8. IT CHANGES LIVES
9. IT ANSWERS THE MOST IMPORTANT LIFE QUESTION
10. IT TELLS US ABOUT THE GREATEST PERSON EVER TO LIVE
CONCLUDING POINTS ABOUT INERRANCY
- We believe the original autographs were inspired & inerrant.
- The Scriptures are our authority in all matters.
- We seek to unify Christians whenever possible. We will seek to not divide over disputable matters. However, we will lean toward a more conservative approach in regards to the authority of Scripture.
II. HOW WE TALK ABOUT BAPTISM
A. WHAT WE BELIEVE ABOUT SALVATION:
There is only one way to be saved from your sins:
– By trusting your soul to Jesus Christ, putting your faith in Him.
– Not by good works, trusting in yourself, following another God.
– “Believe on the LJ,” Paul and Silas said, “& you will be saved.”
– John 3:16 “For God so loved the world…”
When a person is ready to trust in Jesus for salvation, what should they do?
The Bible instructs us to do 3 things to signify our faith in Jesus:
– Repent of sins
– Confess name of Christ
– Be baptized
Acts 2:38 – Peter, 3,000 baptized
Acts 8 – Ethiopian Eunuch
Acts 9 – Paul
Acts 10 – Cornelius
Acts 16 – Philippian jailer Acts 22 – Paul retells story, says Ananias told him…
[Act 22:16 NIV] 16 “And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on his name.”
NOTE: If someone many years ago put their faith in Christ but did not do one or all of those three tangible steps, we should do two things:
1) Affirm them as brothers in Christ
2) Counsel them to take the remaining steps
as Jesus and his apostles commanded
If someone is coming to Christ for the first time, how do we lead them?
- Explain what the Bible says we are to do when trusting in Christ
- Lead them to baptism
- Celebrate their salvation when they’re baptized. Biblically the moment of celebration / new birth / resurrection = baptism.
[Rom 6:3-4 NIV] 3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
B. What to say
- Where are you with the Lord?
- Have you ever had a moment where you surrendered?
- Have you ever been baptized?
- The Bible says that’s the benchmark, the pledge, the moment of commitment.
C. What not to say; terminology to avoid:
- “Believers’ Baptism…” (theological language not biblical.)
- “Baptism is just a symbol.” (Dismissive of Christ command.)
- “You need to be baptized to join this church.”
(Be baptized to join Christ or follow his example, not to join this church.) - “If you’re not baptized you’re not saved.”
(This is divisive and judgmental. We trust the grace of God to save those who believed but were not instructed to follow Christ’s command to be baptized.)
Encourage anyone with questions about baptism to attend N2ND class.
III. WOMEN’S ROLE IN THE CHURCH
A. There are generally two positions:
- Egalitarian:
- There is no difference between male & female.
- The Scriptures about women’s role are cultural and not for our time.
- Complementarian:
- Men and women are equally created by God and have equal status in the kingdom of God as saved and sanctified.
- Men and women are created as different creatures with complementary roles.
- There are principles in Scripture regarding the headship of husbands and male leadership in the church that go beyond culture.
We at ND are unashamedly complementarian.
B. Covering the Scriptures
NOTE: THE BIBLE AFFIRMS THE EQUALITY OF WOMEN
There are 7 difficult New Testament passages that seem at first to contradict this liberation. Instead of seeking to understand these passages, many today are ignoring them. It’s vital that pastors rightly divide the Word of Truth.
Backstory: Christianity was so liberating to 1st century women that they began flaunting their freedoms.
7 “DIFFICULT” NEW TESTAMENT PASSAGES ABOUT WOMEN
WIVES SUBMIT TO HUSBANDS
– Ephesians 5:22-33
– Colossians 3:18-19
– 1 Peter 3:1-7
– Titus 2:4-5
THE BEHAVIOR OF WOMEN IN CORPORATE WORSHIP
– 1 Corinthians 11:1-16: Wear a head covering
– 1 Corinthians 14:34-35: Don’t interrupt the worship service
– 1 Timothy 2:9-15: Don’t instruct a man (or “your husband”) at church
————————————————
(1) HUSBANDS LOVE WIVES & WIVES SUBMIT TO HUSBANDS
This command is a call to restore the complementary relationship between Adam and Eve before the fall. It is not a punishment on women following the fall.
(2) THE THREE DIFFICULT PASSAGES ON WOMEN’S ROLE IN THE CHURCH
1 COR. 11: 1-16
[1Co 11:1-16 NIV] 1 Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ. 2 I praise you for remembering me in everything and for holding to the traditions just as I passed them on to you.
3 But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. 4 Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head. 5 But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head–it is the same as having her head shaved. 6 For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, then she should cover her head.
1 Cor 14:34-35
34 Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says. 35 If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church.
1Timothy 2:9-15
11 A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. 12 I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be quiet.
13 For Adam was formed first, then Eve. 14 And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner. 15 But women will be saved through childbearing–if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety.
Two landmines:
(a) No woman teaching / assuming authority over a man
(b) Women saved through childbearing
CONCLUSION: APPLICATION AT NEW DAY
– Elder, pastor, deacon all reserved for males / “heads of households”
– Preacher has “assumed authority” and therefore no female preachers
– We are careful in our leadership choices not to have women exercising spiritual authority over men (i.e. potentially over their own husbands)
OTHER ISSUES TO DISCUSS IF TIME
- Speaking in Tongues
- Calvinism
SATURDAY AFTERNOON SESSION
DISCUSS THESE THREE TOPICS:
- Ordination Path
- Update on Easter Times
- Philosophy of Preaching and Teaching at ND: SEE BELOW
PHILOSOPHY OF PREACHING AND TEACHING AT ND
SOME PRESUPPOSITIONS:
- People need to learn the Bible.
- We believe people want to learn the Bible.
- Teaching people the Bible is our goal, not entertaining them.
- We should teach with great passion, enthusiasm and creativity, working hard to keep their attention, because what we’re teaching is extremely important. Boring, passionless sermons are of the devil.
- We are talking to intelligent people who don’t know the Bible.
- Every passage we teach is a part of the Gospel story.
- Every passage will have life-changing and eternity-changing implications.
- We must help people see what this passage means and how this passage should affect their daily life.
In simplest terms we do three things when teaching:
(1) We read the Bible.
(2) We explain what the Bible means in its original context.
(3) We apply the Bible to people’s daily lives. (How does this change how I behave on Monday?)
NOTE: We need more preachers & teachers. The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few! How can we pray for, recruit and train more workers?
Be sure to check your spam folder for your emailed notes!