Big Plans
(a children’s book by Bob Shea and Lane Smith)
Joshua 1.1-9
The Lord commissions Joshua
When entering a new land…Be strong and courageous – do according to the law
God had BIG PLANS for his people
1 Kings 2.1-4
David commissions Solomon
When beginning a new era…Be strong, and show yourself a man – keep the charge of the Lord
God had BIG PLANS for his people
Matthew 28.18-20
Jesus commissions the disciples
Go. Make disciples. Baptize them. Teach them.
God has BIG PLANS for his people
Go – an action word. Christ followers are movers. They can’t just sit still because they expect God to move. They understand BIG PLANS.
Make disciples. An active process. Hints at intentionality. Doesn’t cookie cutter the experience. Commissioned for all of us. Intended for all we know.
Baptize them. There is a goal in our dealings with people. Discipleship leads to commitment. Commitment leads to further faith, excitement, experience, and encounters. Push the boulder down the hill, difficult at first, momentum carries it.
Teach them. We have a whole book that helps us know what information is needed. Jesus was very clear and spent much time giving examples of how to live life in the Kingdom of God. Being a Christian was not some nebulous idea, but the expectations were laid out very clearly.
Matthew 22.37-40
Jesus explains the law
Love God. Love Others.
Jesus summarized all the law so we could easily focus (like 3D glasses – force focus to deeper reality)
Love God. No other command is higher than this. Our priority must be to make God our primary concern (Matthew 6.33). Everything we read in the Bible will bring home this point. Our first priority must be to let God be God. Our natural instinct is to make ourselves God.
We must Admit we are sinners, Believe Jesus is our only way, and Confess our dependence.
Love Others. The Beatitudes teach us that the natural flow from dependence on God is service to people. With our hearts, minds, souls focused on God, we then are capable of humbly serving others. Serving others means: meeting practical needs in deeds, words, and influence (discovering what is best for them and society). Living life together.
1 Corinthians 12.12-13
Paul explains the church
Our commitment to serving each other is best seen within the church. Each of us are put in a group like this on purpose for a purpose. We may think we choose, but it’s never about us and our desires. God puts people together to accomplish his purposes.
Know your gifts. Know who you are in Christ so you can be most effective in serving. Are you an apostle, prophet, teacher, miracle-worker, healer, helper, administrator? Use those gifts – all of us are needed if the church is to affect the world (BIG PLANS)
Encourage Ministers. When people begin to exercise their gifts, encourage them! Allow them opportunity, work with those who are serving. Go out of your way to encourage each and every servant you encounter! You need each other. (1 Corinthians 12.27-31)
Treasure Unity. One body, many parts. We must work together. Make unity a priority in the life of the church. Sometimes crazy new ideas come up, like changing the color of the carpet or moving the pulpit off the stage. You may really like this color or helped pick out the pulpit in the first place. Remember this – your focus must be on the Kingdom of God. You may not like some of the stuff the new guy says (Joshua took the people out of their desert lifestyle to a war lifestyle; Solomon took the people out of tent worship to a magnificent temple worship; Jesus flipped the entire world on its head). Some may not have liked it, but the Kingdom of God was proclaimed and shared to new people because of it. Remember this when the new guy says crazy stuff – new plans, new direction, new emphasis. Unity in the body will accomplish more than you can imagine right now. BIG PLANS
BIG PLANS for Bridge? Of course! They always are. As we join forces with like-minded believers from different churches, we will look to see that every man, woman, child has the opportunity to hear about Jesus. With the help of Vineyard, Seaside, Galveston Bible, and others that will come along, we will fight to see that the name of Jesus is proclaimed to everyone here. The Bridge will specifically look to impact young adults on this island – UTMB, TAM, GC are our first priorities. We will look to continue to have an influence in these locations.
God has BIG PLANS for Galveston – almost 60000 fulltime residents, with numbers swelling during the summer and weekends. Cruise terminals that bring people from all over the world to our doorsteps. Starbucks is the culturally recognized hangout spot – people from all walks of life connect at both stores and we have an impact on that too!
Every summer Bridge shuffles the deck and re-deals. We look to figure out how best to reach these people in this place at this time. For the first time, we are dealing with a new table in our connection with Vineyard. But what we commit to isn’t changing.
Bridge will continue to be:
MISSIONAL – Going and being the people of God in every step
MATURING – Growing as individuals and as a group
MINISTERING – serving others outside the doors of the worship experience
MULTIPLYING – planting new churches and groups throughout Galveston and the world
Will you once again commit with me to make God’s kingdom a priority?
Blessing
The God of all grace,
who called you to his eternal glory in Christ Jesus,
establish, strengthen and settle you in the faith;
and the blessing of God almighty,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among you and
remain with you always.