Vision 2018 – Part 2

The Responsibilities of a Church’s Vision

Habakkuk 2:2

Nov 26, 2017 PM

Pastor Craig Ledbetter

Bible Baptist Church, Ballincollig, Cork, Ireland

www.biblebc.com

I.       Introduction (Jeremiah 29:11)

A.    As I mentioned this morning… AD 2018 is just 5 weeks away!

B.     Where do you see yourself in a year…, in five years…, in twenty years?

C.    Here is a more important question: Where does GOD see you?

1.      As still like an unsaved man or woman?

2.      Maybe rebellious against the will of God, and fighting His work in your heart? Then surely you will never be happy and know the fulfilled life of a yielded Christian!

3.      Or maybe He sees a tender heart, yearning to be more like Jesus, serving others, and making a difference in our generation!

D.    Don’t you think you ought to find out where GOD wants you, and what He wants you and I doing? (Read Jer 29:11 again. Then Psalm 37:23,24)

E.     It would help to have a God-given view of the future – don’t you think?

1.      Not a career plan; not a dream; not a hope; but a vision

2.      Not a self-made vision either – that is the big thing these days – SELF-INSPIRATION! No!

3.      A VISION! A God-given, Holy Spirit inspired, Bible based vision for yourself, your family, for this church, and for our nation!

F.     Today is Vision Sunday!

G.    Tonight I want us to catch a vision of what our lives, and our church should be like, both tomorrow, and all next year!

II.    Background

A.    Our Church (1Cor 12:12-18)

1.      Is PEOPLE – full stop. All the ones present, missing, and potential.

a.       It is NOT the buildings, the programs, the busses, or the computers.

b.      A church is people!

2.      Are people in need of LIVING examples – by those who have been down the road so to speak, and know what it is to follow Christ for a while

3.      Are people who NEED this church – need it to be here, week after week

4.      Are people who MUST grow, spiritually, AND numerically

5.      Is designed by Christ to go against the culture and flow (course) of this world – let’s keep it that way

6.      Is not just a simple group of people who “gather together”, but is supposed to be a fully functioning complex BODY of many different members, abilities, and ministries, just like the human body - working together in beautiful unity!

B.     Our Leadership Team (Romans 12:1,2; Eph 4:8,11,12)

1.      Are PEOPLE too

a.       We are not machines, or tools, calendars, or plans

b.      But Saved sinners who have flaws, ups and downs, and needs ourselves

c.       We are people who have willingly offered ourselves as living sacrifices like we are supposed to (Rom 12:1,2)

d.      And work together towards common goals – towards a God-given vision

2.      Are GIFTS to our Church (Eph 4:8,11,12)

C.    What I Expect of Myself and our Leadership Team

1.      Every team has requirements and expectations – sports teams, business teams

a.       A church team is no different

b.      I constantly give assignments

c.       I have many expectations

d.      And they have expectations of ME

e.       That’s how a team works

2.      Punctuality and being early to church, to the office meetings on Tuesday

3.      Intense PARTICIPATION in Tuesday Planning meetings

4.      Better Time and project Management. This coming year, we will ALL work on some Time and Project Management principles to help us do more without getting discouraged!

5.      Keep yourself busy

6.      Let pastor know when you are not going to be in the office, or teaching, or working your ministry – put your schedule (holidays, etc) in the Planning Doc

7.      Soul-winning by all the office team!

8.      Pass all information upwards – Pastor should not have to ask you how someone is doing in your ministry. And Pastor should not find out about a problem that you have known about for a while and just didn’t think to tell him.

D.    What has God CALLED YOU to do? (2Cor 5:14,15)!!!

1.      He has NOT asked ANYTHING of us…

2.      But rather has compelled, pulled, tugged, convicted, convinced, burdened us all to do SOMETHING!

3.      What is it? What could it be this coming year?

III. Message – What to Do With the Vision (Habakkuk 2:2)

A.    Never Forget Where you Came From

1.      Eph 5:8  For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light.

2.      Eph 2:11  Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands; 

3.      Eph 2:12  That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: 

4.      Eph 2:13  But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. 

5.      The worst kind of Christians are those that think they have arrived, have succeeded, have a leg up on everyone else, and no longer have struggles

6.      There is everything good about living in victory over sins and temptations, but there is everything wrong with acting like you never were salves to sin, never lived under the yoke of bondage, and never were failures! And that you have always lived like you do now!!!

7.      Never forgot the PIT from when you have been rescued!

B.     Never Trivialise What We Do Here

1.      Often, it is only the GOVERNMENT that is looked to and made out to be the answer to every problem

2.      Others look to Doctors, and Lawyers, and Chemists, and Counsellors and Psychiatrists

3.      But GOD established the greatest source of stability for ANY community – whether in London, or Dublin, or Jakarta, or Southern Sudan!

4.      The local, New Testament kind of Baptist church, that we have right here!

5.      The world may laugh

a.       At our Holiday Bible Clubs,

b.      And our Children’s Church lessons,

c.       And the foolishness of preaching and teaching the precepts of this old King James Bible

d.      And our Hymns,

e.       And our prayer meetings

f.        And all the money we send to our Missionaries,

g.      And all our efforts door to door soul-winning!

6.      But ALL of those are ways that God saves a nation!

7.      The Opportunities to SERVE that God Has Opened Up for US as a Church

a.       Powder Mills Nursing Home

b.      11 years of Twelve Weeks to Freedom from Addiction

c.       23 years of Evangelism (30,000 homes)

d.      Presenting the Gospel to Mom’s and Dad’s, grandma’s and granddad’s, countless children and teenagers, to city officials, and Garda – many of whom would never have ever heard if we didn’t go out of our way to reach people with the Gospel!

e.       Every single things we do, is HUGE! Very important for souls, and for the people who gather here!

C.    Don’t Trivialize the Vision for 2018 (Ezra and Nehemiah)

1.      BUILDING – isn’t that we Christians do?

a.       We build families, and people

b.      We rebuild marriages and relationships

c.       We work on restoring what was thrown away – AMEN!

2.      BATTLING (Rom 8:37)

a.       If there is any battle fiercer than the spiritual one going on right now, I don’t know what it is!

b.      Christians should be fully armoured, and wrestling our enemy to the matt!

c.       The battles don’t define us – the victories do!

d.      Let’s get busy winning the victories as MORE than conquerors that we are!

e.       We will see this throughout the year

3.      BY THE BOOK

a.       The ONLY plan book that works!

D.    Allow Our New Vision to Affect Your Heart (Lam 3:51; Rom 9:1-3; Luke 19:41)

1.      Maybe you have closed your eyes to what is all happening in our world today

2.      But if you only would open your eyes and SEE just what all is coming

a.       It has been coming for decades

b.      Such filth and abuses – of children and infants

c.       FORGET WOMEN’S RIGHTS for a moment and realise what is REALLY being violated! CHILDREN and even INFANTS!

3.      The wickedness of young boys is beyond words!

4.      What is just ONE CLICK away on the internet is a world of iniquity!

5.      And it is being shoved down everyone’[s phones, and TV’s and X-Box games

6.      And people are getting harder and harder against God and the Gospel!

7.      Ask God to give you a REAL BURDEN

a.       A burden is an unquenchable pull (call of God) to do something greater than we currently are

b.      We need a burden that weighs down our thoughts about the lost

c.       We need something that concerns us about just how much bondage people are in

d.      We need to care about OTHERS and NOT ourselves anymore

e.       We need to take living holy seriously

f.        We need to accept persecution – taking up our cross daily

g.      We need to willingly and joyfully take up the will of God, no matter the weight of it (Num 4:15, 47)

h.      Remember, we ALL exchanged our own burdens for new ones (My 11:28-31; Ps 38:4)

E.     The Team We ALL Must Become (Exod 18:22)

1.      Every spiritual need and ministry demands more than just one doing it (Luke 5:18,19)

2.      I am tired of doing much of the work

3.      There are some great helpers in this church – but not enough are helping

4.      Most everyone has their excuse – and most of them are only lies that cover a life of selfishness and greed

5.      I am not sorry for telling it like it is!

6.      We must become a team – that’s what families do

a.       No family survives very long when Dad does everything, and Mom sits and watches soaps, and the kids just play on their phones!

b.      No family survives very long when MOM does everything, and Dad just sits and plays the X-box, and the kids just play on their phones!

c.       A family needs EVERYONE helping – each doing what they can do, all the time – not just when they feel like it!

F.     The Opposition to Expect  - What we are up against

1.      OURSELVES (Acts 20:28-30!

a.       Your old self-centred nature WILL destroy others

b.      Immature people who seek leadership and power will destroy others!

c.       Watch your tongue, your heart, your attitudes, your critical spirit – gentlemen AND ladies

2.      From carnal Christians who do not want to be made to feel bad, and exposed as being lazy and backslidden! They will cool new believers down out of embarrassment!

3.      A digital age without limits – so much money being spent to push people out of morality, reality and sobriety

4.      A level of deep APATHY amongst Christians, and sin so unimaginable

a.       Jer 19:5  They have built also the high places of Baal, to burn their sons with fire for burnt offerings unto Baal, which I commanded not, nor spake it, neither came it into my mind.

b.      If we don’t have a church here in Ballincollig and Cork, this place will close up into the darkness

1)      Patrick’s Day parade will be taken over by the Queers

2)      Innishmore will return to the dealers

5.      A devil who is freer than ever before in the Western World to do as he pleases (Eph 2:2)

a.       Like a wide, fast flowing river, driving everything down to hell

b.      Trying to fight against it will always be hard

c.       But God gave us a good example that it can be done - SALMON

6.      Jesus gave to the world a very foolish looking answer to the darkness of our world: He gave it HIMSELF (Gospel); His CHURCH (Living Proof); and His very WORDS (the power to free people).

7.      If we succeed, then the Irish who get saved can actually reach this world in this generation!

a.       They can go to ANY country in the world with the Gospel! Passports are the best!

b.      They have a respect amongst the world that can get into kings palaces and pauper shacks!

III. Invitation

A.    What PIT Were you saved from?

1.      Never Forget Where you Came From

2.      Have you even BEEN saved?

B.     Never Trivialise What We Do Here

C.    Don’t Trivialize the Vision for 2018 (Ezra and Nehemiah)

D.    Allow Our New Vision to Affect Your Heart (Lam 3:51; Rom 9:1-3; Luke 19:41)

E.     Will YOU become the Team We are supposed to be?

F.     Expect Opposition – even from your own heart!

G.    “And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.” (Habakkuk 2:2)

1.      Well, I have written out the vision

2.      I have made it plain upon the Powerpoints

3.      Will you run with me?