Just got back from a week at church planting school in Sydney with about 120 keen emerging planters, what a great time. Nothing better than being in an atmosphere where people are hungry to give their lives to building the church. That thrills the hearts of us guys on the leadership team because we have given the rest of our lives to seeing the church become the relevant force that it was always destined to be. I see the biggest challenge to growing churches isn't the unchurched. They want God its the church, as they know it, that is their problem. Their lives are under incredible stress and pressure, they come looking for answers and the we fulfil their greatest suspicions....that the Church doesn't have any answers.
But this is what we have all given our lives to, to see changed.
On Monday night I shared from Luke 12 where Jesus was talking with the then leaders of the faith.
Luke 12:1 (NLT)
Meanwhile, the crowds grew until thousands were milling about and crushing each other. Jesus turned first to his disciples and warned them, "Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees—beware of their hypocrisy.
Hypocrisy: an expression of agreement that is not supported by real conviction
Its acting as if you are something that you are not
The church leaders of the day wanted to change the boundaries between:
· What is acceptable and what is not
· What is good and what is evil
· What is right and what is wrong.
What used to be called sexual perversion is now called ones “sexual preference”.
What once was living in sin is now an “alternate lifestyle”.
And this is the tension that as we spend longer in the leadership process the greater the temptation can be. That we start to blur the lines of our core convictions. None of us started of thinking about money, the fact that we even got paid to work at the church was overwhelming. To get asked to preach somewhere was huge in itself, but then to find out that they give you an offering as well!! Any home, hotel, caravan park was a joy to stay in you were just thrilled to be asked to preach somewhere. But now your decisions may be more about the size of the offering or the crowd or the rating of the hotel before you decide whether to go or not.
Proverbs 22:28 (NIV)
Do not move an ancient boundary stone set up by your forefathers.
Moral authority is when we lead from who we are and not what we say. Its when our character talks more to people than our words do. Its when we lead from the integrity of our lives. Not all that our fore fathers did or said needs to be embraced but not all of it needs to be brushed aside. There are some characteristics that they had that we need...more on that tomorrow.
1 comment:
Great post Ross, looking forward to part 2. When reading the last paragraph of your post I was reminded of a particular chapter in a book I have recently read; Uprising: A Revolution Of The Soul by Erwin Raphael Mc Manus.
There is a whole chapter focused on integrity titled, “turned inside out”, the paragraphs that come to mind were referring to when King David was preparing the people of Israel to build the temple. He asked of the people to give freely of their wealth, possessions and skills and then he lead the way by giving generously of his own possessions. He would not ask the people under his care to do something he was not willing to do. In his prayer, we discover why.
But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand. We are aliens and strangers in your sight, as were all our forefathers. Our days on earth are like a shadow, without hope. O LORD our God, as for all this abundance that we have provided for building you a temple for your Holy Name, it comes from your hand, and all of it belongs to you. I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity. All these things have I given willingly and with honest intent. And now I have seen with joy how willingly your people who are here have given to you. (1 Chron. 29:14-17)
David wasn’t just modeling the right thing; the right thing was the longing of his heart. He understood that God could see beyond actions and look straight into the soul. Among all of Israel, David had been entrusted with ultimate power and authority. His response was to give first and above the rest. Nothing he did was out of constraint or obligation. There was a joy and exhilaration in doing something that would bring pleasure to God.
Perhaps the most amazing thing about integrity is when you still choose to do what’s right when you’re all alone, no one sees you, and no one will know what you do. It’s a wonderful thing when you look inside your own heart and like what you see.
Before I encountered Jesus, I thought my only purpose in life was to be abused. Who I once was to who I now am, is nothing other than the miracle of the restoring grace and love of Jesus Christ.
From when I first came into relationship with Jesus, I encountered people that witnessed to me this very kind of integrity. At first I was far from understanding the changes that would take place in my life, yet what I saw in these people offered me hope of what was to come.
In conclusion I believe and support that we the church should be able to offer and demonstrate the answers that are so often conceivably watered down and therefore justified into the people’s lifestyles. Our lives should demonstrate what is acceptable and what is not; what is evil and what is not; what is right and what is wrong, always with the love and grace that we received within our own salvation.
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