Motive, Manner, and Message of Our Life Group

What’s up family!

So, we didn’t have Life Group this week (another snow storm!!!) so I wanted to send out some chop up material to help keep the wheels in your mind going as well as assist in the development of your spiritual (wo)man.

One of the core values at Life Group is community. We’re mad serious and intentional about promoting a communal Christ Centric environment. If you’ve been to a session this year, you’ve definitely heard the phrase, “We’re living life together.” That’s the thing --- we’re young adults living out life together in many different phases and facets. The analogy Paul gives of the church being one body (I Corinthians 12) really is a model of what we’re doing at Life Group. “For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body” (I Cor. 12:12, emphasis added). The importance of this lies in the truth that God has intended the believer to be in community with other believers. There are two things that cannot be done on the solo tip in life --- being married and being a Christian! Life Group promotes only what God has originally intended for the believer, namely, to be in community with other believers.

Alongside the priority of promoting a Christ Centric Community, we stay focused about our motives, manner, and message of Life Group. Our friend Paul gives us an example of this in Acts chapter 20:18 – 21:

And when they came to him, he said to them: “You yourselves know how I lived among you the whole time from the first day that I set foot in Asia, serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials that happened to me through the plots of the Jews; how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you in public and from house to house, testifying both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Here we see Paul choppin it up with the elders from the church of Ephesus on his way to Jerusalem. One of the initial things I appreciate about this passage of scripture is the importance Paul has in building with the elders. The reader, in this passage, finds a benevolent Paul in that he spends time with them at Miletus where he was waiting to board a ship to Jerusalem. Again, we see that Christianity was intended to be lived in community! Paul knew the importance of thorough chop up sessions! Luke reports a total of eight messages by Paul to different people (Acts 13:14 – 43 (speaking to a Jewish synagogue congregation); 14:14-18; 17:22-34 (Gentiles); 20:17-38 (church leaders); 22:1-21 (a Jewish mob); 23:1-10 (a Jewish council); 24:10-21; 26:1-32 (various government officials). This particular chop up session with the elders is different than other accounts in that we get a glimpse of how Paul built with the believers in Ephesus.

So, checking out verse 18 of chapter 20, Paul begins to give his last words to the elders. He begins by reflecting back on his 3 years with them.

“You yourselves know how I lived among you the whole time from the first day that I set foot in Asia, serving the Lord…

In this opening comment we find the motive of Paul’s ministry… serving the Lord. Throughout New Testament scripture Paul reminds us of his motive for doing what he does. Even looking at the same chapter, in verse 33, Paul mentions that he’s not at all interested in making money. Paul was solely concerning over the advancement of God’s kingdom in the life of believers. 1 Thess. 2:1-13 gives a great example of Paul’s heart concerning ministry. Verse 8 says, “Being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us,” and in verse 11, “For you know how, like a father with his children, we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.”

In like manner, and solely by God’s grace, we desire the same thing at Life Group. Our motive is exclusively to help others – as well as ourselves – see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God (2 Cor. 4:4). We are ready to share with you not only the gospel, but our own selves, because all of you have become very dear to us (I Thess. 2:8). In this sense, we’re living life together; helping one another achieve this goal --- the advancement of God’s kingdom in our lives.

As we continue Paul’s convo with the elders in Acts 20:19, he goes on to say that his motive in ministry was to serve the Lord, and the manner in which he did that consisted of humility and with tears. There’s something to be said of a man or woman of God who serves humbly now a days, but to serve in a way that brings tears in completely another story. Often, the tears come from aggravation or heartache over not wanting to deal with this, that, or the third (I’ve been there!), but this wasn’t Paul’s case. The tears came not from wanting to throw in the towel because an idea he had for ministry didn’t work out or because someone offended him; no, they came from his desire for the people. Romans 9 and Philippians 3 are great examples of this. Looking at the former, Paul describes in his letter to the Romans in chapter 9 verses 1 – 5 his anguish (which I’m sure included tears) concerning his Jewish brothers not responding positively to the message of Jesus Christ. He says in verse 2, “I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart for I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers.” YO! That’s passion for people! You can imagine the tears running down Paul’s face as he says, “They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship and the promises” (Romans 9:4). He’s like, “YO, I wanna see my brothers (and sisters) come into the light of the saving knowledge of Christ. Man, this is bringing me to tears. I’m suffering - there’s a deep anguish in my heart over their depravity.”

If this doesn’t suffice for you, check out Phillippians 3:17 – 18: “Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ.”

YO! Paul had passion for the people! When’s the last time you wept for your friend, co-worker, or cousin over the fact they’re unredeemed? This manner of ministry will be reflected in our Life Group. Passion, fervor, vigor, zealousness describe the inner fabrics of what make up our community. We’re enthusiastic and intense in the pursuit of this cause and objective.

(Other examples of this can be found in Acts 20:31,37; and 2 Corinthians 2:4)

Last, but certainly not least, the message of Paul is also described in his convo with the elders. Verse 20 of Acts chapter 20 says, “I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you in public and from house to house, testifying both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.” Man, Paul was a Christ Centric dude. He was clear in that the ONLY way a sinner can be saved is through Christ. Here’s one example:

I am ashamed that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel – not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you (check 1 Corinthians 15:1-8), let him be accursed.
– Galatians 1:6 – 9

The message was clear in Paul’s case --- Christ Alone homie (Solus Christus)! Back in Acts 20:32 Paul says, “And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified” (emphasis added). This is what we will do at Life Group through various chop up sessions like, “Drop The Bottles and Get It Poppin For Christ” and “Spiritual Disciplines (coming next month). As the message was clear and concise in the mouth of Paul, so it will be in the mouths of our Life Group, namely, “There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

In closing, the motive of our Life Group is to offer support and help, the manner in which we will do this will be with humility and tears over the state of your soul, and the message will be Christ Crucified all day every day! Acts 26:31 brings a nice consummation to this blog entry and what we do at Life Group:

To [help] open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith. – Acts 26:31

SOLUS CHRISTUS! CHRISTUS VICTOR!