SPECIAL ACTION PLAN: No excuse CLASS 101 week is coming up. If you have never taken CLASS 101, or it's been awhile, sign up now atsaddleback.com/class.
"I will build my church, and all the powers of Hell will not defeat it!" Matthew 16:18(NLT)
WHAT IS THE CHURCH?
Not a building. . . place. . . event. . . Institution
THE CHURCH IS:
o GOD'S FAMILY ON EARTH AND IN HEAVEN
"I'm writing to you. . . so you will know how to live in the family of God. That family is the church of the living God, the support and foundation of the truth." 1 Timothy 3:14-15(NCV)
o COMPOSED OF SAVED AND BAPTIZED BELIEVERS
Jesus: "Whoever believes in me and is baptized will be saved, but whoever refuses to believe will be condemned." Mark 16:16
(On the day Jesus began his Church) Peter preached "Repent and be baptized, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then God will give you his Holy Spirit!" Acts 2:38
"Then those who believed were then baptized and they became part of the church—about three thousand people that day." Acts 2:41
o COMMITTED TO JESUS AND EACH OTHER
"Firstthey gave themselves to the Lord; and then, by God's will, they gave themselves to us as well." 2 Corinthians 8:5
"You are to be devoted to each other as brothers and sisters in God's loving family." Romans 12:10
"In Christ's Body, each member belongs to all the others." Romans 12:5(NIV)
". . . the members must have the same care for each other. If one member is hurt or suffers, all suffer together; and if one member is honored, all the others are to rejoice. You are the Body of Christ and each one of you is a necessary part of it." 1 Cor. 12:25-27(ESV)
o PREPARING FOR HEAVEN OR CHRIST'S RETURN
"You are the church of God's children, whose names are registered in heaven, because you have come to God himself. . . and you have come to Jesus. . . " Hebrews 12:23
FIVE OF THE MANY BENEFITS OF BELONGING
1. IN GOD'S FAMILY: I LEARN MY TRUE IDENTITY
"You are members of God's very own family. . . and you belong in God's household with every other Christian."Ephesians 2:19(NIV)
"Jesus and the people he makes holy all belong to the same family. That is why he isn't ashamed to call them his brothersand sisters." Hebrews 2:11(CEV)
2. IN GOD'S TEMPLE: I'M SUPPORTED BY OTHERS
"In Christ the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit." Ephesians 2:21-22 (NIV)
"I want us to help each other with the faith we have. Your faith will help me, and my faith will help you." Romans 1:12(NCV)
ACTION PLAN: Schedule a lunch with each family in your small group. Get to know everyone a little deeper. If you are not in a small group, sign up now atsaddleback.com/smallgroups.
3. IN CHRIST'S BODY: I FULFILL MY PURPOSE
"Just as there are many parts to our bodies, so it is withChrist's Body. We are all parts of it, and it takes every one of us to make it complete, for we each have different work to do. So we belong to each other, and each of us needs all the others." Rom. 12:4-5(LB)
"If your foot says, 'I'm not a part of the body because I'm not a hand,' that doesn't make it any less a part of the body. And if your ear says, 'I'm not part of the body because I'm only an ear and not an eye,' would that make it any less a part of the body?" 1 Corinthians 12:15-16(NLT)
"In Christ's Body we're all connected to each other." Ephesians 4:25(Mes)
ACTION PLAN: Go tosaddleback.com/ministriesand take a look at what areas you can serve at your campus. Pray about them and choose one to pursue.
4. IN GOD'S FLOCK: I'M DEFENDED AND CARED FOR
"Take care of God's flock, his people, that you are responsible for. Watch over them because you want to, not because you are forced to do it." 1 Peter 5:2(ICB)
"Share each other's troubles and problems, and in this way obey the law of Christ." Galatians 6:2(NLT)
5. IN GOD'S GARDEN: MY LIFE BECOMES PRODUCTIVE
"A branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful apart from me. I am the vine and you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. But apart from me you can do nothing." John 15:4-5(NLT)
Doable Discipleship: This week's episode of Doable Discipleship continues a series of Fresh Starts by looking at Spiritual and Physical Health. New episodes release every Tuesday. To listen, click here.
Talk It Over: Have you ever discussed the weekend message in your small group? Talk It Over provides weekly small group discussion questions as a way to bring the weekend message into your small group. To view this week's Talk It Over, click here
