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Transcript

Why? · HBCWestminster

• 0:01
  Well, with your Bibles open to Matthew 28, let me begin this way. There's a phrase, there's a phrase that our culture is using more and more that I often employ myself. I find opportunities to use it more and more, and the phrase is this. Typically, follows a long silence where nobody knows what to say or do, and then somebody will break the silence by saying, well, this is awkward.
• 0:24
  Awkward moments, awkward conversations, often awkward events and scenarios where people don't necessarily know what to do. Do you ever just think what in the world is happening right now? This last November 30th, the Washington Post published an article just a month and a half ago about a man named Gavin Clarkson, and perhaps you heard about this.
• 0:47
  But the Washington Post said this, Gavin Clarkson has had a tough few months. In June of 2018, he lost a Republican primary in a New Mexico congressional race. So he ran for New Mexico Congress and lost. Earlier this month, that would be November, he lost a bid to become New Mexico Secretary of State. So he also lost that. And then, while trying to get a marriage license on November 20th, he had to argue with a Washington, D.C. Superior Court clerk.
• 1:15
  who apparently didn't know New Mexico is a state. Clarkson said the clerk told him she couldn't accept an international driver's license when he handed her his New Mexico driver's license, and she asked to see his New Mexico passport. Can you imagine that?
• 1:36
  He flies to Washington, D.C. because that's where his fiancée lives. You find out later in the article. The two of them had planned on getting married, and so November 20th, he goes to Washington, D.C. to apply for a marriage license so the two of them can be married. The clerk said, no, we don't accept international driver's licenses. I need to see your New Mexico passport. After consulting with a supervisor and performing what Clarkson speculated was a Google search, the clerk confirmed that New Mexico is indeed a member of the United States.
• 2:07
  The wedding went ahead as planned. Clarkson said, it's funny looking back on it, but it wasn't funny in the moment. He said, I was going to go full lawyer mode. Other reports said that people standing behind him in line actually began arguing on his behalf. No, New Mexico actually is a state. You have a map of the United States? We'll show you where it is. You should really get out of town once in a while. At the end of that same article, the Washington Post said,
• 2:37
  This is proof that you live in what they call a flyover state. The only reason to go to New Mexico is to get to the other side, I think is what they're saying. Leo DeRocher, famous manager of the 1950s Los Angeles Dodgers, said this, Baseball is like church. Many attend, but few understand. And I pray that it wouldn't happen, but I also understand the reality that many who visit churches across the country every single weekend
• 3:07
  find the church a little bit awkward. Many of the church's traditions may seem pointless and obsolete to some, maybe less than profitable. Some of the things that we do and say leave attendees feeling disillusioned rather than blessed. And so this morning, after taking some time in discussion with our elder board, I want to do some explaining. There are some things that we do consistently here at Highland, weekly or monthly, which if you've grown up in the church, probably seem very normal.
• 3:39
  and right, and accurate, but if you're not familiar with the church, probably seem really confusing and weird. And as I prayed about the best way to communicate these to the congregation, we've decided to take one Sunday today and quickly explain the reason behind each of these church sacraments and traditions. I've decided to try to explain them in the order in which you probably encountered them if this were your first Sunday.
• 4:07
  visiting with us. My goal this morning is to answer the question, why? Beginning with, why Baptist? If you've come this morning for the first time, you saw our funny little white sign out there that says Highland Baptist Church. Why Baptist? The word Baptist often carries with it a lot of baggage. Some very positive and some very negative. Frequently when I'm in the community,
• 4:39
  I'll be introduced as the pastor of a Baptist church. That's how I'm often introduced to people that I've never met. He's the pastor of a Baptist church. And I typically get one of three responses. First and most frequent is this. Oh, this is Danny. He is the pastor of a Baptist church. Reply, really? You don't look like a Baptist pastor. And I must confess, I have no idea what that means. I don't know what to do with it.
• 5:11
  I have seen a lot of Baptist pastors, so I'm going to take that as a compliment? I mean, honestly, I'm like, I don't really know what to do with that. You don't look like a Baptist pastor. I don't know what they expect, but I'm not it, apparently. The second reply that I often get is, really, I grew up a Baptist. They typically say it just like that, with the same inflection and tone, and that usually means the conversation's over.
• 5:42
  The third response is usually a smile and a nod, as if to say, really? Isn't that cute? I also used to believe in Santa Claus. Now, not knowing your personal history with the term Baptist, let me just explain quickly what it means here at this church. Highland belongs to a Baptist conference called Converge. We're an association of churches unified in our doctrine and mission to take the gospel to the furthest parts of the earth.
• 6:13
  We are to plant churches. We are making disciples. Highland is one Baptist church among many whose mission it is to see Christ glorified through the preaching of the gospel around the world. But that's not what makes us Baptists. We are called Baptists because we baptize. You guys have your Bibles open in Matthew 28? And in verse 19, you're familiar with the Great Commission. This is Jesus commissioning the church to go and make disciples.
• 6:43
  And it says in Matthew 28 and verse 19, therefore, make disciples of all nations. What's the next word? Baptizing them. Now that word baptize in the Greek is the word baptize, right? It's the word baptize, baptizo, right? It's baptize. It's the same exact word. We get the English word baptize from the Greek word baptize. It's the same word. It means to immerse or submerge in water. That's what it means. Dunk them under the water, okay?
• 7:13
  baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Spirit, and teaching them to observe all that I've commanded to the end of the age. So we are commissioned by Christ to make disciples by baptizing and by teaching. When a man or woman commits their life to Christ, we baptize them by submerging them underwater because that's what the Bible says to do. Now this accomplishes a number of things. First, your baptism,
• 7:44
  makes your profession of faith public. The Bible says we are not called to light our lamps and then hide them under a basket. We are called instead to be cities on hills where everybody can see. We are not to be ashamed of the gospel, but to proclaim the gospel boldly. And that baptism, although having nothing to do with your salvation, your faith in Christ is what saves you, your baptism makes that profession of faith public.
• 8:14
  It's the public profession, public proclamation of an inward transformation. And so that's first. Second, baptism also identifies us with the Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible says that when Jesus died, he was taken off the cross, buried for three days, and then risen, right? Risen to new life. He was resurrected from the dead. And baptism reflects that resurrection.
• 8:42
  So when we dunk you under the water, it's the same, you're basically saying, I commit my life to Christ the same way that he went in the ground, I go in the water, right? And the same way that he stopped breathing, he was dead, I stopped breathing, or hopefully you do, going under the water, right? We put you underwater, it reflects his death, and then when we pull you out of the water, risen to newness of life. You identify with the death and resurrection, the burial of Jesus Christ.
• 9:08
  when you're baptized so it identifies you with the savior but it also identifies you with the church everybody in here for the last 2 000 years the church has been baptizing people everybody in here has been baptized even our own lord jesus christ was baptized before he went to the cross was baptized and so you're saying i believe what they believe i'm with them i'm part of them why baptist and the reason is because we baptize and that's why we do it
• 9:38
  Now, if you made it past the sign and you saw the word Baptist and you decided to attend anyway, and you came in to the front doors, you were greeted by some very nice people, right, who shook your hand and welcomed you to the church. And if they weren't nice, please report that to me. But they greeted you there. They handed you a bulletin that had some information about the church. You came in and you sang some songs. You said, oh, yeah, I forgot the church sings. Oh, this is nice. You know, the music's good. And the songs are Christ-honoring and Christ-exalting, gospel-focused.
• 10:06
  That's wonderful, and then we ask you to sit down, and then we ask the ushers to come forward to take our offering. And you may have thought, oh yeah, I forgot churches ask for money. Why an offering? Why do you guys do that? This is a real question. I was asked this last year. Why do we take an offering? Why do we do that? The simple answer is because the Bible says we should. Turn with me, if you would, to the right. 2 Corinthians 8. 2 Corinthians 8, beginning in verse...
• 10:44
  One, Paul describes a church in Macedonia, what is modern-day Greece, basically, but a church in Macedonia who has been taking an offering to help other churches. It begins in verse 1. We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia. For in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. For they gave according to their means.
• 11:17
  as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints. And this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord, and then by the will of God to us. Accordingly, we urged Titus. Now, Titus was a young pastoral protege of the Apostle Paul, who was there in Macedonia helping with this collection. We urged Titus that as he started, so he should complete among you.
• 11:46
  This act of grace. Now, what act of grace is Paul making reference to in verse 6? What is that phrase referring to? This act of grace. You guys all see it there in your Bibles? What's he talking about? I know we're Baptists, but we are allowed to talk. What's he talking about? He's not talking about baptism. Go back up. He's talking about the money, the giving, the offering.
• 12:17
  Right? We encourage Titus to continue in this act of grace. That act of grace is that offering. Notice verse 7. But as you excel in everything, in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all earnestness, and in our love for you, see that you excel in this act of grace also. Giving of our finances to advance the kingdom through the church is commended by God and even commanded by God in 2 Corinthians.
• 12:46
  Chapter 8. Now do not understand. If you zoned out for a minute, zone back in with me. Hear this. This is not me compelling you to give. That's not what I'm doing. If you look over to the right, one more page. 2 Corinthians 9, verse 7. Look what it says. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion. So giving.
• 13:17
  is a private act between you and the Lord. It has nothing to do with anybody else. You give according to what the Lord has compelled you to give, not according to what Pastor Danny expects. And in fact, because of that, we take every effort and we really have measures put in place that guards the staff from knowing what anybody else gives. I have no clue what anybody gives in this church. I know what I give.
• 13:45
  I know what my mom gives because I do her taxes. Okay? But other than that, and that is not an offer to anybody else, just so you'll know. Beyond that, I don't know what anybody gives. We have a financial secretary at the church whose job it is to track each person's giving, and there's accountability even in that to make sure that everything's on the up and up. But we have one person whose job it is to track so that we can send charitable contribution letters at the end of the year.
• 14:15
  But that person is the only one who sees names next to dollar amounts. Nobody in the pastoral staff, none of the elders, none of the trustees, nobody has any idea what anybody else gives. And the reason is because we don't want you to feel compelled that you've got to give in order to make us happy or that you've got to give in order to impress us or you think that it might change the way the church acts toward you because you give a certain dollar amount. None of that is true. We have no idea what anybody gives because the Bible says,
• 14:43
  It is a personal thing. Each one should give what the Lord has commanded him to give. And you'll notice at the end of verse 9 there, that same 2 Corinthians 9, I'm sorry, the end of verse 7, it says, for God loves a cheerful giver. He wants you to be so filled with joy as you give that you know you're advancing his kingdom and doing what he wants you to do, not what anybody else says or does. Well, what does your financial giving do? That's why we do it. The Bible says to.
• 15:12
  But what does it accomplish? There are some things. As I announce, you know, the numbers that have come in from the last year and what we plan to do with them. What does your financial giving do first? It advances the kingdom by freeing up full-time ministry workers. This church employs four full-time staff. We have an additional pastor, Bob Jones.
• 15:36
  who is a licensed member of our staff and who has volunteered to do that for free, and we praise God for that. We have three full-time paid pastors, and we have one full-time office manager and financial secretary. And what that means is because of your giving, there's four people who are full-time staff members of this church are at your disposal all the time. All the time. It's full-time. It's what we do full-time as our jobs.
• 16:02
  Your expectation should be that if you come during office hours, that there will be somebody here to take your call, to counsel, to help, to answer your questions. We're here. If you need us to come and visit you, we will be there. It's our job and it's our joy to do that. And so your expectation can be that our full-time job is to serve the members of this church. And so for instance, this last Wednesday afternoon after lunch, about one o'clock,
• 16:31
  when all of the other full-time employees of various corporations were out working for their bosses, I and Bob and Dina Jones drove down to St. Anthony Central to visit Roger Sweeney. Roger, as you guys know, if you've been getting the prayer requests, beloved member of our church, had a stroke two weeks ago, and is there, is doing well, is progressing, but he has a long, arduous road ahead of him.
• 16:59
  His speech is intelligible, although he's frustrated because he said it feels like he's got a mouth full of marbles. He's gaining feeling and dexterity back to his left side of his body, which was damaged pretty severely, not only by the stroke, but also by the fall that he took because of it. And so we drove down there and spent an hour with him. And honestly, our goal was...
• 17:20
  just to sit and encourage him, to pray with him, and to try to make him laugh. There's nothing we can do, like physically, you know, I mean, I'm not his physical therapist, but we just wanted to go down there and tell him that the church had not forgotten about him, that we love him, and we can't wait to see him back when he can get here. And then we drove from there up to 112th and Malley, where there's a rehab center and convalescent care center where Glenda Crutchmar is living.
• 17:43
  Glenda is a beloved member of our church, and we drove over there for an hour, sat with her, and joked with her, and talked about how to get stuff that she needs by using the black market that undoubtedly exists there in the convalescent care center. Do you need any packs of cigarettes to trade for your Froot Loops and whatever? Obviously, we're not going to go buy her a pack of cigarettes. That is not what your financial giving does.
• 18:05
  But we, all right, we just wanted to encourage her and make her laugh. And Glenda, we love you. And so spent an hour with her. And then when that was done, we came back here and we had the worship night Wednesday night. And I'll tell you, if I was, if I had a full-time job outside of the church and was responsible for preaching responsibilities and was also trying to raise a family, there's no way I could have gone down there and seen them. There's just no way.
• 18:30
  But your financial giving has made us available to go and to serve the body, even when everybody else is at work. That's one thing it does. But your giving also educates and trains and sends missionaries all over the world. This last Thursday, we sent Isaiah DeLorenzo, our beloved son and missionary, back to Peru. He called me yesterday, let me know that he got to Lima okay. Today, he is trekking back into the jungle to reach an unreached people group there in Peru. We're so proud of him.
• 18:59
  But honestly, without this church, he couldn't go. We are his biggest support, and we are his sending church. We are his covering to the Peruvian government who issues visas and all of that stuff. We are his protection. And so we send missionaries all over the world. Your giving provides resources and facilities to preach the gospel, to show hospitality with weddings and funerals. Your financial giving paid for this building.
• 19:24
  Where we have weddings and funerals. Even one last week, a funeral last week, we can show hospitality to people in our community. We have worship nights and game nights. We do community outreach. Did you know we have offered this building, obviously three churches use our building. The building belongs to you, but two other churches enjoy this facility because you've provided it. We've also offered our building to the community. We do life screening, medical screening tests here for no charge.
• 19:51
  We have them here, nurses and whatever, doctors and all of their equipment set up in our fellowship hall and check people's hearts and brain activity and all of that stuff. In fact, Roger Sweeney came to that one time last year where he was informed that he had a partially blocked carotid artery, which is what caused the stroke. And he is having that mended now, okay? And so they're fixing that and we praise God for it. But we've also offered our building to our neighborhood, our own neighborhood right here.
• 20:20
  has a neighborhood watch. And they called us one time and said, hey, can we use your building in our neighborhood to have all of our, we do once a year where we bring everybody in the neighborhood together. The police department comes and talks about how to be safe in the neighborhood and all of that. And we've offered that free of charge. People from the neighborhood come in. People who would never set foot in a church otherwise come to our church and are surprised to find that we do not have an altar in the center of it where we sacrifice animals. All right, so where are the sacrifices? Now we stopped doing that last year.
• 20:50
  We just didn't have the funding. Like, no, they come and they say, no, we want them to have a good experience here in the Lord's building. And so we do that. Even Neighborhood Watch, your giving does that. But giving also reminds the giver of the temporal nature of wealth. Turn with me, if you would, to 1 Timothy. Go to the right a few pages, 1 Timothy 6. It reminds the giver of the temporal nature of wealth.
• 21:21
  In other words, that our money, that our wealth doesn't last forever anyway. Whether you give it away or not, there will be a day when you are parted from it. 1 Timothy 6, verse 17 says, As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future.
• 21:51
  so that they may take hold of that which is truly life. Every time we give our money away, be it to the church or to a missions organization or to a missionary themselves, if it goes to the Lord's kingdom, what we are saying to the Lord is, money is not my God. And the proof of that is I am willing to give it away. Lord, it's yours anyway. I've come to the startling reality that God can take my money away from me anytime he wants. Right? Anytime.
• 22:19
  Our brand new washing machine could kick the bucket and it has. Our dishwasher can break, right? The truck could break down. You could lose a tire. He could separate us from our money anytime, right? What we're saying is, Lord, it doesn't belong to me anyway. This is yours. Use it for your glory. Money is funny because it feels so permanent. With it, we purchase tangible items that we can touch and see and smell. Money provides comfort.
• 22:49
  And yet the Bible says that this world is passing away along with its desires. And the giving of our wealth reminds us that this world is not our home. So why offering? That's why we do it. I got asked this question as well. Why membership? Why membership? And I've been asked this one actually quite a bit in the last six months. If you really are new with us, then you've been invited to my house for a visitor's lunch. In fact, next Sunday is when that is. At that lunch, we're going to explain more about the church's beliefs, how you can become more involved.
• 23:21
  We're also going to talk to you about if you want to join the church, how you can become a member of the church. And one of the requirements we have for serving here is church membership. The term member can be confusing because after all, anyone who puts their faith in Jesus Christ and has had their sin forgiven is a member of the body of Christ, right? If you know Jesus, you're already a member of the church. So why is there a secondary membership at Highland and at just about every other church in the world?
• 23:52
  Why is that second tier membership required and let me just assure you it has nothing to do With your salvation or going to heaven nothing to do with it You are saved by the grace of Jesus Christ and your faith in him and that's it Saved by grace through faith. That's how you're saved. Your sins are forgiven. You will go to heaven That's it Whether you're a member of Highland or any other church or not your faith in him makes you a member of the universal church and although the use of that same word member
• 24:22
  may make the issue a little muddy. Our membership here is not a judgment on your salvation. Instead, it provides us with a framework to ensure that the truth of the gospel and the mission of the church stay on track. Let me tell you what I mean. Members of Highland Baptist Church hire the senior pastor. The senior pastor hires everyone else, but you hired me. Members of Highland Baptist Church confirm church officers. Elders and trustees are confirmed.
• 24:54
  By the members of the church. Members of the church approve budgets, they teach our children, they lead worship, they disciple our youth, they serve our widows, and members of Highland Baptist Church change diapers in our church nursery. We will not just hand over these important responsibilities to anyone who wanders in off the street. Can I get an amen? You may feel like you're great with kids, but if I don't know you, you ain't touching our babies. Right? That's what membership provides.
• 25:24
  Membership provides us with something that we can say, this person believes like we believe and does what we do and will preach the same gospel that we preach. Membership ensures that if you're going to preach to our third graders on Wednesday nights, you're going to preach the gospel of substitutionary atonement because of Jesus Christ's work. That's what it does. So that's all it does. It has nothing to do with salvation or sanctification or anything else. It doesn't make you more spiritual.
• 25:52
  It just ensures that you believe like we do in order for us to entrust you with significant tasks here in the church. So if you made it through the membership announcement and now you're sitting here listening to a sermon, the question I have gotten is why? Why expositional preaching? And these last couple of questions are much quicker. Why expositional preaching? And you may be even asking yourself now, what in the world is expositional preaching?
• 26:22
  Expositional preaching means that the pastor-teacher's primary focus or responsibility will be to expose his people to the Word of God. In fact, expositional has as its root expose or exposure. My job as the pastor-teacher of this church is to expose you to the writings of God included in the Scriptures. And included in this same term, expositional, is often the understanding that the preaching will also be exegetical.
• 26:50
  An exegetical is kind of a seminary word, not a Sunday school word. But exegetical means that the meaning and interpretation that we will draw comes from the text and will not be forced onto it. So there are some Bible teachers who draw their conclusion and then go to the Bible to decide how they can support the conclusion that they've already drawn. Does that make sense? We, however, will have this book open.
• 27:20
  And we'll say, this is what God's word says. Now let's draw an interpretation from it. That's exegetical preaching. Also along with that is our commitment to sequential preaching. And here's what I mean by that. Sequential, just one after the next, after the next. Most of the time you come to Highland, the Highland service will begin with, now open your Bibles to, and we'll go to the verse that we left off on the week before. Verse by verse.
• 27:49
  Book by book. Now that is not to say that you will never hear a topical message. In fact, you're hearing one right now, right? But our commitment here at Highland to expositional preaching means that more than likely, when you attend our church, Bibles will be open and the text will drive the sermon. You say, well, why do we do it? That's what expositional preaching is. Why do we do it? And it's simple, because God's words are inspired, not ours. God's word has authority. Ours do not.
• 28:20
  God's word has life-transforming power. Our words are impotent, limp, unable to save. And so everything we do is driven by that book. I was meeting with another local pastor one time over lunch, and he and I didn't know each other. He had called the meeting. He said, I'd like to get to know you. So we were sitting down to lunch, and he began this way. I heard you're really into the Bible. I was like, well, yeah.
• 28:52
  I'm thinking to myself, I didn't say it. And praise God for those few times I actually have a filter. I, you know, I just, I was like, I didn't know there were other things to be into. What am I missing? You know, I heard you're really into the Bible. And he continued by saying, and that almost everything you do involves Bible study. Almost everything you do, you got your Bible open, you're teaching. I said, yeah. And he said, I just don't do it that way. Okay. Now the remainder of our lunch was relatively quiet because honestly, what else is there to talk about?
• 29:24
  We're on different sides of the universe, brother. What else is there? Bible study. I've been asked this question, and if you come the first Sunday of every month, we do communion together. Why communion? The Bible commands us to remind ourselves regularly of the sacrifice Christ made for us to be forgiven. The giving of his body represents his sinless life, perfectly pleasing to the Father. The shedding of his blood represents his sacrificial death.
• 29:55
  And the blood, the bread, and the juice remind us of the life and death of our Savior. That's why we do it. We're remembering the sacrifice that Christ made so that we could be saved. It has nothing, again, to do with our salvation. The taking of that or the non-taking of that doesn't mean that you are or are not saved. But the Bible does say to participate that as often as you can, as often as you get together. And listen, brothers and sisters, I would even encourage you to do this in your home. There's nothing that says you've got to wait until we're in front of this table. There's nothing special about the table.
• 30:24
  And in fact, it's getting kind of warped over the course of time. I mean, it's showing its age. There's nothing special about the communion table here. There is definitely nothing special about that gluten-free bread stuff that we've got, right? There's nothing special, but it's meant to be a reminder. That's all it is. A reminder of the sacrifice of Christ's body and blood that day on the cross so that we could be saved. It humbles us, reminds us of our sin, and reminds us of the greatness of God's forgiveness. That's why communion lasts.
• 30:53
  The last question that I've gotten actually in the last few months is why Bob Jones? Why Bob Jones? You know what's funny? Nobody has asked me that question except for Bob Jones. He is the only one who asked me. Why Bob Jones? Why would we license him to become pastor of spiritual care? Why would we do that? Why would we want him to be numbered among the pastors on our staff?
• 31:19
  What's funny is he has asked me that question multiple times in the last six months since we started talking about it, dreaming about it, praying about it. Why me? Why would you do that? Why me? Why me? Why me? You know, he does this thing. Why me? And I just said, you know, I tell him I believe the Lord has called him to ministry and I believe that he's adequate to the task. And everyone else that finds out just says, well, yeah, of course. Of course, Bob Jones. But we are a church committed to training up our people.
• 31:52
  You know what's funny? Every church says they are. All of them say that. We are a church who is committed to equipping our people, equipping our people for the work of ministry. But you know what's funny? Every church does that.
• 32:05
  But then what I'm noticing, and this is not meant to be a judgment on them. It's going to sound like it. It's not a judgment. You do what you're called to do. You stand and have your conscience clear before the Lord. But what's funny is they say, we are called to train up our people. We are called to equip them for the work of ministry. But then when it's time to hire a new pastor, they go on some random electronic website. They find 8,000 applicants and they try to wade through these people that they've never met. And then they hand their people over to this guy. What happened to training up your own?
• 32:35
  What happened to equipping for the work of ministry? We believe that we are actually equipping the people here for ministering to the people here. And the proof of that is Bob Jones. The guy's grown up in the church. He's been here at Highland for the last 10 years. He's been taking small steps of obedience and small steps of faith. And the Lord has been blessing that and growing him and stretching him and then forced him to become a pastor last year. Right? And we said, yes.
• 33:02
  Minister to our people. We know you and you know us and you are trained. You're ready. I know you don't have the fancy letters after your name and all of that, but to be honest, there are some men who have those fancy letters after their name that have no business being in ministry. Not at all. Here's our man, Bob Jones. Now listen, that's a little bit scary, to be honest, because I hope all of you are now thinking, oh shoot, what's that mean for me? Will there be a time?
• 33:29
  Or Pastor Danny calls me and says, hey, can I come over? I've got some things to talk about. Start some coffee. Right? Oh, man. My hope, my honest prayer, the prayer of this board is that our future missionaries and elders and trustees and Sunday school teachers and nursery workers and, yes, even pastors of this church are already sitting here. They're already here. Which is why we give so many men and women opportunities to teach.
• 33:56
  So you're going to find there is a flood. If you want to try your hand at teaching and you are qualified to do it and you've been working hard and studying hard and doing all of them, yes, we will give you a shot. Our women teach our women. We don't show videos. I'm sure videos are fine. But you know what? That communicates something every time you press play on that video. Right? What it communicates is none of you can teach. We don't want that. That's not what we believe. So we're going to come up here and say, hey, you should try it. You should try it. You're a member of this church.
• 34:27
  You should try it. Come up here. Disciple, train, teach our people. We believe the Lord may have called you to do that. And so I want that to resonate in your hearts and minds. In fact, after first service, a young lady from our church came to me and she said, Pastor Danny, what would I have to do to eventually become a teacher in the women's ministry? And she's young. I said, all right, start teaching our kids. And do it in my wife's classroom.
• 34:50
  Go in there and teach. And that way Hallie can tell you, here are the things you should improve. And begin to grow that gift. And I do pray, and I honestly think it's probably going to happen, where she will eventually make her way up here to this stage and teach our women's Bible study. Why wouldn't she? God called her here. Why wouldn't she minister here? On Wednesday nights, we've been doing this thing where we go over and pick up a whole bunch of our city kids. City kids is the outreach that we have to the city federal heights. We go pick up a bunch of them. We bring them here on Wednesday nights to enjoy the children's ministry.
• 35:21
  One of the young men who's in fifth grade, one of our boys, and kind of the leader of the boy pack is Edwin. And Edwin is a delightful young man and completely out of control. But he came to me. I was teaching the fifth grade this last summer. You guys remember on Wednesday nights, rather than being in the men's Bible study, I wanted to be with our kids. So I was teaching third through fifth grade, and he came to me. One of his first Wednesdays here, he comes. He's never been to church before. He has no...
• 35:50
  understanding at all of what we do. And so he came to me and he said, Danny, because he had noticed that all these people were coming into our class asking me all these questions about every ministry in the church, like what should we do with this and all these things. And he said, Danny, are you like the principal of the church? And I said, no, Edwin, I'm the pastor. I'm the pastor of the church. And he said, what's a pastor? And I thought, well, it's kind of the principal. You know, like, I don't know.
• 36:20
  How do you explain it? I was like, well, yeah, it's kind of the principle, you know, I guess. If you get in trouble, you definitely end up in my office, you know. So, yeah, the principle. The principle of the church. He said, oh, yeah, okay. And he just started to watch, and he's very observant. He just started to watch, and he watched. And at the end of the night, he came up to me. I'm not kidding. He asked me this. He said, Danny, can I become the principle of this church someday? And I said, absolutely, you can. Absolutely. Yep. It's going to start with a profession of faith.
• 36:53
  You got to give your life to Jesus first, right? And Edwin, it's a lot of hard work. There's a lot of, you got to read a lot of books. Do you like to read? I hate to read. You know, well, that's a lot of books and it's a lot of study and you got to figure this stuff out. But honestly, we will help you. If you're serious, Edwin, we will help you. And I brought it up to him multiple times over the fall and even this winter. I said, Edwin, don't forget, you're going to be the pastor of the church someday. I don't know, maybe, you know, and he keeps coming on Wednesday nights. There he is. Dead serious about that. Yeah, you can become the pastor of the church. You can be principal.
• 37:24
  Right? Yes. Because there is an understanding that if we're going to be committed to equipping you for the work of ministry, then we are going to have to provide opportunities for you to share those gifts. Yes. If the Lord confirms that, will you continue to walk in faithfulness? Yeah. Yeah. We'll find a place for you to minister. I have great news. New Mexico is a state.
• 37:49
  And honestly, I don't want anybody in here to feel awkward when they come. I want you to understand why it is that we do every single thing that we do. There is a reason behind everything that we do, and we want those reasons to make sense. And our prayer is that people will hear the good news and be saved. Our prayer is, our honest prayer is, that every single one of those people will make a profession of faith, that they will make that faith public through baptism, that they will commit their hearts to Christ's kingdom through giving.
• 38:18
  that they'll become members not only of Christ's body, but also of this local church so they can help us in our mission. And who knows, our commitment to training up from within means that you might become the next teacher, board member, or even pastor. We pray. Lord, thank you for your word, and thank you, God, for inspiring it, preserving it, for handing it down to us. And God, I pray that every time we open this book, that the life-transforming power of the gospel will be preached. God, thank you.
• 38:47
  for the joy that it is to be a part of this congregation, this spiritual family, and it's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Amen. Well, I would encourage you guys to come back on Wednesday nights. We have our Thrive going 6.30. Honestly, something for everybody in the family, so make sure you guys come back. We'll see you then.