Perhaps nothing matters more to the success and spiritual vitality of God’s people than understanding God’s purpose and plan correctly. As a church, we can go through a lot of motions that seek to please, worship, and adore God, but if we fail to connect with his eternal purpose, we fail to participate in and fulfill his purpose in our lives.
While the easy (and obvious) answer to God’s purpose can be summarized in evangelism and bringing more souls to kingdom existence, the process is more complex. Today’s sermon suggests that the church must find God’s presence and purpose through its search for and understanding of six dynamics. These six things are essential to the spiritual journey, both individually and corporately.
- The church must discover and live out faith.
The church must learn to focus on the plan and purpose of God, integrating biblical truth and contextualized ministry.
The church must live out genuine fellowship as a family of God.
The church must commit to fidelity.
The church must learn festivity as it lives and worships.
The church must in hope point to the future.
Six points is too many for today’s sermon, but we will start the journey, and continue it in the weeks to come.