Introduction
Exciting times, exciting Jesus. Time to be creative, escape business as usual. Wan to be point person, change agent. Hinge. Idea people. Aggressive, change the direction of our world. Establish relationships with integrity, honesty, trust.
Time to be bold and responsible (Ian Fair). Find and pursue God's agenda for the kingdom, stretch, leave comfort zone if necessary. Not exist for self, but to reach out and into the world where God's missions surely exists.
* Dream for the church. Take unchanging message to constantly changing world. God is immutable. Bible is immutable. God's plan for the church is immutable. But church is subject to error, because is a divine/human enterprise. Both. Ecclesia of God, ecclesia of people. Church lives at level of humanity. Therefore, is a problem. As a living body, the church can thrive, can decline. Shows its human dimension.

Concerning Christ, only way to know God ultimately is in JC. JC is God's ultimate revelation of himself. God is best revealed in personality, not in dry black and white pages. So the process of revelation is tricky, for while the Bible is adequate, perfect, complete, it is not exhaustive. The zenith of God's revelation of self is in JC, and continues in the spiritual body of JC today, in the church. How is the world going to come to know God? Through the church. Church is the lived revelation of God, with Christ as our heart, and the HS as our empowering force. So our great challenge is to so live as so embody the lived revelation.
Bible for this is Eph. 1:22-23. Is basis for life. Church as 2nd incarnation. Need elevated view of the church. When people see church for what it is in God's eternal plan/purpose, not be dropping out like flies. Not being saying, Jesus Yes, Church NO. Today, church is most important thing in the world. Church is the real world. This is where it is happening. Church is of eternal value, seeks eternal values.
When think like JC thinks, puts us out of step with the world. Church is no second priority. Not an afterthought. Church is, has been, always has been, always will be the place where God intends the kingdom of God in this age to enter human experience.

The significance of the church in our contemporary world depends upon our focused proclamation of significant truths and principles which are being proclaimed by no one else. Among these are...

1. God's Plan for Kingdom realities
2. The Person of Jesus Christ
3. The Possibility and Potential of change through the new birth
4. The Power of the Holy Spirit realized in the lives of God's people
5. The importance of propogating these values, placing principles in practice among the people of God.

In addition to the message we proclaim, we must consider our motives. Our great dilemma, how can the church speak and be heard in a non-churched, non-religious world? How get priorities straight? Not get societal concerns ahead of spiritual matters? Consider several personal matters.

1. No place for personal agendas. Churches filled with members who have personal agendas will find a constant stream of persons entering and then exiting. Learn to deal with life realistically. Christ in culture, how deal with sin? Read John 9.
2. No place for worldliness. Church is isolated in lifestyle, but not in experience/relationships. Church not need moats, but bridges. Light undoing darkness. Righteousness overcoming unrighteousness. Calvary overcoming sin. Justice prevailing, truth proclaiming.
3. Less institutional model of church. We get defensive here, have own images. What are biblical images? Church is personal. Offensive, penetrating culture, assaulting evil/immorality. JC was always around the very kind of people we are too seldom trying to reach.
4. What kind of body is appropriate to carry around the head? Illus: cutouts where you put head through hole. Could move entire understanding of church. Not just pragmatic concerns--what works? Not just indiv concerns, or even corporate concerns. Not individualism, nor individual pragmatism. Not emotionalism. Not centered in humans, but in God. The church is the body carrying about the head who is Christ.
5. Be biblically based. What does God expect? Not what world expects! Not begin with felt/perceived needs of humanity, whether internal or external. The compass we seek to find direction is rooted in the biblical text that informs our discipleship and worship, empowers our relationship with God and with one another in community, God's community.

Conclusion
Results: Christians live like Christians, walk with God, serve others, love one another, are assembled in a worshiping/sharing community, and the lost of the world take note that these have been with Jesus, and souls are saved.
Christians imitate JC. Is meaning of word. Jese is our ultimate model, the lives of others who were followers of Jesus are helpful also, l Cor 11:1. Jesus Christ is our example, 1 Pet 2:21. Ac 4:13. We must insure that the body matches the head.
World no longer laugh at church when we are like our Lord. Too often those whom he accepted we reject. Is our agenda today in the church the agenda of God and JC for the kingdom? Will souls be saved? Will the gospel penetrate a world of darkness and bring saving light?