1. Who, Where and Why Michael and Caleb
Next four weeks: equipping our churches so that everyone contributes
Combining our gifts to team teach. Clarity/execution and teaching
Three parts of our local strategy to accomplish the work
Networking with churches locally
Meeting Pressing Needs of the City – local, national and global impact
Improving our Communication within our CityChurch
Eph 4:15-16: “We must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.”

2. Imagine you’re a Roman Christian, making your way to the meeting of your church.

3. You enter Piscilla and Aquila’s house, together with the whole body; you break bread, eat, pass the cup. Then you minister to one another: this one sings a song, and that one recites a Psalm. She has an exhortation, and he teaches about David. This little girl wants to show you a drawing of Jesus and the empty tomb, and that old man admonishes you to run the race with endurance.

4. That’s how the first Christians did church: everyone had something to contribute

5. In our churches, many of us (most of us
In our churches, many of us (most of us?) believe that they have nothing to contribute.

6. Main Thesis
The assumption for the first Christians: every believer has some contribution to make to the church meeting
Most of our people today: “I don’t have anything to contribute.”
This is why we struggle to practice church the way the first Christians did.

7. ”Paradigm hangover”: remnants of the old paradigm that we have a hard time getting past.

8. A paradigm is like a pair of glasses: it’s how we bring our world into focus. But getting new glasses is uncomfortable. They don’t fit right or feel right, and they give us headaches, because that’s not how we’re used to looking at the world. Who can blame us if we long for our old glasses?

9. The old-paradigm view of church: it’s a place you go, an event you attend, or a thing you do. This means that you spend most of your time outside of the church.

10. Then, when you finally “come to church” you expect that there’s this one person, the professional, the pastor, the “gifted person” who will provide something to us.

11. After that, we leave, and we spend the vast majority of our time outside the church. But that’s old paradigm, y’all!

12. NT view: we are the church. It’s not a place, or an event, or a meeting. It’s us: the assembly (not the assembling) of the redeemed people of God, those who are “in Christ” by faith. We’re the church all the time, whether we are meeting together or not; we are always in. And the NT expectation is that we minister to each other. That is how the NT sees the church.

13. The idea is that as we do this, we become mature enough that we, who have been loved by Christ, and who have become mature through the loving service of our brothers and sisters, can then extend that same love to those who are outside the church, our nonbelieving neighbors and friends, as often as the opportunity presents itself.

14. That’s the NT vision. Everyone contributes something, for the good of everyone. And that’s not something Jeff dreamed up, or Caleb’s special obsession.

15. Every Believer Contributes
Who? What? Why? 1 Co 14.26: “What should be done then, brothers and sisters? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up.”
Rather, it’s the NT vision. 1 Co is about correcting problems with the Corinthian church meetings. So this is where we go to see a meeting together of an NT church. And here’s what Paul says about that. Who does it? Each one. What do they do? A variety of different things. Why do they do them? To build up the body!

16. It’s How We Mature
Who? What? Why? Ep , 15-16: “The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. … We must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.”
Why do they do that? To build up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the fiath and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity. We grow up into him who is head, even Christ. Why do we do this: to so that the body is built up in love.

17. Each Part Contributes
Ro : prophecy, ministering, teaching, exhortation, giving, leading, compassion
1 Co : utterance of wisdom, utterance of knowledge, healing, miracles, prophecy, discernment of spirits, tongues, interpretation
1 Co 14.26: singing, teaching, prophecy, tongues, interpretation
“This particular list seems capable of yielding to an et al. at the end.” Fee, NICNT The First Epistle to the Corinthians, 765
There’s a kaleidoscope of different functions here; Paul doesn’t intend to give an exhaustive list. The point is: everyone’s got something. This is what “spiritual gift” really means: the thing that God has given us to use in order to build up the body.

18. The problem is, we get so wrapped up in the “spiritual gift” idea, and in trying to figure out which one on Paul’s list is our special one, that WE DON’T DO ANYTHING AT ALL!

19. It’s How We Mature
Ep : “We must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.”
But look: we must grow up into maturity.

20. It’s How We Mature
The ministry of the body to itself is how this happens. …

21. Importance?
Ep : “We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ.”

22. Discussion
How does meeting in homes increase the ability of everyone to contribute? Give real examples.
What can we do to follow the biblical example of contribution? Give practical suggestions.
Leaders
What can we do to help every believer to contribute?
What sorts of encouragement or assistance do we need to provide?

23. Next Week
We will be discussing the symposium or teaching time during the early church and how it can/should look in our churches today.
Instead of you answering and discussing answers to posed questions, next week you will ask the apostolic team questions.