Episode Transcript
[00:00:06] The Bible is full of invitations.
[00:00:11] First of all, God invites us to get to know him and then there's an invitation. And I love the way our worship started this morning because our worship actually didn't start being directed towards God. Did you notice that? Sometimes we miss it. It was actually us speaking to ourselves.
[00:00:33] Come on, my soul Come on, wake up, my soul Stir yourself, my soul. We need to invite ourselves into the presence of God. And then we need to reach wide in that and invite each other. And that's what everything that I want to talk about this morning really is all about.
[00:00:55] Supporters. Supporters or partners.
[00:00:58] What are you?
[00:01:01] That's a question I'd like you to consider as I speak. Not just to reflect on it for the time that I'm speaking, but actually to take that away with you to consider what I'm speaking about.
[00:01:15] Now, I've got to tell you that I am the.
[00:01:19] Well, one of the supporters of the greatest sporting team in the country, which unfortunately, Phil, is not Leeds United.
[00:01:28] Sorry about that.
[00:01:30] I'm actually a supporter of Exeter Chiefs, the greatest rugby team that's ever existed. Well, according to me and a few thousand people that stand around me in the east stand of Sandy park whenever there is a home match there. See, I know all about the players.
[00:01:52] I know all about the coaches. I know even something about the business plans that run at Exeter Chiefs because I am a devoted supporter of the club. I've actually got a space, it's right in the middle of the east stand. It's about four barriers up and on the floor there is a plaque that says, don't stand here. This is Roger's space. You stand here, he'll stand on your toes. Because that's the kind of supporter I am. I know my spot. I know. Well, I actually know the guys and the girls that also have their spots marked out either side of me. Now, it's really interesting because in the east stand there is no seating, it's just stood.
[00:02:37] But we all have our spaces.
[00:02:41] Do you know, it's a little bit like church, because there's no word of knowledge about this.
[00:02:49] Most of you are sat where you sat last week.
[00:02:55] Most of you are not all, but we like to sit where we like to sit. We like to be there.
[00:03:10] I want us to consider this morning our relationship with Jesus and his church and ask myself, ask ourselves the question, am I a support of Jesus or a partner with him?
[00:03:34] Am I a supporter of his church or am I a partner? Now, there's a big difference because despite the fact that I know loads about all the players, and there's a few of them, by the way, attend Rediscover Church. That's really interesting, isn't it?
[00:03:54] Despite the fact that I know all about the players, or I think I do, and I know all about the managers and I know all about the coaches, and despite the fact that I, every Saturday that I'm there, know better than the referee as to how the match should actually be officiated, the fact is, as a supporter on the stands, I have virtually no effect on what happens on the pitch.
[00:04:33] We can adopt, if we're not careful, the same relationship with Jesus.
[00:04:39] We can be a supporter of everything that Jesus is and does and says, but we have no effect on what is happening in the Kingdom, in his church, or even our church, if I can personalize it.
[00:04:58] And so I want to unwrap three relationships this morning. We're called to be partners with him through faith. We're called to be partners with his worshipping, church through belonging. And we're called to be partners in action through ministry.
[00:05:19] The Bible describes us and being part of his church in lots of graphic ways, lots of different ways, because the Bible's very good at taking ordinary things and enabling us to enter those ordinary things and understand through them where our place is. First of all, it describes the fact that we can partner with Jesus through being part of a building.
[00:05:50] The Bible describes you. Take a look at the person next to you. You're allowed to talk to each other in church, by the way, even when I'm preaching, I don't know where the rule came that you have to sit in silence. I don't know where that came from. I don't know where the rule came in preaching of. If I didn't understand that, why can't I ask? Could you explain that something some other way?
[00:06:11] Okay, so I'll take it if you ask it. This morning, the person next to you is a stone.
[00:06:21] What? Take a look at them. Do they look like a stone?
[00:06:29] Well, that's what the Bible describes them as being. It describes them as being a living stone, a stone that is being built into a spiritual temple somewhere where God lives by his spirit. So there you are. Literally, the person next to you this morning rocks.
[00:06:54] They do.
[00:06:56] Now take a look at the person the other side or even behind you if you really want to get brave.
[00:07:02] And this is what God describes in his word. They are. This, folks, is your family.
[00:07:12] Okay? This isn't the person who attends church and always sits behind you or in front of you or Alongside you.
[00:07:20] This is your family. And the Bible doesn't describe it as like a family. It describes it as a family. In fact, it uses some stronger words than that in places. But it describes us as being part of a household where we're actually living together, eating together, enjoying life together, doing the stuff together.
[00:07:45] Your family, fellow citizens with God's people, members of God's household.
[00:07:55] Okay, time to look at each other again. This time you've got to use your imagination because growing out of the person next to you is a bunch of grapes. Just see if you can spot them.
[00:08:08] Can you see the grapes? They could be growing out of anything. Now, why am I saying the person next to you is growing a bunch of grapes? Because the Bible describes us as being branches that are grafted into the vine. The vine being Jesus, we being the branches, and the branches that are grafted into Jesus, the Bible says will produce fruit. So spot a grape. Have a quick look around, see if you can see a grape in each other. Now, I hope you're getting something of a picture here because none of those pictures that are in the Scriptures describes a supporter.
[00:08:52] They don't describe someone who is looking in on something.
[00:08:57] They all describe someone who is in it, is part of it, who is jointed to it, who is grafted into it, who is a member of it through being part of the family.
[00:09:15] You see, when Jesus came to the earth, he never looked for supporters.
[00:09:24] He doesn't want you to be his supporter.
[00:09:27] He wants you to be his family, his building, his branches. He wants you to be partnering with Him.
[00:09:39] Philippians 1:5 says, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the Gospel from the first day until now. Now, this might be a very subtle shift, but I hope you grabbing hold of the shift that I'm talking about this morning.
[00:10:02] I've known through the years many people who have attended church as supporters.
[00:10:11] We like what you're doing, we like who you are.
[00:10:19] But the invitation takes us from being a supporter into being a partner.
[00:10:28] Second thing, we're called to be partners with his worshipping church through belonging.
[00:10:37] There's a Bible study that I have no intention of doing this morning, but one that I would invite you to do. Okay. If you've got, as everybody does now, probably your Bible on your phone, you can do this easy.
[00:10:53] Look up every reference in all the letters that are written in the New Testament to the various churches about one another. Just look them up.
[00:11:06] There are dozens of them. What do I mean by one another? Well, actually, we've got an invitation through those one anothers. I'm going to read some of them to you in a minute. You'll be all googling them now or looking them up on your phone and that's absolutely fine. Believe me. Your Bible is not there just to read the text that I'm talking about today. Your Bible is there to actually check what I'm saying. And don't just suck in what every preacher says.
[00:11:33] Thank you very much, I receive that. Amen. Don't suck in what every preacher says. You have a responsibility to check it out. Do not suck in what every prophet says. You have a responsibility to check it out. Do not suck in what every thought, what every podcast, whatever, everything else says. You have a responsibility to check it out.
[00:11:58] You see, I think that's part of partnering.
[00:12:03] Supporters will just say, oh, can't have any effect on it, just let it go. But partnering means, hang on, I am part of this.
[00:12:12] How does this affect me?
[00:12:16] See, we are called through the invitation of the Word to be a partner in the worshiping community. This is a worshiping community here. There are millions of worshiping communities around the world. You're not called to partner with all of them and yet, strangely enough we are. But we are definitely called to live that partnering out through a local community. And this is your local community. Isn't it great? Take a look around and just marvel at what God's done here in two years. Just take a look at it and say, thank you Lord. I thank you Lord for every person that is sat in this room. Two years ago this didn't exist.
[00:12:58] But Lord, you're doing this and I'm not just supporting it from a distance.
[00:13:04] I'm boots and all into this community.
[00:13:08] You see, if you don't belong to something, you can't do the one another's.
[00:13:15] Listen to some of the one anothers, be devoted to one another in love, honor one another. If you're a supporter, you can't do that because you've got no access to anyone's life and they have no access to yours. You see the guys and the girls that I stand by in Sandy park when we shout advice to the referee and we tell the team how great they are, actually have no influence through even what we say either on the referee or those on the field. The only way that we could possibly ever have any effect on that is if we joined the club, became part of the coaching staff, became part of the playing staff, became part of the training staff, was there on a fairly regular basis. So we've built a Relationship. So we can then speak into lives, and we can tell the referee that he needs to work out where his glasses are. Why? Because actually we are partnering rather than supporting. Listen to some more. Romans 12:16.
[00:14:19] Live in harmony with one another. Well, you can't do that if you don't know each other.
[00:14:26] You can't actually. You can only fall out, usually with people that you know as well.
[00:14:33] So there is the converse of that.
[00:14:37] But what does live in harmony with each other means? It means actually, through partnering together, people have a right, a privilege to speak into my life, and I have a privilege to speak into their life. That does not exist. So I can't just wander along to whoever is here, number three along, you know, on my rail there in Sandy Park, East Terrace, and say, I'd like to talk to you about your life now. And I don't like the way you were singing that song then. Because I haven't got a relationship.
[00:15:14] It doesn't happen. No, they're just singing their song and I'm singing my song. And everyone knows my song is better than their song.
[00:15:23] Romans 14:13 says, Stop passing judgment on one another.
[00:15:32] Me being judgmental, you'd have to know me to know how true that is.
[00:15:40] But you'd also have to know me to be able to speak into my life, to speak about my judgmentalism.
[00:15:48] Not out of criticism, but because we're partnering together in something. We want to see Jesus here, and it goes on with dozens of others. Let me just run these down. This will be like a machine gun going off, to quote Donald Trump.
[00:16:03] Instruct one another, agree with one another, greet one another with a holy kiss, encourage one another, be of one mind with one another, live in peace with one another, serve one another with humility, bear with each other and forgive one another. If you have a grievance against one another, admonish one another with all wisdom, encourage one another, build one another up, spur one another on towards love and good deeds. And there are dozens more. Look them up.
[00:16:30] All of those are not about me shouting at people from a distance, but actually, this is what it is.
[00:16:38] Come on, Esther. Come on, Roland. We can do this. Why? Because we are in this together. We can do this. You can do this, but you can't do that with a person you don't know.
[00:16:52] You can't do that with a person you're not committed to. You can't do that with a person who is slightly more than a stranger, because I actually recognize their face when I come to church. But I don't Know their name because I've never bothered to ask them and they've never bothered to ask me. But when we become partners, we start asking those questions.
[00:17:17] There's a few people sat in this congregation that actually have asked me some questions of myself. We've asked questions of each other. And it's always been to build up what God is doing here. We're coming to the last part, which you're thinking is really great because this guy hasn't taken very long.
[00:17:39] You haven't seen how many pages the last part is.
[00:17:42] It's actually only that big.
[00:17:45] We're called to be partners through ministry and action. I want to read a scripture reading. It's a passage to you. You can listen to this. Because faith comes by.
[00:18:01] That's the one. So turn your ears on and listen to this. One day, Jesus was preaching on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. Great crowds pressed in on him to listen to the word of God.
[00:18:16] He noticed two empty boats at the water's edge, for the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. Stepping into one of the boats, Jesus asked Simon, its owner, to push out into the water.
[00:18:27] So he sat in the boat and taught the crowds from there. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, now go out where it's deeper, let down your nets and catch some fish.
[00:18:39] Master Simon replied, we worked hard all last night and didn't catch a thing, but if you say so, I'll let the nets down again.
[00:18:54] And this time their nets were so full of fish they began to tear.
[00:19:01] A great shout for help brought their partners in the other boat and soon both boats were filled with fish.
[00:19:17] If you don't get hold of what Jesus was teaching here, this is not a prophetic put down or trying to put a cloud over vision. If you don't get hold of this in 12 months time, this will be the size of the church.
[00:19:37] It will.
[00:19:40] Because if we don't get hold of this, what we learn within church life is how to maintain rather than how to increase.
[00:19:53] And loads of churches, dare I say it, you know, them and I do, even in this community, are totally in maintenance mode. How do we keep hold of what we have got?
[00:20:07] How do we stop anyone else having what we have? Because we haven't got enough of everything we have.
[00:20:16] But if we get hold of the principle of Jesus in this, this time next year, this church will have grown.
[00:20:29] You see, there's an invitation that is coming through this particular scripture.
[00:20:37] First of all, we've got to allow Jesus into our personal space.
[00:20:43] He Took Peter's personal space. It was Peter's boat.
[00:20:49] He gets into Peter's personal space and then gets into Peter's personal life. Peter has been fishing all of his life.
[00:20:59] Jesus is not a fisherman.
[00:21:02] Jesus is a tecton.
[00:21:05] Sometimes we say that's carpenter. More accurately, it should be builder.
[00:21:12] That's what Jesus has been trained as in Nazareth. That's what Jesus worked as before his ministry began.
[00:21:21] What has a carpenter got to do with a fisherman? Well, clearly something, because he says to Peter, I know you've done all of this all night, but now, Peter, it's time to do it on my word, at my time.
[00:21:39] And the difference between doing it in our effort overnight and doing it at the point Jesus says, it's now my word and my time is the result that happened here. The nets went in and suddenly these nets are now filled with fish.
[00:22:00] That could be the place where you're at as a church.
[00:22:05] God has told you to throw the nets in somewhere.
[00:22:08] And actually, those texts are now producing some fruit. There's a few people that are swimming around inside our nets. They're going to come to our Christmas quiz. They're going to come to our Prepare him room. They're going to come to a celebratory gathering of our. They're going to come.
[00:22:32] But how are we going to get them from the water, surrounded by the net, into the family? How's that going to happen?
[00:22:43] I'll tell you how it's not going to happen.
[00:22:47] It's not going to happen because these two guys over here have more energy than the rest of us combined.
[00:22:56] That's how it's not going to happen.
[00:22:59] No matter how hard Phil pulls, no matter how hard Esther pulls, no matter how hard Liv pulls, no matter how hard Matt pulls, they cannot pull the net up.
[00:23:14] Why? Because what Jesus says is bigger than we can ever hope, dream or imagine.
[00:23:22] It's bigger than the possibilities that exist in my tiny little mind. My tiny little mind says, oh, Jesus, it would have been nice if six fish came out in that net. And he is saying, you are thinking too small.
[00:23:40] But you've also got to think different.
[00:23:48] Believe me, Peter had already tried to pull that in. How do I know that?
[00:23:57] Because until he tried, he couldn't have known how big the catch was that was in the net.
[00:24:03] So he is there in the net, in the boat. Jesus is there somewhere in the boat behind him. And Peter is dragging on this. And Peter's going, that's quite weighty.
[00:24:17] That's bigger than I thought.
[00:24:20] What's going to happen there.
[00:24:23] And then we get the Jesus strategy.
[00:24:27] You see, Jesus is in the boat. So Jesus is in the thinking, he's in the situation. He's in the whole mix of what is going on here.
[00:24:36] And it's not by accident that the next thing happened. It happens because it's a kingdom principle.
[00:24:44] Peter suddenly realized, I can't do this by myself.
[00:24:51] And so two things happen.
[00:24:55] Peter invites partners to join him in the boat.
[00:25:01] And the second thing that happens is those who were enjoying a picnic on the beach decide to get off the beach, get off their sunbeds, get out from under their umbrellas, to leave their buckets and spades where they're enjoying time on the beach, to get into the boat in order to pull the net that is going to produce the big catch.
[00:25:31] I really believe there is a time for resting on the beach.
[00:25:35] In fact, I want to recommend that's a God given principle.
[00:25:41] Some of you work too hard. You need to take some time out in order just to be refreshed yourself.
[00:25:48] But can I also say, none of us were designed to live our life on the beach.
[00:25:56] We were designed to be fruitful and to work.
[00:26:01] We were designed to partner.
[00:26:06] You see, there's a whole lot of theological argument goes on in some quarters. I'm not usually part of it because I'm not that theological really, but there's a whole argument goes on. Oh, yes, but we're saved, aren't we? By grace, not by works.
[00:26:28] Absolutely true.
[00:26:30] But that's not what the Bible says.
[00:26:34] Let me tell you what the Bible says. I will actually read it to you. Ephesians 3, 5. God saved you by his grace when you believed.
[00:26:46] Okay, so that is the first partnering.
[00:26:50] The first partnering is I couldn't do anything about the way my life was, how I offended God, how the inside of my life was full of dirt. The outside probably was full of dirt as well. But I didn't want anyone to see that. But I knew all the dirt on the inside, but I knew God could do something about it. So I need to partner with Jesus who can do something about it.
[00:27:11] And partnering with Jesus is simply saying, Jesus, I can't do anything about the sin separating my life from the life of God. Therefore you need to come in and deal with that separation first partnering that ever occurs for a Christian. But it's not the only partnering. Because if you read on down through that little passage in Ephesians, you come to this, for we are God's masterpiece.
[00:27:36] Take a look at, just have another look at that person Next to you, the one that is now embarrassed because you've looked at them five times, okay? And don't say their name. Just think you're a masterpiece.
[00:27:50] Not just any old masterpiece. You're an incredible masterpiece. You are fearfully and wonderfully made.
[00:27:59] You are God's chosen person.
[00:28:03] You're part of his royal priesthood.
[00:28:06] You're part of his holy nation.
[00:28:09] You're a person that belongs to God. For you're the one that he called out of darkness into his marvelous light. That's you.
[00:28:21] That's me. So that's where the partnering starts. But it doesn't end there. For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Jesus. Oh, that's great. I'm a brand new creature. Fantastic. I can come to church every Sunday and just revel in the fact that I'm a brand new creature. You could do. But that's not where it ends either. This is how it ends.
[00:28:45] For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus so we can do the good things he planned for us a long time ago.
[00:29:01] You see, being called as a Christian is not being called to inactivity, called to partnering with others to do the work God has planned for you. If we grab hold of this as a church here, if we grab hold of it as a church in the pop up church in Exeter, if we grab hold of it as a church in the embryonic church that we are in Plimpton, all of a sudden the responsibility does not lie there.
[00:29:35] The responsibility lies here.
[00:29:40] We are called to the works that he has designed for us. And then all of a sudden the big catch is not impossible to pull in.
[00:29:55] Now with the partners, the big catch comes in.
[00:30:02] This wasn't a one off. Maybe it was. Different writers, different theologians think of this.
[00:30:09] But there's another reference to a big catch. It's very specific because it actually gives the number of fish. I want you to try to ever, if you ever, ever think about how big was the catch, try to do this. Have you ever lifted up half a dozen really big fish? They're weighty. Okay, what about 153? What about 153?
[00:30:37] Now you could treat that as a literal number, might be helpful for some of you.
[00:30:43] But what happens this year if everyone here deliberately steps from being a supporter to a partner?
[00:30:57] Because 153 big fish can be pulled in here.
[00:31:04] Can I also say there is a responsibility that goes the other way though? And on this I'm speaking to leaders here in the church, you can struggle with the net as long as you like, but until you get past yourself and get past your pride, you'll never call for partners to come and join you to do it either, because you'll think you can do it yourselves.
[00:31:30] And I'm speaking to myself on that because I've always been quite a self assured, self motivated, I can do it. I don't really need a lot of people to do it with me type of guy, but actually I do.
[00:31:50] Because if it's kingdom, I cannot possibly pull in what God has planned by myself.
[00:31:59] So this is a time now for you to take that away and think.
[00:32:04] But it's also a time for you to think about not just thinking, but acting.
[00:32:12] So first of all, if you haven't partnered with Jesus by receiving him into your life, you need to stop being his supporter, thinking that's going to appease God in heaven.
[00:32:32] He wants you to be a kingdom partner here, partnered with Jesus.
[00:32:39] He wants you partnered with other people.
[00:32:42] How do I encourage other people? How do I build their lives? How do I let them build my life?
[00:32:50] And we need to partner together in ministry.
[00:32:54] God could be calling you or speaking specifically about any one of those three things.
[00:33:00] He might even be speaking about all three of those things.
[00:33:09] That at this point in time now is not my responsibility, it's yours.
[00:33:19] What am I going to do?
[00:33:22] Am I going to watch from the shore why they struggle to pull the nets?
[00:33:28] Or I'm going to say, don't know what difference it makes, but here's another pair of arms, here's another pair of hands.
[00:33:39] Rather than the same people doing the same jobs all the time, perhaps it's time to say, here I am, use me. And to those that are doing the same jobs all the time, get over yourself and let the others in.
[00:33:58] Make your boat available to them.
[00:34:02] Rediscover church. Newton Abbott.
[00:34:05] God bless you. Next week, next year, it's going to be different.
