SPIRIT LED OR PURPOSE DRIVEN?

ARE CHURCH MEMBERS THE MODERN DAY 11 DISCIPLES CHARGED WITH THE GREAT COMMISSION?
Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. - 1Cor 12:4-7

And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues. Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles? Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret? - 1Cor 12:28-30
What has God called each of us to do? Are all of us to be evangelists?

And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: - Eph 4:11-15

CONTEXT, CONTEXT, CONTEXT

The Great Commission was given to 11 disciples. Jesus personally trained these disciples for 3 years Jesus personally equipped them for the calling.

Can you take what was given to 11 disciples and apply it to every member of the church when the instructions to the church in the rest of the Scriptures do not back this up?
This conclusion cannot be asserted without taking Scripture completely out of context and disregarding Biblical exegesis (investigation into the context, history, and origins of the text, including an analysis of grammatical and syntactical features of the text itself). Example: Snake Handling, Drinking Poison, Speaking in Tongues, etc. Mark 16:17-18 Mark 16:17-18 was given to the 11 disciples about their converts, not directly or indirectly to the New Testament Church and is only mentioned once in this specific passage. There are many other letters written directly to the church.

DO WE NEED MORE WORKERS?

But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. - Heb 11:6 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. - Rom 12:1-2 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. - Mat 11:28-30 What do we really need? We need people who earnestly seek God and cultivate their relationship with Him. When they do this, they will discover the gifts and talents that He has given them and learn what He has called them to

FAITH WITHOUT WORKS IS DEAD! SO GET TO WORK?

I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. - John 15:5

We can all do good works, but how we bring forth fruit is important. Do we do it by sheer will power or because a preacher told us to get to work or out of our own ideas or do we abide in the Vine so that we bring forth the fruit that He wants us to?
According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon. For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire. - 1Cr 3:10-15 Do we want our works to be burned up and suffer loss? If not, we need to make sure we have the right foundation and are doing what He has called us to do.

WHAT ARE WORKS WITHOUT LOVE?

God is love, so works without Him are worthless and at times even obnoxious.

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. - 1Cr 13:1-3 Is it loving to compare people in the church and shame other people for not performing like others?
After Paul was criticized for having poor speech and a weak body, he said: For we dare not make ourselves of the number [special saints], or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise. 2 Cor 10:12 Judge not, that ye be not judged. Matt 7:1 Preachers who assert that everyone should be doing the same thing causes confusion and possibly false guilt among believers who are not able to discern the Lords will for them personally. Instead, a minister should encourage people to cultivate such a close relationship with the Lord that they can hear His voice when He speaks and obey.

PURPOSE DRIVEN OR SPIRIT LED?

We cannot be both purpose driven and Spirit led. The two are contradictory to the other. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. - Rom 8:14

But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. ... If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. - Gal 5:18, 25
Philip was having a successful ministry in Samaria: But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Acts 8:12 Philip could have decided to stay in Samaria and labor with purpose in the new work. However, a need does not constitute a call!

In verse 26, we see: And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. He was then told to witness to the Ethiopian Eunich: Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. Acts 8:29 He led him to the Lord and baptized him.
Traditional church history tells us that because of the Ethiopian Eunichs conversion, there is still an impact in Ethiopia for Christ today through Philips simple act of obedience and doing the illogical thing in listening to the Holy Spirit instead of remaining to minister to the new converts and lost in Samaria. On Page 257 of The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren, he states: God determines your greatness by how many people you serve. Where is that found in Scripture?

ARE WE MARTHA OR MARY?

Martha was purpose driven, but did a need constitute a call? But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me. Luke 10:40 Mary was sitting at Jesus feet and listening to Him. And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her. Luke 10:4142 ONE THING IS NEEDFUL!

DRIVEN OR LED: WHATS THE FRUIT?

We define what we are going to do and then do it based on obvious need VS. Seeking the Holy's Spirit's particular leading Listening & being motivated by a dynamic speaker who tells us what to do VS. Cultivating a personal relationship with Jesus & being Spirit-led. The former is much easier to do, which is one reasons its so popular. Motivation comes from guilt, shame, and duty VS. Motivation by God's love, the fruit of the Spirit, and genuine desire Salvation by grace, but justification by works VS. Salvation by grace and justification by grace We strive and are driven VS. Yielding to His easy yoke and light burden We can lazily let ourselves be accountable to someone else for our service VS. Being accountable to God and seeking after Him with our whole heart Fruit is temporary, glorious, fired up enthusiasm that ends in burn out, despair, and rejection of God VS. joy in serving, grace extended to all, and the process of sanctification whereby we grow in grace and knowledge and become more like Christ as He transforms us and enables us to do good works. As He is lifted up, He draws people to Himself. From John 12:32 Please see www.recoveringgrace.org for testimonies from burned out formerly purpose-driven people who were taught a works-based view of grace.

DRIVEN OR LED: WHATS THE FRUIT? CONTD

Ignores the individual giftings and callings and pressures everyone to do the same VS. Rejoicing in the unique individual spiritual gifts God has given His church body Inaccurate understanding of the purpose of the church VS. Biblical purpose outlined in Scripture Value comes from doing and performing VS. Being who you already are in Christ (accepted in the Beloved) Based on the law VS. Grace. The law kills. Grace gives room to grow.

Attracts people who are able to perform and can "measure up" VS. Attracting those who are desperately needing help
Yields itself to pride and boasting in what has been done VS. Humility and gratefulness for what the Lord has done through that individual Provides a false sense of validation VS. Finding our significance in Him Often produces depression when there is failure or ultimately even suicide VS. Joy in knowing we are obedient regardless of the results

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE A CHRISTIAN?

First of all, the story does not end at salvation. We are not saved by grace, only to continue in a struggle by works. It is grace, grace, grace all the way! This is the FOUNDATION of our faith, and we must get it right or we are doomed to failure. Galations 1:9 says: As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. Do we see how serious this is? Quote from Crucifying Morality by R.W. Glenn: When we see that we lack righteousness, one of our first impulses is to try to make up for it ourselves. This is the righteousness of panic, adding more Bible-reading and sermon-listening and church-going to our calendars because we think, I need to get my act together! I am a mess and I need to do something about it. But righteousness is not religious respectability. Christianity is not moralism. We desperately need a righteousness that is not our own, and Jesus offers it to us through the gospel. He gives his perfect life as a gift to those who hunger and thirst for it. Christianity is not about making yourself Christian. It is about ceasing and desisting from the futile and foul attempt to save yourself by your own record or merit or background. It is about repenting of your righteousness to embrace the righteousness of Christ. By the process of sanctification which comes through our relationship with the Lord as we diligently seek Him and have our minds renewed, we are transformed, and the fruits of the Spirit become evident with an outflowing of good works and ministry. It will become a natural, joyful thing to serve. The joy of the Lord will truly be the source of strength. This is not pie in the sky. This is the real deal, and it is worth every bit of the journey to get there.

GRACE >LOVE > BELONGING (SUMMARY)

Grace is the foundation of our Christian faith, and it is a precious gift that comes from Jesus Christ. Not only do we need it for salvation, but also for our daily walk as a Christian. Once we have received Gods grace, not only for the salvation of our souls, but also for our sanctification, while we are connected to the Vine, HE does the work through us, and we will experience His love even more and find our belonging and purpose in Him. The joy of the Lord truly becomes our strength. It is not exhausting or a burden to serve. When we have RECEIVED this from Him, we can then SHARE His love with others who will then begin to taste the Belonging that we have and are extending to them, which is what we are all yearning for. This can make them hungry and thirsty for what we have. We then refer them back to our Source, the Vine, so they can receive the same. Grace, Love, and Belonging work together in a sequence, and unless we get the first one right, we wont have love and belonging either. We cannot give what we do not have. Where are we at in this journey? Would anyone want what we have?