THE COURAGEOUS CHURCH Week 10: IF NOT US, THEN WHO?
Powell Butte Christian Church
English - September 12, 2021 19:00 - 44 minutes - 20.3 MBChristianity Religion & Spirituality sermon church pbcc powell butte christian Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Does the church matter anymore? Why study to be a courageous church, even? What’s the point?
You look around and wonder if Christians just aren’t playing that stupid “victim” game anymore. “They don’t like us. They want to change the laws. Oh, poor us - we’re being persecuted.”
Tell me - when other groups play “victim,” is that valid in your mind? Then why would it be okay for the Church to play that game as well? If we aren’t relevant, perhaps it’s high time that we ARE relevant. Perhaps it’s high time we get off our collective duffs and do something significant for the Kingdom.
Because here’s the question that has been haunting me for weeks now: IF NOT US, THEN WHO?
In my 53 years, we have slipped. We have become complacent, comfortable. We’ve deceived ourselves into thinking that the Church can be a great social connection, a way to feel like we’ve done our God Duty, but nothing more.
We forget that we as a Church have a mission. (And what are the four words PBCC has adopted to remind us of that mission and its components? C, G, S, and G --- need banners to remind us!)
But we also need a sign right above the doors - a sign like Pastor Ethan has over in the Youth Room; a sign that I saw on the Redmond Community Church a few weeks ago: YOU ARE NOW ENTERING THE MISSION FIELD.
The Church will only be relevant to this lost and dying world if we understand WHY we are supposed to do what we are called to do; if we know WHY we should be a place where people feel loved and accepted, a place where broken people can find health once again, a place where the outcast finds a family who doesn’t merely tolerate them - but truly embraces them in love, a place where we learn and discover more about our God and our Savior - His character, His law, what He desires for us as His redeemed people, a place where the urgency is felt in the convicting question: IF NOT US --- if we won’t care for people, if we don’t share the good news, if we don’t fight against the darkness: THEN WHO WILL????