TITLE: THE NEED OF THE CHURCH BEFORE US

Titus 3:14; “Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good, in order that they may provide for daily necessities and not live unproductive lives.”

Apostle Paul wrote the epistle to the growing church in his time. The background was, Timothy was at Ephesus; while Titus was at Crete Island. He wrote to fulfill the needs of the church or to take the church into the next level. They should never be weary of doing good works. That is the purpose of our mission. The church has got the privilege of giving birth and leading the believers into maturity in the spiritual children lives. This is the time to…

1.  The need of extending and expanding the Kingdom of God:

We are called to extend the Kingdom of God. The gap of population growth and the growth of the kingdom of God. The population of our nation is growing rapidly comparing to the growth of Christianity in our nation. Leadership must enlarge from its territory.

2.   The need of Educating and Edifying the Believers:

Christian education gives the idea of producing healthy spiritual children with sound doctrinal knowledge. We cannot feed all level of children in one vessel, but we should understand the different level of their spiritual growth. It is an ongoing commitment to continue in the church level, we need commitment to carry on the mission. We always preach the message from scriptural and moral truths; but we fail to educate them in the word of the Lord. It is very hard to fine proper teachers of the word of God. Through proper education we can empower the church through the help of the Holy Spirit.

3.  The need of Equipping and Empowering the Believers:

Equipping the believers bother nothing about the environment but about the attitude of the Lord. Many people in today are church looking for pleasant environment to worship the Lord. The visuals and audio arrangements are nothing to do with the healthy and growing church. The only motive of growing church is to equip and empower the church believers. We must always concentrate on the health of the believers in spiritual sense.

MY TESTIMONY - ASAP SINGH

I Praise God for enabling to share my testimony through this blog.

I am Asap Singh (my actual name contain Asaph - the "h" in the end was stolen by my school certificate). I was born and brought up in a very good Christian atmosphere. My father Pastor Solomon Selvaraj has been doing the ministry of the Lord for the past 30 years, at present he is ministering the Lord in Andipatti, Tamil Nadu. The Lord has been faithful in caring me from my childhood and enabled me to fulfill the dedication made by my parents to serve the Lord. I had personal encounter with the Lord several times as I spent my life in the spiritual atmosphere and looking at the faith of my parents as they involved in faith ministry. In my childhood at the age of 5 I was miraculously healed by the Lord from Jaundice, prior to that my parents dedicated me to the service of the Lord at my birth (As an act of offering the first fruit to the Lord). 

I accepted Jesus as my savior and Lord in the age of 18, as I was studying my final year of schooling and took water baptism on 1st May 2000. After my schooling I completed my Bachelor’s degree in mathematics (B.SC), and continued my Theological studies (M.Div) at Pax Christiana Bible College and Seminary, Chennai. As I had my studies there I understood the call of the Lord in the ministry. For more clarification on scriptural truths, I joined with South India Baptist Bible College and Seminary on 2006 for my Master’s degree (M.Th). 

The Lord enabled me to work for Pax Christiana Bible College as junior lecturer for the theological students for two years. During this time I pursued my M.A (Philosophy and Religion) in Madurai Kamaraj University. The Lord was so faithful; afterwards I worked with CAATS (Christian Academy for Advanced Theological Studies, Nagercoil) as one of the founding faculty in 2010.

According to the call of the Lord to work among the youth, I looked forward with a large vision and joined with IGL (India Gospel League, Salem) in November 2010. The Lord has been working through me to work along with the youth ministries in training and disciplining them in the way of the Lord. Also I am functioning as a pastor to the Medical College students near Salem (Seeragapaadi).

The Lord took me to Germany in 2012 through IGL to get more training of working among the youth. It is been a great platform in learning and practicing what the Lord wished to do through me. My goal is to be a pastor/teacher in the near future to shine for the Lord. 

The Lord joined me with Roseline Juliet in family life in 19^th January 2012. Please pray for my family and ministries as I am looking forward to shine for the Lord. Thanking you for taking a look at my blog, if you have any doubts on my writing feel free to contact me at asapsingh@gmail.com. 

TITLE: THE CHALLENGES IN INDIAN CHURCHES TODAY

Introduction:

Indian churches are in the third level of growth ever since the evangelical church arrived in India. Even though the first missionary to India St. Thomas arrived India two thousand years back, yet the churches started facing the real impact of the gospel in the 16^th century after the reformation. The three stages I can classify they are, 

1.       The period of Missionaries

2.       Intermediate, Indigenous period

3.       Totally Indigenous (self sustain) church.

The churches today are in the stage of self sustainment with its own flavor and color. The four pillars of indigenous churches are 

Self propagation: The evangelistic works to be done through the witness of one’s community. It is not someone propagate the gospel today. The missionaries faced failure in sometimes just because they were counted as aliens. Today the church should propagate itself to its community. More people are added to the church by looking at their relatives and neighbors.

Self support: The needs of the ministries to be met indigenously. It is not expecting the foreign nations for the help to build the churches in India. The finance to extend the mission works to be raised in India; we have lot in nation but very less in giving it out. In the foreign churches, giving for other nation’s ministries is a part of the ministry. A pastor from US whom I met weeks ago shared that his church gives for the foreign mission $30,000 per year. Indian churches must also be self supportive to its own evangelistic works.

Self governing: Indigenous churches in India to be administered by its own. Church administration to be made for each and every church to prove its freedom and representation of the complete body of Christ in the local church. 

Self reference: It shows that the churches in India should have its own flavor and color. The method followed in the US cannot be followed in India; neither the African method of dancing would work out in India. We have our own style of conducting worship which can never become wrong. Our music, culture, language … all are different with the others, therefore there is no international pattern of worship in self reference.

Self Theologizing: Gospel is translatable to all cultures and languages. Self theologizing is not creating a new theology but applying the theological norms / truths in all cultures.

The growth of the church in this level is based on the following elements, fail to do them will lead into declination, through the leaders of the church. Four different things or challenges are before the Indian churches which are lacking today (Eph 3:10; Philemon 1-2; 23-24), they are.

1.       Discipleship: The key in great commission (Matt 28:19-20)

Discipleship is the key in the teaching of Jesus Christ. The method of evangelizing is given more important through crusades, conferences and open-air meetings. Most of them are stopped with the first level and doing it for long times. The believers must be turned into disciples, the one who imitate the Lord in and through their lives. The word discipleship is replaced for evangelism in Matt 28:19, “Make disciples of all nations.” It is the most forgotten commandment in the great commission. The Lord needs disciples than mere believers; discipleship is more valid than making believers. It is most difficult thing to imitate Christ in our lives.

The Indian churches must give more importance to “making disciples” of the converted believers. The leaders must make them as Christ-like disciples, imitating the master Lord Jesus Christ (I Cor. 11:1). 

2.      Leadership: Making disciples as leaders

Jesus made his disciples as apostles after his ascension. They were lay people, probably uneducated and low in profession. Jesus chose them to be the future leaders of the church which He left in their response. Later they were the pillars of the early church (Gal.2:9). Today most of the churches have the believers in their level, not taking them either to disciple or to leadership.

It is the contemporary fear of the church leaders that if a believer is gifted to do the ministry they are afraid of their position as a leader. In today’s context many believers try to split the congregation into many pieces, or trying to steal the believers from their mother church. Jesus made the disciple a leader. Today our churches are in great lack of producing good leaders.

3.      Partnership: Making Leaders “Fellow Workers”

Philemon 1-2; 23-24. Paul repeatedly in his epistles used the term “fellow” to show the partnership of others in his ministry. Fellow Servant (Col. 1:7); Fellow Prisoner (4:10); Fellow Soldier (Phi 2:25) Fellow Helper (2 Cor. 8:23), Fellow Citizens (Eph 2:19); Fellow Laborers (Phi 4:3), Fellow Workers (Col 4:11)…etc.  God’s ministry doesn’t belong to an individual. It is one of the most difficult thing in today’s ministries, counting our disciples as partners in the ministry. Many pastors and leaders claim that they were the senior ones in the ministry that they raised more disciple pastors in the ministry. Most of the times the believers are encouraged to give to the church as partners in the ministry, are they given parts in the conducting of the services? 

One of the member of a broken church responded to me that they are not given any opportunity to take part in the services. We are not treated as partners of the church activities, we are only asked to take partnership in the offerings. It is true that the disciple/leaders should be counted as the partners in the ministry. It is not shameful to make the believers as partners in our ministries.

4.      Worship: Living sacrifice (Rom 12:1-2)

Worship in our modern times understood as signing, clapping, jumping, crawling, noisy music and dancing. Worship today is controlled by time (___to___) and methodologies. It is mostly to a place of emotional expression. There are lots of modern worship leaders and worship centers. In recent days I notice some of the church names are turned into “worship centers, tabernacle of praise …etc” some churches announced 24 hours of praise and worship. 

What is lacking today is the real meaning of worship. Of course all the above mentioned elements are the parts of worship, but it is not the only means to worship. That is why we see accusations in the churches today, emotion is needed in the worship but not the emotion alone is the worship. I Cor. 14:15, apostle Paul claims, “Well then, what shall I do? I will pray in the spirit, and I will also pray in words I understand. I will sing in the spirit, and I will also sing in words I understand.” The concept of the people in India today is sacred and secular lives. They differentiate sacred life in the Sundays and secular in the other six days. As a Christian, there are no sacred and secular lives. Everyday our lives should be sacred, the real meaning of worship is presenting ourselves (body and self) as living sacrifice (always) Rom.12:1-2. It has no limitation of days but every day and every hour.

Worship is entire service (not only praise and worship), in a broader meaning worship is our lifestyle every day. Our walk with the Lord each and every hour, it should not be limited to hour and days. May the Lord grant all our actions to prosper the Indian church in the days to come, Let God revive the leaders of Indian church to have a new motivation and challenge to overcome the challenges set forth before us.

Amen. ( This sermon was preached By Rev. Samuel D Stephens on 8^th April 2013)

Text: Luke 6: 30-38

I pleased to give ONE person Rs.100 /- who listens the sermon keenly and able to explain at the end of service. Giving is one of the commands of God which we find throughout the Bible, it proves that we as a Christian must give to God and people from the blessings which God has showered upon us. It is not an option, but must give. Giving is associated with the acts of benevolence/ charity/ donation/ offering, etc. The scripture in its entirety speaks of Giving to God and people as a token of acknowledgement to what God has given to us. God commands His people to show mercy in giving, Deut 15: 7-11 says, 

⁷ If anyone is poor among your fellow Israelites in any of the towns of the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward them.

⁸ Rather, be openhanded and freely lend them whatever they need.

⁹ Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought: “The seventh year, the year for canceling debts, is near,” so that you do not show ill will toward the needy among your fellow Israelites and give them nothing. They may then appeal to the Lord against you, and you will be found guilty of sin.

¹⁰ Give generously to them and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to.

¹¹ There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your fellow Israelites who are poor and needy in your land.

Read also the following passages from the Bible Prov. 19:17; Prov. 21:13, Lk. 3:11 and 2 Cor. 9:6-9. Giving characterized in two ways in the Bible, Giving to people and Giving to God (Prov.19:13). The passage we are going to look tonight speaks of the first kind of giving, which is to the people. Luke 6 is another reference to the “Sermon on the Mount” which we see in Matthew 5-7. Sermon on the Mount is one of the key teachings of Jesus which portrays the highest standard of Christian morality. Several atheists and non Christians read them and being attracted towards the teaching of Jesus.  Following are the words of Mahatma Gandhi, the father of nation India.

“Although Hindu, Gandhi had a very close connection with Christianity and admired Jesus very much, often quoting from his favorite 'Sermon on the Mount' chapter in Mathew 5–7.When the missionary E. Stanley Jones met with Gandhi he asked him, "Mr. Gandhi, though you quote the words of Christ often, why is that you appear to so adamantly reject becoming his follower?" Gandhi replied, "Oh, I don't reject Christ. I love Christ. It's just that so many of you Christians are so unlike Christ." “If Christians would really live according to the teachings of Christ, as found in the Bible, all of India would be Christian today,” he added. 

There are three kinds of people/ belief in the world.

Returning evil for Good (Sadist)

Returning evil for evil (Humanist)

Retuning Good for evil (Divine – Christian)

The teaching of Jesus is NOT making human beings to divine but making human beings to reflect the divine. Therefore Jesus speaks of the divine nature within the transformed people. Christians ought to reflect Christ by following His footsteps. As for today I want to press my concept on “What should be our attitude in giving (to God/Man)?” 

1. Give Generously (Luke 6:30)

I don’t know how much it is possible for someone born as a human. Jesus says in the above verses, “Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back” Everyone includes relatives, friends, neighbor, enemies …etc. Several people in the world ready to give the rich or their relatives, not to the poor or strangers.

Deut 15:10 also give the same idea that “Give generously to them” we often keep standards in giving to the poor. For the beggar we try to search 50 Paisa or 1 Rupee. For the hotel servants we give Rs.5 or Rs.10. To God as a maximum of Rs.20, for ourselves as much as we wish. Why should we give generously? Because when you give generously, the Lord returns it generously. Verse 38 ends, “For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return” when you measure with a stingy scale the Lord measures you the same. As I said you of Rs.100 for good listening, you are listening the message keenly, so also to get more blessing from the Lord; you must give more to anyone you give.  

2. Give the Best (Luke 6:31)

We often try to give the trash and things no longer needed to us as a donation to the church or people. Today many have the thinking of giving the waste and useless to God or poor, here is an example illustration, 

On a rainy Sunday afternoon, a little brother and sister were playing “Noah and the Ark.” An old shoe box was the ark; the bathtub was their flood. After the flood was over they decided to make an offering to God. Noah (the boy) said to Mrs. Noah (the girl), “Here, take one of your toy animals as a sacrifice.” “No,” she replied, “Let’s use one of your animals instead!” When they could not agree, she ran to the attic. In a moment she was back with a toy lamb. It was dirty, its head smashed, and its tail missing. “Here,” she cried, “let’s give this as a sacrifice. We will never want it again.” Her brother agreed, and they made their sacrifice. The little broken lamb they did not want was given to God.

Jesus gives logic here “Treat others the same way you want them to treat you” I am sure that none wanted to be treated badly by others, nor they accept broken currencies from the bus conductor. All expect people to respect them, to give them what they need, serve them in a best way. We expect the best from the good we see, on the other hand we offer the waste to others and God. Once I checked an offering box in the church, the currencies counted from the box would not have accepted in the shops due to its heavy damage. Most of the currencies came to this box just because they were rejected in the shops; the pastor sadly declared that he has to try several methods to move those currencies away from him. 

God is not a trash box so that you can throw away all your wastages, but to be honored in your giving. So also when you give something to someone do not give the wastage but give the best. Will you accept the things you donate to others, if you happen to receive it? Ask this question before giving something to someone. In Genesis 4:4; International Standard Version says, “While Abel brought the best parts of some of the firstborn from his flock. The LORD looked favorably upon Abel and his offering”. Abel brought the firstlings of his flock. We should learn to give the best to God and to people. 

3. Give without Expectation (Luke 6:34-35)

Several money lenders and bankers expect surety before lending money. They want to make sure of getting their money back with lots of interest. I know few people donate money to the church and want them to write their names in the property, “Donated by so and so...” or often they want their names in the plaque.

Jesus taught in this portion, “Give without the expectation to restore back” the mentioned verses say, “If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount.  But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return”

Many of the believers put offering or give alms expecting to get from the Lord a 100 fold? It is a wrong motivation in giving.

“I know an old man in a church we ministered years ago. This man while offering time fans with a 100 rupees currency and shows it to the people that he gives a huge amount of offering. The same man comes with 5 rupees currency and hides it while dropping in the offering box.”

Jesus in explaining this compares a “humanist” even sinners lend in order to receive. What is the specialty of you as a Christian? When you give without expectation it is the nature of God, in other words it is the sacrifice. 

4. Give with Cheerful Heart (Luke 6:38)

Verse 38 claims, “Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.” We must give it cheerfully because we will restore it back one day. Giving cheerfully doesn’t make our heavenly investment in vain, the Lord promised it to give 100 fold blessing either here or in our eternity. All we sacrifice today are in the treasury of heaven, waiting for us to claim one day. If we give it without cheerful heart the Lord’s blessing is for sure.

Some people give with heavy heart, they cry while giving to someone. “Should I give this much of amount!” when you give cheerfully Proverbs 19:17 says, “He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the LORD; and that which he hath given will he pay him again”  

2 Cor. 9:7 we see that “the Lord is pleased of cheerful giver” when you give, give it cheerfully. The amount you give doesn’t matter to the Lord but your attitude matters a lot. He looks our inner heart while giving. Mark 12:41-44, the Lord did not see the amount the widow offered, but the cheerful heart. She wanted to give something best she had. When you give it will please God when you give it cheerfully. Giving from abundance is not the act of giving at all; giving from nothing with cheerful heart is the true giving in the sight of the Lord.

Conclusion:

As we see the attitude in giving tonight. How is our attitude in giving?

Are we giving to bring name to us? (or)

Are we giving our waste to others? (or)

Are we giving with lots of grief? (or)

Are we giving with the expectation to restore it back? 

If you give with these motivation keep your things with yourself, it is not needed to the Lord. If we try to give the way the Lord want from us (as we see from the scripture tonight), the Lord’s blessing will be sure in abiding with us and you will be the follower of Jesus Christ. Try to react the divine nature as you accept Jesus as your Lord. May God bless you.

(This sermon was preached by Mr. Asap Singh in “Lent days special evening service” at St. Thomas Chapel, Sharon Gardens, Salem-8 on 22^nd March 2013)