Working Together
Thursday night we had a scavenger hunt throughout the church. Clues were provided, and each group raced from one historic or meaningful location at Salem to the next. How did the scavenger hunt teach us lessons about the church?
- Maybe we happened upon places in the building we've never seen before.
- The clues taught some facts about the church building.
But is the church a building? “Church” comes from the Greek word ekklesia which means “assembly”. When the Bible speaks of the “Church”, it means a group of people, not a building. The early Christian church was about people coming together, sharing their beliefs to accomplish the mission set forth by Jesus Christ. So what might the scavenger hunt taught us about people coming together on a shared mission?
• Fellowship is a better way to live than by ourselves – more fun, more fulfilling
• Learning together and learning from each other – nobody had all the right answers
• Working together you can get places you could not have gotten on your own
This lesson looks at what the Christian church is all about. Why we are called to be Christians and why we form faith communities that worship together instead of each of us searching for our faith on our own.
The Rock
Matthew 7:24-27 Jesus tells a straight-forward story about building upon a strong foundation that can withstand the wind and the rain. Jesus uses the words “the rock” to represent that place where we can build a faith that will stay strong.
Matthew 16:15-19 Jesus asks all of the disciples a direct question: “Who do you say that I am?” Simon responds, “you are the Christ, Son of the living God”. When Simon answers Jesus’ question with such certanty, Jesus responds by renaming him “Peter” which means “rock”. (remember how we talked back in the first session about how a person's name reflected their character?)
Then Jesus tells Peter that he is the rock upon which Jesus will build his church. This is the first time the word “church” is used in the Bible. So, after Jesus taught about building upon a strong foundation, Jesus names Peter “the Rock”. Why? What happened that inspired Jesus so?
Peter's statement of faith represents the beginning of the Christian church. The church is built upon this rock of faith, that Jesus was the Son of the living God, sent to bring all people back into right relationship with the Father.
Matthew 18:20 Why would Jesus say “where two or three come together in my name”? Christ calls us to be in fellowship with other believers. He does not ask us to go off on our own and contemplate, figure it all out alone. Like we learned in the scavenger hunt, when we come together we can achieve our goals more easily than when we go it alone.
Matthew 28:19-20 When Jesus tells the apostles to go make disciples of all nations, he is telling them to form the church. And he is telling them what the work of the church will be: making disciples, baptizing, and teaching the Gospel.
The United Methodist Book of Discipline, pp. 121, states:
The mission of the Church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ by proclaiming the good news of God’s grace and by exemplifying Jesus’ command to love God and neighbor, thus seeking the fulfillment of God’s reign and realm in the world.
Sound like the message from Jesus in Matthew? Not a coincidence.
The Call to Discipleship
Do you feel that you are “called” by God to be a Christian? What does that mean, to be “called”?
Think again about what Jesus asks the disciples in Matthew 16. He asks, “who do you say that I am?” The question is the call. The call from God and from Jesus to come to Him. When Peter answers, when anyone answers, “The Christ, the Son of God”, he answers the call, and Jesus claims him for his church, for his assembly.
Peter was called by a question from Jesus himself. What are other Christians called by? Great booming voices from the clouds? Maybe. What about a phone call from a friend, asking them to come to church. Could that be a call from God? Sometimes we have to look back and reflect on our calling to realize it for what it was. That is what this week’s assignment is all about.
Steve Jacobs sjacobs01@earthlink.net
Assignment
The assignment for next week is in two parts. The document below contains 4 questions on two sheets of paper. For the first part, each confirmand should interview one of their parents using the questions and write down their answers. For the second part, the confirmand should answer the questions themselves.
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