Down the Track

As I continue to study leadership, especially Christian leadership, I never run out of helpful insights. In my recent studies at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, I studied under the teaching of Professors Wayne Goodwin and Rod Cooper.

I want to share an insight that is incredibly helpful to all of us as Christians and Christian leaders.

As Dr. Wayne Goodwin so adequately explained, there are many different characteristics of a Christian Leader. Some of these characteristics are intrinsic and others are externally expressed. The four characteristics that we focused on were Calling, Character, Competency, and Community.

Dr. Goodwin pointed out that most Christians and Christian leaders approach the development of these characteristics much like laying a train track. Each of the tracks run parallel and if you look far enough down the road they appear to join or touch. The truth of the matter is that they never join. If you run down the track, you will see that they remain parallel forever.

The thing that should bring them together is spiritual development. But too often we believe that as long as we work on each of the external tracks, they will eventually come together and make us authentic, mature Christians and/or Christian leaders.

In truth, we should be focused mostly on our spiritual development, and out of that spiritual development we will be better prepared to have healthier character, competencies, and community.

I will leave you with this thought from Dr. Rod Cooper:
“Leaders either cast shadows or light. The heart of the leader determines the heart of the organization.”

Forever Learning,
Johnny

Cell Group Agenda for week of January 29, 2006

Small Group Agenda for Week of January 29, 2006
Scripture 1 John 4:10-11
“Love One Another”


”This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” 1 John 4:10-11

Welcome
Have everyone get something to snack on and drink and bring it to a room where everyone can get comfortable and join each other.
Once everyone is comfortable, have them share how they felt when they received the letter from another member of the group telling them how the writer sees him or her as representing a child of God.

After everyone has a chance to respond, pray a prayer welcoming Christ into our presence and asking Him to make us receptive to His Word as we prepare ourselves to experience Him through the Scriptures.


Word
Have someone read 1 John 4:10-11.
”This is love: not that we loved God, but hat he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”

After reading Scripture, have everyone break up into groups of 3 or 4. Give a copy of the following questions to one person in each group and have them ask a couple of questions, then pass the questions to someone else in the group. Try to give everyone an opportunity to ask a couple of the questions in the breakout groups.


1. Are we supposed to love one another?
2. Does God love us?
3. Based on this Scripture, considering it is written in the context of a letter, why do you think John finds it important to remind people in the first century that they are to love one another?
4. How are we supposed to love one another? (After everyone has a chance to answer this question, have someone read 1 John 3:18 and give everyone a chance to answer the question again.)
5. How important should loving with actions and with the love of Christ be for those of us who call ourselves Christians?

Tell the following story:
In his book Prayer: Finding the Heart’s True Home, Richard Foster tells of an old sage who asked his disciples, “How can we know when the darkness is leaving and the dawn is coming?” “When we can see a tree in the distance and know that it is an elm and not a juniper,” one student responded. “When we can see an animal and know it is a fox and not a wolf,” replied another.

“No,” said the teacher.

Puzzled, the students asked for the answer. The sage replied quietly, “We know the darkness is leaving and the dawn is coming when we can see another person and know that it is our brother or sister; otherwise no matter what time it is, it’s still dark.”

Do we take seriously John’s words, “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren?” (1 John 3:14).

Our Daily Bread, June/July/August 1998, June 17
Haddon W. Robinson


6. When does it become most difficult to love one another?
7. Is there anyone here who is finding it hard to be seen as a Christian because of an misunderstanding or an unwillingness to love other?

If anyone answers this question by saying that he or she is having a difficult time loving others, have everyone surround that person and pray that the Spirit of Christ will fall upon them in such a way as to give them a willingness to care for others with actions.

After prayer, join the others for collective worship.


Worship
Worship will be experienced by sharing with Christ and one another the ways God is calling each of you specifically to love others with actions and with the same love that Christ has for him or her.
After each person speaks have someone lead everyone in a song that expresses gratefulness for Christ’s model of love.
Finally, pray a prayer of thanksgiving for the love of Christ that is present with each of His children.

Witness
Briefly discuss ways that we can use actions to share the love of Christ with each other and others. Decide on which expression of love we will share as a group before the next gathering.

A Worship Family

This week was a great one. I spent 40 hours under the teaching of two great professors. The class was Christian Leadership.

After much discussion about church leadership, one of my fellow students was commenting on his appreciation for the structure of The Salvation Army. He noted, after 3 or 4 presentations of Salvation Army officers who did interviews with various Salvation Army leaders, that his church was missing something very vital.

He said that he is a part of a new and thriving church that is reaching out to a new population of normal people (non-Christians). The worship in his church is very contemporary and exciting. He also said that he enjoys working in this church.

The one thing he misses and is envious of, in regards to The Salvation Army, is the valuable asset that we have in our heroes of the faith. He spoke of a longing for a church with a history, which had people who had been around for decades to share their stories and their wealth of experiences and insight for ministry.

What immediately came to my mind was the picture of a Christmas feast. I very much miss being home for Christmas. It’s not the presents, the tree, the food, or even the traditions that I miss most. For me, it’s the family that I miss.

I miss grandparents, parents, uncles and aunts, cousins, brothers, sisters, nephews, and nieces all being together in the house, enjoying each other, no matter who we are or what we bring. It is the family that I miss more than the festivities. I especially miss the great stories that my grandparents would tell while we would drink coffee after dinner.

For me, this is a picture of worship that should never be lost; a picture of people of all ages coming together with all that they bring of themselves. I appreciate the young and the old, the fast and the slow, the traditional and the contemporary.

Worship should always be with family—the whole family, with everyone enjoying the company of one another. I am grateful for our heroes of the faith. I am thankful to God for those who have worked hard to set the stage and bring their rich heritage, experiences, and passions to share with those who are in great need of a sense of history.

I give thanks to God for placing that student in my class to give me a reminder of what it means to share my faith with those who have lived it for nearly an entire lifetime.

It has been wisely stated that you can’t head into the future without knowing where you are right now. I would add to that by stating that you can’t know where you are right now without knowing where you’ve come from.

Praise God for the elders of the church. You are loved, appreciated, and greatly respected.

Forever Learning,
Johnny

Cell Agenda for week of January 22, 2006

Cell Agenda for Week of January 22, 2006
“God’s Kids”
1 John 3:1-3

Welcome
Ask about the prayer lists and how they have used them. Ask if they have been helpful and if anyone called anyone on their list just to say hi.

Word
Have someone read 1 John 3:1-3, then read the following story.
A group of teen-agers were enjoying a party, and someone suggested that they go to a certain restaurant for a good time.
“I’d rather you took me home,” Jan said to her date. “My parents don’t approve of that place.”
“Afraid your father will hurt you?” one of the girls asked sarcastically.
“No,” Jan replied, “I’m not afraid my father will hurt me. I’m afraid I will hurt him.”
–Warren W. Wiersbe

After reading this Scripture and the illustration, divide into groups of four and have one person of each group take a copy of the questions and ask them of the group.

Ask the following questions
1. Are those people John is writing to, as well as those this letter would speak to today, children of God or are they only like His Children?
2. Does God mind us calling ourselves His sons and daughters?
3. Do you think that John saw people who were struggling to call themselves children of God, even though they were? Why?
4. How do believers find themselves wondering whether or not they are children of God?
5. Give your best description or definition of a child of God.
6. Share a time when you felt least like a child of God.
7. Is there anyone here who feels unworthy to be a child of God today?

After this question join the other groups for worship.

Worship
Use this worship time to have each person give a reason why they feel they are glad to be one of God’s children.
Then pray and thank God for allowing us all to be his children.


Witness
Have each person put their own name on a small piece of paper and fold it into a small square. Place all the folded papers in a basket. Then pass the basket around and have each person take out a name, making sure it’s not his or her own name.

On Sunday afternoon after worship, each person will go home and write a letter to the person of whose name they received. On the letter write no more than one page of why this person should have confidence in calling his or her self a Child of God.

Commissioned to teach Church Etiquette?

Today I received an amazing phone call. You may recall the book 'Radical Outreach.' You can find it in any Christian bookstore. The book is about reaching people the way they can be reached today and the author's name is Dr. George Hunter III.

Dr. Hunter is Distinguished Professor of Church Growth and Evangelism of Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore Kentucky. He is also the author of 'Church for the Unchurched' and 'The Celtic Way of Evangelism.'

I called him a week ago to discuss my concerns over the challenge of transitioning the traditional into missional. Dr. Hunter called me back today and left me with these wise words:

"Many Christians are now the modern day Judaizers who insist that those who are not Christians are the Gentiles who need to be circumcised before they enter the church."

Dr. Hunter's words were in reference to those who hold on to the status quo, enjoying their church lives, and unwilling to change in order to reach the lost. Instead many Christians require the lost to accept the culture of their particular denomination, class, and/or social behavior before they can be a part of the family of God.

It's time to put away the scalpels.

Forever learning,
Johnny

Jesus was no Pacifist!

A while back I posted a blog that answered the question, "Would Jesus have gone to Vietnam?" This is some further insight on that subject.

Pacifism and Jesus? Maybe, if he was a 21st century liberal American. But Jesus was, in fact, a first Century Jew.

In the Jewish Talmud, which Jesus would have read, trusted, and taught from, are these words, "If someone comes to kill you, anticipate him and kill him first" (Sanhedrin 72a). To kill in self-defense was perfectly permissible in Jewish belief. And please take the time to ponder for a moment that Jesus was not a Christian; He was a Jew.

In fact Christians were a legitimate sect of the Jews, not unlike the Sadducees, Pharisees, Essenes, et cetera, until 380 A.D. or C.E., whichever you choose. It was then that the church father, John Chrysostom was appointed Bishop of Antioch.

According to Stephen M. Wylen, when Chrysostom came to the city, he was shocked to find his flock regularly attending the synagogue, enjoying the sermons there and socializing with Jews. The Christians treated rabbis as holy men, going to them for amulets, blessings and cures. John Chrysostom responded with his ten famous sermons Adversus Judaeus, “Against the Jews.”

He condemned the Jews in the strongest terms as servants of the Devil. He forbade social and economic contact of any kind with Jews; much less a sharing of religious ideas and practices…these sermons became the basis for church policy. Judaism was utterly condemned as debased, even satanic religion. Contact with Jews was restricted. Attendance at Jewish rites was prohibited. Christians were prohibited by law from “Judiaizing”—that is, from observing Jewish rites, laws and customs. Christians were prohibited from keeping kosher, celebrating Jewish holidays, or visiting synagogues.

The Ebeonites, or Jewish Christians, had become increasingly marginalized. Now they disappeared altogether. To become a Christian was to reject Jewish identity and become a Gentile, with no exceptions. –The Jews in the Time of Jesus, pgs. 195-196

To truly understand Jesus and how he would respond to laws against killing, you must understand first century Jews and their beliefs and teachings, as well as have some understanding of the original languages. You also have to understand what Jewish culture and social life was like for a follower of Jesus. Jesus told his followers to buy swords in Luke 22:35-37. We also know that some of them carried weapons (Luke 22:8; 22:50).

For those who believe that Jesus was a Pacifist, the misunderstanding comes from a mistranslation of the Semitic languages and Biblical Greek into English. The word used in Matthew 5:21 which says, “You shall not kill” is better translated, “You shall not murder.” There is a big difference, even in modern English.

Killing and murder are polarized by the intent. As David Bivin and Roy Blizzard, Jr. point out in their revised edition of their book, Understanding the Difficult Words of Jesus New Insights From a Hebraic Perspective, “It’s difficult to explain how English translators made this mistake since the Greek language also has separate words for ‘murder’ and ‘kill,’ and it is the Greek word for ‘murder’ (not ‘kill’) which is used in Matthew 5:21.”

There are also other passages of Scripture where the English translations lend themselves to lead readers astray. If you want to know more, buy the books that you see quoted in this blog. But be careful, some modern Christians live by the motto, "The Bible says it. I believe it. That settles it." These books just may unsettle it.

I hope this has shaken your faith just enough to get you thinking and studying for yourself.

For those of you high and mighty, know-it-all Chirstians, there is a saying, “Once a Christian becomes a Bishop, he never again eats a bad meal, reads a good book, or hears the truth.” (source unknown, at least to me.)

I'm not in the mood to be diplomatic tonight. But my name is still Johnny and I'm still your friend.

Forever learning
Johnny

Cell Group Agenda for Week of January 15, 2006

Cell Group Agenda for the week of January 15, 2006
Theme: “How do I know I belong to Christ?”
Scripture: 1 John 2:3-11

Welcome

1. Give everyone present a piece of paper. Have them write down on the paper:
a. The names of people they have a hard time getting along with
b. The names of people they avoid
c. The names of people who would bring out feelings of anger if he or she were to see them.
2. Allow people to verbally express the feelings they experience when they look at the names on their list. Don’t allow the people in the group to speak the names, this would be gossip. Only allow for them to tell how they feel when they think of the people listed.

Should anyone appear to need prayer at this moment, take the time to pray for him or her to give them comfort, but don’t allow this to become a therapy session.

Word

Read this story:
Dolly Madison, the wife of the fourth president of the United States, was one of the most popular women in American history. Wherever she went, she charmed everyone—the rich, the poor; the famous, the obscure; men, women—everyone she met. She was once assked to explain the secret of her power over others. The question took her by surprise. She said, “Power over people? I have none, I desire none. I merely love everyone.” –Source from Word and Worship Resoures for Salvationists, First Quarter 2006, pg. 17

Have someone Read 1 John 2:3-11
Ask the following questions:
1. Is there a way to know that you can be sure that you belong to Christ?
2. Do you believe that those who call themselves Christians, yet disobey the word of God are lying about being Christians, even if they aren’t aware that they are lying?
3. Is it easy to obey God’s command to love others?
4. What are some reasons that the people John is writing to would hate someone?
5. What are some reasons people hate others today?

After this question, break up into groups of three and ask:

6. Is there anyone here who is struggling with not being able to obey God’s command to love others because of unforgiveness, racism, or because of a judgemnt against sertain sinners, such as those struggling with homosexuality?

7. Ask if there is anyone in the group that would like to be able to begin caring about the people he or she wrote on their paper during the welcome of this gathering.
8. Have the person who says he or she would like to lose their ill feelings toward those on their list to pray sit on a chair and have the others come around that person and pray.

Get back together in a large group for Worship.

Worship

To begin worship sing have the worship leader lead a song of God’s mercy and love for sinners.

After singing, have everyone step out onto the back porch, bring the papers with their list of names.
Have a metal coffee can, garbage can, or chargoal grill available. Tell everyone who is willing to begin obeying God’s will by loving others, including those on their list to place their paper in the can or grill.
Then have everyone light a match and throw their match on the papers, signifying that they will begin to pray for those people, forgive them, and even begin loving them.

After this, pray for each other to continue to obey God’s command by praying daily for those whose names, once listed as people they didn’t care for, will now join the names of those whom they love.

Witness

Before you share the idea for witnessing this week, share this story from Warren W. Wiersbe, pgs 60, 61:

A man who was walking down a dark street one night saw a pinpoint of light coming toward him in a faltering way. He thought perhaps the person carrying the light was ill or drunk; but as he drew nearer he could see a man with a flashlight carrying a white cane.

“Why would a blind man be carrying a light? the man wondered, and then he decided to ask.

The blind man smiled. “I carry my light, not so I can see, but so that others can see me. I cannot help being blind,” he said, “but I can help being a stumbling block.”

After reading this story tell the group to make a commitment to call or write someone on the list they burned and just take the time to say hello and let that person know that you were thinking about him or her.
Next week you will be asked to share your experience in the group.

Cell Group Agenda for week of Jan 8, 2006

Cell Group Agenda for the week of January 8, 2006
Theme: “Working on your Relationship.”
Scripture: 1 John 1:1-10

Welcome
1. Have everyone get something to drink and something to snack on before you begin. Then bring everyone to sit down on the floor in a circle and ask the following questions:
2. Who in here has ever gotten something that you really wanted, only to lose interest in it in a very short period of time? What was it?

Word
Read the following passage from Graham Scroggie:

“Too many Christians live on the right side of Easter, but on the wrong side of Pentecost; the right side of pardon, but the wrong side of power; the right side of forgiveness, but the wrong side of fellowship. They are out of Egypt, but have not reached the land of promise and blessing. They are still wandering about in the wilderness of frustration and dissatisfaction.”



Have someone Read 1 John 1:1-10
1. Can we claim to have fellowship with God, yet live like we don’t and not be a liar?
2. Is it possible to know Christ and not be excited about it?
3. When John wrote this letter, he was an old man. At least 70 years had passed and Christians were beginning to become complacent about their faith. Why do you think that John’s concern for the state of those somber Christians caused him to write a letter?

After the third question, break up into groups of three and ask:

4. For those of us who believe in Christ and were once excited about our relationship with Him, have any of us become bored with our relationship with Jesus Christ?
5. Has this boredom caused you to stop sharing your faith?
6. How can we keep our faith from becoming stagnant and stale?
7. How important is it to have other Christians around us to encourage us in our relationship with Christ?

After this question, take the time to pray in your group of three for anyone who has lost their excitement over their relationship with Christ. Ask Jesus to bring freshness to his or her faith.

Get back together in a large group for Worship.

Worship
Have the person leading worship sing a song of adoration for our Savior. After singing, pray for each other to have a fresh love for Christ that will cause you to be excited about your relationship with Christ and make you look forward to bragging about your Savior to other.

Witness
Before you share the idea for witnessing this week, share this story from Carl G. Conner:

A few winters ago, heavy snows hit North Carolina. Following a wet, six-inch snowfall, it was interesting to see the effect along interstate 40.

Next to the highway stood several large groves of tall, young, pine trees. The branches were bowed down with the heavy snow—so low that branches from one tree were often leaning against the trunk of branches of another.

Where trees stood alone, however, the effect of the heavy snow was different. The branches had become heavier, but without other trees to lean against, the branches snapped. They lay on the ground, dark and alone in the cold snow.

When the storms of life hit, we need to be standing close to other Christians. The closer we stand, the more we will be able to hold up.”


Next Saturday night plan to go and see “The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe” with the group. Each person needs to invite and bring a friend and pay for that person’s ticket along with your own.