How To Find A Persons Of Peace

 

How To Find A Persons Of Peace

Hello everybody, my name is Dean Davis and this is “A Word of Encouragement for Village Church Planters.”  

 

When Jesus sent his followers out two by two, he expected them to find men and women of peace.  Jesus was confident that his followers would find men and women who were hungry for God and receptive to the message of the Good News. I expect there will be people in your village who are also hungry to know God and who will be receptive to you as you share the Good News of forgiveness and peace with God.  

 

But church planters always ask, “How can I find persons of peace?  How can I find men and women who are hungry for God?” When you enter a village, it is not obvious who is receptive to your message and who is not. As church planters, we wish we could easily see, simply by looking at people, if they were hungry for God or not hungry for God.  But until we speak, we don’t know how people will respond.   

 

How do you find persons of peace? By speaking.  Jesus taught us to bring blessing to the homes of villagers.  He told his followers, “Say ‘Peace to this house.’” We find persons of peace by speaking.  And the message we speak must be a message of blessing and Good News. 

 

  After we greet people with warmth and kindness, we may want to offer to pray for them.  A good way to offer prayer is to ask, “What would you like for God to do for you?”  Listen carefully to the person’s response. Show concern. Tell about the love of God.  Then ask if you can pray with them right there. Keep praying for their request in your home. I have a friend who has identified many persons of peace by this method.  He visits homes. He introduces himself. He offers to pray. He prays for a week for the person’s request: healing, income, restoration of broken relationships, deliverance from addiction.  Then he returns a week later to find out what God has done. At that time he shares God’s plan of salvation. Many people come to Christ and many churches are started. 

 

Another way to find persons of peace is to tell a story.  You may want to tell your story of salvation in Christ using your 15 second testimony. Or you may want to tell a Bible story like The Parable of the Prodigal Son about the younger brother who returned to his father after wasting his inheritance. When we tell stories about the love of God, we find out who is hungry to know more. Telling Bible stories to see how a villager responds is a great way to find persons of peace. Persons of peace are hungry for God.  When they hear your story, they will want to learn more. When you find a person of peace, invest time in him and her.  At the right moment, invite the person of peace to put their trust in Christ. Then help this responsive person, this person of peace, share the Good News with family members, friends and neighbors. 

 

My brother, my sister, there are persons of peace in your village. You will find them as you speak blessing, as you pray and as you share Bible stories that proclaim the Good News of the love of God. 

 

This has been a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters.  

 

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#EncouragementForVillageChurchPlanters  #FindPersonsOfPeace 

#PersonsOfPeace 

 

Abiding in Christ – My Sheep Hear My Voice

 

Abiding in Christ – My Sheep Hear My Voice

This is Chuck Rapp with a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters. 

Jesus lived in an agrarian culture. Palestine in the first century was a land of small farms with crops and animals.  Many of his parables and teachings made reference to his environment. 

In my previous two messages I shared how Christ is the vine and we are the branches.  We must abide in Him if we are to produce fruit. 

In John 10:27, Jesus uses another agricultural analogy.  We read, “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”  In the Amplified version it states, “The sheep that are My own hear and are listening to My voice…” (emphasis is in the original)

I find it interested that Jesus makes a distinction between “hearing” and “listening”.  As we abide in Christ, I would encourage us all to follow a simple 5-step process.  Those steps are Seek, Listen, Hear, Obey, Repeat.

• Seek – We seek the Lord in prayer, through the study of His Word, and as we endeavor to walk in the Holy Spirit.  Jeremiah 29:12-13 tells us, “then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.  You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”  We must seek the Lord with an intensity.  

• Listen – As we just read, God listens to us when we pray.  We must reciprocate and listen to Him; we do this through His instruction in the scriptures and as we tune in to the voice of the Holy Spirit. 

• Hear – On more than one occasion my wife has told me, “you listened to my words; you even repeated them to me, but did you hear my heart?”  I believe that’s what the editors of the Amplified Bible had in mind when they made the distinction between “listening” and “hearing”.  When Jesus said, “my sheep listen to my voice”, He was implying that the sheep recognize the voice of their shepherd.  There are actively tuned in and awaiting his call.  We need to do the same.  I’ll share more on this subject in my next message. 

• Obey – Having heard from the Lord, we must then obey his instruction.  The first half of James 1:22, once more in the Amplified version, admonishes us, “But prove yourselves doers of the word [actively and continually obeying God’s precepts], and not merely listeners [who hear the word but fail to internalize its meaning]”

• Repeat – Like an athlete in training, we must repeatedly execute this discipline.  As we do so, we develop good spiritual habits which tend to make the next cycle a bit easier. 

Seek, Listen, Hear, Obey.  Seek, Listen, Hear and Obey. 

This has been a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters.

What Is A Person of Peace?

 

 What Is A Person of Peace?

Hi there, my name is Dean Davis, and this is a word of encouragement for

village church planters.

Jesus gave instructions to 72 of his followers whom he sent out two by two to

go to all the towns and villages he was planning to visit. Those instructions,

found in Luke 10, form one of the biblical teachings which is most helpful to a

church planter as he or she begins ministry. Jesus’ words recorded in Luke 10 prophetically tell church planters what to do and what to expect when they

begin making disciples. The Bible says, after this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go.  He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.”

Jesus said, “Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.  Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves.  Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road.

 “When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ If someone who

promotes peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to

you.  Stay there, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker

deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house.”

A lot of people ask, “What is a person of peace?” A person of peace is a person who is receptive and open. A person of peace is a person who recognizes their own need for God’s blessing. Jesus taught that people would open their homes to his followers as they shared a message of peace and blessing. Our Lord taught us that men and women of peace would invite us, his followers, into their homes and into their lives as we shared the Good News about how to have peace with God.

Persons of peace are receptive. Persons of peace are also hospitable. They

share what they have with those who come to their homes to share the Good

News. They recognize that the peace of God and the Good News of Jesus could be the very thing they have been wanting and waiting for. Persons of Peace are hungry for God. In their spiritual hunger they share their physical food as they open their homes to the Gospel messenger and to the Good News.

Persons of peace are connected to others in their village. They introduce the

Gospel message and the Gospel messenger to friends, family and neighbors.

Persons of peace build trust between the Gospel messenger and the others in

their town. Because of this, the blessing of God can flow to other people who

are healed and redeemed.

As a church planter, I strongly encourage you to read and re-read Luke 10:1-12.

Meditate on it. Look at it verse by verse. Learn what a person of peace is. Let

the words of Jesus strengthen your faith and grow your boldness. Trust God to

lead you to persons of peace. When you find them, stick with them so that

they and their friends and family can follow Jesus as his disciples.

This has been a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters.

#EncouragementforVillageChurchPlanters #PersonOfPeace

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Jesus Promises There Will Be Persons of Peace

 

Jesus Promises There Will Be Persons of Peace

Hi there, my name is Dean Davis, and this is a word of encouragement for village church planters.

Shortly after I became involved in church planting, I finished my seminary education and prepared to leave my home country for Ecuador, South America. Just a few months before leaving home, I was with my mother.  No one else was with us when she asked me a very personal question.  My mother asked me, her youngest son, “Dean, when you go to Ecuador, is there anything that you are afraid of?” I was so surprised. I was a little embarrassed. No one had ever asked me that question before. I thought for a moment. I knew I needed to tell her the truth, after all she was my mother. So I told her the biggest fear I had about going to Ecuador.

I said, “The only thing I’m afraid of is that I might go all the way to Ecuador to tell people about new life in Jesus, and they might not listen to me. What would happen if I go all that way and no one responds when I share the Good News?”  I was being honest. I didn’t want to fail as a preacher of the Gospel, but I thought I might. My mother kindly said, “Don’t be afraid, God will be with you Dean.”

I felt a little better, but I was still a little fearful. Maybe you have had similar fears as you begin your ministry as a church planter.  If you have, I have some good news for you.

Jesus has promised us that the harvest is plentiful. The story recorded in Luke 10 about Jesus sending out 72 of his followers to the towns of Israel give us hope.  Jesus said, “The harvest is plentiful.” Jesus said, “First say, ‘Peace to this house.’  If someone who promotes peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to you.  Stay there, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages…  When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is offered to you.  Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’”

Let these words of Jesus bring hope your heart church planter!  The harvest truly is plentiful.  There really are men and women of peace who are ready to be blessed. People who are hungry for Good News, people who long to know God.  Your job as a church planter is to find them. You may struggle. It will be difficult.  But there are persons of peace waiting for you.  By God’s grace you will find them and they will respond to the Good News you share. You can trust Jesus for that.

This has been a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters. 

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#EncouragementforVillageChurchPlanters  #PersonsOfPeace #FacingFears

Abiding In Christ Part 2

 Abiding In Christ 

Part 2

This is Chuck Rapp with a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters. 

In my last message I shared about the necessity of our abiding in Christ.  We are the branches; He is the vine.  He provides nourishment as well as the strength and stability of the root system. As we receive His sustenance, we do what comes naturally; we produce fruit.   

Here again is John 15:4-8.  “Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.  If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.”

Notice with me the theme of “fruit” here.  First, Jesus says “fruit” and then a bit later he says “much fruit”.  You see, our purpose is to not just produce fruit, but much fruit.   I would encourage us to consider two aspects regarding much fruit.  Firstly, there is the fruit that we ourselves produce.  This is a good start.  But, in order to produce much fruit, we must engage, equip and empower others.  This is the key to multiplication in Village Church Planting.  This is the responsibility of leaders.

Also, do not confuse work and fruit.  There may be a good deal of work for Christ that is not the fruit of the heavenly vine.  Seek to avoid these distractions; they end up being pruned, thrown into the fire and burned.  1 Corinthians 3:12-14 has more to say about this. 

Lastly, the life of the branch is a life of close communion with, and surrender to, the branch.  We are to abide in Christ 24 hours per day, 7 days a week, 365 days per year.  Our close personal relationship with Christ and the indwelling Holy Spirit is an absolute necessity for our daily life. (More on this next time.) 

What does this surrender to the branch look like?  I would suggest that it means that we take the mindset we are completely surrendered to the vine, and the vine can give us as much or as little sap as it chooses. 

This has been a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters. 

Z Thinking

 Z Thinking

Hi there, my name is Dean Davis, and this is a word of encouragement for village church planters.

When I take a trip to the city, there are many ways to go.  I could go on the major highway or on smaller roads.  The closer I get to the city, the more roads I have to choose from.  There are so many ways to get from my house to the city. But sometimes I leave my house and just go the way I went to the city the last time. I leave without thinking.  This can frustrate my wife if she is traveling with me.  Sometimes when I do this, she asks me a very simple question, She says “Where are you going?’ When I tell her where in the city we are going, a place she knows very well, she often asks me, “If you are going there, why did you turn here?

You know, there is no good answer to that question.

But there is an alternative.  When we travel we can begin with the end in mind. When we begin a trip we can think about where we want to end up.  When we think about that place, we can easily create the path in our mind which will best lead us to that place.  Begin with the end in mind.  This is what we call Z thinking or Zed thinking.  Zed is the last letter in the Roman alphabet. Zed thinking is beginning with the end in mind.

You are a village church planter. What is the destination you want to get to?  How can you get there without taking wrong turns? The best way to get to your destination is to begin with the end in mind. The end you are working for as a co-laborer with Christ is that the Gospel of the Kingdom of God will be preached to all nations.  The end you are trying to get to is that the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.  As a village church planter, that should be your goal as well.

So as you plant churches, don’t just think about planting one healthy church in one village. Think about filling your district with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.  Envision a healthy church in every village. Pray for a healthy church in every village. Train workers and send disciple makers to every village in the district so that churches can be born. You have an important part to play in fulfilling the VCP vision of a church in every African village by 2050. Begin with the end in mind.  Practice Z thinking.

This has been a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters. 

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#EncouragementforVillageChurchPlanters  #ZThinking #BeginWithTheEndInMind

Why Plant Churches?

 Why Plant Churches?

Hi there, my name is Dean Davis, and this is a word of encouragement for village church planters.

Jesus loves you with an unconditional love.  He demonstrated his love for you by dying for you on the cross.  Jesus rose from the dead.  He defeated sin and death with his resurrected life. Jesus has all authority in heaven and all authority on earth. 

Your loving Lord, Jesus has given you a commandment which is based on his authority and on his love.  He has commanded you to make disciples.  This means that Jesus has a plan for you.  He plan is that you help other people to know him, love him and follow him. Take a moment now to think about how much Jesus loves you. And think about how Jesus, the King of the Universe wants to involve you in helping others to know him, love him, and follow him.  Feel free to stop the recording for a moment and just ponder these thoughts: Jesus loves you! Jesus invites you to work together with Him to help others experience His love.

[PAUSE]

Think about it, you get to join the King of the Universe to bring his blessing and love to the world.  But how?  How do you make disciples?  How to you help lost and hurting people experience the love of Christ?  How do you help them obey Jesus as King?  For the last 2,000 years, Christians have answered these questions in a variety of ways.  But the ones who were first to hear Jesus’ command to go and make disciples of all nations obeyed in a very specific way.  Those first followers of Jesus were called apostles or sent ones.  The Apostles made disciples by proclaiming the Gospel and starting churches.  That is what happened on the Day of Pentecost.  Peter preached and a church was formed.  That is what happened in Antioch.  The disciples proclaimed the Good News and a church was started.  That is what happened in Philippi.  Paul, Silas, Timothy and Luke preached the Gospel and a church was started.  Over and over again we see this pattern described in the book of Acts.

Why plant churches? It is the apostolic way to cooperate with Jesus to fulfill his commandment to make disciples of all nations. Any you my brother, you my sister are a church planter.  What a blessing.  You are on the right track.  Don’t quit!

This has been a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters. 

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#EncouragementforVillageChurchPlanters  #PlantChurches

Your Church Members Can Know and Obey The 7 Basic Commands of Christ

 Your Church Members Can Know and Obey The 7 Basic Commands of Christ

Hello everybody, my name is Dean Davis and this is “A Word of Encouragement

for Village Church Planters.”

When I travel, I always observe the crops of the farms I pass by. Are the plants

green? Are they growing taller? Are all the plants about the same height, or

are some plants smaller than others? Are all the plants green, or do some have

yellow leaves? Is the soil dry or moist? I always notice these things when I travel

and see people’s farmland. And I am always happy when I see green, growing

fields. I am happy when I see the crops producing flowers and then fruit. I am

happy because I know that not only the farmer, but many other people will be

blessed by that crop when the harvest comes.

It’s a good thing when all the maize plants in a maize field are green and

growing and maturing together. And it is a good thing when all of the members

of a church are growing in their knowledge of Jesus, in their trust in Christ and

in their obedience to the Lord. We teach new followers of Jesus to obey the

seven basic commands of Christ:

 Repent and believe

 Baptize new believers

 Love God and neighbor

 Partake of the Lord’s supper

 Pray and meditate on God’s word daily

 Give

 Make disciples

I think many new believers focus on doing each commandment once. This is

normal. As followers of Jesus, they have to start somewhere. But these

commands of Jesus are not intended to be done just once. Jesus intends for us

to make obedience to his commands a lifestyle. He expects us to obey them

day after day and year after year.

Let me encourage you as church planter to keep these seven commands of

Jesus constantly in mind. Observe your church members the same way a

farmer observes his crops. Recognize obedience. Rejoice when you see growth.

Remind members to obey the 7 Basic commands of Christ. Make a banner that

lists the commands. Hang it in a prominent place in your church. Compose

songs about these commands of Jesus and sing those songs frequently. Make

reference to the seven basic commands week after week, month after month.

Make specific plans to obey each commandment as a church. By doing so your

A Word of Encouragement for Village Church Planters

church will be full of faithful followers of Jesus. Your church will show its love

for Christ by worshiping Him in spirit and in truth. What a joy that will be!

This has been a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters.

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#EncouragementforVillageChurchPlanters #7CommandsofJesus

Truth and Love

 

Truth and Love

(Ephesians 4:15 and Galatians 6:1) 

This is Chuck Rapp with a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters. Today I would like for us to give some thought to the proper balance between “truth and love”. This is a difficult subject for many leaders and an area where – if we are not careful, and prayerful, – we can fail. The apostle Paul instructs us in Ephesians 4:15, “Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.” 

How do we speak the truth, sometimes the hard or difficult truth, while maintaining a spirit of love? It is often easy for us to error on one side of the other in this matter. In my culture in the church, there is a tendency to prefer “love” or “grace” as opposed to difficult truth. There a tendency in these days to refrain from addressing followers’ wrong beliefs, poor behaviors, or ungodly attitudes. Unconfronted and uncorrected, those who follow us fail to become mature in their faith walk. This is a result of leaders’ failure to speak the truth. Also dangerous is the other extreme, failing to wrap our correction in love. When we stray in this direction people feel beaten up and cast aside. They may feel like failures and that they’ve disappointed us and God to the point that they are no longer useful for Kingdom service. 

We want to avoid both of these unhealthy extremes. Briefly, I want to suggest two principles for speaking the truth in love. A goal of restoration – Galatians 6:1 says, “Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.” We speak the truth – gently - to others with the goal to restore and strengthen their relationship with Christ and His body. Do so prayerfully and with humility – before we are “qualified” to speak truth to another we need to ensure that we are living “by the Spirit”. Are we reacting to them in our flesh or in obedience to the instruction of the Holy Spirit? Further, as we just read, we are to restore them “gently”. 

As VCP leaders you have a responsibility to “speak the truth in love” to those whom you lead. I encourage you to be willing to address difficult issues and to correct others when needed. As you do this, wrap your message in love. Have their interest, and most importantly, the interest of Christ’s Kingdom, in mind when you do so. 

This has been a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters.