| Loving His People |
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Part 2: Loving His People
God’s Word uses over ninety different word-pictures to describe
the Church, yet one of them seems to dominate throughout
scripture—the body of Christ. In 1 Corinthians 12 Paul uses this
image to describe the Church as a unit made up of many parts that
must work together as one, with Christ being the head, or the
authority and the source of life.
Our natural bodies have many individual parts with individual
purposes, but they must all work together for the body to function.
The church “body” is the same. Each one has unique gifts (1
Corinthians 12, Romans 12, Ephesians 4), but God has made it so
that we need each other in order to function according to His
design. The scriptures make it clear that one of these functions is
to serve and care for each other.
“And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little
ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly
not lose his reward." Matthew 10:42 (NIV)
“Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if
we do not grow weary. So then, while we have opportunity, let us
do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the
household of faith.” Galatians 6:9-10
Jesus, after washing His disciples’ feet said, “I have set you an
example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the
truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger
greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these
things, you will be blessed if you do them.”
John 13: 15-17 (NIV)
In following Jesus’ example above, we become “people of the
towel,” people looking for ways to serve God’s people. This can be
expressed in a variety of ways: physically doing something for some
one else, opening up your home, bearing another’s burdens (Gal. 6:
2 ), interceding in prayer, sharing the Word or just having a
listening ear. The action itself doesn’t matter as much as the
willingness to put yourself in the place to be able to be used by
God in the area in which He has already gifted you.
At WVBC, we believe that becoming “people of the towel” is best
done in two different ways (though it is not limited to these): small
group ministry and Sunday morning service.
Small Group Ministry
Small group ministry is the heartbeat of WVBC. It is in small groups
that you can best learn how to care for and share with one another.
God’s Word emphasizes the importance of small group fellowship.
“Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of
doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you
see the Day approaching.”
Hebrews 10:25 (NIV)
“And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they kept
right on teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.” Acts 5:42
The purpose of small groups is, in a word, discipleship. In his book
Discipleship Essentials, Greg Ogden says,
“Being a Christian is easy. The only thing required is that we
acknowledge our need of a savior and to receive a gift that I
cannot earn nor deserve. But if I identify myself as a disciple, then I
am making a statement about the quality of my
followership. Being a Christian is a statement about what Christ
has done for me; being a disciple is a statement about what I am
doing for Christ.”
He later explains that through discipleship, believers explore
spiritual basics that they must “practice as spiritual disciplines,
comprehend as core biblical and theological truth, become in terms
of character and lifestyle, and do to engage the church and the
world.”
At WVBC, you can become a part of small group discipleship in two
ways: care groups and triad groups.
Care groups are diverse groups of approximately 5-20 people that
meet weekly in someone’s home to explore a specific topic. Care
groups are a great way to get connected, to be encouraged in God’
s word, and to gain biblical insight into specific areas.
Triad groups consist of 2-3 people (all men or all women) who meet
together according to their own schedules to study God’s word and
encourage and pray for one another. In a triad group, you’ll have
the opportunity to build a more personal relationship with one or
two
brothers or sisters in Christ through the study of God’s truth and
mutual accountability.
Sunday Morning Service
Another way to care for each other is serving on a Sunday morning.
Corporate worship is vital in our growth In Christ. For many, this is
the first place they may hear of the love of Christ. Meeting together
with other believers on Sunday morning can be a refuge—a place
to get built up, encouraged, loved and reminded of the Hope that
lives in us. It’s a place where the children see and hear about the
love God, and where as Paul says “There is neither Jew nor Greek,
there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor
female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28).
Sunday morning worship services are not about one person
singing or one man teaching; they’re about the body of Christ
working together to glorify the LORD. Many hands are involved in
making this happen, from greeters to ushers to the worship team to
children’s ministry to the set-up and tear-down teams. When God’s
people work together to bring about a Sunday service that
accomplishes all that it does, it’s a perfect example of the different
parts of “the body” working in unity
God’s Word uses over ninety different word-pictures to describe
the Church, yet one of them seems to dominate throughout
scripture—the body of Christ. In 1 Corinthians 12 Paul uses this
image to describe the Church as a unit made up of many parts that
must work together as one, with Christ being the head, or the
authority and the source of life.
Our natural bodies have many individual parts with individual
purposes, but they must all work together for the body to function.
The church “body” is the same. Each one has unique gifts (1
Corinthians 12, Romans 12, Ephesians 4), but God has made it so
that we need each other in order to function according to His
design. The scriptures make it clear that one of these functions is
to serve and care for each other.
“And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little
ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly
not lose his reward." Matthew 10:42 (NIV)
“Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if
we do not grow weary. So then, while we have opportunity, let us
do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the
household of faith.” Galatians 6:9-10
Jesus, after washing His disciples’ feet said, “I have set you an
example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the
truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger
greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these
things, you will be blessed if you do them.”
John 13: 15-17 (NIV)
In following Jesus’ example above, we become “people of the
towel,” people looking for ways to serve God’s people. This can be
expressed in a variety of ways: physically doing something for some
one else, opening up your home, bearing another’s burdens (Gal. 6:
2 ), interceding in prayer, sharing the Word or just having a
listening ear. The action itself doesn’t matter as much as the
willingness to put yourself in the place to be able to be used by
God in the area in which He has already gifted you.
At WVBC, we believe that becoming “people of the towel” is best
done in two different ways (though it is not limited to these): small
group ministry and Sunday morning service.
Small Group Ministry
Small group ministry is the heartbeat of WVBC. It is in small groups
that you can best learn how to care for and share with one another.
God’s Word emphasizes the importance of small group fellowship.
“Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of
doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you
see the Day approaching.”
Hebrews 10:25 (NIV)
“And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they kept
right on teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.” Acts 5:42
The purpose of small groups is, in a word, discipleship. In his book
Discipleship Essentials, Greg Ogden says,
“Being a Christian is easy. The only thing required is that we
acknowledge our need of a savior and to receive a gift that I
cannot earn nor deserve. But if I identify myself as a disciple, then I
am making a statement about the quality of my
followership. Being a Christian is a statement about what Christ
has done for me; being a disciple is a statement about what I am
doing for Christ.”
He later explains that through discipleship, believers explore
spiritual basics that they must “practice as spiritual disciplines,
comprehend as core biblical and theological truth, become in terms
of character and lifestyle, and do to engage the church and the
world.”
At WVBC, you can become a part of small group discipleship in two
ways: care groups and triad groups.
Care groups are diverse groups of approximately 5-20 people that
meet weekly in someone’s home to explore a specific topic. Care
groups are a great way to get connected, to be encouraged in God’
s word, and to gain biblical insight into specific areas.
Triad groups consist of 2-3 people (all men or all women) who meet
together according to their own schedules to study God’s word and
encourage and pray for one another. In a triad group, you’ll have
the opportunity to build a more personal relationship with one or
two
brothers or sisters in Christ through the study of God’s truth and
mutual accountability.
Sunday Morning Service
Another way to care for each other is serving on a Sunday morning.
Corporate worship is vital in our growth In Christ. For many, this is
the first place they may hear of the love of Christ. Meeting together
with other believers on Sunday morning can be a refuge—a place
to get built up, encouraged, loved and reminded of the Hope that
lives in us. It’s a place where the children see and hear about the
love God, and where as Paul says “There is neither Jew nor Greek,
there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor
female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28).
Sunday morning worship services are not about one person
singing or one man teaching; they’re about the body of Christ
working together to glorify the LORD. Many hands are involved in
making this happen, from greeters to ushers to the worship team to
children’s ministry to the set-up and tear-down teams. When God’s
people work together to bring about a Sunday service that
accomplishes all that it does, it’s a perfect example of the different
parts of “the body” working in unity