Christian life and local church life are organic. It’s not a matter of believe this first, then do some things and later on do some other things.
With faith comes a new life, and that new life serves and ministers near and far right from the very beginning.
Both for individual Christians and local churches.
Psalm 82 (God Is In His Congregation) and From Heaven You Came (The Servant King) are the songs of preparation with Come Now, Almighty King commencing worship.
Our prayer of confession will thank God for salvation and for the life of ministry and mission we share as His people.
You Gave Your Life (If Christ Be God), the Apostles’ Creed and Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow are the assurance of faith, testimony and affirmation.
From the Bible, continuing through Jeremiah with chapter 35:1-19, God admonishes the people of Judah for lacking the faithfulness of the Rechabites.
After singing Now Thank We All Our God, we’ll hear the final verses of Titus and consider 12-15.
Though they are a heartfelt farewell, they serve to sum up the message of the letter: right belief is essential for Godly ministry and mission by Christians in a local church.
This truth is applied in these words as we consider the planning evident in church life, the consideration of the needs of others and the preparation required to be ready when help is needed.
As these directions and description show, there is no ‘second mile’ work in local church life. There is no base line of activity which must be established before ministry work outside its bounds can be undertaken.
Right from the outset a believing fellowship will care for each other, and grow in their awareness of how they can help support Gospel ministry in other places.
After our pastoral prayer and the giving of our tithes and offerings, we’ll conclude worship singing He Walked On Earth (Behold The Lamb Of God).
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