This year, I shared what is called ONE Theme. We are asking individuals in our church to make five commitments centered around the word ONE:
1. Commit to ONE worship service every weekend
We are reminded in Hebrews 10:24-25 the importance of gathering together. The author writes, "And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching." It is important that we gather together for encouragement to prepare us to be sent out again. Plus, it's biblical. You can look up 1 Chronicles 16:23-31 and John 4:24 for further study.
2. Commit to ONE small group (Sunday School or Connect)
Small groups are where deep relationships, discipleship, and fellowship really happen. It worked for Jesus, and if it is the model Jesus used, it would make sense for us to follow that model. Jesus had 12 disciples that he poured Himself into. This model was carried on by the early church in Acts 2:46, "Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts." A couple of other verses that don't mention a small group but give evidence of that type of fellowship are Galatians 6:2 (carrying each other's burdens) and James 5:16 (confessing sin and praying for one another).
3. Commit to ONE place of service
Serving the body of Christ is both biblical and modeled by Jesus. 1 Peter 4:10 states, "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms." We are to use our gifts, talents to serve one another. By doing so, we are being faithful to the Lord. Jesus spoke about serving in Matthew 20:28, "just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” The greatest example is in John 13, when Jesus takes the form of a servant to wash the disciples feet (John 13:12-14). How can you follow His model and serve the body of Christ?
4. Commit to intentionally build ONE relationship with a lost person and share the Gospel
The church was never meant to be inward focused or me-centered. One purpose of the church is to go out, build relationships with those who don't know Christ, and share the Gospel with them. In Luke 15, we read of a lost sheep, lost coin, and a lost son. In the first two stories when something was lost, the person stopped everything to go find the lost item (sheep, coin). In the final story, no one went to find the lost son. Which story describes you the most? Remember what Jesus said in Luke 19:10, "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
5. Commit to invite ONE person to church
Jesus was always inviting people. We only get a few chapters into Matthew before we see Jesus inviting the disciples to follow Him, and He invites Himself to eat at Zacchaeus' house. For those who accepted His invitation, it radically changed their lives. We can learn from the example of the woman at the well in Joh 4:28-29, "Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 'Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?'" A few verses later we are told that many believed because of her testimony. Let us remember the power of invitation. When we invite people to church, we are ultimately inviting them to meet Jesus.
Mark Smith, Pastor of FBC, Jacksonville, AR
