Youth Pastor Brad DeLong - Be A Part

so thankful to be his presence on a wednesday night i mentioned this last week in our youth service for the past eight years i've been privileged to serve those students i told them i could not think of a single wednesday night service where i thought man i wish the presence of god were here consistently every wednesday you all have felt it and experienced it here when you walk in there's just a refreshing that we need in the middle of our week and we feel the power in the presence of god i'm so thankful for his faithful presence and glory that we feel here tonight in every wednesday what a refreshing power it is in particular i'm thankful to be with you all in big church tonight you can be seated i will say this is obviously not my typical setting on a wednesday i'm a little out of my ailment tonight i'm used to yelling at kids and well i don't yell at them but turning on the sound more taking up offering an electrical box if you've never seen it it's back there it's real this will be a nice adjustment change of pace for a week i'm happy to be with you all in big church but i'll say on a more serious note how much i appreciate each of you and especially all the parents that are in the room who consistently bring their students to youth service every wednesday night we call this big church in here but the truth is we have church every service on wednesday back there as those students experience the power and the glory and the presence of god and if you have a young person that's maybe in kids church uh we'll continue to let them experience his presence there but i encourage you make sure make every effort to be here on wednesday nights because it will help you and help them as well thank the lord for his presence my understanding that

for the past several weeks you all have focused on being the church in several different ways being a disciple maker being equipped being a member one of another tonight we're going to walk a similar line we're going to look back to both romans chapter 12 and ephesians chapter 4. you may recognize both of these from the last several weeks we looked at romans 12 and 4 it says for as we have many members in one body but all the members do not have the same function so we being many are one body in christ and individually members of one another having then gifts deferring according to the grace that's given to us let us use them let's use those gifts it goes on to elaborate on those gifts and how we should use them individually and then he has this to say in ephesians chapter four it says we should speak the truth in love and grow up in all things unto him who is the head christ from whom the whole body joined and knit together by what every joint supplies according to the effective working by which every part say that's me every part does its share causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love and tonight from these two passages of scripture i want to encourage you from that second to last phrase in ephesians 4 and 16 and i want to compel you beyond being a member being equipped and being a disciple maker to also be a part not be separate but be a part over the next several minutes i hope to explain exactly what i mean by that before we do why don't we pray god's going to help us tonight god's going to speak to us from his word would you pray with me lord i thank you again for your presence on this wednesday night it lets us know that you're serious about what's happening here that you have a plan for this service i pray that you'd help us lord to grow together to learn together from your word that we would be a part of the body that we be a member of the body and all that that entails we need your help and your wisdom tonight in jesus name we pray amen amen

i can remember vividly the day that i was baptized at the old building at 13th and gravois it's during the month of may in the year of our lord 1998 when i took the plunge my family gathered near the baptismal tank there along with all the kids and all my friends you all saw i mean all the kids would come up there they were about getting in the baptismal tank themself and they all gathered together and i stepped into the tank and for whatever reason the water i remember the water being cold but i don't think it was cold typically i think i was maybe just a little nervous and i was shaking a little bit my dad was on the side of the tank waiting on me to shove me under that water in the name of jesus and watch all those sins that that six-year-old rascal had committed be washed away in the name of jesus and then it happened i held my nose with one hand held my arm with the other just like i had practiced so many times my dad got a hold of me pushed me under that water held me there for a long time i'm joking he didn't spoke the name of jesus over my life all my sins were washed away and that thought alone it's worth noting it's worth celebrating all my sins all my trespasses were washed away and to an extent as a six-year-old i understood at the time what was actually happening there at that young age but at the same time i had no idea the true significance and scope of baptism not only in the sense of having my sins removed but also in the sense of community in the context of the church body it wasn't until i was at college at gateway college that i learned that when we're baptized first corinthians 12 and verse 13 says for by one spirit we were all baptized into one body whether jews or greeks whether slaves are free and have been made to drink into one spirit in galatians 3 echoes the same it says for you are all sons of god through faith in christ jesus for as many of you as were baptized into christ you've put on christ there's neither jew nor greek there's neither slave nor free there's neither male nor female for you're all one in christ jesus we're all one in baptism by the spirit and in his name in the waters of baptism i remember learning this in a class with by the jared rung he told us baptism in jesus name is more than an individual experience in celebration instead we're baptized into the body which makes it a celebration for the body as a whole that's why we get all excited and we're jumping up and down and we're rejoicing when someone's baptized in jesus name all their sins are being washed away but there's something else that's happening there he mentioned that there's also a reason that we often have our baptismal tank in a prominent position and place in many of our churches this is a celebration of sin being removed in the very moment in which we're baptized into christ and into his body romans 6 and 3 says we're united together in his death during baptism just as we're united in his resurrection there's just something about baptism that engrafts you into the body of jesus christ there's something about being baptized in jesus name and obeying the plan of salvation that unites you with the family and the people of god so when i went down in the water at 13th and gravois not only were all my sins washed away but i also became a part of something eternal something powerful i became a part of the body of jesus christ i became part of his church i was adopted into his family i was listed among his sons and his daughters and among those with a heavenly inheritance i was baptized into the body and the family of god a family that i intend to be a part of for all of my life and beyond family that i love and i get to be a part of what a privilege it is to be a part of the family of god if it happened for me it most certainly happened for each of you as well no matter where it happened 13th and gravel or this baptistery behind me or some other church a backyard swimming pool a lake a bathtub for that matter when you were baptized you became a part of something bigger than yourself baptized in jesus name and baptized in his spirit you became part of something steadfast in something eternal if you became a part of a royal family and a family a priest you became a part of the body and the church of the living and victorious god you're a part of something tonight something that's unending something that's everlasting for that matter i'll say if you're watching online or you're here tonight and you've yet to be baptized and you haven't yet obeyed that part of god's plan of salvation you can tonight you can this week and when you do you'll have all your sins washed away and you'll be baptized into the body of christ and you too will become a part of something bigger than yourself and not just a small or insignificant part not just some unnecessary cog in the body if you will but you'll become a full member of the family of god with all the rights and the privileges we all share together in fact first corinthians 12 20 says this but now indeed there are many members yet one body and the eye can't say the hand i don't need you nor get in the head to the feet i don't need you no much rather those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary everyone say i'm necessary you're needed you are necessary to the body because in 2012 we were gearing up for our annual youth week here at apc i had not yet come on staff here at the church but i was scheduled to leave the service that night as we kicked off the week on that wednesday before doing that though i decided you know i really need a haircut i want to look nice and fresh and clean so we start off youth week some of you already know where i'm going you were there the lady i worked with at the time was training to be a barber she was not a barber she was training she needed some experience cutting hair so i decided i'd give her a try especially since i was a broke college student and she would do it for cheat and that decision was not cheap cost me something you see about midway through the cut i felt this slight tug on my right ear from her razor-sharp shears and i heard her i said what happened what's going on and i felt the crimson stream of blood it flowed from cow no it's just flowed from my ear i asked her i said what happened and then i felt it turns out she had lopped a small chunk of my ear with her sheer some of you are like peering to see is it is it's there what is his ear with those shearers she took off a chunk enough that i eventually had to go to urgent care and i had to get it stitched up only to have to wear a piece of blue tape all night as i led service from the platform i had people asking me hey what happened to your ear did you get it pierced no i didn't what happened to you why are you wearing that tape on your hand like oh it had to be that day you know i'll tell you though the truth is tonight before that time i never really gave much thought to to that part of my ear aside from cleaning it regularly i really didn't consider it all that important i didn't consider that it was all that necessary to my body or to my survival that was until it became severed completely from my body she showed me it on the scissors that small piece of my ear started to look a whole lot more needed and a whole lot more necessary in that moment the point i'm making tonight that every pardon every person in the body is needed and necessary i know every analogy breaks down at some point some could say well you've lived without that piece of your ear you can live without your appendix or some other appendage and that may be true but it's not often until a member of the body is disconnected or severed off that we realize just how important and needed and necessary they really are unfortunately and not only that but when faced with the decision to have a hole in a healthy body as opposed to one missing several members i believe we all would say yeah i'd rather have a complete body a whole body a healthy body i said all that to say that every member in every part of the body is needed it was placed within the body on purpose and with intention first corinthians 12 18 says it's much but now god has set the members each one of them every member every last part every individual person in the body just as he pleased and if they were all one member he asked where would the body be so you were not placed here by happenstance you did not fumble into the body and land half-hazardly where you were baptized into christ god didn't leave it to chance and leave it at random where you would be placed within his family and for that reason it's no action that you're here at apc it's no accident that you're counted among the body of christ he said every member just as he pleased he didn't miss you child of god you didn't fall through the cracks i really felt this strongly as i prepared earlier this week that some of us tonight have felt isolated we wondered if we really belong in this body in the church as a whole and i want to remind you tonight that your baptism into the body was no less significant than mine and you are just as much a part of this body as i am i want to i want whoever needs to hear that to hear response from the church as i say this again you are just as much a part of this body as i am you are we were baptized into one body by the same spirit there's no longer jew nor greek slave nor free instead we are all sons and daughters of the same heavenly father through our collective faith in jesus christ in other words this body needs you just as much as it needs me and vice versa i know some in the room maybe feel connected to the body you feel like you're maybe a lesser member than others you don't feel like you can contribute as much as others because you're you're not out in front all the time you're not seen as much as others and don't worry because i've got scripture for you too look again to first corinthians 12 and 20. now indeed there are many bodies or members yet one body rather the eye can't say the hand i don't need you the head to the feet i don't need you no much rather those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary and those members of the body which we think to be less honorable on these we bestow greater honor and our unpresentable parts have greater modesty but our presentable parts those that are out in front really have no need but god composed the body there we go again he put it together himself having given greater honor to the part which lacks it something like the last shall be first and the first shall be last that there should be no schism in the body but that the members should have the same care for one another i hope that encourages someone here tonight because i'm reaching for an individual or some individuals who felt like they don't have a place and they don't have a part in this thing this passage tells us that even those parts that appear hidden in those parts that feel obscure those parts are as important if not more than the ones everyone can see god himself designed it this way in order to give honor to the parts that seem to have less honor than others so just to reiterate you're a part of this thing you're needed you're necessary to the body you are valuable and needed here at apc and in god's global church in his family you are a part of the body and you're needed in his body and in saying that i know that i am confronting what i would call a flood tide in our modern church culture and society one that's trying to convince us of the exact opposite let me explain what i mean in recent years a general mindset has arisen it says we can be less and less connected to the church and the body and we can give less and less of our time to the kingdom of god and to his church and still survive and still be in the will of god that ministry is relegated to the elite those who have a particular call and the rest of the members of the body can kind of just float this is a perspective one that's pretty prevalent that says that you don't really need the church and the church really doesn't need you all that much they can operate without you to some extent i would say that this culture these voices have succeeded in convincing some members of the body that they're not necessary that they're not needed that they can survive without really being a part of the church and of the body it's also convinced some that the church and the body can and should survive without them that they can remain sidelined while other more prominent members of the body pick up the cross and carry it on and in addition this culture has tried to convince parts of the body they have no real obligation to the church so when they're confronted with the call to action or the call to serve they assume everyone else will fill in the gap and they'll pick up the slack like they always do they tend to think like this well they don't really need me there i don't really need to show up because the more pronounced members of the body the super volunteers they're always there they'll already be there to get the work done other more prominent members of the body the ones that are already singing her they'll be there to fulfill the roles that are needed so i don't really need to to be there let me just bring this down to where the rubber meets the road tonight i don't really need to be at prayer all the spiritual leaders will already be all the people that pray loud they'll already be there they'll be praying they won't need my voice of intercession they won't miss my anointing or my ministry of prayer they won't miss me at prayer the praise team the choir they're already loaded with talent my voice really isn't needed all that much this week i'll just sit out and i'll sit out for a couple weeks the maintenance crew can pick up that trash or clean that restroom i'll leave it for them to do later the extroverts and the spiritual elite they'll teach all the bible studies they'll do the work of disciple making i'll leave it i'll leave to those guys i don't really have anything to offer above what other members of the body are already offering i've got nothing to add so i'll sit back and allow them to serve and they can take the lead this is one of the mindsets that has permeated modern church culture on a widespread scale and it stands in direct contention with with biblical principles in the analogy of the body you hear me a half engaged and half working body is not a healthy body it's not it's not whole it's not fit it's not biblical it's not natural instead god is intended for the whole body to work and to edify itself in love instead modern church culture has discovered this rule they call a rule it's called the 2080 rule within the body not sure when this rule this theory surfaced i've heard it on several occasions within a church context or at different leadership meetings or conferences if you've never heard of this theory before it simply states that in general many organizations see 20 of the people within the organization do 80 or more percent of the total work within that organization now if that held true here at apc this section right here would do the work for all the sections that are here tonight you're up and put it in terms of the body it'd be similar like my right arm and upper torso doing all the work for my body or maybe my right leg does this look natural this is not healthy problems start to develop whenever you walk like this or operate like this that is not natural it's not biblical at 20 percent is the body even really alive it's like it's living on life support it's barely functioning at all and if only 20 of the body is active and working that means 80 percent is dead or dormant in terms of human anatomy and physiology that's a recipe for death and disaster i thank god that we're beating those odds here at apc by far but i am wondering tonight what would happen if we truly had 100 of this body activated anointed and serving the kingdom of god what if we had 100 every part doing it 100 of the church actively being the church what if we had the whole body joined and knit together by what every joint supplies according to the effective working by which every part does its share causing growth of the body for the edifying of itself and love what would happen if every part truly did his or her share this is the true recipe and blueprint of scripture this is the way god intended for his body to operate his whole body joined and knit together inseparable and united growing together how according to the effective working by which every part every person every saint every believer every baptized child of god does his or her share that's god's intention for the body this is his prescription for growth a growth that's directly tied to whether or not every part is working and doing its share and if that's true and it is because it's in the bible that means that our growth is predicated on it hinges on whether or not the body is fully functioning and every part is actively doing what god has called and gifted that part to do just in case you were wondering tonight the answer is yes god has called and gifted you along with everyone else in the room our text in romans 12 says this for as we have many members in one body but all the members don't have the same function so we being many are one body in christ and individually members of one another having then gifts deferring according to the grace that's given to us let us use them let us use those gifts if prophecy let us prophesy in proportion to our faith well hold up i don't prophesy that ain't me i don't have those gifts or maybe not but we'll just keep reading verse seven our ministry let us use it in our ministry he who teaches in teaching he exhorts in exhortation he who gives with liberality he who leads with diligence he who shows mercy with cheerfulness now if you look back to verse 4 it says we have many members in the body but they don't have the same function even though they all do have a function verse six says we've got gifts that differ from one another according to the grace that was given to us these gifts are what we should use in verse six through eight they don't necessarily contain an exhaustive list of gifts but even the ones listed are ones that could be accomplished by about anybody given to others of our time our talent our treasure showing mercy to others leading others exhorting and encouraging one ministering or serving one another beyond that first corinthians 12 and 4 says this there are diversities of gifts but the same spirit there are differences of ministries but the same lord there are diversities of activities but it's the same god who works all in all but the manifestation of the spirit is given to each one for the prophet of all it talks about the gifts for one's given the word of wisdom another word of knowledge another faith by the same spirit another gifts of healing by the same spirit the working of miracles prophecy discerning of spirits different kinds of tongues the interpretation of tongues verse 11 but one in the same spirit works all these things distributing to each one individually as he wills i'll say again even this list of gifts and spiritual gifts it's not an exhaustive list of every talent every gift that god has given us and i also want you to notice it says twice a gift a ministry an activity or a manifestation is given to each one every person every individual every part of the body has a function a gift a ministry a talent a part to play in the body so you get a gift and you get a gift and you get a gift and you get a gift and you get a gift having then gifts deferring according to the grace that's given to us let us use them paul says you've got a gift tonight you have a ministry you have a god-given talent you're part of his body for a reason first corinthians 12 11 says god gave you a gift individually as he will he gave it to you himself you have a gift to contribute to the body so paul says let's use them let's put them to work let's employ them the same theme and challenge runs through the parable of the talents in matthew 25.

most you know the story the master leaves his servants before he did he gives them a talent an amount as he will two of the three did something with them they invested them they used them they grew them for the sake of the kingdom the third servant hid his talent in the earth did nothing with it before the master came back i never noticed this until a couple years ago brother mark brown preached it at youth congress but he noted the fact the third servant he said was more willing to put his talent into the earth than he was to invest it into the kingdom he said he deposited his god-given talent into the earth and into the world and gave none of it for the sake of the kingdom that master gave him a talent but he hid it in the world and nothing beneficial ever came from that time the world consumed it all god forbid tonight we give the world our gifts and our talents before we give them to the master who gave them to us in the first place we have a gift to use we have a ministry to contribute we have a talent to offer one that will glorify god and one that will edify and equip his body so let us use them for the sake of his kingdom sake of his church and his body be a part tonight a part be a part because you're needed and you're necessary in the body and god's given you a gift to contribute to his kingdom and to his church and i want to make it clear that those gifts are not limited solely to the spiritual gifts listed in romans 12 in first corinthians 12. in fact i believe god's also given us some natural giftings to bless his kingdom and bless his church each member of the body has both natural and spiritual giftings i know some of the spiritual ones are a little more obvious things like teaching praying and intercession discipling or mentoring others serving on the music team serving on the sign team singing or songwriting practicing patience in the nursery there's a spiritual gift gift of faith word of wisdom gift of tongues gift of helps on and on and on the list goes some of the natural giftings may not be as familiar though these are giftings you can and should use to bless the kingdom of god as well things like building and you like to build anyone i know my brother does he built ramps as a kid and pushed me off of him mechanical work anyone despise mechanical work that's me accounting organization administration tax skills carpentry stills banking and cooking praise god those are gifts man there's some people that are gifted that knitting or sowing you can use that driving a church van that's a skill back up a church van try it that's a get maintenance and landscaping people skills and connecting this list could go on and on forever and oftentimes we limit ourselves to the spiritual gifts which we all share and have but god has also gifted us with many other talents and abilities just like he did with bezalel when he constructed the tabernacle of moses he gave him gifts to build that tabernacle and some of those same natural giftings and talents are just as needed and just as annoying especially when you consider men like i just mentioned even those seven deacons in acts chapter six they were anointed to distribute food to believers and to widows god has given both natural and spiritual gifts and we're called to contribute both kinds for the sake of his kingdom in fact i i've told this story before but showcases how near and dear this challenge and being a part of the body is to my heart i'm coming to close here in a minute i was a teenager my dad pulled all me and my siblings aside he said hey listen i want you all to get a job at the church told us i want you to report back to me in a couple weeks what job you got be faithful and be accountable to that job i was a young man i really didn't know all that much about what talents or giftings god had given to me i just okay i'll listen i want to be a part i really didn't know it yet but i'm somewhat of an extrovert i like to be around people i guess i'm in the right line of work for that i get to be around you all the time i would say almost by accident or happenstance i landed on the greeting team but god knew it wasn't an accident me and michelle would have to get up earlier every sunday you know being a part of the body is a sacrifice you got to show up early you got to put in time that you could spend sleeping or doing other things my family would make that half hour trek as a whole to get to church early and with sleepy and bloodshot eyes those teenagers that had to get up at what who knows eight o'clock i don't know that was early for us michelle and i would greet people as they walked into the doors and to this day i attribute my love for people and my passion for greeting guests and making them feel welcome to my first job here at apc on the greeting team truthfully i had no idea where that first job would lead me but i had a dad and i had a heavenly father who both recognized the need for me to be a part of something to be a part of the body and who both pushed me and called me in that direction you know maybe you're not an extrovert maybe maybe the front door is the last place you want to be you've discounted yourself you've fallen into the mindset and the lie that you're not needed you're not necessary on a daily or weekly basis that you don't have a part to play in the body of christ but i want to remind you you've got a god-given talent you've got a gift and i feel the holy ghost calling all of us every part every member every person to be a part of the body and to be a part of the kingdom give your talent to god into the kingdom first find your spiritual gifting find a natural gift and contribute them to the work of the king be a part of this eternal victorious and god ordained body his church why are we staying together i know many of you are dying to fill out that worksheet some of you already have it filled out probably overachievers i'll explain it to you in just a moment before we do i want to tell you one last story then we're going to pray brother chuck carr our district secretary shared this story with us several weeks ago it just emphasizes the need for the body every part doing its share i told a couple of you this story it was so powerful they were at a state park pigeon forge area mountains all around there was a river that ran through those mountains and water would come off those mountains and feed that river so that his children and his niece decided there was some rocks they were going to jump on those rocks and get to one big rock that was in the middle of that river they were doing that they were in the middle of the river and all sudden they heard this loud clap they didn't know it but upstream and in the mountains there was a lot of rain that was happening flash flooding that was happening that clap was the water coming from both sides of the mountains meeting that's how much water was rushing towards them so it was about 30 seconds for those rocks that they had used to get to that middle rock were covered completely they were cut off couldn't get back to him but the car said he ran over to them as close as he could get he's panicking he can see the panic on their face said he could describe it to you in detail the panic that was happening he's trying to figure out what can i do what can i do this was a state park there were other families there and he said out of nowhere these men started running from other families and they all looked at each other he said we really didn't even say any words we just started locking arms and these men that didn't even know his kids started walking out into this raging river he said some of them had it up to their chin but they were locked onto one another and wouldn't let each other go and they made it all the way out to those kids and those kids were able to come in front of them and use them as a fence as a rail to get back to shore not only that he said there were some kids up river two brothers one of them slipped and fell was in the water tumbling his other brother jumped in to try to save him and those brothers were tumbling in that water but thankfully there was a group of men each of them knowing they had a part to play we're standing in that river holding on to one another and they caught those boys and brought them to safety as well but the car used this story to tell us how important it is that the body be the body that every part do if someone were to stat sat there on the sidewell i think they got it well you know i don't i don't really want to expose myself i don't want to get out in the fray like that who knows what happened to all five of those kids but because someone decided you know what i'm gonna step up i've got a part to play in this thing i feel god call me to do something who knows it might not be your just your own family that sees you doing it and they're blessed by it but there may be someone that only you can reach but a car mentioned this someone that life is dealt a bad hand they're tumbling they can't find their footing and you decided no i'm going to be a part of the body i'm going to i'm going to teach a bible study i'm going to get involved in my community and you may be the only one that can reach them and because you decided to be a part you caught that individual and they were able to make it to safety as well

i feel the holy ghost here tonight compelling us and stirring some people that have felt sidelined or felt like you're not a partner you don't have a ministry a place god's calling you and saying no no no you're part of this body just like he is and just like others are god's car i wonder if we just lift our hands and respond right now to the holy ghost that's calling us in the room there's maybe some who've been involved for years but god's calling you to a new ministry and god's got a new gifting a new talent he wants to give united or maybe there's some that have been sitting on the bench sitting on the pew and you felt god calling you but you just haven't stepped down just yet lord i pray you'd help us to be a part of this body i pray and help us lord to allow you to call us and allow you to stir us and to allow you to move and shift us into position that we would use the callings and the giftings and the talents and the ministry that you placed upon us that we wouldn't neglect our responsibility and our role and our obligation to the body but i pray you'd help us tonight to respond to the call of god help us to be a part of this great body help us lord to use the gifts that you've given to us i pray you're covering in your help tonight lord i pray for an elder i pray for a young married i pray for someone lord in the middle of their life that maybe isn't being used right now or hasn't stepped out just yet that you would call them lord step out and to use their gifts and be a part of the kingdom that we wouldn't invest them solely into the earth and into the world we'd give them first two we'd seek you first in your kingdom in jesus name in jesus name amen i mentioned in a moment ago and i recognize it that there are many in the room that have been used in dozens of ways in the kingdom but i do feel like god could call us to step out into a new ministry and out of our comfort zone if he does that tonight because he's placed you where he's pleased that's his will and i encourage you to follow him to step out