Pulpit Voices: What Nazarenes Are Preaching

by Dana L. Preusch

Series title--"Moving In, Reaching Out"

Last April, after seven years of "mobile church" at a local junior high, Christ Community Church moved into its own building for the very first time. It was an exciting moment in the life of our church as we prepared physically for the move. But in the flurry of activity that began months before the move, my copastor and I began to sense a need for a sermon series that would prepare our people spiritually. We knew that the physical dynamic of our worship would change significantly once we got into a building, but we also knew that the relational dynamic would be impacted as well. We anticipated many more walk-in guests, since our building would give us more visibility in a growing community full of new housing developments and persons new to the area.

So, on the eve of our move, we chose to address the issue of Christian hospitality with a particular focus on equipping our people to reach out to the unchurched person who might come through our doors in the days ahead. We preached a sermon series titled Moving In, Reaching Out that included the following emphases:

Becoming a Contagious Christian: A Formula for Success--We began with a sermon acknowledging the change we were about to undergo, and we asked the congregation to reflect on questions such as: What kind of impression are we going to make on our new neighbors? Will we be a welcoming and hospitable people? Will we reach out to those around us and serve them, share Christ with them? Will our new neighbors see that something compelling and contagious is going on inside our new building? Using Acts 2:41-47, which detailed the Early Church's amazing growth following Pentecost, we challenged our congregation to emulate this winsome, authentic community of faith.
We Have Nothing to Fear but Fear Itself--Using Exodus chapters 3--4, we issued a challenge to our people to see themselves as chosen by God for a special mission to the part of the city we were moving to--an evangelistic mission. We also gave our people the same assurance that a fearful Moses, with a brand-new assignment and daunting task, received from God: "I will be with you" (3:12).

One Size Does Not Fit All--Utilizing concepts from Bill Hybels's book Becoming a Contagious Christian, we encouraged our people to find an evangelistic style that fit how God had uniquely wired them. Examples ranged from Peter's confrontational style in Acts 2 to Paul's intellectual approach found in Acts 17.

It Takes a Village--By preaching from texts that focused on examples of Christians partnering in ministry (Moses and Aaron in Exodus 5; Jesus sending out the disciples by twos in Mark 6:7-13; Paul and Barnabas and others in the Book of Acts), we were able to communicate the importance of a team approach to reaching and meeting the needs of the unchurched and others who would come through our doors.

Bridging the Cultural Gap--We concluded the series using Luke 5:27-32, where Jesus joins His newest disciple, Levi, the tax collector, at a raucous party that garners the disdain of the Pharisees. Jesus explains why He would attend such an event with the familiar and piercing words: "Healthy people don't need a doctor, but sick people do" (v. 31, CEV). That text helped us to challenge our people to build bridges to others outside the walls of our new building, to offer hospitality to those who might have very different values and lifestyles than our own, and to invite them into a space where other people wouldn't try to change them, but where they could encounter a God who would change them by His unconditional and lavish love. Henri Nouwen provided the sweet ending to our sermon series with his powerful words from Reaching Out:

Hospitality requires the creation of the friendly empty space where we can reach out to our fellow human beings and invite them to a new relationship. This conversion is an inner event that cannot be manipulated but must develop from within. Just as we cannot force a plant to grow but can take away the weeds and stones which prevent its development, so we cannot force anyone to such a personal and intimate change of heart, but we can offer a space where such a change can take place.

Dana L. Preusch is associate pastor of Christ Community Church of the Nazarene in Olathe, Kansas.