A Brief Vision of Ministry
March 16, 2014

            Let me start our time together today by reading a passage that we hear often. Matthew 28:18-20. After his death on the cross and his resurrection to victory over his enemies, Jesus gave this last command to his disciples, the church, and thus to you and me as well. He said,

All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age (Matt 28:18-20).

In this parting statement Jesus dictates the mission of the church. These are his parting words. This is what he wants his church to remember. This is what he wants his church to do, not as a side task but as THE task. (Add more here?)

While there are several things that we could point out about this passage, there are a few things that I want to remind us of this morning as we reflect on church planting in the Salt Lake region.

First, this task is not optional. With these parting words, Jesus is not making a suggestion. He is not just throwing out an idea of how the church could spend her time until he returns. This is his command. Hear the power of these words, “ALL authority in heaven and on earth has been given to ME.” He is saying to the disciples, and by extension to us, that he is our King. He will direct what we do. He will be giving the orders and laying out the mission. Make no mistake about this. When we submit ourselves to Jesus, we must realize that when we come to him we cannot do so as one looking for advice. Jesus is not a life advisor. He is king. When we come to him seeking what we should do, we better come with the foregone conclusion that this commission is going to be central to what he wants us to do.

Second, this task is for the whole church, not just a select few. The Great Commission is for the church, and we cannot view the church as merely being a hierarchical institution. Sometimes I think we think of the Great Commission as the task of the church as institution. It’s what the leadership in the church does. The pastors or the staff of some kind should be the ones who fulfill the Great Commission. As Southern Baptists we might look at the Convention, NAMB, IMB, and think that the Great Commission is what they do. Me? I’m just a Christian.

            That won’t fly. The church is not an institution. The church is not a building. The church is the people of God. Every member needs to be active in order to obey this commission.

Third, this task never ends. Notice that part of making disciples of all nations is teaching them to observe all that Jesus has commanded—which would then include the Great Commission. As we make disciples, part of their disciple ship is learning to go and make more disciples themselves.

Lastly, and specifically what I want to talk about this morning, the Great Commission requires believers to Go. Sometimes going means just as you go along in your life in your current context. Sometimes it means you have to go to the far reaches of the earth. But what I want to show you this morning is that going should also include places in the United States as well, specifically Utah.

Why Utah?

            I think it is pretty common to think that obeying the Great Commission means we go or send missionaries to places in the 10/40 Window. This certainly is the area in greatest need. Yet, this fact should not lead us to neglect other areas that are also in dire need. I submit to you that Utah is one of those places in dire need. I know numbers and percentages are not everything, but in this case I think it may be the most effective way to let you know how great the need is for the gospel to be proclaimed in Utah.

            First, lets look at the percentage of evangelicals in Utah (evangelical being loosely defined as one who believes in the authority of the Bible, need for personal conversion, and see evangelization as important).

1. Utah                        2%
2. Rhode Island 2%
3. Massachusetts 3%
4. New Hampshire 4%
5. Vermont 4%
6. New Jersey 4%
7. Connecticut 4%
8. Maine 4%
9. New York 5%
10. Delaware 7%

            If you are anything like me, you’ll find these figures surprising. Typically when we think of the United States, we do not think that there are areas in this country where 98% of the population do not know Jesus. 98%. What I also find to be especially heart breaking about Utah is that it is around 70% Mormon and 24% unaffiliated with any religion. Not only are the majority of these people lost, they cling to a false gospel and a false hope.

            Now, within the state of Utah, the area I want to focus mostly on is comprised in Salt Lake County and Utah County. The Largest city in Salt Lake County is, of course, Salt Lake City. The largest metro area in Utah county is Provo, the home of Brigham Young University and Utah Valley University.

            When it comes to least reached metro areas in the US, Utah contains the top 3 least reached metro areas in the country and 4 in the top ten. In case you are unfamiliar with the term “metropolitan area,” it refers to a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories, sharing industry, infrastructure, and housing. At the top of the list is Provo Utah. It has a Metro population of roughly 555,000. Merely .5% of that population claim to be evangelical Christians. This is a metro area with over half a million people. Out of metro areas in the United States, it has the smallest number of believers who can act as a gospel witness. Salt Lake City doesn’t clock in at much more. With a metro population over 1.7 million, it is merely 3% evangelical.

            Along with this low presence of Jesus followers in the region, there are also (obviously) a very low number of churches as well. After looking over these numbers, it should come as no surprise that Utah contains the top 5 metro areas in the United States with the worst ratio of evangelical churches to population. What does this mean? It means that, in 2010, the Provo metropolitan area had one evangelical church for every 20,300 people (about 26 churches). For a point of contrast, look at Tennessee (I was not able to find numbers on Jackson in particular but only for Tennessee in general). Tennessee has 1 SBC (not counting all evangelical churches, just SBC) church for every 2,039 people. State wide, Utah has one SBC church for every 36,606 people (I got all of these numbers from the website for the North American Mission Board).

            Provo is by far the metro area with the worst church to population ratio. Salt Lake City comes in at #3 with one evangelical church for every 6,900 people.

So, what’s the upshot of all of this? What should we take away? Like I said before, numbers aren’t everything, but as we reflect on these stats I want us to remember that these numbers correspond to people. 98% of people in Utah are lost. 70% of people believe in a false gospel. And there are few Christians and few churches there to proclaim the true gospel. I don’t pretend to be an expert on the State of Utah. I don’t pretend to be an expert on how to evangelize Mormons. And, it is encouraging to know that we do not need to be. What we need to do is take the true gospel to a dark place and proclaim it faithfully, trusting in the promise that Jesus has given to us in the Great Commission—that he will be with us.

            So, we know that there is a need for gospel work in this region. How should we go about it?

Vision of Ministry

            As we plan for ministry in this region, we want to be careful to understand the context of the area and some of its unique challenges. Utah is a different context then the South, and we want to tailor our strategy (not our mission) around this context. Some of those challenges are as follows.

            1. Availability of land/buildings: Many of the areas in which we want to eventually achieve a gospel witness simply do not have land or buildings available at a price that is reasonable. The Salt Lake Valley is land locked between mountain ranges. Land is expensive, and in many cases unavailable in certain areas. Because of this, the model of renting or buying a space to hold a church service is expensive and difficult.

            2. There are few believers there: The believers that are there are usually (and thankfully) committed to their local church. So, the model of renting or buying a space and inviting people to come to a place is not likely to work in a sustainable way.

            3. Baptist reputation: When Haley, Tom, and I met with the NAMB coordinator for the region he told us that over the past 50 years Southern Baptists had achieved a less than favorable reputation. Out there Southern Baptists are mostly known as short-term planters. People will go out there to plant a church, stay there while they have funding, but then go home after 2 or 3 years when their funding runs out and they have yet to achieve a self-sustaining body. One of the main reasons self-sustainability was not achieved, I think, is because of the cost of renting or building coupled with the fact that there are just so few believers out there.

            As you can see, most of these challenges are challenges of sustainability. Due in part to these challenges we envision partnering with a church plant, called Christ Fellowship, already out there that is based on a house church model. Currently the model runs as a larger network of house churches that cooperate, operate in the same city or locality, and have a shared leadership.

What is a House Church?

            Currently Christ Fellowship has three house churches in three different areas in the valley. Each house church is the core unit of church life. It is the central context of evangelism, discipleship, and pastoral care. It is a community of baptized believers who covenant together, practices the ordinances, exposit Scripture, and hold each other accountable. This is a family of believers who live out the Great Commission together in a specific area by demonstrating the gospel in tangible forms and declaring the gospel to others. Each house church is also led by a qualified elder; and each house church meets weekly in members’ homes on Sunday’s for fellowship, worship, study, and prayer.

Corporate Gathering

            In addition to the house church gatherings, once a month, the house churches meet together corporately. Through these meetings and this networking together, the house churches are resourced for local mission by providing shared leadership, Bible instruction, leadership development, equipping materials, opportunities for cooperation, and so on. A gathering unites house churches and enables each house church to see the bigger picture and the vision to saturate the area with gospel witnessing and God glorifying bodies of light.

Benefits of This Model

            This model has proved successful with Christ Fellowship in this region, most likely because it meets the difficulties of this particular area. First, it is a sustainable model in the region. It cuts out the difficulty of building and renting costs. You do not have to find property for a church building in order to plant a church. Second, it is a sustainable model for the region because even if you only have a small group of believers after a few years of ministry, you will have fewer costs that you need to pay for without a church building.

            Coupled with meeting contextual difficulties that impact sustainability, there are also other benefits in following a house church model. First, a house church model allows for a strong emphasis on community and discipleship. This is just something that springs from interacting with a smaller group of people. Anyone who is active in a small group can testify to the reality of this. As Haley and I committed to our small group, allowed ourselves to be vulnerable, sharing our lives and hearts together, we naturally became a tight knit group of individuals. Second, there is a benefit in the ease of pastoral care in a house church model. Fewer people under a pastor’s care means he can devote more of his time and energy to those people. Third, a house church model also allows for ease in multiplication. As a house church grows, obviously outgrowing space can become an issue. If church planting does not require buying or renting a building specifically set aside for church gatherings, though, then multiplying and planting a new church is much less difficult. There is no concern over raising money for and finding a new building. All that needs to be done is to identify a community in need of a gospel presence and to move there. Fourth, this model is sustainable. Money is freed up from building costs and can go completely toward other ministry expenses and pastoral stipends.

            Before we move on, I want to say that I am not against churches owning property and having a building set aside for church activities. I hope that is obvious as I have been a part of Cornerstone for several years now. Neither is Christ Fellowship Church in Utah against owning a building. Right now this model simply makes the most sense in this particular context. I took time to highlight several advantages this model offers. I also know that there are particular drawbacks. But, this is the model that seems best right now to plant churches and evangelize in the region.

Cornerstone’s Role: Partnership

            Now that we have looked at the particular make up of Utah, particularly the Salt Lake Valley region, and now that we have outlined how we view ministry there going forward, next I want to address Cornerstone’s role in all of this. I believe it should be a role of partnership; as a mutual investment in gospel ministry. As Haley and I go—And, Lord willing, as the Lord raises up others to go with us—I hope you view this not just as a work you are assenting to or one that you just think you “support.” I hope instead that you individually and corporately view this as something that you are doing to further the gospel. Something that you feel like you own and are a vital part of. Just as 3 John 8 tells us that as we support those who go out for the sake of the name we actually become fellow workers with them.

You do this through…

1. Praying for us: “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison—that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak” (Col 4:2-4).
            We are going to Utah because we want to be faithful to God’s call to make disciples. We aren’t going because we think we have some personal ability to pray open the hearts of men and change them. We know that the Lord is sovereign. He gives growth. He opens doors. We need you to pray that we will have opportunities to declare the truth, that the Lord will break hearts of stone and bring many people to himself.
            We need you to pray that we can endure the hardship of being far from home, being far from family, and in general leaving behind the life that we know. Pray that we would endure and be bold for the sake of the gospel. I believe that the Lord has ordained that your prayers would be one of the means by which we are sustained by him.

2. Support us financially: We are going with the North American Mission Board and we will receive a stipend to help support us, but the cost of living is higher out there. We are still compiling what our budget and needs will be, but this is an area that you can partner with us in ministry. Support from NAMB is only temporary. Haley and I are committed to staying, however. If that means I need to be bi-vocational, so be it. We are committed to ministry out there. With that said, we are also praying that the Lord would provide for us so that if I did decide to get a job, it would merely be for the purpose of making contacts and getting around people in order to evangelize.

3. Come visit us: 150 years ago, if we moved to Utah we may never have had the opportunity to see most of you again. Today, there is a direct flight from Memphis to Utah that takes about 3 hours. Come be part of our lives out there. Come visit the body of believers you will pray for and support.

4. Continue to point people our way: As you evangelize, disciple, and strengthen the faith of believers here, if any of them are interested in living life in an unevangelized area, send them our way. As is often pointed out, Cornerstone is situated in a unique place. We have several college students who come through here and after 4 years will be looking for jobs. One of the great needs in Utah are people who are not only able to evangelize but also able to follow through with discipleship. We need people to follow us there who will be faithful church members.

Conclusion


            Now, I want to have time to answer questions, but before that I want to quickly give you four exhortations:

First, if you are interested in joining us in this work, please come talk to me or Haley. If you want to talk to me more about this, please do. If you tell me that you are interested I know that isn’t the same as being committed. If you decide that going to Salt Lake is not for you then at least you will have a greater idea of our work out there and will be better equipped to pray for us.

Second, if you have the desire to go to another area in North America in dire need or if you have a desire to go to the far reaches of the earth in order to advance the gospel, then I encourage you to follow through and do it. You don’t have to go with me to SLC, but if you sense that the Lord is directing you to go then start making real plans. This may not necessarily apply to everyone in this room, but I hope that our decision to go makes church planting more real to everyone who is thinking about doing this. I also hope it excites you.
            I’ve been thinking about moving to Salt Lake City for nearly 4 years now. Mostly, up until now, I think I’ve been waiting on the timing to be right. Yet, as Haley and I finally made this decision we found it—I found it—to be so very hard. Going is hard—I’m saying that and I haven’t even left yet. Making the decision to actually go is hard. Making plans to go is hard, but faithfulness to obey your king in the Great Commission is a joy! Your flesh will cringe but your heart will rejoice.

Third, some—maybe even most here—are not called to go. You are called to stay. Or maybe you are just called to stay for right now. Whatever the case, I urge you to think of it as being called to stay with purpose. You are called to stay with purpose. Just as I am going in order to fulfill a mission, you are staying in order to fulfill a mission. I know that I have spent all of my time this morning talking about the great need for evangelism, discipleship, and church planting in SLC, but do not be deceived into thinking that SLC is the only place in need. Do not be deceived into thinking that any of the other top ten, twenty, or one hundred least reached metropolitan areas in the US are the only places in need. Jackson Tennessee is still in great need of the gospel. There is a great need for Christians to stay here. There are different challenges, but the purpose for staying should be the same—proclaiming the gospel; seeing people restored to their God through Jesus Christ.
            Right now, talking about all the possibilities and the vision for ministry in Salt Lake City can be very exciting. I hope you are excited about ministry in Salt Lake City, but you—all of us— have to also be excited about ministry in Jackson Tennessee. And if we aren’t excited and committed to ministry here, then we need to check ourselves. We need to check ourselves to make sure we aren’t just excited about theoretical mission work. We need to examine ourselves to make sure we aren’t just committed to the theory of evangelism. We need to check ourselves to make sure we aren’t just mentally assenting to the fact that those who do not know Jesus Christ are indeed separated from God and under his righteous wrath.

            No matter where we are, we need to commit to evangelism, discipleship, and gospel ministry. We need to commit to grow and be active in body life. You aren’t active by going to a place, but by being part of a people---through prayer, fellowship, discipleship, study, praise, and community.

            The way we practice gospel ministry is going to evolve over time. The way you personally practice it may change often with your circumstances, but at least two things will always be required of you: your time and your heart. Those two things are essential for gospel ministry. We cannot give the excuse of saying, “As soon as I have more time, I will evangelize. As soon as I have more time, I’ll make corporate worship a priority. As soon as I have more time, I’ll get more active in my small group. As soon as I have more time, I will commit to disciple and/or be discipled.” We can’t use this excuse because the fact of the matter is we will never have more time. 24 hours a day is all you will ever get and, most likely, if you are busy now then you will always be busy. You will always fill your time up. The question is how will you prioritize that time. We make time for what is important to us. Every single person has a mission and their choices and life reflect that mission. What is your mission? How does the way you prioritize inform you of your mission? And does it line up with the mission given to us by our King Jesus?

I am not speaking as one who condemns. The Lord knows I need to hear this. Be involved where you are. As Haley and I dream and cast vision for ministry in Salt Lake, we know we can’t check out of ministry in Jackson TN. So, hear me and feel me as a firm hand on your back urging you to jump out of this plan with me. We may not be landing in the same place, but we both are jumping in obedience to Jesus. And as our parachutes open we may drift and land in different areas but we still have the same mission and we still execute it by the power of the same Spirit. And since we are in different areas we will use different strategies and tactics, but our goal is the same. The requirement is the same. We have to be intentional about the way we invest ourselves in the church and invest ourselves in the community.

Fourth, as we go with purpose and as we stay with purpose I hope that the promise of Jesus in his Great Commission sustains us; “And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” It never ceases to amaze me to see how the Lord is working in every place that I go. As Haley, Tom, and I spent time with believers in Utah, I was blown away by their stories of how God had saved them and continues to work there. As believers have gone out, the Lord has gone with them and before them. He is God with us, and that should sustain us whether we travel to a new place or stay.

Salt Lake City Missions