SCATTER - GATHER

THE CHURCH'S MISSIONS:
S.C.A.T.T.E.R. to Preach,
GATHER to Teach

       Serving

                Christ

                   All

                         The

                     Time,

                             Ever

                    Ready

                            to Preach....

 [In the first century,] "there was a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered abroad...except the apostles....They that were scattered abroad went everywhere preaching the word." (Acts 8:1, 4--emphasis mine)

Those we think of as the "preachers" (apostles) were still in Jerusalem. The other believers went everywhere preaching the word. Preaching does not require a seminary degree or formal training. It requires a personal relationship with the Savior, Jesus Christ. Preaching is simply TELLING THE GOOD NEWS (gospel) THAT JESUS CHRIST CAME AND DIED FOR OUR SINS, THEN AROSE FROM THE DEAD, PROVING HE HAS ALL POWER OVER DEATH AND HELL. Once we believe in Jesus, and confess Him as our Savior, Jesus puts His Holy Spirit within us as His guarantee that He will return to take us to be with Him forever. The Holy Spirit in us enables us to live for Jesus. We cannot do it without Him.

What did Jesus tell His disciples?
GO into all the world;
PREACH the gospel to every creature;
MAKE DISCIPLES of those who believe;
BAPTIZE believers in the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit;
TEACH believers to observe [do] all things He had commanded them.

 [Jesus said,] "Go ye into all the world, and PREACH the gospel to every creature. (Mark 16:15) And... all authority is given unto me in heaven and in earth. GO ye therefore, and TEACH all nations,
BAPTIZING them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, TEACHING them to observe all things
whatsoever I have commanded you." (Matthew 28:18-20) [emphases mine]

What did Jesus NOT tell them to do?
He did NOT tell them (or us) to bring the lost world into the church.

Many local churches focus on bringing unbelievers (the "lost") to church, rather than teaching Christ-followers (the "saved") to go win the lost. If that is the best method, would God not have told us to do that?
 
If I wanted to distribute CDs, would I better accomplish that by having friends take the CDs and give them out? or by inviting everyone in town to come get one? It would be easier to take them and give them out than get people to come pick them up. That also applies to the gospel.

SALVATION is an act of God, not of our own will. It is a new birth, a transformation of the old person into a new person, accomplished by the Holy Spirit living inside those who believe in Jesus as Savior. There are many impostors in local churches! (Some of the devil's best workers are in the local "church"--but none in the true Church.)

When we try to bring the lost into the local church, we dilute the church's effectiveness:

a) Nonbelievers act like believers at church, but act naturally elsewhere, giving the wrong impression that there is no difference between the world and the Church. "They profess that they know God;    but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate." (Titus 1:16)

b) The Church is influenced by worldly thinking of those who seem to be saved but are not.

c) Valuable time is spent trying to win the lost at church, instead of teaching the saved to more effectively go win them.

 The night Jesus was born, the angel told the shepherds, "I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David [Bethlehem] a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." (Luke 2:10-12) If everyone is invited to be saved, we need to let them know! The effective way--and the obedient way--to do that is to SCATTER and tell them. Until they are saved, they have no interest in coming to church, because they are not part of the Church. Once they are saved, wewon't have to beg them to come! They will know they belong!

As we go to the lost, we can meet their needs. In serving others, we serve Jesus. [GOOD DEEDS MEET REAL NEEDS.] Then, when the time is right, we can tell them about Jesus who came to save them.

If we are not to bring the lost to church, why have "church"? The Church [all believers in Jesus, worldwide] is the Family of God.

 As God's Church, we GATHER to:

a) Love our Father (praise God) jointly; "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind." (Matthew 22:37)

b) Love one another; "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." (Matthew 22:39)

c) Teach and learn from one another; "...when ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying." (1 Cor.14:26)

d) Watch out for each other; "Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood."  (Acts 20:28)

e) Encourage one another; "Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God." (Acts 14:22)

f) Comfort one another; "...that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God." (2 Cor. 1:4)

g) Serve one another; "...by love serve one another." (Gal. 5:13)

h) Rebuke one another, but not our elders; "Rebuke not an elder, but entreat him as a father; and the younger men as brethren; ...Them that sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear."  (1 Tim. 5:1, 20)

So, let's SCATTER to preach, and GATHER to teach.