FIVE PURPOSES Rick Warren in ‘The Purpose Driven Life’ (Zondervan publishing) points out five purposes for which God made us:
1
He created us to become like Christ
2
He planned us for his pleasure
3
He formed us for his family
4
He shaped us to serve him
5
He made us for a mission
The church has five purposes therefore:
1
Discipleship
2
Worship
3
Fellowship
4
Ministry
5
Evangelism
FIVE COMMANDS There are five commands of God which summarise the whole of the Christian life:
1
The first command Jesus gave his disciples: ‘Come, follow me.’ (Mark 1:17)
2
The command Jesus said was the most important of all: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ (Mark 12:30)
3
The command Jesus said was the next most important: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ (Mark 12:31)
4
The new command Jesus gave to his disciples just before he died: ‘Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.’ (John 13:34)
5
The final command Jesus gave his disciples before he just left them: ‘Go and make disciples of all nations.’ (Matthew 28:19)
FIVE VALUES There are five values which are derived from these purposes and commands, which should shape our Christian lives and the life of our church:
1
The growth of every Christian, as we follow him.
2
Jesus Christ at the centre, as the one who reveals God, through whom we come to God, and as the one who has promised to be with us always.
3
Every Christian in ministry to those around them.
4
The development of Christian community life marked by openness and sacrificial love.
PRACTISE WHAT YOU PREACH! All Christians will say that they accept these commands. However, our lives show whether or not we really accept them, and the values arising from them.
If a church organisation does not help us fulfil God’s purposes and commands, it needs to change!
I believe that each Christian needs to belong to a small group which accepts these commands and holds these values and seeks to put them into practice. Each group would aim to reach out and embrace others; as it grew it would multiply into two, like a cell in a living organism - hence the name, cell group or cell church. The name is not important. What is important is the big idea.
