Transformed // Week 3 // Mission

Where and How/Mission and Values of MVC
Various Passages Feb 9, 2020
Introduction:
A. We saw at our 75TH anniversary that God has given MVC a firm foundation of
discipleship for 75 years and going forward we want to be a church that is blessed
by God so we can even be a greater blessing to each other and the world around
us!
B. To do that our desire is to excel still the more as a disciple making church.
1. Thus, we are now doing a series called Transform – how God changes us at
our core to make us even greater disciples and a disciple making church. So
we want to position ourselves in line with where He is working!
2. We also learned that unless God builds MVC as a greater disciple making
church we are laboring in vain, so we want to do our due diligence and
deeply depend upon God!
• So what are some of the things that need to change at MVC for us to be an even more
effective disciple making church to be a greater blessing to each other and the world
beyond these walls? Let’s start with
I. MVC Mission
A. Our Mission over the last number of years has been bringing people to Jesus and
becoming more like Jesus! We want to tighten that up a bit after we did a whole
series on discipleship a year ago and learned that a disciple is simply someone
who follows Jesus and impacts others.
1. We saw that from the great commission, the meaning of the word disciple
and what Jesus called his disciples to, “follow me and I will make you fishers
of men” –
2. Following Jesus, impacting others is exactly what a disciple is and does!
B. So our mission going forward is simply: following Jesus, impacting others!
1. This is what we want to excel in still the more.
2. Repeat!
C. Let me expand just a little what that looks like – First, following Jesus
1. To equip believers to be passionate followers of Jesus committed to growing
in Christlikeness,
2. The Great Commandment tells us to love the Lord with all our hearts and
Romans 8:29 tells us that God’s goal in our lives is to conform us into the
image of Christ. We learned just last week that God is transforming us into
the image of His glory, from one degree of glory to the next
D. Impacting others
1. To raise up the next generation of disciples!
a) God’s Word repeatedly calls us to raise up the next generation but also
for us to thrive as a church for the next 75 years it is essential that we
raise up the generations after us
2. To radically impact our communities through the hope of the gospel, one life
at a time, one step at a time.
a) That fulfills our call to make disciples of all nations and brings it down
to a very practical level for each one of us to impact those around us.
• So with a tighten target of where Jesus wants MVC to go, we need to adjust some
key principles and practices to get us there. These would be …
II. MVC Values
A. Mission driven - mission is why we exist
1. We believe that we carry the hope of Jesus to the world. We have been
placed in our church and community for the sake of others. When each of us
plays our part families are strengthened, believers grow, the hurting are
healed, the lost are found, and our community is blessed.
2. We just spent a lot of time on the mission, our destination of following Jesus
and impacting others. What we mean by mission driven is what ultimately
leads us in our decisions is our mission and becomes the focus of our work.
What we align our work and ministries around is the mission. What we want
to be intentional and strategic about is the mission Jesus gave us!
B. Grace+truth - Grace+truth is our context.
1. We believe we all need grace and truth. How God meets us in our brokenness
is how we engage one another in our current culture.
2. We learned in the book of Revelation that Jesus wants His churches to be
churches of both grace and truth
3. We learning in our Christmas series that right at the heart of the glory of
Jesus is grace and truth John 1:14
C. Future focused - the next generation is our sight.
1. We believe our legacy is to raise a generation that knows and loves Jesus. We
leverage our opportunities to help the emerging generation find their place in
God’s story.
2. While we have a special focus on young families, we all have a generation
that is younger than us both spiritually and age wise. There is someone
whom each one of us can take what we learned in our stage of life or spiritual
growth and pass onto someone who is coming up behind you.
a) We are not just talking about 70 year olds working with 15 year olds
even though if God leads that way all the better
b) There are people in their 70’s who know people in their 50’s and 60’s
whom they can help prepare and equip for the next stage of life. People
in their 20’s that can help teens. We have every age between, above and
younger than those ages that can focus on their next generation
c) There are also mature believers in Christ that can help a new believer in
Christ grow their roots in Jesus and there are new believers in Christ who
can help a lost person find Jesus.
d) The point is that we all have someone age wise or spiritually that we can
help prepare for the next stage of life or growth in Christ.
D. Together strong - together is our vehicle.
1. We believe we are better together. We are committed to connecting in
authentic community where discipleship takes place, burdens are carried and
each is spurred on in our next steps with Jesus.
2. None of us grows in isolation we need others to sharpen us and us sharpen
them.
3. Even Jesus sent out His disciples in twos when He sent them out to do
ministry and the great apostle Paul went in teams.
4. We need to live and grow and serve together in the family of God and
independently or in isolation. We have been designed by God to live and
depend upon community. To do otherwise you do it to your own hurt
Ephesians 4:15-16
E. World changers - transformation is our destination.
1. We believe our world is changed one life at a time. Every life matters. Every
moment is an opportunity. We are sent ones (missionaries) bringing the love,
life and truth of Jesus to our community.
2. We saw the reality of this in the video by Ron Hutchcraft on our 75th when as
a child he came to the children’s programs at this church and was saved.
Ron has literally touched thousands upon thousands of lives since then
through Youth for Christ, businessmen’s ministry and now his ministry to
Native Americans here in the United States, not to mention his radio
broadcast, which many of us have heard.
3. Every life matters, whether a child or a senior, every moment is an
opportunity to minister to someone whether at church or work, school, home
or play
4. Every one of us is a missionary/pastor not just the paid professionals at
church. Ephesians 4:11-12
5. So when everyone of us at MVC sees ourselves as God’s evangelists and
missionaries, in our home, school, work and play places with every person
we engage. Seeing every interaction as an opportunity for a conversation or
act of kindness to continually prepare the soil of their hearts. When someone
comes to Christ we have no idea of how God changes their life and their
world – everyone they touch and every place they go.
6. We truly can change the world by changing one person’s world, one life at a
time, one step at a time and leave the results to God as He takes it from there
to further His work.
III. Conclusion
A. Turn to Read Matthew 4:18-22
B. Following Jesus to be someone who impacts others means we need to leave what
we are currently pursuing to follow Jesus. It is an individual decision that each
one of us must make. Bottom line it is a matter of priorities. Will we seek God
and His kingdom first or will others lesser things keep us from that?
1. The disciples were fishermen who left their jobs, their families, their
businesses, and their possessions, literally everything to follow Jesus.
2. What do you need to leave to follow Jesus?
C. That decision of just 12 men forever changed their lives and history. What do
you think God would do through a church of 500 people who said we are leaving
everything to follow Him?
D. This morning I want to let you talk to Jesus about what you heard!
1. Some may be ready today to say Jesus I’m all in! Today I am giving up
__________ to follow you with all my heart.
2. Others have lesser things than Jesus controlling your heart, you want to
follow Jesus but these things have a strong hold on you. Would you present
your entire life to Jesus and give him the freedom and right to break the hold
these things have on you and to make you a wholehearted follower of Jesus.
E. As you meet with Jesus, consider this picture and ask yourself what is your teddy
bear?