An Open Letter To Our Cell Group Leaders

Cell groups have started and the new ministry year has finally begun. Firstly, let me say that I am thankful for the commitment of our cell group leaders - let it always be to Jesus and his mission. I anticipate both a challenging and an exciting year as we look to bring a renewed vision of Jesus and His mission to our church. As I shared on Sunday, renewal comes when we are grounded in the gospel of the the Lord Jesus who died for my sins, who rose from the dead, who today rules this city and my world; renewal comes when we begin to see that Jesus calls us to a bigger vision in life and ministry than our narrow vision ... the people in this city and the world is our mission; renewal comes when we rely on, depend on, seek, and wait on the power of the Holy Spirit to empower us to accomplish his vision and mission through our lives, in this city and in our world. We need all three - a clear gospel, a wider vision, and the power of the Spirit. My prayer is that God might be so gracious as to do just that for me, for you, and for the people under your care. Pray with me, for me and for each other, and for our people. It's what we need.

Secondly, let me say that I'm looking forward to leading our Tuesday evening cell group leaders fellowship this year. I know that we're all busy with ministry, but I hope you'll see coming on Tuesday evening as your time: your time to sharpen yourself and others; your time to chill, relax and share with other leaders; your time to be renewed personally for life and leadership. My prayer is that you'll come and leave energized, excited and empowered for Jesus and his mission.

We'll be meeting up as cell group leaders starting this month on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays of the month at church, with our first get together on the 12th (next week). The program for us as cell group leaders on Tuesday will generally be a simple one - we meet at 8pm sharp and will be finished by 9.30pm. They'll be a short teaching segment that I'll take (1/2 hour); they'll be small group time (guys/girls) to think and work through the implications/relevance of what we might look at (1/2 hour); and then 1/2 hour of praying over what we've explored, for ourselves, and for people in our cell groups.

Thirdly, let me say that I'll be praying for you these few weeks as your cell groups start. May you know the leading and power of the Spirit, as you follow Him and as you lead others under Him.

Pastoral Note - 11th November

The gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) give us the story of the life and work of Jesus. The book of Acts is the story of the powerful work of Jesus after his resurrection. While it’s called the Acts of the Apostles, it’s really the powerful acts of the Holy Spirit, the spirit of Jesus in growing His church through the first disciples from Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria to the ends of the earth. We read in chapter 1:8 that the purpose of the giving of the Holy Spirit to the disciples of Jesus was so that they might have the power to be Jesus’ witnesses. Acts is the unfolding of that story.

There’s a reason why the first disciples of Jesus needed the Spirit’s power to witness. Because wherever Jesus is proclaimed there you’ll always find opposition, and the temptation to fold under pressure. Right at the start the early Christian experience in sharing Jesus was ridicule in ch.2 and persecution/jail in ch.3. From embarrassment, to the fear of ridicule, to the fear of being excluded, this has always been experience of Christians who put Jesus forward in their lives. Even Paul who wrote most of the letters in the New Testament one prayer request is that he might be able to share about Jesus boldly and not be afraid (Ephesians 6:19-20). I reckon we face the same temptation to be afraid when it comes to putting Jesus forward, sharing about Him, even talking about Him whether at work, at uni, at school or at home.

Ever been in a situation where you have the opportunity to share about Jesus, but are afraid? Ever been in a situation where someone has asked you about your beliefs in front of other people at work, but you brush it off? Ever been in a situation where your friends are discussing a moral issue, but you remain silent rather than put forward a Christian perspective? We read in Acts 4 that Peter has just landed up in jail for talking about Jesus, and when he’s hauled up before the authorities he speaks clearly and boldly. This is the same Peter who a few months ago denies Jesus 3 times! What lies behind Peter’s boldness and clarity? Acts 4:8 tells us that it was when Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit, that he was able to boldly and clearly proclaim Christ. So impressed were the people opposing him that they were astonished, because Peter was an unschooled, ordinary guy (Acts.4:13). The power of the Spirit led to a bold and clear proclamation of Jesus in Peter’s life.

As you read on you discover that after Peter is released he goes straight to meet up with the other disciples of Jesus to pray with them. And they all ask God for continued boldness and courage to speak about Jesus (Acts.4:29). His answer comes to them in v.31, where we’re told that they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly. The power of the Spirit led to a bold and clear proclamation of Jesus in the life of the disciples.

Perhaps what we need as well these days is more of the power of the Holy Spirit to give us boldness. Maybe the reason why as a church our witness is weak, our personal proclamation of Jesus is reserved, lies in that we lack the power of the Spirit to be bold. When we feel afraid, embarrassed, tempted to baulk at the opportunity to share about Jesus, unsure about our abilities, what we need is to pray and ask God to fill us with the Holy Spirit to give us boldness. Or as Paul himself asked for prayer, we should be praying this for each other.