BUILDING UP THE BODY

Phase 2 - Week 4

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The people of the church doing the ministry of the church by growing together. That is the heartbeat behind Ministry Teams. 

 

1. Take a few minutes to make sure any new people are introduced and to greet one another. 

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2. Commit the group time to prayer. Ask the Lord to show us the Holy Spirit’s role in equipping us to “build up the body of Christ.” (Ephesians 4)

 

3. Watch the video. Click here for manuscript

 

4. Jason gave the following definition for Spiritual Gifts: Gifts of grace granted by the Holy Spirit to individual Christians that are to be exercised under the headship of Christ in the context of community for the building up of the Christ’s body, the church. What part or parts of this definition stood out to you? Why?

 

5. How does Paul's use of the body as a metaphor for the church help you understand your role in ministry and how you are to interact with other believers. You might want to read the following two passages together (Romans 12:3-8; 1 Corinthians 12:12-31)   

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6. Take some time to commit together to begin doing the homework. As time allows, and based on how well the group knows each other, discuss each of the five homework items together. You could: 1. Talk about needs in the church and which ministry teams you indicated initial interest in. 2. You could spend some time together praying through these points. 3. Discuss what you enjoy doing and what you are passionate about. 4. Discuss who you would like to seek counsel from, or if you know each other well enough, begin that conversation. 5. Discuss fears, anxieties, hesitations, lack of clarity, etc about committing fully to a Ministry team.

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7. Homework

1. Find out what the body needs

   1. In order to build up the church, we need to discover what the church needs.

   2. Begin with your own observations? What does the Bible call the church to do? Do you see areas where City Church is falling short? Are we completely missing something? Does what we are currently doing need greater attention, better organization, or more resources?

   3. Ministry Teams are meant to be organized in such a way that the various needs of the body are categorized under defined ministry areas. You will hear all about the teams next week! Our prayer is that all of the needs of the body will be given proper attention once Ministry Teams are in place.
       

2. Pray

   1. Seek the Lord

   2. Confess wrong motives, jealousy, etc

   3. Ask the Lord to give you a humble heart and a willingness to let others to speak into where you should or should not serve

   4. Pray for the courage to speak the truth in love to others

   5. Pray for our leaders as they seek to lead us and build these teams
       

3. Ask yourself, “What do I enjoy doing?”

   1. The fact that the needs of the church come first doesn’t mean serving should be miserable. Consider what you enjoy and what you are good at when considering the available ministries. 
       

4. Seek godly counsel.

   1. Ask other believers who know you well to speak truth to you regarding where you should serve and what potential gifts they see in you.

   2. If you are a new believer or if you haven’t yet formed the kind of relationships you need in order to have this conversation, please reach out to us. We would love to help you!
       

5. Jump in and serve!

   1. Don’t freeze up or get caught up in analysis paralysis!

   2. It’s OK if you don’t know what your gifts are. 

   3. Commit to the team we determine together is best for the church, serve, and along the way your gifts will become clear as you serve and grow with other believers.

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8. Close in prayer.

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