THE STATE OF THE CHURCH
Are you wondering what is going on with the church in America today? We must face the fact that there are some serious issues as more and more Americans turn away from church and increasingly so in the younger generations. Not only have we experienced loss, we are also deeply divided. In Jesus’ longest recorded prayer (John 17), he specifically prayed that His followers be one just as He and the Father are one. And the writers of the New Testament call believers to unity over and over again. R21C is a call to a new reformation that will bring the church back into unity through a renewed focus on Mission, Ministry, and Maturity. In returning to the heart of God’s purpose in the church we must also resist and abandon three factors that lead to division - Fleshly Fixations, Cultural Compromise, and Divisive Dogma. Read more below and watch messages at R21C on our YouTube channel, Reach Love Unite.
R21C: A NEW REFORMATION
Welcome to R21C: A New Reformation. I am Bruce Mayhew, Pastor at Gateway Church and I believe that God is calling the church at large to a new reformation.
Most people are familiar with the Protestant Reformation and the movement to return to the faith and practices of a New Testament-centered faith, rooted in salvation in Christ by faith through grace with scripture as the highest authority.
The need for reformation is not once and done. There is a continuing need for reformation, sometimes minor and sometimes major. Since the Protestant Reformation the church has developed in many different directions has become more and more divided in opposition to Jesus’ prayer in John 17.
There Jesus prayed that his followers would be all be one just as He and the Father are one. He said that through our unity in Him the world might believe that the Father sent the Son. He also said that through the unity of His people the world would know the Father’s love. Watch my introduction to R21C: A New Reformation at REACH LOVE UNITE on YouTube.
You can see the playlist for the series here: R21C. This is a work in progress and I will add to it through messages, this webpage, other outlets in the future.
MISSION MINISTRY MATURITY
I introduce the core strategy for pursuing this new reformation from Ephesians 4:1-17. Here I find three essentials to move towards oneness and the fulfilment of our purpose in Christ. These are mission, ministry, and maturity. In Ephesians, Paul lays out God’s eternal plan to create a people in which He will dwell. All of this will be accomplished through Jesus Christ and His ministry. The church must make the mission of God in Christ our mission, and thus the top priority in all that we do. We pursue the mission through ministry, that is service. Through service, we join Christ in building the Body—leading people to Christ and helping one another to grow to unity in the faith and knowledge of Jesus Christ until we all reach maturity, according to the measure of Christ.
THE CENTER POINTE
In order for us to be united there must be a point of unity. We cannot be united around the idea of unity. Our unity comes only in Jesus Christ. There are many practices and doctrines that divide Christians and some resist the idea of unity because of the fear that it will lead to compromise and heresy. We can’t be united in all of the practices, traditions, and doctrines of people. We can only be united in Christ as the promised Messiah, the Son of God, who was sent by God, the Father to provide forgiveness of sin and reconcile people to God through his work of forgiveness and reconciliation. People who stray from biblical Christianity always move away from the center pointe of the Good News of reconciliation through the atoning work of Christ on the cross. Watch the Message.
The Center Pointe leads us into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Find out more about experiencing that relationship from the message, The Center Pointe Is a Portal.
THREE SOURCES OF DIVISION
God’s will is that His people be united in Christ, but as you know His people are deeply divided. There are three key sources of division that we must resist and overcome if we are going to be faithful to God’s call to unity. The first is fleshly fixations. This is where the Christian yields to the flesh rather than the spirit. To grow to maturity in Christ we must deny the flesh. Jesus said if anyone wants to be His follower they must deny themselves, take up their cross, and follow Him (Luke 9:23). There must be a surrender that leads to the transformation of the heart and mind if we are to live out who we are in Christ.
The second key source of division in the Body of Christ is cultural compromise. There is only one Body of Christ and one kingdom of God. All other kingdoms are of the world and will one day pass away. In cultural compromise, the believer’s allegiance to their community, country, ethnic group etc. takes a priority over the calling and teaching of Christ. Divided loyalties have led to prejudice, racism, Christian nationalism, and other mindsets and affiliations that divide the body. Racism in America has been one of the most devastating compromises of Christians and it has divided and severely damaged the Body of Christ and our witness.
A third source of division is divisive dogma. By divisive dogma, I mean dogmatic teachings that go beyond the clear teachings of scripture. Churches and denominations have developed many doctrines, traditions, and practices which litmus tests for ones’ commitment to scripture, the New Testament, the glory of God, grace, the will of God, etc. Throughout history these teachings have often taken groups beyond New Testament Christianity, but even within orthodoxy there is divisive dogma that unnecessarily divides the church.
Watch some messages on divisive dogma: Catholicism: Beyond the New Testament, Calvinism: Beyond the Scriptures, Dominionism: Beyond the Scriptures. These are not the only places Christians have moved into divisive dogma. I address this in general in my introductory message R21C: A New Reformation, in the section on divisive dogma at the 21:40 mark. You can also read my blog article on divine healing at Transformation: Christ in You the Hope of Glory.
Here are some linked messages regarding different religions, such as Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and Spiritualism: Religions: What’s the Difference.