Easter At Reliant 2017

Easter is always a special time of year as we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  It can also feel a little intimidating for those who haven't been in church for awhile.  So what if you could come to church as a regular person and didn't have to worry about all the religious stuff? If that sounds good to you, then Reliant is the place for Easter.

Reliant Church meets at CK Danceworks in front of Seven Hills on Cedar Crest.  We are very excited about this Easter service for many reasons.  We believe that God is going to pack out the house with visitors and guests. People just like you.  So I want to give you a quick rundown of what you can expect.

1.  We are a friendly bunch so you will be greeted at the door and directed to the kids area if needed.
2.  The RKidz (our children's ministry) staff is amazing and your kids will love the Easter lesson and fun they have prepared.
3.  Your kids are checked in and checked out for safety and all the workers have been background checked.
4.  The dance studio is very nice and relaxed as you grab a cup of coffee.
5.  The auditorium is set up in more of a living room style with no bad seats.
6.  The worship music is modern and exciting as we celebrate the day.
7.  And I will bring a message about the resurrection that you can use on Monday morning.

We don't use any high pressure tactics to try and make you do something you don't want to do.  Our goal is to let you experience God in a refreshing new way that invites you to come and see us again.

I hope to see you all Easter morning @ 9:30 & 11:30.

Bill Easter 2017 from Reliant on Vimeo.

Getting to the Core: Kingdom Builders

If you have been with me through the journey of the core values of Reliant Ministries, you can see why I'm so excited about starting this new work of the Lord.  It is so easy to get off track and get away from the biblical pattern of ministry that we must continually remind ourselves why we do what we do.  The truth is there are lives at stake.  It's one thing to start a business where the end game is to make as much money as possible.  If it fails, life goes on to the next adventure.  But when you are talking about the work of God and the ministry of reconciliation, what we do and how we do it will have everlasting consequences.

Here are the 5 Core Values of Reliant:

1. Disciple Makers: We will make every effort to multiply our faith through evangelism and mentoring.
2. Bible Believers: The Bible is our final authority for all life and practice.
3. God Pleasers: By faith we will please God and trust him with our lives.
4. Community Engagers: Ministry runs on the rails of relationships.
5. Kingdom Builders: We will take every God-given opportunity to advance His kingdom in this world.

There is no doubt that God is advancing His Kingdom in this world and is using the Body of Christ to do so.  Every time a person receives Jesus as Lord and Savior, the kingdom is advanced.  I remember the first time the U.S. invaded Iraq after the bombing of Kuwait.  When the Iraqi solders saw the U.S. troops coming at them, they would lay down their weapons and throw up their hands in immediate surrender.  I'm afraid that too many Christians do the same thing when it comes to advancing the kingdom of God.  When times get hard or demanding, God's people are too quick to surrender and the kingdom is not advanced.  We must get in the fight for the souls of men.  God is not willing that any should perish.  Those Iraqi solders knew that if they came under the protection of the so called enemy, they would have a life they could only dream about.  So it is with those we win to Christ.  Once you surrender and enter into the kingdom of God, you find it is everything you ever wanted.

We must be intentional in our pursuit of the lost and the advancement of God's kingdom.  Therefore, we will take every God-given opportunity to advance His kingdom in this world.  But to truly be kingdom builders we must have a trained army that can carry out the commands of the Lord and win the war for the souls of men, women, boys and girls.   We are Kingdom Builders!

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Getting to the Core: Community Engagers

Our tagline for Reliant is "Ministry Runs on the Rails of Relationships."  We use a set of railroad tracks to illustrate the thought of people walking parallel to each other in this life connected at different points for different reasons.  The longer the tracks go, the closer they come together, and so it is with the relationships of this life.

One thing I know for sure is that all of life is about relationships.  A person is happy when their life is full of good healthy relationships and a person is sad if his or her relationships are not healthy or non-existent.  God tells us that we were created in his image and likeness which tells me that God is relational as well.  God has no desire to be alone but to share his life and creation with people who will share their love and life with Him. God cares so strongly about having these relationships that it drove him to sacrifice his own Son so that these relationships could be restored and maintained for all of eternity.  This in itself should reveal how valuable these relationships are.  I think it is a shame when people take the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus as a ticket to get out of Hell or condemnation and never give God the relationship for which He died.

Our core values at Reliant are:

1. Disciple Makers: We will make every effort to multiply our faith through evangelism and mentoring.
2. Bible Believers: The Bible is our final authority for all life and practice.
3. God Pleasers: By faith we will please God and trust him with our lives.
4. Community Engagers: Ministry runs on the rails of relationships.
5. Kingdom Builders: We will take every God-given opportunity to advance His kingdom in this world.

As we look at the pattern and example of Jesus in his earthly ministry, we don't see him building a big building and inviting people to come to it.  What we see is him walking the streets, going from house to house, spending time in the market place, or in the social gathering places (bars and such).  He was where the people were, building relationships with them.  This was one of the main differences to his ministry and that of the synagogues.  Jesus could preach anywhere.  Jesus was willing to go anywhere (John 4). He didn't need a structure to define him, his message defined him.  As he traveled he didn't travel alone, he had hand chosen 12 men to walk by his side and learn the ministry.  These disciples didn't learn to build buildings but to build people.

I don't believe anyone can effectively accomplish the ministry of Christ and not engage your community.  Christ's ministry was not a christian Walmart where consumers can come and find whatever they want and need.  Ministry is in the trenches with other people, loving them right where they are; finding the lost and shining the light of the gospel.  We can no longer sit back and hope that the blind wonder into our buildings.  We must follow the command of the Lord and go into all the world and preach the gospel.  We must seek and save that which is lost.  We Must Be Community Engagers!

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Getting to the Core: God Pleasers

The more I observe people and churches the more I see the trap of religion.  Religion is a control mechanism that places people in fear in order to produce a desired reaction.  The desired action varies from denomination to denomination but it usually ends up focused around your money.  If you fail to comply, there is some type of hell to pay or God will not be pleased with you.  There is no doubt that God is displeased with people because of our sin, but I would quote to you the same blessing that Paul quoted in Romans 7:24-25, "What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!"

You see, the love of Christ and his death, burial, and resurrection have set me free from the old wretched man that I am.  Jesus has not only paid my penalty for sin but has also lived out my righteousness.  Jesus Christ is my everything.  I don't have to live in fear wondering if God loves me because Jesus is the manifestation of that love. The perfect love of God has cast out all fear (1 John 4:18).

Now that I have a relationship with God and I don't have to worry about all the religious stuff that Jesus has already accomplished, how can I personally please God?  The answer is found in Hebrews 11:6, "And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him."  The way I please God is simply by faith; i.e. to trust him.  That's it!!!  To know that He is God and I am not.  To believe that if I seek him with my whole heart I will find him and he will reward me. The call of God to humanity has been the same since the garden of Eden.  God simply says, "Trust Me."

As I was talking with Kim about our new church plant.  I was sharing with her my desire to form a group of people that would learn to walk by faith.  A people that would take God at His Word.  I want to be the church that Jesus looks at and is moved by our faith as he was with the Centurion.  So we called the new Church "Reliant."  And we made sure that one of our core values is being God Pleasers: by faith we will please God and trust him with our lives.

On Sunday, February 1, 2015 we will begin our Core meetings getting ready for our grand opening in August.  I am trusting the Lord for 25 families that are ready to walk by faith and do something amazing for God.  We are asking God to give us our first meeting place that will hold us and our children.  I know God is going to provide.  If you would like to be a part of this new church, please contact me at bill.s@reliantrails.com.  I look forward to leading those that come by faith and walk by faith.  

Getting to the Core: Bible Believers

I remember the call of the Lord on my life to preach at a very young age.  My father wasn't a preacher nor my grandfather, but I knew what God was calling me to do by age 12.  I began seriously studying the Bible my senior year of high school.  I remember going into my local Christian bookstore and wandering around trying to figure out what book I should get and I settled on a book entitled "Coming Events in Prophecy" by M.R. Dehaan, M.D.  I was hooked.  That sparked a fire in me for studying the Bible that has been raging ever since.  I still have that book on my shelf as a keepsake to remind me of where it all began.

It's been 28 years since I purchased that first book and that has turned into the new church plant of Reliant Ministries, Inc.  Reliant is producing Jesus followers of faith that will expand the kingdom of God by their witness and His Word.  This has already begun to happen as we have many starting to embrace our first core value of being Disciple Makers.  Here are our five core values:

1. Disciple Makers: We will make every effort to multiply our faith through evangelism and mentoring.
2. Bible Believers: The Bible is our final authority for all life and practice.
3. God Pleasers: By faith we will please God and trust him with our lives.
4. Community Engagers: Ministry runs on the rails of relationships.
5. Kingdom Builders: We will take every God-given opportunity to advance His kingdom in this world.

The second core value is Bible Believers: The Bible is our final authority for all life and practice.  I am amazed today at the number of Christians that can't find the book of Ephesians if their life depended on it (and someday it might).  There is a growing epidemic of Bible illiteracy that has stifled evangelism and is causing the enemy to get the upper hand in the lives of the saints of God.

I am reminded of the words of Jesus when he was praying to the Father and said that he had given the words of the Father to the disciples and they received them and believed them in John 17:8, "For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me." (emphasis mine).  As Jesus continued in that prayer for the disciples of his day and those that would come after, he said, "Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth." (John 17:17)   Jesus knew that the way to live a sanctified life, holy, and unto the Lord was going to come through knowing and living the Word of God.  

Therefore, we will be very intentional about training the disciples that God has placed in our care.  I refuse to preach sanctification unto the Lord and not give them the Word that is able to sanctify.  It is the Bible that gives us all we need to live holy in this crooked and perverse generation.  I believe it is spiritual neglect to withhold from God's people the very words that will set them free.  We are Bible Believers.  The Bible is our final authority for all life and practice.

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Three Keys to Discipleship: Accountability

Over the past few blogs we have been discussing the necessity for three key components to any good discipleship process.  Many churches talk about discipleship but fail to see the reality of the lives of their people truly being conformed to that of Christ's. As in everything, stability is bound in 3's and so it is in discipleship.

First, you must build an intimate relationship with God.  This is more than just saying the prayer of salvation or even being "born again." John 10:27, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me."  I love the simplicity and the intimacy of this verse.  An intimate relationship is a constant interaction with God that is real and personal.  (Experiencing God, Blackaby)

Second, The Bible must be the final authority for all life and practice.  If we don't hold the Bible as the standard then people will make it up as they go.  Isaiah 55:8, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD."  There must be a shift in the mind in which a person humbles themselves under the authority of God's Word and trust what He says to be right and true.  When this happens you begin to see real life change as the individual begins a life long journey of change and adjustment.

Third, one must be held accountable by the body of Christ. There are many levels of accountability and a necessity for all levels.  According to Matthew 18:15-18 accountability begins with peer-to-peer.  We have the responsibility to help our brothers and sisters in Christ if we see they are going astray or if they have offended us in some way.  If peer-to-peer is ineffective then there should be a peer-to-group accountability where truth is established and encouraged.  If the person is still walking contrary to the scriptures after the group accountability then Jesus says to take the matter to the Church.  This is outlined very clearly in 1 Corinthians 5.  If the person will still not repent from their sin they are to be removed from the Church in order to protect the integrity of the whole.  Once a person has repented of the sin and are walking according to the Bible they should be fully restored to fellowship and service in the Body of Christ. (Galatians 6:1-2).  Although in today's world this might sound harsh, people practice this same thing in families, schools, jobs, and sports.  Why is it that we would guard the name of Christ more than we would these other areas.

My heart is broken over the lack of true discipleship going on in Churches today.  Until we as Christians are willing to take the time to invest in others there will not be the radical life change that Christ can and should bring.  As we start our new Church Plant I am excited to call the church body to a real life changing gospel that will change the course of many generations to come.  What is Christianity without these three keys.  It amounts to new born babes unwilling to take care of themselves and surely unable to take care of others.  

If you are searching for the changed life, if you know you need this kind of discipleship, email me at bill.s@reliantrails.com and I will direct you to a church in your area that will lead you in the ways of God.

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Three Keys to Discipleship: Authority of God's Word Part 3

After understanding the mindset of where we have come from, it is easy to see how so many people look at organized religion as a failed institution.  This translates to a lack of authority from the Church and ultimately from the Word of God.  With all the craziness that goes on in the name of Jesus, it is no wonder that people are seeking guidance from other places.  But the truth is, God's Word has never changed and the old saying still stands, "Truth is always truth."

God has established his word above even his own name according to Psalm 138:2.  Which means even God himself is bound by the truth he has written there in.  The Word of God is an everlasting bond between God and man and will last for all eternity.  This is why we can bank our lives on the truths that are found within it's pages.

The blessing of understanding God's Word as the final authority in the church is two fold.  First, the church will not be molded into the preferences of any man.  The truths of the Bible supersede any culture or people group and therefore stands the test of time.  The second, is the unity that one set of truths bring to the body of believers.  When we are all in agreement that the word of God is our final authority we can all function in the truth that is found within. This removes the authority from men and places it where it belongs, on God.

I see many churches that want a good discipleship process but they spend no time establishing the Word of God in the lives of their parishioners.  Thus leaving them to their best judgement of what is right and what is wrong.  This only lends to confusion and compromise as people are faced with life changing decisions.

Next we will discuss the last key of discipleship which is accountability.  Comments and discussion are welcome.

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Three Keys of Discipleship: Authority Part 2

We have been discussing the Second Key of Discipleship which is Authority in God's Word.  This is a continuation from the last post so make sure you read part 1 before going on.

The 1980’s to the Present (Baby Busters & Mosaics).  When the King is in question, people lose the fear of God.  Church became nothing more than a religious activity on Sunday.  God was a good idea with no substance.  It was O.K. if someone believed in God, but few knew if God really existed because society had ceased to live by faith.  We had become self-sufficient, or so we thought.
Revelation 3:17, “Because you say, 'I'm rich; I have become wealthy, and need nothing,' and you don't know that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked,”  This generation views many of the people in church as hypocrites, or fake, because most would pledge allegiance to Jesus on Sunday and live for the Devil the rest of the week.

Today’s generation is the “show me” generation.  Preaching a good message is no longer sufficient. There must be feet to the message. There are tons of preachers standing in pulpits all across America commanding people to win the lost through personal evangelism when they do nothing to evangelize their world.  It is this shallow Christianity from the so-called men of God that causes the current generation to question the motives of the church.  Where is the reality?  Where are the people that are actually doing the things that we preach?  Where are the Spirit-filled believers that are living with the almighty God that we preach?  These are the questions of this generation.

Today’s generation will not receive a message of authority and loyalty to a person or a cause just because someone preaches it.  They demand the proof of it. They have been lied to for too long. “Because I said so” doesn’t cut it anymore! “Because the Bible says so” doesn’t cut it anymore!
The proof is based solely in the reality of the day to day actions of the believers.  How scary is that, when we look at the state of the believers in our churches today.

A proper balance must be drawn for God to be seen in this generation. We must remember the lessons of our fathers.  Proverbs 22:28, “Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set.”  The fear of God must be restored.  The fear of God produces respect toward God and his body, the church.  When respect is restored obedience and service naturally follow.  We must learn the balance of love and respect.  Love is not in competition with respect. True love naturally produces respect.  Jesus said, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.”  True love is caring about others more than you care about yourself.  Therefore, true love produces the reality of caring more for others than one’s self, and respect follows naturally.  Demanding respect without love leads to rebellion because it is oppressive to the soul.

To Be Continued in Part 3

The Three Keys of Discipleship: Intimacy

I remember, as if it were yesterday, 20 years ago traveling up to First Baptist Church in New Philadelphia, Ohio to visit some men of God that helped me learn how to mentor the people of God. Mark Trotter and Frank Pardue (God rest his soul) were the pastors at the time and were very gracious to spend time teaching young ministers how to "pour into" others.  Since that time I have made it a life long mission to learn the best practices of mentoring Christians for the cause of Christ. Kim and I have been taking tons of physiological profiles this week as we get ready for our Church Planting Assessment and I am finding that searching out best practices is right in my wheelhouse.

When it comes to building people for the kingdom of God there are three major components that I have found that must be present.  If one of these is missing, you will have a shallow result that does not reproduce itself, and let's face it, discipleship is all about multiplication.  Over the next few posts, I will discuss all three of the aspects needed.

The first key to a reproducing discipleship is "Intimacy with God." One of the biggest problems that I see in the church today is a shallow sense of intimacy at that moment of salvation.  We spend a lot of time talking about forgiveness for sin and not the person that has been offended by that sin.  God has always been drawing people "unto himself."  For example, in the book of Deuteronomy God chose a people "unto himself" which in turn makes them holy. The proper definition of the word 'holy", is "to be set apart", not "to be righteous".  The Children of Israel were by no means righteous before God but they were set apart by Him "unto himself." (Deuteronomy 14:2; 28:9; 29:13)

Not only was God concerned with a nation for himself but for a people of all nations, tribes, and tongues.  In that famous passage of 2 Corinthians 5:17-21 we are told in vs. 19 that "God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself."  These are just a few scriptures on this matter, but I think the point is clear.  God has sacrificed His Son so that he might have an intimate love relationship with His people.

So, how do we structure intimacy into our discipleship process.  This is normally the place that you get the pat answers of read your Bible and pray more.  And although I'm not in objection to that, I want to dive a little bit deeper.  To build intimacy with the Lord one must walk with Him.  Walking with God can only be done through faith.  And there in lies the key.  How does your discipleship process produce impossible circumstances where your disciples must walk by faith with God? Materials will not do that.  Bible reading will not do that.  Prayers won't do it alone.  There must be situations and circumstances that demand faith. Faith will build a lasting and intimate relationship with the Lord that is real and personal.  "Without faith it is impossible to please Him."

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Getting to the Core: Disciple Makers

Over the last few years you have seen a business term creep into the church world and that term is "core values."  As I was learning how to run a church in the early days, I understood you needed a mission statement, goals and objectives, and tactics to accomplish those objectives.  Now the language has somewhat changed in the fact that you have a vision statement, core values, and strategies to get it done. There is not much difference in these sets of statements but I do believe they are better defined today.  For example, a core value is defined as "A principle that guides an organization's internal conduct as well as its relationship with the external world." (Read more: www.businessdictionary.com)

As we start the new church plant: Reliant Ministries, it is important that are core values be the very principles that guide our organization both internally and externally.  We have five essential core values:

1. Disciple Makers: We will make every effort to multiply our faith through evangelism and mentoring.
2. Bible Believers: The Bible is our final authority for all life and practice.
3. God Pleasers: By faith we will please God and trust him with our lives.
4. Community Engagers: Ministry runs on the rails of relationships.
5. Kingdom Builders: We will take every God-given opportunity to advance His kingdom in this world.

Everyone of our core values are given to us directly from God's Word, and our first core value is "Disciple Makers."  We are commanded in Matthew 28:18-20,

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (emphasis mine)

Notice that Jesus didn't tell us to go and make converts or simply evangelize, but to go and make disciples.  The word disciple is defined as "a person who is a pupil or an adherent of the doctrines of another; follower." (Dictionary.com)  Jesus has commanded us to make followers.  It is so clear in the scripture that Jesus called the 12 disciples when he said "follow me."  After the ascension of Christ, Paul gives the same command to the church of Corinth when he says, "Follow me as I follow Christ."  There is a lot that goes into making a disciple.  The first step is to evangelize and win them to Christ, but that cannot be all there is.  Salvation is a spiritual birth.  You wouldn't leave a baby at the hospital and claim success as a parent.  No, the journey has just begun; and then the training begins.  And the way you train will have a direct impact on the life of that child, soon to be an adult. So it is in the life of a new born babe in Christ.  "Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation." (1 Peter 2:2)  

There are three key elements to any effective discipleship strategy:

• Building Intimacy with God
• Establishing the Authority of God's Word
•  Accountability to God's Word