Forrest: Glad for us all to be together today and to open God's way.
Forrest: And it's pretty amazing to get to think about as on my way this morning coming to church.
Forrest: I was thinking that uh we are six months old.
Forrest: Just six months ago.
SPEAKER_01: I'm going to the hospital for the birth of thinking back to uh my first child at six months old.
SPEAKER_01: Just getting about the six month old.
Forrest: I was thinking about um all the Lord has done in us, and the last few weeks we've gone through this series fearless.
Forrest: We've been talking about us and where we can have a fearless life, and that's been an amazing time, and many of you have shared with me how that's encouraged you and ministered to you at different times.
Forrest: And today I'm gonna bring us back to the sort of center of the road, so to speak, today, as we talk about the blueprint church.
Forrest: Now, the last time I preached on this passage um was March 21st of last year when I get to preach at a friend's church, was preaching on this passage we're going to look at today, and I was thinking back to that time in March of last year, and a lot has changed in the life of Multiply since that point.
Forrest: March of 2021, Emily Mah had just been here in Frankfurt for a few months.
Forrest: Um, when I went to go preach this message at a friend's church, it was Emily Ma and Liberty, and a couple others were planning to move to Frankfurt, but Multiply was very much just a twinkle in our eye.
Forrest: Obviously, I grew up in Kentucky, but we were in South Carolina at the time, a part of an amazing church, and the Lord made in our heart for us to move to Frankfurt to begin a work to reach the people of Frankfurt and Kentucky State University.
Forrest: A lot of that's come to fruition.
Forrest: I got to have an amazing experience last Saturday.
Forrest: Um on Saturday, it was uh Kentucky State's first home football game.
Forrest: Got to pray with the team before the game on Saturday, and I got to be on the sideline with the team, ministering them just to get to know them during their first home game uh here in Frankfurt.
SPEAKER_01: And there's a foundation that has been laid that we're gonna look at.
SPEAKER_01: Now, you think about blueprints, you think about the originals.
Forrest: Where do we where do we even go to when we were talking about starting a church?
SPEAKER_01: When you think about the blueprints of the originals, there's something that's very valuable about an original.
SPEAKER_01: Um, actually, last year in January, the original 1952 Topps Mickey Mail baseball card sold for a record five point two million dollars.
SPEAKER_01: It was the first annual set the company ever produced.
SPEAKER_01: Listen to this.
Forrest: The original Cotex of Lester by Leonardo da Vinci, a collection of writings of his from 1510, the original, sold to Bill Gates for thirty point eight million dollars.
SPEAKER_01: And that was in 1994, that was 20 years ago.
SPEAKER_01: There's something there's something the beginnings in the prototype.
Forrest: But for us, we're six months old as a brand new church, and also when you think about the fact that we should probably be looking at what's the true design of what the church should be, what the church should look like.
Forrest: And it's got some implications because we probably wouldn't think about what did Jesus want his church to look like, and then think about how did the church, how did it start 2,000 years ago, and then how's it going now?
Forrest: And then what does Jesus have to say about it?
Forrest: You know, it's kind of important because I was thinking about it with a little bit of a little bit of a time table.
Forrest: So say like me, you may be like me and you grew up in church, or maybe you didn't, and that's okay, but you're here right now, whatever age that you're.
Forrest: But just imagine if you're me and that you have been in church growing up, and that you know, maybe I live to the right age of 75, and I go to church that entire time, just for Sunday mornings, you know, to and from church, maybe do a Bible study here and there.
Forrest: Over my lifetime, I will have spent 487 days just going to church.
Forrest: That's over 11,000 hours of just being at church.
Forrest: That's a lot of time.
SPEAKER_01: Over a year of your life, spending in what's so-called church, and that's if you don't even do more than that, right?
SPEAKER_01: Over in the back.
SPEAKER_01: So if we're gonna spend that amount of time, if we're gonna maybe we should think about, hey, what should we be doing here?
Forrest: What should the blueprints be?
Forrest: And I want to center this back on the early church.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus has been crucified and the right hand of the Father Heaven, and then to his disciples.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus ministers for three years, then he sends them 50 scholars, three people who are following Jesus very faithfully on top of his 12 disciples that you've heard of, his famous 12 apostles.
Forrest: And Jesus tells you when you empower witnesses in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria to the ends of the earth.
Forrest: Jesus makes this promise to them that in his head to heaven, that he the Holy Spirit.
Forrest: And then we see Peter, the apostle, stand up at the day of Pentecost.
Forrest: The Holy Spirit descends on them in Jerusalem.
SPEAKER_01: There are tons of people who are there, and Peter stands up and gives a sermon like he's 3,000 people are saved and baptized that day.
SPEAKER_01: Verse 32.
Forrest: A deep sense of awe came over them all.
Forrest: And the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders, and all the believers met together they had.
Forrest: Easy to remember.
SPEAKER_01: They started in one place or in homes, and what did they do while they were there?
SPEAKER_01: They were hanging out, getting to know each other, fellowshipping is a good Bible room, sharing meals, praying, teaching one another.
SPEAKER_01: They started these little home groups.
Forrest: They were praying for people.
Forrest: By the time we left Charleston those five years to come to Frankfurt, we were like great, great, great grandparent group leaders.
Forrest: But we're seeing way back when thinking about what God could do here in Frankfurt, believing that God could do something just like that.
Forrest: And more.
Forrest: Today, after the service out in the four-year, there's gonna be several sets of small group leaders who are out there to receive you and talk to you about homes right now in our community.
Forrest: We're meeting, talking, having meals.
SPEAKER_01: We've got one group that's going over Zoom.
Forrest: They wouldn't have that back in the early church, but we have people in Emma and I's living room made decisions to follow Jesus and be baptized.
Forrest: And what's so exciting, as we're already beginning to see that happen right now through the beginning work, a little six-month-old baby that Multiply Church is.
Forrest: And I'm believing for so much more.
Forrest: Believing for so much more.
Forrest: We're sort of moving together.
Forrest: The second thing, this is a big bottle word.
Forrest: We're manifesting miracles through the power of God.
Forrest: They were seeing the miraculous happen.
Forrest: A few weeks ago, my friend Omer, who you all know, who's a part of our church, older guy, got baptized a few weeks ago.
Forrest: He came to me and asked me if I would pray for his older brother, who's older than him, who was going in for surgery that week after he was baptized.
Forrest: And so we stopped and we prayed in the foyer, and we prayed, I prayed over his brother, and the surgery that was gonna happen, they were going into his neck, some type of issue that he was having with his neck.
Forrest: And Omer came to me the next Sunday, and he said, You're never gonna believe this.
Forrest: I said, What happened?
Forrest: He said, The doctors went in to do the surgery, and when they went in, nothing was wrong.
unknown: Amen.
Forrest: The blockage, whatever it was, is completely gone.
Forrest: And Omer, just being baptized, went to be with his brother that day and prayed over his brother.
Forrest: Sat there on the sur for the surgery praying for him.
Forrest: And believing the Lord can do whatever he wants to do.
Forrest: It's just the beginning of what we want to what God what we what God wants to do in and through us.
Forrest: There's been all kinds of small little miracles that happen along the way.
Forrest: People in our small group, people in our church praying for jobs.
Forrest: One person praying it, playing it, praying that their boss would take another job and they did.
SPEAKER_01: The kind of miracles.
SPEAKER_01: But when you're meeting together, when you're in relationship with other believers, we can pray together and ask the Lord to do powerful work in your life.
Forrest: But it takes building in relationship of the power of God.
Forrest: A third thing they did, this is the M's, meals and money.
Forrest: Meals and money sharing.
Forrest: Boy, I'm so glad they shared meals.
Forrest: Because now we have some great taco nights at small group.
Forrest: Sharing meals together.
Forrest: And even to the point where they were pulling money together to give to those who had need.
Forrest: And you all know our heart, you know my heart, for us to be a generous church.
Forrest: And God's doing that this year, he did it last year.
Forrest: Praise the Lord.
Forrest: Is this our little baby church?
Forrest: We were able to invest in the community.
Forrest: By way of finances and materials for different projects, last year, over fifty thousand dollars that we were able to invest in Frankfurt and Franklin County.
Forrest: Praise the Lord! Praise God! Praise God.
SPEAKER_00: I don't know how that and the Lord's church.
Forrest: You see that heart continue this year in our partnerships with the different local nonprofits.
Forrest: And I'm believing big for God to do even more through that.
Forrest: Sharing, giving, and generosity.
Forrest: And the fourth in was though they were multiplying new disciples.
Forrest: Healthy things grow.
Forrest: And what started as a seed for them was growing daily.
Forrest: But I found out since then that here in Franklin County that um thirteen point six percent of people go to church regularly here in Franklin County.
Forrest: Which is not what you would expect, right?
Forrest: Kind of Bible belt feel kind of thing.
Forrest: There's a church on every corner.
Forrest: What it shows me is that God wants to do so much more.
Forrest: There are people who maybe known Jesus, but they've fallen away or got disconnected from the church for whatever reason, something bad happened or hurt.
Forrest: Somebody did something to hurt Zoom around the way and have disconnected.
Forrest: Or maybe they've just grown up and passing a church is the same thing as passing, you know, a business or a nursing home that is irrelevant to them.
Forrest: But we know what God really wants to see and what the true blueprint is.
Forrest: The true blueprint is that God wants to prove a fresh wind, a fresh fire through the work of the church.
Forrest: For us as a local church, that we will be a place that is multiplying disciples of Jesus.
Forrest: You know what?
Forrest: We're talking about starting a church and the beginnings of a church.
Forrest: You know, if we make disciples of Jesus, we'll make a church.
Forrest: You know, if we encourage others and have people in our lives that we want to share and love and encourage, and we'll be disconnected from God, if we'll make that leap, take that step to make one person at a time followers of Jesus, of ourselves and others, eventually we'll have a church.
SPEAKER_01: And we do.
SPEAKER_01: And God's going to continue to grow it.
Forrest: A disciple, somewhere is a fully devoted follower of Jesus.
Forrest: And when they begin to walk in there following of Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Forrest: And when that happens, when the Holy Spirit enters into you because you've given your life to Jesus, there's some benefits that come.
Forrest: One is that you have eternity in heaven with God.
SPEAKER_01: Another that here on earth is that's talked about in Corinthians and Romans that each of us have a gift from the Holy Spirit.
SPEAKER_01: At least one gift, a millennial gifts that are in the scripture.
SPEAKER_01: I want to share some with you now.
SPEAKER_01: I can't go through all of this.
SPEAKER_01: This is like a sermon series for I don't know, two years from now.
SPEAKER_01: But these are some of the gifts that God gives to us as we follow Him.
SPEAKER_01: Leadership to encourage and help the building of the kingdom of God, administration, teaching, knowledge, wisdom, prophecy, display of apostleship, service, and helps.
SPEAKER_01: Different gifts have to be lived out and shown the benefit in relationship with somebody else.
Forrest: Messiah, and he asked them, this is Matthew chapter 16.
Forrest: Verse 13, when Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi and asked his disciples, Who do people say that the Son of Man is?
Forrest: Speaking of himself.
Forrest: Well, they replied, Some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.
Forrest: And then he asked them, But who do you say that I am?
Forrest: And look who pipes up.
Forrest: Simon Peter answered, You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.
Forrest: And look at what Jesus told him.
Forrest: Jesus replied in verse 17, You are blessed, Simon, son of John, because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you.
Forrest: You did not learn this from any human being.
Forrest: Now I say to you that you are Peter, which means rock, and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.
Forrest: And I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven, and whatever forbidden on earth will be forbidden in heaven, and whatever you permit on earth will be permitted in heaven.
Forrest: Jesus looks at Peter and he says, Peter, you're the rock.
Forrest: On which at some point later, you're gonna kick start this thing on the day of Pentecost.
Forrest: You're gonna preach, and 3,000 people are gonna come to know you.
Forrest: You're gonna be the rock on which I build whose church?
Forrest: His church.
Forrest: Jesus gives the blueprint.
Forrest: And then he gives them the keys.
Forrest: Anyone got a set of keys on him?
Forrest: Anybody got set of keys on you can throw it to me?
Forrest: This looks like a nice car key.
Forrest: This may be, I maybe should keep this.
Forrest: Oh, even better.
Forrest: Even better.
Forrest: Mini Man.
Forrest: I imagine this is pretty important stuff on this key ring of yours.
Forrest: You probably do want this back.
Forrest: The other day I was going up to my house, and I came up to the front door, and I was trying to unlock my front door.
Forrest: And I unlock it and trying to open it up.
Forrest: It just wasn't unlocking, and I'm like moving the thing, and I'm standing there, and I'm keep doing the keys and I'm turning the knob and I'm trying to, and I'm like, what is going on right now?
Forrest: I got places to be, things to do.
Forrest: Like, I'm turning the key right now.
Forrest: This is not working.
Forrest: What is going on?
Forrest: And I was just me, and I'm like, I don't even know what I what I need to do right now.
Forrest: I'm like turning the key, pushing the thing.
Forrest: Well, we live in a hundred-year-old house.
Forrest: I don't know if you know this.
Forrest: As of September, we've just gone through a very hot summer.
Forrest: The house is swollen.
Forrest: And so I turned the knob and I'm like, the the door seems unlocked.
Forrest: And so I just pooped and the door pops open.
Forrest: It wasn't even locked.
Forrest: The house is just swollen up and the door stuck.
Forrest: The door wasn't unlocked the whole time.
Forrest: Boy, I felt like an idiot.
Forrest: Jesus gives us the blueprints.
Forrest: And then he's already given us the keys.
Forrest: The door is already unlocked.
Forrest: Jesus says that the gates of hell will not prevail.
Forrest: It will not conquer the building of his church, not our church, not for its church, not your church, but the church of Jesus.
Forrest: And he's already given us the keys.
Forrest: And he's told us what to do with it.
Forrest: And he's told us to take the blueprint.
Forrest: To start, to see new disciples be multiplied, to love and care for each other.
Forrest: And the gates of hell will not stop it.
Forrest: The gates of hell will not prevail.
Forrest: Jesus is handing you the keys.
Forrest: And saying, take this blueprint and move forward with it.
Forrest: Can you imagine this for a minute with me for just a minute?
Forrest: Imagine what it's going to be like.
Forrest: When we have a small group in every neighborhood in Frankfurt, and Franklin County, and some in Shelby County, and some in Anderson County, some in Owen County.
Forrest: Maybe some in Scott County, I don't know.
Forrest: Can you imagine with me for a minute what it'd be like?
Forrest: We see outposts of the work of God.
Forrest: People loving and caring and sharing one another, encouraging each other and building each other up and strengthen them in the way of the Lord.
Forrest: All over this community.
Forrest: I think about that.
Forrest: I think about what God could do.
Forrest: Not just for the sake of growth, but because less of 13% of people are experiencing what God truly has for them.
Forrest: God's handed you the keys.
Forrest: There are many in our community, and maybe you today, who are literally trying everything else.
Forrest: Trying other avenues, other ways of thinking, trying to get fulfilled through a career, through a job, through success, through putting money in the bank, having a boat, a big house, through relationships, all kinds of different things to try to satisfy and to fill up a place in their heart.
Forrest: Where God is the only one who fits.
Forrest: God is the only one who fits to truly satisfy, to truly bring life and fulfillment and salvation.
Forrest: God wants to use us.
Forrest: He wants to use you.
Forrest: He wants to use me to see that happen with more people.
Forrest: Maybe for you today, you've been coming to multiply for a little while, but you haven't taken the step to get into a small group, a community like that.
Forrest: You're nervous.
Forrest: What is this at people's houses?
Forrest: When do they do this?
Forrest: Like, what about my kids?
Forrest: We got all that figured out.
Forrest: And there's a bunch of people who are already going to these small groups in our church, and we want you to be a part of them as well.
Forrest: At the end of their service, there's going to be small group leaders out there.
Forrest: I would love to encourage you, talk to, talk to you.
Forrest: You can see them face to face.
Forrest: So it's not just completely intimidating of who am I walking into this house with?
Forrest: Where is this going to be and what's going to happen?
Forrest: But if you go and talk to them, you're going to see that they love and care.
Forrest: And I know that God wants to do so much more in your life.
Forrest: If you take some steps of faith, I'm believing.
Forrest: Will you believe with me about the small groups that are going to be started on K-State's campus?
Forrest: For those students.
Forrest: Come on, Lord.
Forrest: Will you believe with me for the small groups that are going to be started with young life?
Forrest: For teenagers, high school students, middle school students across our community?
Forrest: Can you believe that with me?
Forrest: Can we believe together?
Forrest: Small group's not the savior.
Forrest: Jesus is.
Forrest: And following his model, his blueprint.
Forrest: We're going to see him work powerfully.
Forrest: Will you pray with me now, Father?
Forrest: We're believing in faith.
Forrest: God, today.
Forrest: Lord, that among us, God, you want so much more for us.
Forrest: God, you want us to be able to see you to do miraculous things.
Forrest: We want to see you, God, do things that are an encouragement and building others up.
Forrest: And Father, I know that we want to see you, God, to fill our hearts, to fill our souls, Lord, on this side of heaven and for eternity.
Forrest: So Father, I pray right now across the room.
Forrest: For anybody who hasn't taken that step, that leap, to get into a small group, community, that Father, today would be the day that they take that step.
Forrest: Father, I pray for anybody in the room who maybe has lost it along the way.
Forrest: And God, that you would just put a passion back in their heart.
Forrest: Lord, to be a part of a community that's loving and sharing, just like in Acts.
Forrest: And seeing that happen with other people and multiplying that out.
Forrest: Reignite a passion there.
Forrest: Father, I pray across the room right now for anybody who does not yet have you, Jesus, as Lord and Savior of their life.
Forrest: Not just as a side thing or a check the box, but that they are truly submitted to you, Jesus, giving their life and commitment to you.
Forrest: So that you would work powerfully in and through them, that you would save them for eternity, that they would be alive with you.
Forrest: Today, God, all across the room, I pray for anybody who's not taken that step to believe you, Jesus, the Son of God, the Savior of this world.
Forrest: That right now, Lord, that they would proclaim in belief, in commitment to you, Jesus, that they would pray to you, God, something like this, Jesus, save me.
Forrest: I do believe that you're the Son of God, and that you died for my sins.
Forrest: Forgive me.
Forrest: Wash me as white as snow so that I can be with you one day.
Forrest: I commit my life to you.
Forrest: Jesus as you have given your life freely for me.
Forrest: Thank you for saving me.
Forrest: In Jesus' name.
Forrest: Amen.
Forrest: Hey, if you prayed that for the first time and truly meant it, I'm just celebrating with you.
Forrest: I'd love to encourage you, talk to you about it, talk to you about the next steps that are involved with that.
Forrest: Mainly to celebrate new life in you.
Forrest: Jesus forgiving you and saving you for eternity.
Forrest: Would you stand to your feet now as we respond in worship and singing?